It is difficult to go to a vegan diet from years of eating meat?
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why would you dio that? the only reason we have animals is so we can have a BBQ. We are the only animals in earth that chose the vegan lifestile when given a choice. have you ever seen a lion go like "Hey Andrew, pass the celery." as Chris Rock says... if you are one of the few lucky people in this earth to get your hands on a steak bite the s&@# out of it
86326
I know plenty of vegetarians that are in perfect health. So, no it is not necessary to eat meat or fish.
340565
Not a vegetarian.  I guess my answer as to why I'm not a vegetarian is: why would I be one?  There are certain things that are harvested and sold as food products that I won't eat, but I still feel like animal meat is an essential part of the food chain.  One limit on food for me would be parts of the animal that are not technically muscle.  I won't eat things like hot dogs, which have all kinds of odds and ends in them.  Cow tongue is a muscle, but I wouldn't eat that either, unless I was starving.
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It is extremely essential - you die without it. But it is NOT true that you only get it from meat! Dairy products and eggs are great sources - no need to worry if you include those in your diet. Strict vegans need to take yeast fortified with B12 or supplements.\n\nThere is, however, a condition called pernicious anemia that is fairly common, especially in older people, where you lose the ability to absorb B12 in your stomach. You can eat meat, take supplements, and still have a disabling lack of B12 in your system. In that case the B12 must be given in a way that bypasses the stomach, usually as injections, but one can also use tiny tablets that are absorbed under the tongue. There is no way to get enough B12 through your diet if you have this condition.
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I think you're confusing vegans and vegetarians. There are plenty of vegetarians who I agree are being a bit hypocritical...they wont eat meat because of animal treatment yet they wear leather, etc.\nThe definition of a vegan is a person who abstains from using any and all products that involved animals to be produced---They dont eat meat, dairy, eggs, honey or ANYTHING with animal-derived ingredients (ie-gelatin, casein, etc.). They do not wear leather, wool, fur or silk. They do not use any cosmetics or cleaning products that were  tested on animals. Any person who claims to be vegan and does not do all of these things is, by definition, not a vegan.\nAs for "excuses" for being vegan...it's good for everyone! It's good for the animals for obvious reasons, it's good for the environment (factoy farms create all kinds of waste), non-animal products require less energy to be made, those who follow a vegan diet DECREASE (not eliminate) their risk of developing many kinds of cancer, as well as diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and Alzheimer's. \nAs for plants screaming when cut, that's the most absurd thing I've ever heard. I've taken classes on plants and I can assure you that they lack the physical features to allow them to scream....As well, plants don't have a brain or a central nervous system, so they are, as far as we know, incapable of feeling pain, at least in the same way we are.
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Being a vegetarian has it's pro's and con's.  Because you are not eating meat, you need to get the vitamins you will be lacking, so you have to take a multi-vitamin, and find another way to get your protein.  Many vegetarian's lack vitamin b-12 which is an important vitamin.  Also, many vegetarian's become carbaholics.  I think it's good to eat meat.  In moderation of course.
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I think you should take a registered dietitian advice. They are the right people to guide your nutrition. An unbalanced vegan diet might lead you a malnutrition.
