Yeah I think this is a very important question and I’d love to get more data on it.
My very milquetoast guess is that some vegans or aspiring vegans do just need to eat more, and others are correct that they can’t just eat more, so it doesn’t matter if eating more would help (some of whom could adapt given more time and perhaps a gentler transition, and some of whom can’t).[1] A comment on a previous post talked about all the ways plant-based foods are more filling per unit calorie, and that may be true as far it goes, but it also means those foods are harder to digest, and not everyone considers that a feature.
My gut says that the former group (who just need to literally put more of the same food in their mouth) should be small, because surely they would eventually stumble on the “eat more” plan? The big reason not to would be if they’re calorie-restricting, but that’s independent of veganism. But who knows, people can be really disembodied and there are so many cultural messages tell us to eat less.
I talked in some earlier posts about digestive privilege, where veganism is just easier for some people than others. I think some portion of those people typical mind that everyone else faces the exact same challenge level, and this is the cause of a lot of inflammatory discussion. I have a hunch that people who find veganism more challenging than other vegans, but still less than the population average, or particular people they’re to, are the worst offenders because they did make some sacrifice.
Yeah I think this is a very important question and I’d love to get more data on it.
My very milquetoast guess is that some vegans or aspiring vegans do just need to eat more, and others are correct that they can’t just eat more, so it doesn’t matter if eating more would help (some of whom could adapt given more time and perhaps a gentler transition, and some of whom can’t).[1] A comment on a previous post talked about all the ways plant-based foods are more filling per unit calorie, and that may be true as far it goes, but it also means those foods are harder to digest, and not everyone considers that a feature.
My gut says that the former group (who just need to literally put more of the same food in their mouth) should be small, because surely they would eventually stumble on the “eat more” plan? The big reason not to would be if they’re calorie-restricting, but that’s independent of veganism. But who knows, people can be really disembodied and there are so many cultural messages tell us to eat less.
I talked in some earlier posts about digestive privilege, where veganism is just easier for some people than others. I think some portion of those people typical mind that everyone else faces the exact same challenge level, and this is the cause of a lot of inflammatory discussion. I have a hunch that people who find veganism more challenging than other vegans, but still less than the population average, or particular people they’re to, are the worst offenders because they did make some sacrifice.
And others have other reasons they can’t be vegan, but not focusing on those right now.