The KInd Life Community Forum
Use this space to share stories, exchange ideas, ask questions, and contribute to our growing community!
Taken from the April 11 Huffington Post:
Natalie Portman's pregnancy has brought about some interesting cravings for the health-conscious mom-to-be.
The former self-proclaimed "vegan activist" realized that continuing to live free of all animal products no longer suited her,Us Weekly reports.
Portman, who adopted a vegan diet after reading Jonathan Safran Foer's book, 'Eating Animals,' told Atlanta's Q100 Bert Show, "I actually went back to being vegetarian when I became pregnant, just because I felt like I wanted that stuff. I was listening to my body to have eggs and dairy and that sort of stuff."
The actress, who recently launched a line of vegan shoes with company Te Casan, said of the switch, "If you're not eating eggs, then you can't have cookies or cake from regular bakeries, which can become a problem when that's all you want to eat."
"I actually wanted eggs at the beginning and then they grossed me out after awhile," she says of her broadened diet. "I know there are people who do stay vegan," she added, "but I think you have to just be careful, watch your iron levels and your B12 levels and supplement those if there are things you might be low in in your diet."
So is the switch permanent? It seems likely that Portman, who is due this summer, may revert to her former diet after giving birth, considering her strong convictions.
"We are capable of considering others' minds and others' pain," she told the Huffington Post of others who favor a vegan lifestyle. "Whereas those who justify eating animals say the same thing: We are not them. They do not merit the same value of being as us. They are not us."
I read this earlier today....kind of disappointing that her excuse is baked goods. I make damn good vegan baked goods and I know that there are plenty of vegan bakeries where she lives, too!
That is disappointing, especially as she was originally coming at veganism from an ethical point of view rather than a health point of view. Basically she's saying that eating cookies and cakes conveniently, whenever she has a craving for them, is more important than her ethical views. And especially with her location, there's no reason she can't buy herself some vegan baked goods. So to me, that reasoning is pretty soft. It's not even like she tried to make the excuse of 'I'm not getting enough B12" or whatever (though I would still think that was soft, at least it's not so 'because I want it). I hope she at least goes back to being vegan after she gives birth.
I'm gonna stick up for Natalie here. Yes, there are plenty of people who have had healthy vegan pregnancies but she feels the need to include dairy/eggs in her diet for now and that's her choice. If going vegan has taught me anything, it's to be respectful of other people's choices and not judge too harshly. You may think she's lame but I can't say I won't be worried about b12 and iron when I'm pregnant. Whilst i'd love to remain vegan I'm in no position at the moment to say I won't include some animal products in my diet - I definitely don't want to supplement to the hilt that's for sure. Why does she have to justify herself anyway - because she's an actress in the public eye? Now that is lame.
i agree that it is her personal choice to switch from being vegan and i think we need to all practice tolerance and respect her choice BUT.... it sucks as a vegan to have someone famous fall off the wagon. she just won an oscar and when i saw shes vegan to ppl i said it with pride and now its like damn... we lost another one! also i read up on someone elses post that she just came out with a new vegan line of shoes. i wonder how many ppl bought these shoes bc she endorsed them and how much money she pocketed from the vegan market to now deny it. just a thought
I can't feel all that much sympathy for someone who gives it up because they want goodies (supposedly her own reasons, not lack of iron or B12). It clearly is everyone's personal choice, but that's kind of like all those people who so many of us hear say "I could never give up . How many times do vegans complain about hearing that? At least there wouldn't be too much surprise if someone who gave it up for health reasons suddenly decides it's not the best way, someone who does it for ethical reasons and then goes back is more shocking, hence more disappointing. That's what makes it sad - because she is so high profile for her ethcial veganism, it can make it harder for the rest of us.What if Joaquin Phoenix suddenly went vegetarian, or omni?!? It would have a big impact because he's in the public eye. It gives fodder to those who like to argue with you about veganism. But again, I do hope she goes back to veganism after pregnancy. That could be a good example, to show that falling off doesn't mean never getting back on.
Just because she's decided to include some eggs and dairy in her diet doesn't mean she can't still hang on to some of her vegan beliefs. The shoes are still vegan even if she's not and I'm sure it wasn't about pocketing money from vegans that motivated her to make/endorse the shoes - I could be wrong, of course but she doesn't strike me as that kind of person. This all or nothing attitude terrifies me. She may return to veganism after giving, who knows. This is her path and it's not a one size fits all. I'm sure she still follows a mostly plant based diet, which is all good in my opinion.
I agree that we can't be too hard on her... none of us are perfect and eating vegan 100% of the time can be challenging at times. I believe we are all entitled to our set backs. :)
I guess the part that bothered me when I read this on the news this morning is the way she explained her change. I agree that everyone has the right to decide their own diet. I applaud not only those of us who chose veganism but also vegetarians. But she just made it sound so trivial that she made this change. Oh, I just want cake... What does this say to others?
That's what I'm sayin', Sabrina - the 'I just want it' attitude. Omnis going more plant-based, great, people slipping up from time to time, still better than nothing, but the 'I just want it' attitude - never a good attitude for anything. She seems like a great person, and like I specifically said, I sincerely hope she comes back so others can see that they can come back, but that doesn't change the disapointment in the 'I just want it' attitude. Like Sabrina said - makes it seem kinda trivial. It's not about all or nothing, but it shouldd be about making the best choices I can every day, rather than making the best choices I can except when I want something else.
33 Comments