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Im a vegetarian and a chemist, and your absolutely right you are killing in both cases. Its not that I am entirely against eating animals, its that I am against our farming system. Its a really deep issue, if you want more information message me but for now I think this cartoon (link below) will give you the basics into understanding the lies behind how we get our meat. There are many angles to this issue. As far as health goes it has been shown that 90% of heart problems are related to over meat consumption. Its been my conclusions that meat eating can be done right by ethical private farming but this is not the case. Animals are tortured, and worse for you... they are injected with not so good things and grown in their own feces - increasing chances of illness for you. Ever since I became vegetarian I have felt energetic, and I have never been sick! \n\nIts also been hypothosized by some vegetarians that meat eating is destroying the world and actually contributing to food shortages. Its a complex issue, but suffice it to say that raising a cow takes much more energy, money, land, and other resources than growing equal levels of nutrition in plant life. The waste generated by animals is large.\n\n    So to summarize,\n \n     - some feel that it is unethical to eat animals, granted. \n\n     - But just because you dont agree with that doesnt mean that there is not good reason to be vegetarian for the sake of the enviornment, economy, your health, the torture of animals, .... I can go on forever.\n\nI hope this helps, and I only wrote this to educate you. My father almost died from his over meat consumption. And its an atrocity what this is doing to the world. You should check out the PETA website - very educational and reason based nowadays.\n\nhttp://www.themeatrix.com/
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FACTS:\n1.Our teeth should be differently shaped in order to cut the meat.\n\n2.Our gastric acids would be as strong as the ones of a carnivore, to absorb all the nutrients.\n\n3.Our intestines wouldn’t be as long, since all great carnivores have it short in order to get rid of the toxins faster. (meat do decompose faster/worse than vegetables, its just that it have lots of preservatives and colorants). In the other hand, must animals with a vegetarian diet have long intestines in order to absorb all the nutrients, since their gastric acids are not as strong… you can see that there are some that even digest their meals more than once…\n\n4.Our nails would be sharper and stronger, if we were to be having meat as our main meal.\n\n5.… what does a bull have for meals?? Are they weak?? … eating a bull doesn’t transfer their strength…. or meat!!! (as I read above)\n\n6.By eating meat you are more likely to get ostheoporosis, since there are elements in the meat that make your bones wear out, by that i mean that people literally pee their calcium.\n\n7.You should tell those people that in the long term your decision is wiser… \na.Yeah, we are ALL of F..cked up with all the transgenic and lack of control over the conditions and place in which those seeds are planted.\nb.Yeah, earth is becoming less fertile worldwide (believe me, I’m not in USA)\nc.But an animal is not hurt in order for you to eat… I’ve seen reports on genetic modifications to improve the mass production in Israel, such as lack of feather, nails and beak.\nd.and in the other hand, you are not absorbing all the chemicals they get those animals to grow fast with.\ne.and you are not absorbing all the bugs they have inside, including mad caw, etc. (by the way the mad cow disease started over twenty years ago, or at least that is as far back as we can track cases… it started with stupid eager farmers feeding their animals with dead animals)\nf.and you are not absorbing all the chemicals/antibiotics to get those animals to survive with.\ng.And finally, just as we could all, in a future... go into a world crisis because the water is not potable anymore, the trees have all become transgenic thanks to good mother nature and pollinization, same.. or I’d say worst!!! Would be to be starving as all of us with the addition of a disease that has no way of being controlled because it has been chemically fortified by the alphabet of antibiotics and hormones that are in the meat.\n\nBonus:\n1.I grew up hearing that as little as seven almonds a day could give me the amount of protein I could get from the meat.\n\nAs long as you don't base your diet on your favorite vegetables only, you'll be just fine. Amino, anti oxidants (... is that the way to spell it?) ... I'd say there are too many extremist in both currents.. just respect, and make yourself be respected... it is a choice, a philosophy of life.\n\n2.Meat eaters tend to have more cholesterol and heart problems. Vegetarians live longer.\n\n3.Meat eaters should check on their diet just as much, even though must of them, don't care much and are not selective at all\n \n4.www.themeatrix.com\n\n5. yes it's harder to get the iron in a natural source. but you should have a good balance in your meals, have the honey for the royal queen bee, something great that comes from sugar cane we call "melaza", if neither of the last two, then folic acid and finally morning sun bath\n\nnot as long, and much easier to answer in my language, hope it served for something...
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Dairy does not cause diabetes or osteoporosis (dairy is an excellent way to prevent osteoporosis)\n\nit is VERY difficult to get all the nutrients you need while eating a vegetarian diet (and impossible through a vegan diet without taking supplements)\n\nif you want to be a vegetarian you must RESEARCH and be very careful to get all the nutrients you need\n\nI agree that americans eat too much meat but cutting meat out of your diet can be dangerous if you are not careful \n\nthe amount of calcium women consume (or lack of) in their youth can have a huge affect on their health through out the rest of their lives\n\nStudies show that over half of Americans do not get the recommended calcium from their diets. The best sources of calcium are dairy products. Calcium should be provided in meals and snacks throughout the day.
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Only to the paradigm you shifted from. \n\nI think the MORE dangerous thing is to be stuck in a paradigm and be unwilling to consider any other point of view.  It would be like only eating one food your entire life and proclaiming that food as the "BEST FOOD EVER!". It may be the best food to YOU, based on your LIMITED experience with food.  Your problem would be having any other food experience to relate to.  Go find a buffet.\n\nThis is the same problem with people who choose to "BELIEVE" something. They're convinced that what they believe in is the TRUTH and everything else is false, even though they have no experience with everything else.  This is particularly true with religion.  There are over 10,000 religions practiced on Earth.  I'm sure if you picked a representative from each one and put them in a stadium and asked them to raise their hands if theirs is the ONE TRUE religion, 10,000 hands would go up.  How many of them have actually EXPERIENCED the other 9,999?\n\nTalk to people - people who are REALLY DIFFERENT from you.  Explore many things.  Learn other viewpoints.  Go sample the "Buffet of Life".\n\nI wish you Peace and Variety.
