The Vegan Diet Is Here To Stay

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It looks like what everyone thought was a millennial-hippy trend is actually here to stay. Veganism increased in the US by 600 percent, according to NowThis.

The diet, which consists of eating nothing that comes from an animal, is more of a lifestyle change than anything else.

Jessica Ruby has been following a plant-based vegan diet for two years. She says one of the main reasons why she decided to go vegan was after a close friend of hers had a life changing experience.

After being diagnosed with breast cancer, Ruby’s friend was told she would need to undergo chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Instead, she visited a natural healer who told her to follow a plant-based diet.

“She wanted to see her options so she went and saw a energy healer in upstate New York, and he told her to go plant based,” Ruby said. “She went on a plant based diet and very shortly after all of the cancer was nowhere to be found.”

It was a pivotal moment that changed Ruby’s perspective, and she decided to try it out for herself.

And she is not alone.

Currently, six percent of the US is vegan compared to the 1 percent who identified as vegan four years ago, and one industry who has seen the increase in demand has been the non-dairy industry.

Their sales have increased by 61 percent since 2012. That includes milk alternatives such as soy, almond, and cashew. Even restaurants are noticing the demand for vegan options on their menus.

Ruby says she started by first giving up meat, then went to a plant-based vegan diet, and she feels great.

“I travel all over the world and it seems to be a very big trend right now. It is so easy to eat plant-based, plus it tastes amazing and I don’t feel terrible after eating it.” Ruby said.

In the last year, the demand for vegan options increased by 19 percent alone. Now, many restaurants offer full vegan menus, and some are even strictly dedicated to vegan cooking only.

Ruby’s favorite plant-based restaurant is Double Zero in New York City.

“I thought it would be hard to go plant-based vegan but it’s not at all!”