• H&R Moderators: VerbalTruist

Any vegetarians out there?

It wasn't really difficult because I never really liked meat anyway. I always hated steak, and I'd opt for seafood as a kid. I was veg on and off during high school. And then animal consumption just tapered off naturally.

I'm not anti sugar or anything. At home I use raw sugar and all that, but it's still goodness like anything. Cupcakes are alright. I'm not a fat-phobe or anything. Though I should be baking more myself, it's just that this artisan cupcake store just opened and I had two last week :D Yum. No guilt here.
 
>>given the long tradition of vegetarianism in various asian cultures it is quite often easily understood and can be catered to. >>

Still, "asian cultures" vary a great deal, hence why Jamshyd said it is rude to refuse meat in some of them.

ebola
 
ebola? said:
>>given the long tradition of vegetarianism in various asian cultures it is quite often easily understood and can be catered to. >>

Still, "asian cultures" vary a great deal, hence why Jamshyd said it is rude to refuse meat in some of them.

ebola

well yeah, thats why I said "various asian cultures" and didn't lump them all together, and "quite often" not all the time.
8)
Same thing happens here too, some people are accepting and respect your choice and others take offence that you don't eat what they have given you (particularly meat). Probably more to do with being different types of human beings with different levels of acceptance for those that think or live differently from ourselves than what culture we are from.
:)
 
^ You seem to have missed the three or so times I said "I am not strict" ;). I honestly don't see why I need to be so uptight about how I label my diet. Was it not Meng-tzu (mencius) who gave us the parable of the willow vs the oak? He was asian if I remember correctly :).

And btw, most people think of "Asian" as being southeastern/Japanese. Actually what I had in mind when I said "Asian", although included those, was more the Middle-East (hence my Bedouine example), and Central Asia (Uzbek, Uygur, Kazakh, Tajik...etc).
 
Heheh...we yanks will typically think of China + Japan + Korea.
I currently most readily think of South Asia, but that is just 'cause of my current classes.

ebola
 
I've noticed that I tend to agree with cuisines from regions where Buddhism and Hinduism is quite prevalent. For example, Thai food is generally amazing.
 
psychedelicious, that hummus sounds bland. Too little tahini, too little olive oil, no spices!

Throw in some chili/cayenne pepper, turmeric (loads of turmeric is the best), cumin, coriander seed, mustard seed, black pepper, cinnamon, cilantro, basil, parsley, onions, or mint next time! I think hummus is best with a LOT of olive oil and hemp oil... by volume it should be like half oil and tahini, and the other half should be garlic and beans.
 
that word strict messes it up for me, sort of means that anyone who eats meat sometimes (most people I know) can call themselves vegetarian but not really mean be one. The word vegetarian means you do not eat flesh and therfore when I tell people that, if you have been there before me, it can all get a bit confusing for people who are not as familiar with the idea of not eating meat. Maybe you might like to start calling yourself "not a strict omnivore"? Would definitely make it easier for people like me who rely on the English language sticking to some sort of agreed upon definition of terms. I have not eaten meat for so long now that even if there is a trace of it in soup stocks I get the runs for the nex day, it would be great if people could really easily understand the term, it's not like it's a new one or anything!
8)

I totally understand Asian to mean anything from parts of the Middle East to Japan, however rather than lumping everyone in together you might like to define it a little bit more, earlier.
Asia as a continent and defined by geographical boundaries, the cultures that coexist in it are many and varied. Therefore what is and is not normal varies as greatly as it does within any culture.
:)
 
Coolio said:
psychedelicious, that hummus sounds bland. Too little tahini, too little olive oil, no spices!

Throw in some chili/cayenne pepper, turmeric (loads of turmeric is the best), cumin, coriander seed, mustard seed, black pepper, cinnamon, cilantro, basil, parsley, onions, or mint next time! I think hummus is best with a LOT of olive oil and hemp oil... by volume it should be like half oil and tahini, and the other half should be garlic and beans.


I add loads of olive oil at the end, on top. sometimes I add serano peppers. Shit, though, that is some strong hummus, I'll try it out this weekend.
 
stephaniesomewhere said:
that word strict messes it up for me, sort of means that anyone who eats meat sometimes (most people I know) can call themselves vegetarian but not really mean be one. The word vegetarian means you do not eat flesh and therfore when I tell people that, if you have been there before me, it can all get a bit confusing for people who are not as familiar with the idea of not eating meat. Maybe you might like to start calling yourself "not a strict omnivore"? Would definitely make it easier for people like me who rely on the English language sticking to some sort of agreed upon definition of terms. I have not eaten meat for so long now that even if there is a trace of it in soup stocks I get the runs for the nex day, it would be great if people could really easily understand the term, it's not like it's a new one or anything!
8)

I totally understand Asian to mean anything from parts of the Middle East to Japan, however rather than lumping everyone in together you might like to define it a little bit more, earlier.
Asia as a continent and defined by geographical boundaries, the cultures that coexist in it are many and varied. Therefore what is and is not normal varies as greatly as it does within any culture.
:)
No, I think you missed my point again :)

I do limit my food to a pisco-vegetarian diet.

The idea is that I am not so stuck up on myself that I am willing to make rare compromises so as not to offend others. Its all about understanding.

I am gay too - but if I think a girl is hot, I'll say she's hot. Nothing wrong with that.
 
Depending on the type of vegetarism some lifestyle changes need to be done. Vegans need to worry about zinc and vitamin B12 (mainly), where as those who consume dairy/eggs should be fine. I normally dont eat red meat because I eat a lot of food, and where I live red meat is way too expensive. I can almost get double the amount in weight in chicken than red meat.

If you are an athlete, being a vegan can be a difficult task, otherwise I see no problems if correct adaptations are made.
 
