Question for non-meat eaters?!
and/or cna you tell me what you eat daily.
Answers: i really want to become a vegetarian, and hopefully progress to be a vegan. i personally don't eat much umm sometimes ill have lunch at school other than that i only eat dinner. but im only 13 and the main part of my family's meals is meat, and also potatoes. im not sure what to eat in place of the meat though because i cant really live off of potatoes...
and/or cna you tell me what you eat daily.
I think it's great that you want to become vegetarian! It's not as hard as it first seems; I'd recommend reading a bit about nutrition eg. minerals and vitamins.
Replace the meat with protein- and iron-rich foods such as soy, lentils, chick peas, nuts, seeds and green leafy veggies. When you become veggo, it's not just a matter of chucking the meat and leaving everything else the same.
Vegans have four main food groups: veggies (the bulk of the diet), fruit, legumes, whole grains. (then there are extra foods like mushrooms, seaweed etc.) Lacto-ovo vegetarians, of course, also have eggs and dairy.
I think you will enjoy being a vegetarian - once you break out of the "meat+3veg" scenario you can start to explore all sorts of plant-based dishes from different countries! Some of my favourite dinners are: lentil dhal and rice, adzuki bean stew, lightly steamed green veggies with olive oil and sesame seeds, tempeh kebabs, pumpkin risotto - there are thousands of others!
I often have raw food lunches, with fresh fruits/veggies. For breakfast there are lots of raw and cooked options too, involving cereals, grains and/or fruit. (or scrambled tofu makes a good, hearty savoury breakfast).
This is what I had today (I'm in summer here, hence the cold foods):
Breakfast: Fruit salad
Lunch: Green veggies and lightly steamed tempeh
Snack: Banana smoothie, berries and nuts
Dinner: Chilled Gazpacho soup (tomato based; really easy to make.)
Being vegetarian is FUN!!! :)
idk... i dont c y u dont want to be a vegetarian...
go to the website http://veganmuffinprincess.blogspot.com/
if your school serves bad pork meat, don't eat it...
if your school serves good hamburger and you eat it
I think you are not a vegetarian
how come?
Well as long as you balance your diet you will be a very healthy 13 year old.
I know for certain that humans aren't naturally suppose to consume dairy, eggs, and cheese.
As for as meat, it was what developed humanoids minds, but I know that modern humans do not need meat because of our new society. Also, animals are very abused and tortured for meat AND dairy. Dairy cows are slaughtered after they are milked for most of their life anyway.
What you need to do thoigh, is start cooking for yourself.
Pick our your own groceries.
Foods that are a must are :soy, tofu, nuts, beans, fruits, veggies.
Really the great thing about being vegan OR vegatarian is you don't have to worry as much about being over-weight. In a healthy case atleast.
Also, you have to have a huge, diverse amount of foods, meaning; don't eat the same foods everyday, change. Eat varieties.
I hope I helped =]
browse on line or in library lots of good veggie things around. Chat with mum and see if she will help by putting lots of mixed veg on your plate, also unless you are fully committed why not opt for fish instead of meat if you don't want mum to fret about your health? I wouldn't worry too much until you are a bit older.
Sample of what I eat in a day:
Breakfast - cereal, banana, V8 fusion juice
Snack - walnuts, sunflower seeds
Lunch - Subway's veggie delight(or PB&J), pita chips & salsa(or hummus), orange
Snack - apple, raisins
Dinner - lots of steamed veggies, black-eyed peas
You are in a tough spot when you are not the one buying the groceries. I don't know your parents, so I don't know what they would go for, but I'll do my best.
I would say try to encourage your parents to make Lots of fruits and vegetables available to you. Honestly, these are the only true health foods for human beings. I know that most people are not ready to hear that yet, and it will probably generate a lot of thumbs down votes. That's okay. That is not what's important to me. I'm only trying to plant a seed in your mind for later, when you have the power to make more of your own food choices.
For now, a lot of people have been programmed to believe that we need to worry about protein, even though most people have never met anyone who ever had a protein deficiency. The truth is, the only people who ever get diagnosed as having a protein deficiency are people who also have a caloric deficiency. In other words, they are starving themselves. Protein itself is the least of your worries(actually getting TOO MUCH is the real concern, as that is very toxic for our system). In fact, there is the same amount of protein per calorie in human breastmilk(which I think we can assume is sufficient-otherwise nature has us all screwed from the word "go"), as there is in FRUIT. You can look on any nutrition chart, pick a random mix of ten or so different fruits, do the math, and compare to the same # of cals of breastmilk. I have done this myself many times(it was hard to believe when I first heard this from a long-time athletic trainer), and it checks out.
Most Americans actually have a deficiency in vitamins, minerals, and water...and an EXCESS of fat and protein. Fruits and veggies are a perfect solution to all of those problems(yes, they even contain sufficient fat), and easier to digest, and better for optimum athletic performance. Fruits being the primary source of calories. Humans are simply not a high protein, high fat species, like bears. We are primates. Look at what they eat in nature.
Personally, I have been vegetarian for 11 years, vegan for 9, and a natural hygienist(all raw fruits & veggies, with minimal overt fats, such as nuts and avocados) for about 4. I am 33 yrs old now, and have found each of these progressions to be a great improvement mentally, physically, and spiritually. I frequently make entire meals of fruit, and feel & perform better than ever. Bananas are a particularly got one for nutritional completeness. So are grapes and tropical fruits. I consistently score at the top of the list compared to others every time I go to some kind of a health expo where they conduct a variety of tests. Also I frequently impress people with what I can do physically. In 2005 I went to a health & fitness camp, and won the award for Most Well-Rounded Athlete.
Anyway, I am sure that most every one you talk to(including your parents) will worry about getting enough fat and protein-the things which most Americans have in excess. That's how we have been programmed(by the industry that sells meat). I used to be this way myself, so I don't hold it against them. I feel lucky to have been exposed to something different, and to have actually tried it out. I have also thoroughly researched the science behind this, and have found it to be irrefutable. It turns out that conventional wisdom is about 98% conventional and about 2% wisdom. (Hey, that's a nice little zinger. I might use that again sometime!)
But my point is that you may have to include some kind of high protein source for now, just to appease the powers that be. So for now(not long term) I would recommend beans, and nuts & seeds(make sure you clean your teeth very thoroughly if you eat nuts and seeds. They are sticky, and will sit and become a source for acid-producing bacteria, which will cause tooth decay). I don't recommend tofu for males, as that contains high amounts of an estrogen-like substance. By the way, potatoes are not a good source of nutrients either. They are mostly just starch. Good sources of cals, bad source of vitamins, minerals, and water.
If you want to know more, ask me, and I will be more than happy to go into specifics. I said more than I meant to already, as I have found that most people are ready for this only in small doses.
Recommended reading:
First:
Diet for a Now America by John Robbins
Then:
anything by Dr. Douglas N. Graham
(the best nutritional mind I have ever come across)
Thanks. Best of luck to you!