Help me become vegetarian please?!
Help me become vegetarian please?
im 13 and ive tried being one before but i failed because my family are big meat eaters and if i dont eat what they eat i dont get to eat so for 1 week all i ate was side dishes and french fries so i got really pale and sickly so my mom made me quit. How can i do it without this happening and this time being successful?? Vegetarian food is kinda expensive and i dont have much money and my mom wont buy it so how do i eat???
please help i rewally wanna become vegetarian but its so hard and really dufficult for me!!!
Answers:
There is a lot of BS talked about vegetarians not getting enough protein or vitamins, but the recommended daily amount of protein is just a fraction of what most people consume and less than most vegetarians eat.
I agree with the above comments: Eat eggs, nuts, soya and you'll be fine. Try to find new foods and recipes to make your diet interesting, a lot of people give up being vegetarian because they get bored of the same old food, which is a shame because there is an enormous variety of vegetarian dishes.
You probably have all the right foods in your kitchen already to make a good vegetarian meal, but you need to know how to combine them - get yourself a vegetarian cookbook or take a look at the recipes on vegetarian sites. I know at 13 years old you are too young to start cooking for yourself, but you can start with simple things like salads, soups or stews (but get your mom to supervise!).
at your age you need all the protein you can get.try more beans & peanut butter & nuts...but still eat some meat of some sort...fish,chicken...eggs.egg... would be good..if my 14 year old wanted to go vegitarian,Id make him eat some meat,but not too much .he needs the iron & other vitamins...good luck!
You really should look at what kind of sides you are eating. Meat contains lots of protein, iron and b vitamins. For protein eat foods like nuts, eggs, peanut butter, tofu, soy, milk, and cheese everyday. Iron is found in green veggies, granola, and cereal. B vitamins can be found in breads, cereals, and uncooked veggies. If you find it difficult to keep these things in your daily diet, take multivitamins until you are able to maintain a vegetarian diet. I am a meat eater but surrounded by vegetarians. Good luck
You can eat beans, eggs, nuts, cheese, potato, rice, and tofu for your protein. They are all cheap and as you get older you will find other things that will fill your protein needs.
Go to a bookstore and look at and copy down recipes from the Moosewood Cookbook. You are old enough to start cooking if you don't already. I started at 9. If you follow directions, you will be an old hand at it in no time. I can't imagine that your mom wouldn't appreciate it if you made dinner for the whole family. Cook meat on the side for them if they feel they need it.
Have fun and good luck.
wait till you are old enough to make decisions for yourself.
well if you want to became one every time your family eats eat a salad it is going to very hard but you can do it also when you are school eat fruits and veggies when you are at a restaurant eat good so try to only look at your plate then in about months you will became one
You NEED to go to the library and get some books on being a vegetarian. I know it sounds crazy but I really like Being a Vegetarian for dummies. It will break down the diet and vitamins and nutrients and give you good tips and even some recipes. You should be able to eat what your family eats minus the meat with only a few additions. Such as buying tofu, or large jars of peanut butter. Learn to add stuff to salads such a pine nuts. Really you need to learn more about it to be able to do it correctly and stay healthy. Especially at your age. Good Luck and happy eating!
Learn how to prepare foods. Bread, beans and potatoes are the most satisfying menu. Get a crock-pot to make Minestrone soups and bean soup. For protein, eat tortillas and pinto beans in the same meal. That combination gives you about the same value in protein as a sirloin steak. Vegetarism takes more prep time, but at least you get to see what goes into your food. After 3 weeks of a low-fat diet a hamburger will taste like crisco. After 4 weeks you will notice meat eaters have a distinct odor in their sweat. Me? I'm not total veggie, but I do go sometimes for 1-2 months at a time.
And, consider this, the beef they sell in America has been fattened with growth hormones 30 days before slaughter. And, that feedlot practice really, really weighs in on the American girls' hips and thighs no matter how hard they diet.
Side dishes and french fries are sadly, the way most restaurant chains viewed vegetarian cuisine until they realized the potential for increased sales by offering non-meat options to their menu.
Borrow a vegetarian cook book from the library or go online. They will have many simple recipes you can make at home. It doesn't have to be expensive, Indian, Chinese and Japanese people eat mainly vegetarian meals that don't cost much to prepare.
Tip: Your mother will be happy for you to take over cooking and cleaning duties. I did at age 10 for a family of five.
Organic vegetables are expensive, not vegetables in general. The ones that start with 9 on the label are organic.
A few simple ideas:
Pasta with tomato sauce
Salads
Baked potatoes
Stir fries
Curries
Lasagna made with tofu and soy cheese if non-dairy
Hello, You need to Stay Healthy with a Vegetarian Diet. At your age, you are still growing & will need a balance of Foods, so you don't end up in the Hospital. Vegetarianism is all about Choices, Healthy ones. French Fries & Grease are Un-Healthy choices. You need to Understand what you are eating now & what can you substitute to make your diet, Vegetarian. Here are some examples for you to understand:
You are used to Eating:
~Spagheti w/meat sauce, substitute to Tomatoe sauce.
~Tacos with meat, swich to Black Beans.
~Meat Lasagna or Pizza, Vegetarian Lasagna or pizza.
~Bacon or sausage, Toast & cereal
~Chicken Ceasar Salad, Regular Salads.
~Hamburger, hotdog, Vegetarian "Morning Star" Frozen GardenBurgers, Hotdogs.
