My personal experience

1790: 

In my own case, being addicted to all the yummy, creamy, rich, salty, meaty items I’d been indulging in all my life, I had to make the break. I gritted my teeth to do just that, only to find a whole new and satisfying food experience ahead of me. Tastebuds quickly readjusted, tingling with new life. By being cleaned-out, they open up. Once I'd readjusted, the idea of abattoir food seemed not only disgusting but absurd. It’s just annoying to think how we’ve all been duped into complying with that particular norm for so many years.

The biggest surprise for me was that I no longer craved these animal-based foods. If any vegan had told me this would happen I wouldn’t have believed them, so if you aren’t yet a vegan I can’t blame you for not believing this now, about plant-based foods. And yet that act of faith is in fact the crucial stepping stone. Once you experience the adaptability of your own body, once you get this (about vegan food) you'll likely never want to go back to the old ways. I can only speak for myself, but it was a huge surprise to me, how readily my body readjusted to an entirely different food palette. I was grateful on a number of levels; after being vegan for some time, I found my energy levels were far higher, I was less sluggish after meals and my general health was noticeably improving AND I was noticing how much more alert and mentally sharper I had become.

I won’t try to be too convincing here, since others far better qualified than me have done that well enough already. My promotion base is about the self-esteem-lift you get when you stop doing what nearly everyone else is doing. It lifts one above the blind compliance level. The alternative mentality highlights the ‘spiritual’ damage which has been done by the use of animals, by condoning their enslavement and killing. 

My main point here is that if survival isn’t dependent on animal-foods (or animal anything-else) then it should be questioned. If anyone could prove that I do need animals to survive, the whole argument collapses, since it would be suicidal to ignore those needs. However, since no one has put up a serious argument along those lines (ever since the first vegans appeared seventy years ago) I continue to assume plant-based foods are efficacious and safe. I only need mention that, over many centuries of eating animal products and now with today's emphasis on greater hygiene, some human bodies can’t make enough vitamin B₁₂. I take regular B₁₂ supplements (a thousand microgram tablet, once a week) to be on the safe side, as advised by vegan doctors.

Based upon this assumption (that a vegan diet is both safe and healthy) I feel justified in adopting a plant-based regime which then lets me adopt the non-violence principles of veganism, which in turn allows me to be an animal advocate with a clear conscience.

This isn’t an entirely selfless pursuit. It benefits me greatly to be vegan and to have this endlessly fascinating subject to occupy my thoughts and energies. It is such an interesting subject and such a worthwhile project to be involved in.