Vegan Emergency!

[zombieharlot]

Lately, I've been all about Mother Earth and the peace, love, and understanding that she wants us to have. As a result, I'm becoming pescetarian, which is not quite vegan - I'll eat seafood. Since I've officially started this new diet just a short while ago, my knowledge of making a healthy transition is practically minimal. So, could any of you spare useful and vital tips for someone as new to this type of diet as I am? It's really important to me!

 

[Random]

Don't eat anything that wriggles.

 

[Hacker]

Lately, I've been all about Mother Earth and the peace, love, and understanding that she wants us to have. As a result, I'm becoming pescetarian, which is not quite vegan - I'll eat seafood. Since I've officially started this new diet just a short while ago, my knowledge of making a healthy transition is practically minimal. So, could any of you spare useful and vital tips for someone as new to this type of diet as I am? It's really important to me!

Hi Harlot, glad to see your back!: hamster :

First off, let me ask you what seafoods do you prefer, is it manageable to attain an "all seafood" diet for you? As far as convenience and preference? And what whole grains, fruits and veggies do you like?
Maybe you can compile a list of what you like, we can set up a menu plan...that way you can have a variety...if only you like a variety of things(in which I hope). .

 

[Bishka]

Hey Harlot! Glad to see your face.

Just remember to get all the nutrients you'd be missing somewhere else, I was a vegetarian for 7 years and did not do that and it screwed me over royally.

good luck with the new diet and loving the earth is great.

 

[Unedited]

Yes, make sure you're getting your protein.

 

[zombieharlot]

Hi Harlot, glad to see your back!: hamster :

First off, let me ask you what seafoods do you prefer, is it manageable to attain an "all seafood" diet for you? As far as convenience and preference? And what whole grains, fruits and veggies do you like?
Maybe you can compile a list of what you like, we can set up a menu plan...that way you can have a variety...if only you like a variety of things(in which I hope). .

Well, I'm actually not all that big on seafood to begin with. I like lobster, crab, shrimp, salmon, and some other fish. But as far as seafood goes, I'd like to develop a more Asian-based diet.

I'll eat just about any fruit or veggie. Although, I don't do corn, okra, or spinach. There are probably a couple of others I don't like.

 

[Hacker]

Well, I'm actually not all that big on seafood to begin with. I like lobster, crab, shrimp, salmon, and some other fish. But as far as seafood goes, I'd like to develop a more Asian-based diet.

I'll eat just about any fruit or veggie. Although, I don't do corn, okra, or spinach. There are probably a couple of others I don't like.

Could you be more specific about an Asian based diet? WHen did you start the diet? Have you been sticking to the plan? What have you been eating?

 

[Ðanisty]

Sushi would be excellent. It's very good for you.

I'd like to add that I know absolutely nothing about abstaining from meat. I love all of it...lol. I just wanted to point out that suchi is very healthy.

 

[zombieharlot]

Could you be more specific about an Asian based diet? WHen did you start the diet? Have you been sticking to the plan? What have you been eating?

By, "Asian-based," I mean that I'd like to eat fish with rice, noodles, soy sauce, and other things. That is opposed to eating lobster tail and mashed potatoes. The latter is fine and dandy, but I'd prefer the former. And I've only started the diet this weekend.

 

[jamaesi]

Yay, another pescetarian!

I would just like to point out that you should eat two servings of fish each week, one being an oily fish like mackeral or salmon and then another being a whitefish like bass.

And please please please keep overfishing in mind. This is an excellent guide here and on page two there is a guide of what fish are "good" to eat and which to avoid as the enivornment impact is just too great.

 

[zombieharlot]

Yay, another pescetarian!

I would just like to point out that you should eat two servings of fish each week, one being an oily fish like mackeral or salmon and then another being a whitefish like bass.

And please please please keep overfishing in mind. This is an excellent guide here and on page two there is a guide of what fish are "good" to eat and which to avoid as the enivornment impact is just too great.

