New Vegan Studies: Lower Depression, Plants vs Leukemia, When Activism Backfires, etc.

[@mylesraymond7364]

Anyone who's been vegan for more than 24 hours knows you don't have to be a "crazy" vegan activist to draw negative reactions from non-vegans, as evidenced by all the hate comments on each and every vegan video.. Being vegan, all by itself, is enough to make non-vegans feel guilty/threatened, which is the source for their contempt, of course.

[@luckyyyinlove]

It's because veganism is anti-human. (Former vegan here. Healthiest state of my life eating meat alongside plant foods; I work in fitness.)

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

​@@luckyyyinlove WTF is anti-human? Newest word-creation of impostors?

[@90daydifference]

Ignorant comment

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

@dyldabeast9176 Talking about a person it would be "misanthrope". Thinking about it I'd say that starvation is anti-human, cuz it offs them. In the long term fast food is also anti-human.

[@terrorindu]

@@luckyyyinlove I work in fitness and vegan, in fact veganism has been the main reason why I can do things I never thought I could do before!

[@mariaangelova8275]

My family has a history of breast and colon cancers so as a seven-year vegan who eats predominantly whole-foods plant-based diet, I just had my mammogram and colonoscopy done and everything is normal, perfect and clean!! So another confirmation that genes 🧬 aren't the only thing that matters. Lifestyle matters more.

[@Suzanna-wh3nr]

You were lucky to survive

[@mariaangelova8275]

@@Suzanna-wh3nr I'm lucky that a friend of mine went vegan two years before I did and she was a huge help and in excellent guide in me discovering the connection between food and disease

[@ceeemm1901]

Genetics are basically peddled by industry to distract from the fact that they've poisoned the environment with chemical overkill and are also dishing up crap hyper-palatable food-like substances for people to eat. It helps them to put people into "victim-mode" and therefore not have to take responsibility for their lives. So they just think life is just 'eat, shit and wait to die' with a cornucopia of chronic diseases.

[@vickiehall3504]

Whole food plant based for 11 years now, no alcohol, loves exercise, healthy BMI, this did not protect me from DCIS (very early stage breast cancer twice!) Aged 48 and again at aged 50. I have very strong family history too. What I appreciate from this is :- diet is an important factor definitely, but its not the only factor. Stress and periods of night shifts didn't help, and at times lack of social support. There is no point only focusing on diet only when other parts of my lifestyle were not good. I really thought being vegan would protect me from this, but I believe it protected me from this developing into a higher stage cancer. We are not immune, as thought, we live and learn Take care xx

[@Suzanna-wh3nr]

@@vickiehall3504 do you have a root canal ?

[@VeganTrove]

Thank you. I've been vegan 18 years. In the first 2 years I noticed that my depression improved 50%. I was not expecting that.

[@miz4535]

how did you put a number on that?

[@sixaethereal5011]

@@miz4535 With something as subjective and intangible as depression, the only way you can claim it was improved by 50% is if you record depressive behaviors (isolation, pessimistic thoughts, etc.) or self report metrics, and if they present at half the frequency you can say it improved by 50%. But observing your own behaviors or knowing that you’re being observed by a third party can influence your behavior/self report, so they would have had to instruct someone to watch them at random intervals without their knowledge AND even then the best you could say is that the observable symptoms of depression were reduced by 50%. So basically this is a made up figure

[@miz4535]

@@sixaethereal5011 Probably, although if you feel less depressed you could probably tell, so I don't doubt that part.

[@embersofwolfenflame7346]

Depression improvement factors with vegan diets are due to microbiome changes. The more varied plant foods equals better species colonizing the gut. These species oftentimes have various benefits including mental health.

[@happyapple4269]

You must have started eating meat, eggs and fish.

[@chopsueykungfu]

Thanks!

[@yetanotheryoutuber4271]

The solution to vegan activism is to avoid the silly protests and negative stuff and engage in the positive: make delicious vegan food and distribute it. The negative is automatically in the positive but the positive isn't automatically in the negative. That is, if you give/sell people nice vegan food they are automatically enjoying plant eating and NOT eating a meat meal. Whereas if you just tell people "your bad cos you eat meat!" it doesn't show them any positive alternative - what do they eat instead? The Hare Krishna's are good at this with their vegetarian food, they don't protest meat eaters they just invite them to eat at their delicious restaurants or even better, hand out free vegetarian food at festivals or to poor people. Us vegans can learn a lot from them.

[@roku3216]

And here I thought feeling better after switching was because I was able to live within my own ethical values against animal cruelty at last.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

I'm satisfied that the benefits of my WF omnivore diet are entirely physiological. A moderate animal/plant ratio (4yrs) solved a raft of minor issues.

[@roku3216]

@@Unmasking_Viandalisme We need nutrients, not ingredients. What matters is taking in what you need without taking in harmful things. It appears that animal products are harmful to both us and the animals hurt and killed for them. If i can get what i need and be healthy without animal products, I see no reason to selfishly demand they be hurt for my pleasure.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

@@roku3216 '.. nutrients, not ingredients.. '🤔but are not the nutrients found within the ingredients? I've taken a long & objective look at the 100% PB hypothesis & have rejected it as academically flawed (illogical) &, within my own experience, experimentally false. Highly refined foods, sugars & seed oils appear to have been responsible for most, "modern" diseases, rather than animal products. 4yrs thriving as a WF omnivore (a raft of issues resolved) gives me cause to judge my dietary choices to be species specific, rather than selfish. However, I can see how my conclusions are unacceptable to those who view the matter through the distorting lens of an ideology/religion. Such stated, I'm a Christian!

