The Vegetarian & Vegan Thread

[tullepen]

maple syrup has a lot of sugar though.A whole grain/fiber is great to start the day (and your digestion) with,such as rye,or a cereal with flax seeds.Oatmeal is very good too.Or a sugar free cobbler,using just butter substitute,berries and oats.

 

[Belowen]

I think the breakfast as dinner idea is good, but I am really interested in discovering a new way of cooking & a whole new world of vegetarian recipes that I wouldn't normally be exposed to. I am not too fussed with adding meat flavour to the dishes, I am not a huge fan of meat TBH, but do I eat chicken, fish and some lean red meat with my dinner meals most nights. Less for the taste, and more for the fact it's easier to cook with them? I know that sounds ridiculous

 

[wrngco]

Isn't it weird how it works out like that?

Personally, being a vegan hasn't been easy.

One, I constantly have people telling me, "A vegan diet isn't healthy." (Says the guy hitting up the Burger King every lunch break.) I bought chips and he picked up the bag and read and analyzed every single goddamn ingredient on the package. Uh, duh! I've already checked it. All I can say to those who are so "opposed" to my new lifestyle is, "Different strokes for different folks." (Thank you, KiroTV. ) I think you can about the exact same nutrients, vitamins, minerals, etc. from vegetables and fruits and the like as you can from meats.

Two, I find myself saying, "I can't have this, I can't have that." It sounds so bad, like there are rules we have to follow. Like, my friend Miles tells me, "Guess you can't have Chipotle anymore." It is unfortunate that I won't be able to enjoy their burritos anymore, but I don't feel upset over it at all. What can I say so that being a vegan doesn't sound so negative?

I had always thought that vegetarians were 'weird'. I then by mistake (looking for a salad dressing recipe)-saw a video on Peta's website it was by mistake I have not touched meat or eggs since then. I have zero willpower I just cannot after what I saw. I have been vegan now vegetarian -no eggs sometimes dairy though I want to stop again for over 10 years now! 'being vegetarian is so unhealthy' I have been told my my uncle's wife's mother who is well over 300 lbs at maybe 5'1 and two knee replacements....i have learned when people start to rail me for being a vegetarian 'it's not for everybody but it's for me'-diet for a new planet by the heir to baskin robbins he is a vegan and vegweb .com help alot

 

[Persephone G.]

Hello! Another Vegetarian checking in.

Like many members in this topic, my family were not too supportive in my decision; nonetheless, over time they have come to understand as well as support my choice. So much so, that several of my relatives are now Vegans or Vegetarians.

There are many sites on the 'net that offer great recipes as well as information about Vegetarian restaurants in your local area.

I also try and stay away from frozen Vegetarian meals so instead I'll head on over to the Veggie Grill when I'm too lazy to cook.

 

[cygnenoir]

'being vegetarian is so unhealthy' I have been told my my uncle's wife's mother who is well over 300 lbs at maybe 5'1 and two knee replacements....

Ha, yeah, what's with that? I had dinner with my HS best friend the other night. We used to wear each other's clothes. Now she is probably close to 250-300?

After saying things like "Is that what you're having for dinner? Just soup and salad?" she informed me that I need calcium and MUST drink milk. I just laughed it off. I didn't say anything mean though, I was just hoping to lead by example or something like that.

Btw, I just saw a preview for Oprah on Wednesday. It looks like a food show and Alicia Silverstone will be on talking about veganism.

 

[papa_levante]

^ Thanks for that heads up, cygnenoir! Definitely something to record. I hope Alicia will bring up how it's good for the environment too.

she informed me that I need calcium and MUST drink milk.

Broccoli, spinach, beans, many cereals... I think we're all set.

 

[oiselet]

It's so funny about the whole milk thing. Everyone thinks it the only form of calcium we can possibly get, but they put so many hormones and chemicals in the cows that it can actually cause osteoporosis. Ah, the irony.

 

[cygnenoir]

Well, you know, the dairy industry desperately wants you to believe that!

It makes me pretty angry, actually. Beginning as children, we are taught that dairy is an important part of a healthy diet. And that's just a huge lie.

I've often thought that I would like to study nutrition so that I would have better information. Then I remembered that many nutrition classes are still teaching the wonders of dairy products. Ugh.

