Home / G. Health and nutrition / Part IND
"I know someone who got sick being vegan."
one case doesn't refute the reviews and positions of nutrition bodies, and what really happened is rarely known. Often the diet was poorly planned, lacked B12 or energy, or there was another health problem. A poorly planned vegan diet can do harm, just like a poorly planned diet with meat. The problem is planning, not the absence of meat.
Short answer
I'm sorry about your cousin. But one case doesn't show the cause: often the diet was poorly planned, lacked B12 or energy, or there was another problem. A Faunalytics survey of former vegetarians and vegans showed that most gave up within the first year, many without supervision. People also get sick eating meat, and no one concludes from that that meat is dangerous. Scientific reviews and nutrition bodies show that a well-planned vegan diet is adequate.
For children
Sometimes someone gets sick while eating in a new way and thinks the new way is to blame. But maybe they were missing a vitamin or eating too little. A person who eats only bread also gets sick, but no one says the problem is not eating meat. The important thing is to eat well and eat a variety of foods.
"Was she supervised by a dietitian, and was she taking B12?"
Como pode aparecer
"My cousin got sick being vegan."
"An influencer quit veganism for health reasons."
"I saw an ex-vegan's story."
"I was vegan for 5 years and nearly died."
"There are documented cases of serious deficiencies in vegans."
"My body can't adapt." (which is G11)
The strongest version
"My cousin got sick. An influencer quit veganism for health reasons. I saw an ex-vegan's story."
Strongest version (steelman):
- P1I know people who got sick or felt unwell being vegan.
- P2They got better when they went back to eating meat.
- P3This indicates the vegan diet doesn't work for everyone.
- CSo the vegan diet is risky.
P1 and P2 may be true. The problem lies in P3: individual cases don't show the cause, and improvement may come from any change in diet, such as more energy, more variety or correcting a deficiency.
The argument is valid as a testimony. It fails as proof about the vegan diet in general.
Full answer
- a
Reconstruction and diagnosis
The personal case has many possible explanations:
Possible cause Is it the lack of meat? Lack of B12 No: it's lack of a supplement Insufficient energy intake No: it's eating too little A diet based on few foods No: it's lack of variety Another, unrelated illness No The effect of expectations or social stress No - b
Where the argument breaks
1. It's anecdotal evidence.
Individual cases don't show the cause of anything. Reviews and the positions of nutrition bodies are based on many studies (D9).
2. The case is rarely investigated.
Whoever tells the story almost never knows whether there was supervision, blood tests or supplementation.
3. People usually quit quickly.
The Faunalytics survey showed that most former vegetarians and vegans gave up within the first year, and many within three months. The main reasons included dissatisfaction with the food, health and social issues.
4. Getting better after a change doesn't prove the cause.
Whoever goes back to eating meat usually also starts eating more and more varied food. The improvement may come from that.
5. Public stories aren't a sample.
"Ex-vegan" stories attract attention and sometimes come with sales of products or diets. That doesn't make them false, but it shows that the cases that circulate most don't represent everyone.
- c
Data and sources
Source What it says Note Faunalytics, study of current and former vegetarians and vegans 84% of vegetarians and vegans give up; 34% within three months; the main reasons are dissatisfaction with the food (32%), health (26%) and social issues (13%) A survey of more than 11,000 adults in the US Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 2016 Well-planned vegan diets are adequate Official position - d
The strongest counter-reply: some people find it harder
The most serious version grants that individual cases prove nothing in general, but says some people, because of health conditions or individual factors, may find a vegan diet harder.
- e
Why the counter-reply doesn't reach the conclusion
That justifies exceptions, not the rule.
Veganism already allows for what is "possible and practicable" (D3).
Difficulty calls for supervision.
Many difficulties are solved with professional guidance.
Most people aren't in that situation.
Often, whoever repeats someone else's story has never tried.
- f
Back to the moral question
A sad case doesn't change what the evidence shows, and even real cases of difficulty justify exceptions at most. For most people, the moral question remains: if we can live well without killing animals, why carry on?
Reasoning errors
Logical
Is the form valid?
Anecdotal evidence
Post hoc
Epistemological
Does the evidence support it?
Confusing a vegan diet with a poorly planned diet
Biases
Availability bias
One known case weighs more than statistics
General literature on heuristics
Confirmation bias
Negative cases are remembered; positive ones, forgotten
General literature on confirmation bias
Extrapolations
The principle being tested is: "if someone got sick on a diet, the diet is dangerous".
If it applied to…Diets with meatTap to see
They'd be dangerous, because many people get sick on them
No one concludes this
If it applied to…ExerciseTap to see
It would be dangerous, because some people get hurt
No one concludes this
If it applied to…Any medicineTap to see
It would be dangerous, because someone had a side effect
No one concludes this
Contradictions
And doesn't conclude meat is dangerous.
But draws a general conclusion from it.
But trusts this one.
What the argument gets right
What is true
Cases of people who had problems being vegan exist, and should be taken seriously. They show that information and supervision are essential, and that animal advocates should speak clearly about B12, energy and variety.
But
But one case isn't a rule. What these stories show, most of the time, is the importance of planning, not the need to eat animals.
Connections
Usually comes before
Usually comes after