Well, I think the time that I became a vegan. I love the philosophy behind veganism, but I went from one day eating chicken and meat to eating just salad. I didn’t know how to be a vegan. I didn’t know about soy or almond butter. I didn’t know that there are great breads. So I literally stuck to salads. And I think I passed out the first week.

First off, let me say that a lot has changed in the past 15 years. I remember when I stopped eating dairy 10 years ago they didn’t even sell soy cheese in stores. Rice milk was new. You had to go to specific natural food stores in order to find anything that you could eat. There was no Daiya, Follow Your Heart, Gardein, Luna & Larry’s or any other brand that makes living a vegan diet easier. There was no amazing vegan cookbook section at the bookstore – no Veganomicon. You had to be really ambitious in the kitchen and you had to want to know how to cook. It was a lot harder to have a vegan diet then than it is now.

Now there are tons of resources for new vegans. There are online forums, cookbooks, and countless blogs to turn to for inspiration, recipes, and motivation. Not to mention, tons of amazing products in the grocery stores. Even Target sells soy milk, almond milk, and Gardein products. Some 7-11 chains are now stocking pre-made vegan food. The stuff is everywhere! With so many options readily available, starting a vegan diet is really easy. There’s an alternative for every animal product out there.

Are you interested in trying a vegetarian or vegan diet?

• Why not request one of the many vegetarian and vegan starter kits! They are available from PETA, VegNews, Vegan Outreach, One Green Planet, and even Oprah has made one.
• Check out all the great recipe resources for cooking ideas! My favorites are The Post Punk Kitchen, The Vegan Stoner, and Vegan Yum Yum. These sites all give you recipes for real food. Not just salads! Tastespotting and FoodGawker let people tag their recipes and have huge logs of vegan recipes too.
• There are even lots of great Twitter users and forums where you can find more information and get support. The PPK Forum is really helpful. Feel free to follow me on Twitter and ask any question you might have. Check out the lists of who Klout thinks is influential about veganism for more social media accounts to follow.
• Hit up the bookstore and do some reading! Skinny Bitch is still one of my favorite books and now the series has been expanded on. Veganomicon and Vegan with a Vengeance are great cook books for anyone who is starting a vegan diet. They cover all the basics you’ll need to make the transition. There are tons of other great books out there, but I consider these three must-haves for new vegans.

Other blogs are talking about this quote as if Eva had tried a vegan diet within the past couple of years. A vegan diet fifteen years ago required a lot more work than it does now, so I think it’s important to give her kudos for even trying. Would it be great if she tried again? Of course! But that’s a personal decision that only Longoria can make. Just like having a vegan diet is a personal decision that only you can make for yourself. I think that even just reducing the amount of animal products you consume is a great step. If you’re not doing it for the animals, then at least consider doing it for your health. It’s a lot easier than you realize.

Have you ever tried a vegan diet? Is it something that you are currently considering?

Source : CNN

Images : WeHeartIt