This guide is helpful. I want to know how I'm supposed to go about getting the information needed when ordering seafood, though.

 

[jamaesi]

Ordering at a restaurant? You can ask the waiter to find out.

Here's another guide with more species of fish. It's best to try and stick to the "green" fish as much as you can.

 

[zombieharlot]

Ordering at a restaurant? You can ask the waiter to find out.

Here's another guide with more species of fish. It's best to try and stick to the "green" fish as much as you can.

Ah, yes. I like this site. For some reason it is much more comprehensive to me than the other one as far as what you should and shouldn't eat.

 

[Valjean]

Freshwater fish in much of N. America is contaminated with Mercury, as is a great deal of seafood (google).

The Oceans are overfished and barren. Stocks of many species are down 80% or 90%. A civilization cannot be supported on wild stock. Ie: if we replaced our farmed animals with wild venison deer would be extinct in two weeks.
The same thing is happening to fish.

Eating fish is ecologically irresponsible.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Make sure you get protien from some source, whether it be pill, shake, bar, or whatever.
I've found that not eating much meat isn't that bad. Can't say I feel any better, but my blood preasure has dropped from 170/80 on average to 160/60.
I don't know if its true or not, but the teacher I had for a food/cooking class in high school said combining breads and cheeses in the same meal makes a meat substitute. Which does remind me nuts are a good meat substitute.

 

[Valjean]

This 'protien problem' in veggie diets is pure bunk.
Protein is a problem only inasmuch as it's difficult to avoid toxic amounts of it. Elephants, Hippos, Cows, Horses and other really large animals have no problem meeting protein needs with a vegetarian diet. To avoid adequate amounts of protein you'd have to live exclusively on jellybeans!

Eg: On an average 2,000 cal/day diet, if you ate exclusively steak, you'd get about 184 grams of protein. If you ate only broccoli, you'd get 224 grams of protein.
You'd be perfectly healthy on 50 grams.

 

[methylatedghosts]

Dhal is good. Try lentils, beans, garlic, onion, curry flavour stuff, couple of green things, and you're good to go. Serve on rice (brown rice is healthier - more fibre). A common misconception is that vegetarian is plain and boring. But it doesn't have to be. You should be able to find many interesting and flavourful dishes on the net. Or in a bookstore there should be quite a few vegetarian cook books.

A funny line I hear the other day:

"Green is what real food eats. It isn't food unless it had a mother and a face"

 

[Hema]

This 'protien problem' in veggie diets is pure bunk.
Protein is a problem only inasmuch as it's difficult to avoid toxic amounts of it. Elephants, Hippos, Cows, Horses and other really large animals have no problem meeting protein needs with a vegetarian diet. To avoid adequate amounts of protein you'd have to live exclusively on jellybeans!

Eg: On an average 2,000 cal/day diet, if you ate exclusively steak, you'd get about 184 grams of protein. If you ate only broccoli, you'd get 224 grams of protein.
You'd be perfectly healthy on 50 grams.

Right on! We can get enough protein from peas and beans, in fact I think they have more protein than meat and yes, veggies also have protein. Too much protein actually leads to kidney trouble and arthritis.

 

[Valjean]

Right on! We can get enough protein from peas and beans, in fact I think they have more protein than meat and yes, veggies also have protein. Too much protein actually leads to kidney trouble and arthritis.

Good point, Hema. Protein metabolism lowers pH. The mechanism is a little convoluted but if you've ever had a course in basic physiology you should be familiar with it.
The body must maintain a pH between 7.35 -- 7.45. To maintain this the body will use calcium to buffer an acid pH. Where does it get the calcium? -- it uses the body's calcium bank -- bone. Not a problem with the occasional protein binge, but in populations with chronic high protein intake the result is epidemic osteoporosis in later life.(Osteoporosis is unknown in poor, low protein intake societies -- sub Saharan Africa, for example).

Protein metabolism also produces a lot of nitrogenous by-products like urea. This puts a burden on renal function and, over time, can damage the kidneys.