Is David Attenborough Vegan?

David Attenborough has graced generations of audience’s television screens since he began his career in the 1950s.

The legendary naturalist has been to many exotic locations and featured numerous species of plants and animals, but did you ever wonder if he is vegan?

According to The Vegan Review, Sir David is not a strict follower of a vegan diet nor a vegetarian but eats little meat and is not quite keen on eating it after having a deeper understanding of its production and how it negatively affects the planet.

Let’s take a look at the environmentalist’s diet preferences.

Everything in moderation

To avoid being called an extremist or hypocritical, the Emmy Award-winning broadcaster chooses to remain on neutral ground with his food choices but has stated that eating meat doesn’t make him physically sick in any way but just doesn’t have the appetite for it sometimes.

He seems to support plant-based eaters since eating more vegetables impacts the planet more positively, along with the numerous benefits it has on the body.

In an interview with Radio Times, Attenborough shared that he was not vegetarian in the sense that he would actually throw up if he saw a piece of meat. He eats a bit of poultry and mostly fish and thinks that most people do the same. 

“The world is moving towards a dependency on fish. And heaven help us, what we’re doing to the ocean at the same time; we are crippling its fertility. So it’s a very, very serious problem,” the environmentalist cited.

Restoring biodiversity

Based on Earth.Org, the radio personality stated that the human race must restore or “rewild” biodiversity on the planet because the more ecosystems are diverse, the more they can perform essential ecosystem functions. 

He gave the example of the oceans and Palau, a western Pacific island nation which depends on its waters for food and tourism.

When the fishing stocks were depleting expeditiously, the government restricted fishing practices and banned fishing in several areas, which resulted in protecting fish populations, multiplying them, and even spilling over to areas where fishing was allowed. 

Global no-fish zones are a good way of protecting the fish population in international waters.

He opined that we must try to reduce the space we use for farmland and make more space for the wilderness. This can be achieved by changing our diets and having more plant-based food.

In countries like the Netherlands, Dutch farmers utilize their land more efficiently through innovative changes in farming practices for two generations. Today the country is the world’s second-largest exporter of food products.

His secret to longevity?

Sir David was featured in The Guardian where he, along with Queen Elizabeth II, was celebrated as a nonagenarian and if there was a secret to their longevity. Attenborough stated that it was all about luck, and he was very wide of the mark. 

The Department of Work and Pensions awards a higher rate of attendance allowance to people over 90 years old, but the reputable television host and the Queen are good examples of those who can take care of themselves while their counterparts need constant care or have already passed away.

The UK’s Research Councils have been focused on the New Dynamics of Aging Program, where they found that while aging is inevitable, it is managed by a complex set of processes in which genes interact with environmental risk factors which can result in damage to the body’s cells and metabolism.

That damage causes compromised functioning and biological aging. Factors like smoking, poor diet, no physical exercise, and stress are associated with conditions that come with old age, like coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and more.

The article playfully cited that if one sought to lie down with gorillas, catch Komodo dragons or poke giant seals, luck might indeed play a role.

Experts, however, think that it’s David’s comfortable background and lifelong professional status that have played a role in him reaching advanced old age along with an active life and far from retiring.

David’s stand on cooking and gardening shows

In March 2021, Express reported that the BBC was called out by the BAFTA winner for having “too many” gardening and cooking shows and not having a variety of programs.

He has served as an important figure in British Broadcasting during his career and urged the network to have other content.

Still going strong

There may be some merit to what David thinks of our consumption of meat as he continues to beat father time. He recently celebrated his 96th birthday on May 8, 2022.

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