I want to become a vegetarian ?!
I want to become a vegetarian ?
i grew up eating meat all my life and i saw a video on meat. i was horrified and discusted. i love steak and beef and all that stuff but i feel should become a vegetarian. i never love loved animals but i know they have a life too. what can help me to stick to my goal ? any thing else that will discust me so i wont eat meat ? will i lose too much protein ?
Additional Details6 months ago
oh i love salad and greens but i love to eat so i have to be full :]
Answers:
6 months ago
oh i love salad and greens but i love to eat so i have to be full :]
try to make the switch, but don't force yourself. i'll put links to LOTS of sites with recipes. you'll have to learn to be a little more creative with your cooking because its really easy to cook a steak and have it for a meal, but a little harder to get all the veggies together and find something you enjoy. but it will become second nature. lots of international foods are amazingly tasty (i especially like curries) and you may find you are eating a much wider variety of foods now.
you won't lose to much protein, you need to make sure you eat nuts to get your protein, but humans don't need that much protein and we all get scared when we become vegetarians because everyone asks us about protein. it's pretty easy to meet the dietary requirement for that.
your concern should be with iron. iron is found in green leafy vegetables and meat, and many vegetarians have an iron deficiency. i'm going to put some vegetarian nutrition sites that also have recommendations for how to get enough iron.
most importantly--don't suffer!! when you make the switch, make it, and try to stick to it, but if you REALLY want some chicken or a steak one day and can't stand it anymore, have it. one time is not going to kill you or make you a bad person, and will actually make your switch more successful. when i switched from veggie to vegan i was hardcore for about two months but really craving cheese. so then one day i ate a whole pizza..it was kind of ugly. but i got back on track and i have no more cravings like that.
you will feel less full at the beginning because meat stays for a long time in the digestive tract (our tract is actually too long to digest meat) and it leaves you with the sensation of fullness. try eating good carbs (brown rice, potatoes) and try NOT to overload. i ate an insane amount of tortellini when i first became a veggie, trying to feel full. snacks also help curb your appetite; just make sure they are healthy!! fruits and vegetables digest very quickly so if you eat small snacks throughout the day, that should keep you from feeling like you're not getting enough to eat.
it's a mentality switch as much as it is a diet switch. if you are ABSOLUTELY craving a meaty feeling but don't want meat, try fake meats like fake chicken nuggets or morningstar stuff, but watch out for soy. too much soy can cause hormonal problems as it is a source of phytoestrogens, meaning your body can OD on estrogen and you can start missing periods, etc. there are other wheat and vegetable based meat substitutes that are handy when you first switch. portabella mushrooms also taste a lot like meat (just grill them for about 5 mintues or until they start to smell amazing) and eggplant can also work.
something else that will disgust you not to eat meat? that video was probably very true. also meat is very bad for the environment, but they probably mentioned that. most cheese is not truly vegetarian, as it contains veal stomach..and milk cows are treated just as inhumanely as meat cows... but don't make yourself suffer so much from the start. every little bit helps.
check out the websites. good luck!
Source(s):
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/healthnut... good basic info about vegetarian nutrition
http://www.vegsoc.org/health/ another good site about nutrition, kind of hard to navigate, just click on lots of things!
http://vegweb.com/index.php?phpsessid=a0... oodles of veggie/vegan recipes
http://www.all-creatures.org/recipes.htm... recipes with pics. the site's creators are very religious, but the food is still good
http://www.vegfamily.com/ actually a vegan site, but has lots of recipes
Set yourself a schedule. Keep eating veggies. Don't worry, you'll get used to it.
Whom you are saying this ? To yourself ?
For that you do not need yahoo answer column.
If you want to become vegeterian its your choice. You will not loose any protein.
However are you sure you will not kill any other animals !
Will you stop killing - mosquitos, flies, bacterias, and the germs in your body. They also have right to live in this world !!!!!
stop eating Meat!!!!!!!!
Start off slow is really the key to this, see how long you can go without meat or just have one meal with meat for the day or week and see how it goes from there.
If you are going to cut out meat from your diet you should consider adding new items to your diet new fruits and vegetables.
Some vegans eat fish still that is a good source of protein.
