Going vegetarian: you are what you eat
Yum Yum
Ghandi was one. The Dalai Lama is one. Martin Luther King, Albert Einstein, Tolstoy, Mark Twain and even Charles Darwin were all enthusiastic about it, too. Vegetarianism has been around for a long, long time, and these guys really liked their spinach.
Firstly, let’s get some facts straight. Ceasing to consume meat will not cure any illnesses. Being a vegetarian also does not mean that all you eat is green. Oranges are not green. Neither are almonds or beetroots. Vegetarianism is in fact more like non-meatarian, although there are very strict variations to the idea.
But although an all-green diet does not cure mysterious ailments, it can promote the prevention of some. Typically, a vegetarian diet is low in fat, cholesterol and calories. Some scientists have even found that vegetarianism may even protect against certain forms of cancer. It also saves a whole lot of money. And now that I have your attention, I can tell you about the downside of going green.
Forget the Meat
Not the easiest thing to do, I assure you. Don’t believe me? Try to list down your last five meals, and see what the main dish was. If you do not see a meat dish there, then you deserve to treat yourself to a huge (meatless?) dinner.Take away chicken, beef, mutton, duck and eggs and what do you have left? Not a whole lot, you’ll notice. Take away seafood as well, and you’re very near starving. Now what? Well, thankfully, someone did all the mix-and-match work a long time ago, and discovered that we have a wonderful food that fills the gaps left vacant by all this meat perfectly. Its name is tofu.
I know. Not many people have a special affinity for tofu, but get this: if you are going to become a vegetarian you had better learn to love tofu like you do chocolate. I’m afraid there is no way around this, save migrating to a more vegan-friendly country like Switzerland. (By the way, going vegetarian – truly vegetarian – also means no dairy products, and that includes chocolate; and ice-cream).
Taking away meat from your diet means taking away what is currently your primary source of protein. (You are taking away a lot more, too, but for now, let’s just worry about protein). And soy-based products, as we know, are rich in protein. But if you’re beginning to cry because you’re going to have to start eating soy products, don’t. All is not lost. Also thanks to the genius of generations of avid vegetarians before us, today there are many variations to tofu and soy, and alternatives, too: your future menu will include textured vegetable proteins (those meat-looking dishes you see in vegetarian restaurants) and multivitamins.
To stop eating meat is like trying to find alternative fuel for your car — it is difficult. But not impossible. Now, if you are ready to go on, grit your teeth and make a silent pledge to avoid all meat at all costs. Then bring out the cutlery.
No more pills, please
Alternatives to Meat
Before you decide to go herbivorous and stop eating meat completely, you should consult a doctor. They spent years at school and thousands of dollars so that they can advise us about these things. If your doctor says green is great and you’re good to go, then please do. If not, then at least you have a good excuse. In any case, it’s good to just hear him/her out anyway. All those years and dollars they spent just might be worth something, after all.Now for the good news: there is a lot more to good food than just cheeseburgers and steaks. Firstly, decide what sort of vegetarian you are (loads of variations). Some strictly eat plant-food. Some allow dairy products, but not eggs. Some allow eggs, but draw the line at fish. Most stay on the non-meat course, meaning that anything that does not directly involve a dead animal of any kind is fair game. Once you’ve decided which one you want to be, start looking around for alternatives to what you’ve lost from your diet. It’s recommended that you gradually change your diet by – for instance – firstly ceasing to eat red meat. Then duck. Then chicken. Soon you’ll find that you’ve run out of choices, and voila — you’re a vegetarian!
The biggest problem with adopting a vegetarian diet is the loss of nutrients from meat. And the greatest threat is the lack of Vitamin B12 – an already rare nutrient, found only in animal products. Lose it, and you risk anaemia and a higher possibility of heart disease. This is where the multivitamin pill comes in. Don’t like swallowing pills? Well, too bad.
Another nutrient you’re going to choke your body of is iron. Under most circumstances, a good vegetarian diet has enough iron in it for most people. But if you’re pregnant, or are menstruating heavily or suffer from iron deficiency of any kind, then it’s time for another pill. Then there is the question of calcium: make sure you shore your diet up with plenty of this (especially if you’re a woman) with either high-calcium beverages or, well, a pill.
And that is, broadly, what you’re going to be missing in general: Vitamin B12, protein, iron and calcium. So, do like the mouse in Who Moved My Cheese, and find an alternative. If you don’t have a problem downing a couple of multivitamins a day, you should be okay. Otherwise, move on to Plan B and look for alternatives to those multivitamins.
Alternatives to Multivitamins
Aha, so the pills scare you, eh? Not to worry, as long as you can concede the tofu bit.To substitute Vitamin B12, you’re going to have to look real hard at the labels on soybean milk at the supermarket. There are one or two that actually have this hard-to-find vitamin in them. Just make sure that it is soy milk, and not regular milk, which would completely defeat the purpose (unless you’ve gone for the not-so-strict vegan diet). Also, many tofu products have vitamin B12 in them, so it might be a good idea to look at their labels, too.
To get your daily dose of protein, you do not need to go overboard with the tofu or soy. True, tofu does go a long way, but it’s not the be all and end all of protein. Essentially, a ‘varied’ vegetarian diet has enough amino acids in it to build all the protein blocks you need for one day. By ‘varied’ I mean lots of green, leafy vegetables; lots of grains and beans; lots of nuts and seeds; and maybe just a little tofu to help you along you way. But since this only fulfils the requirements of protein, and not the other missing pieces from you diet, you’re probably going to have to take some tofu anyway.
Vegetarians do not have a problem with iron (unless you have a real problem with varying your greens intake), so there’s not much to talk about here. Unless, as I had said, you are the exception to the rule, in which case your only option is a pill. Or ditching the whole idea of going vegetarian in the first place.
Tofu (again) is a marvellous source of calcium. But since this part is about alternatives to the alternatives, I would recommend a hunt in all supermarket refrigerators for soy milk that has been fortified with calcium. And make sure it’s soy milk!
Remaining a vegetarian for life
How tempting.
I know don’t understand vegetarianism, at least. But we all know it’s good, and therein lies the paradox: if we all know that being a vegetarian is good for our health, good for the environment and good for National Geographic, then why do we have a problem with vegetarians?You’re going to get a lot of lip about why you’ve become a vegetarian, what you hope to gain, what you’re trying to prove, blah, blah, blah. No matter; move on. According to some psychobabble I read when doing research for this piece, this happens because people feel strangely threatened by vegetarians; as though the vegans are getting a whole lot more out of life than they are. Don’t let people get to you when they start asking you ‘why’. Just tell them you discovered that you have an intolerance for meat, and leave it at that.
(However, just because vegetarians are doing themselves and the world a favour by not eating animals, this does not mean that they’re above the rest of us. So, don’t start acting high and mighty and all self-righteous around people. You made your choice, and they made theirs.)
You’re going to have a particularly hard time when it comes to eating out. You’ll find that most restaurants are not catered for vegetarians, and even if they can only serve you with greens, they may use animal-based products in the preparation. Choose where you’re going to eat out carefully (yes, this is going to affect your social life somewhat). There are many vegetarian restaurants that serve strictly tofu – oops – vegan food, and hundreds of cookbooks with thousands of recipes for you to choose from. The good news? Most alcoholic beverages are vegetarian, too.
Becoming a vegetarian doesn’t have to mean the earthquake effect on your life it implies. You have the option of controlling how much it affects your daily routine. Just remember that it’s one of the best decisions that anyone could make.
And remember, you are what you eat.
