Have you seen anyone's health improve after going vegan?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 09:36:10 -0500

What do those with passionate knowledge of the topic say about this ?

Response by SGT Matthew Sesar made Feb 4 at 2018 9:54 AM

SGT Matthew Sesar — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 09:54:20 -0500

My wife and both kids are vegan, I notice she has energy all the time, does not ever get deathly sick, never gets that full stomach feeling you get after a big meal. It is a great thing forsure. Make sure you take in all the right vitamins and minerals.

Response by Capt Bob Abbott made Feb 4 at 2018 10:01 AM

Capt Bob Abbott — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 10:01:08 -0500

I went vegetarian during my second tour, I was a fobbit at KAF that time so I had that luxury. Over six months I lost 30 pounds and hit my ideal weight. But I can’t say I felt better, I still had the same energy level. When I redeployed I kept to vegetarian for a year, maintained the weight but again no energy change.

Response by CPT Lawrence Cable made Feb 4 at 2018 10:11 AM

CPT Lawrence Cable — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 10:11:12 -0500

Can I plug another lifestyle, although you can be Vegan and follow a Keto Diet.
I switched to a Keto diet and have drop 20lbs already, blood pressure has dropped, HDL/LDL ratio is back in the current (very tough) good range and my total HDL is back in the good range, the the rest of my blood work is all in the very normal ranges. My energy level is better and I'm not hungryr all of the time. The hardest part of the diet is replacing all the calories from the carbs with healthy fats. It may take a bit getting used to, but I normally tried to restrict my carb intake if I were trying to train seriously, just never to the point of this diet.
I have a full blown physical in three weeks with a full set of labs, I'll up date this again after that checkup.

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Feb 4 at 2018 12:15 PM

CPT Jack Durish — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 12:15:59 -0500

No. I used to teach SCUBA diving and the vegans were easy to spot. Trim, well developed humans with no stamina. Being immersed in water rips out the calories just staying warm. They had little left for physical exertion. Vegetarians were little better.

Response by SN Greg Wright made Feb 4 at 2018 1:12 PM

SN Greg Wright — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 13:12:38 -0500

Neither God nor Evolution (take your pick) intended for you to be a herbivore. There's a reason you have incisors.

Response by Maj John Bell made Feb 4 at 2018 1:17 PM

Maj John Bell — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 13:17:41 -0500

Some background first, I raise dairy goats and study animal nutrition extensively. I found that in many cases, processed feeds and supplements create problems equal to or greater than the prior condition. Most diverse [emphasis on diverse] natural diets are imbalanced in the short run, but balanced in the long run. Short-term "balanced" meals often create problems because vital nutrients are artificially balanced and unused excesses of one nutrient chemically inhibit the body's ability to absorb another. The body's recognition that it lacks an inhibited nutrient can stimulate additional eating (cravings) where the nutrient is needed but the calories aren't.

I've experienced significant improvement in overall well-being through reduction of processed foods in my diet. Other than cooking, the majority of food I eat, gets to my plate in its natural state. Most processed foods have stabilizers, preservatives, and simple sugars that enhance shelf life, appearance, arguably flavor; but do nothing good for my body. These additives may inhibit chemically alter absorption and satiation, and through enhanced sensory input, increase consumption.

Now to get to your point. My diet now includes much higher portions of fiber rich, unprocessed Fruits, nuts, vegetables, and starches; and almost no processed foods. As an unintentional side effect, I eat less meat. My wife and I now commonly split a steak that I used to consume by myself and hope she didn't finish all of hers. But I also do things my Doctor thinks are nuts, but the lab results don't lie.

_I drink whole milk (unpasteurized and unhomogenized). There are studies that show that pasteurization and homogenization changes the nature of the milk solids and produces unhealthy cholesterol problems. Additionally, since I drink goats milk it is naturally homogenized the body cannot as readily absorb the fats like it can from milk that is mechanically homogenized. As a result, my cholesterol levels have improved.
_I eat cheese (home made) like there is no tomorrow. But because I make it myself, I don't have near the sodium levels of store bought cheese. As a result my blood pressure has not risen nearly as sharply as most men in their 50's. I went from six blood pressure meds to none.
_I eat fried foods, but I don't use vegetable oils. I use olive oil, or lard (yeah in comparison to vegetable oils it is heart healthy particularly if you render it at home), depending on what I am frying.

So when I give dietary advice:
-Grow it at home if you can
-If you have to buy it, by from the farm.
-If you can't buy from the farm, shop the perimeter of the grocery store
-Stay away from box meals and processed foods.
-Eat whole foods

Response by Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS made Feb 4 at 2018 6:34 PM

Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 18:34:20 -0500

Yes & no.

Vegan, in a nutshell means "no animal products." Unfortunately Vegan =/= Healthy. You can drip Cokes & eat Oreos and be Vegan.

That said, a Whole Foods Plant Based diet (which falls under the Vegan umbrella) can be significantly more healthy than the Standard American Diet (SAD). However, most diets are significantly more healthy than the SAD.

A major concerns with Vegan/WFPB is the lack of B12. It can be supplemented, but failing to get it can cause irreversible neurological damage.

The advantage of the Vegan/WFPB diet is that you trade "calories" for "nutrition" in that instead of relying on "raw energy" (calories are a measurement of heat energy) you instead focus on nutrients. This often causes significant weight loss in the short to mid-terms (a good thing).

Response by CPT Stephanie Lincoln made Feb 4 at 2018 8:33 PM

CPT Stephanie Lincoln — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 20:33:42 -0500

No actually it got worse. I had to come off because I could not get my iron to improve despite even taking a high dose supplement. My body needs animal products. There are lots of people who do the vegan thing very unhealthily: I call them "junk food vegans". People who have great intentions with going vegan but basically live on processed carbs and sugar and rarely actually eat real whole foods. I have a vegan friend who drinks coke all day. I just shake my head because I dont understand being morally appalled by eating animal products, but not morally appalled by the soda industry's complicitness in the introduction of obesity to 3rd world countries and the use of chemicals in their beverages that have long been shown to cause horrendous health effects.

Response by SGT(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 7 at 2018 9:26 PM

SGT(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 07 Jun 2018 21:26:56 -0400

Watch What The Health on Netflix. But with that said I’ve been vegan for 8 months and I feel great! I lost 20 pounds and am scoring 286 on my PT test after recovering from a knee surgery.