A real question for those meat eaters!?

Question

Would somebody please tell me what IMPORTANT minerals and vitamins and protein we really get from meat that we cant get from a vegan diet. (other than b-12).... I mean real serious answers with real back up and sources. Not off the top of your head or something that you think you know.

Also, are those really the only place you can find them. I am so tired of these meat eaters coming to the vegan boards and bashing Vegetarians and vegans saying you HAVE to eat meat to be healthy. I want real thought here, because I have been a vegan for almost 10 years and I know the answer...but do you?

And how many meat eater know as much about their diet as a vegetarian or vegan,
For the meat eater:
Where do you get your foliate, calcium, your iron and magnesium, Vitamins A, B's, C and D from? Other than a Pill?

I am not asking for my knowledge, i am a very healthy, educated vegan. I am asking to start a healthy conversation with meat eaters and Vegans. Hopefully :~)

Yes people where born with teeth to eat meat and digest it too. But..... just because we have the means doesn't mean we should. We have hands and the capabilities to murder but that doesn't mean we have the right too do that. We where also born with a consciouses and ability for forethought and compassion for other living things, that we should use... that's something to think about. Right?

ps. Remember... I am not trying to force my beliefs on you...I just want an open conversations about this... :~)

Answer 1

Iron is a big one - there are two types of iron, and while you can get iron from veg based sources, the iron from meat sources help to absorb it, so it's harder to get without meat. Not impossible, but harder, and the problem is not that you can't live a healthy vegetarian lifestyle, it's just that most don't.

The reason I came to this forum was to find out more useful info about my diet - as a meat eater I know I could eat better, but I also know that when I "forget" to include meat in my diet (or can't be bothered with the preparation), I start to feel lethargic, I put on weight and my digestion is not good. I'm not planning on having a baby anytime soon but occasionally I read the pregnancy and parenting forum, sometimes I look at the baby names for a good laugh, I might dip in to the religion forum for spiritual guidance although I am not a follower of any particular religion.

Food is my life, I love it, I work with it, I enjoy learning about it. I don't think the V&V forum is exclusively for V&V's - we all need to expand our minds and reading about each other lifestyles is one way to do it.

I don't eat a lot of meat, but I feel better when I do. Sorry, I'm not saying that to wind anyone up, it's just the way I physically feel.

For calcium I use milk and cheese, iron from liver, oily fish and leafy greens such as spinach, magnesium from bananas, Vit A from eggs, multigrains for B complex, sunshine and oranges for Vit C, Vit D from butter and other dairy. Foliate I have to admit not worrying so much about that - I thought it was something that was only really important for new feotuses, but I've looked it up and I eat lots of healthy breakfast cereals that it would appear in and I get lots of spinach in my diet.

Can someone tell me why I got two thumbs down? Did I not answer the question? Was I rude? Did I get my facts wrong? Please tell me - and I want real facts too, not just an opinion from somebody's head. That was what the original question was, I don't see why I can't expect the same...

Answer 2

I'm not a meat-eater but I live with 1, I can also remember enjoying the taste of meat. I'm glad you opened up this question.

My hubby eats like a kid. It took me years of saying, "eat your veggies or no desert" or "picking the veggies off you plate just means you have to eat the load in 1 go after you've had your meat".

He acknowledges it was an unhealthy diet but he'll still avoid veggies when my back is turned. He simply doesn't like the taste. Early on in our relationship, when I still ate meat, I was shocked still at how he cooked and ate!
Eg. OMG, where are the veggies?!? /sheepishly points to mince & onions.

Some meat-eaters, esp junk foodies such as my hubby, will in all honesty, acknowledge the fact that most V&V's eat healthier.

That's not true in all cases.

I come from a very health conscious meat-eating family. I'm not in the opinion that my diet is less or more healthy than the rest of my family. Just for the fact they eat meat and I don't... you know what I mean?

If you talk to a health conscious person, meat-eater or veg, they will know where they are getting their viatmins from...

Healthy meat-eaters eat veggies too and yes they do get their folate, calcium, iron, magnesium... and vitamin D from sunshine.

You talk to a junk foodie, veg or not, they will say, "me hungry, me eat."

Answer 3

You seem to think that "meat eaters" eat meat only. I know no person who only eats meat.

If I eat to much plant matter it makes me sick, the runs BAD.

I cannot function on eating plant matter alone. I have a high demand job that is very physical and I need a high intake of both carbs and protein. I eat what my body tells me too.

I was born with canine teeth and a digestive system designed to handle meat. I have been eating meat all my life so why should I change when too many veggies give me the runs and make me feel bad.

I'll tell you what. Go eat a plate full of tofu and come work with me swinging a 20 pound digging bar in 100 degree weather all day long. I'll eat some crab legs and some potatoes and we will see who can last the longest ; )

Meat eaters bash vegans because vegans always want us to change. You can make your own choice and that's fine, but dont try to push your beliefs on me or act as if you are better than me for not eating meat.

