Veganism: A Form of Protest

I was quite proud of myself this past week. I was gulping down an Odwalla fruit drink a day and had my handy granola by my side almost constantly. I filled my plate with veggies and grains for every meal and strode right past the pizza station in Upper with confidence and poise. Although I have been successful thus far, I did have a dream about pizza on Sunday night. The cheesy slices were slowly spinning in the sky, taunting me, though I have yet to crack.

Despite my dairy filled dream, resisting animal products is not the most difficult part of being vegan. My biggest challenge, by far, is how fast I get full and how soon after a meal I want more food. My meal swipes are not unlimited! I only have so many flex dollars in my account! I did a little bit of reading on this and discovered that because I have cut out high calorie foods (cheese and eggs being the main ones), I need a larger volume of food in a more frequent intake. To remedy this problem, I have been eating a little bit of granola throughout the day and always have at least one piece of fruit waiting for me on my desk.

The most positive thing about being vegan is that I FEEL ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL. I used to get semi-frequently stomach aches and generally feel more sluggish than I do now. (Might I have been mildly lactose-intolerant?) Not only do I feel great physically, but I really feel like I am personally protesting against the incredibly destructive industry of animal production. I feel like every time that I pour some granola in my mouth instead of eat an egg, I am boycotting something with which I do not agree, and that is incredibly empowering.

I actually found a lovely website that presents a bunch of different environmental issues and explains why being vegan helps these issues.

http://www.vegansociety.com/resources/environment/biodiversity.aspx

The above particular article discusses the problem of loss of biodiversity. Cattle is a main reason for the loss of biodiversity because of overgrazing, waste pollution, and demand for concentrated feed. Veganism reduces demand for these products.

I am proud to say that I am a small part of reducing the power of a destructive industry and that makes me feel wonderful.