[missygeorgia]

(Original post by there's too much love)
India wouldn't be an issue, at all. Other countries yes, but really, not India.

They put ghee in literally everything.

[there's too much love]

(Original post by chloebee)
Everyone's already put loads of great stuff up, so I'll be short and sweet.

I was vegan for two years, I needed to shake up my diet and that's how I did it. It allowed me to really appreciate the ethics and now, although I'm not strictly vegan or vegetarian, I hardly ever eat meat. (I'll eat it if someone forgets to do a veg option, which is rare...)

Dealing with restaurants etc - scout about for good ones, get to know the options on chain restaurant menus, and search vegan forums if you want lists and such. Seeing as not having to buy meat will save you money, and every student needs to know how to cook, try books like Vegan With A Vengence or How It All Vegan from Amazon (root for 'new and used' for cheap ones).

Make sure you buy fortified soy milk/marg/similar to get all your B vitamins (inc vitamin B12). Include a source of protein in every meal (soy/legumes/quinoa/meat replacement). And eat loads of different fruit and veg. Don't eat the same foods all the time - vary your protein sources and vary your veg and you should hit your vitain quotas. If you're concerned, get a multivitamin supplement - I work in a national chain chemist and we have guides which detail all our vitamin products (and whether they're vegan-friendly). Ask in a pharmacy! If you're a girlie-wirl, make sure you get 14mg iron EVERY day.

Well protein and iron are easy to get, out of curiosity do you use veg 1?
Also you might be interested to know rice dream have very recently brought out a shorter life rice drink (still lasts for about a month post purchase until opened) with fortified b vitamins.

[callum9999]

(Original post by there's too much love)
Well all German made beers are vegan, and San Miguel is, as well as many others.
Whilst it is an issue, if you like beer and it's German made... .

Thats good to know. I think I've lost any claim I could have made of being a strict vegetarian when I consumed large amounts of cheap wine in Australia, but as it wasn't definately unsuitable, I still like to think I am!

[storm_jh]

cons:

everything tastes like ass.
have to go out of your way to eat a proper balanced diet.
makes you look like a complete douche.

[abbii]

im sure you are capable of looking at ingredients for your self, but also remember its in a lot of places you wouldnt expect it

most noodles are made from egg
cakes/buiscuits have egg and butter in them
pastry has butter in it
a lot of sauces are also not veagan

you'll never know if fried food is veggie (let alone vegan) when you eat out as they often use the same pans/oil

and remember to check for ingredients such as dried whey powder that you woulnt necessarily know was milk

[RVNmax]

just make sure you consume enough of your lentils/nuts/beans/tofu to make sure you have protein in your diet as well which can be hard without meat for some people.

this is a good site - http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm

[there's too much love]

(Original post by RVNmax)
just make sure you consume enough of your lentils/nuts/beans/tofu to make sure you have protein in your diet as well which can be hard without meat for some people.

this is a good site - http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm

I don't recall ever talking to a vegan whose struggled with protein intake, as most of them don't work out they only need around 1 gram of protein per kg of body weight, and the ones that do get more protein because they're eating more (although a lot of them do take protein powder, that seems to happen to most people who work out).

[chloebee]

(Original post by there's too much love)
Well protein and iron are easy to get, out of curiosity do you use veg 1?
Also you might be interested to know rice dream have very recently brought out a shorter life rice drink (still lasts for about a month post purchase until opened) with fortified b vitamins.

I'll be honest, rice milk never converted me, but if it's something new, I'm happy to try! Tesco do a value soy milk, and it's pretty good considering the price.

I've never used a supplement when I was totally vegan - I cooked for myself and I felt comfortable that I got what I needed. I take a magnesium supplement now, which I would continue to take if I went 100% again. Have you tried it?

[RVNmax]

(Original post by there's too much love)
I don't recall ever talking to a vegan whose struggled with protein intake, as most of them don't work out they only need around 1 gram of protein per kg of body weight, and the ones that do get more protein because they're eating more (although a lot of them do take protein powder, that seems to happen to most people who work out).

that's sort of the point, you won't find a vegan who struggles, but might someone who is converting to one so is not yet one fully, because they cut out without replacing. Good to see your not one of them.

[hissyfit]

(Original post by Rant)
I've been considering this recently, particularly with moving away to uni: currently, I try to eat vegetarian food although, living at home it's not so easy.

I'd like to switch to being vegan but I'm not sure if this would be practical or really feasible.

Pros:
More ethical
Healthier
Dairy products have never really agreed with me

Cons
Hard to find vegan restaurants/options in non-vegan restaurants
Restrictive when travelling abroad
Takes longer to prepare (I'm thinking nut roasts etc.)

What are people's opinions on this? Is it possible to be fully vegan and still have a balanced diet? Is it realistic? Does it make life significantly more difficult (e.g, when eating out with non-vegans)?

The other thing is, I'm already very slim, and I don't want to lose any weight. Still, I'd like to give it a shot, possibly as part of a straight edge experiment.

I didn t lose any weight when I went vegan,am still underweight (depending on the country I get BMI tested in LOL)

You read a little bit more labels @ 1st,but then it gets easier as you become more familiar with what you can.cannot have.
UK Vegan society s a great resource.
I think its realistic to have a balanced diet,you just need to put some effort into it.
You might find these free vegan podcasts (mainly on nutrition )helpful
http://www.compassionatecooks.com/podcast.htm

There is also the forum that is for ppl listening to the podcast

Vegan traveling see Happy Cow website

[there's too much love]

(Original post by chloebee)
I'll be honest, rice milk never converted me, but if it's something new, I'm happy to try! Tesco do a value soy milk, and it's pretty good considering the price.

I've never used a supplement when I was totally vegan - I cooked for myself and I felt comfortable that I got what I needed. I take a magnesium supplement now, which I would continue to take if I went 100% again. Have you tried it?

Have I tried what?
I currently take veg 1 and no other supplements, but I take fortified foods from time to time.

[missygeorgia]

Do vegans wear wool?

[there's too much love]

(Original post by missygeorgia)
Do vegans wear wool?

I'll wear it if it's in a piece of second hand clothing from a charity shop.
But I don't buy wool clothes.
Well cotton wool, but not animal wool .