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You are certainly entitled to your opinion (and lifestyle choice) but the American Dietetic Association states that a vegetarian diet can provide all of the nutrients you need to thrive.
As for diet and brain development, it may interest you to know that Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Edison, Pythagoras, Nikola Tesla, Henry David Thoreau, Leo Tolstoy, and others were vegetarians.
Also, comparative anatomical studies show that our bodies are more similar to other herbivores than they are to omnivores and carnivores in the animal kingdom.
"In some cases, use of fortified foods or supplements can be helpful in meeting recommendations for individual nutrients."
Seems like in more cases than not though. I wouldn't want to rely on supplements and unnaturally "fortified" food. But that's just me...
Anyways, scientists agree that we are omnivores not herbivores. One nice little analysis of it, there's plenty more out there too: Re: Are humans Vegetarians or Omnivores?
We are omnivores, it has allowed us to adapt to our environments well. In some places meat is readily available but other things aren't, in others, the reverse is true. A balanced diet between the two does quite well also. Humans have evolved somewhat to adapt to their region or the region their ancestors were from. So, some people do great on primarily meat/fish based diets, others on other diets...I would do quite badly on a vegetarian diet, I already know it.
A purely vegetarian or vegan diet may work okay for some people (but not others) in a typical modern urban, rather sedentary, lifestyle, but for a less sedentary lifestyle and particularly in colder/harsher climates, I'm certain many people would run into problems. Go spend some time in rural Northern Alaska, I bet in a week or two you'll be willing to shoot or catch anything that moves for some protein. Of course the Alaskan Natives lived largely off meat and fish traditionally and were quite healthy. Leeana mentioned seafood in her post...fish/seafood is very healthy. Take the seafood out of the equation of those Asian diets and they'd be lacking. With the seafood they're quite healthy.
The problem with most Westerners' diets is twofold: sedentary lifestyles, and too much unhealthy food. Meat is quite good for you, but the stuff people are getting in the stores (highly processed, full of various chemicals) typically is not good for you. It's not just meat products either: add in the trans fats from hydrogenated vegetable oils, the high fructose corn syrup in everything, too much salt and sugar in everything, preservatives, and on and on...the ingredients list in many popular foods reads more like a science experiment than food. If a person goes vegetarian and still eats this junk food they're not going to be any healthier. I have noticed a lot of vegetarians tend to give more attention to their diet to be healthy. If non-vegetarians put the effort/thought into their diet they'd be quite healthy.
A purely vegetarian or vegan diet may work okay for some people (but not others) in a typical modern urban, rather sedentary, lifestyle...
The problem with most Westerners' diets is twofold: sedentary lifestyles, and too much unhealthy food. Meat is quite good for you, but the stuff people are getting in the stores (highly processed, full of various chemicals) typically is not good for you. It's not just meat products either: add in the trans fats from hydrogenated vegetable oils, the high fructose corn syrup in everything, too much salt and sugar in everything, preservatives, and on and on...the ingredients list in many popular foods reads more like a science experiment than food. If a person goes vegetarian and still eats this junk food they're not going to be any healthier. I have noticed a lot of vegetarians tend to give more attention to their diet to be healthy. If non-vegetarians put the effort/thought into their diet they'd be quite healthy.
That's my main point. I'm a slow foodist, not a vegetarian. I prefer my diet to be whole, nutritious, and as close to eating foraged food as possible. A processed, compacted, thickened, coagulated, preservative-laden soy burger is NOT healthier than a farm-raised beef hamburger, no matter how you slice it. You can't compare the typical American diet to a healthful vegetarian diet and say that meat is the only thing making a difference. I have a friend who has been a dedicated vegetarian all her life, and all her life has been overweight. She eats a typical American diet, but substitutes beans and cheese for the meat..keeping all the calories in.
