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Why I’m Not a Raw Vegan

April 16, 2011

Already this week I answered a casting call for paleo beach bodies (initiated by a raw vegan blogger), and shared why I believe the two camps should cooperate (and even appreciate each other). Today I’ll explain why I’m not a raw vegan myself.

I promise this is the last thing I’ll write about this for a long time.

My reasoning after the jump.

Nutrient Density

The nutrient density of the offerings on the raw vegan menu is very low, meaning that one must consume an enormous calorie load to avoid malnutrition. (See a nutritional analysis of one prominent raw vegan’s diet). This leads to a crossroads where I don’t want to be: choose to gain body fat, become an endurance athlete, or be malnourished. I feel this to be the biggest impasse for me on the road to raw veganism – I don’t see how it could work with my lifestyle.

Environmental Impact

Even If I could figure out a lifestyle that allowed me to consume the largess required for adequate nutrition, I feel that I’d be acting selfishly. Many facets of the current food system are flawed, evidenced by the number of calories required to get one calorie to the American plate. Eating raw vegan guarantees that even with a perfect food system the eater would still be cheating the earth.

Morality

I have no moral objection to eating meat. Surely, CAFOs are indefensible. Fortunately, there are other options (local, pastured, humanely raised, etc.). The way I see it, every living creature has the option to kill any other. Life is a game of survival. People will point out that, as a society, we don’t allow humans to kill one another, so how can we kill animals? Again, life is a game of survival, and humans are smart enough to realize that killing within the species is not a winning strategy. No matter how similar you believe humans and animals to be, you must concede that livestock are not of our species. Our rules against murder are not borne of morality, but are efforts for preservation of our own species. It’s not that animals are the exception in that we can kill them, it’s that humans are the exception in that we can’t.

Goals

Good health is my primary objective. If you have a point to make, and believe you are making it by selection of a non-optimal diet – more power to you. This may seem underhanded, but I’m serious and sincere; sacrificing for your beliefs is noble.

Why I Won’t Stop My Kids

I don’t think parents should force their children into (or out of) any given religion, and this falls into a similar category. Also, none of these changes are permanent, and the divisions are a bit obscure. For instance, I’m a raw vegan every day until I eat any animal products or power up the stove. Even more interesting, raw vegans eat paleo all day every day – they just stick with the side dishes and skip the entrees.

Turning this into a debate or a logical battle has been fun, but here’s what it comes down to for me: live your life in a way that maximizes your happiness. For me, that’s a paleo diet. For others it could be a raw vegan diet, or even twinkies and corn dogs. Also, everyone should stay open minded – ride something as long as it makes you happy, but don’t be afraid to try something else if what you’ve been doing stops working. I guess I’ve come back around to the same “Eat and let eat,” but now you know why I don’t eat the raw vegan way.

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