Stupid vegan freaks...
Being that it is somewhat closely related, I wanted to share this snippet of info before my blog. I originally found this piece in a book on vegan-ism. The following is abbreviated from Wikipedia...
"Black Dog Bias
Black dog bias is a veterinarian and animal shelter phenomenon in which black dogs are passed over for adoption in favor of lighter-colored animals. Black dog bias is also known as "big black dog syndrome." Shelters often use the term BBD, or big black dog, to describe the type of larger dark-colored mixed-breed typically passed over by adopters.
The phenomenon may be due to a number of factors, including fear stigma against certain breed types, and the fact that large, black dogs are often portrayed as aggressive in film and on television.
Some people believe that during the pet adoption process some potential owners associate the color black with evil or misfortune (similar to the common superstition surrounding black cats), and this bias transfers over to their choice of dog.
Additionally, many shelters feature photo profiles of their dogs on the shelter website. Because black dogs do not photograph well, lighter-colored dogs have an advantage with potential adopters browsing the site.
A study done by the Los Angeles Animal Services challenges some of these claims, saying that a full 28% of adopted dogs are black. However, the bias theory simply asserts that predominantly dark animals take longer to be adopted than their lighter counterparts, and that large dogs take longer to adopt than small ones."
As of January 1st, 2012, I have completely cut out ANY animal product from my diet. That means no meats, cheese, milk, butter, etc. The only exceptions to this statement are honey, and refined sugars. I eat honey on a semi-frequent basis, and refined sugars (White sugar) occasionally. Refined sugar is filtered using a "Bone Char Filter" which is essentially a filter made from ground up animal bones, and is therefore NOT vegan. However, eliminating refined sugars from your diet is damn hard to do. Food companies are not required to let the consumer know what TYPE of sugar they use to produce their product, and it simply says "Sugar" on the ingredients list most of the time. On the contrary though, I DO NOT buy refined sugar for cooking in my home.
I've already gone through the roughest part of converting my diet, and now I find it to be very easy to stay away from the stuff. The difficult part is the beginning. It's incredible how much of our food comes from some sort of animal. Anybody who has gone vegan know what I'm talking about. In the beginning you may feel as if the entire supermarket is now off limits, and you will forever be shopping at Whole(foods)Paycheck for all of your consumables. Such is not the case. I still do a great majority of my food purchases at Target, King Soopers, and even Wal-Mart. There are only a few specialty items that I have to usually purchase at Sunflower Market, or Whole Foods.
I'm bringing this topic to the table this week in order to sort of appease anyone who may be considering an alternative diet, vegan or otherwise. I wish I could say that there is no downfalls to being on an alternative diet, but unfortunately there ARE.
Be prepared to be hated on. Get ready for awkward conversations, and situations that are too funny to be scripted. People will ask you questions like, "So... are you still... like... Vegan or whatever?", or "If you don't eat meat or dairy... then what DO you eat?"
There's a great deal of ignorance in our society, and its reach knows NO boundaries. Diet is not an exception. I can tell you that the effort is well worth the gains. I feel so much healthier eating a plant based diet, and the personal achievement of controlling your own indulgences is something that truly changes your perspective on life. The greatest benefit of all, is knowing that no other sentient being was killed, or treated poorly, to put food in your stomach.
My health is one of the most important things to me, and diet plays a HUGE part in that. There are numerous medical journals and blogs that can do a much better job of detailing the health benefits of being Vegan, so I don't want to spend a bunch of time on that. I do however want to dispel the rumors around dietary insufficiency as it relates to being vegan.
There is most certainly some health "Concerns" related to a vegan diet. Mainly with 3 things in particular. Those being, B Vitamins, Iron, and Calcium, all of which are found throughout vegan diets.
B Vitamins are found naturally in plant and animals. Making sure that you get enough B vitamins (Particularly B12) is very important. Most vegans do not get enough of them through the consumption of plants, however, there are lots of food that are fortified with these vitamins. Almond milk, for example, has 50% of your daily dose of B12 in one glass of milk. Eating foods that are fortified with essential minerals and vitamins is by far the easiest way to get the appropriate levels into your system. If that doesn't appeal to you though, you can also take a B-Complex supplement to create the same effect.
Calcium is basically the same story. We find this in lots of fortified foods, from Soy and Vital wheat gluten based faux-meat products, to milks and dairy free cheeses. Almond milk typically has almost 50% MORE calcium than regular cows milk. Not only that, but Almonds are also loaded with essential oils and minerals that everyone could benefit from having in their diet.
Iron is a big deal for vegans. If a person is iron deficient they may become Anemic, and although there is lots of iron in plant based foods, the human body has a much lower absorption rate of that iron, which means that we may not get our full dose. A multivitamin is a good way to fix that issue, although simply upping your intake of naturally "High Iron" foods is much better. Molasses is a great source of iron, and those of us who enjoy baking can easily incorporate this into our daily routines. Iron, like many of the other essential vitamins, can also be found in fortified foods.
All in all the health risks of such an alteration in ones diet, are severely out weighed by the benefits. If you are at all considering cutting back animal based foods from your diet, please don't be afraid to try it. After all, it doesn't have to be permanent. I myself wasn't able to make the full jump into being vegan until I had figured out how to do pizza without cheese.
And if you're about to adopt an animal... please take a second look at the black ones... they need love too. I have a big black dog... and he's a sweetheart.
(Flagg was Drooling watching me eat a Vegan Burrito)
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