It is up to you if you want to go all the way as a vegan but for the most part I think moderation helps if you can't seem to not eat meat ever again. Try cutting back on the number of meals you eat containing meat if anything.
becoming a vegetarian takes a lot of commitment and effort. i was a vegetarian for almost 2 years until my friend "corrupted" me into eating meat again. I was just like you. After i saw that PETA movie on the KFC's chickens and stuff, i bawled my eyes out and decided to become a vegetarian. I slowly took all types of meat off my diet. I began to eat more grains and since I'm Hispanic it wasn't a problem at all. I also consulted with my doctor if it was alright and he told me it would be fine and that if i need more iron or other vitamins i should take centrum. i also tried some of the veggie burgers and even though they sort of tasted like meat, it still was difficult to adjust. I did lose a lot of weight though. It scared me at first but it leveled out and I stopped losing weight after a while. I think the main thing that kept me from eating meat was the commitment i had made to this cause. i didn't wanna break it because i'm the type of person who sticks to what i'm doing. so just do your best and if you ever wanna eat meat again. just do it. life is too short to be depriving yourself from the good stuff. good luck!
Girl good for you for wanting to help animals! Even if you don't stick 2 the vegetarian diet 100% of the time any cut back in animal consumption is still helping to save lives...vegetarians save 100 animals a year so even if you ate half to start out thats about 50 animals saved because of you. I eat soy replacements like boca burgers and they taste almost exactly like meat so try looking in the organic section at your grocery store. Also, some websites that are very informative are: Goveg.com, meatyourmeat.com ... if you want more info don't be afraid to email me! And keep up the good work
if you grew up eating meat your probably going to have fake meat. i love the brand morningstar. using fake meat as a replacement is easier for ex meat eaters than just eating veggies all day long. as long as you pay attention you wont lose protein. eggs (if your going to eat them), nuts, and soy all have protein. there are steak and beef replacements. do some research on your options. the key to sticking to the diet is variety. i added two recipe's for you to try out.
here's a vegetarian version of fried chicken. its sooo, sooo good:
Southern Fried Vegetarian "Chicken"
This dish is deep fried, so it isn't particularly healthy, though it is cholesterol-free and it sure is good! Deep fried seitan and a blend of spices create a dish that's really quite similar in appearance and taste to chicken!
INGREDIENTS:
?1 tsp salt or seasoned salt
?1 tsp onion powder
?1 tsp garlic powder
?1 tsp black pepper
?dash cayenne (optional)
?1 1/2 cups flour
?1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)
?1/4 cup prepared mustard
?2 tbsp baking powder
?1/2 cup water
?1 lb seitan or other chicken substitute, cut into 1-2" square pieces
?oil for frying
PREPARATION:
In a medium to large bowl, mix together the salt, onion powder, garlic powder, flour, black pepper, cayenne and nutritional yeast.
In a separate small bowl, whisk together the mustard and water. Add 1/3 cup of the flour mixture to the mustard mixture and combine well. Add baking powder to the flour mixture and combine well.
Coat pieces of seitan or mock chicken with the mustard batter, then coat each piece with the dry flour mixture.
Fry chunks of "chicken" in the oil on medium-high heat in a large skillet for 3-5 minutes, turning once until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel, serve with ketchup or barbeque sauce and enjoy!
Tip: If your chunks are turning brown or black rather than a crispy golden brown, your oil is probably too hot! Reduce the heat a small amount and try again.
and here's a tofu recipe (i like tofu, but my meat eating family doesnt):
Tofu Stir-Fry
We call for a bag of broccoli flowerets to save cutting and trimming time. Choose extra-firm tofu; other types will fall apart during stir-frying. To serve, spoon the saucy mixture over quick-cooking brown rice.
Yields: 4 main-dish servings
Cook Time: About 15 minutes
Total Time: About 40 minutes
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed with garlic press
1 tablespoon peeled, grated fresh ginger
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 bag (12 ounces) broccoli flowerets, cut into uniform pieces if necessary
8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps sliced
1 medium red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 package (15 ounces) extra-firm tofu, patted dry and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1. In small bowl, whisk soy sauce, brown sugar, and cornstarch with 1 cup water; set aside.
2. In deep nonstick 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add garlic, ginger, and crushed red pepper and cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add broccoli, mushrooms, and red pepper and cook, covered, 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add tofu and green onions and cook, uncovered, 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir soy-sauce mixture to blend and add to skillet; heat to boiling. Boil 1 minute, stirring.
OK, make sure you eat plenty of beans and legumes (lentils, navy beans, chickpeas, black beans, refried beans, peanuts, soy products), nuts and whole grains. All of these provide protein and iron. Substitute these for the meat. Eat plenty of veggies but don't go on any low calorie diets.
