I'm thinking of becoming a vegetarian??

Question

Okay here's the deal. I want to become a vegetarian because:

-I love animals and i don't want to eat them

-healthier lifestyle

-better for the environment

I wanted to become a lacto-ovo vegetarian (no meat, poultry or fish but yes to dairy products,eggs and honey). Problem is, i don't know if i can. My mom is trying to dissuade me because i won't be getting enough protein and i could expirience health problems later. is there any way i can be a vegetarian and not eat meat, poultry but eat occasional fish, dairy, egg,honey????

Help me!!!!!

Answer 1

Yes but you well need to do alot of planning alright

you will need to increase the amount of food you eat at first to compo-sate for the lost in you diet

you well need to look up a Lacto-ovo diet needs

the site at the bottom well help out alittle more then i can

Answer 2

Lacto-ovo doesn't eat fish or any other animal flesh (including chicken fat, lard, etc.). You can have a balanced diet and enough protein if you eat whole grains, beans, tofu, nuts, seeds. People that are picky about what vegetables they eat do not make good vegetarians, you need dark leafy greens, winter squashes, colored (red,orange,yellow,green) vegetables. If you count on getting your calcium and protein from dairy and eggs you may as well eat meat. A vegetarian diet can be very healthy if you eat healthy foods.

Answer 3

Well if you eat fish, even occassionally you're not considered a vegetarian, you would be classified as a pescetarian which is someone who doesn't eat chicken, beef, or pork.  You can still get enough protein and iron by not eating animals though, soy has lots of protein, and the dairy you will be eating has protein too.  I also take an organic multivitamin just to make sure I'm getting everything I need, and I've never felt better.  Good luck with whatever you decide :-)

Answer 4

Most Americans get twice as much protein as necessary, so don't listen to that argument. It's very easy to become vegetarian, you just have to use a bit of planning and research. Eggs are an excellent source of protein, in addition to spinach, kale, beans, tofu, and so many more. There are so many simple meals you can make. For breakfast you can have cereal and milk, for lunch you can have a sandwich, and for dinner you can make pasta with healthy vegetables and sauce. Buy a cookbook (I would recommend the Vegetarian Student's Cookbook) and cook tasty vegetarian recipes. Even if you're not a good cook, you can easily make pasta, sauté vegetables, and enjoy yourself. Use whole wheat pasta and bread when you make food, and try to stay away from things that contain chemicals and preservatives. There are a wide variety of vegetarian meat substitutes, by brands such as Morningstar Farms, Quorn, and Boca. Try going to a health food store to buy food you need. It's much healthier and you can trust most of the food to not contain bad or harmful ingredients. If your mother still disagrees with your choice, then just tell her how you feel and do your research about it so she knows you're serious. Good luck!

Answer 5

I was a lacto-ovo vegetarian (no dead animals, but yes to eggs & dairy) for about 9 years and I was really healthy, and had normal protein levels! It's do-able! My folks weren't at all helpful to me when I told them I wanted to go Veggie. Since I was a young kid I tried to cut out meat, but it was hard with my folks...You can totally eats lots of yummies and be really healthy too. You can get protein from tons of places!

Now I am a Vegan and I still find lots to eat (despite my Gluten sensitivity and no nuts)! Soy milk ((Vanilla) tastes good in cereal) has protein and calcium, Van's frozen waffles are high in Calcium. There are also Vegan Calcium/Vitamin D supplements if you are worried about Calcium.

Go for it!! There is lots to eat! If you are worried about protein and calcium, just make certain that you are getting those things in your diet. Just read labels and talk to your doctor, maybe they will recommend supplements (like a multi-vitamin, or calcium etc). But you can usually get what you need without supplements. Just knwo what you eat!!

Answer 6

There is a really great book called Becoming Vegetarian that you should read. It has tons of information on how to have a healthy vegetarian diet, and it dispels all the myths of protein and calcium, etc. Your mum can have a read too and hopefully will support you when she realizes how much healthier a vegetarian diet is.

Answer 7

Your mom is confused about the protein situation. That is actually a hangover from a 1930s scare when a study came out that explained that malnutrition was heavily due to lack of protein. However, in the 1970s another study that came out that said we don't need to eat so much protein as much of it was just turning into fat anyway. If you're eating eggs you should be fine with your protein intake.

Read, The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter, by Peter Singer and Jim Mason. I recently read this and it is full with interesting facts considering the conditions of the animals as well as the effects on the environment.

I'm a male vegetarian so people do criticize me about my lifestyle, but you have to understand that even Mary Wollstonecraft was laughed at when she suggested that woman should have the same rights as men. Unless you want to persuade you family members to be vegetarian, you can say that it's a personal choice and they should respect that.

Answer 8

You have to be very careful if you do. You have to make sure that you get enough protein (eggs and fish) and if you want to be a V-gan your bones will be very weak from not getting enough milk. GOOD LUCK! :)

Answer 9

Your mom is wrong. I am a vegan and very healthy, I eat a wide variety of foods and take a multi-vitamin. An all plant life diet is superior to any other diet,  it is a fact.

Answer 10

Fish is meat and if you eat fish you would not be a vegetarian.

Foods: Foods that contain no slaughtered animal or slaughter by products. The main foods are water, fruits, vegetables, nuts (almonds cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc), beans (black, pinto, baked, kidney, etc), seeds (flax, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, hemp, etc), soy products (tofu, TVP, tempeh, fortified soy milk, miso, etc.) pulses, whole grains, quinoa, seiten, nutritional yeast, cereals, chickpea, seaweed, lentils, & vegetable, hemp, and flaxseed oils, plant meats, and plant milks. Brands: Amy's, Boca, Moringstar, Gardenburger, Tofurky.

http://veganpeace.blogspot.com/2008/03/v...

Recipe sites:

http://veganpeace.blogspot.com/2007/08/v...

Snacks: Dried fruits (apricots, tomatoes, prunes, rasins, etc), nuts (almonds, cashews, peanuts, etc), vegetables (artichoke, brocli, kale, cauliflower, etc), fruits (avcados, berries, oranges, watermelon, etc), applesauce, hard and soft pretzels, chips (potatoe, kale, tortillla, corn, banana, pita, etc) sushi, seeds (sunflower, pumpkin,  flax seeds, etc), cupcakes, donuts, scones, cookies, bars, muffins, brownies, pie, cheesecake, fried or breaded mushrooms or tofu or vegetables, mini quesadillas, mini quiches, spring rolls, crackers, breads, beans, falafel, pita bread w/ hummus, samosas, stuffed vegetables,  lettuce/vegetable wraps, mini potatoes (mashed, fried, baked, small, pizza, etc) mini sandwiches, small salads , popcorn (air popped, caramel, other flavors, etc), tofu (balls, baked, fried, BBQ, etc), peanut butter and..., small vegan/bagel pizzas, fries, hash browns, potatoe salad, chili, vegan cole slaw, potato/vegtable pancakes, spicy chickpeas, onion rings, corn nuts, plantin, trail mix, luna bar, etc.

Links:

http://vegetarian.about.com/

http://www.vegblog.org/archive/category/...

http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/vege...

http://www.vivausa.org/activistresources...

http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com/page/p...

http://vegetarian.lifetips.com/

For information on veg nutrition check out:

http://veganpeace.blogspot.com/2008/02/v...