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I agree. There are lots of options! Unless she's a total vegan, she can deal with mashed potatoes (minus gravy), sweet tater pie, cranberry sauce, green bean bake, and even stuffing (if its not made with chicken/turkey stock). What are her reasons for vegetarianism? If its health related, and she's done the research, she needs to know how to eat plenty of protein to get in her system what she's not getting from eating meat.
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Lots of good answers so far. I'm Vegan, and I've lost heaps of fat from my starting weight. I started out just deciding to go veg, and once I did, i found i had heaps more energy, which helped me build will power to do more exercise, and it spiralled up. before veg, I'd been spiralling down into the gutter for years, and although recently I've come to an impasse regarding my weight loss (my weight has stablised, but i'm still a little overweight), before I started I was obese, depressed and lethargic. Now I'm more alive than ever.\nGoing Veg*n is not just about human health. The 4 other most common reasons for people becoming veg*n are the environment, human rights, animal rights and animal welfare, but I won't go there. Check my sources if you want more info.\nAlmost every reputable medical or scientific study ever conducted has said that to improve health, one should increase vegetable intake, and reduce animal intake. In other words, go veg*n, and go veg*n. losing weight and fat are not be the only positive reasons for going veg*n either. You can reduce your risk of contracting almost every disease, illness, ailment or condition known to man, as the single most common cause of all physically unhealthy situations are dietic related. What you put in you get out.\nask any spokesperson of the animal consumption industry to provide hard evidence that their products are good for health, and compare their response with that of the corresponding spokesperson for the vegetable matter with similar nutritional value. I DARE YOU! there is a safer, healthier, enviro-friendlier, more compassionate, usually more efficient, and usually cheaper veg*n alternative to every animal product that exists today, from prawns to steak, from leather to wool.\nWhen you decide to go veg*n, speak to people who have been veg*n for some time, particularly those who still appear healthy. Some veg*ns are deficient in vital vitamins and protiens, and this lacking is the primary reason new veg*ns revert after a short time. I appear healthy and normal, and I'm in my 6th year of being Vegan, which means no meat, egg, dairy, honey, animal clothing or tools, and I've just finished undergoing a round of pathology tests by doctors that prove all my bodily functions are better than normal in all cases, especially cholesterol and blood-sugar levels. \n\nDo you lose weiht when you become veg*n? YES!, I WENT FROM 115 KG TO 90 KG IN LESS THAN 3 YEARS, I'M NOW HOVERING AT 80 AND PLAN TO BE AT 75 BY CHRISTMAS. I STAND 175 CM TALL AND AM NOW 24.\nGO VEG ASAP!
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Buddhists have been enjoying vegetarian dishes for centuries\n\n \n More of this Feature\n• Vegetarian FAQs\n \n From Other Guides\n• 5 Reasons for Being Vegetarian\n• Low Fat Vegetable/Vegetarian Recipes\n \nMention vegetarian cuisine and many people picture a group of aging hippies kneeling cross-legged around a communal dining table, helping themselves to carrot sticks dipped in yogurt or another plate of chickpea salad. While it's true that vegetarianism became trendy in the "psychedelic sixties," its origins date back much farther.  Pythagoras was a vegetarian (vegetarians were called Pythagoreans up until the 1800's) as was the poet Percy Shelley.  George Bernard Shaw, never one to shy from the spotlight, was a vocal proponent of a meat-free diet: \n\n"It is nearly fifty years since I was assured by a conclave of doctors that if I did not eat meat I should die of starvation." (Vegetariana: A Rich Harvest of Wit, Lore, and Recipes, by Nava Atlas)
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I grew up in the West but since have embraced an eastern religion.  I am now a vegetarian, but it was not easy to make that change because meat-eating is such a given in my culture.  I think the main reason that modern Westerners tolerate meat-eating is that they take it for granted and do not think about it.  They grew up with it, so they just never think to question it.\n\nOriginally, meat-eating may have been necessary for people in cold climates in Europe or something.  Perhaps that is all they could find to eat to keep themselves alive in winter.  I know that even my own mother had to eat groundhog when she was a kid because that is literally all they could find to eat.\n\nBut once this becomes a part of the culture, people forget about the fact that what was once only done out of necessity is now done for pleasure.  People in my culture just love meat.  They don't like vegetables!  Eastern cuisines just know better what to do with vegetables!  They use spices and good sauces, whereas here, we basically just put butter, salt, and pepper on everything (usually out of a can at that).  So we think veggies taste bad!  \n\nAnother issue is the fact that some people purposely refuse to be vegetarians because they fear the stereotypical image that some vegetarians have.  They do not want to be seen as a "New Age liberal freak."  That's really how a lot of people see vegetarianism where I am.  \n\nThe Bible says that God put man over the animals and nature to "have dominion."  But instead of seeing this as a responsibility to care for the animals and plants, too many people see in this a justification to USE animals and plants to whatever benefit we can derive from them.  Most Christians I have talked to about this say that animals do not have souls, and that they were put here strictly for OUR purposes.  I believe that this is merely an attempt to justify their actions.  I do not think that is what the Bible originally intended.  In fact, the Bible depicts 2 times in history that are vegetarian:  the Garden of Eden, and the Messianic Era - the times where things are right and done in the proper way.