 

[EXOskeleton]

I came across this article today about animal rights in the dairy industry:

Got Milk? Got Ethics? Animal Rights v. U.S. Dairy Industry
Undercover Videos Show Ugly Realities Behind the Scenes of 'Factory Dairy Farms'

By ANNA SCHECTER and BRIAN ROSS
Jan. 26, 2010 —

Undercover videos produced by animal rights groups are fueling a debate over the need for new laws to regulate the treatment of American dairy cows.

The graphic videos include one made inside a huge New York dairy operation where cows never go outside, have the ends of their tails cut off in painful procedures without anesthesia, and are seen being abused by one employee who hits a cow over the head with a wrench when it refuses to move.

An investigator for the group Mercy for Animals worked at the New York dairy farm, Willet Dairy, one of the largest in the state, for two months as a mechanic. Willet supplies to Leprino Foods, based in Denver, which produces mozzarella cheese and other cheese products that are used at chains including Pizza Hut, Papa John's, and Domino's.

"These animals are really treated as little more than milk-producing machines," said Nathan Runkle, executive director of Mercy for Animals. "The overall environment at this facility was really a culture of cruelty and neglect."

MORE

 

[Danhat Ward]

'being vegetarian is so unhealthy' I have been told my my uncle's wife's mother who is well over 300 lbs at maybe 5'1 and two knee replacements....

LOL, that happens to me a lot. It's always the people who are the most unhealthy who critizise my eating habits.

 

[misscheriedior]

I'm also vegetarian, and now that I'm moving out of home this year I really want to go vegan. My parents would never let me before so now is my chance

 

[ChloeFrancoise]

People make that argument about dairy but what about people who aren't just lactose intolerant but actually allergic to dairy? They're getting their calcium from somewhere.

 

[cestmagique]

It makes me pretty angry, actually. Beginning as children, we are taught that dairy is an important part of a healthy diet. And that's just a huge lie.

I don't think dairy has to be unhealthy, but it's mind boggling how much it's pushed on people. I like cheese and whatnot as much as the next person, but I personally think it's weird to drink a lot of milk... you're not a baby cow, so why on earth should you need to drink three cups of it a day? (Which is what the US food pyramid recommends. Dairy is considered its own essential food group.)

 

[tullepen]

I haven't had milk in what, 15 years,so if I drank it I'd probably throw up.My mom was always making us drink it with dinner and I never liked it.I love this chocolate soy milk,but always forget to buy it. I knew a lady who wouldn't let her kids have dairy or soy, so I hope they got some vitamins.My main concern is for bone density and calcium deficiency later in life,as it runs in my family.My parents are still kind of confused at why I am vegan and not just vegetarian,but they are very healthy people and really are the opposite of most Americans in terms of diet.We weren't ever allowed fast food, we had to walk to the store,etc.But it shows that an enforced vegetarian diet at a young age often leads to eating disorders...so let your kids choose for themselves!

 

[tullepen]

I actually had a harder time being a person who ate fish and eggs than I do now being a vegan.With fish you have to be really careful for the mercury, if it is farmed or free swimming, and it is recommended to eat fish only twice a week.My mother is a nurse and she is really on top of nutritional news,so she'd bring these pamphlets home and I found that not eating fish is healthier and easier.Of course people will argue that you aren't getting your Omega 3 fatty acids.People will do anything to argue against a vegetarian or vegan diet,which is so unsettling.A family friend asked where I was getting B-12 while eating portion after portion of meat.It was pretty ironic.I wonder how his health will be in 20 years. Don't let anyone dissuade you,just keep on your healthy track.

 

[couturecouture]

Alicia Silverstone on Oprah right now makes me want to go Vegan... has anyone picked up her book?

 

[ChloeFrancoise]

I was just about to ask about the book. I don't think I'm going vegan, at least not for now, but I'd like the book especially since it has recipes.

 

[wrngco]

I need to read up on the dairy again so I can stop eating it again. I have to purchase Alicia's book, she looks maybe 21 and she's 35/36 I think. I just get so depressed when I see the animal cruelty which is why I stopped eating meat to begin with (and eggs eww) . I really have zero willpower if you want to go vegetarian at least...watch a video, if you want, it hit me hard 10 years

 

[tullepen]

I want to get her book,I love her website,but I've been eliminating things I don't need.So maybe I'll get it as a gift someday! making vegan cornbread and sauteed kale for dinner, with roasted pine nuts.Love warm cornbread with Earth Balance!

 

[GlowGirl]

im getting her book (or at least browsing through it at the bookstore) tomorrow so i'll let you guys know!! im currently a vegetarian but want to "flirt" with the idea of going vegan.