Hi.

[Colin]

Hello! It's nice to find this place.

I've been flirting with vegetarianism and veganism for years.

Over the past few years I had massively decreased my meat and animal product consumption, and in October this year I did a week-long Vegan Challenge from the Vegan society and since then I haven't eaten any meat.

I have consumed some dairy products. I've been drinking goat-milk keffir as a health thing, and haven't felt able to stop that. I've also eaten vegetarian-but-not-vegan food in restaurants. And a friend bought me some cakes with cream on a day out and I ate them! So, some fairly minor stuff. I'd like to find a replacement for the keffir, and I'm interested in trying to make some at home.

So, I've ticked the "other" box in lifestyle as I'm vegetarian going-on vegan.

I have allergies. I can't eat nuts (tree nuts or peanuts), and I seem to have minor reactions to a number of seeds (defintely flax seeds) that are annoying without being dangerous at the moment. Soy doesn't really agree with me either. I'm sure I don't need to tell you that this is an enormous pain in the neck!

I love food and cooking. So I'm interested in recipes. And I'm lucky enough to have an allotment, which my partner is the lord of, running it as a permaculture garden. I'd like to have more knowledge and capability there.

I'm also lucky to have a very nice vegetarian restaurant in our city, but I'm sure there must be more, and I'm interested in finding other vegetarian/vegan/sustainable businesses.

I've been slightly politically active, but I'd like to do more of that.

And I'm a Leeds fan to give myself a defining identity!

Nice to meet you all. I usually post too much at forums, so you'll probably be sick of me by the end of next week. x

 

[hopeful]

Welcome to the forum, and congratulations on being vegetarian going-on vegan!

 

[Colin]

that's very kind, hopeful! Nice to meet you.

 

[Jamie in Chile]

Welcome! You seem to have followed a similar track as I have.

Can you do chia seeds or walnuts - either is an Omega 3 source.

Soy is not an essential part of a vegetarian diet, you might want to get some other legumes like lentils, or beans that have similar nutritional value.

I am a Wolves fan - well at least in theory - I don't really care about football anymore. I was at a cracking game in about 1990 when we beat Leeds 1-0. We had to play really well because you were top of the league that year and were promoted to the top division.

I went to Leeds plenty of times as my uni was Sheffield and I had a friend there. He used to like indie night at Leeds met on Friday nights. I also went to Leeds for half of my lectures in my masters degree in 2002-2003.

 

[Lou]

Hi, Colin.

 

[Kristyna]

Hello!!! I'm fairly new on this forum and have found it so incredibly helpful! I hope you find what you're looking for too! People on here are super nice and have great tips!

 

[Veganite]

Hello and welcome to our new members.

 

[Colin]

thank you, Veganite, Krystyna, Lou, and Jamie, you're all very kind. I'm really glad to be here!

Wolves are doing much better than Leeds at the moment, Jamie. I've never seen them play, but I do remember back to 1990 - a long time ago when we were good! Although I'm a Leeds fan, and I regularly go to games, I'm not from Leeds, I don't live in Leeds, and have no connection with the place. It's terrrible, I know. I live in Cardiff. Chile must be amazing! Wow!

I have a packet of chia seeds in the kitchen that I haven't yet tried.

I can't do walnuts at all I'm afraid.

I'd always had a fairly minor bad reaction to nuts - an itchy throat usually - while my brother had a very severe nut allergy that put him in hospital a couple of times, and he has to carry an adrenaline injenction with him.

Then, a couple of years ago I made breakfast for myself with a very large helping of flax seeds. This gave me a much stronger reaction, bad enough that I went to the doctor and got checked. They tell me I'm allergic to nuts, not at the highest level, but that I should avoid them as it will only get worse.

Seeds, I'm taking care with. I love pumpkin seeds but they have given me a bad reaction. Sunflower seeds don't seem to cause any problems. Sesame seeds are fine too. Chia seeds I will find out about, I guess!

I should have been more equivocal about soy as I'm really not sure. I sometimes feel bad - sleepy, itchy eyes, sneezing - after eating soy products; sometimes not, so I can't really be sure. Some prepared vegetarian and vegan products set me off, but it's so minor that I haven't really paid too much attention to it so far.

I love pulses and beans and legumes and eat a lot of them.

I did buy a recommended multivitamin from the Vegan Society which I'm taking at the moment. I've been using avocada oil as well, as I understand that's a good omega source.

There, I warned I post a lot!

Thank you for the welcome and the advice and I'll hopefully see you all around.

 

[Lou]

Which multi die the Vegan Society recommend?

 

[Colin]

Hey Lou, they sell their own:

It's called VEG 1, and it's easy enough to find at Vegan Society dot com.

Here's their blurb:

"VEG 1 is the nutritional supplement developed by The Vegan Society, it provides an affordable, reliable source of vitamin B12, iodine, vitamin D and selenium."

This is all UK stuff.

I have been taking it, but, to be honest it's so recent that I've been eating this diet that I can't give any sort of assessment of its effect. I feel fine when I take it, and fine when I don't, and have a pretty good diet in any case.

It is good value .

 

[veganDreama]

Hello and Welcome! I wish you luck going vegan.