This is not about drugs, alcohol or pornography… This is about diet. I want to give up meat and dairy. Anyone else out there trying to beat THIS addiction?
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Like I said on a tread elsewere, I do not consider it as an addiction 
I’m vegan myself and addicted to alcohol. Found it hard to let go of the eggs and cheese, but alcohol was a compleet different story. You do not get mental and physical withdrawal symptoms from letting go the animal related food.
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I’m pretty sure cheese has casomorphine and is physically addictive- it’s what keeps the calf coming back. The rest is just mental withdrawal I guess from breaking habits. I’m not expert though
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Then I’m happy that leaving the cheese behind me didn’t gave me the shakes 
*Just joking
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Yeah when I wasnt vegan I didnt even like cheese anyway so not something I have any experience of 
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Do you mind if I ask…Why do you want to give them up?
There is a topic named “Veganuary” in the Just For Fun Section of the forum. This might be interesting for you.
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I’ve heard this before…but I’m not sure there is actual evidence of people being fully addicted to it. I think stories take the “morphine” part of the science and run with it since so many people say “oh, I’m addicted to cheese”.
But hey…I don’t really care. Any reason for people to give up animal products is happy-dance inducing for me!! YAY.
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Well I shouldn’t say addiction… More like I’m trying to live a healthier lifestyle and since I’ve been able to stay clean from other addictions, maybe I could take the skills I’ve learned and apply them to this
Ahh ok. So your why is for your health? This is a pretty common entry for loads of people - they got into it for health reasons, and then later tapped into the environment/ethics in no particular order. My mother and father in law did exactly this.
For me, I watched a couple of documentaries about how animals are treated and the damage animal ag does to the environment and honestly…it was so easy immediately after. Because i didnt even see the tortured flesh of an animal that struggled for its life as a food group. The idea was not ‘on the table’ as it were 
If you are looking to break these cycles, I would recommend self education and reflection on these practises and see now you feel. Not the same for everyone of course, I’m only speaking from my and my wife’s experiences. If you want 3.5 documentaries to inspire you, I would recommend:
The Gamechangers (Netflix)
Cowspiracy (Netflix)
Land of Hope of Glory (Youtube)
(Short) Seaspiracy (youtube) if you struggle with abstaining from fish
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Whole good plant based is something pretty awesome you can do for your body, rock on!
I see there is lots of debate on whether animal products are addictive and I would argue it is circumstantial. Some people have very little trouble dropping these products and others have great difficulty and I think this should be take seriously. There are large connections between food and mental health and animal products are a perfect example of this.
A substance that is known to be bad for your health, produced in ethically and environmentally appalling conditions that people constantly make excuses for the continued to production and intake. But on the other side, it’s many peoples up bringing or connections to community. It’s familiar and comfortable, eating together builds relationships and is how most people celebrate. It’s mainstream and largely encouraged, and going against that can be, or at the very least feel incredibly isolating. This is an emotionally charged topic on two opposing sides and that can be confusing and painful.
I think it’s important to be fully honest with yourself about how you feel about removing these products. Absolutely do, but recognize the hole they may leave and take care of it. Be kind in reminding yourself of your morals and the reasons you want to step away from these things: health, environmental, ethical. A little research goes a long way in motivation. Approach it with humility an open mind.
It may be a smooth ride for you and that awesome! But if it’s not that ok too. Stick to your morals and you’ll keep moving towards better.
Sorry, bit of a tangent 
but that’s just the mental stuff. The logistics of it is a whole other bag of beans. Or lentils, whatever’s you preference ;3
Fall in love with veggies, you’re more than capable. Notice how the food you eat makes you feel and act on it. Like I find brown rice is good for sustained long term energy where a berry smoothie is good if I know I’ll need a boost of energy. There’s great resources out there, use them in tandem with listening to your body. Find what works for you and have fun! Go eat some veggies!! 
🫐:sweet_potato:🫑:potato:
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I’ve been Whole Foods plant based for about a month and I feel fantastic so far! The hardest part is missing the fast cheap options of drive thru’s. But when I’m at home I feel so much more satisfied with what I’m eating. I’m eating more now then ever and dropping weight like crazy without even trying.
Check out the website: nutritionfacts.org
It’s a free service with tons quick easy videos about the benefits of plant based diets. It’s been a real motivator for me.
I’m not vegan or vegetarian. I don’t eat dairy or gluten (peanuts, tree nuts and soy) because of allergies. And I do prefer Quorn because I can’t handle raw meat. I was a vegan as a teen but it was a lot harder back in those days so I gave up eventually. Today on the other hand there’s so many amazing vegan options out there and an awesome collection of recipes online. Just today I found a recipe for Vegan ricotta cheese that I intend to try tomorrow.
Usually for spring and summer time I do something similar to the fruitarian diet (I’m not proud to say that I add shit loads of artificial sweetened Sweet tea to that diet) and I always feel amazing while doing it. If I lived some place warm with acess to fresh fruit that haven’t traveled all over tge world I’ll probably stick to that year around.
I think the main reason should be how it makes you feel. If you feel restricted and like you’re missing out on great food, or feel sad because it’s not “morally right” to eat meat but you still want to do it then it might not be for you. Try your way, and find a balance that’ll make you feel amazing, and makes you looking forward to eat and try new things.
It’s easy being plant based nowdays even for the days you don’t feel like cooking.
Good morning friends! I’ll start by saying this: after just 4 days on a plant based diet, my knee pain, almost crippling pain and stiffness in my left knee, is 98% gone.
I have been a happy meat and junk eater for my whole life. At 60 yrs old, I’m no longer in peak physical condition, but not in terrible shape either. By the ‘charts’, I’m still considered obese (5’10", 220lbs) but I’m pretty active and strong.
Anyway, my knee has been giving me problems and there are days I would have to wear a brace. I sit all day at a desk job and even just sitting for 10 minutes would cause my knee to stiffen up and I couldn’t hardly take the first several steps on that leg - eventually it would loosen up but walking without a limp wasn’t really possible.
Sunday night, I came home from my AA meeting and Linda was watching a documentary on Netflix called ‘what the health’. I think the core message was that everyone from big Pharma, the govt, animal agriculture, food companies, fast food giants, etc… Every one of these industries was selling and feeding us just awful poison for the $$$ with no regard for our real health. There were participants in the show that saw great reversals in their bad health conditions after switching.
I’m not even doing this for animal rights or environmental reasons. I’m not that pure.
I just selfishly wanted to see if I felt better by switching to a clean whole food, plant based diet. Aside from my splash of real cream in my coffee (just can’t do without 
), we’ve eliminated all meat and dairy products for the week. I woke up this morning with only the tiniest dull ache in my knee.
We still have a week to go before we head out on a cruise (Celebrity cruise from Amsterdam up to the Fjords of Norway). I’m probably going to fall back into my prior diet on the trip, but it’s really amazing how much better I already feel.
This week has been a strict experiment and there are some tweaks we can probably make to this diet, but I’m pretty impressed.
Have an awesome day!
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I just try to eat clean and healthy, as best I can, and drinking plenty of water
Edit: exercise as welll, and intermittent fasting
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Glad you are feeling better!! Cruise sounds spectacular as well!!!
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