1203: Veganism | Skeptical Sunday

Is veganism a healthy lifestyle or social cult with nutritional gaps? Decades-long vegan Jessica Wynn weighs in on this Skeptical Sunday!

Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and a guest break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions. This time around, we’re joined by writer and researcher Jessica Wynn!

On This Week’s Skeptical Sunday:

• There’s a myth that it’s impossible to properly nourish the human body on a vegan diet — but nutritional planning is crucial for optimizing one’s health on any diet. B12 supplementation is essential for vegans, and iron absorption improves when paired with vitamin C. Done wrong, any diet can lead to deficiencies.
• “Junk food veganism” defeats the health purpose of this lifestyle. Oreos and processed fake meats are technically vegan but nutritionally empty. Ultra-processed foods aren’t healthy regardless of origin.
• Factory farming ethics drive many vegans. Animals experience pain, fear, and joy, yet ag-gag laws hide slaughterhouse conditions. Environmental impact includes massive water usage and pollution.
• True veganism extends beyond diet. Hidden animal products lurk in cosmetics (fish scales in mascara), clothing (leather), and processed foods. Reading labels becomes investigative work.
• Focus on whole foods regardless of diet. Shop the grocery store perimeter for fresh produce, minimize processed foods, and listen to your body’s needs for optimal health and balance.
• Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you’d like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!
• Connect with Jessica Wynn at Instagram and Threads, and subscribe to her newsletter: Between the Lines!

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From Soviet exchange student to American hotelier to Russian YouTuber on the run from the FSB, Konstantin Samoilov offers a front-row seat to Russia’s transformation from hopeful democracy to militaristic kleptocracy on episode 1021: Konstantin Samoilov | Putin’s Russia: An Insider’s Perspective. Hear tales of McDonald’s as Cold War propaganda, missiles that cost as much as schools, and why telling the truth became the most dangerous thing he could do!

Resources from This Skeptical Sunday:

• Six Types of Vegetarian Diets: A Dietitian Explains | Healthline
• Why One Diet Doesn’t Fit All: The Role of a Dietitian | Dietitian’s Life
• Should You Eat the Same Thing Every Day? Learn the Pros and Cons. | Cleveland Clinic
• Bioethics Professor Peter Singer Renews His Fight for Animal Rights | Princeton Alumni Weekly
• Animal Liberation Now: The Definitive Classic Renewed by Peter Singer | Amazon
• Can a B12 Deficiency Make You Feel Like You Are Dying? | Healthline
• Want to Try Veganism? Here’s How to Get Started. | Harvard Health
• Is It True That Mascara Is Made of Bat Poop? | Encyclopedia.com
• Animal-Derived Ingredients List | PETA
• Big Dairy | Skeptical Sunday | Jordan Harbinger
• Is Drinking Milk Unnatural? | Scientific American
• Don’t Drink Your Milk by Frank A. Oski | Amazon
• Five Things to Know About Dairy and Cancer Risk | MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Dairy Products Linked to Increased Risk of Cancer | University of Oxford
• Dairy Products and Prostate Cancer Risk | World Journal of Men’s Health
• Milk Protein and Cancer Risk | Nutrition Journal
• Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Test | National Cancer Institute
• Why ‘Got Milk?’ Is One of the Greatest Ad Campaigns of All Time | Saveur
• Should We All Be Vegan? by Molly Watson | Amazon
• The Scoop on Vegan Ice Cream | Consumer Reports
• How to Eat Less Processed Food | Healthline
• Eating Red Meat Daily Triples Heart Disease-Related Chemical | National Institutes of Health
• Steve Jobs and Pancreatic Cancer | Dr. Mirkin
• Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson | Amazon
• Plant-Based Diets and Gut Health | Nutrients
• Vitamin B12 Deficiency in Vegetarians | PubMed
• B12 Supplementation in Plant-Based Diets | PMC
• Fiber Intake and Health Outcomes | PMC
• Iron Fact Sheet for Health Professionals | Office of Dietary Supplements
• How to Increase the Absorption of Iron from Foods | Healthline
• Why You Crave Sweets After Meals and What Your Body Might Be Telling You | Redcliffe Labs
• Why You’re Craving Chocolate on or Around Your Period | GoodRx
• Super Cow: Moby’s Short Film About Agriculture | YouTube
• Slaying the Protein Myth | Forks Over Knives
• Plant-Based Protein and Athletic Performance | PMC
• Vegan Bodybuilders | Great Vegan Athletes
• 20 Vegan Athletes You Didn’t Know Ate a Plant-Based Diet | Vegan Food & Living
• NFL Star Cam Newton: Built Like a Vegan | PETA
• Vegan Protein: A Simple Guide to Getting What You Need | No Meat Athlete
• Does the Vegan Diet Extend Your Lifespan? | Healthline
• Ag-Gag Laws Face the First Amendment | First Amendment Watch
• Ag-Gag Laws and Factory Farms Explained | Vox
• Animal Sentience and Consciousness | PMC
• PETA to NIH: Animals Feel Pain and Joy — Stop Testing on Them | PETA
• Diet, Vegan Meat, and Emissions | The New York Times
• New Study: Vegan Diets Generate 75% Fewer Greenhouse Gases Than Meat-Heavy Diets | Forks Over Knives
• Almonds, California Drought, and Water | Vox
• How Almonds Became a Scapegoat for California’s Drought | NPR
• Almonds | Skeptical Sunday | The Jordan Harbinger Show
• If the World Adopted a Plant-Based Diet, We Would Reduce Global Agricultural Land Use from 4 to 1 Billion Hectares | Our World in Data
• Apu: “Yes, Indeed, I Do.” (The Simpsons) | YouTube
• Ricky Gervais: Foie Gras/Vegan | Instagram
• Cam Fake Bacon (Modern Family) | YouTube
• Louis CK: Food Chain | YouTube
• John Kruk: “If I Ever Become a Vegan…” (Phillies Game) | Instagram