They even make Soy Meats, (Salami, Ham, Turkey, etc.) Looks like the Regular thing, but it's not. Vegetarian Foods & Choices should be fun & exciting. Try some ideas of your own in your kitchen & shpo with your family, for the New Vegetarian Style Life you want to so badly have.
I have been a Vegetarian for Almost Ten years & am very happy I made this decision, I Love Animals TOO MUCH!
veg food is NOT expensive. most of the food you eat is anyway. if you're committed to vegetarianism, you can do it. it shouldn't be difficult or a sudden change. if your family doesn't want to help you cut things out. give up your absolute least favourite, your family's least served, or the most disgusting to think about flesh first, you'll start to learn to fill up on what's put in front of you. gradually add in replacements and remove the flesh. start out buying something boca burgers or chick'n patties that taste more like real meat (but healthier) (READ REVIEWS ON VEG BOARDS BEFORE YOU BUY. SOME OF THEM ARE HORRIBLE!) then graduate to tofu (it's really good! if you're scared to cook it, chinese, japanese, thai, and other asian restraunts/take-out places use it regularly and will substitute it in place of meat in your usually meal for like $1 more) and use whatever is in your fridge! salad doesn't have to be lettuce! tomatoes, onions and italian dressing is sooo good! you mix all kinds of vegetables (even frozen and canned) and dressing and have a really good meal (much better than carb-y pasta mixes and french fries). you can easily change up your familys normal meals and make them veg with little cash/or even addition cooking.
sample ideas
taco night:
your mom will buy all the cheses, salsa, tortias, ect. ask her to pick you up an extra bag of seasoning. make some boil in the bag rice and put a few teasons of seasoning in the water then mix a another spoon in. then open a can of black beans or refried beans, microwave them put some of the seasoning in and get a tortilla, fill it with salsa, beans, rice mix, lettuce, tomatos and onions and voila! burrito!
sloppy joe night
fry a veggie burger in a pan and as it defrosts and cooks break it up with your spatula. when its cumbly and cooked use of of the same sauce used for the meat and stir.
ect. just think about it a little. you can email me if you need ideas or want to talk!
Vegetarian diet is very healthy and can be nutritionally complete(if done properly). It is no more expensive than any other diet. Food consists of vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, beans, etc. If you are going to eat prepared food than it will get expensive. You may want to limit those items.
You should get some books or check websites on vegetarian nutrition. Find recipes to cook for yourself. You need to find recipes you are able to make for yourself. Prepare a menu for yourself for the week in order to know what ingredients you will need. Give the list to your mom and ask her to pick up what is on the list, or better yet go with her.
You may want to explain to your mother that you want to try eating vegetarian again, and unlike last time you want to make sure you are eating a balanced diet. It is a good idea to use http://www.mypyramid.gov/ and the "My pyramid tracker" to get an idea if the food you are eating is giving you everything you need.
I will always advocate the vegetarian diet, as it is better for health when done properly. However, if at this time you cannot get the proper nutrition because of not having access to the right food you should wait until you are older. Eating side dishes and fried food may be vegetarian, but it is not healthy.
Do some research! FInd out where you can get your protien, iron, etc.. from plant sources. Find out what your nutritional needs are for your age, and how to meet them without meat or meat alternatives (which are the pricey things. Tofu isn't too expensive, your mom probably cooks with beans, PB, and oher nuts. Those take the place of meat. Show your parents by doing the research that it IS possible to have a good diet w/o meat. If you show them that this time you want to do it right, they'll be more likely to support you. Ask your mom to help you get more beans, etc.. Find out what the good but not too expensive plant sources are.
You have to have a well-balanced diet if you will be vegetarian.
You do NOT have to eat MEAT to get ANY ANY ANY nutrient, but you MUST eat the proper plant sources!!
No one can live on 2 or 3 foods only. That is why you got sick. Not from the lack of MEAT, but from the narrowness of your diet. A Meat eater will also get sick if she ONLY eats Turkey, Hamburgers, and Bacon, without eating any other food, vegetables, grains, etc. They will also get sick and die.
i had wanted to become a vegetarian since i was around sixteen, but i thought i didn't have the will power.so now i am 3 years later and a vegetarian. it just happened one day at my grans sunday dinner, the thing was that i hate rice and all of those other noodle so i only meat. seriously, i only ate meat, no rice no mac and cheese nothing i only ate meat. then that day at dinner i said to myself this has got to stop. and from that day on my willpower took over and i'm a vegetarian.
I'm vegetarian and have been since i found out it was meat. lol. mum accepts it shes never had a problem with it. But if you do go vegetarian make sure you still eat loads of protein from other foods, thats really important. I eat quorn pieces, which look and taste just like chicken...and all my family will eat it as they can't tell the difference. We only eat it if were having korma or something.
Learn to do your own cooking. I was in your shoes about your age actually. If your mom won't buy stuff like tofu, work with stuff like beans which most houses have. And you can get tofu for cheep actually. Like $2, less if you get it in Chinatown. Feel free to talk with me. :)
Do a lot of research!
At meals eat as much vegetables as you possibly can.
Can you cook? Try cooking something for yourself. Mushrooms can be really great meat substitutes and inexpensive.
Eat a lot of peanut butter and things like nuts and beans.
Maybe you should consider drastically reducing by not cutting meat out of your diet right now? I tried to be a veggie when I was about your age too but couldn't because my family was terribly unsupportive and kept tempting me back into eating meat. Now that I'm older I can buy my own meat substitutes when I want them and cook for myself.
I emphasize again - do a lot of research!
See my Vegetarian Article in my 360 Yahoo blog page!