I've been a lurker on this forum for quite a while and always enjoyed coming here from time to time and reading the messages etc.

I would like to know if there are any steps I need to take before I go vegetarian? I have been thinking about going vegetarian for a few months and so I have finally decided to try it out. I dare say that there isn't anywhere else on Earth where vegetarianism has evolved like it has in India, so I thought that this would be a great place to start and ask a few questions.

I do intend to eat dairy products, it's just meat, poultry, and fish I am going to cut out.

Is it true that vegetarians become sick after a few years of not eating meat and/or fish? Is it a healthy choice?

Are there a lot of vegetarian people on this forum?

Also, is it essential that I eat organic vegetables?

Kind regards C.

Hello Charlie

Welcome to the forum .

Before becoming vegetarian, you have to understand that your diet will still need to have adequate amounts of all the main food groups (protein, carbohydrates, fats) and vitamins, minerals, fibre etc. As long as you do that, you will be fine.

I was born in a vegetarian household, was in my mid twenties before I started eating non-vegetarian and am again mostly vegetarian now, except that I do eat eggs, seafood and dairy products. Most of my family and friends in India are still vegetarian and fine.

A large chunk of Indian population is vegetarian and they are perfectly healthy. The cardiovascular disease and diabetes incidence is higher amongst us, mainly due to genetic reasons plus we do eat a lot of dairy products and sugary things and are not that great at physical exercise!

People often get confused with vegetarianism causing malnutrition, because poor people in a country like India can not afford to eat nutritious vegetarian food. So people think that they are malnourished because of vegetarian food. If you eat adequate and balanced food, there is no problem in being vegetarian.

It is not essential to eat organic vegetables. I am not yet convinced about the advantages verses cost. Being a little cynical, I always wonder if food labelled ?organic? is really organic. How do we know for sure?

So Charlie, if you want to become vegetarian, go for it. But may I suggest that you do in stages. Give red meat first, then poultry and so on. That way, you will have time to learn to adjust your diet.

Yes, Indian food is very good for vegetarians. If eaten like Indians, covering all your nutritional requirements, it will not make you malnourished.

I would think phasing out the meat/fish/poultry from your diet would make more sense rather than just setting a point a month or two ahead. That way its not a big shock to your system and more importantly not a shock to your store cupboards/fridge/freezer etc. You would also get used to cooking more and more vegie dishes and use up the last bits of fish and things that you had in stock.

ps are you going to remove meat products from your diet as well ? Things like Jelly/Sweets that have animal gelatine in them, cheese made with animal rennet and other hidden sources of animal products.

Steve

To be perfectly honest I don't eat much red meat, the only red meat that I do eat on odd occasions is beef -- and I can only eat beef if it's in some type of sauce. I don't eat pork and I can't stand lamb. I'm no fan of turkey because I find it too dry and fish is a rarity for me. The only meat that I do eat with any regularity is chicken.

If I do decide to go vegetarian then I had still planned on eating dairy produce. My definition of vegetarian is someone who eats dairy products but doesn't eat meat, poultry, or fish. My definition of vegan is someone who doesn't eat anything animal related -- including dairy produce. I've done a little research on veganism and I don't think it's all that healthy, but that's just my personal opinion and I guess there are many people who would disagree with me. If someone has to take supplements because their diet is lacking in something then I don't think it's healthy or natural. A big one for vegans is vitamin B12 and a B12 deficiency can result in irreversible nerve damage and mental problems -- apparently!!

In terms of dairy products I don't consume milk or yoghurt that much at all; I occasionally use cheese, but I love eggs and I would never be without my eggs...

When you do research on dairy products there are many sites that claim dairy products are bad for us, and human beings are the only species that consume milk beyond infancy -- food for thought (no pun intended). I guess the milk from a cow is fine for a calf, but should humans be drinking cows milk? I dunno...

I rarely eat out and I do all my own cooking from scratch. I don't buy ready meals and the only things I use from a tin are tomatoes and baked beans occasionally. So yeah, I would be strict in the sense that I wouldn't eat anything containing gelatine etc. My diet is already very plant-based as it is really, aside from the chicken and eggs.

It sounds like all you would be doing is removing the occassional chicken dish from your menu (and using veggie cheese, non-gelatin sweets and jellies) so from the sound of it you are almost there anyway ?

I would think that being veggie means not eating meat in any form, so if you wouldn't eat a T-bone steak then you wouldn't eat the bone from it boiled down to make gelatin. Again you wouldn't eat cheese thats me made from milk thats curdled (normal cheese making process) by adding animal rennet (extracted from the stomach's etc) which is why I mentioned them...

Then again some people say they are veggie but go on to say they eat fish and or white meat !

Ps be aware that some vitamin capsules may use gelatin for the casing !

Steve