The alcoholic vegan?

balcobulls

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  1. Vegan newbie
Well.....this may come across not entirely health-focused, though I wanted to share. I do like my alcoholic drinks a few times a week. Surely intake much more than I need to, lets just say that. 3-4 beers + two fingers of whiskey (knob creek....gotta love it). Well since I went vegan I found myself drinking a bit less just because I am feeling the "high" much sooner than I did before. I am in no way medically educated enough to speak on this topic, only through experience. But damn! Healthier throughout the day turns into a cheap and probably a little less negative nightcap.

Don't worry, after staying vegan long enough, I will hate myself if I keep on drinking.....already starting to feel guilty.
 
I very rarely drink but I have noticed the exact same thing. A glass of wine or two hits me straight away since going vegan. I only drink a handful of times a year though so it really doesn't bother me, but I have definitely noticed it.
 
Last few times I've had alcohol it's hit way harder than it should. Probably an effect of getting all the crap out from meat and dairy.
 
Similar story, heavy Laphroaig drinker before ... 100% clean after turning vegan.
 
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Lots of vegans drink. There's even a website called Barnivore.com and there are vegan wine companies.

I drink, I know a vegan who drinks more than I do but he admittedly has a problem.

The problem with drinking as a vegan is because of your low cholesterol diet and possibly even lower-fat diet, you're not going to have a big hunk of cheese soaking up the excess alcohol. This means it can hit you a lot harder, faster and you could have worse hang overs (this is a common complaint). So if you are a habitual drinker you may find that your habitual amount isn't working for you anymore and you have to slow down or cut back.

Just like with omni drinkers, it's advisable to eat things like nuts, fried foods, or high protein rich foods (like a bowl of peanuts with your beer, or a veggie burger and fries before a night out) to help mitigate the alcohol.

Have fun.
 
My observation is that the fancier the wine, the more like earth it tastes. Alpen Cellars tastes like healthy dirt, all good wine does. Lots of basic alcohol is vegan. All Sierra Nevada is vegan, and it's the most ecological sustainable brewery in existence.
 
Oh I can relate to this one !

I am a big craft beer fan ! There are many good breweries near where I live.
However, I just can't drink much anymore as my tolerance has disappeared.
Same with caffeine actually. Very sensitive to it now.
I'll still partake, but tend to also drink lots of water at the same time.
I'm not complaining, and neither are my friends, as they now have a regular
designated driver on our nights out, golf outings, etc.,.
I'm their IBER instead of UBER. Not sure what the acronym is, but it was very funny
at the time and has stuck. Ha Ha
 
Raises hand



Hi, I’m Nekodaiden, and in addition to being a Vegan, I’m an alcoholic. I was an alcoholic long before I cut out all meat, dairy and eggs – over a decade, and this has been the result of changing my diet to Vegan:



1) Often I would eat meat after drinking alcohol (primarily for zinc and some B vitamins but also for the protein I thought I needed). The result became very predictable the following mornings: Literally choking on mucus. Depending on how much I drank and ate – often a splitting headache and not being able to do much for most of the day.



Vegan change: Less mucus, much much less. If I drink I still get some in the mornings, but it’s nothing like the amount I was choking on drinking and eating meat.



2) Sense of smell:



Vegan change: Way improved sense of smell. This seems to change a little with the amount of seed type foods I include in my daily diet.



3) Overall recovery:



Vegan change: Faster recovery from alcohol. I can still drink enough to have a bad hangover and feel crap, but the characteristics of that are definitely lessened since I went vegan.



4) Tooth erosion: I’ve lost 2 teeth pouring acid in the form of alcohol into my body over a decade, along with acid from meat and eggs. I think in the balance of things the alcohol caused the greater damage here, but I do think animal products did not help.



Vegan change: Tooth erosion has stopped.



Things that help especially: Barley sprouts, post/pre drink hydration, pumpkin seeds and other higher zinc foods when I remember to eat them, and overall a mostly whole food vegan diet.


My suggestions for limiting alcohol impact if going out: Eat – whole food. And before you eat, drink plenty of water so you are not nearly as dehydrated after. A good high fiber wholemeal bread, brown rice, other whole grains and nuts and seeds are leagues ahead of meat and dairy for recovery. They don’t produce mucus, they aren’t inflammatory, they are higher in B vitamins and certain minerals that alcohol drains when it is metabolized. On the other hand, white rice, white noodles, white bread and other low nutrient/low fiber stripped grains are nearly worthless for recovery, satiation or much of anything else.
 
I don't drink at all. It's not one of my vices but I think you are doing great by becoming vegan. As long as you are not hurting anybody It's good to enjoy yourself with whatever makes you happy.
 
I'm new here - and I recently stopped drinking (it's been 20 weeks). It was a logical step, IMO, since I am vegan for all the reasons, including health. When I decided to go vegan, it was WFPB all the way, yet the alcohol was interfering with my health. Cutting out the alcohol made a huge improvement in my overall health and well-being, physically and mentally and quite frankly, it was the best decision I have ever made in my life.
 
Hey, interesting topic! I'm new here and I try to be vegan since two months. Before I was a heavy smoker and drinker. I'm clean 5 months now, and that in combination with vegan food: I feel fantastic. More than I expected!
I would say: give it a try. Quit for at least a month with alcohol and experience!

Good luck!