[@TenTempeh]

​@@Unmasking_Viandalisme how is it illogical? Develop that. And how objective can your opinion be if it is mainly based on your anecdote? (lowest level of evidence) And is it just because refined carbs, sugars, etc are unhealthy that, suddenly, that makes animal foods healthy? Can't they both be a source of disease? Is that position coming too from objective and rational thinking? Wow. Impressive skills of a totally non-dogmatic mind (except when it comes to christianism, well there you made an exception apparently).

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

@@TenTempeh My opinion isn't derived solely from my dietary experience! My education features heavily in helping me to weigh evidence & "modern", "western" diseases appear to correlate with the advent of processed foods. The Blue Zones investigations provide evidence that WF omnivore diets sustain long-living & healthy populations, thereby disproving the notion that animal products are a source of disease. It's very simple logic, which seems to be rejected on ideological grounds, rather than rational grounds. Ideologues invariably put the cart before the horse because the "cause" becomes too much of their identity.

[@kiwifeijoa]

So useful to see these new studies, and somewhat sobering in the case of activism. I still feel unsure about how best to intake a correct amount of iodine, and how that really relates to sodium or seaweed intake, practically speaking, and questions like - can you take iodine drops and can these be diluted - can you add iodine to homemade plant milk? How to correct if you've had too much iodine, e.g. too much kelp perhaps? You do the practical everyday kind of advice rather well, it'd be great if you'd do an episode to give people a basic idea how to get the whole iodine thing right. Thanks Mic.

[@11235Aodh]

I use some seaweed-flakes throughout my meals a few times a week (2-3 if i remember to do it diligently). This is enough according to drs. John Mc. Dougall and Peter Rogers.

[@guywhitworth5764]

Unrefined celtic sea salt also contains some iodine, along with 80 or so other elements, including magnesium which gives the salt its distinctive grey colour.

[@MictheVegan]

Yesssss, I should do a whole iodine video! Thanks for the suggestion and great questions.

[@AaronMetallion]

Depression is a difficult one to measure. Been vegan for 7 years, and my mental health did decline. But this is purely 'existential' in nature, ie; due to prolonged unmet emotional / social needs. I feel a deep cosmic loneliness because no one around me relates to my philosophy. I've also had little dating success and remained single, and may continue to remain single because finding my top 3-5 needs (which already felt improbable), now truly feels entirely impossible after adding vegan (or vegetarian and willing) to the list. I've avoided a lot of social outings, lunches, dinners, house parties. I'm far more prone to isolating, particularly as an introvert. When studies address depression, they mostly address purely neuro-chemical depression. But most people go through depression for perfectly valid reasons. And since serotonin is part of a positive feedback loop / "reward system", having a negative experience, translates to the brain intentionally cutting out these neurotransmitters, and making the person feel pained, empty, or hollowed out. This encourages people to pursue rewarding experiences again. But if those situations don't change, it becomes a prolonged case of depression (such as in long term loneliness, financial instability, chronic health conditions etc... it's a very natural outcome to a natural cause). I do think ethical vegans feel more lonely, and have lower dating success. Maybe I got to go out more, volunteer more, go to more vegan meetups... I really don't know. All that said, I'm still far less lonely alone, vs being surrounded by people who don't understand. And I'd rather feel the crushing weight of the truth, than feel lighthearted from willful ignorance.

[@AaronMetallion]

​@@IWorfare Respectfully, your subjective and anecdotal experience is not my own. Humans have not evolved to be in isolation. we have feedback loops that reward us for social connection, family, tribe, having a partner (oxytocin, alongside dopamine, and serotonin). I don't think you're truly in touch if yourself, that's why you think of fundamental & basic needs (listed in Maslow's hierarchy of needs), is a "stupid excuse". I haven't lost interest in any daily activities, and have achieved a lot in 7 years. The loneliness is purely ideological. People aren't able to connect with my values and I'm unable to connect with theirs. It has absolutely nothing to do with diet. I moved to Canada from India a decade ago at a 17 years old, and I felt the very same loneliness, being surrounded by hedonism and promiscuous behavior at university, being away from family, and having a culture shock. I ate copious amounts of meat back then; again -- nothing to do with diet. Depression in reality cannot be boiled down to solely a chemical deficit. There's no magic pill or "magic meat" that'll make you optimistic again. Life happens, you potentially go through a rough breakup, divorce, financial instability, chronic illness, isolation, grief... for long enough and a state of depression is warranted and natural. SSRIs only buffer the stress response, but doesn't treat / remedy the stressors and root cause.

[@IWorfare]

@@AaronMetallion sure then. When Artificial intelligence women bots are released, I don’t want to hear any more complaints of being lonely. They can satisfy your feelings and emotional needs.

[@AaronMetallion]

@@IWorfare Alexa can take the place of a wife to you?

[@IWorfare]

@@AaronMetallion sure :)

[@SunFellow941]

During the Vietnam war, people slowly came over to the positions of the anti-war movement, but polls indicated they still disliked the activist movement.

[@shawndarling1980]

Friend of mine was in the Air Force as a radar tech during Vietnam he spent three years over there. My uncle's sister in law called him a baby killer. Here he went through that shit when he got back. Then after all this time she is still a protester she has also been a vegan

[@SunFellow941]

@@homie3461 It might be that people turn against wars simply because of the grinding effects of the war (the number of deaths and the economic costs) rather than the antics of protesters.

[@Krsnalila8]

Best for restoring enamel is the treving of dandelion levees and flowers..

[@delananicholson3444]

When I eat WFPB, my joint pain disappears. My blood pressure and blood glucose improves. I also do feel less depressed.

