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should i become vegetarian?

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[ April.Ericsson ]

PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:37 pm


i want to, and i feel like i should. my parents might not support it, and my friends might tease me about it a bit. what the the negatives and positives of it? can you please tell me from your own experiences, so i know if i should or not?
PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 5:13 pm


I would say yes. However I am very pro animal rights and so biased on the issue. I went veggie 10 years ago now and have never regretted it. Initially I found it a bit difficult as some of the places I used to like to eat I could no longer go as they had no vegetarian meals on. Aside from that, I rarely miss meat, and although initially the smell of bacon used to make me crave it that has passed now and I can't stand the smell. If you think it is the right thing to do, then it seems like you have pretty much already made up your mind. My transition to veggieness was fairly easy as my mum already was, but most parents don't oppose it too much if you put it across to them in the right way. If it seems like a fad (either as in last week I went off tomatoes, this week I don't like meat, or as in last week britney spears was in fashion, this week its vegitarianism) it will be hard for them to take you seriously. The other side of this is that if you come across too militant about the animal cruelty and how it is wrong etc it seems like you are judging them and their lifestyle and parents rarely like to be put in this position by their children. The best way people deal with this is sitting down calmly with your parents (or just one to start off with) and explaining to them that you have been feeling increasingly inclined towards becoming vegetarian, and then explaining your reasons for it. This is not a good discussion to have when there is a steak already on the grill, as it forces the issue into too much immediacy. If you have already ate meat for X many years, 1 more meal wont make a difference.
If you dont want to be this direct about it, it is something you can introduce more gradually (as I did, where I slowly cut meat out of my diet until one day I just didnt eat it anymore, with no specific day I became vegi.) A good way to do this is to look up vegetarian recipes you like the sound of, and offer to cook them for your family. You dont even need to say today I cooked a meat free X, but rather can I make a cheese and vegetable (or whatever) Y on Monday. Introducing the change in this way shows that you are serious about it, and that you are prepared to work for it yourself rather than just expecting your mother to cook you a special meal every day. It also introduces the idea to your family that many 'normal' meals dont have meat in them (pasta and rice dishes are a good way to start) and this will prevent them from worrying so much that you will be deficient in protien, nutrients etc if you stop eating meat.

queenarmadillo


MonkeysThrowTheirPoo

PostPosted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:32 am


Well you do not have to go all out veggie all at once. Meat is an important part of a humans diet so cutting it out means that you would need to find foods of suppliments to make up for it which is easy enough. I personally love my meats so I am bias in the other direction of queenarmadillo. Something you can do though is just eat the minimum required portion of meat needed in your diet to still sit in the right part of the food chain, BUT.....do alittle research and find a meat supplier that you find humane. As for the people making fun of you for a choice you think is important in your life like this....you send them to me and we will have a talk sweatdrop

-MTTP ninja
PostPosted: Thu Mar 02, 2006 10:25 am


All very good advice. May I direct you to the Guild of Vegans and Vegetarians? We're still pretty new, so it's kind of empty at the moment, but if you're interested let me know, and I'll send an invite your way. biggrin

Ailinea


[ April.Ericsson ]

PostPosted: Sun Mar 05, 2006 3:06 pm


thank you. i know what to do now.
PostPosted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 5:19 am


I am a sort of vegitarian, i eat chicken. I just feel bad when i see a cow eating happily in a feild and just knowing that it could someday be in a hamburger.

Hiro_wolf

Dapper Dabbler


[ April.Ericsson ]

PostPosted: Fri Mar 10, 2006 6:51 pm


yeah. we were reading some stuff in one of my classes, and it really disgusted me. so now i'm not really eating much any more. i still eat chicken as well, but that is about it. i'm trying to cut back on that now.
PostPosted: Sun Feb 25, 2007 9:14 am


its up to u to be a veggitarian or not

sasuke_sakura8


ixcausexriotsx

PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2007 3:47 pm


I went veggie a few months ago. I think that you can only become a veggie person if you are totally determined to stick to it. Because, personally, it was so hard, but I feel so proud of myself now. I eat vegitables every night and I don't get cravings for meat anymore. This is your decision, but if you want to go ahead and do it.
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 8:17 am


I wanted to come in an be like "NO WAI! MEAT IS GUD". But sadly, vegetarian lifestyles are often much more nutritious and beneficial than the meat-eating ones.