>>that word "strict" messes it up for me>>

"strict vegetarian" will typically denote someone who eschews eggs, dairy, or most often both.

>>If you are an athlete, being a vegan can be a difficult task>>

It would depend what kind of athlete. My biking regimen is hindered not by my diet. If I were a body builder? It might be a different story...

ebola
 
I'd consider myself strict...I certainly never lapse.

I mean, I don't even drink beer made using fish products...

But I eat eggs because I have no ethical problems with it.
 
ebola? said:
>>

>>If you are an athlete, being a vegan can be a difficult task>>

It would depend what kind of athlete. My biking regimen is hindered not by my diet. If I were a body builder? It might be a different story...

ebola

Actually in your case things can be complicated. You are in a serious need of iron, and a vegan diet cannot support a good iron intake. Supplementing with iron is useless as it is hardly absorbed. Best absorbed iron is from red meat, even iron from eggs/poultry is not as good absorbed as red meat.

In all eventualities, make sure you have a high intake of vitamin C, and watch out for a high phytate intake.
 
^False

There are a lot of iron sources for us. Lots of dark leafy stuff have iron. More easily absorbed even, some will argue. I usually get mine from a leaf called "malunggay" that is super iron rich, I grow it in my garden. When I travel to bread-and-pasta countries, I dry and grind them up, put in caps. I take a whole tupperware. Also, molasses or mascobado sugar are good sources.
 
Definitions of Vegetarian on the Web:

There are several categories of vegetarians, all of whom avoid meat and/or animal products. The vegan or total vegetarian diet includes only foods from plants: fruits, vegetables, legumes (dried beans and peas), grains, seeds, and nuts. The lactovegetarian diet includes plant foods plus cheese and other dairy products. The ovo-lactovegetarian (or lacto-ovovege-tarian) diet also includes eggs. ...
www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document/html/appendixC.htm

Eating only plants (see herbivore).
www.reefed.edu.au/glossary/v.html

People who leave meat, poultry, fish and other animal-derived foods out of their diets.
news.bbc.co.uk/sportacademy/bsp/hi/healthy_eating/jargon_guide/html/default.stm

these are only the web definitions mind you, I haven't yet got off my arse to type in the dictionary definitions.

if you compromise then you are not strict, look strict up in the dictionary but I don't remember strict and compromise meaning anywhere near the same. It is the blurring of the meaning of the word strict or any of the other words that describe how you eat that make it hard for those who actually don't compromise. Vegetarian is vegetarian, if you are not strict you are either a pescatarian ir an omnivore, the word strict can not be used as a comparitive or superlative as this is one of those words that it can't be done too.
Fine, compromise but I don't figure that you can then be strict because if you are then you are simply vegetarian.That's all I am trying to point out. I don't really care what you eat, that is your choice, however I do care enough about how you define yourself as that has an impact on the education and choices of others as to how or what they choose to eat and of those that offer them food and therefore impacts upon me.
In terms of middle eastern asian cultures I have not had any misunderstandings myself about exactly what being vegetarian entails and as far as I understand they are much like any other place that has those that do and those that don't therefore if you start messing with the terms you begin to unravel this understanding. Besides middle eastern cuisine offers up some of the best vegetarian food that is out there!
:)
 
Dtergent said:
^False

There are a lot of iron sources for us. Lots of dark leafy stuff have iron. More easily absorbed even, some will argue. I usually get mine from a leaf called "malunggay" that is super iron rich, I grow it in my garden. When I travel to bread-and-pasta countries, I dry and grind them up, put in caps. I take a whole tupperware. Also, molasses or mascobado sugar are good sources.

I love how people say false in this forum at whatever may be against what they believe.

If you think you can get iron from all your dark leafy veggies you are in for a big suprise.

Not only is a vegan's diet high in phytate content, which binds to many minerals, iron amongst them, but dark greens contain oxalate which desinhibit the uptake of iron. Moreover, the iron provided by such is non-heme, so good luck absorbing much (hence my reccomendation of high amounts of vitamin C).
 
Stephanie: I give up.

For the third time, I will repear to you that I have said, THREE times, that I am NOT (note: Not is a negatory article) strict.

I never said I was strict.

I said I was NOT strict.

I said I make compromises.

I said that making copromises makes me not strict.

Therefore I am NOT strict since I make compromises. YES. That is correct. That is exactly what I mean.

So why on earth are you still arguing with me!?

If vegerarianism is some kind of exclusive club, then thanks - I'll skip. Why would I ever want to join such a club? It beats the Halal and Kosher rules of Muslims and Jews!

p.s. Yes, I am not a strict, because I make compromises.
 
El_Toro said:
Not only is a vegan's diet high in phytate content, which binds to many minerals, iron amongst them, but dark greens contain oxalate which desinhibit the uptake of iron. Moreover, the iron provided by such is non-heme, so good luck absorbing much (hence my reccomendation of high amounts of vitamin C).

Where do you think the iron in these meats comes from? We eat vegetarian animals, and they survive and thrive off of non-heme iron.
 
>>
If you think you can get iron from all your dark leafy veggies you are in for a big suprise. >>

This doesn't pan out empirically. I have talked to several long-term vegans who have had their blood-serum iron levels tested at normal or above normal. I have also talked to a couple who are anemic, but they also had problems with anemia as omnivores. Basically, the question is, does your diet work for you as an individual? I have thus far had no such issues with anemia. If you're going to worry about vegan nutrition, you should probably worry about zinc and b-12.

>>
Where do you think the iron in these meats comes from? We eat vegetarian animals, and they survive and thrive off of non-heme iron.>>

Then again, ruminants' digestive systems are quite different from ours.

ebola
 
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