Man has been eating meat since before we even evolved into humanoids.

Answer 4

I, for one, have never claimed one needs to eat meat to be healthy. I do eat some, because I like the taste.

I do think it is very difficult for someone still growing to get all the vitamins and minerals they need from a vegan diet, unless their parents are very knowledgeable and supportive so, I do discourage teenagers from attempting to be vegan while still living at home if their parents are opposed to it.

On most days I am a vegetarian. But I do eat meat from time. I like the taste, I come here for the recipes for non-meat food.

I know vegetarians and vegans who know squat about their diet other then what they don't eat. One vegan I know lives (or should I say is dieing) on non-animal based junk food. She has list of which cup cakes and donuts have animial products in it.

But in general the average vegetarian knows more dietary information than the aveage person.

Answer 5

Funny. I just saw another question that wanted to know why meat eaters keep bashing vegans. The problem I see with that is that it seems to be the other way around. Some of the vegans deliberately ask questions they know will irritate the people that eat meat. I am not pro-meat or pro-vegan. Nor do I want to argue either side's point of view. I like my meat, AND my veggies. But most of the deliberate antagonisms that I see on Answers seem to be coming from a few irritating young (I am guessing) vegans who are like bible thumping preachers. Perhaps those people should preach in Religion and Spirituality instead of the Food section. Be happy with what you eat, whatever your choice.
Thanks for the opportunity of allowing me to tell it as I see it.

Answer 6

nicely i will assure you that no longer all and sundry meat eaters are 'damaging' in the direction of vegetarians. i'm happy you do no longer carry forth or something like that, those are the vegans that computer virus me. i'm sorry you're getting made exciting of by using some meat eaters. i in my view don't comprehend why somebody could make exciting of somebody in step with in the event that they consume meat or vegetables, this is a guy or woman's own decision what they decide for to consume. Please do no longer generalize us. weren't all undesirable I assure you :)

Answer 7

Vegans have problems with B12.. There are no true plant sources for B12. The closest would probably be Spirulina. It is very high in human active B12, but is also very high in B12 analog (which blocks the human active B12) creating a neutral (or worse). All plant sources which have human active B12 also have high content of B12 analog.

Veg*ans also have trouble with certain omega-3 fatty acids, namely EPA and DHA, which can only be found in non-vegetarian sources such as fish oil, krill oil, cod liver oil, etc. You can consume flax oil contataining ALA which then converts the ALA into EPA, then into DHA. But this is not very efficient in getting DHA. Only about 2-15% of ALA is converted into EPA, and then only around 2-5% of the EPA is converted to DHA... The result is low amounts of DHA, which is very important for the brain and mental function.

Meat eaters can have much more problems. Eating meat is not a bad thing in itself as far as health, but often times fruits and vegetables are excluded completely or near completely. With the exception of "french fries" which are potatoes. Probably one of the worst vegetables in terms of nutrition, but if that isn't enough, it has to be deep fried in hydrogenated vegetable oil and then coated with salt..

Also the type of meat they eat is often times exclusively beef (hamburger joints, etc.). The most nutritious meat is fish which is often times completely left out of the typical american non-veg*an diet.

Lastly, to answer the question about where to get Vitamin D.. You don't get it by eating anything or taking any pills. You get it by being out and about playing in the sun.. That is the healthiest way to get it..

Answer 8

i'm no longer a vegetarian, but you don't have to eat meat to be healthy. people who say this are either ignorant, or know unhealthy vegs/vegans. if a veg/vegan is unhealthy due to lack of certain vitamins and/or minerals, then obviously they are not eating a proper diet and need some re-educationg.

i came across this interesting article, i don't know how reliable it is. here's a quick quote and a link to the rest of the article....

"Professor Allen said: "There have been sufficient studies clearly showing that when women avoid all animal foods, their babies are born small, they grow very slowly and they are developmentally retarded, possibly permanently."

"She accepted that adults could avoid animal foods if they took the right supplements, but she said adding animal source food into the diet was a better way to tackle malnutrition worldwide than quick fixes with supplements in the form of pills."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4282257.stm

Answer 9

Here's a great site on vegan nutrition:
http://www.vegansociety.com/html/food/nutrition/

Answer 10

red meat contains very high quantities of iron, when compared with plant origin foods. 100 grams of Liver contains 6000 mcgm of iron as against 325 mcgm in 100-gram carrots. Read further to explore information about the advantages of eating meat…

The phosphorus content present in meat gets much more easily absorbed than that present in cereals and legumes. This is owing to the fact that cereals and legumes contain phosphorus, usually in the form of phytic acid that must be hydrolyzed before absorption.