Anorexic Vegan

[HolyCow]

Hello Beautiful people,

I am new to this forum, in fact this is my first post on this forum... I have come here to share what I feel without being judged...

I was a happy carnivore and completely oblivious to the havoc my diet was causing to my health and the planet..

I tried being lacto - vegetarian for some time for spiritual reasons but I failed and started eating chicken again well I only ate chicken .. but stopped again once I went back to India

It was really hard to digest that milk and milk products were bad specially cheese and yogurt, but it was a long enlightening journey tbh.. but soon everything made sense ...

Now I have been vegan for quite some time now, so much as that my family has stopped offering me chicken and milk products .. It was hard for them as well.. everyone in my family happily consumes chicken and milk products ..

Since, I was already skinny and I have further narrowed my eating habits to vegan. I have lost a serious amount of weight like 10 kg approx. Now I am at a scary 45 kg being 5 foot 11 inches I am 24.

My options are always super limited, when I am out with friends, everyones just happily eating non veg, I feel I am just there starving to death... Even If I tend to order anything from outside, I have to get almost everything removed, there are very few vegan options to eat.. I just end up not eating ...

Also, the fact that I am aware that mostly all the fruits and veggies are overdosed with chemicals and pesticides
doesn't really help either, Most fruits and veggies are bland tasting when compared to their organic counterparts ..

Organic produce in India is way overpriced, my fam won't buy me organic produce so, for that reason I did courses on sustainable organic farming techniques .. But since I don't have much space I couldn't grow much ..

I don't know what to eat and how to gain weight on a vegan diet, since even regular almonds and nuts are also expensive forget the organic ones ..

My reason to be vegan was and still is for the environment, since I didn't care much bout my health as i used to smoke and I didn't care less about animal cruelty back then since I was a carnivore, but now I do..

But I have been down with fever for a few days and as I type nothing tastes good ...

And suddenly out of nowhere I have been craving some hot chicken wings or Nandoo's peri peri chicken

But I really want to stay vegan .. I am so confused

Is it possible to gain a serious amount of weight while being on a vegan diet ???

 

[HolyCow]

I am sorry, I got a bit carried away while writing that

 

[winter.frost]

Hello HolyCow, welcome to the forum.

I once struggled with being seriously underweight too, and I have been vegan for many years. However, I can say for a fact that the vegan diet is not to blame. Anorexia is a psychological condition for people who behave in a certain way below 17.5 BMI. For your height, and at your weight, your gender, this simply cannot be down to veganism alone - you have a psychological issue. There are certain things you say that throw up immediate red flags, like your apathy to eat and not eating because the food isn't tasty enough despite being so scarily underweight. Yes, it is scary. So scary you should not be letting the blandness of food tell you what not to eat. Your health should be coming first. You might even be covering your acknowledgement of this by blaming veganism. Be honest with yourself. I've been there too, for a very brief period I blamed my diet. You say you were already 'skinny' but I calculate your BMI is less than 14 now. That drop is just way too large for this not to be a wider issue.

You need to put on a lot of weight, yes, about 35 lbs or possibly a little more. This is an issue that has been raised quite recently on the forum, for another dangerously underweight man, please see this thread: https://veganforum.org/threads/seriously-underweight-26-to-50-pounds.817/

Yes, you are literally 'starving to death'. There's no excuse at BMI 13.83. I was once BMI 16.97 and I almost died, I had pushed my organs too far, my heart was weak and my kidneys were beginning to shut down. So I know exactly how unhealthy you are. You need to eat more, you need to make sure your heart is healthy. You can use a website like www.happycow.net to find vegan food.

I get very passionate about the issue of people under eating but your post, even your explanations, do not excuse the state you find yourself in. Even if you were eating chicken and dairy, you don't think those products are full to the brim with even more pesticides? You really think Nando's chicken is healthier at all?? Nor would it be advisable to eat meat when your heart is likely weak, and you have already described that dairy gave you discomfort. You're ill, you've had a fever, a history of smoking and not taking better care of your body. You need to change things around.

Yes it is possible to gain weight on a vegan diet. I did. Please look at the thread I have pointed you towards, and get eating. You might also consider seeking therapy?

I wish you luck, I really do.

 

[HolyCow]

Hey winter. forst

I was really hoping to hear from you, thank you so much for replying ...

Well, I think I mixed things up a bit, I don't really think I am Anorexic btw even though I might be like scary thin but I dont think I am anorexic.. I could be super orthorexic though .. I just used Anorexic in the title for exaggeration sake

The only reason I felt like having some hot wings or nandoo's was because i have been down with fever and everything tastes pretty much bland even water tastes bitter.. anyways im not too keen on getting back to the non vegan lifestyle ..

I don't think my vegan diet is to blame for that's mostly my family, but I think my laziness is to blame for, mostly I end up skipping meals for no reason because i'm too lazy to cook .. like i'd hardly have 2 meals a day.. I could do more if have the energy to cook or if the food is available ..

Though, I know alternatives for milk, like soy milk which I don't really like the taste off which is also quite expensive, so is almond or cashew milk, hemp still being illegal I don't have much choice .. and im always concerned of the gmo and chemical laced fruits and veggies ...

Can you help me with super calorie densed vegan foods ?

 

[winter.frost]

Hey winter. forst

I was really hoping to hear from you, thank you so much for replying ...

Oh you were? That's flattering!