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I. INTRODUCTION \n\nVegetarianism, practice of eating foods from the plant kingdom. There are several types of vegetarians. While all vegetarians avoid some or all animal foods—that is, meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and milk—semi-vegetarians avoid meat but eat poultry and other animal foods. Lacto-ovo-vegetarians avoid poultry and fish as well as meat, but do include milk and eggs in their diets. The only animal foods consumed by lacto-vegetarians are milk products. Some vegetarians practice veganism, eating no animal foods at all. Many vegans avoid wearing animal products, such as leather and wool, and are also more likely than other vegetarians to shun alcoholic beverages, processed foods, and foods grown with chemical fertilizers or pesticides.\n\n  II. THE EVOLUTION OF VEGETARIANISM \n\nHistorically, vegetarianism was often based on philosophical beliefs. Followers of certain sects of Hinduism and Buddhism have a centuries-old tradition of not eating animal flesh because of beliefs in the sacredness of all life and the reincarnation of souls into the bodies of other living things. Roman Catholic Trappist monks still practice vegetarianism to fulfill their vows of austerity and self-sacrifice.\n\nModern vegetarianism entered public consciousness during the 19th century. Beginning in 1847, the Vegetarian Society, a British nonreligious organization, popularized the term vegetarian. The promotion of vegetarianism gained strength worldwide in 1908 when the International Vegetarian Union was founded; the Union, which brings together vegetarian societies from all over the world in a series of congresses, is still operating as a nonprofit organization. Some 20th-century vegetarians tend to reject eating meat because they believe that the killing of animals is both unnecessary and cruel. Other vegetarians also believe that using available land to raise vegetables and grain instead of cattle and other animals makes good economic and ecological sense.\n\n  III. VEGETARIANISM AND HEALTH \n\nMore recently, people have adopted vegetarian diets based on scientific studies showing that diets high in fatty animal foods may contribute to the early development of disease, including obesity, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, and colorectal cancer. The United States Surgeon General’s 1988 report on nutrition and health urged Americans to reduce their intakes of animal fats, such as those found in meat and dairy products, and to increase consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.\n\nThe vegetarian plant-based diet typically has the advantage of being low in saturated fat, cholesterol, and salt, but it can be lacking in other ways. Vegetarians need to plan their diets with special care in order to obtain the essential nutrients received from diets that include meat, fish, and poultry. Following the Pyramid Food Guide published by the Department of Agriculture can help vegetarians meet all their nutritional requirements. At the bottom of the pyramid are the grains, vegetables, and fruits that are recommended to form the foundation of a healthful diet. In the middle of the pyramid are foods from the milk group and the meat and beans group, which are prescribed in moderate amounts. At the top of the pyramid are high-fat and sugary foods, indicating that they should be eaten in small amounts or avoided altogether.\n\nIn adapting the pyramid food guide, vegetarians need to eat other foods, such as fortified grains and cereals, that provide necessary nutrients like iron, zinc, vitamin D, and some B vitamins like B12 and B6. Vegetarians who avoid milk products must find alternatives that are high in calcium and vitamin D, such as fortified soy milk. Lacto-ovo-vegetarians can use eggs, nuts, peanut butter, dry beans, peas, and lentils in place of choices from the meat group.\n\nWith carefully planned diets and a wide variety of foods, it is possible for some lacto-ovo-vegetarian adults to get all essential nu
1036154
change your diet. become vegan.