going vegan or vegetarian!!!

Beans have a much higher propensity for blocking iron, magnesium and a few other micros than dairy however.

That's interesting, I didn't know that. I was reading that prune juice is a good source of iron which I might drink appose to taking iron supplements from vitamin pills.
 
That's interesting, I didn't know that. I was reading that prune juice is a good source of iron which I might drink appose to taking iron supplements from vitamin pills.

I use organ meat myself. Or spinach for heme iron if you're a vegetarian. Cast iron skillets also.
 
Eat insects, problems solved, fluffy snowflake brigade gets to not eat mammals and you cannot complain about environmental concerns regarding insect farming.

The rest of us can supplement our mammal consumption, so we don't have to eat as much of it.
 
If you go vegan, I recommend that you get B12 shots appose to taking B12 capsules or tablets since the shot is more effective. I don't recommend that you go vegetarian simply because dairy can block or reduce the absorption of iron.

If you get some vitamin C with the iron that greatly increases the absorption of it.

''Iron is found in food in two forms, heme and non-heme iron. Heme iron, which makes up 40 percent of the iron in meat, poultry, and fish, is well absorbed. Non-heme iron, 60 percent of the iron in animal tissue and all the iron in plants (fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts) is less well absorbed. Because vegan diets only contain non-heme iron, vegans should be especially aware of foods that are high in iron and techniques that can promote iron absorption. Recommendations for iron for vegetarians (including vegans) may be as much as 1.8 times higher than for non-vegetarians 1.

Some might expect that since the vegan diet contains a form of iron that is not that well absorbed, vegans might be prone to developing iron deficiency anemia. However, surveys of vegans (2,3) have found that iron deficiency anemia is no more common among vegetarians than among the general population although vegans tend to have lower iron stores 3.

The reason for the satisfactory iron status of many vegans may be that commonly eaten foods are high in iron, as Table 1 shows. In fact, if the amount of iron in these foods is expressed as milligrams of iron per 100 calories, many foods eaten by vegans are superior to animal-derived foods. This concept is illustrated in Table 2. For example, you would have to eat more than 1700 calories of sirloin steak to get the same amount of iron as found in 100 calories of spinach.

Another reason for the satisfactory iron status of vegans is that vegan diets are high in vitamin C. Vitamin C acts to markedly increase absorption of non-heme iron. Adding a vitamin C source to a meal increases non-heme iron absorption up to six-fold which makes the absorption of non-heme iron as good or better than that of heme iron 4.
 
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Vegetarian is cheaper and easier for protein.

I'd recommend a lacto ovo pescatarian diet.

Fish, eggs, dairy, veggies, and fruit.

Protein, fat, with monitored carbs.
 
Ive been doing the vegan thing for 2.5 years. I really like it a lot. I think it is probably one of the healthiest ways to live (diet-wise) but obviously I cant be 100% certain about that. You do have to know what youre doing if its a long term play. Im still the same weight and bodyfat % (6 ft 2, 225 pounds) so no problems there. Testosterone levels have stayed the same. It may be a little bit harder to build new muscle on a vegan diet but that could be other things at play for me. I feel great, tons of energy, get sick a lot less, sleep great, less GI issues. Even though I didn't get into it for ethical reasons, once I became aware I have to say I do feel good knowing I am not supporting certain industries. I would encourage everyone to at least try it, you might be surprised how much you like it.
 
Vegetarian is cheaper and easier for protein.

I'd recommend a lacto ovo pescatarian diet.

Fish, eggs, dairy, veggies, and fruit.

Protein, fat, with monitored carbs.
I remember years ago (long before I started the plant based diet) I read this article comparing the protein content of 12g of chicken vs 12g of rice/beans, it got the wheels turning:

Chicken vs Rice/Beans
Tryptophan- 151.2 vs 147.9
Threonine- 546 vs 498
Isoleucine- 682 vs 534
Leucine- 970 vs 985.5
Lysine- 1098 vs 742.65
Methionine- 358 vs 207.45
Cystine- 165.8 vs 136.95
Phenylalanine- 514 vs 652.5
Tyrosine- 436 vs 373.05
Valine- 642 vs 658.5
Arginine- 780 vs 799.5
Histidine- 402 vs 331.8
Alanine- 706 vs 562.5
Aspartic acid- 1152 vs 1393.5
Glutamic acid- 1936 vs 2025
Glycine- 636 vs 508.5
Proline- 532 vs 533.25
Serine- 444 vs 657

Its quite clomparable and the rice beans has higher levels of a few key aminos (leucine, arginine, glutamic acid)
 
Ive been doing the vegan thing for 2.5 years. I really like it a lot. I think it is probably one of the healthiest ways to live (diet-wise) but obviously I cant be 100% certain about that. You do have to know what youre doing if its a long term play. Im still the same weight and bodyfat % (6 ft 2, 225 pounds) so no problems there. Testosterone levels have stayed the same. It may be a little bit harder to build new muscle on a vegan diet but that could be other things at play for me. I feel great, tons of energy, get sick a lot less, sleep great, less GI issues. Even though I didn't get into it for ethical reasons, once I became aware I have to say I do feel good knowing I am not supporting certain industries. I would encourage everyone to at least try it, you might be surprised how much you like it.
Glad to hear you're on the good side!
 
I've been reading for two days now on vegan diets and will continue to delve further into this the coming days atleast. So far I see a contradiction between theoritical knowledge and epidemiological studies (and randomized controlled trials to a lesser extent).

Theoretical knowledge of vitamins and minerals would make it seem a vegan diet wouldn't be bad for your health because of issues with vitamin D, calcium, EPA & DHA, B12. Iron, protein and protein quality is rather easy to achieve with a vegan diet if you keep an eye on it. But vitamin B12 is simply impossible unless you get it from a lab. Normal omega 3 levels, especially EPA & DHA are virtually impossible unless you supplement with algae oil. Calcium seems doable but with some doubts and I haven't read much yet on vitamin D in relation to a vegan diet. Then, I don't simply know of any compounds in high quality meat that are hazardous in a diet. Saturated fat I don't think is bad and neither is cholesterol in moderation.

Now, the epidemiological studies seem to contradict this. It's not just epidemiological studies but also a fair amount of randomized controlled trials (http://plantbasedresearch.org/study-design/randomized-controlled-trial-parallel). They might just be epidemiological studies and I can imagine they all run into the same difficulties assessing this topic, not to mention bias, but certain studies seem very big and they all pretty much come to the same conclusing, that eating animal products and in particular meat causes a lot of diseases especially cancer. The randomized control trials seem quite aligned with the results of the epidemiological studies but they are much more specific and limited.

Please correct me if I'm wrong.
 
should I do it guys? any stories or comments? I can use some good solid advice!
Eating a whole food plant based diet is the best diet for human health.

Eating a whole food plant based diet dramatically reduces your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and a number of cancers. You will be consuming a very high fiber, micro nutrient dense diet. Your hair and skin will flourish. You will have better cardiovascular endurance. Your gut flora will flourish. Your erections will get stronger. Don't listen to the nonsense in this thread. Consult the actual peer reviewed literature.
 
Eating a whole food plant based diet is the best diet for human health.

Eating a whole food plant based diet dramatically reduces your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and a number of cancers. You will be consuming a very high fiber, micro nutrient dense diet. Your hair and skin will flourish. You will have better cardiovascular endurance. Your gut flora will flourish. Your erections will get stronger. Don't listen to the nonsense in this thread. Consult the actual peer reviewed literature.

Eat insects
 
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