[@raine2480]

Thank you, Mic!! You’re roasting and toasting everyone with the factss 💕

[@alexwilder8315]

I'm really interested to see more information about what "other forms of activism" were suggested to possibly ameliorate the backfiring effect to vegan protests. From a study of human behavior change perspective.

[@Nobody-Nowhere]

I think fluoride toothpaste is officially out, Greger had some new stuff on that. "Given the National Toxicology Program’s draft conclusion that fluoride should now be presumed to be a cognitive neurodevelopmental hazard" Though this is on water fluoridation, so maybe its only if you drink it constantly.

[@christylbk]

a couple of years ago I stopped using fluoride and I got a ton of cavities so I really don't recommend it, but if you do at least try getting a tooth paste with nano hydroxyapatite it is supposed to work too and it is non toxic, but try to find one with a decent amount in it since it is not regulated brands can put just a little in and say they use it.

[@TangoMasterclassCom]

What worked for me personally to go from lifelong vegetarian to now almost 6 years vegan (whole plant foods): information about healthy nutrition and information about cooking. Health: learning that it is not necessary to eat any animal derived 'products' to stay healthy (the vegan buddist Mathieu Ricard's book Altruism and Dr. Greger's book How not to die). Cooking: learning how to cook healthy (Dr. Gregers Daily Dozen app) and learning great, tasty recipes to replace cheese and eggs in my food (my inspiration: Gaz Oakley - Avantgarde Vegan and Derek Simnett - Simnett Nutrition). What helps me to stay vegan: your videos! Big thanks! WHAT DID NOT WORK: 1. 'that crazy vegan' - as a child I knew only one vegan, who was weird and would starve her cats to death on a vegan diet without supplements; 2. the conviction that I needed to eat eggs and dairy to stay healthy. What also caused me to not want to belong to that group: the arrogant attitude of vegans towards vegetarians (just acting like a vegetarian is just as bad as an omnivore). Furthermore, my own personality: I don't like to cause other people trouble, and by asking people to provide vegan meals, I am causing trouble and I can not be the 'easy vegetarian' anymore.

[@Dreamy1894]

I've never missed an episode, it keeps getting better all the time.

[@molluskweddin]

Before I went vegan, I was very depressed with a small side of anxiety. About three months after I switched, it was like the anxiety and depression had changed places. Now my main mental illness is anxiety with a little side helping of depression. The depression isn’t entirely gone, but it’s waaaay more manageable, and while the anxiety did creep up a combination of meds and therapy have made it more manageable as well.

[@oksanakaido8437]

@Homie Imbalances in your bacterial gut microbiome can definitely cause/contribute to anxiety and depression. Some infections and neurological conditions can also cause mental health issues, our body impacts our mental health a lot more than some people realize!

[@90daydifference]

More than likely you removed the carbohydrates. But you need saturated fats and dietary cholesterol. Anxiety and depression are not normal human conditions. Your brain and cells need animal fats. If you’re going to listen to vegan videos then do yourself a favor and listen to carnivore/Keto videos as well. What do you have to lose

[@molluskweddin]

@@90daydifference You need to work on your reading comprehension skills. I was depressed *before* I went vegan. Going vegan made my depression more manageable. For the record I tried paleo for years and all it did was wreck my cardiovascular system. Going vegan cured that. I’ve been vegan six years now and it was the single best decision I ever made. I’m down 80 lbs from my paleo weight, my blood work is the best it’s ever been in my life, my depression which I had struggled with my entire life is more manageable, I have more energy, my erectile dysfunction which I had on paleo went away, everything is better. I’m never going back.

[@Sara-pb6lj]

@Homie My n=1, my daughter developed strong anxiety after an accident that caused a head injury (skull fracture/concussion). She now has a medical diagnosis of generalized anxiety and we're still trying to figure out how to manage it with a mix of medications and therapy's like counseling etc. We're six years post-accident and things are still pretty rough. I've wondered how many people who have anxiety also have had some sort of head trauma? For my daugter there is a direct connection.

[@90daydifference]

@@molluskweddin Work on your reading comprehension first. You removed processed carbohydrates from your diet and that’s likely been the reason for your improvement in depression. And Iike I said, you need animal FATS. Paleo only allows lean meats. Lean meats are trash. You need fatty red meat, butter, eggs, bacon. That’s why diets like ketogenic and carnivore are prescribed to people with depression, epilepsy, schizophrenia, and the list goes on. If your diet was what it needed to be then why do you still have depression? Reduced or other wise. Again, if you’re going to drown yourself in vegan videos the least you could do is go watch a few videos on proper carnivore diet and vegans who transition to carnivore and here what they have to carry. Or just stay in the dark, it’s on you.

[@mariaangelova8275]

Your puns are on point as usual 👏😁👍🙌

[@alexwilder8315]

"Enough kidneying around. Let's get to the BREAST of it " 😆😆😆

[@mariaangelova8275]

@@alexwilder8315 I know, I was lol-ing over here haha

[@avinashtyagi2]

He has the dad jokes ready for when his vegan kids arrive

[@Melanie____]

I think these videos are good for positive activism. And looking healthy in your 40s as you friends get tired an age. Works too.

[@mickilicyes5399]

Such an interesting video. Thank you Mike!