No coffee or tea with meals.
Try to eat Vitamin C foods before or with a bean meal. It will enhance iron absorption.
Just make a decision! it's like that!
see a dietitian.
bt seriously -
Seen on a vegan mailing list
How many vegetarians does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
I don't know, but where do you get your protein?
Bob C.
How many vegans does it take to change a lightbulb?
Two, one to change it and one to check for animal ingredients.
[I just have to say that this is my favorite joke. I laughed my butt off the first time I read it.]
My friend Michael thought this one up
How many vivisectors does it take to change a lightbulb?
None, they don't want you to see what they are doing.
C.P.M, told by an omnivore friend with intent to anger
How many vegans does it take to change a lightbulb?
None, vegans can't change anything.
Bianca & Jade
How many meat eaters dose it take to change a lightbulb?
None, they would rather stay in the dark about things.
Amanda
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Because Colonel Sanders was chasing him.
Schneiders
Why did the vegetarian cross the road?
Because she was protesting for the chicken, MAN! (Pump fist in air for emphasis)
[This one did make me chuckle for some reason.]
The parrot joke
A man had a parrot that could talk. Unfortunately, it swore a lot. In an effort to get the parrot to be quiet, he put him in a cupboard. The parrot continued swearing and after a while the man decided to put the bird in the freezer. After that, the parrot started swearing even more. After a few minutes, he suddenly became quiet. The man opened up the freezer and the parrot said, "I'm sorry, sir, it will never happen again." As the man took the bird out of the freezer he wondered what the difference was between the cupboard and the freezer. Just then, the parrot said, "So, uh, what'd the chicken do?"
On Being Vegan
Inspired by Paul WS
Why does vegan cheese taste bad?
It hasn't been tested on mice.
Pat
What do you call a militant vegan?
Lactose intolerant.
Dada Unmantrananda
Why don't yogis eat chickens?
They have eggs in them!
Colleen's roomate at school made this joke up herself
What do you call a vegetarian who goes back to eating meat?
Someone who lost their veg-inity!
Inspired by Wastel
Meat-eater: Did you hear about the new study saying vegans are more likely to go blind? I guess it's because you don't get the proper nutrition.
Vegan: Nah, it's just from reading all of those tiny ingredients lists.
Nina
I'm not vegetarian because I love animals, I'm vegetarian because I don't like vegetables.
H.Ko.
Linda: Do you know what veganism is?
Jeff: No, tell me.
Linda: It means no eggs and no milk!
Jeff: Hmm, but how do you bread your steak?
H.Ko.
Kent: Tell me, how do you spice your veggie-burgers?
Linda: I don't know, but the main thing is that it mustn't taste good!
What did one vegetarian spy say to the other vegetarian spy?
We have to stop meating like this.
Scott
Can vegetarians eat animal crackers?
vegemike
I don't know about these people who call themselves vegetarians but eat eggs and dairy. I mean, I've heard of eggplants, but there no such thing as a cheesetree.
Tom responds:
What about milkweed?
A Seinfeldism pointed out by Peter B.
Isn't it wierd that we drink milk, stuff designed to nourish baby cows? How did that happen? Did some cattleman once say, "Oh, man, I can't wait till them calves are done so I can get me a hit of that stuff."
>From Melanie
A guy has celery sticking out of one ear, lettuce out of the other, and a zucchini up his nose.
He goes to the doctor and asks him what's wrong.
The doctor tells him, "Well, for one thing, you're not eating right."
On Eating People
Cleveland Amory
A missionary was walking in Africa when he heard the ominous sound of a lion behind him. "Oh Lord," prayed the missionary, "Grant in Thy goodness that the lion walking behind me is a good Christian lion." And then, in the silence that followed, the missionary heard the lion praying too: "Oh Lord," he prayed, "We thank Thee for the food which we are about to receive."
Seen on a message board
I follow a strict vegan diet. I eat only vegans.
A bumper sticker
Etan W.
Two chums were talking at a ballgame and one offered to buy the other a hotdog.
"No thanks," came the answer. "I'm a vegetarian. I mean, I'll eat a little white meat, but..."
"Oh, I understand. Hey, I'm no cannibal. I mean, I'll eat a few white people, but..."
Heard from Travis (who heard it from his astronomy teacher)
If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat?
A bumper sticker
9 out of 10 cannibals agree--vegetarians taste better!
