Student Essay: Vegan Food Choice and Personal Experience

This essay details a student's personal journey of transitioning from a non-vegetarian to a vegan diet, driven by concerns about animal cruelty and a desire for a healthier lifestyle. The student recounts their observations of animal treatment in the meat and dairy industries, leading to a shift in their eating habits. The essay explores the initial challenges faced, including family disapproval, social misconceptions, and cravings, while also highlighting the positive impacts such as increased energy and improved health markers like blood pressure. The student also reflects on the ethical and environmental benefits of veganism, including reduced carbon emissions and adherence to the principle of ahimsa. Furthermore, the essay also addresses the difficulties encountered in social settings and the prevalence of myths surrounding vegetarian diets, emphasizing the student's commitment to a vegan lifestyle for ethical, health, and environmental reasons.

Running head: VEGAN FOOD CHOICE
Vegan Food Choice
Name of the Student
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1VEGAN FOOD CHOICE
My transition from a non-vegetarian to a pure vegetable eater is a decision evolving
from a number of observations that I have encountered in a conscious manner. One of the
primary reasons accounting for my radical change is the sheer cruelty that I have witnessed
upon the animals who are made to live and die in a merciless manner, depriving them of their
basic living status. In my slow transitions I have observed that the fact vegetarianism is not
just a mere way of consuming foods or a lifestyle pattern but also defines and shapes the
perspectives of a person. During the time of 3 days, my diet was composed of vegetarian
products I have been more energetic with an improved digestive system. Previously I had a
casual approach towards my food habits but however my recent learning has helped me to
develop myself into a more conscious human being. I have made to delve deeper into the
entire dairy and meet producing operation and merciless cruelty that animals have to go
through (Medicina Funcional 2014). Initially my willingness to adopt a vegetable based diet
was met with reproach and bully from my family and friends as in my personal opinion, meat
is often seen as a symbol of status, wealth, the sheer pleasure of human domination over
nature that human beings enjoy by exploiting natural resources and ultimate source of protein
(Caplan 1997). My friends even concluded that my daily fitness regime will suffer a setback
and I will lose massive amount of weight. My experience during the first period of transition
was quite confusing since I was made to doubt my own decisions and standpoint repeatedly.
One of the many challenges that I faced was misconceptions surrounding my food habits and
a lack of placed with innovative vegetarian meals. In my house, my decision to change my
dietary plans placed me at loggerheads with my parents. Furthermore one of the many
struggles of embracing the vegetarian life is the willful choice of letting go of one’s favorite
dishes.

2VEGAN FOOD CHOICE
One of the many biggest challenges of turning vegetarian is to regulate the body in
order to cope up with the changes in food habits irrespective of cravings. The single most
motivating factor that inspired me to stay focused on my decision was ethical concerns
because the production of meat, dairy products, eggs, beefs, turkey and the like is based on an
industry that is painful to the animals. They are crammed into factory produces stuffed inside
torturous devices for the sole production of meat, eggs and dairy products. This also has an
adverse effect on the surrounding environment. My primary goal behind turning into a
vegetarian was not to contribute to the torture that these living creatures have to undergo. I
also analyzed that giving up on a number of non-vegetarian items like beef would prove
beneficial for the environment by eliminating carbon emissions. My diet is also motivated
from political implications that proclaim the concept of ahimsa which I have learnt recently,
it claims for the restoration of peace as much as possible on earth among every form of life
breathing. My recent experience also made me to realize that in the act of consuming noon-
vegetarian food, the environment is being affected to a possible extend since these animals
which are raised and slaughtered produce amount of excreta that glides into water bodies
having a catastrophic impact on the environment, increasing the toxic concentration.
Livestock maintenance furthermore needs the depletion of natural resources like waster
resulting in drastic decrease in the water table (Medicina Funcional 2014).
My blood pressure level has improved thereby lowering the risk of type 2 diabetes.
These positive changes within my body have definitely encouraged me to maintain a strict
vegan diet. However, one of the depressing elements that I have encountered during my three
days was the difficulty that I have faced while dining out with my friends and colleagues.
During our long distance journeys I have never been able to accommodate for myself
delicious vegan meals due to the myths surrounding the concepts of vegetarian foods like
they are inadequate for children, athletes or pregnant women. This has considerably

3VEGAN FOOD CHOICE
deconstructed the whole idea behind acquiring vegetarian diet and promoted the breeding of
ideas that meat is the symbol of class and rigor. Once I was familiarized with the killing of
animals I could never picture myself consuming non vegetarian food again. I would definitely
convert myself into a vegetarian not only because of animal cruelty but a healthy lifestyle
consisted of rare mood disturbances which is due to the absence of arachidonic acid, lower
risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity.

4VEGAN FOOD CHOICE
Reference List:
Anna, Willetts. 1997. Meat-eating and vegetarianism in South-East London Pp 111-129 in
Food, Health and Identity edited by P. Caplan. London: Routledge
Medicina Funcional. 2014. Retrieved March 26, 2018 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=kjmIJHZRWXw).