[@lakehuron7733]

Vegan activism backlash makes sense as nobody wants to think they're on the wrong side of history and that's where 95% of people are right now. Great video as always.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

I'm NOT a herbivore, so a WF omnivore diet puts me on the correct side of my species specific diet. I certainly don't feel either guilty or depressed.😄

[@mylesraymond7364]

@@Unmasking_Viandalisme You wouldn't be here commenting if you didn't feel guilty, whether you're aware of it or not.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

@@mylesraymond7364 Over the past, 4yrs, I've learned enough about the vegan mindset to know that you need to believe that I feel guilty & that's fine by me. The unthinkable alternative is that, like many, veganism led me to discovering my ideal, omnivore diet. The path, from processed+unprocessed omnivore, to "vegan", to WF omnivore has become very well-trodden & most who take it are delighted to arrive at the end point. So.o.o many, minor issues were quickly resolved that I feel as if I dodged the "vegan" bullet. As a Christian, I'm also 'aware' that God's okay with my dietary choices. Spiritual & physical harmony is very calming.😇🙏

[@mylesraymond7364]

@@Unmasking_Viandalisme Talk until you're blue in the face, but the fact you're HERE tells me everything I need to know. Someone who's secure in their beliefs and choices wouldn't do that.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

@@mylesraymond7364 I hope your knowledge gives you as much satisfaction as will my homemade, macaroni cheese. I spent many years unpacking the (similar) mindset of the Jehovah's Witnesses, purely out of curiosity, & have never considered joining the sect. As well as being fascinating, veganism is improving my SVG skills.🙏👍

[@stephenodey5147]

Excellent

[@kismypencek6185]

Awesome compliation of study results. My depression dropped by 60% as a vegan. I often wonder how amazing my life would jave been growing up vegan. Interesting about the teeth. I wonder coconut oil drops in tha am after brushing would coat them as a preventative. I have found that the people i work with both as clients, co-workers, and family eventually start asking what i eat and try some alternative meats, and dietary patterns because they recognize how happy, energetic, productive i am month after month. Eventually they can't deny what they see/experience...well they can if their fine with being fat, having easy made meals, and always having their health care covered to enable their bad dietary behavior. So being closely around a vegan is one of the answers.

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

How can you measure depression percentage?

[@blitzofchaosgaming6737]

@@Gaia_Seraphina What a surprise that you haven't gotten an answer... lol

[@teagoldleaf4137]

💕✨️💖💫✨️💕💖

[@marzettik]

I really enjoyed this. Great video.

[@wolfhugs2221]

April is adenomyosis awareness month, so there may be just a little time left for a video on that! It's pretty devastating with the only actual cure being a hysterectomy. It's the evil cousin of endometriosis and my own experience of medical gaslighting, chronic pain, near alcoholism as the only way to deal with the pain (dr's won't prescribe proper pain relief because they don't believe anything's wrong) resulted in serious conversations about Dignitas. The condition needs a light shining on it.

[@creampuff4721]

Really good to hear about the tooth enamel. What we need is commercials, look how many commercials for meat you get. I got one the other day that was from the dairy industry that was parodying nut milk commercials. If they can put up commercials like wood milk we should be able to put out commercials like dead burger or something. Extinction sandwiches.

[@Heidi_137]

The number of people that told me they feel bad eating animals, that alone will make you depressed over time. I can understand, as barely eat when growing up, I was so skinny, because I couldn't get past the dead flesh as food. For me it was so easy to be vegan as soon as I was able to buy my own food.

[@GarudaLegends]

Does not matter. Meat eaters outlive vegans buy a large number. Ppl feel worse on a vegan diet, than they do about aninals dying for food.

[@emiliscola2638]

Glad to see you Mic!

[@davidthescottishvegan]

Another amazing video from Mic that's informative and well researched. Love 🥰 the video. Have a good weekend and week ahead.

[@ilonabaier6042]

nothing new about this Mike is truth Sherlock throughout

[@arrestedshrimp]

I came for the science but stayed for the cringy but wholesome dorky jokes. Kablam!

[@mcfaddenhall2896]

I appreciate you pointing out the strength of each of these studies, not just listing results and moving on.

[@dougveganparadisebuilder5808]

Hi Mike! Can you do a video about the comparison between animal production output per hectare per year versus plant production? My prediction is that cow meat production is shockingly low. I can only find answers by combining different questions and answers because surprisingly (or not) enough I can't find direct answers.

[@chitravenugopalan6663]

Great lecture. Family life is very challenging life and at times depression, anxiety & mood changes may occur due to both management of tight work schedule & external influences that may disturb individuality. Vegan foods give good confidence to an individual to control mind (full of thoughts). Veganism is not a topic but an ocean of "WHAT HUMANISM IS?"

[@TofuTal]

“Enough kidney-ing around!” Lololol :)😂!

[@htas6888]

Human beings can live perfectly healthy preparing and eating, leaves, fruits and seeds of plants. There is no reason to cause fear and pain in our environment by keeping animals confined,, and killing them, how does that affect the psyche of people who have to produce the animals products? Just terrible, we must change.

[@Unmasking_Viandalisme]

I fare much better as a WF omnivore, so I won't be trading thriving for merely surviving.

[@htas6888]

@@skelly0000 I agree about plant feeling but the plants give off their leaves and stems, fruits and seeds and they welcome our help to propagate them.

[@zachcain2639]

Love it, thanks Mic!

[@agazgaga1713]

Fantastic video!

[@pawemalanowski9945]

In humans and other great apes, uric acid (actually hydrogen urate ion) is the final oxidation (breakdown) product of purine metabolism and is excreted in urine, whereas in most other mammals, the enzyme uricase further oxidizes uric acid to allantoin.[13] The loss of uricase in higher primates parallels the similar loss of the ability to synthesize ascorbic acid, leading to the suggestion that urate may partially substitute for ascorbate in such species.[14] Both uric acid and ascorbic acid are strong reducing agents (electron donors) and potent antioxidants. In humans, over half the antioxidant capacity of blood plasma comes from hydrogen urate ion.[15]

[@prettyinpink84]

Thank you!! :) Love these videos.

