To not understand why some people dont eat meat free meals

[reducingfootprint]

I do not call myself vegetarian but i eat meat rarely for health reasons (bowel cancer is common in the family) but i am happy to prepare it as my dh eats meat but enjoys meat free meals around 4 times a week. DC also eat meat free around 4 times a week. My siblings and their partners are also part time vegetarians and pre covid we all enjoyed getting together for meat free feasts.

When DM comes over, she refuses to eat anything without meat. Butternut squash soup? Needs bacon.
Halloumi fajitas? Needs beef.
Goats cheese and onion omelette? Needs chicken.
Plowmans salad? Needs ham.

AIBU to think ffs one meal without meat wont kill you!

*fold not gold

I love how in 2020 there are still some people that think meat is healthy. Absolutely laughable!

@Astrid09 I think that was me. I had a friend who absolutely refused to eat vegetables but I don't think she had what you're describing. I think she was just so used to eating processed foods that anything not processed was gross to her.

You might not think it's healthy @Notenoughchocolateomg but I'll take my chances rather than have constant stomach ache from a high fibre vegetarian diet!

I cant be bothered to go out for a salad when I can toss a much nicer one together at home for a fraction of the cost charged in a restaurant.
Would you go out and have a steak, chips and salad? All easily whipped up within about 15 minutes (chips take longest) and far, far cheaper than any restaurant meal.

Ravenmum is right. You can say that about basically any meal. Which I do and that's why I don't eat out often😂

I love how some people still think that eating lean meat occasionally is unhealthy. A piece of grilled chicken with a salad is far healthier than a plate of egg and chips.

@Notenoughchocolateomg

I love how in 2020 there are still some people that think meat is healthy. Absolutely laughable!

You may think it laughable, but unprocessed meat, is a healthy choice. There are numerous article on the internet which explain very clearly, and with no hype, why meat is as good, if not a better choice than vegetarian diets, in order to supply the body with certain nutrients. There are several nutrients which are only available in animal products and for which vegetarians requite a supplement. There are some nutrients which are available in plant based foods, but in my h smaller quantities, or with a slightly different composition which require either supplements or for the plant based food to be eaten in huge quantities. There is some discussion as to whether the body makes as good use of supplements as it can of the naturally occurring nutrients. The healthy vegetarians I know, have to take a lot of supplements to remain so. The couple I know who rely entirely on their vegetarian diet, are the sort of people who are constantly unwell - bit major things, but colds, upset tummy, what I call day to day illness. I think that whilst it is admirable when someone's an ethical choice to become vegetarian, it is simply not true to claim that meat is unhealthy.

I am like you I eat mainly veggie meals. My mother was the same as yours and sadly she died of bowel cancer. X

The healthy vegetarians I know, have to take a lot of supplements to remain so. The couple I know who rely entirely on their vegetarian diet, are the sort of people who are constantly unwell - bit major things, but colds, upset tummy, what I call day to day illness.

That may be your experience but mine is different. The people I know who get most day-to-day illnesses are meat eaters. I have been vegetarian for approximately 30 years. I couldn't tell you the last time I got a cold and when I do, it's mild. I've had the flu once in my life. Never got stomach bugs etc. I don't take supplements.

I think a balanced diet consisting of food that is as close to its natural state as possible is the the healthiest approach. It doesn't matter if it includes meat or not.

There are loads of veggies with crap diets that include excessive processed foods. The same with meat eaters.

I’d rather eat a lean piece of chicken or turkey rather than eat highly processed ( expensively) usually red labelled , nondescript patties /sausages/pies etc...of replicated fungus/chemistry lab origin.

@1Morewineplease

I’d rather eat a lean piece of chicken or turkey rather than eat highly processed ( expensively) usually red labelled , nondescript patties /sausages/pies etc...of replicated fungus/chemistry lab origin.

I'd rather eat neither.

The healthy vegetarians I know, have to take a lot of supplements to remain so. The couple I know who rely entirely on their vegetarian diet, are the sort of people who are constantly unwell - bit major things, but colds, upset tummy, what I call day to day illness.

Vegetarians don't have to take supplements to be healthy. Even vegans don't have to take 'a lot of supplements' to be healthy; they only have to take B12.

Tbh I find it fascinating when people make statements like the one above because ime people don't generally go around announcing what supplements and vitamins they take. I don't have a clue what supplements people I know take or even if they take any at all because it's just not something that has ever really come up in conversation.

@1Morewineplease - I’d rather eat a lean piece of chicken or turkey rather than eat highly processed ( expensively) usually red labelled , nondescript patties /sausages/pies etc...of replicated fungus/chemistry lab origin.

Why on earth would you compare a lean piece of meat to a crappy, processed, vegetarian product? Those items are more comparable to a frankfurter.

I didn't eat frankfurters or other processed crap when I ate meat. I don't eat processed crappy meat substitutes as a vegetarian.

I appreciate vegetarians and especially vegans. They are doing something good for the environment and by extension something good for us all. I’m too selfish to follow them though.

The best thing for the environment would be if a lot of us just laid down and died. The best thing for our individual rude good health is to eat animal protein. Being vegan is sort of like splitting the difference. I truly do think they are trading some of their personal health and physical robustness for the sake of our world. Laudable, but I won’t join them.

Vegetarians and vegans have less chance developing cancer and have been found to outlive meat eaters in longevity studies by years. The best thing for our individual good health is to avoid/eat little animal protein.

I have been a vegetarian for over 30 years pretty much supplement free. I started taking omega 3 supplements fairly recently, when I gave the rest of the family cod liver oil supplements, so not to compensate for my meat free diet.