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Why People Become Vegetarians

Many nonvegetarians wonder what drives vegetarians to give
up meat and adopt an entirely different lifestyle.
There is no single answer to this question. Nonvegetarians
become vegetarians for a number of different reasons - some
even for multiple reasons.

Most vegetarians claim that they became a vegetarian for
one of three reasons.

The first reason, which most vegetarians claim, is that
they have ethical problems with eating meat. Most disagree
with how chickens are debeaked, forced to live in small
cages, and are then slaughtered when they do not produce
eggs fast enough.

Most vegetarians also disagree with the crowded and
stressful environments animals are forced into; and
the hormone-laden feed used to make them grow faster
and produce more.

People who become vegetarians for this purpose often
draw ethical boundaries in different spots, depending on
their personal beliefs. For instance, some staunch vegans
wont consume yeast, wear wool, or even eat certain
vegetables, such as carrots, that require killing the
plant to harvest.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, some vegetarians–
sometimes referred to as pseudo-vegetarians–will actually
eat fish and chicken on a regular basis.

The second biggest reason vegetarians claim for not eating
meat is that it conflicts with their dietary preferences.
Some of these vegetarians simply do not like the texture
and taste of meat; others do not eat it because it is high
in cholesterol and often contains high concentrations
of hormones and preservatives.

The third and smallest group of vegetarians cite
environmental reasons for not consuming meat. They complain
that consumption of meat causes farmers to continually
deforest land to create grazing land for cattle.

In addition to these three major groups, there are a number
of other smaller groups of vegetarians who stopped eating
meat for entirely different reasons.

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Mixed Vegetable Pasta Salad

Makes: 3 Servings

Ingredients:

1 Lb Pasta Of Choice
3 Stalks Celery - Diced
1 Red Pepper - Diced
1/4 Cup Sliced Green Olives
2 Cups Creamy Italian Dressing
1 Small Yellow Onion - Diced
1/2 Pint Cherry Tomatoes - Diced

Directions:

1. Boil water

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How To Make A Vegan Cake

Do you have a strict vegan in the family who
has a birthday or celebration coming up that traditionally
calls for cake? If you?re not familiar with vegan dietary
practices, you might not know what vegans do not eat.
Even worse, you might have no idea how to replace what
they do not eat.

But don’t worry. In a few short paragraphs, I?ll explain
exactly what you need to make the perfect cake
for your vegan friend or relative. And best of all, no one
will be able to taste the difference.

Let?s start with what strict vegans do not eat.
They do not eat eggs. They do not drink milk.
They don?t eat certain types of sugar. They don?t
eat butter. And they don?t eat frosting.

Eggs can be replaced by “EnerG Egg Replacer,” which you
can purchase at many grocery stores. The box will explain
how much replacer to use per egg.

Cow?s milk can be replaced by organic rice milk, which
doesn?t contain any animal byproducts. You can buy rice
milk at your local grocery store, too.

Many vegans do not consume sugar, either, because it is
often whitened by animal bone char. You can avoid sugar
that is whitened by bone char by purchasing “unbleached”
sugar, sugar in the raw, or beet sugar. There are some cane
sugars, too, which were not whitened using bone char,
but they hard to distinguish from others, unless you know
the exact name brand.

Strict vegans will not eat food made with butter, either.
If your cake recipe calls for butter, you can simply
replace it with margarine or vegetable shortening.

In addition to butter, sugar, milk, and eggs, strict
vegans also will not eat dairy frosting. If your recipe
calls for frosting, you can look for a similar flavor of
“non-dairy” frosting or you can make your own, replacing
butter with margarine.

And there you have it: an ingredient replacement key
for your vegan cake. Simply follow the key, replace vegan
-unfriendly items on your recipe, and your cake will be
perfectly fit for even the strictest vegetarian!

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Does It Really Matter If I Become A Vegetarian?

As a prospective vegetarian, you probably question
whether or not it really matters if you stop eating meat.
You might wonder how much of a difference one additional
vegetarian can make.

And while it might be true that one vegetarian wont make
huge statistical difference in a world of meat-eaters–
and while it is also true that one more vegetarian
probably isn’t going to turn the tide in the movement–
you can do a lot as an individual that will be good for
you and good for hundreds of animals animals.

Take, for instance, the number one cause of death in the
United States and other countries with meat-centered
diets: heart disease.

If it weren?t specifically for meat, eggs, and dairy
products–which are the three largest sources of
cholesterol–heart attacks and other heart and circulatory
problems would be far less prevalent. According to
EarthSave, the average vegetarian has about 1/4 the chance
of having a heart attack as the average nonvegetarian. As
for people who are pure vegans, it gets even lower: they
have less than 1/10 the chance of having a heart attack
as nonvegetarians.

In addition to heart health, you will get a number of other
health benefits as a vegetarian. For instance, you wont be
exposed to nearly as many preservatives, which are common
in meat and are linked to cancer. You wont be exposed to
various hormones (that are packed into animal feed), which
often disrupt normal hormonal processes in the body. And
you wont consume as much lactose, which most people cannot
digest properly–and which some dietitians have suggested
is a cause of digestive problems.

In addition to health benefits you will receive as an
individual, you will also reduce your share of the
suffering human beings inflict on animals.

According to veganoutreach.org, the average American
consumes 2,714 land animals in their lifetime. If you quit
eating meat now, you could literally prevent the suffering
and death of hundreds of animals of the course of a couple
decades.

In addition to this, if you stop eating eggs and drinking
milk, you will also reduce your share in the suffering and
death of battery hens and their offspring, as well as dairy
cows and their offspring, too.