[@Cat_Woods]

I've witnessed backfire effects since before I went vegan. Stridency, perfectionism, and arrogant superiority do not really grow movements. And the vegan movement has to grow a lot to actually save a majority of agricultural animals. So it does not make sense to approach it that way. Instead, it's good to think of how every meat eater who goes reducitarian helps (as someone who inadvertently developed into a vegan rather quickly from that stance, I can vouch that it can indeed grow the vegan movement as well). Every meal that someone chooses plant-based options instead of animal products helps. In any training, positive feedback for things done well are more effective than harsh judgment for the behaviors targeted for elimination. Of course, I can also attest that there are people who just assume all vegans are rigid and judgmental ideologues and won't give any of us a chance. I just think that we will get further (given that our goal is to reduce animal suffering on the planet, not to prove our own moral purity) by being as open and accepting of people's emotional needs (and perceived needs) as we can instead of giving the biased people reasons to justify their biases against us. Re: dental erosion, perhaps also due to higher consumption of seltzer water? My dentist recently suggested I cut that out to slow down and avoid cavities. It softens the teeth.

[@IrnBruNYC]

Breaking News: living with cognitive dissonance adds to your depression and anxiety. Seriously, I have been vegan for over a year now, and I am definitely a happier, more relaxed person. I am able to love animals without feeling any tinges of guilt for harming animals with my dietary choices.

[@jolshan5480]

Good play on words Mike

[@santiagohardy2728]

From my personal experience being vegan for very close to 8 years now, i find that my overall mood is anger, anxiety, and depression. Far more than it was before i made the connection. All of which i believe is solely due to having become awake and aware, that every second, of every minute, of everyday, of every year, of every decade, and so on, that BILLIONS of animals, insects, are all suffering unimaginable sadness, stress, suffering, torture, and death, for our food choices. I found that i no longer am able to enjoy anything like i use to in my pre-vegan life. Art, film, music, seeing a sunrise, a nice weather day, sunsets, and even food. I no longer enjoy any of those things, due to my awareness that the animal exploitation industrial complex, is ongoing, and will never end. I went vegan exclusively for the animals. Despite the fact that i am more stressed and depressed than i was before, i will not regress, i will not go backwards. Knowing everything i now know. I can't. I won't.

[@botzer8817]

You should stop thinking negatively like that, you're doing whatever you can to prevent animals from suffering, you should be happier now and enjoy your peaceful life

[@julieowens7095]

​@@botzer8817just stop? Seriously. My goodness.

[@brooklyndellycat9866]

Troll

[@jordanjtbraun]

I would classify myself as depressed. I would also say I have a fairly unhealthy diet. I would attribute my bad diet to my depression, not the other way around. When your motivation and enjoyment of things gets shot, like it does in depression, it is difficult to motivate yourself to not just grab the easiest, sugariest, and fat laden processed food. I would put "bad diet" as a symptom of depression, not likely a cause. People who have had good diets can get depressed and those who have shit diets can be not depressed. Diet, in my opinion, is an indicator of depression...

[@jordanjtbraun]

@Homie I think it definitely could. I mean, if the reason for your depression is that you are fat, then yes. For me, that isn't it. I could have had a great week. Eating healthy. Exercising. Then. Boom. Depressed mood settles, often because of financial issues or career pathway obstacles that appear insurmountable, and then I feel like crap. BEFORE I binge eat. BEFORE I stop exercising. Then the next morning, I can feel fine and go for my runs and stop eating crap again. If I force myself to eat well or go for exercise, I still feel depressed. I see them as possibly linked in some situations, but definitely not a given. I do not experience a causal link in my life. Or even a feed back loop. When I feel good, I go for runs, exercise and eat well. When I don't, well, then I don't. One doesn't lead to the other for me. Perhaps I am just different.

[@jordanjtbraun]

@@skelly0000 thanks!

[@guywhitworth5764]

Dr Neil Nedley’s depression and anxiety recovery program has helped many thousands of people improve their mental health through a plant-based whole food diet.

[@jordanjtbraun]

@@guywhitworth5764 it is a "program" and not simply a diet. I wouldn't be surprised if you simply added meat to his diet, that the program would still work. Are there any peer reviewed studies about his approach which compares the program but changes the dietary parameters? I doubt it, as that would be unusual. The whole program works... it is not just the diet, nor would I think that diet is a strong component. Diet changes are symptoms, not causes. Gut Biome, though, could be a cause. There is good evidence on the connection there. But I know I eat poorly because I am depressed, and I eat well when I am not feeling depress. The depression precedes the changes. That is my experience at least.

[@luckyyyinlove]

Veganism is anti-human. No other animal gets attacked for their need for meat. This is an insight as a ¡former! vegan.

[@luckyyyinlove]

That's not to say vegan ingredients aren't health promoting. I'm talking about the cult that refuses to acknowledge higher lean muscle mass is a more protective endocrine system-which is best supported by eating meat.

[@V_Deity]

Considering you see Veganism as misanthropic, you were more likely never vegan if you are easily persuaded by rhetoric and fallacious arguments you see online lmao.

[@peter5.056]

When I went vegan, all my hair exploded and I screamed at every passerby for at least 14 years straight. I also lost all my bones. They just ran away, and now I'm a blob who can only say "reeee!" in conversatio.....rrrrrEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[@jurrac8505]

I suspect its the case that the vegans are more likely to have the tools to deal with depression as opposed to meat eaters which could be one of the reasons they did so well in the study along with being healthier and more likely to be wealthy

[@kathivy]

Good point about the high saturated fat vegan junk foods. I don’t eat very much of the stuff, but my LDL was higher than I would have expected (just below 100) so a little bit of saturated fat probably has a bigger impact than we might think. I wonder if a younger generation of vegans will be less healthy as they age than prior generations because of the introduction of so much of these high saturated fat foods.

