I want to become vegetarian...

Question

I thought it might be easier to just not tell anyone, my family just doesn't understand why I don't want to eat meat - and I figure it would be easier to not have to explain myself. What do you think? Also - any tips on the transition? thanks!!

Answer 1

You will eventually have to tell anyone who is ever going to cook dinner for you.  Or if you eat in front of someone often they will likely notice and may ask about it.  Outside of that you have no reason why you would need to tell anyone but many of your good friends and family may fall into this category.  Not everyone will support your decision but I have found that a lot of people look at it as a healthy decision even though they haven't done it themselves.  Even if your friends & family disagree they will put up with it and maybe tease you sometimes but a good friend will accommodate you anyway.

In making the transition it might be easier to gradually start eating less meat until you don't eat any at all than to stop suddenly.  But some people have done it that way.  Also remember you still have to eat a balanced diet.

Answer 2

Don't be secretive. You don't have to hassle them or be mean or preachy, but if they want to know the exact reasons sit down with them and show them the movie "Earthlings" or some other provocative and pretty self-explanatory piece on the reasons behind being a vegetarian.

The reason I'm saying don't be secretive is, you still live with them and you should eat a balanced diet. If you just sneak around eating meat all the time, they'll think that you have an eating disorder, or they'll find out anyway and won't trust you, or you'll just get sick.

If you talk to them about it and request some extra stuff they might want to buy for you with their groceries, like some veggie burgers and some tofu and maybe a cookbook or two, then you might earn their support.

Here's a vegetarian food pyramid:

http://www.poly.asu.edu/ecollege/nutriti...

It replaces meat with other reliable sources of protein - there's plenty out there. Take a multivitamin every day until you figure out how to balance your diet, how to cook with tofu. There'll be some days where you'll be throwing out the contents of your skillet and feeling grumpy that your tofu stir fry came out soggy and gross, so you need your multivitamin and good old bread and peanut butter and other staples to fall back on.

Lots of whole grains, beans, all sorts of fruits and veggies, nuts and seeds. Tons of recipes out there, my favorite site is:

http://www.vegweb.com

Just go on there and type in ANYTHING you can think of, like "lasagna" or "chicken nuggets". It'll find you a way to make something just like it, but it'll be a vegan recipe, so it doesn't even have dairy and eggs. Of course, there's lots of vegetarian cookbooks and sites too.

So be honest with your family and realize you'll have to put some work in, and this is a good time to clean up your diet anyway. Don't do it in secret because you'll be eating junk food and sneaking around, and your family should be your ally and should support the WHOLE you, and if you're a vegetarian they should embrace it. Don't be ashamed of who you are, if you embrace it others will have to deal with it.

Answer 3

hey, want to be vegetarian,thats depending on your self-confidence,

see the animation movies very well and feel the movie,then you can love animals  

Answer 4

well just dont

tell them

but its kinda not healthy

cause one of my moms

friends was a vegetarian and i believe she took protein

vitamins she ended up getting

cancer because some types of protein you have to

get from meat

and she passed away

but she is the last person you would think

would get sick cuz she was perfectly healthy in the army

and ran regularly she was 40 sumthin

Answer 5

well first think think this through and how old are you cuz if ur young then you need ur nutrients okay well or just wait a while.i wanted to be one too but i couldn't cuz im still young and need my food u know well goodluck  

Answer 6

i understand why it can sometimes be easier not to tell poeple when your not sure if they are going to support you. however, if you are living at home they are going to realize it soon than later that you aren't eating what the family is eating. so i would think your decision through if you are serious about this then i would find a way to tell at least one of your parents. maybe they can help you find food to eat and the interent is a great place for recipes. and also you still need the vitamins and nutritions that come from meat. so you should take some sort of supplement. but as far as transition goes you are really only cutting out one major food group there is still at lot of other food out there. and if your not a picky eater then you will find it easy to tranisition. if you are a picky eater is would gets some cookbooks and do some research.

Answer 7

Do you live at home?  If not, do you ever eat dinner with your family?   Don't you think they'd notice if you never ate the meat that's served? ... and, unless you tell them, they may not have any dishes available for you to eat!  ...  What are your reasons for becoming a vegetarian?  If you truly believe in it, then why are you afraid to tell them?  If it's just because it's "trendy," then don't do it.......

Answer 8

Deficiencies in Vitamin B12, a bacterial product that cannot be reliably found in plant foods, can have serious health consequences, including anemia and neurodegenerative disease. Although clinical B12 deficiency is rare in vegans, if a person has not eaten more than the daily needed amount of B12 over a long period before becoming a vegan then they may not have built up any significant store of the vitamin. In a 2002 laboratory study, more of the strict vegan participants' B12 and iron levels were compromised than those of lacto- or lacto-ovo-vegetarian participants.

The Vegan Society and Vegan Outreach, and others, recommend that vegans either consistently eat foods fortified with B12 or take a B12 supplement. Tempeh, seaweed, spirulina, organic produce, soil on unwashed vegetables, and intestinal bacteria have not been shown to be reliable sources of B12 for the dietary needs of vegans

Answer 9

You may as well tell them, they're going to find out when you go to family dinners.  My family isn't supportive of my vegetarianism, but I deal with it.  Just be prepared to have trouble eating at family functions.  Pick up a book or cookbook on vegetarianism and get some ideas of things to make.  There are a lot of "fake meat" options like veggie burgers, fake chicken nuggets etc.  Just make sure you're getting enough protein (peanut butter, beans, soy).

By the way it doesn't matter what age you are as long as you are getting all the nutrients you need.

Answer 10

human beings are omnivores by design this means that to live a healthy life they are supposed to eat meat and veg. I cant understand why people think thats ok to deprive themselves of half of their intended diet,

Can you inagine the stick that someone would get if the refused to eat veg.!