So the answer is yes: it does matter whether or not you
become a vegetarian. It matters to the thousands of
animals you could potentially save and it matters to
you as an individual because you can greatly reduce
your chances of getting cancer and heart disease.

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Mushroom Potato Soup

Ingredients

5 cups boiling water
2 cups raw potatoes peeled and diced
1/2 lb mushrooms washed cut in half
3tbsp butter or margarine
1 small onion chopped
3 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp chopped parsley
2 Tbsp Worchestershire Sauce

Preparation

Melt butter or marg in pan.
Add chopped onions and mushrooms.
Stir in flour and then the water slowly.
Add potatoes salt and pepper.
Put in lemon juice, parsley, and worchestershire sauce.
Cook till potatoes are soft.
Stir occasionally to avoid sticking.

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Healthy Blueberry Muffins

Makes: 2 Dozen Muffins

4 Cups Whole Wheat Flour (for pastries)
1 Cup Natural Sugar or Sugar “In The Raw”
2 Cups Fresh Blueberries
2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
4 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1/2 Cup Soy/Rice Milk
2 Cups Soy Yogurt

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350.
2) Combine dry ingredients. Mix.
3) Stir in wet ingredients

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Important Non-Meat Sources Of Protein For Vegetarians

Although most vegetarians consume a considerable
amount of protein, they often do not absorb as much
as they would on a nonvegetarian diet. This is because
plant proteins are considerably less digestible than
animal proteins, which contain amino acid chains that
are closer or identical to human amino acid chains.

Consuming animal proteins might yield close to a 1:1
absorption ratio, while consuming plant proteins, such
as wheat, might only yield 50% of the amino acids needed
to build a “complete protein” or a protein that can
readily be assimilated into the human body.

In order for vegetarians to absorb a healthy amount
of protein, they must consume a variety of plant proteins
to form complete amino chains. By eating vegetables,
legumes, seeds, nuts, fruits, and whole grains, vegetarians
can increase the amount of complete proteins they create
by combining a number of varieties of amino acid chains.

Vegetarians must also consume more foods that contain
proteins because plant proteins are generally
harder to digest. While a nutritional label may suggest
that pasta has 5 grams of protein per serving; you may
only be able to digest 2-3 grams of that protein, which
means you must complement the pasta with other sources
of protein.

In addition to natural sources of protein, vegetarians
should also seek foods that are “protein-fortified”–
or artificially-infused with protein.

For example, many supermarkets offer a variety
“protein-fortified” pasta and bread. I have seen pasta
that contains as much as 12 grams of protein per serving.

Soy milk is also a good source of protein for vegetarians.
Studies on isolated soy protein show that it can be
absorbed nearly as well as animal proteins, yielding close
to a 1:1 protein absorption ratio.

For non-vegan vegetarians, yogurt, milk, and
eggs (which contain complete proteins) are all
excellent sources of protein.

As a vegetarian you have a number of options to
boost your protein intake - and you should consider
taking advantage of all of them. You should diversify
your food selections, drink more soy products, and
eat “protein-fortified” breads and pasta.

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Meatless Nachos

Makes: 10 Servings

Ingredients:

1 Lb. TVP - Crushed
1/4 Tablespoon Chili Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Paprika
1/4 Teaspoon Onion Powder
1/3 Cup Soy/Rice Milk
Shredded Cheese
1/2 Cup Butter
2 1/2 Bags Taco Pieces

Directions:

1. Add butter, cheese

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Is A Vegetarian Diet Safe For My Child?

If you are vegetarian parent, you have probably considered
putting your child on a vegetarian diet. Not only would
it save time and make meal-planning easier, but for dietary
and ethical reasons, you believe it is a better choice
for your child.

Conversely, you might not be a vegetarian yourself, but
have a child who is going through a vegetarian “phase,”
where she rejects meat, but doesn?t consume enough healthy
foods to compensate for the nutritional gap.

Whatever the case is, you may have wondered whether or
not a vegetarian diet is sustainable, healthy choice
for your child. You may have heard that putting your child
on a vegetarian diet could potentially stunt her growth.

These concerns probably prevented you from putting your
child on a vegetarian diet up to this point.

And all of these concerns are legitimate. In fact, if
a vegetarian diet is poorly planned, it can cause serious
short and long term health problems, especially
for children, who are growing and developing–and who
do not yet have sufficient stores of vitamins.

If you aren?t well-prepared to put your child on a
vegetarian diet, you definitely shouldn?t. However,
if you have done your nutritional research and you are
familiar with the nutrients vegetarians commonly lack,
then you know that these problems can easily
be overcome with some meal planning.

You also know that putting your child on a healthful
vegetarian diet can greatly improve her health
in both the short and long term. It can also
reduce her exposure to animal products that contain
hormones and preservatives, which have been linked
to developmental problems and cancer.

If you haven’t researched vegetarian diets thoroughly,
but you are anxious to start your child on one now,
you should start by ensuring that you plan meals to
boost amounts of the following nutrients (that most
vegetarians lack):

1. Protein. Make sure your child is consuming enough
protein by adding additional sources, such as wheat,
soybeans, isolated soy protein, and nuts.

2. Calcium. Ensure your child is consuming enough calcium
by adding calcium-fortified processed foods and leafy
green vegetables to his diet.

3. Iron. Add more iron to your child?s diet by increasing
servings of soybeans, pinto beans, tofu, and cereals.

4. Zinc. Enhance your child?s zinc intake by increasing
his servings of almonds, peanut butter, and mushrooms.

If you concentrate on compensating for all of these common
nutritional deficiencies, you absolutely can put your child
on a vegetarian diet without any negative health
consequences.

Just ignore the mythology surrounding vegetarian diets and
instead focus on research and meal-planning.

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