Advice?

ConFurioso

hey ho!

Last month I started watching a lot of documentaries (nothing food based, just the last Oscar nominated bunch). Got hooked. Needed more. A friend recommended Food Inc. I watched it. I was disturbed, but I wanted to know more. I watched Earthlings.

:eek: <-- this was my face.

I then watched Forks over Knives. Ironically this had more of an effect.

The decision has been made. I just can't do it anymore, and I have to stop eating animal based products.

My problem is this......

Yes, I do feel horrible looking at those videos of slaughterhouses, animals being skinned alive etc., but I feel it's more of a personal health thing that has convinced me (hence why I think Knives over Forks had more of an effect). is this a bad thing?

I suppose, I want a whole food, plant based diet. How does this differ from veganism? Is there a difference?

i'm mad feckin confused, and don't know where to start, and I think the main problem facing me is that I live in Japan and will be here for another 3 months.

Japan and vegetarianism are an odd couple. I mean....YES they eat more veg on average, but.....for example.....I once went to a ramen restaurant with a vegetarian friend. She ordered the 'veg' ramen. She quickly discovered the stock was pork stock. Plus a lot of ingredients I've seen for vegan recipes are next to impossible to get in my area in Japan. Not to mention finding ingredients is 100X harder when not in English. :pac: I MAY have to put it off until I get back to Ireland, but I don't want to.

Thoughts? Ideas?......help? :P

If this post comes off as confusing....it's because I'm confused. :P

(PS for Tar.....I'm the poster formally known as Funky Penguin! )

Tar.Aldarion

Hai funky! Made you look!

Never having been there I can't really help,a ll I can do is see some guides.
http://justhungry.com/japan-survival-guide-vegans
http://thisjapaneselife.org/2011/09/07/japan-vegetarian-food/
http://markcity.blogspot.ie/veg.htm
http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/vegetarian-survival-guide-to-japan/


Use here to find vegetarian restaurants in your area (also be handy to talk to the people in there):
http://www.happycow.net/


If it is too difficult to find something vegetarian always (especially when out), you can always just limit the intake of animal products to a minimum until you are home.

StevoTG

ConFurioso wrote: »

is this a bad thing?

No, it's just the truth that issues relating to your own health had more of an impact on your thoughts than the issues relating to the welfare of others in this particular instance. There could be a million and one reasons for this. It doesn't necessarily make you a 'bad person'.

ConFurioso wrote: »

I suppose, I want a whole food, plant based diet. How does this differ from veganism? Is there a difference?

Yes. One could consume a plant based diet while still wearing animal products and using other goods derived from and/or tested on animals. I've often referred to myself as a vegan, but I'm sure if you scrutinise closely enough, you'll find that I don't meet some peoples definition - I do buy non-vegan dog food for my dog. But, I also try to buy in a way that's fair on people, they're animals too - for example, given Nike's (easy example) record with human rights abuses, is it vegan to buy Nike? You could go very deeply into the argument of what it is to be vegan. But to say you consume a plant based and/or whole food diet is much clearer cut.

As for being in Japan for the next 3 months and not knowing if you'll be able to stick to your preferred diet over there. Give it a go and if one day you don't manage it, start again the next day.

ConFurioso

Cheers folks. looking at those links Tar and talking with a vege friend here (and various perplexed looking Japanese people!), I've decided on this for the next 3 months:

I'm going to focus on the meals I can fully control, so breakfast and snacks. Surprisingly easy with the rice balls and fruit boxes readily available. One thing though.....japan can't seem to do nuts without roasting and salting them. -_-

Lunch is controlled by the school, and usually always has some form of meat egg or dairy. However, they meat content tends to be low, and there is a focus on tofu and veg soups, rice and (disgustingly) pickled vegetables. I'll forgo the carton of milk, too.

Dinner is going to be hit and miss. If I eat at home, I've resolved to cooking as vegan as possible. However, dinner time is a very social aspect in Japan and invites get thrown about a lot, about 3-4 times a week. It can work out quite cheap to d this as well. So, If I eat out, I will attempt to eat as vegetarian as possible (vegan may be asking for a miracle where I live).

On this article you posted Tar, I can give a great recent example of the hardships vegetarians have over here. I recently found a ramen shop that sells "Vegetarian Ramen". Delicious, with a huge variety of seasonal vegetables and leafy greens in it. Unfortunately the stock is fish based. Had a "But that's not vegetarian" argument with the chef.

Anyway...we shall see how this goes. Cheers again for the help!

--LOS--

Hi Confurioso. No it doesn't matter if it's more of a health issue for you, you seem far from indifferent to the animal welfare issues from reading your post and your views may well change over time, I certainly wouldn't liked to be judged for just being vegetarian instead of vegan (I've only been vegan for about 2 weeks). Most people around here are vegetarian, vegans would be the minority, are they bad people, no.

The difference would be, as Stevotg pointed out, that you may set different limits on yourself than others do, being vegetarian/vegan isn't just about food, we make choices that support our views in all areas of our lives, the clothes we wear, the bath/cosmetic products we use, each person will set their own limits, you do what you can but you still draw the line at a certain point. I like the definition on r/vegan.........."Veganism is a way of living that seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing and any other purpose." Yes people love to make redundant arguments like well you're not really vegan because you don't try to buy vegetables that you know haven't been in contact with animal fertilizers. It is really about choosing vegan as far as possible and practical, otherwise there is no such thing as vegan really. And 'as far as possible and practical' is different for everyone.

As far as the difficulties of eating in Japan, I can't claim to know anything specific about Japan but just from eating vegan myself at home, there's nothing I'm eating that you couldn't get in Japan so I imagine it's fine in the home where you're preparing your own meals, but it would be a challenge eating out, it is in Ireland too. Unfortunately being vegan involves preparation, more home-cooking and less eating out. You would definitely have to consider bringing more packed meals, if you really have to eat out a lot then I guess just do what you can. It's definitely a challenge eating out here in Ireland, you need to know what foods to avoid, that might have hidden ingredients, I've made a list of places in Dublin that I know I can get something vegan when I'm out, maybe you could consider doing that, then you've something to refer to. Unfortunately it is the same here with regards asian cuisine, plenty of things may appear veg friendly but have fish sauces etc, you really just have to ask specifically if it has fish sauce, oyster sauce etc. We're all used to seeing stuff marked as vegetarian but it has parmesan for example. With bread it can be hard to know if it's vegan, can you imagine asking your average sandwich bar is this bread vegan, they wouldn't have a clue, but you can be aware yourself what breads are nearly always vegan and avoid ones you're not sure of, you still take a chance but you do what you can, this is just an example. I might be making a move abroad soon and it did cross my mind maybe I'll wait till then to switch to being vegan to make it easier because I would consider Ireland a tough country to be vegan in. But then I just decided to commit to it and I was aware I might not stick to it coz I love to eat out, that's a big deal to me, but I don't see me going back now. But I would say just try it and it might be easier than you think.