[MB.]

Absurd belief, or well founded way of life?

I, myself, am a Vegaterian, and I consider it much superior to a carniveruis (sp) diet. Vegatables and fruits (dairy products included) are far more healthy then anything found in meat. Not just that, but economically speaking, it makes more sense to adopt a Vegaterian diet both individually and collectivley (fruit costs less then meat; and growing grain costs less then growing grain feeding it to a cow, then killing the cow).

[Boondock Saint]

I dated a vegetarian for four years ... I will NEVER do that again.

I don't hold anything agianst a diet heavy in plant matter, in fact, I think its much healtheir then a diet light in plant matter. I think a diet that has a majority of its fuel coming from plants is great ... the healthiest I have ever been was when I was nearly a vegetarian.

That said, I see no basis for no eating meat in its various forms. Be it chicken, red meat, pork, deer, horse, dog, cat, fish and so on. Animal products are food, no one will ever convince me otherwise. The question is what is proper for the human body compared to what current nations such as teh US or UK or France or so on actually consume?

Then one must look at teh quality of the animal product and the manner in which it is prepared. Fried chicken is NOT the same as baked or grilled chicken.

Anyway, I am getting back to a veggie heavy diet but since I lift weights on a regular basis I feel obligated to depend on animal protein for life style. I don't feel a veggie ONLY diet will provide me with the nutrients I need.

[MB.]

No compltaints there.

Individual life style will, ultimatley, tailure one's diet. Consider though an aurgument I get *all* the time about why I shouldn't be a Vegetarian:

"You can't get all the nutrients that your body needs from an all veggie diet."

If that's the case, I should be dead.

I guess one can consider meat a kind of 'paradise food,' as in, really the bases for any diet IS veggie, and any meat you eat on top of that is pure self indulgance.

[ZenWilsonian]

I am, for the most, a vegetarian. I will only eat meat on rare occaisions, for the reason Mr. Bill provided of it being more efficient and environmentally friendly. I also don't like most meat anyway. Plus a veggie diet is cheaper and more healthy (but thats not for me to talk about, who eats cheese from the cube and never never exercises).

[MB.]

Hmmmm.... Cube cheese.

"I don't like meat anyway"

Agreed. That is actually my number one reason for becomming a vegaterian in the first place- I never ate much meat anyway (tuna fish and susage was basically all I ate meat wise).

[S. P. Laroche]

I'm not a vegitarian, though I am Lactosse intolerant, and can't properly digest meat (or stomach much of it), though fish is fine. So technically I'm just a guy with a really bad digestion system.

[MB.]

Just wondering (so excuse my ignorance): How does being lactose intollerante effect eating meat?

[S. P. Laroche]

Just wondering (so excuse my ignorance): How does being lactose intollerante effect eating meat?

It doesn't really, but a lot of vegitarians I know don't partake in Dairy based products. It really depends on how a particular person defines "Vegitarianism".

[MB.]

So you're talking about Veganisim I assume?

[S. P. Laroche]

So you're talking about Veganisim I assume?

Not quite. Veganism won't use anything that comes from an animal, from fish oil, to leather (under the standard definition). Vegitarianism can represent anything from a lack of meat at all, to only eating fish, to avoiding of dairy products. It's a very diverse term, which doesn't really have any uniform definition (as no word that refers to a lifestyle does).

[Boondock Saint]

Oh the curse of lactose intolerance ...

My favorite meal when growing up when cheerios and milk ... then one day it began ... oh the cramps ... the pain ... the horribel horrible pain ...

Bye bye went ice cream, bye bye went cheese, bye bye went milk ...

Hell now I look at the ingredients of everything i eat (if I am eating something I did not prepare in the first place, which is rare) to make sure there is no lactose in it. Did you know most chewing gums had lactose in it? No, really.

Oh, sorry ... feel free to get back to being a rabbit.

[S. P. Laroche]

Oh the curse of lactose intolerance ...

My favorite meal when growing up when cheerios and milk ... then one day it began ... oh the cramps ... the pain ... the horribel horrible pain ...

Bye bye went ice cream, bye bye went cheese, bye bye went milk ...

Apperently I've had it all my life, but I just thought they were normal "dairy pains". I'm also allergic to Orange Juice and Oranges (makes me feel like my chest is going to explode).

[ZenWilsonian]

At one point they thought I was caseine and gluten intolerant... the tests took so long to come... luckily I wasn't. So now I just have a crap digestive system that I can't do much about. Though some say, while not intollerant, it would still help. I dunno. I still eat milk and gluten.

[Comrade Ogilvy]

Can you get everything your body needs from just veggies/fruit? Without having to supplement?

[MB.]

Wow! Readying those horror stories made me *very* grateful that I'm not lactose intollerent.

I feel sorry for you guys now.

Anyway; Yes, you can get all of your protien/viatamins/fats/you name it, from vegatbles and fruits alone. Meat is not actaully required in one's diet (where as vegtables and fruits are).

[S. P. Laroche]

Can you get everything your body needs from just veggies/fruit? Without having to supplement?

Almost everything. You still need to find an addequate supply of protien (usually soy is used).

[MB.]

Ah, Soy... where would I be without those great little beans?

[S. P. Laroche]

Ah, Soy... where would I be without those great little beans?

Well, I'd be without a proper milk substitute.

[MB.]

Soy milk... I'm mixed on that one- on one hand the vannila flavour is excellent, on the other hand- there's salt in it.

I have a friend of mine though (the biggest carnavour ever- he's eaten everything, I swear!) who can't get enough of the stuff. He loves it!

[ZenWilsonian]

Has your friend eaten Vietnamese rice field rat? The meat is pounded into burgers. 1 rat = 1 burger. Convieniently sized.