Anybody become a vegetarian out of necessity?

Question

I have always been mostly vegetarian because I'm not that crazy about meat of any variety. For the past year or so, I've discovered that it doesn't "agree" with my digestive system anymore. If I stay strict vegetarian, I don't have a problem. Anybody else experience this or am I losing it?

Answer 1

After I turned 30, my digestive system started having trouble handling cows' flesh. I also sometimes had trouble when I ate chickens' flesh. One day, I'm eating some wings, and I realized that I really didn't like eating meat anymore. So I went veg. I guess you could say that it's out of necessity. Also, high cholesterol runs in my family, another reason to go vegan.

Answer 2

I believe I became vegetarian out of necessity.

When I turned 24, I was running long distances, and backpacking up to 400 miles per trip. I weighed about 150 lbs, at 5'8". I was the picture of health.

But behind the picture was family history, my father had his first heart attack at the age of 28. A family doctor who knew this history, told me I was headed in the same direction, he figured I had four years till a major attack.

I gave up red meat that day, I had heard somewhere that heart attacks are 90% less likely with vegetarianism. I did some more research and realized I didn't need poultry or fish.
During this time I helped start a commune, which with all of the interest in the changes in my diet, was vegetarian with two years time. This was extremely helpful, in learning new recipes, support from peers, and staying the course of vegetarianism. I soon became a vegan.

Well, 28 came, and I had some tests done on my heart. Things had improved, and the doctor said I added about six years to the due date. At 32, the doctor said I had nothing to fear anymore, I had the heart of someone half my age. And, I had just recently been picked the MVP, coach and captain of a championship sports team, on which I was the oldest player on the team, some players couldn't even drink yet.

Meat doesn't agree with me, or my family history. I wish they would realize that. My five brothers have all had problems with their hearts, two are younger than me. I was speaking to one this past weekend, and he asked if I would ever eat meat again. I pointed this fact out to him, and he never put the two facts together. I hope he thinks about it a little more.

It has been 18 years, now. I am healthier for not eating meat.
Two nieces have since adopted the lifestyle.

Congratulations to you for testing and finding the right diet for yourself. It shows a level of maturity, to be able to question cultural beliefs that some hold close. Don't let public pressure sway your decision.

To your health.

Answer 3

No, my dear, you aren't losing it. What most people dont realize about commercial meat is that it contains many common allergens. First, the animals are fed an unnatural diet of wheat, soy, corn, ground up newspapers, other dead animals, and all manner of strange stuff (this sounds strange, but there is loads of documentation about it) Cattle are meant to eat grass-not crazy stuff like they are fed. Then, due to the deplorable living conditions they are kept in, they are pumped full of growth hormones, steroids and antibiotics (usually derived from eggs) Then, because the meat is unsanitary, it is injected with "enhancers" which contain chlorine bleach, soy, and other chemicals to make the meat "safe" for human consumption. Its small wonder it doesnt agree with you! I have multiple food allergies, and could not figure out why I reacted so badly to meat. After doing careful and thorough research, I learned the truth about how nasty meat really is, and I became a vegetarian overnight. That was over 4 years ago, and although I was stressed about it at first, now I realize it was the best thing I have ever done. I was crippled and in major pain when I ate meat, and now I am perfectly fine. I do much better following a strict vegetarian diet, and feel better knowing I am not loading my body full of unnatural things. Good luck to you-you are far better off as a vegetarian. Life got even better when I gave up commercial milk, which contains all of the bad stuff too. I was diagnosed as "allergic" to milk, and lactose intolerant, but I now realize its the added garbage in it that most people react to. Now that I have my own cow, and drink organic, raw milk, I have no problems at all with consuming dairy.

Answer 4

This is actually really common. You body loses the ability to digest meat well when you don't eat it for a while. If you're not going to go totally vegetarian, I'd suggest eating meat on a fairly regular basis, just so that it doesn't disagree with you.