“I thought 25 is supposed to be the time of your life when you feel like a rock star. I didn’t.” Meet Allyson Allyson is a 27 year old woman who adopted a plant-based diet for health reasons. She didn’t have a major heart attack, wage a battle with cancer, nor receive a diagnosis of hypertension or high cholesterol. Rather, Allyson began a vegan diet for many of the subtle struggles so common to us all: low energy, poor sleeping, acne, and those “extra few pounds” we’d like to shed. I first encountered Allyson on the Facebook group, McDougall friends, where her before and after photos made me jaw drop: What really captured my interest, though, was Allyson’s youth. While many of my plant-based personal chef clients and others in support groups tend toward the Baby Boomer generation, here was someone in her mid-20’s forgoing other diet fads to try the vegan lifestyle. What made her more receptive to a healthy, whole foods, vegetarian diet? What advice can she offer to other young men and women? Here are insights in honest, open answers…. Tell us a little bit about yourself: Where do you live, what kind of passions or work do you pursue? I am 27 years old and I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. I moved to Oregon when I was 18 for school, met my husband, and ended up settling down in Portland. I have my master’s degree in social work, and I