Yaron Livne from Israel
A vegetarian, a meat-eater, and a cannibal walk into a bar, the veg' orders a salad, the other orders a burger, than the bartender asks the cannibal "anything for you?", so he replies, "no thanks, i'll wait till they're done."
A cartoon, not a joke, but this will grow on you
I eat people
Hey, Mr. Monster! Why do you eat people?
Terrible Headlines
Restaurants Beef Up Vegetarian Menus (Wall Street Journal 91.10.15, p.B1)
Will McDonald's Beef Up Menu with Veggie Burger? (Boston Globe, 98.10.6, D1)
Beans Beef Up Vegetarian Meal (Boston Herald 94.2.9, p.57)
Strictly Vegetarian Trader Brings Home the Bacon (Los Angeles Times 88.8.21, p. 2)
I could go on, but I won't.
Very Punny
Etan W.
A vivisector is having a nightmare: lying on a cold steel table, he's going numb as a giant rat approaches with a large knife.
The rat says, "We are going to need those kidneys, my friend."
"Wait!" shouts the vivisector. "I understand that I'm going to die, but just tell me, is it for the good of humanity?"
"Something like that," the rat tells him with a smirk. "It's for the good of two manatees."
Fart jokes--be warned
All courtesy of Sarah and Tamara
Why does the vegan never get any play?
Because she/he has really bad gas.
Why do vegans wear snow camo?
So they don't get busted hijacking the Soy Delicious ice cream delivery truck.
How was the vegan busted hijacking the Soy Delicious delivery truck?
The FBI traced noxious fumes from the scene of the crime.
Why are vegans detrimental to the earth?
Because they produce immense amounts of methane.
Every so often (usually when I have something important I should be doing) I take the time to browse through the logs of my site--it is interesting to see what brings people here. Here's one I thought I'd share: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=far... I made it a link for you because if you're like me, you'll feel the urge to try this search for yourself (although it's not very exciting).
Anagrams
I used a fellow vegan's anagram server to come up with these.
Vegetarian =
I vent a rage.
A great vein
Eat vinegar.
Rage via 'net
Eat in grave.
A vegan rite
Irate vegan
Vegetarians =
Vegan satire
I avenge rats
Vegans are it!
Eat vegan sir.
The Blocked Vegetarian Perspective
Andrea saw this on a t-shirt
How many vegetables had to die for your stupid salad??
MikeY
How many vegetarians does it take to eat a cow?
One if nobody's looking.
Prashant A.
I was adding milk to my coffee when a vegan colleague said, "Do you know that milk belongs to a calf?"
If it hadn't have been first day at work, I'd have replied, "Relax, I already ate that calf for lunch."
Karen, Told by her husband and many others.
If animals aren't supposed to be eaten, then why are they made out of meat?
Julia's response
If humans aren't supposed to be eaten, then why are they made out of meat?
Joanna
My brother is a lacto-ovo-pesco-pollo-carne-ve...
A bumper sticker
I didn't fight my way to the top of the food chain to be a vegetarian!
Congratulations!! you don't realize yet what a wonderfull choice you have made for you body and for the good of mother earth and for mother earths creatures. I will give you all the information I can offer to help you see why this is such a good choice! Lets start out with some common myths many people will try and tell you.
MYTH: "Humans were designed to eat meat."
FACT: Although humans are capable of digesting meat, human anatomy clearly favors a diet of plant foods. Our digestive systems are similar to those of the other plant-eaters and totally unlike those of carnivores. The argument that humans are carnivores because we possess "canine" teeth ignores the fact that other plant-eaters have "canine" (Our teeth far closer resemble a horses or goats than a dogs), and that ONLY plant-eaters have molar teeth. Finally, if humans were designed to eat meat, we wouldn't suffer from heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis from doing so.
MYTH: "Vegetarians get little protein."
FACT: Plant foods offer abundant protein. Vegetables are around 23% protein on average, beans 28%, grains 13%, and even fruit has 5.5%. For comparison, human breast milk is only 5% (designed for the time in our lives when our protein needs are as high as they'll ever be). The US Recommended Daily Allowance is 8%, and the World Health Organization recommends 4.5%.
MYTH: "Beans are a good source of protein."
FACT: There is no such thing as a special "source of protein" because all foods -- even plants -- have plentiful protein. You might as well say "Food is a good source of protein". In any event, beans (28%) don't average much more protein per calorie than common vegetables (23%).
MYTH: "Milk is necessary for strong bones."
