Hi everybody,
After 2 years of being vegan, I will tell you a little about my experience.
Since I was little, I was a lover and defender of animals. I always remember my dad telling me “Erika, please don’t touch the dog”, because when I went out, I always caressed and hugged the animals that I met on the street and today, I still do. In fact, I was famous where my mother lived because I always fought with all the neighbors who did not give the correct care to their pets.
My parents were never green or anything like that, but they did told me things like that it was rude to litter on the street. Although no one taught me, I knew that it was bad to mistreat animals, waste water or electricity, etc. I also lived in a constant fight with my dad because he left the water running while he brushed or shaved. For me it was torture to hear the water running for who knows how many minutes.
I grew up with this misconception that to be healthy, you must eat meat. In fact, many doctors today still believe that you should eat some animal protein.
I always disliked having to eat meat and, in fact, touching it to cook it was very disgusting.
In 2012 I decided to stop eating animal products and when I had my medical check-up, I had low iron. At that time the doctor told me that I had to eat some animal protein. The true is that I wasn’t eating the right variety of nutrients. So, I went back to eating only eggs and eventually fish or chicken.
In December 2019 I saw a documentary called “The Game Changers” where it was shown that vegan food was healthier and that human beings should not and do not need to eat animal products.
There I decided to try being vegan again and it turned out that I ate more and tastier and felt lighter and more energetic. I learned to eat much more varied and to combine food better. Now I was really eating “everything.” And most importantly, the “dieting” was over.
My first motivation was to stop eating animals and stop contributing to animal abuse. Then I learned several very important things:
- It is not only the fact that our body does not need animal products but eating them greatly increases the chances of developing multiple diseases such as cancer. Most illnesses come from food.
- Animals are full of toxic substances. Fish, for example, are mercury sponges.
- Animals that come from the sea are also full of microplastics.
- Industrial fishing and livestock are the biggest polluters in the world, the kings of deforestation and the first cause of extinction of millions of species.
Bear in mind that all the poor animals that are eaten are full of filth (that same crap that humans put into the environment). Fish are full of heavy metals and microplastics and add artificial color and antibiotics if they come from a farm. Land animals are full of chemicals and antibiotics; to this must be added living with diseases and in unsanitary conditions until they go to the slaughterhouse. Not to mention the torture that all of them go through before being murdered.
I leave you several super important documentaries to find out the reality:
A Plastic Ocean
I learned that the problem is not only that the ocean is full of plastic, but that when plastic is ingested by marine life, it releases toxins that are absorbed by the muscles and organs of those animals. Logically, then the one who eats them absorbs them. When women get pregnant, they pass all those toxic substances to the fetus.
Cowspiracy
Big industries need us to eat animal products. Here we see the deplorable life that animals lead on factory farms and that agriculture is the biggest polluter in the world.
What the health
It is the one that impacted me the most because you see the mafia and the conspiracy behind a sick humanity. A sick person is more profitable than a healthy one. Furthermore, the biggest customers of the pharmaceutical industries are animal farms. Almost all NGOs are sponsored by animal product companies. That is why even cancer NGOs continue to advise people to eat animal products.
Here we also see the number of environmental activists who are killed. The numbers are terrifying.
The documentary shows how many people have been cured of diseases just by switching to a “Plant based” diet.
Seaspiracy
This documentary shows us the havoc caused by industrial fishing, which is the greatest polluter of the oceans and the first cause of the extinction of all species.
The data and the comparisons they make are shocking. Most pollution (and plastic) in the oceans comes from industrial fishing
Industrial fishing is a mafia and in many countries, people are kidnapped and enslaved to work on fishing boats. Furthermore, we see that there should be members of international organizations on these fishing boats to guarantee “certain standards”, but that most of them “die in accidents”.
The Game Changers
Since the ignorant question is always “Where do you get your protein?”, This documentary teaches us that a vegan diet is healthier, richer and improves performance. We also have the testimonies of countless athletes.
Since December 2019 I started doing more than I already did. I researched cruelty-free brands that are also chemical-free. It is not excessively easy because there are vegan brands that have chemicals and vice versa; In addition, there are brands that only have hair care or skincare; So far, I have not found a brand where I can buy everything I need for personal care and hygiene (and at an affordable price).