[@SallyB-tc6gs]

What were the control group eating then please?

[@sandracrockett6059]

I believe the alternative to vegan activism with its negative effects is the balanced, humorous presentation of facts with primary sources always cited a la Mic the Vegan.

[@akgakg2426]

ugh I have to comment on this, my flexitarian bf always cringes when we watch Mic the Vegan together. He finds him cocky and pretentious while I as a vegan always chuckle at his jokes and find him all around a great dude :) So I think on some level Mic has some triggering effects on a certain non-vegan population

[@elpretender1357]

Whenever vegans score lower on depression in some study I have a hard time believing it given the negativity we have to deal with from people around us

[@santiagohardy2728]

FACTS.

[@nesthi]

🤘💚Thank you for the great content. Great discussion about the activism and intimidation factor.

[@EvenSoItIsWell]

Thanks Mic! I would love for you to wax philosophical about why omnivores don’t like vegans. Give us your opinion and thoughts on this.

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

In the animal kingdom omnivores ( f.e. wolves ) kill vegans ( f.e. rabbits ).

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

@@homie3461 It's much easier! People dislike other people telling them what to do or not to do. Esp. if minorities preach to them and repeatedly confront them. Esp. if it goes against what they've been taught. It's annoying them. It's that simple.

[@Gaia_Seraphina]

@@homie3461 I let you just use your brain to get it.

[@goodlad1961]

Yess great to see more quality studies coming out focusing on vegan lifestyles

[@andreasrylander]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@Rose_Ou]

I was a hard core carnivore/keto enthusiast for 10 years. I didn't want to acknowledge the obvious; my health was gradually deteriorating on a carbohydrate deprived diet. I was in such denial that I desperately stuck to this way of eating because I was constantly bombarded with testimonies by very ill people who attributed their new found health to meat. I hate meat, always have, so I put myself through at least 6 years of hell. I was miserable but managed to convince myself that if Dr. Thomas Seyfried, Dr. Paul Mason, Dr. Bret Scher and many others tell you ketogenic diet is superior to anything known to mankind I didn't want to deprive myself of the chance to heal. What I developed during my low carb days was SEVERE intestinal dysbiosis with GERD, extreme constipation, severe migraines accompanied by vomiting (horror usually lasting for 3 days each month and involving medical intervention), depression, suicidal thoughts I'd never had before, problems with vision and lo and behold - sarcopenia (!). I'm on my way back to eating mostly plants but this path is very difficult due to dysbiosis (and its consequences for digestion of carbs), SIBO and extremely painful bloating which is at times worse than the painful and complicated birth of my son. I'm getting better, but it will take some time for me to thrive.

[@raycooper9116]

Another awesome video! I think protests have their place and are necessary for societal progress. I’ve been a vegan advocate for years and I say the best way to promote veganism is to associate it with prosperity and a great future for the planet. One way to do this is to simply be vegan, be happy and prosper. Believe me people will eventually be begging for the secret. After all vegans have accomplished what 98% of other people won’t or can’t do. All people care about animals so they have to respect those who do not eat them. I call this the long game. I’ve mentioned the sweater before is there a story behind it?

[@minimal-vegan]

Interesting stuff 🤓 Thanks mic 🌱🖖🏼

[@yossiyossig7204]

i have a question: i want to get enough vitamin e but sunflower and almonds have a lot of omega 6. how can i get adequate amount of vitamin e without getting a lot of omega 6?

[@CleanMachineOnline]

Can you show the name of the weight loss study or the link?

[@elsadolan3962]

All of it should be in his description 🤞👍

[@CleanMachineOnline]

@@elsadolan3962"Study links yet to come, had to leave the computer for a while so sorry for the delay!"

[@nealwailing3870]

Great vid. I have leukemia so I was hoping for a magic spell or something....

[@koloblicin]

stay vegan and smoke weed, i have heard it helps with cancer causing apoptosis in cancer cells or something like that. something something like our cannabinoid system being our bodys own defence against cancer, wich we can aid by adding external cannabinoids ;) and if it does not cure you youll have a good time anyways. i have always wanted to test that rumour out, but then, thinking about what it entails, not really. good luck!

[@jill762]

🙏😌 sending healing vibes your way..

[@nealwailing3870]

@@jill762 Thank you for the vibes; they are great. I'll send you some back...

[@BethShearon]

Have you seen Dr Brooke Goldner and Dr Alan Goldhamer's work? There may be some things for you there

[@accelerationismnow117]

Hey Mic, the "Review on Diets and COVID" link in the description goes to a study on breast cancer patients. Good video by the way.

[@amoh5]

I think meat eaters are oblivious to playing Russian roulette with their health. But as we all know meat is very very addictive indeed, so they may have to find out the hard way when their health eventually degrades. The depression or psychological issue probably comes from an abnormal aggression due to eating meat, like wild meat eating animals so to speak. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of human insanity actually comes from eating meat. Meat eating seems like a subtle form of cannibalism, if meat eaters were given cooked human meat they probably wouldn't know the difference, some people say it's similar to pork. I think in the future scientists will come to realize that there is a link between mental illness and eating meat. Veganism is a more civilized and healthier way of living 😊

[@quantumreach3388]

Omg yes!!! Famous vegetarian philosophers said this! They said that eating meat sullies the soul and causes anger and rage with people ready to wage war on one another. You’re awesome!