FACT: McDougall: "Where does a cow or an elephant get the calcium needed to grow its huge bones? From plants, of course. Only plants. … People in Asia and Africa who consume no milk products after they're weaned from their mother's breast grow perfectly healthy skeletons in the normal size for their race. A consistent conclusion published in the scientific literature is clear: Calcium deficiency of dietary origin is unknown in humans. Dairy products contain large amounts of animal proteins. This excess protein removes calcium from the body by way of the kidneys. Knowing the physiological effects on calcium metabolism of eating excess protein explains why societies with the highest intakes of meat and dairy products--the United States, England, Israel, Finland, and Sweden--also show the highest rates of osteoporosis, the disease of bone-thinning."
MYTH: "Vegans are at high risk for Vitamin B12 deficiency."
FACT: McDougall: "B12 deficiency is rare… Two kinds have been observed. The more common is due to malabsorption of this vitamin as a consequence of diseased conditions of the stomach or of the small intestine. It has nothing to do with the amount of B12 present in the diet, so it is treated with injections of B12. The other kind of B12 deficiency is found very rarely among people who take essentially no B12 in their diet. Less than a dozen cases of this type of B12 deficiency have been reported among the tens of millions of vegetarians in the world. One reason it's so uncommon is that B12 is made by the bacteria naturally present in the human mouth and intestines.… [In addition,] the average American has stored so much B12 in his body's tissues… that twenty to thirty years must pass before you run out of it." McDougall notes that anyone with concerns about B12 can simply take a supplement on occasion.
Got lots more information for you get ready!
Improving Personal Health
It's no secret that compared to average meat-eaters, vegetarians generally live longer, are less likely to be overweight, suffer far fewer incidences of cancer and heart disease, and have more energy. These facts have been consistently borne out by decades of scientific research. The largest epidemiological study ever conducted (the China-Oxford-Cornell study) concluded that those eating the amount of animal foods in a typical American diet have seventeen times the death rate from heart disease, and, for women, five times the rate of breast cancer, than those who get 5% or less of their protein from animal foods. (See the references at the end of this article.)
Meat contains 14 times the amount of pesticides as plant foods, since pesticides get concentrated as they move up through the food chain, and since they're more easily stored in fatty tissues. In 1980, six years after the pesticide dieldrin was banned, the USDA destroyed two million packages of frozen turkey products contaminated with dieldrin. (And such contamination can routinely occur without detection.) In 1974, the FDA found dieldrin in 85% of all dairy products and 99.5% of the American people. The EPA discovered that the breast milk of vegetarian women contained far lower levels of pesticides than that of average Americans. A study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine found that "The highest levels of contamination in the breast milk of the vegetarians was lower than the lowest level of contamination…(in) non-vegetarian women… The mean vegetarian levels were only 1-2% as high as the average levels in the U.S."
Saving the Earth
All food animals consume several times more grain than they produce as meat. So several times as much land is needed to grow grain to feed animals, several times as much energy is used to harvest the grain and transport it, several times as much water is necessary, several times as much pesticides, etc. Worldwide petroleum reserves would be exhausted in 11 years if the rest of the world ate like the U.S. The least energy-efficient plant food is 10 times as efficient as the most efficient meat food. A nationwide switch to a pure vegetarian diet would allow us to cut our oil imports by 60%.
Over half of the water used in the U.S. is used to grow feed for livestock. It takes 100 times as much water to produce meat than to produce wheat. The water required to produce a day's diet for a typical American is 4,000 gallons. (It's 1,200 for vegetarians and 300 for vegans.) Compared to a vegan diet, three days of a typical American diet requires as much water as you use for showering all year (assuming you shower every day).
U.S. Livestock produce 250,000 pounds of waste per second -- 20 times as much as humans. A large feedlot produces as much waste as a large city, but without a sewage system. Animal waste washed into rivers and lakes causes increased nitrates, phosphates, ammonia, and bacteria, and decreases the oxygen content. This kills plant and animal life. The meat industry account for three times as much harmful organic waste as the rest of the industries in the U.S. combined.
It takes ten times as much land to produce food for an average American compared to a pure vegetarian. An acre of land can produce 20,000 pounds of potatoes, but only 165 pounds of beef. In the U.S., 260 million acres of forest have been destroyed for use as agricultural land to support our meat diet (over 1 acre per person). Since 1967, the rate of deforestation has been one acre every five seconds. For every acre cleared for urban development, seven acres are cleared to graze animals or grow feed for them.
