Psychology of anti-vegan bias: Why do many people dislike those who eschew meat & dairy?
Last year I concluded that as a scientist I finally needed to study what effect this decision was having on me and decide whether I should stick to veganism for life or give it up.
By conducting a «self-experiment,» the results of which were recently published in Physiology and Behaviour, I found that veganism had benefits for my waistline, did not reduce the pleasure I derived from eating, and — contrary to some previous research that suggested a vegan diet could increase the risk of depression — had no effect on my mental health whatsoever.
For most of my adult life, I'd dabbled with pescatarian and vegetarian diets, but they never fully stuck. Then single at the beginning of 2020, I was on a dating app looking for love and met the vegan school teacher.
But not any vegan school teacher. A vegan school teacher who was passionately vegan for ethical reasons and the belief that any other lifestyle inflicts unnecessary suffering on animals.
By date three or four I'd done my research and veganism convinced me.
Animals bred for dairy produce and or to be slaughtered for meat live miserable lives and with decent vitamin supplements, there is no biological need to eat meat, dairy, or fish. So I decided it was time to try veganism.
Things didn't really work out with the primary school teacher and there wasn't a date six, but my initial commitment to veganism did last.
Then, a month or two later, the pandemic hit. During the lockdowns, I perfected my vegan culinary repertoire and came out of that period a more knowledgeable and skilled vegan cook.
But coming out of the pandemic revealed something about veganism — often, it's not much fun.
