Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Are Any Of My Followers Vegetarians?

I have a lot of knowledge about what's good for a person & what's bad for a person diet wise.  I'm not talking "diet" related to weight loss although I have that knowledge as well ... I'm talking "diet" related to what is & is not healthy to eat.  When I'm being "good" ... which at the end of my current journey of weight loss dieting will be forever & for all time ... I don't eat things that are "fake" &/or loaded with chemicals.  I can ramble on about all the things I've learned about sugar substitutes & fake butter & fake eggs & a multitude of other things that are, well, fake, but that would be boring unless like me you are "into" learning about that stuff.  For now, just believe me ... I have a lot of knowledge about these things.  This does not mean I have always practiced what I know but I've known what I know   : )

I've noticed that for the last couple months I seem to have developed an aversion to meat.  I've always bought organic or free-range meats because I didn't want to eat meat that had been saturated with growth hormones & other additives.  I had read more than enough accounts on how these things pass through the animal's meat & into humans & how a lot of our health problems today (including early puberty) can be linked to them.  That, however, is another story & comes under the ramble/boring reference I made in the paragraph above.

I never seriously considered becoming a vegetarian except perhaps for a brief time when I discovered that Paul & Linda McCartney were vegetarians.  It had always seemed to me that eating a vegetarian diet was associated with good health.  Then Linda McCartney developed cancer & that sort of trashed my thinking that vegetarian = healthy.

Back to my aversion.  I'm not sick to my stomach exactly but recently I've noticed that I have kind of a sick feeling when handling raw meat ... chicken breasts or steaks for instance.  Chicken breasts in particular remind me of a piece of flesh that could have easily been sliced from my way-too-ample thighs.  I don't see a chicken breast, I see flesh ... & seeing flesh rather than something good to eat just isn't palatable.

I've never studied vegetarianism but I ordered a book from Amazon to begin my research.  It is neither a "pro" nor a "con" book on a vegetarian diet.  The author has studied both sides of the issue & has interviewed various people on both sides including farmers & meat processors.  He thus far has accomplished something very few people can accomplish ... discussing both sides of an issue & allowing the reader to make his or her own decision.  Some of the things related to the meat industry I've already known.  Others are new to me.

I have lots of questions & I'm pretty sure this will be the first of many books that I will be reading.  I will also discuss this subject with my doctor.  In the meantime, I thought I would ask if any of my followers are vegetarians & if you are, please email me at lv2stitch (at) yahoo (dot) com.  (You know how that should look for emailing purposes.)  I'd be interested in hearing your story.      

4 comments:

bettyj said...

Well Shirlee I am not a vegetarian but due to allergies my dog is. He can also have some salmon and sweet potato in his diet. I don't use sugar substitutes, because my cousin who has a Phd in chemistry told me not to. Good luck with your decision.

Robin at The Primitive Hutch said...

Sorry Shirlee I'm not a vegetarian either.
Hope you can find someone that is and can answer your questions.
Prim Blessings
Robin

TheCrankyCrow said...

I'm not a vegetarian either, Shirlee, so no help here...But I'm not a HUGE meat eater either. I truly try to block out that "flesh" thing and other images about my food on many occasion.....For example - eggs....I LOVE eggs - scrambled, fried, boiled, deviled....any way I can get them - but sometimes, the thoughts I get when seeing them raw disturb me. (If you haven't figured it out yet, some folks think I'm a little strange...) ;o) Good luck on your new journey and quest.....Happy Thursday! Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

Angela said...

Evening Shirlee, So glad to hear you are feeling better. Sure hope that new medicine continues to help you. I love Mary's cross stitch designs. I actually started a very simple tuck today, just says Halloween. Thought that was easy enough for starters. Don't ya just love those comfy clothes? I am so ready to snuggle in for the winter. Just love cold weather, so unlike Mr. P, who loves summer time. Can't wait to see your finished products. Take care.
Angela