I want to be a vegetarian now. Can you help me with problems I've faced?

Any teacher who shows this to students should be fired and banned from public schools. This "documentary" is anti-corporate and religious propganda.

go vegan not vegetarian. animals are tortured for milk and eggs too, and they're not healthy products at all

Hi,

I am an Indian vegetarian guy. My diet includes all vegetables, fruits and dairy products. Although I can also have religious reasons of being a vegetarian, the main reason of me not eating meat is for moral reasons.

For your information, I read somewhere, more Indians are moving to become non-vegetarians and more Western country citizens want to be vegetarians. I will not say whether being vegetarian is correct, or being non-vegetarian is wrong, but I when I think about meat and fish, all i see is a dead animal :) - sorry for the graphical thought.

Ok, now to answer your questions:

>>>1) Any tips how to resist meat? When I see it, I don't remember the video, but after I'm done eating, I really want to puke. So can someone teach me a trick to make it look disgusting all the time? <<<

The best way to resist meat, is to not have it around you! Of course, its easier said than done, especially when your family and friends eat it. So, when you want to resist meat, think about why you opted out of it in the first place.

>>>2) My mom is okay with it, but my dad didn't believe me when I told him. Can someone tell me how to prove to him that I'm truly disgusted be meat? <<<

You don't need to prove to your dad anything, the same way as you dont need to prove to us, online why or why not you want to be vegetarian. Its your personal choice, and if you think its the right informed thing to do, do it.

>>>3) As much as I hate to say this, this could be a phase for me. If it is, I want to get out of the phase now, so do you have anything to tell me on why vegetarianism can be bad or can you tell me something that wouldn't make me feel bad about eating meat? <<<

I have heard people say Vegetarianism is bad because vegetarians are not muscular, healthy, etc etc etc. I dont think its true. If you have a dietitian around, you can have a balanced vegetarian diet to be healthy and strong. Also, you may hear people saying, being vegetarian also involves "killing" plants. Well, I dont know how to respond to that, just because its *beep*

>>>4) Is everything in this video true? Was there something that was exaggerated? They made the businesses seem like evil people who only cared about money, but I don't believe that's how it really is. <<<

You are correct. Business doesnt need necessarily to be evil. But do you want to be vegetarian because you do not want to eat animals, or because the business guys are evil. If your answer is the former one, this question becomes unimportant.

>>> 5) Is there any foods that are 100% free of the chemicals they showed in the video? I can't remember the name, but they fed it to the animals to get more meat. Is there a way to tell if that stuff is in the food you are buying?<<<

Just a footnote, being vegetarian would not necessarily mean that your food is free from chemicals, but I guess it would be considerably less than in meat. Also, when we go out to buy fruits and vegetables, the ones which look perfect in shape and color are usually the ones which are genetically modified, and we avoid them. The natural looking ones are the healthier ones (or so I think).

A few tips, lastly:
1) Cottage cheese is a good substitute for meat products, especially chicken, at least in India
2) If you can, get to a dietitian and he or she will be able to help you with a balanced diet, vegetarian or not
3) People around you might sometimes try to get you into an argument about your vegetarianism. Don't! Remember, you are being a vegetarian for yourself, and not for people. At the same time, do not try to convert a non-vegetarian into a vegetarian by arguments. It doesn't work, and unnecessarily would upset you and your friend.
4)Its been 2 years since your original post. Let me know hows it going. Did you survive, or succumb to tempatation :)

Watch the movie "Vegucated". I found it thought-provoking. It's about peopple facing the same problems you are.

When you become a vegetarian, you learn what food you actually need...and how to eat certain foods with other foods. I used to eat steal bloody red and loved it. I haven't had a bit of meat in two years and I don't miss it and I don't crave it at all. In fact, the smell of cooking meat makes me feel sick to my stomach. Since you are young and rely on your parents to buy your food, perhaps a book would help you understand where and how to get all the nutrients that you need.
For example, many different plant based foods contain protein but they are not "complete"..however eating a mix of different ones will allow your body to piece together the aminos to make complete proteins (Also try quinoa instead of rice...yummy hot or cold) Vegetarian burgers are fabulous, they are made with so many different ingredients and as one poster said, it's really the topping that give it the flavour.


I hope you don't make the mistake that so many girls I talk to make: eating loads of chips becasue hey, potatoes are vegetarian! The aim is for health AND animal welfare. Also, a tip: when you eat something with a good iron content, pair it with something with vitamin C and avoid tannins for the next hour or so. This will help with the absorption. I was almost anemic BEFORE I became a vegetarian...and now that I understand my body and nutrition so much better, I am fine with zero red meat in my diet.There are many different vegetarian COOKBOOKS but I think a book about the LIFESTYLE would help you a lot. Check your local library or book store for something published in the last few years. It's might be a phase BUT if you are feeling good and healthy and better about yourself then perhaps you will stick to it. I have many people that say to me "if YOU stop eating animals, that doesn't mean they stop killing them" or something similar..well, I have to live with MYSELF and I can make MY world better in many ways by being a vegetarian.

That being said, if you must eat meat, find someone that grows/raises his or her own cattle and sells at a local market. Ask questions about the conditions of the animals. If you feel uncomfortable, then don't buy it or eat it. Or be a pescetarian, eat fish. (grilled, not deep fried, of course!)SOmetimes that is easier and helps to transition from meatasaurus to vegetarian.

I guess only YOU can decide for certain but there are many websites to give you info...if ANYONE tries to make you feel bad for eating meat on ANY site, just block and walk away.

As you get older and learn more, you will find that there are 'hidden' animal ingredients in many foods, like gelatin and rennet, and you may wish to eliminate those as well.

Basically my best advice is to take it one step at a time. Say, stop eating red meat/pork. Try it for six months. Then you can elimiate chicken/poutry if you want. Every LITTLE bit helps your health and the environment. DOn't get discouraged if you slip up.

Good luck and good health to you

you can't just say I want to be Vegetarian tomorrow. Being a vegetarian is step by step, unless it's a religious reason. Try to reduce your meat intake. If in one week you consume around 4-6 times, try to reduce it to 2-3 times with smaller portion, and keep reducing them until you no longer feel eating meat is necessary.
Also, find meat alternative, you know.... those fake meat made from soy bean that sold in vegetarian shop.

Try to prepare your own meat or maybe help your parents will cooking meat. Feels the meat texture and the metal blood smell, without doubt, you will start to think it over.

Do a medical check up, it surely will change your the way of eating. Come on, with high cholesterol, or sugar blood, if you still thinking about over-eat everything, surely you are a challenger.

In my place, most meats are sold in traditional market. If you want chicken, the butcher will prepare it from life to all skinned.

The last time I ate pork were 18 years ago (now 25 y.o.), after I saw the pig's bloody head, and the meat texture, also the smell of blood are enough to make me vomit. I don't consume beefs because of religious reason, and lambs which cause high blood pressure. I don't eat seafood (except fishes) because the level of mercury and others chemical substances. Few chicken's breast around 100-200 gr per week.

If you start to think about the side effect of the meat you ate, you will start to change you eating style.