OK.. So meeru kuda FB lo, Insta lo ee ‘Vegan’ batch share chese memes, posts chusi, ‘Ayyabaaboi, Asal entra idhanthaa..’ Ani anukuntaraa.. Vaallu em cheppali anukuntunnaro meeku eppudu arthamkaledhaa..
‘Asal entraa ee Vegan, Vegan’ ane doubt mimmalni eppudu ventadutune undhaa.. Aithe welcome to the club.
Naaku kuda meelage chala questions ye unnai. So, Nak unna friends lo oka expert Vegan friend ni patkoni, Nak unna doubts anni adigesa. Her name is Vyshnavi, She’s been a vegan for a couple years now. She's very much into healthy eating, minimalism and is striving hard for a Zero waste lifestyle. So yeah, ‘Veganism’ ane activity lo munigi thelina person anamata.
So naku Veganism ane topic chuttu unna oka 10 burning questions eeme ni adiga, Let’s see what she says..
P.S: Ee questions lo konni chaala sensible questions, konni chala funny questions untai.. Basic ga vishayam entraa ante, Ee article chadivaka, Meeku Veganism gurinchi unna doubts anni clear aipovali anthe. Let's start.
1. Asal, First of all, What is this Veganism ? Tell me from the basics.
Veganism is a lifestyle where you avoid all animal products.
From dairy products to Leather. So I do not eat eggs, cheese, paneer, butter, ghee, curd, meat, fish, seafood and even 'Junnu'. Even Honey is avoided. I avoid eating, wearing or buying any product that has animal derivatives.
Veganism ni oka diet laaga consider cheyachu and also oka lifestyle laga. Lifestyle ne vegan ga maarchukunappudu, people also avoid shampoos, cosmetics, soaps and household products that include animal derivatives like gelatine and other animal fats and they only support cruelty free brands.
Animal testing chese brands ni boycott chestaru. People turn vegan due to various reasons like not wanting to kill animals, to stay healthy and even to support the environment.
2. How is it different from being a Vegetarian ?
Vegetarian ante manam milk, cheese, paneer, ghee etc etc anni baane tintamu and even use leather (animal skin) products like bags, belts and shoes.
Kaani Veganism ante completely being based on plants. Plants ante gaddi parka salads kaadu. By plants I mean, food items made in nature by sunlight. Veganism ante oka consciousness maintain cheyadam about the food we eat.
3. How tough is it to be a Vegan here, around you. (I’m specifically talking about Telugu states)
mmmm, it's actually a bit tough to answer this question because I was born in a vegetarian family. I ate only vegetarian food upto my 9th grade. And I dont know idi non-vegetrian tine vaallaku entha kashtamo bcoz intlo everyone will be eating non-veg and you can't avoid it. But you must know that, 9th grade lo I started eating chicken & GUESS WHAT? I fell in love with it. My all time chicken eating record is 17 leg pieces from KFC chicken bucket and if I can quit eating meat, and become vegan, so can you.
It is actually tough to be a vegan in Telangana/Andhra. We Hyderabadi people love our Chicken, Haleem, Irani chai and other meat and milk based dishes that I am unaware of. Mana Telugu households lo food ante celebration and celebration ante food. Ghee tho chesina halwa, Paayasam or chicken curry lekunda even chaavu dinaalu kuda jaragavu mana illallo.
Kani present lo, Veganism and non violence gurinchi chala awareness vachindi. Many celebrities are turning vegan and endorsing vegan brands. Hyderabad lo kuda 4-5 top notch vegan cafes unnai. I have seen many celebrities chilling at these vegan cafes. So, at least hyderabad varku it is easy to be a vegan and other parts of the state lo aithe manam koncham creative ga think chesi cooking cheyali.
OK, Aagu.. Anni serious questions ye aipothunai.. It's time for a stupid question now.4. Don’t plants feel pain ? They’re also living beings ye kadha ?