I understand some people may be able to do just fine in a sedentary lifestyle eating vegetarian or even vegan. But the truth is, that's not where we came from. Genetically we are programmed to process what our ancestors have been eating for thousands of years. People with nomadic ancestors tend to be able to process lactose, while most other peoples cannot. Some cultures are much better able to process raw meats, while others cannot. I doubt you could find in history an entirely vegetarian society. So while I fully support personal choice, I cannot agree that it is an entirely whole and balanced diet on a scientific and nutritional basis. It all comes down to, if it works for you, go for it.
As for me, I'm much too active to eat entirely vegetarian. I find that a portion or two of meat per day makes me feel much, much better. Given my choice, I'd chose a yummy salad over a steak anyday. But for my health, I have to make sure that meat is included in my diet.
The OP is a current vegetarian who's considering adding meat to his/her diet, so let's keep to the topic, rather than heading into a discussion of the relative merits of different diets.
I understand that the OP may need to adjust his/her diet due to a medical condition.
I don't want to go off-topic but this caught my eye:
Quote:
As for me, I'm much too active to eat entirely vegetarian.
Being a vegetarian never hindered my daily running, my daily cycling nor my competing in ultra marathons, nor my bicycle racing, both road and off road, in distances of 100+ miles or over the course of 24+ hours. I am just curious about how active I would have to be in order to reach that threshold?
I do agree that every person has a different physiology.
To the OP, if you need some animal based protein based on your doctor's recommendation.....then well you MUST do it. I applaud your choice of choosing things that are as locally grown and harvested and humanely treated as possible. Would it be possible for you to grow/catch your own? That way you would stay connected to the process (and the life cycle).
Perhaps instead of direct animal flesh you could try animal by products such as milk, yogurt, kefir, cheese or eggs? Infertile eggs from free range chickens if you prefer. That's animal protein with the animal still running around afterwards. Oysters and clams almost seem like a vegetable, don't they? They are filter feeders, though, and I'm not sure if that would be a good break in animal protein source. Predator fish would be better, a nice bit of sashimi is about as fresh as fish can get.
I know there are more specific forums about this, but they tend to be pretty inflammatory. The "vegan-nazis" and all. Has anyone been a long-time vegetarian or vegan and started eating meat again? Why? How did you adapt and how did you feel (both mentally and physically)?
I've been vegetarian for roughly 20 years, and vegan for the past five. I have felt very healthy up until about a year ago when I started putting some pieces together and am suspecting I have developed wheat intolerance and beginning signs of Celiac disease. This is a huge blow to both my lifestyle and my diet, and in addition to the physical problems I am depressed about it as well. Due to the loss of nutrients and calories I was getting with wheat products I am not feeling or looking well. I am considering eating meat (either free range poultry or non-hatchery fish) in small portions a few times a week to see if there is a noticeable change. This is very hard for me to do.
Please share your stories about why you went from vegetarian to eating meat, and do you feel better for it.
I could not imagine why I would. My meals are far better then meat meals. All you have when you eat meat are flavors from the fats in the meat. You can mimic these flavors in your own cooking without the meat. I haven't eaten meat in so many years, like 35, I don't know if I could digest it.
Hi Fnord! I just joined this forum looking for a place to move and came across your post. I've been vegan for 11+ years and about a month and a half ago stopped eating wheat, sugar and yeast because I suspect I have a gluten intolerance. At first I felt AWFUL: weak, sore, tired and depressed. I thought maybe I was low in some nutrient but stuck it out because I'd heard that was normal. After the first couple weeks I felt fine again. I think anytime you make a change in your diet, good or bad, there's an adjustment period.
I don't want to judge your decision, just to say that if you don't want to eat meat again then hang in there! I know lots of gluten free vegans. There's even a blog dedicated specifically to gluten-free vegan living: Gluten-Free Vegan. I'd be glad to help if you want some recipes or just support.
I was mainly veg for about 12 years...by 'mainly' I mean that I would rarely eat fish. And when I did it was because I felt I needed it for the protein. I have always been good about combining the black beans and corn, etc to get protein, but sometimes when my hair and nails would become weak I would eat fish. I dont like fish, but it was what I could handle.
