veganism

[pinkylu]

hello everyone:)

ive been a vegetarian for years since i was about 13??
and for the last few years ive been vegan too,(for those of you who dont know, veganism is where someone does not eat any product or by-product of any animal, meat, dairy, etc)
i was very happy as a vegan, i felt better on the whole than i ever have done, lots of energy, happy digestive system, shiny hair, clear skin, etc.

but ?? after i had my surgery (craniotomy for a colloid cyst) i was told to stop this diet by my doctors?? i have no idea why?? they said i should start to eat dairy as soon as and even though they were more than willing to accommodate a veggie diet in hospital, would not deal with a vegan one??

now at the time i was so happy just to finally be in hospital getting sorted out (after a very long nhs mess up and wait to get in for surgery) that i never argued the point, but i was wondering??

does anybody know of any reason why my surgical team would stop this type of diet?? is eating dairy that much of a necessity to my recovery??

as it is i ended up loading on a pile of weight!!! (although the lack of exisize for a good 3 months prolly didnt help either) my skin is now horrid and i have worse skin now (27 years old) than when i was 13!!

as i had a sub arachnoid bleed after surgery ive been warned against phyical activity (in case of re-bleeds) so no real way of shifting the weight!!!

gaaagh!!!
i am very sick of being huge!!
has anyone else had the same or similar problem??

or should i just shut my cake (i wish ) hole and just be glad to be treated and well?? and stop whinging??

lulu

-------------------------------------
colloid cyst removed by craniotomy march 08,
severe hydrocephelus, short term memory issues,
post op heamoragge, blood clots.
1 year down the line

[tic chick]

welcome here pinky *bunch!

we are here to support!

the only reason i can think of to add dairy products to your diet would be because the brain needs a certain amount of fat to work and in babies, to develop.

i know you are getting your proteins and carbs and whole grains. do you use olive, coconut, canola oils? eat peanut butter?

I would think you would be getting enough healthy fats from these sources.

why not give a dietician a call or call your neurosurgeon's office to see if adding more fat to your diet could substitute for the dairy?

the only other thing i can think of that dairy products have a lot of is calcium. that might be another question to ask.

i assume you can walk. two or three 15-minute walks a day shouldn't be a problem. it would be better to do that than overexert yourself in one long walk.

i'm interested in raw foods, because of the belief that heat causes food to lose most of it's natural nutrients. but, i think that would severely limit my food choices...maybe a couple times a week might be worth a try.

i hope you can get some answers, because i think you can get anything you would get from eating dairy by finding something comparable in your vegan diet, or if necessary, by supplementation.

take care of yourself,
jeannie

[pinkylu]

hey tic chick:)
(sorry its been so long)
thanks for your reply:)
im very careful with my diet and make sure i get all the protein and vitamins i need from other sources ( natural if possible) im mad for peanut butter:) and olive oil too:) calcium i get a good dose from my soya milk, spread, etc:)
the raw diet sounds interesting:) i think you could incorperate this into your diet well, without having to make huge changes, salads, nuts , fruit. maybe something i could look into???

walking, i do lots of now:) i had my all clear from the clots a few months ago, so i can start gentle exersize!!! i try to walk everywhere:)

thanks again:)
lu