Keep in mind that right now some vegan products are more expensive but here you have “creating the habit of consuming less”. Instead of putting a line of toothpaste on the brush, put a dot on it, which is what you are going to use.
Then there are things like deodorant. I buy the one that is an alum stone and it lasts more than a year. For me it is wonderful because you do not waste, it is vegan and natural.
Another super important thing is to stop consumerism. You don’t need 30 watches or 40 pairs of shoes. Buy yourself a watch and when it gets damaged, you buy another one.
When I was little, I used to buy a lot of clothes and when my mother passed away, one of the changes I had in life is that buying clothes like crazy lost the sense to me. So, from there I sold or donated everything that I did not use and learned to buy only what was necessary.
The issue of consumerism is super important because companies like Zara with the business model that you wear clothes for a limited time and throw them away cause brutal pollution, in addition to producing in countries where they can have workers in subhuman conditions.
I’m not telling you to buy only vegan clothing made of biodegradable straw, but consume only what is necessary and worry about knowing what the company you are buying from is doing: if they mistreat animals, if they take care of the environment, in what conditions do they keep their workers, etc. It is about being aware and not living in ignorance.
Another thing I changed is to stop buying household cleaning chemicals. The truth is that with very little you already have the cleaning of the house resolved. I have enough with vinegar and a little soap.
What I consider important:
- Start step by step.
If you want to stop eating animals, you don’t have to do it overnight. You can go little by little. I stopped all animal products in one go, but there are other people who go at a different pace.
- Spend less
Spend less electricity, water, soap, toothpaste. Everything counts. This way you will take care of the planet because you will waste less and, in addition, you will save money.
- Get informed and do not support those who do wrong
Find information about the brands and companies where you put your money. This way you will avoid consuming products that have animal cruelty, chemicals or pollute the environment. The number of personal care products that have unhealthy ingredients is overwhelming, to mention one thing. Therefore, do not believe what they tell you and investigate. For your health and that of the planet.
- Surround yourself with people who do good
Make a circle of friends that are aligned with you. This will help keep you from feeling alone. Diego, for example, is the only one in his family and friends who is vegan and cares about the planet and they treat him like the black sheep. Which has made him feel bad at times. Meeting vegan people has helped me to know brands, learn recipes and acquire knowledge about nutrition. In addition, it is gratifying to see that there are many people paddling in the same direction as me, even though they are not from my immediate surroundings.
- Support vegan sites
In general, support those who do good, do not mistreat animals and do not pollute. Instead of eating a salad in a restaurant that sells everything, look for a vegan restaurant and you will surely eat more delicious and varied.
If you love to travel like I do, there are more and more options of vegan hotels that are committed to the environment.
- Don’t go to zoos
Do not go to zoos or any place where they have confined animals or wildlife pets. Please do not contribute to the removal of these poor creatures from their natural habitats and made slaves to provide entertainment for human beings.
There are people who in their ignorance believe that animals are better off in zoos than free. It is not like that, nobody is better locked up, much less with the inhumane treatment they are given.
In conclusion, for me being vegan has meant opening my eyes more and more and doing much more than I have already been doing. To continue doing my bit in what is within my power.
There are so many ways to do the right thing: do not eat animals, save water and electricity in your home, recycle, do not throw garbage on the street, buy only from responsible brands and know what the companies you buy from do, stop using chemicals, adopting instead of buying pets, etc.
I have even stopped following people on social networks who post something that has animal cruelty. Little by little I only have accounts of people who care and do things to save the planet.
I am glad that we are more and more. More and more famous, more restaurants, more hotels and more companies are joining the good cause of protecting the planet we live on. But much remains to be done.
To finish the post, here are some of the vegan brands that I love:
- The Ordinary. I really love this brand because they are vegan, they go against consumerism, and they have accessible prices. Plus, they have clean formulations that do wonders for my face.
- Isdin. It is a cruelty-free brand whose formulations are biodegradable (for the most part). For me it is the best in sun protection, and I have used some acne products that do magic.
- Urtekram. I bought a shampoo from this brand while in Portugal and it is wonderful. At first, I used the garnier’s shampoo bar but then I saw that it had sulfates and it also left my hair like straw. Urtekram has quite a few hair care products and body soap.
- Lidl. Lidl’s body cream is vegan and is the glory for my skin. Although the formulations are not the most ideal, they are increasingly having more vegan products. They also have a lot of vegan food.