About 2 years ago I decided to try meat again. I am allergic to chicken so I started with tuna sandwiches (which I found l could enjoy more with olive oil, capers, garlic, etc). I would eat a bite or two of beef and just could not chew it. I tried pork and strangely liked it. My daughter was thrilled as she was not a vegetarian and loved that I cooked her pork chops a few times!
I felt pretty healthy. I did lose some weight, it is strange how full you get when you eat some meat with your veggies and whole wheat pasta or brown rice! I was probably consuming about 1/3 less calories by eating meat.
Then I started feeling sluggish. I felt almost...more oily or something. Then my daughter became a vegetarian last summer so now I am back, too.
Do what you need to do. Think back to why you became a vegetarian; was it just for you, for family, friends, health...remember why and think about it. Did you used to like meat? You may again.
You could even just add some dairy back in and see if that helps. The vegan diet is something I personally can not do. I dont feel healthy when I do vegan. I tried again recently and felt awful. Sometimes we need to try new things. Sometimes we need to go back.
OP here. Wow, naughty me for not logging into CD since I posted this thread. What a bunch of great replies - thanks all. I appreciate the links about candida (never heard of that) vs gluten intolerance, because I have this enduring hope that I'm not dealing with Celiac disease...but the evidence is clear - I "cheat" and have some fresh bread or a bottle of beer and man do I pay for it. It takes me several days to recover and feel ok again.
I've recently heard information about a person's blood type being a factor in the success of one's diet - omnivore vs vegetarian vs vegan. Any input as to the validity of this? I do not doubt that humans are natural omnivores, but lifestyle and climate have a lot to do with what people do or should be eating. Like someone mentioned, I'm guessing there's not many hardcore vegans living in non-urban Alaska.
I don't believe in eating dairy products, that probably will never change. I don't believe animals (namely cows) are here to supply another species with milk that is for their young. Which is why I started the thread with the topic of eating meat. I might consider trying eggs for a trial period and see if I notice a difference, but to be honest eating eggs used to gross me out before I became fully vegan.
I guess something has stuck in my head for several years, which is why I'm considering trying meat again. I met a girl who, like me, had been vegan for about 5 years. She just wasn't feeling good, something just wasn't right. She said she started eating meat again, small portions a few times a week, low fat, fresh and non-processed - and what a difference she felt. She said her energy level rose dramatically, felt physically stronger, her hair became curly, etc. And that's pretty much what I'm lacking.
Perhaps you could integrate the meat as an ingredient into a recipe instead of one of the main ingredients? Run the chicken/pork/beef through a meat grinder or a juicer until it became very meaty broth and then make soup with that? You would have all the energy from the meat without the shape and texture of meat. Toss in some garlic, onions, ginger, etc., and you'd not even have much of the flavor of meat.
Boil bones for broth and make soup, that would be meat without meat. Folks give me a lot of unwanted roosters (half the chickens ever hatched are not going to produce eggs but instead they are going to crow and wake people up) so we have a lot of tough chickens to do something with. I'll boil up the bones and make a chicken stock. This stock is actually an aspic since it turns to gel (Jell-o) in the refrigerator. It has a lot of good flavor, too. It turns back into broth as soon as it is reheated. When ever I'm making soup, noodles or even cooking rice, the chicken aspic can be used instead of water. It adds chicken flavor as well as nutrition and yet there is no visible meat. I am, however, using real back yard free range chickens which are not the same as commercially raised chickens, or even commercially raised free range chickens so the flavor would be more intense.
As for not eating dairy products because it isn't fair to cows, (goats, sheep and other milk producing animals) if it wasn't for their milk production, they wouldn't even exist. How many people do you know keep one pet cow let alone a herd of them? Same with meat animals. If they weren't raised to be eaten, they wouldn't exist at all. But I suppose it is the same for vegetables, too.
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