Not long after I became a vegan 20 years ago, I started advocating veganism to others because I thought it would be beneficial to them. I went so far as to start a vegan catering company and cafe with my wife to show people that food can be vegan, healthy, and delicious all the time.
People whom I’d suggest reduce or stop eating meat would often say to me…
-“I ain’t giving up meat!”
-“I need meat.”
-“It ain’t now way I could stop eating meat.”
-“Meat is too good.”
-“I would go crazy if I didn’t have meat.”
I always think to myself. I love mangoes, but I don’t think that it would be a problem for me to give them up if there was some health issue associated with eating them, or if I learned that the mangoes I have access to were grown and harvested by slaves, I’d stop buying and eating them immediately. Aside from momentary regret, I wouldn’t feel deprived or sad. I’d simply enjoy all the other fruits and veggies that were still on the menu.
I would hate to have any particular food substance have such a hold on me, especially when I can obtain healthier alternatives.
I would tell people to give up meat for one month, and see how they feel, then they can go back to eating whatever they want, one month out of an entire lifetime, and so many tell me they can’t do it. I’ve tried to get people to give up meat and dairy for just one week and they say they can’t! I’ve given up eating all together for that amount of time (while fasting), but people can’t stop consuming dead animal flesh for that amount of time…why?
No healthy foods create cravings or addictions. Healthy foods allow you to depart from them for periods of time without anxiety, or withdrawal. If there is any food substance that you feel that your can’t give up for a year, a month, or just a week, you should really examine that food, it’s ingredients, its processing and storage methods, how it is prepared for you. You should control you diet, and ‘Eat to Live,’ not the other way around.