Oreyyyy interviewer ga, Itlanti question adge vaallandarini mukkalu mukkaluga cut chesi vegans ki spl biryani chesi pettesestha.
Nee face ki plants-living beings-pain-lolli-luska-sodhi-sollu ane thoughts vachinay ante neeku animals pain gurinchi inka ekkuva telsi undali.
“Plants ki pain kada?”"Water taagi fish ki illu lekunda chestunnava?”“Gaddi tini bathukutunnava?”
Itlanti chetha questions vesthe, naa next non-vegetarian meal nuvve.
Okay jokes apart, I watched a guy on instagram replying to the same question as you asked, and he said “Yeah, plants too are living things but they do not have a central nervous system. They cannot feel pain”. It is the most logical answer that any vegan can give you.
5. Usually Vegans are 1 in a 100.. So, What difference will one person giving up meat make?
Areyy, nijanga if It didn't make any difference nobody would have contacted me for this article. See, change has to begin. It has to begin somewhere.
person aina parledu. 1 person also can make a difference. 1 person is enough to start a revolution. Stalin movie choose wow wow Stalin wow ani ankodam kaadu broooo. You also become a Stalin.
I spoke about veganism to probably a 100 people now. Vallu evaru vegans ayyina, avvakapoina, they have an awareness now. Also, reducing the number of times of we eat meat per week/per month is a good start. It's all about the awareness and sensitisation.
Example, let's say, A person usually ate meat 3 times a week. And now if that person stopped eating meat altogether. On a MINIMUM, a single person can save 100+ animals per year by going vegan.
6. WHY Veganism, Why should we sacrifice ? We only have 1 life
I have many reasons for people to turn towards veganism,
1. Our body toxicity and acidity reduces. Overall healthy ga untamu.
2. We save 1,00,000's of litres of water as - Animals will not be bred for the purpose of slaughtering, accordingly less water will be used by slaughter houses to clean the animals, to feed animals.
3. Similarly, amount of food that goes to feeding animals in slaughter house will be reduced and can be used to feed the poor and starved. Global hunger issues can be tackled.
4. We develop a deeper sense of compassion towards every being.
5. Animals feel pain. Animals fear pain. Animals too go through depression in slaughter houses and meat shops. When animals are kept in slaughter houses, they grow depression. Due to which their hormones secretion drastically increases and when we eat it, those hormones also enter our body. And thats really not good ani I feel.
6. Reduces risk of heart disease, cancer, piles, bloating, skin issues, acidity etc.
7. Stone Age lo unnappudu our teeth and body physiology was different. Anduke we ate meat. But as we moved from covering ourselves in leaves to wearing clothes made in malls, our teeth and body physiology too has changed. Our bodies aren't really meant to process meat anymore. Our teeth are blunt and we just have 2 canines unlike carnivores that have a majority of canines.
8. In Indian culture, manshi chanipoina few hours ke body ni kaalchestham or bury chestham because the body starts decomposing. Alantidi, why do we encourage eating meat?
9. We all love dogs and we treat them with a lot of love and affection. I will never be able to eat meat with a happy face because, other animals, goats, cows, pigs and hens too are like our dogs. Oka animal ki food petti, Prema ga chooskoni inko animal ni nenu assalu tinalenu.
When the fishes in my aquarium died, I literally buried them with tears. And I can't imagine having a fish on my plate after that.
10. Mana population is rising. To meet the meat demands of the people, breeders inject hormones into animals to make them grow faster. A hen usually takes 8-12 months to full mature and grow. But these poultry people give injections and grow the hens within 1 month. By eating such artificially matured poultry, we face a lot of hormonal issues like early puberty/maturation and a research says "Not only did vegan men have as much testosterone as meat eaters, they actually have 13% MORE of this manly hormone. "
As you very rightly said, yes we have only one life and that is exactly why we must take care of it. The thing is, eating meat won't kill us, It'll make us suffer.