As for craving Nando's, why not buy a vegan piri piri sauce and cook some tofu or veggies? Or just generally eat something a little spicy to help cut through your fever-ridden palette.

Laziness is still not a good reason to lose 2.5 stone below where you need to be. Why not consider eating more raw foods that you don't need to cook? If you need your family to help you more then explain to them what it is you need. Your appearance must be visibly diminished at such a low BMI - explain that you need their help in gaining weight but that you're not prepared to eat animal products. My hope is that they will help you to get healthy, whatever that takes. I agree it sounds like you need the support of your family. But see if, at the same time as asking for help, you can offer something in return. For instance maybe your family could buy more vegan food in return for you cooking a meal for them?

Is all hemp illegal in your country? The seeds aren't hallucinogenic at all, and the milk is made from the seeds. There are lots of other milk alternatives, however. See this post https://veganforum.org/threads/hello.676/#post-3065

As for calorie-dense vegan foods, nuts, seeds, and dried fruits are probably the best.

 

[Lava Flo]

Can you help me with super calorie densed vegan foods ?

Hi There HolyCow! There are some great calorie dense foods that I rely on especially if I've been out for run or a surf session and I'm feeling really hungry. I love the taste of them so I find it easy to eat a lot of them when I need to:

• Avocados - a large ripe one has about 350-400 calories
• Chickpeas - about 300 calories in a can (230g drained)
• Bananas - roughly 100 calories per medium banana -> mix them in smoothies and you won't notice the soy milk flavour - if you can afford it throw in a scoop of sun warrior vanilla protein and that will give you another 100 calories. - Make banana bread with your old ones with raisins, dried figs and pecans - it's filing and satisfying.
• Coconut milk - about 350 calories in half a can -> if you're willing to cook occassionally make a thai curry or an indian korma with a canful or otherwise add some to your smoothie or add it into a "cheesecake topping"
• Sun-dried Tomatoes or Artichokes in oil - eat lots of these with your salads and avocado - you won't be short on calories
• Olives - throw generous handfuls into salads and pastas
• Fruit - I eat a lot of grapes and mangos -> they're refreshing and great for energy and plus you get good fibre and fluid at the same time
• Hummus, hummus, hummus - if you have a blender you can knock it up 10 mins, otherwise buy it
• Potatoes - when you really need a high calorie carb rush eat a large baked potato with hummus or sun-dried toms and some rocket salad.

All the very best to you x

 

[Chloe]

Hello Beautiful people,

I am new to this forum, in fact this is my first post on this forum... I have come here to share what I feel without being judged...

I was a happy carnivore and completely oblivious to the havoc my diet was causing to my health and the planet..

I tried being lacto - vegetarian for some time for spiritual reasons but I failed and started eating chicken again well I only ate chicken .. but stopped again once I went back to India

It was really hard to digest that milk and milk products were bad specially cheese and yogurt, but it was a long enlightening journey tbh.. but soon everything made sense ...

Now I have been vegan for quite some time now, so much as that my family has stopped offering me chicken and milk products .. It was hard for them as well.. everyone in my family happily consumes chicken and milk products ..

Since, I was already skinny and I have further narrowed my eating habits to vegan. I have lost a serious amount of weight like 10 kg approx. Now I am at a scary 45 kg being 5 foot 11 inches I am 24.

My options are always super limited, when I am out with friends, everyones just happily eating non veg, I feel I am just there starving to death... Even If I tend to order anything from outside, I have to get almost everything removed, there are very few vegan options to eat.. I just end up not eating ...

Also, the fact that I am aware that mostly all the fruits and veggies are overdosed with chemicals and pesticides
doesn't really help either, Most fruits and veggies are bland tasting when compared to their organic counterparts ..

Organic produce in India is way overpriced, my fam won't buy me organic produce so, for that reason I did courses on sustainable organic farming techniques .. But since I don't have much space I couldn't grow much ..

I don't know what to eat and how to gain weight on a vegan diet, since even regular almonds and nuts are also expensive forget the organic ones ..

My reason to be vegan was and still is for the environment, since I didn't care much bout my health as i used to smoke and I didn't care less about animal cruelty back then since I was a carnivore, but now I do..

But I have been down with fever for a few days and as I type nothing tastes good ...

And suddenly out of nowhere I have been craving some hot chicken wings or Nandoo's peri peri chicken

But I really want to stay vegan .. I am so confused

Is it possible to gain a serious amount of weight while being on a vegan diet ???

Hi

The good news is it sounds like you're just picky and not that you have an eating disorder because you have not been eating due to preference and not because of psychological need.

The bad news for you is that a lot of healthy vegan food is low in calories and high in water and finer content, so it makes you more full without getting that many calories.

But don't worry!! There are plenty of healthy ways to gain weight as a vegan since you live in India you are surrounded by tons of delicious, and a lot of times vegan friendly food so you are super lucky for that!! A few things you should focus on to gain weight are carbs, complex sugars, and fat. You can easily and cheaply get carbs from Basmati rice, sugars from bananas, and fat from coconut oil or coconut milk.

The most important part of gaining weight isn't only what you eat but how consistent you are. You must make an effort to eat high calorie foods if you want to gain some weight.

The last thing I would like to add is that no matter what shape or size you are, your body is BEAUTIFUL. Do not worry about how much you weigh or don't weigh, but rather eat what feels right. Eat what makes your body feel amazing and energised, and eat until you are satisfied. When you start doing this, your body will balance out to the right size you are meant to be