[@Bauxitedev]

So vegans should protest silently, secretly, without getting spotted by non-vegans. Got it

[@melrox8809]

Happy earth day Mic and everyone 🌎🌍

[@user-no2mz9hl4f]

I’d love to hear your take on eating disorders; specifically, effective eating disorder treatment. Also, the crossroads between eating disorder treatment and veganism. A lot of treatment centres won’t allow patients to be vegan, and many ED dieticians purport the outdated belief that plant based diets are inferior, or even disordered; this makes it very difficult for vegans to successfully recover from eating disorders. Anyway, would love to hear your thoughts, and any studies on the topic.

[@GarudaLegends]

Veganism is literally an eating disorder. That and the vegan diet is super unhealthy

[@VeganLinked]

"Maybe because our arteries are not clogged our hearts are more full of blood'" is that why I love you so much Mic!!!

[@petitsucrecatala9265]

It’s crazy how many people I see in the comments that improved depression with a plant based diet…for me it does the absolute opposite…very quickly I get exhausted, irritable and depressed…I guess it really depends on our body’s chemistry and what it needs to find balance…its like taking different kinds of antidepressants for different kinds of depression ( dopamine or serotonin based for example)

[@shizyninjarocks]

Cool video. Appreciated 🧑🏽‍🌾

[@alfredogonzalez8735]

For the breast cancer RCT, I was unable to find the full text on sci-hub, but I suspect the results are due to a higher protein content in the plant based diet group. I wonder if they did isocaloric and isoprotein comparisons because the results are surprising even for me, a 6-year vegan who does breast cancer research.

[@dangernoodle2868]

9:00 - I could consider an alternative hypothesis where a lot of vegans were meat eaters before going vegan and so the wearing down of teeth can be from that? We also have food that's generally tougher to chew so maybe that has something to do with it? Lots of possible explanations.

[@aztecazul]

Could you cover the topic of calcium carbonate, how it affects our bodies and if it being in all of the plant based milks affects us? I saw a video on Instagram saying that it can cause digestive problems over time because it’s used in antacids. I am clueless on this, so I’d like to see someone with more scientific training cover this with a vegan perspective.

[@christianz8020]

I (M30) am vegan 6 years, haven't used Florida toothpaste in 7+ years and my two missing teeth are from around 8 years ago, at 22y.o. I remember the exact date I ruined them, one Halloween eating candy all night and not brushing my teeth for the whole weekend at a friend's house. I don't want to calcify my brain anymore (free the pineal gland).

[@GregariousAntithesis]

How exactly do you create sustainable agriculture, fertilizer without ruminant animals?

[@wolfhugs2221]

Could you do something on vegan companion animals? Andrew Knight in the UK has put a lot of data out but your analysis would be interesting.

[@ChaseAvior]

Ban Slaughter

[@woodlandfairy5270]

In case no one else mentioned it: "It's ok, maybe next time she won't be such a furry" cracked me up :)

[@jeovanniperez3949]

No diet ever fixed my depression I had to be the one deal with it and survived it , so when ever I see somebody gas lighting that their diet supposedly fixed their depression I find it wrong cus I wish mine was simply fixed like that, I am still vegan and feel the same as I was before which is I don’t feel the same when I had depression

[@madthough2298]

Outreach and demonstrations are better than protesting

[@stacyhuss9454]

Thanks for the good news about our good habits! You’re amazing Mic💚

[@user-no2mz9hl4f]

It’s always encouraging to see evidence that we’re doing the right thing.

[@wolfhugs2221]

Maybe an analysis of the efficacy of various activism activities? Sorry. Not sciency really but I feel we all want to know how to be better activists and not end up questioning who the heck we really are when we're visualising headbutting carnists.

[@TheLifescasualty]

One of the first things guys asked me is “yeah he’s vegan, but how does he do athletically?” I always say they can probably outrun you. 😂 they never argue after that.

[@justcarineinparis]

That was fun, especially the rapidfire cheesy jokes 😂

[@mikeskylark1594]

Cool video

[@byronmurphy1977]

Hey Mic

[@v.a.n.e.]

👍

[@trenxee1165]

2:20 Causation is know, please refer back to your own propionate->serotonin video on the topic.

[@william2036]

hey hey Mic funny news from Daily Mail on Earth Day 4-22-23 - From upcycling to turning manure into biogas, dairy is helping build a sustainable future.

[@krishnaveganathar]

Who is that “person” that walked through the lower left corner about 10 min. in?

[@miken1463]

You covered a lot of studies in a short amount of time. Great work. Vegan activism is a conundrum. As the only vegetarian on a recent huge group camping trip and one of a few in the staff room at work I just tempt them with delicious aromas and positive energy. I share recipes when asked and yummy dishes at potlucks. Never preachy or judgemental. I have a few longtime vegan or vegetarian friends before my lifestyle change that were the same. Meat is a huge thing and I don’t understand why people are so against even the thought of reducing meat intake to 3 meals a week. None of these studies or the many others will change their mind. I dislike the term plant based alternatives. Most of that processed vegan food is a treat at a party BBQ not day to day living. I think that a way is to unsubsidize the animal ag industry and make consumers pay the real price for meat and diary. Then beans and other protein sources become more economical. So… people like Cory Booker are important politicians to shape national policy in a plant based direction.

[@asa8659]

The reason you're against defending the animals is because you're a vegetarian, which makes you an animal abuser yourself. Remember until you become a vegan animals in sanctuaries are being rescused from you.

