Rethinking My Diet

For quite a number of years, I've been a vegan. This means I've eschewed all animal products, including dairy, eggs and seafood. I became vegan mostly for ethical reasons, although environmental and health reasons were also considerations.

During the last few weeks, however, I've been seriously rethinking my position. Here's why:

• Fish: It's almost impossible to refute the evidence that certain seafoods are extremely healthy for humans. (And, from an ethical standpoint, Jesus ate fish.)
• Eggs: My biggest problem with eggs was always the treatment of chickens in large egg-laying plants. But obtaining eggs from a genuine free-range farm (local, so I can actually see the farm and chickens) eliminates that issue.
• Dairy: Again, the treatment of the cows (and the hormones) were always the sticking point for me when it came to dairy. Organic and local dairy products can help ease my mind.

The primary reason I've been reconsidering this, however, is because Hubby and I are thinking about having children (some day). And, in the event that happens, I won't be raising them as vegans. For one thing, raising a vegan child is a great way to have social services knocking on your door. For another, I don't think it's healthy to give children inordinate amounts of soy, which often happens in a vegan diet. And finally, I believe veganism is a personal choice of ethics, one that my child is free to make on his/her own when he/she is capable of intellectual reason.

And if I'm not going to raise my child as vegan, what's the point of eating vegan myself? I'm certainly not going to prepare three different meals--a vegan one for me, a vegetarian one for the kids, and a meat one for Hubby--at dinner!

I think I could be comfortable feeding both me and any future children a lacto-ovo-pescetarian diet. And Hubby would be willing to go along with that diet, too, I think.