I see many posts on members becoming a vegetarian and asking for advice. I think it’s great we can all share advice nowadays because social media was no where near advanced as it is now when I become a vegetarian. This is a great platform to get information however ensure you do your own research as well as a trip to the GP.
The reason I stress do your own research is because many people just take supplements because they are unsure how to get their vitamins etc or even what foods will get them their vitamins etc. Well I have been a vegetarian for over 16 years and I have never taken any supplements during this period I have had blood tests and not once a deficiency has shown.
For example it is easy to get B12 but you just have to know how and practice this in your daily diets.
There is nothing wrong with supplements that is not what I am saying. I am saying do your research because you can get everything you need without them.
The only time I would strongly recommend them is during pregnancy.
LC x
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Louise_Chlo
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Welcome to the Healthy eating forum. I hope you'll share some Vegetarian recipes if you want to - as well as enjoying the forum as a whole. You've made some great points in your post, and I just wanted to say 'Welcome!'
LC good point made. Relying on supplements is not the way forward when changing to a meat free diet. It's not a question of removing meat and then putting in substitutes. The vegetarian diet needs to be seen as comprising the major foods groups but seeing that food combinations, often in the one dish, supply all your nutritional needs.
I would always advocate doing research and buying ( or borrowing from a library) a reputable cook book that talks about nutrition and how it can be easily obtained from a plant based diet.
Ready prepared meals are an occasional treat but cooking vegetarian does take a bit more thought.
What I don't like is pretending veg protein is meat. Like calling bits of quorn chicken pieces. Why ? I suppose it works in getting meat eaters to realise that it is not necessary to eat meat all the time but it feeds into the idea that a plate of food consists of a bit of meat, a carbohydrate and some vegetables. So put a bit of quorn or an egg or cheese in as a substitute. Not really what I would call delicious.
These foods make it easier for people who like meat, but have ethics & want to stop eating it. It's known that people that go cold turkey, pardon the phrase, going straight to a vegan diet, will often relapse because it's too much of a change in one step. They are also handy for using in recipes people might like until their vegetarian cooking skills become more adept.
Good point and I never thought of it like that. When I turned vegetarian I had no clue what I could have in place to ensure I got my daily intake aged 14. LC x
We always point people in the direction of the Vegetarian or Vegan Societies. Both have excellent resources for young people themselves, & advice for parents who may have issues with the ethics or cooking for a vegetarian family member.
I like to reward people changing diet with a good cookbook.
This is great. I went home from school that day and refused to eat my evening meal and at first parent thought I was being bullied. The school gave no guidance and my parent had no idea either. GP at the time no good at all.
My friend became vegan when her 6 year old made the connection between the fluffy spring lambs they'd seen on a walk & what was on the plate for Sunday lunch.
My family and I all became vegetarians one by one in the 1960's. It was by our own choice, but also influenced a little by my mother who lead the way. I was the youngest at 12 and my reason for giving up meat was based on compassion and a love of all animals. I gave little thought to my health, though I had heard Seventh Day Adventist's studies showed vegetarians lived longer healthier lives than meat eaters. Back then we were considered extremely odd.
There was practically no support in those days and we didn't really know what we were doing nutrition-wise. One of our first favourite meals was cheesy chips! Another was tagliatelle with condensed mushroom soup and cheese on top. Then bean burritos. Gradually we learned to love the flavours of more and more vegetables, and we began to love salads. (Our favourite was Mexican salad, made with fried kidney beans and crushed tortilla chips.) When you give up meat, you soon begin to realise how flavourful vegetables, beans, nuts and legumes can be. You also begin to use more onions, garlic, herbs and spices.
My point is that for decades we never worried about nutrition. We just ate a variety of plant and dairy foods, including some not so nutritious things, yet we all remained healthy. Whenever our blood, blood pressure and hearts are tested, everything is fine. We don't supplement and we are not deficient.
We are all vegan or practically vegan, rarely having dairy now. We pay more attention to the ingredients in store bought food, having become more aware of everything, thanks to the internet. My parents are still alive at ages 92 and 99, walking unaided and still pretty sharp. They have outlived all their siblings, even my dad who was the oldest child in his family. All three of their children are now old age pensioners themselves, and we have all watched many of our meat eating friends and other family members die of cancer, diabetes and heart disease. We all credit our good health to the diet we adopted all those decades ago and know that the plant foods we ate gave us everything we needed.
As long as you eat a variety of plant foods, a vegetarian doesn't have any more reason to worry about deficiency than someone who eats meat. In fact the opposite is more likely true. Vegetarians certainly have no reason to worry about getting enough fibre. That is the problem with a meat-rich, plant food-poor diet. Rather than asking vegetarians, "Are you getting enough protein, B12, iron, etc" why not ask meat eaters, "Are you getting enough fibre, chlorophyll, phytonutrients, etc". Being vegan is our natural state. Carnism is the choice that can damage your health more.
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