grilled veggies1) How do you get nutrients in a vegan/vegetarian diet?

2) Why don’t vegans eat honey?

3) Isn’t being vegan just like being a vegetarian?

These are the tops questions that come up in discussions about vegan cuisine. It is getting almost as old as the top three questions about being a lesbian (people don’t ask me these questions any more, we are a little more educated as a population).

1) How do you get nutrients in a vegan/vegetarian diet?

Nutrients are easy. Eat legumes, lentils, beans, split peas, dahl, fava beans. All these foods have high amounts of protein. Eat vegetables. Vegetables have loads of minerals that your body needs to function. Folic acid, potassium, calcium, manganese, and some I can’t quite pronounce. Eating a solid stream of plant matter keeps the body balanced and healthy. Fruits and nuts also help the body. Nuts have loads of protein and other minerals and vitamins. Fruit is loaded with Vitamin C, sugars, and fiber that the system needs to keep going. Some people say fruit has bad sugars.  Not true. The body can process these sugars easier than the sugar produced by corn.

2) Why don’t vegans eat honey?

Vegans do not eat ANY animal product, including honey. Most vegans do not wear clothing made from animals. That includes leather and silk. (Silk is a product of the silk worm, which are killed in the process of obtaining the fiber.) If you think that is limiting, then think of the animals that are put through brutal practices in order to produce meat and clothing.

3) Isn’t being vegan just like being a vegetarian?

Vegans and vegetarians do NOT have the same diet. Vegetarians consume eggs, cheese, honey, and other foods made from or processed through animal products (like non-vegan sugar). They wear clothing and accessories made from animals, and they do not usually hold the same radical political views that vegans have. So no, vegans are not vegetarians.

I hope this answers some questions about veganism and vegetarianism. I’ve been collecting information for the better part of 25 years. I have crossed paths with many folks who eat both diets. And I’ve learned so much just from reading and having conversations. Information combats ignorance and prejudice. Wouldn’t it be a great thing if we could help remove the stigma surrounding veganism.