I was a vegan ‘activist’ — but eating meat again ‘saved my life’

A former vegan is claiming that eating meat again saved her life. 

Kai-Lee Worsley adopted a strict diet of no animal products after living with vegans. She moved from Canada to the West Coast in 2016, according to South West News Service.

But six months into the diet, she began feeling sick and her hair started falling out. Her nails grew brittle and she could barely stand.

“I was extremely tired all the time. I couldn’t form coherent thoughts,” she told SWNS. “I would just lie in bed multiple times a week and I would spend all day in bed if I could.”

Still, Worsley continued with the vegan diet until June 2019. But when her symptoms didn’t subside, she went back to eating animal products. 

Reverting back to eating meat, she said, ended up healing her health ailments.

While plant-based diets have myriad health benefits — they’ve proved to lower body weight, decrease risk of cancer and reduce the risk of heart disease — for some, avoiding animal products could negatively impact health. Hair loss, weak bones, skin rashes and anemia are some issues people who avoid animal products have experienced, research from Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute in Missouri suggests.

“If you’re eating a strict vegan diet, it is very difficult to supplement enough of all of the nutrients and high-quality protein that you need to be strong and healthy,” said Dr. James O’Keefe, a cardiologist at Saint Luke’s.

“If you’re doing it for your health, there is no substitute for eating the natural whole foods — you’re better off eating wholesome animal foods that are not overcooked and/or highly processed. Understanding this is vitally important for your health.”

However, consuming excess processed meats and fatty meat can also be negative for a person’s health, he noted. 

While Worsley currently maintains a similar plant-based diet like when she was fully vegan, she’s subbed in steak three times a week.

“I’ve swapped meat substitutes for meat,” she said. “It has literally saved my life.”

Still, she said she struggled morally when she gave up her vegan die, telling SWNS she saw herself “as an activist.”