veganism: I asked this question earlier... http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;鈥?/a> .. and one answerer said I have made a mistake by going straight from omni to vegan within a short space of time and that is the reason I am ill. Every fibre of my being thinks that this is nonsense.. but it did worry me a little. Thanks|||It is nonsense, unless you perhaps haven't been eating particularly healthy since going vegan. I guess there could be a slight chance that some of it is an allergic reaction to some new food that you've introduced into your diet. Maybe soy? Soy is in a lot of things, but there's a difference between trace amounts in a food & eating a full serving of tofu or a glass of soy milk. But really, it just sounds like you happened to get sick. With most minor communicable diseases like that, you actually contract it a week or two before you start showing symptoms anyway. So that would've been while you were still omni. Veganism will *strengthen* your immune system as long as you're eating a well-balanced diet.|||As long as you're healthy and take care to get all the nutrients you need, it shouldn't hurt you to go straight from omni to veganism. Just remember that you can't replace the meat in your diet with lettuce and expect to be healthy. Meat, beef especially, is one of the most nutrient dense foods you can eat. While veggies contain most (not B12) nutrients you need, some of them are not as easy for your body to absorb as the same nutrient from meat. So you must eat more of that particular thing. Like iron. Beef contains heme iron. Your body absorbs about 80% of the heme iron from beef. Spinach contains lots of iron, but it's non-heme iron. You'd need to eat about seven cups of spinach to get the same iron benefits as from 3 oz of beef. Or you can mix the non-heme veggies with other stuff to help you absorb the non-heme iron. Or take pills and eat pretend meat. But making the change directly shouldn't hurt you, as long as you're healthy otherwise. Remember, too, that most food borne illnesses come from fresh or raw vegetables. Good luck....|||Plus, you are only vegan for a short time, not a cause of your illness. On the other hand, many people do purge, that is, just as a smoker who quits smoking suddenly becomes ill and the body starts spewing out all sorts of gunk, the same often happens with the switch to a healthier diet.|||What? Was he saying that you need to go from eating meat to a vegetarian to a vegan? News flash to that guy, vegetarians are still eating from animals therefore they're still on an omni diet. Vegans are on a herbivore diet...there's nothing to worry about people just get ill sometimes.|||It IS possible that your body was adjusting to the new diet (immune systems can be tricky) but it's ALSO possible that you simply got a bad cold. Why does the reason matter so much to you? As long as you know how to take care of yourself as a vegan, you will be fine. People get sick, it happens.|||All I can say is that I transitioned overnight as well, and I didn't get sick. I don't understand the "gradual" approach.... "Hey, I know now that animals are tortured for my food, their flesh and byproducts are extremely unhealthy for me, but...I'm gonna keep eating it anyway"? It makes no sense!|||I went straight from omni to vegan with no transition period, and I am just fine. Plenty of people do it this way. I really don't see how it could be the cause of your illness. Its probably just coincidence.|||I simply can't see how going vegan would give you a cold. The most I would expect would be maybe a handful of headaches or a late cycle as your body adjusts.|||Its not a big deal. Going straight to veganism is fine.|||It's entirely possible that you could have gotten ill if you didn't transition well. Remember that you don't need specific foods, but nutrients. Nutrients that you got from meat aren't always as abundant/accessible in plant foods. The amino acids come in different proportions, the iron is non-heme, etc. You probably started eating less fat, whether you meant to or not. The bottom line is that it's a huge change, and even with careful planning, your nutrient intake probably changed a bit. This doesn't mean that you are necessarily deficient, but it could mean that you are running on less or more of a nutrient than you are used to, or that your body is reacting to the foods that you're eating. (One notable example is beans. They often cause people to get bloaty and gassy when consumed in large quantities. It could be that you have a mild sensitivity or intolerance to a food that you didn't notice before because you weren't eating much of it... is there anything that you never ate before that you're eating daily now?) Going slowly isn't so much about letting your body adjust to the new nutrient sources as it is about letting yourself adjust to the new way of eating. Many people find too many changes at once overwhelming and will wind up eating poorly because they are taking on too much at once. (It's for this reason that most people don't suggest taking on a new diet/fitness routine while you are moving, divorcing, or otherwise in upheaval... it can be "too much" for some people.) If you are sure that you are getting all of your nutrients, then your diet isn't to blame. It could be a coincidence, as some people said. Maybe it's the changing of the seasons. Maybe you are under more stress at work. Who knows? I'd suggest keeping a food diary for a few days just to see what you're eating. Double-check.