Partner Backed for Not Converting to Veganism To Please Wife Due to Health

A partner has been backed online after refusing to convert to veganism to please their wife, due to health concerns.

In a now-deleted post published on Reddit's popular r/AmITheA**hole forum, a partner under the anonymous username u/VintagePneumonia shared their story to get the opinions of the "AITA" community. The popular post has over 4,000 upvotes and 1,000 comments.

The OP began their story by explaining that their wife of 12 years changed her diet and became a vegan about two years ago and the OP kept their diet the same. However, they try to include foods that are free from animal harm as a major part of their diet.

In a report from Plant Proteins, 6 percent of people in the United States are currently vegan, which is a 500 percent increase from 2014.

Recently, their wife asked them to start a vegan diet.

"Here is the thing," the OP began, "I don't want to go vegan. I have IBS and everytime I tried to change to a plant based diet, I suffered with a lot of pain. I know some people swear a plant based diet can help IBS, but that was not my case. It made things so much worse that I really don't want to go through that ordeal.

"I can change pretty much everything else, but my diet isn't something I'm willing to change. I told her that and was even more than willing to change everything else. She however, is very present in their cause. She's not happy that I decided not to go vegan," they continued.

The OP admitted that they felt bad about their conflict and doesn't want their wife to think he was in the wrong because they don't want to be in pain.

Newsweek reached out to u/VintagePneumonia for comment.

Newsweek has published several articles regarding veganism including a vegan mother who was jailed for life after her toddler with malnutrition died and how the internet backed a dinner host for not catering to a vegan request.

What is IBS? What are foods that are good for people with the disorder?

As defined by the Mayo Clinic, IBS—also known as Irritable Bowel Syndrome—is a common disorder that affects the large intestine. Symptoms of IBS include cramping, abdominal pain, bloating, gas, diarrhea and constipation. According to the International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders, IBS affects between 25 to 45 million people in the United States.

Do you suffer from IBS and have trouble finding things to eat that don't upset your stomach? Verywellhealth.com has food suggestions that could help your IBS including skinless chicken, whole grain cereal, pears, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, bananas, lean meat, white pasta and cod.

Redditor reactions

"[Not the a**hole]. I'm vegan and my partner isn't for health reasons. We both have IBS. Veganism made mine a little bit better (not magically healed like everyone claims) but better. It makes my partner's IBS 100x worse. Veganism doesn't work for every single body and it's not her place to push that on you when it causes your health issues to worsen. She can care about animals and stuff while also caring about you," u/graphicn wrote, receiving the top comment of over 10,000 upvotes.

U/ruthlessshenanigans said, "This is an unreasonable request. It is self righteous and inflexible. You do not get to police your partner's dietary needs. [Not the a**hole], but she sure is."

"[Not the a**hole]!!!!! For starters, I'm a vegetarian (or vegan lite, as I joke) and I have never expected a partner who was not, to conform. And I would never ask them ESPECIALLY if it was going to cause them discomfort or health issues. Just the fact that you feel like an ahole for not joining in on something that is super important to her says that you're not the ahole," u/Light_Seeker90 exclaimed.

"[Not the a**hole], she needs to consider you and your feelings. This is not a one way street. You indicated you made accommodations to your daily life for her vegan choices. She is asking to much, especially as it affects you physically. Sorry she is being narrow minded," u/kityderry- commented.