Meatless Mondays: Tia Mowry Embraces New Vegan Lifestyle

TVRage is presenting a brand new series called Meatless Mondays, where we will showcase some of our favorite actors and actresses who are vegan. For those who don’t know, Meatless Mondays is a worldwide campaign encouraging others to eliminate meat from their diets once a week to improve their health and the planet’s health.

As a relatively new vegan myself, it’s inspiring to hear from fellow plant-based eaters and learn about their healthy journey - the successes and the difficulties. Going vegan isn’t only about eating healthy, but it’s about benefiting the planet, helping animals and treating your body right.

This Monday, Tia Mowry is my featured vegan.

Mowry is most popular, alongside her twin Tamera Mowry, for starring in the ‘90s sitcom ‘Sister, Sister.’ Nowadays, rather than being recognized for being a twin, she is getting noticed for her recent transition to veganism. Like myself, Mowry just switched to a vegan diet at the beginning of the year.

She’s had a lot of help from outside sources, like from actress and vegan Alicia Silverstone, who is known for her ‘Kind Life.' Silverstone’s book, ‘The Kind Diet,’ guided Mowry in the right direction with recipes and how to eat healthy. However, it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows for the actress, wife and new mom, as Mowry’s had to deal with others harsh criticism regarding her cruelty-free choices.

Mowry isn’t one to back down, but one who showcases who she is and voice why her eco-friendly choices are a great addition to life.

As she told PETA, “I became a vegan and I was getting bullied a lot on Twitter. And PETA reached out to me and they said ‘girl we’ve got your back.’ And they sent so many cooking books and pamphlets, you know about PETA, and I was like ‘wow this is really cool,’ so I wanted to become a voice for my community.”

She took that voice and starred in a 2013 PETA ad, because “[she] wanted to educate [her] culture about the benefits of becoming vegan.”

As you can see in the video below, Mowry explains her journey, and the advantages of going vegan. For her, there are three main benefits:

1. She’s more conscious about what she’s putting into her body.
2. She feels great, because she’s making healthy and better choices.
3. She feels amazing, especially after eating vegetables and grains. No sluggishness for her!

That’s just a few reasons. Yes, looking and feeling great is a huge plus when going vegan, but that's not all it's about. Veganism is also about impacting the environment and its creatures, which is how Mowry feels too.

“What happens to these beautiful animals and these beautiful creatures - it’s mind blowing and it’s just sad,” Mowry says in the PETA video. “I think some people are afraid to really know what really goes on, so they think ignorance is bliss, but unfortunately not in this case. The more you learn about, you know, the benefits of being vegan, the more you become alive and the more you become aware of why this is actually a really really great decision to make.”

In only a short time, Mowry has come extremely far in her vegan culinary adventure. So far in fact, that she’s even offering up her favorite recipes on Silverstone’s website, The Kind Life. Check out Mowry’s recipe for Ginger Acorn Squash Soup. That sure sounds yummy. Also, be sure to head on over to Tia and Tamera’s official website, for more recipes and everyday vegan tips.

If you’re hesitant about the vegan lifestyle, follow Mowry's advice: “Don’t knock it ‘til you try it.”

Kristin Bauer van Straten < Previous | Next > Owain Yeoman