Things like climate change, global warming and food/lifestyle diseases won't kill us in one go. It will be like slow torture. And I feel that "Prevention is better than cure". And this one life needs to be full of love and compassion towards beings that cannot speak.
Hundreds of researches have been done and its been proved that meat is the cause of heart diseases. To know more watch the food and lifestyle documentaries on Netflix.
7. Is there anything like, Vegan-Friendly meat ? (IDK, Super curious!)
Vegan friendly - animal friendly meat gurinchi telidu kani, there is something called “halal meat”. Which means that the animal has been killed in a permissible way. But who spoke for the animals? Who gave an expressed permission for these mute animals anedhi naakaithe telidhu. So I believe there is nothing like “Vegan meat”.
We do have many vegan alternatives for meat called 'MOCK MEAT'.
Mock meat is made out of soya, grains etc but tastes just like meat. I had mock chicken fries at a vegan cafe in Madhapur, and I really liked it. It's all in the cooking process.
I cook soya biryani with nutrela's large soya chunks, it tastes like a tender version of chicken to me (MY PERSONAL OPINION). Don't come back at me saying that "ChIcKeN CaN nEVer bE rEplacEd bY aNyThinG oN ThIs EaRtH".
8. Since meat & eggs contain a lot of protein, Where do Vegans get their protein from ? What is the source ? Do you have to use any supplements ?
Vegans get protein from sources like homemade peanut butter, Tella Senagalu (Kabuli chana), Soya chunks, dry fruits, Broccoli, tofu and many more vegetables.
In fact, There are many vegan body builders. Check out "vegan body builders" on youtube and know their diet. There are many vegan protein powders derived from 100% non GMO (Genetically modified organism) plants.
Virat Kohli is vegan, Liam Hemsworth is vegan. Amala Akkineni is a vegan.
Ram Charan and Samantha use vegan protein powders. Ram Charan was on a veggie diet while preparing his body for DHRUVA movie.
With increasing adulteration and excessively washing vegetables due to the fear of pesticides, there is not enough Vitamin b12 in our bodies.
Be it non vegetarians, vegetarians, vegans, everyone needs to supplement themselves with b12 for apt functioning of nerves.
I dove into being a vegan without enough knowledge and suffered a lot. So don't skip on b12. It's a bit expensive but its worth the price. Hair, skin and nails get better with b12.
I understand that you could say “when we get b12 in meat, why leave meat and take b12 supplements again” but, Meat tinte vache b12 ante damage ekkuva undi annappudu there's no harm in taking b12 supplements and going vegan or vegetarian..
9. Is being Vegan expensive?
This is another very frequently asked question. So, this is again a tough one.
When you stop eating meat, or go vegan, obviously the amount of options that are there for you to eat out reduce. So definitely you save money while eating outside.
But again, if you go to vegan cafes regularly, you will definitely spend money. And being vegan is all about looking for sustainable and economical alternatives in the long run.
Store peanut butter is 3x costlier than home made peanut butter. Store bought hummus is like 5x costlier than home made. So making your own food is the best option here.
I personally love avocados. So, there are times when I have to let go the idea of buying something else to buy my avocados.
Its all about making healthy choices on a budget. I don't buy almond milk from super market because its very very expensive and rather, I make almond milk, Cashew cheese and even oat milk in my kitchen.
10. So, What’s your ‘normal’ Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner ?
Personally, I prefer eating ragi/jowar flakes with almond milk (I make that at home) and fruits for breakfast. But I also eat Idli, dosa and gunthaponganalu at home.
Lunch ki I used to eat rice, brown rice etc, but I started eating millet. I eat millet, Pappu, occasionally aloo/dondakaya fry, sambar & charu. I also eat mushrooms, rajma and chole curries that I cook occasionally.
Dinner ante, I personally prefer eating vegetables (boiled/raw) with nut sauces or Hummus that I make at home.
11. Do you ever miss eating meat, cheese, milk products ? How do you resist ?
I don't miss meat anymore because I whenever I think of meat, I can only hear animals screaming before being butchered. So nope.
