So who else here is a veggie?

I stopped eating meat in 1996 and went vegan a few years later... I LOVE it, and I couldn't turn back if I wanted to!

:broccoli: :banana: :broccoli: :banana: :broccoli:

I've been a vegetarian since 1975. I pay attention to Ayurvedic principles to some degree in choosing what I eat. I happen to love tofu, how about you? And beans of all sorts as well. And of course, variations on the stir-fry theme is a pretty constant companion.

I have been vegetarian for 20 years and vegan for 5 years now.
:goodpost: :broccoli:

Oh wow - so I guess you guys would never turn back, either! :)

I love tofu... I love the texture, and how it tastes in stir-fry, and how it tastes in garlic sauce. I don't actually eat it too often, though... my daily staple is veggieburgers. Yum!

"Turning back" isn't even in my vocabulary. Choosing to be a vegetarian is, to me, choosing to love the planet and all her inhabitants, including myself, more deeply.

Oh, you stated that so beautifully! Yeah, once you learn the full effects of vegetarianism, you can't just forget that. And after a certain amount of time, it really becomes ingrained in your identity (or mine, at least - I'd feel like an entirely different person if I ever turned back). Yet, amazingly, vegetarians do turn back all the time, so you guys deserve props for sticking it out! :cheerleader:

I'm not a vegetarian, although I tried it for a while.

I rarely eat red meat of any kind, and I LOVE veggie burgers.

I'm going to keep up with this thread since you all might have some advice for some good-tasting tofu, etc.

I love garlic :)

Hi rainshine!

It looks like we have two things in common so far. I also am a vegetarian. I am slowly becoming a vegan because the thought of drinking milk or eating eggs is starting to revolt me. I became a vegetarian when I was 4 years old because I saw the beheading of a chicken and I felt so bad for it. I don't believe in making other people feel bad for not being vegetarian, though.

I have a question for you, do you have any health related issues by being on a vegan diet?

:hello: Hi guys. I was a vegetarian in highschool for a short period of time, but I ended up getting sick because I had absolutely no idea how to be a healthy vegetarian. Although I eat meat now, I have cut back on my intake.

I am in veterinary school and just recently finished an Animal Law & Ethics class (I had to take this at a law school because ironically - or maybe not so ironically - it's not offered in my vet school). The more I learn about production "medicine", the more I am sickened.

My fiancé and I would like to stick to vegetarian diets, but we don't want to jump into it without knowing enough about it (because then I'm afraid it'll be too easy to go right back to eating meat). Does anyone have any suggestions for starting out - any recommended books or informational websites?

I've been a vegetarian for the majority of my life but I do remember when I first started, I didn't really have a clue, and there wasn't much written about it at the time. Now, it's a whole different story. Here are some suggestions for books and websites you might find helpful:

Books
The New Becoming Vegetarian
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/157067144...glance&n=283155

The Clueless Vegetarian
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/155209497...glance&n=283155

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/076790014...glance&n=283155

Vegan Handbook
http://www.vrg.org/catalog/veganhandbook.htm

Websites
Ten Tips for Going Vegetarian
http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/ten-tips-offer.php

Thanks very much. I really appreciate it! :)

I'm a vegan about 205 days during the year (kinda hard to explain)

Anything to do with fasting?

I have tried. I love animals sooooo much. I dont eat mammal but Ill eat organic poultry and fish. I am allergic to soy and all beans expect like 2 so it really hard to get protein... any tips if I were to try again?

I'm not a vegan or vegetarian, but I truly respect all of you who are. We actually had to discuss this in my ethics class in college. It was pretty interesting. I do watch what I eat (am trying to eliminate red meat from my diet altogether...my studies on it have made me sick...:yuck:), and reading all of these posts encourages me to be even more careful! Thanks. :D

I'm sure that all of the vegans & vegetarians already know this, but for those who may not know - there are virtually no laws protecting farmed animals. And the few "laws" that do exist are not enforced and do not apply to chickens - not at all!. Chickens are not considered animals under animal welfare laws. :no:

yep :)

Vegetarian since 2000 (mad cow).

Cool! :cheerleader:

Haha, hey Ramona! Good to see you over here! That reminds me - I've wondered for a while if there's a connection between the two things we have in common. It seems like a lot of people who fit into one of those categories fit into the other as well... and it would make sense, since they both require a certain willingness to buck convention.

Oh man, that chicken incident sounds traumatizing... I'm sorry to hear that! :yuck:

Personally, I've never had any health issues with veganism. I usually take calcium supplements and a multivitamin, so that probably helps.

Oh, that is tricky. I'm allergic to nuts, so I compensate with soy... maybe you could compensate with nuts? Dairy foods would probably help, too. I don't think anyone would blame you for keeping some meat in your diet, though - no need to compromise your health. Cutting back even a little is beneficial to the animals. :)

BTW, I just want to say how happy I am to see so many people in here!!

Vegetarian for 23 years now. Thought of going vegan -- but just too difficult for me being married to a non vegetarian. My brother is trying to switch to being a vegan and he has passed on some good tips -- so I might try to mix in some vegan recipes as well.

Good to see lots of other folks. I was just plain weird in high school when I opted to do this. In rural VA in the early '80s -- I was the only one I knew who felt this way. It is so much easier to be a vegetarian these days, thank goodness!

Veggie. So is my nearly 10 year old daughter, however neither of my son's can be dissuaded from being carnivores-- so I buy free range organic meat for them but I force them to touch and cut it cause it's just nasty.

Hey, I'm interested now! Why don't you try to explain it?

yay i just became a vegetarian a few months ago! :cheerleader:

I'm a vegetarian. I became one after I actually realized I was killing the animals.

Yeah, it seems obvious that meat comes from dead animals, but it's so easy, livin' in the city, to disconnect from where your food is actually coming from. For me, it took going away to college and getting some distance from the mindset of my family to really make that connection. Now 30 years later, I way prefer getting my food from local organic producers at a health food store or a local market. And Community Supported Agriculture (CSA's) - love 'em. Keeping agriculture small, local, sustainable and economically viable by having a direct relationship with those who grow your food, insuring they have the capital to keep going, and we have that intimacy with who is actually growing our food - love it! Or growing your own, when I have the opportunity to do so. Love the process of feeding the soil to get that sweet rich earth that produces those yummy veggies.

By the way, did ya'll see that PETA voted Prince as the world's sexiest vegetarian. He's a staunch vegan and quoted Ghandi on his latest CD: "2 my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being."

yep same here.

I am not a vegetarian, but I, too repect you all. I do have a question, though. what is a vegan? I don't mean any disrespect, but I honestly don't know. :(

A vegan eats no animal products whatsoever, only vegetables. A vegetarian eats animal products such as eggs, milk, cheese and yogurt, but no meat.

But I'm most not a vegan. I eat eggs. XD

Thanks, it makes since.