Posted on 05/13/2012 1:06:56 AM PDT by nickcarraway
A new children’s book is taking some heat for its controversial message aimed at kids, which says that eating vegan is the loving thing to do.
The book is called “Vegan is Love: Having Heart and Taking Action,” and its author and illustrator, Ruby Roth – a young, enthusiastic vegan activist – hopes to teach young readers not only about veganism as a diet choice, but also as a moral choice.
Roth explains that Vegan is Love expands upon the message of her popular first book “That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals,” in which she describes how our daily diet choices affect not just our local communities, but our world as a whole.
In a video promoting the book, Roth says that “If we want to move toward an era of solutions, where the planet is healing, people are fed and healthy, there is good in the way we do business, and a reverence for the well being of all living things, then all we have to do is live that life ourselves.” The life she is referring to is about putting our love to action with ‘the food we eat, the clothing we wear, the money we spend, and the entertainment choices we make.’
Roth explains that although Vegan is Love is a children’s book that’s easy to understand, at its core, it’s about ‘democracy, supply and demand and engaging ourselves in the public realm.’
In an interview with The Today Show Nutritionist Heidi Skolnik said that eating a vegan diet is sustaininable and healthy for people at any age, including kids. But that parents should be very conscientious of making sure their children are getting all of the required nutrients that kids their age need, especially b-12, essential fatty acids, iron and protein.
However, the bigger controversy lies at a psychological level and raises the question, ‘Are we saying, then, that if a person is not vegan, they’re about hate? Or that non-vegans aren’t loving?’ Some critics are concerned that this book contains a strong moral message that can be potentially damaging to kids if it’s misinterpreted, and teaches them to ‘fear’ certain foods.
But if parents take a gentle approach and share this message with their kids in an unbiased way without being forceful, their children are much more likely to make diet and moral decisions for themselves instead of feeling like veganism is the only right choice to make. But make the call yourself. Vegan is Love is available for pre-order online and its official release date is April 24. Suggested age level is 7 and up, and grade level is 2nd and up.
I doubt that roth has ever loved, exept herself.
Vegetarianism is a very unhealthy diet which leads to many health issues. Young women should stay away from this lifestyle especially if they are pregnant.
Pray for America
***Roth explains that Vegan is Love expands upon the message of her popular first book “That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals,”***
All prey species eat vegetation. Their eyes are on the side of their heads so they can see predators coming from all directions. Rabbits, squirrels, rats, chickens, cows, horses.
All predator species have their eyes on the front of their head so they can see their prey in 3-D and judge the distance between them and the prey.
Where are your eyes located? On the front or side of your head?
YOU seriously believe it's anything else?
So you think all farmers out there who grow vegetables are immoral?
I don't killing animals is immoral, so no. What I'm saying is that vegetable/wheat farming kills a lot more animals per pound of food, than a feedlot does.
Therefore, if one does find killing animals in order to eat to be immoral, they have few options other than starving to death.
Yes, I believe it’s a way to exercise our choices in what we eat. That’s why God made us omnivores.
The other carnivores, or the hunters, serve Man in two ways. Carnivores such as bears, wolves, big cats, etc., naturally limit the population growth of healthy herds and at the same time they help control bacterial and viral diseases. Carnivores moderate disease transmission either by eating the weaker or diseased prey animal, or by eating a diseased pest of that prey animal. Sharks, seals, crabs and other carnivorous fish serve the same purpose in the ocean. Thereby leaving more healthy herds for the consumption of Man. It’s a pretty nifty arrangement. imo
Yes, God’s plan includes all creatures.
AMEN!
A feedlot feeds corn or wheat to animals who are then consumed by humans. There are therefore two levels of cost: first the production of the grain feed and second the raising of the animal.
I am a vegan for health reasons, so I look at this two level procedure in meat production from an economic standpoint. Meat production is a huge waste of economic resources, more than doubling the cost of producing the same nutrients in vegetable form.
Here is a simple complete human diet: pasta and lentils, plus four pills per day (multivitamin, B12, calcium carbonate and Omega 3/6/9).
Do you eat grass? Didn't think so.
As for efficiency eating, I simply and matter of factly don't care. I don't eat in order to economize production, because there is absolutely no shortage of production.
People do not go hungry because I had bacon instead of oatmeal. They go hungry because of despotic political systems that control the food supply.
Complete human diets don't require supplemental vitamin pills. A truly simple human diet is a loaded baked potato (butter, sour cream, salt, maybe cheese) a well marbled steak, and a side of brocolli...Yum! Omnivores have nothing to worry about, its all good and natural.
Saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium: that diet would put me on two pills per day, one cholesterol-lowering and the other for hypertension. It would also dramatically increase my odds for a cardiac event. But that is just my makeup, and my desire for a long, healthy life.
It did indeed kill my grandfather, he might have made it to 96 if had eaten only shrubs.
I’m sorry that your health does not allow you to eat a normal diet, but that does not change what a normal diet is.
The only diet that has been scientifically proven to increase lifespan is a near starvation diet, but that isn’t the healthiest diet, nor one that many people would choose, even if assured of a 25% increase in lifespan.
Interesting how being healthy, living long, and enjoying life don’t coincide in diet. I think a normal omnivore diet provides the best balance of the three. All things in moderation (if you don’t have a medical condition that requires a special diet).
Thanks for considering my views on this topic, SampleMan. With many people it is a contentious subject. Keep well.
Livestock agriculture is THE MOST EFFICIENT use of natural resources and produces FAR AND AWAY more useful products. I love farming and come from a long, long line of farmers, but also come from a long line of cattle ranchers.
You want to be vegan, fine. You want to subject children to it, that's child abuse. You want to rationalize it as "better for the environment," go ahead and kid yourself, but when you emotionalize it with such false claptrap and cause young girls to adopt a vegan diet because they think its "being nice to animals," YOU bear the responsiblity for all the health problems, including osteoporosis, that those girls will get later. Listen, I've been around vegans and their kids. I'VE SEEN ALL THIS and all the allergy problems and emotional problems those kids have -- taking pills is THE WRONG WAY and THE DUMB WAY to live healthily. And I've seen their parents, adults, continue to insist that two plus two equals five because it should!
I can respect vegetarianism. Veganism is foolish dangerous vanity to the utmost.
Green is the new Red.
I need to be careful about making statements about meat production being wasteful, however. As a third generation city-dweller, I read statements like that on vegetarian websites and don't have the background to critically filter their arguments. Thank you Finny and SampleMan for enlightening me, and others.
I'm all for people making stupid choices in what they eat. I know I make stupid dietary choices all the time! I'm also for calling veganism what I know it to be as exemplified in the probably dozen or more vegans I've known pretty well over the past 35 years: vain and conceited, "health" claims to the contrary.
Gracious, elegant reply! Therefore I STAND CORRECTED regarding my post 39 in that there are some (very very few) exceptions, and I’m very glad that you’re a “lucky one” for whom this approach works (I once had a roommate who had a rare genetic condition where even once piece of bacon would raise her cholesterol level to a dangerous state). But it will be interesting to see if, ten years from now, your vegan-and-artificial-supplement approach hasn’t had some rather serious side-effects, like increased allergies and mental instability (lack of B12 takes years to manifest). One thing I expect is that you’re smart and open-minded enough to introduce meat and animal protein into your diet if and when you need to. Blessings to you.
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