Vegucated: Thoughts & Ramblings
I’ve still been battling a pretty nasty cold, so much of the weekend was spent at home, on the couch. In an attempt to be somewhat productive, Alex and I watched Vegucated, a documentary about veganism which had been in my Netflix queue for awhile. Knowing that Shannon had recently watched it found it interesting, I figured it was worth a shot.
Overall, the documentary was mostly what you would expect. Similar to Forks Over Knives and Food Inc., it talked a lot about the health benefits of veganism, as well as animal rights. They took 3 meat-eating New Yorkers and put them on a vegan diet for 6 weeks, while educating them on the health benefits, and showing them footage of slaughterhouses.
The documentary was interesting. I’ve done a lot of research on veganism, since my 6 month vegan experiment, and I totally agree that a mostly plant based diet is generally better for your health, and better for the environment. I think my only problem with it was the focus on “veganism” as if it’s an all or nothing kind of approach.
Do I think everyone should be a vegan? No. Not necessarily. I’ve already said that I don’t think vegetarian is for everyone. I think food is a personal choice. (Read my thoughts on vegetarianism here.) However, I do think that everyone could benefit from more plants and less meat & dairy. Often I think people get intimidated by the ‘vegan’ label, and think “that would never work for me” rather than learning about the benefits of a plant based diet. I love Sarah’s vegan-with-benefits approach. I found that I liked most aspects of a vegan diet, but sometimes it really was too limiting for me. I found I was able to eat healthier if I incorporated some eggs and dairy back into my diet.
I was going to post a new recipe for some gluten free protein donuts today, but in the spirit of veganism, maybe you should just check out these vegan donuts instead. (Don’t worry, if you don’t have a donut maker, you can use a mini muffin pan!)
Click the photo for a vegan cinnamon sugar doughnut recipe!
I love that you are open minded and say that eating is personal. I tried veganism for a month last summer just for the heck of it. I more so did it to challenge myself to try some new foods and cook something new instead of my staple go tos. I really enjoyed it to be honest!
I watched Forks Over Knives this past weekend, and I kind of feel the same way you do. Food is a personal choice and while a plant whole foods based diet is really good, I think a little meat, eggs and dairy isn’t horrible either. Moderation right?!
Besides, how could you give up feta?!
I haven’t seen ‘Vegucated’ yet but it is in my Netflix queue. I really enjoyed Forks Over Knives so I’m sure this will be interesting too. I’m not sure if I could eat a strict vegan diet but I definitely don’t eat much meat. Protein – yes. Meat – not so much. Thanks for reviewing the movie for us. I always enjoy hearing other peoples perspectives on books and movies π Especially ones that could be somewhat controversial.
Sorry you’re batteling a cold. I’m right there with you and have been for over a week now! So annoying! That documentary sounds very interesting. I think everyone’s body reacts differently to different ways of eating. Some things work for some people and not for others π
Liz, I’ve been wanting to see this for a while! I’m with you, though; not everyone is made to be a vegan. But we all can definitely afford to eat more fruits and vegetables, and there is so much misinformation about diet swirling around in society. Def worth a look at the documentary!
i havent seen that documentary but enjoy any thing that has nutrition info about it- will be netflixing it soon. I really enjoyed your opinion on vegetarian/veganism and I think its very important to be respectful of people dietary choices π I have noticed that just doing meatless monday, I have started to incorporate more veggies and healthier eating approach in general.
I think vegan is a little too restrictive for me. I continue to consider it but…I feel good, I feel healthy and I’m able to control my weight doing what I’m doing. I’m pretty happy with it. I think more people should consider it for health reasons.
I have actually! And enjoyed it. Except for the parts about animal slaughter; yes it’s necessary to educated people, but I’ve seen enough of it, so I just closed my eyes during those parts.
I don,t believe in *only vegan* or *only vegetarian*. I agree with you that’s it,s a choice. I mean, frig, some places in the world have no food. And I could offer them meat, I would. I would never deny food to a hungry person.
I do have a problem with industrialized meat production and the suffering imposed on innocent creatures. Taking the right to life away. That, breaks my heart.
I actually haven’t watched vegucated yet, but will definitely be adding it to my list.
p.s. you look beautiful & Iove the dress your wearing in your doughnut post.
I watched Vegucated and it definitely has a ton of good information. I recently started looking into soy and the Paleo diet because of another movie called “In Search of The Perfect Human Diet. It has a LOT of interesting points as well. But I prefer a more plant based diet myself!