Around 85% of topsoil loss is directly associated with raising livestock. We have lost 75% of our topsoil. The USDA says crop productivity is down 70% as a result of topsoil loss. It takes nature 500 years to build an inch of topsoil. Vegan diets make less than 5% of the demands on the soil as meat-based diets.
Caring for Animals
Around eight billion animals are killed for food every year in the U.S. alone -- a number greater than the entire human population of the planet. Each meat-eating American eats the equivalent of about 24 animals per year. What's worse, modern agricultural methods mean that animals are raised in cramped confinement operations instead of the pastures from childhood picture books -- a practice known as factory farming. Chickens are crammed into cages with no free space, and are debeaked to keep them from pecking each other to death. Animals are pumped full of various powerful drugs to kill diseases resulting from filthy living conditions, and to make them grow or produce faster than nature intended. When cows and chickens stop producing as much milk and eggs as the younger animals, they're unceremoniously slaughtered and made into low-grade meat (fast food and pet food). For some, vegetarianism and veganism are ways to refuse to participate in the commodification of animals.
How much protein do you need?
The first clue to how much protein you need comes from what nature designed for us. Human breast milk is 5.5% protein. It's designed to nourish us at the point in our lives when we're growing the fastest and our protein requirement is as high as it will ever be. Obviously, if nature wants us to have 5.5% when we're growing, we can easily do with less than that once we're already grown.
It is interesting to note that cow's milk is 29%. Cows grow much faster than humans, and grow to be much larger, so it's not surprising that their protein requirement is higher.
We can also ignore nature and look at official recommendations. Experts disagree on exactly how much protein you need, but the range of recommendations is between 2.5 to 8.0% of your total diet. Even the highest recommendation (the U.S. RDA, at 8%) is easily obtained on an all-plant diet.
A report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition established that grown humans do fine with a diet consisting of 2.5% protein. The U.S. Food & Nutrition Board set their figure at 4.5%, then added a safety margin to bump it up to 6.0%. The U.S. National Research Council added another safety margin when setting the RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance), at 8.0%. The World Health Organization recommends 4.5% (the figure we used in our chart), or 6.0% during pregnancy.
Don't you have to "combine" proteins to make a "complete" protein?
No. That's an outdated theory that was descredited decades ago. Unfortunately, myths die hard.
I hope thats enough, I just wanted to say a few more things. People will try to convert you to go back to eating meat, as long as you do your research you will find more than enough reasons that a vegetarian diet is the better choice, some but not all people who eat meat may be offended by the fact that you are a vegetarian but don't let that discourage you! I have been vegetarian for 7 years, I feel its one of the best choices I have ever made, I am hardly ever sick, I feel happy, very heathy full of energy, I am going vegan now. You may want to take it slow it depends on how you feel, maybe start with removing red meat, then taking away bird meat and so on, later on you might want even be vegan you can choose how far you want to take this... Do some research on vegetarian recipes, the links I put for you would be a good start. Read the links you will find lots lots more cool information.
I also provided you with a few undercover videos of the cruel and terrible procedures used to raise and slaughter
animals )=. These videos may be hard to watch, but if you think about what the animals have to go through then watching it is no big deal.
Hope this helps your cause, and Merry Christmas !!
I forgot to mention, if you want tried and true vegetarian recipes or have any questions I would be glad to do what I can for you... Here is my email rembates@hotmail.com
Get yourself a simple cookbook to help you stay with it.Eat a variety of foods,not junkfoods though.
MYTH: "Vegetarians get little protein."
FACT: Plant foods offer abundant protein. Vegetables are around 23% protein on average, beans 28%, grains 13%, and even fruit has 5.5%. For comparison, human breast milk is only 5% (designed for the time in our lives when our protein needs are as high as they'll ever be). The US Recommended Daily Allowance is 8%, and the World Health Organization recommends 4.5%
MYTH: "Beans are a good source of protein."
FACT: There is no such thing as a special "source of protein" because all foods -- even plants -- have plentiful protein. You might as well say "Food is a good source of protein". In any event, beans (28%) don't average much more protein per calorie than common vegetables (23%).
There are ranchers who have standards far more humane than the norm, like Niemann Ranch. And when purchasing eggs and turkeys, chickens, etc., look for products labeled "free range" or "cage-free."
Try easing into it. There's a ton of what I call "crossover" recipes out there. My "Cheese-lentil manicotti" is a favorite among the meat-eaters in the family, as is the "Spinach-Cheese Lasagne."
Good luck!