7 Reasons to Go Vegan on St. Patrick's Day

They say everyone's a bit Irish on St. Patrick's Day. You know—just like everyone's a little gay during Pride Week. Or is that just me? Whatever. The point is that even if you could never pass for a resident of the Emerald Isle, March 17 is a great day to go vegan. After all, why settle for the "wearin' of the green" once a year when you can eat your greens every day?

Photo: Hillary.Ryland | cc by 2.0

Need more convincing? Here, in no particular order, are seven lucky reasons why you should go vegan on St. Paddy's Day: 

Green beer is OK, but green veggies are even better.

1. Green meat? Ewww!
2. Speaking of green, meat isn't.
   Vegan foods are the most eco-friendly—you'll be so green that you won't have to worry about getting pinched on St. Paddy's, no matter what color you're wearing.
3. What's more Irish than potatoes and cabbage?
   Put 'em together (with some leeks, soy milk, and seasonings) and you get colcannon—a dish so Irish it'll make you name your daughters Faith and Begorrah.
4. Even the Irish can't live on colcannon alone.
   Happily, vegan foods are as varied as they are delicious—try bean burritos, sesame noodles, falafel, spinach lasagne, spicy coconut-pineapple curry, and roasted veggie pizza, just to name a few. Is it time for lunch yet?
5. Ready to raise a pint?
   Guinness Extra Stout is vegan (in North America, at least), and there are plenty of other vegan beers, ales, stouts, lagers, etc.—any one of which will be better for you than drinking fat-, cholesterol-, and sugar-laden milk.
6. If your health is a concern (as it should be), you won't need the luck o' the Irish to stay fit if you're eating the vegan way.
   Folks who eat balanced vegan meals are generally leaner, live longer, and have a lower risk of heart disease, cancer, and strokes.
7. Animals on factory farms suffer.
   They're crammed into crates, deprived of exercise and sunlight, pumped full of hormones, fed unnatural junk, and then violently slaughtered. By going vegan, you'll give them cause for celebration too!

Of course, whether or not it's St. Patrick's Day, the best time to go vegan is always the same—right now!