I do miss curd (especially with such horrible summer heat) and ghee a lot.
And thats the only reason why I fell off track from being vegan in the last few months. However I plan on learning to make a plant based alternatives for curd like coconut curd or peanut curd.
And Ghee? ummm. I’ll think about an alternative ASAP.
I don't really miss eating cheese, paneer because we do have alternatives like cashew cheese, tofu etc. Plus, there are vegan cafes with vegan cheese, vegan pizzas and cakes in Hyderabad.
12. With all these Vegan jokes, memes & trolls all over internet.. How does it affect you ?
The toughest part of being a vegan is not controlling yourself from eating the foods once you loved, the toughest part is dealing with the trolls you get.
I got trolled by my own cousins, few friends and even colleagues. They would make lame jokes on me and ask me If I was eating grass. People would tag me in really horrible vegan memes and there were days when I got so angry and lashed out on social media about shaming my food choices. People made faces at me for drinking and eating healthy food.
I couldn't avoid these trolls in workplace, college or social media. Every time I felt low, I just thought about how being a vegan has helped me.
1. My immunity increased. I used to fall sick every week when I ate dairy products. But after turning vegan, I. rarely fell sick. From getting fever every week and constantly surviving on antibiotics, I went completely disease free. I got fever only 2 times till today after turning vegan in 2017.
2. Unlike a majority of girls/women, I never faced issues with my periods or PCOS issues or cystic acne.
3. My sinusitis reduced automatically.
4. I lost a decent amount of weight.
and many more reasons like these have kept me going until I realised I lacked a couple of nutrients.
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO SUPPLEMENT YOURSELF WITH B12, Calcium, D vitamin, healthy fats and Zinc.
Drinking water and Cooking food in mud pots helps with getting natural B12. All these vitamins I mentioned are available in dry fruits and nuts. But its always better to also supplement from good brands. 2-3 times a week.
Don't crib about the prices of these supplements please. We spend so much on junk food, expensive meals, fast fashion, make up, gadgets and many more misc areas, then why not invest in our own health. Its better to invest in good food and nutrition rather than hospital bills and medical shops.
I always spread awareness about veganism and its benefits to our body and the earth but I don't think I ever food shamed someone in their face for eating meat.
Its not necessary to go vegan for all the above mentioned benefits. Reducing the amount of dairy, refined flours, sugars and meat gradually, will show great results. Reducing the frequency of the number of meat based meals we eat is the perfect balance. Don't control your temptations. But do be compassionate. We all must learn balance to have a sustainable future.
As Arjun Reddy lo Bamma says,
"Suffering is a person, let him suffer", I also say "Food is a personal choice, let them eat" :PTinandi. Nachindi Nachinantha tinandi, kaani tini tini sick avvakandiNote:
Being vegan and being plant based are not the same thing.
We have A LOT OF vegan street food/junk available like French fries, McAloo Tikki @McD, Potato chips, panipuri, noodles, Manchuria, pakodi, Bonda, mirchi bajji, chat, samosas and OREOS. Yes, Oreo is Vegan (THIS JUNK VEGAN DIET WON'T HELP YOU BUT IT WILL GIVE YOU COMFORT APPUDU APPUDU TINTE).
Being a plant based vegan ante, you majorly eat plant food like veggies, grains, fruits etc.
Last but very important words, Being vegan definitely takes effort but it's worth the effort. But will help you a lot in the long run.
Fin.
So.. yeah. This is the A to Z of basics of 'Vegan'. Inkosari, evaru ekkada eppudu.. 'Arey entra asal ee Vegan' ani adigithe, This article should come in handy and as a help ane intention tho rasanu idhi. Nenu inni questions adigina oopika ga answers ichi na doubts anni clear chesina Vyshnavi ki special thanks.
So, Ee 'n Burning Questions I Asked My '....' Friend'.. ane series lo what topic do you think I should cover next !? Do let me know @ejazej1
Itlu mee Ejaz