[@varynhaze]

The omnivore group had overweight bmi. Metabolic dysfunction is a causative factor for mental health problems. The likely reason for benefits in vegans is removal of dairy which adults do not need. The real control group for vegan studies should be carnivore diets that exclude dairy. Uric acid is higher in meat eaters when they have metabolic dysfunction as it impedes uric acid excretion. If you remove carbohydrates, uric acid drops and at ketogenic ratios, CKD improves. I think you need a video addressing soil quality and the role ruminant animals have in this. Without ruminants u may find plant nutritional quality deteriorates. Dont shoot yourself in the foot. ❤

[@guywhitworth5764]

Dr. Neil Nedley has found that simply eliminating dairy and hybridised wheat (harder to digest gluten) results in improvements in anxiety and depression of over 50%. He recommends a whole-food plant based diet for maximising recovery. Also, your suggestion that ruminants grazing has a positive effect on soil quality would only be true in a rotational grazing system such as ‘holistic management’. In most cases grazing has a negative effect on soil fertility, as hoofed animals contribute to the erosion of topsoil, which is a massive problem facing world agriculture.

[@V_Deity]

Carnivore diet science = 0

[@reesecarr7274]

[@injunsun]

@mic the vegan, great content, as always. I have suffered with depression for about 40 years, but that is due to social stresses of being gay. Some treatments help, others, no. On the cancer front, PLEASE consider doing an entire video on the benefits of vitamin K2. The Rotterdam Study found, beside a 50% reduction in cardiac deaths, also, aside from accidents, a 25% reduction in death from ALL other causes. Most people in developed nations have been K2 deficient since early last century, when people stopped eating grass fed animals and their dairy. I have saved in my YT channels vids under Medicine, a cardiologist going over the studies, asking people to share this info widely, because most doctors are unaware of the connexions of K2 to heart disease, let alone cancer. Sometimes some anti-Vegan will tell me to enjoy having my teeth, hair, and nails fall out. Meanwhile, I was a victim of Medicaid fraud in 1983, when a dentist filled ALL of my teeth in one sitting (before, I was told I had the beginnings of ONE cavity on one tooth). Otherwise, after my wisdom teeth were out (as a lacto-ovo), losing one molar to a cavity one of those caused, I still have all of my own teeth at 54, with no obvious signs of problems (Vegan for just over 4 years now). For activism, I have found, on FB for instance, as well as in person, all I need to do is be kind, and share recipes. I have shared a couple shocking videos here and there (baby pigs being slaughtered, pics of dogs being boiled alive in Asia, for instance), but get MUCH better involvement by sharing medical facts, environmental facts, recipes, and of course, videos of animal rescues showing those babies running free, playing with other animals. The recipes get the best responses, which is why I have devoted a section of my YT channel's saved videos to those, including ones that are easily made Vegan by substitutions.

[@carstenaltena]

9:50

[@GregariousAntithesis]

The survey suggests that across animals, carnivory is most common, including 63% of species. Another 32% are herbivorous, while humans belong to a small minority, just 3%, of omnivorous animals.Aug 22, 2019

[@quantumreach3388]

Ha! 75% of land animals are herbivorous

[@quazilion]

"I've got that ADD". Nice😁

[@perijon00]

So the study is vegans vs meat eaters but the meat eating side is just the standard American diet. Stop blaming the meat

[@s-oz8du]

Pssst, you are too nuanced. Of course it's the meat that's bad. Not highly refined carbohydrates and rancid seed oils.

[@V_Deity]

Cope

[@GnosisDharma]

I'm not an activist because I think I can't really change other people that it got to come from within themselves. I wanted to be minimum vegetarian as a child so. Also I used to be a Jehovas wittness and I don't see trying to convince people so effective. You know I can be wrong however. Personally I just try to focus on my personal survival amongst hostile meateaters wanting to crush me so don't want to bring to much attention to myself, I really hate when meeting new people that I'm vegan, being attacked many times for this reason alone, but I won't give in, bullies always find a reason because well yeah I almost always got bullied and harrassed but I won't conform. I have a right to have a personality whatever they say...

[@quantumreach3388]

That sucks, totally unnecessary. I just wanted to thank you for not causing the cruelty I was struggling watch recently. The relentless torture and misery in such mass my brain can’t wrap around it. I am so grateful. Also I think it’s interesting to note that some famous philosophers were vegetarian and believed that eating meat sullies the soul and that it also causes anger and rage in people.

[@GnosisDharma]

@@quantumreach3388 Yes but I think my life is turning around. I begin new education in autumn and I meet so many nice people there so they are not these mad people I usually meet otherwise where I live. True I try to avoid to look at the news and not see the suffering in general that should not be alloweed because nothing becomes better by me crying and feel ill. So I would advice that to you as long humanity don't cooperate for a better world we can't do much alone. Just do what is right and inspire and hope someday we will do the work together. Yes they are right humans are evolved past eating meat but most don't know and probably cause devolution. Thanks for doing what you can do!

[@quantumreach3388]

@@GnosisDharma that’s great news! I’m happy for you! Yeah, Im doing my best, thanks ☺

[@bliblablu]

The erosion might also be due to higher fiber consumption.

[@VeganYeshua]

Liked before watching, always fire 🔥

[@HappilyVeganSince]

Very nice, thanks. So informative, interesting, heartening. (I mean good to know more benefits of veganism as observed and studied; reassuring for us.) And sprinkled with lots to smile at 😊😊😊. Cute visual depiction of 'heartful' too. Suggestive researchers, theRIPPY diet, upsurge in vegan tourist visits to Austria, Predomination 😂 so amusingly silly, in a good way of course. 👍