Vegetarians reliant on meat replacements, dangerous for health?!

[veggi]

I've started doing a lot of thinking lately, I went vegetarian because I always felt a lot of guilt eating meat products and as meat substitutes got better and better I made the switch. I've never looked back because I haven't had to go without anything I like, there is a good substitute for everything I like. My husband isn't vegetarian but is happy to be at home again because the substitutes are good enough for him. The issue really is I guess I never thought how processed this is, and I'm worried it'll make my health worse in the long run. Now I look at it logically, if we are having meat replacements (I.e fake meats) of some kind with every meal, that means I am having highly processed food daily, right? Whereas if I was using organic meat with these meals I wouldn't be?

I don't even know if I'd be able to eat meat again, but I also don't think I'd convince my husband to cut the meat substitutes and go to beans/pulses/veg for every meal, we have some of one of these with every type of meal but always the meat sub too.

We eat very few meat substitutes as vegetarians (meaning stuff like Quorn or veggie bacon or Beyond burgers). Most are highly processed so not very healthy. I mean, a burger or whatever once a week - fine. Most meals? No.

We cook with tofu, tempeh, eggs, nuts, seeds, dairy and beans/lentils/chickpeas instead.

So you have two problems. One, finding healthier veggie meals that appeal to you and that you can prepare so that they fit in with your life, available time and taste.

Two, thinking about how to incorporate dh into this.

Me, I'd solve my own problem first, then worry about dh. Start rotating some new meals into your week, until the UPF has taken a backseat.

Does he cook? Shop? What's his role in meals?

I've been vegetarian all my adult life and I don't regularly eat meat substitutes. As you say, they are ultra processed and not a healthy choice. I eat tofu regularly (which is obv still processed but in a more traditional way, and people have been eating it for many years) and lots of beans and lentils. Green lentils are great in any recipe that would normally use mince, and chickpeas are good in curries. Jackfruit also works as a meat substitute though I don't use it often.
Saying that, there is nothing wrong with the occasional veggie burger or whatever it is you enjoy, but ultra processed foods shouldn't be the mainstay of anyone's diet whether veggie or not

I live with 3 meat eaters and it can be a juggle but I agree with pp who said, work with yourself first. I was brought up a meat eater and have to admit to liking a few of the meat substitutes (i know not every vegan does) but I try to limit them to once a week, twice at most. But this last little while it has been more, the meat eaters had steak last night for instance for a birthday meal so I had a beyond meat burger. And then they had bacon butties today for breakfast so I had a vegan alternative. This is unusual though. I'm not keen on quorn and a lot of alternatives have wheat in them which I can't eat so I suppose I am quite limited anyway.

These meat alternatives aren't always difficult to cook separately so maybe you could have a lentil/bean/nut/vegetable based dish and your husband can add on a meat alternative if he wants to? And in time he might decide the dish itself is enough.

Even though my crew are committed carnivores we do eat veggie/vegan most of the week for health and us all eating the same thing and im lucky that they like it. So, a lot of lentil dishes and vegetables.

I would look at what you can filter out, if you can have a non UPF meal and he adds on whatever he wants then do that for half the week. Maybe another night that you both eat a meal that is naturally veggie and then twice a week you can have a dish that is cooked with meat alternatives and both have it.

Have a think about what meals you enjoy and could make changes in. Curries with chickpeas instead of fake chicken? Stir fry with tofu? Green lentil chilli? Omelettes if you eat eggs? Then build on from there.

It is harder if you're having 'meat', potatoes and two veg type meals but even then there are things you can make as a healthier alternative. Nutmeat stuffed mushrooms and the 70s staple lentil loaf type things. But i don't tend to eat like that so much just because it's not my preference. But, in winter, if the others are desperate for a Sunday roast type meal, i will. Green lentil shepherd's pie is nice in winter
It does take a bit of time to relearn how to cook with these things though so just experiment til you find one dish that you like and go with that for now.

I think making small changes each week is much more sustainable than throwing out your whole way of eating.

Basically, fake meats can be a nice addition to a healthy diet but you are right that it's not great as the main stay of you diet.

Head over to the vegan board. "what we are eating today" type threads, there are always such delicious ideas.

I agree and had the same thoughts as you a few years ago and stopped eating those substitutes. I now have tofu, chickpeas etc. as other posters have described. I sometimes think about having fresh, non-farmed fish for the same reason but I haven't done because I'm not used to it but maybe you could consider that?

Can your husband not just eat meat? I was vegetarian for 20 years (I'm not now but still eat largely vegetarian) and I rarely ate fake meat. It's a bit ick and the texture is weird. Dh just made his own meat or we ate just normal veg food (sans fake meat). I truly cannot see a non-vegetarian (or even a vegetarian, for that matter!) preferring to eat rubbery fake chicken to some chickpeas or some actual chicken. Just cook with more whole foods and let him know if he doesn't want lentils, tofu and veg, that he can let you know what meat/fish he's going to cook for himself that night.

I was a vegetarian pre kids and started with meat substitutes but slowly transitioned to more veg and pulse based meals. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. But yeah, your thinking is correct in that it’s heavily processed so not healthy. Once you move away from the “meat at every meal” mindset, things do become easier. We reintroduced chicken and fish post kids but meat-free is still the default. Take a nuanced approach.