Health has been coming up a lot lately. Not even lately- as every vegan knows every other non vegan you meet accuses you of being in poor health- regardless of their own health, by the way. But me- I get it twice over because not only am I a vegan but I'm a fat vegan. The worst of the worst. I somehow manage to be fat and healthy and that scares the shit out of people. So I'm going to talk about my own health nuttiness and how it applies to my veganism and my weight.
I do consider myself a health nut, but not an extremist (extremists usually don't use actual science or logic). Firstly I'll say that I'm a vegan for animal rights reasons and not for health but the health benefits are a very nice side effect. People equate weight with health when, in reality, a very thin person can do nothing but sit on the couch all day eating pizza and drinking soda and be very unhealthy and a very fat person can eat healthfully and be active and healthy.
The assumption is going to be that the thin person is healthy and that the fat person is not. Why? Because health is a strawman- no one actually cares whether you're healthy or not- they hate you because you're fat and only because you're fat and no one cares if you're healthier than they are. The sentiment that fat people can also be healthy is backed up by many studies which show that poor diet and inactivity lead to health problems- not the addition of extra fat cells in and of themselves. Furthermore, studies show that it's highly unlikely you're going to lose weight and keep it off- and if you are in the 5% who do, you'd better be prepared to literally starve your body into that socially acceptable form. In short, fat people are encouraged and expected to have eating disorders. Studies even show that fat people who restrict their calories experience a psychological consequence which appears in anyone who's starving, fat and thin alike and includes anxiety, fixation on food and intrusive thoughts of eating, depression. This because the body regards their larger weight as the correct weight and fights to return to that weight.
So let's start on health and weight. The myth seems to be that if you eat healthy and exercise then your body will stabilize at a "normal" weight (meaning a socially acceptable ideal). It all seems very simple to a lot of people- energy in and energy out. If you're expending more calories (units of energy) than you're consuming then you will lose weight. They fail to take into account that everyone's body burns at different rates and that different bodies expel those calories differently including as heat. For many of us whose bodies don't expend the energy as rapidly as someone else (a slower metabolism) then reduction of calories, especially severely, will lead to chronic fatigue, inability to concentrate or focus, irritability and depression, and a basic loss of enjoyment of life (life isn't too fun when you're too tired to even move). More so, as mentioned above, a sustained calorie deficit of 1500 calories or less cause severe psychological and physical effects which can even lead to death (related to the depression usually).
And where do we get this weird notion that you can't be fat and healthy anyway? Correlation- however, as we know, correlation does not equal causation. Did you know that the more ice cream sales there are the more rapes that are reported? From this we could conclude that ice cream sales cause people to rape others. Or not. In the same way, just because fat people tend to be more unhealthy doesn't mean it's because they're fat. So why is it, if not the excess of adipose cells on their body? Stress, depression, dieting, weight cycling (caused by dieting), and other factors are more likely to explain the correlation. These things don't come as a result of being fat- fat people aren't inherently depressed and stressed. It comes from sizism and fat people being shamed and bullied. In other words, we're not killing ourselves- you're killing us. It's a well known fact that extended stress causes heart problems as well as blood pressure problems.
One study split women into two groups. One group was instructed on traditional dieting and one group practiced Health at Every Size (or HAES) and were taught to love their bodies and respect themselves. Of the two groups, the dieting group lost weight (and thus lowered their cholesterol and blood pressure) but then regained it all (returning the health problems as well). The HAES group didn't lose weight, but they still maintained the health benefits. The reduction in stress and the healthy eating and exercise (as opposed to calorie restriction) gave them all of the same health benefits of losing weight, but without the risks of weight cycling or calorie restriction. So in short, being healthy has nothing to do with weight and more to do with what you eat and if you exercise. There are tons of studies that show weight does not directly impact health but how you treat your body does. Calling someone names and shaming them isn't going to make them healthier and, like all forms of bullying, it makes you an abuser and possibly an accomplice to ruining someone's life or even taking it.
Next let's talk about veganism. As I've said- I am not a health vegan. Veganism was originally created as a way to separate people who truly wanted to end animal cruelty from other vegetarians. In other words, veganism is, at it's heart, an animal rights movement. Yes, some people eat a strict vegetarian diet (also sometimes called a vegan diet) for health reasons, but they tend to still use animal products in other parts of their lives, whereas vegans don't. That's right- my conditioner? Not tested on animals. My clothes? No silk or fur or leather or wool to be found. Still, people tend to be extremely 'concerned' for my health. While this concern is usually a disguised insult designed to defend a person's own animal filled lifestyle or diet. So let's talk a little bit about the health of a vegan.
No cholesterol. No vegan food contains cholesterol- cholesterol only comes from animal products. Because of this vegans tend to have excellent cholesterol and blood pressure.
Protein- believe it or not, animal products are not the only source of this. People seem to assume I'm never getting enough and never realize that the average American gets about 3X the amount of protein they need daily. So it's not that I'm low on it- it's that you're way over on it. Still, you can always talk to a vegan body builder and ask them how they do it. Beans (including soy beans), legumes, nuts, seeds, and wheat all have tons of protein. All food has protein to some degree.
B-12- I don't think any meat eater even knew what this was before they started trying to find ways to attack vegans. B-12 is found, naturally, in animal products and nutritional yeast. Many vegans eat nutritional yeast though it's certainly not necessary if you dislike it since all supplement forms of B-12 are vegan and many vegan foods, including alternative milks, breakfast cereals, oatmeal, and alternative "meats" contain B-12. And hey, if you're a vegan geek and you're throwing back those energy drinks for all night gaming sessions- you're getting plenty. The average adult only needs about two and a half micrograms a day and extra stays in your system for quite a while.
In general, vegans and vegetarians tend to be healthier than omnivore's so it's probably not my health that you need to be worrying about. Today's vegans have a much easier time of getting all the nutrition that they need than the vegans during the 30's did. We have such a great understanding of nutrition and health- and we're learning more every day. Enough that an animal free diet is not only possible, but it's healthy and recommended for all stages of life including pregnancy, babies, children, and adults. Meat free diets are even recommended for heart disease patients.
Now, I myself even go a little further than that. I pay close attention to the ration of omega 6's to omega 9's that I consume (too much 6 is bad for your heart- sorry sunflower seed lovers). I don't consume HFCS and I stay far away from artificial colors. I eat very few processed vegan products and stick mainly to whole foods and I eat very little wheat (since some studies are showing a link with diabetes and heart problems). Basically- veganism is healthier than being an omnivore in general, but I'm even more of a health nut than most vegans. I've always cared about my health- and that includes my mental and emotional health which people seem to think they can walk all over.
Bottom line? Don't pretend to show concern for my health to disguise your bullying- you're threatening my health far more than any faux arguments you can come up with.