But that doesn't make meat bad. It just makes the rest of us unhealthy.

Roufette


Evedi Etros

PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:50 pm


Roufette
I wanted to come in an be like "NO WAI! MEAT IS GUD". But sadly, vegetarian lifestyles are often much more nutritious and beneficial than the meat-eating ones.

But that doesn't make meat bad. It just makes the rest of us unhealthy.


Er, no. Perhaps an omnivorous diet is unhealthy if you are not getting the correct nutrients or eating too much of one thing, but any diet can have those issues.
Perhaps an omnivore who eats a lot of junk and fast foods will be unhealthy, but then it is perfectly possible for a vegetarian diet to be unhealthy in the same manner.

Healthy omnivore who eats lean meat and plenty of other good stuff? I reckon just as healthy as any 'healthy' vegetarian.
PostPosted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 3:16 pm


Skeksis
Roufette
I wanted to come in an be like "NO WAI! MEAT IS GUD". But sadly, vegetarian lifestyles are often much more nutritious and beneficial than the meat-eating ones.

But that doesn't make meat bad. It just makes the rest of us unhealthy.


Er, no. Perhaps an omnivorous diet is unhealthy if you are not getting the correct nutrients or eating too much of one thing, but any diet can have those issues.
Perhaps an omnivore who eats a lot of junk and fast foods will be unhealthy, but then it is perfectly possible for a vegetarian diet to be unhealthy in the same manner.

Healthy omnivore who eats lean meat and plenty of other good stuff? I reckon just as healthy as any 'healthy' vegetarian.

...Reword:

Vegetarians are generally eating healthier than the omnivorves, because the omnivovres can eat all the crap with animal fats in it, and the vegetarians can't.

Roufette


Evedi Etros

PostPosted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:37 am


Roufette
Skeksis
Roufette
I wanted to come in an be like "NO WAI! MEAT IS GUD". But sadly, vegetarian lifestyles are often much more nutritious and beneficial than the meat-eating ones.

But that doesn't make meat bad. It just makes the rest of us unhealthy.


Er, no. Perhaps an omnivorous diet is unhealthy if you are not getting the correct nutrients or eating too much of one thing, but any diet can have those issues.
Perhaps an omnivore who eats a lot of junk and fast foods will be unhealthy, but then it is perfectly possible for a vegetarian diet to be unhealthy in the same manner.

Healthy omnivore who eats lean meat and plenty of other good stuff? I reckon just as healthy as any 'healthy' vegetarian.

...Reword:

Vegetarians are generally eating healthier than the omnivorves, because the omnivovres can eat all the crap with animal fats in it, and the vegetarians can't.


A person could live off french fries and be vegetarian. I know more healthy omnis than vegetarians. Sorry if I came across as snarky, it just pisses me off to see vegetarian propaganda progressing to the point where folks think an omni diet is automatically unhealthy simply because they eat meat.

I understand what you're getting at though.
PostPosted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 11:02 pm


Vegetarianism will be accepted (or rejected) by each individual depending on their metabolism, body structure, health, and habits.

Some vegetarians have no issues
Some vegetarians have major issues
Some vegetarians seem to have no issues, but have some down the road.

The most long-term experience I've had was with a relative who was vegetarian for years, if not decades. She caught a non-related illness that required some serious medication, and the doctor essentially told her that she HAS to eat meat to be healthy enough to survive the treatment and not be completely physically deteriorated from it. The vegetarianism, and the lack of specific vitamins and minerals that came from it, had made her too unhealthy to get over the treatment as she was.

The largest thing to remember when chanigng eating habits is that vitamins and supplements never give as much nutrition as real food - the body simply doesn't absorb them as readily.


Lady Lagomorph


Wheezing Bunny

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Animal Issues and Extended Discussion

 
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