Going Vegetarian..How?

Question

I was on youtube.com and found couple of videos from bands I listen to(Bring Me The Horizon and Silverstein) talking about going vegetarian.Then I saw couple of videos about animals and how they are when they are going to slaughter house.I want to become a vegetarian for many reason such as health and for the animals.I understand this is a lifestyle change and not a diet and I am willing to change my eating habits If you could give on me what not to eat and anything else you think I need think that I need to know.Also if you don't have anything helpful to don't bother.

Answer 1

I admire Rise Against!

First, stay away from things such as fish, beef, chicken, chicken broth, pork, and any other meat.
Ingredients that you should also try to look for on the label (to avoid are:

Glycerin,gelatin, monoglycerides, diglycerides, natural and artificial flavors (could be from animal or plant sources), calcium carbonate (could be from oyster shells).

There are so much more ingredients that it would take a long time to list all of them. If you type "vegetarian (or vegan) ingredients" on google there should be some sites that give whole lists of animal and plant derived ingredients.

Some things that you should keep in mind before going vegetarian is:

1.) Make sure that you get enough iron from foods. Things like leafy greens should have plenty of iron. If you drink tea, make sure that you wait some time after you eat because drinking tea will not allow iron to be absorbed. Lack of iron can also lead to anemia, which if serious enough, can cause you to have to take supplements for the rest of your life.

2.) Don't eat too many carbs or dairy. Eating too much dairy or carbs can cause weight gain.

3.) Be careful of cheese. The ingredients may list enzymes, which is an evasive way to saying pepsin or rennet, which is made of calf stomach. There are vegan cheeses that you can buy.


Good luck! And rock on!

Answer 2

Besides the obvious animal flesh items, you will want to avoid stuff with gelatin in it. Gelatin is made from the bones, hooves, and hides of cows and/or pigs. You also want to watch for cheese made with rennet, a coagulating salt made from the fourth stomach of calves. That's if you're going vegetarian.

If you're going vegan, watch for casein (a dairy protein), found in too many so-called dairy-free items and soy cheeses; carmine (made from crushed cochineal beetles); food or confectioners' glaze; honey; beeswax; royal jelly; and propolis. The E. G. Smith Collective publishes a list of animal ingredients, but I mostly worry about the biggies.

You can get a starter guide from www.cok.net.

Vegan recipes: www.vegweb.com.

Read labels just to make sure animal fat hasn't gotten into what should be a vegetarian item--such as snack cakes. Many "vegetable" soups are made with beef or chicken stock (like french onion soup). A lot of the ramen mixes are not vegetarian.

Good luck to you, and if you have further questions, let me know, and I'll be happy to help.

Answer 3

Good for you! Welcome to a healthier life. Read John Robbins' books: "Diet for a new America" and "Food Revolution", check out Dr. Neil Barnard's site www.pcrm.org (I'm a big fan of his), Vegetarian Times and PETA have vegetarian starter kits available. You will need to be a food label detective. Look for things like lard and casein. There are also food coloring that is animal based. Just starte eliminating pork, then chicken, steak, fish and so on. I believe someone asked about a website that listed ingredients to watch out for. You can check the Y! question history. Good luck and start tuning out all the idiots that don't know what being vegetarian is about.

Answer 4

Don't make the mistake of trying to go for a lot of the pre-packaged meat analogues out there -they tend to be crazily expensive, they usually don't taste much like the food they're trying to copy, and in the case of the frozen ones, you'll often find them swarming with stuff that flies in the face of your multiple reasons for bothering to go vegetarian in the first place - everything from artificial preservatives and flavorings to animal products (MorningStar Farms stuff is notorious for being ridden with eggs - what's the point in a mock-meat that contains animal, right?) to all that extra plastic and cardboard packaging.

Instead, focus on much of what the name suggests: vegetables, fruits, and other produce. You'll be amazed at how less expensive produce seems once you're not buying meat every time you go to the store - it definitely evens out a bit. Try to keep track of what's "in season" to where you live, because that's likely to be less expensive and more fresh and flavorful due to not having been transported long distances. Try picking up a few familiar items and maybe one or two mildly exotic things you've never dealt with before, and look around online for recipes that contain them. I've been vegan for three years and I still find something new once in a while - just last week, for instance, I picked up some chard, and I've learned that while it's very bitter and acrid cold, the leaves lend an *amazing* savory flavor when chopped and mixed into a stir-fry. Going vegetarian is a good opportunity to experiment with cooking if you've never really gone about it before.

But what about protein? Try all manner of beans, legumes, and nuts, and remember, there's numerous ways that these items are available. You can also go for tofu, tempeh, or seitan, but I'd suggest on taking it easy on those at first, because you might wind up thinking of them as "faux meats" and not enjoying them as much. There's a lot you can do with textured vegetable protein as well, but it takes some creativity and a little luck. I find that the biggest thing is getting rid of the notion that protein-rich component is the centerpiece of a meal - it doesn't have to be. A small serving is all you need, just like with breads or other carbs. The big thing in a healthy diet *should* be plant-derrived foods, and you're now in a position to figure out how to do it well.

But there's a stumbling block: some produce keeps well and some deteriorates rather rapidly. It can be really frustrating to forget about that nice bunch of fresh spinach you bought four days back and go into the fridge to find it a soggy black mess. So here's the REAL big secret: take 30 minutes a week to plan what you're going to make as your evening meal (or whichever meal of the day is the biggest), and try to plan things that use some common ingredients that you can stagger across several days' time. What you'll be trying to do is minimize waste of the perishable things that you have to buy in bigger quantities - say, a head of broccoli or lettuce- while having a varied array of dishes so you don't find yourself getting bored - say, X ingredient in dish Y on Monday, and then X ingredient prepared a bit differently in dish Z on Wednesday, with something COMPLETELY different on Tuesday. :) It can be done! It's also quite gratifying to try something new and really enjoy it. I suggest poking around on sites like vegweb.com for some good recipe ideas during the planning process.

Answer 5

You becoming a vegetarian will not stop the animals from being killed....

Answer 6

I'm not intrested in your story
I will admit
"I"
will always wish you the best.
and have no fear
I respect you..
silly