31–39 of 39 posts
I've thought about the ethical aspects but for me personally I've kind of reached the conclusion that humans will exploit animals capacity in some sense. For me I'm ok with keeping cows for milk, chickens for eggs etc. With this reasoning I'm also fine with hunting.
Thought it ethically made sense since early teens (a childhood friend was very into animal rights) but never made a serious effort, just went with my habits. Then in my early twenties, I went to a 10-day vipassana meditation retreat. During that time, we were only served vegan food. Once coming back I just didn't start eating meat (including fish) again, and haven't since. It happened pretty naturally with basically…
If you did it for ethical reasons, if for example you would find a rabbit or cow killed by natural causes like a big stone just rolled off from the mountain and hit the animal on the head. In that case, would be ethically ok to eat it?
I'd say yes, and I'd say the same about a human (instinctual aversion to cannibalism aside). If I'd personally actually eat it or not would depend a lot on the situation but in most cases probably not.
It was a gradual thing. I never liked the taste of red meat, but enjoyed fish and chicken. So I cut red meat out pretty early (as soon as my parents stopped making me sit at the table to finish the meal). Later, as I learned more about factory farming and the treatment of chickens in factory farms, I stopped eating chicken and was just left with fish. And finally I learned more about fish farming and overfishing and…
> having found a great alternative that I enjoy. Please would you mind sharing what the great alternative is?
On the transition - It’s much easier than you might think. Especially if the focus is vegetarian not vegan. There are so many cheaper protein alternatives: beans, dairy, nuts, eggs, etc. And good subs like veggie burgers, non dairy milks, etc. Instead of a meal with a meat protein and veg, you can easily sub beans or something with eggs. You also tend to load up more on veggies (like on pizza) In fact I find it’s kin…
I did not try to go vegetarian, but out of interest I tried to expand my eating habits and I find it very hard to replace meat with an adequate source of protein. * Beans and lentils give me digestive problems, so I can have them maybe twice a month at most. * Dairy is fine, but it is not better than consuming meat at all in any respect, so what's the point? Chicken and pork are better than diary if you care about ec…
There are different types of lentils, the most protein heavy is called "toor daal", the one you get in restaurant dishes because it tastes good but is difficult to digest; the most light on the gut is "moog daal" because, compared to toor daal, it has less protein, with just little less "tasty".
> I liked tofu
Also try soya chunks for protein.
Recently learned that saturated animal fat is linked to a depletion of insulin producing beta cells in the pancreas (thus causing type II diabetes). For some reason everyone talks about sugar as the bad guy, but animal fat plays a big part.
This and of course, the huge cost of meat on our environment.
On the transition - It’s much easier than you might think. Especially if the focus is vegetarian not vegan. There are so many cheaper protein alternatives: beans, dairy, nuts, eggs, etc. And good subs like veggie burgers, non dairy milks, etc. Instead of a meal with a meat protein and veg, you can easily sub beans or something with eggs. You also tend to load up more on veggies (like on pizza) In fact I find it’s kin…
I did not try to go vegetarian, but out of interest I tried to expand my eating habits and I find it very hard to replace meat with an adequate source of protein. * Beans and lentils give me digestive problems, so I can have them maybe twice a month at most. * Dairy is fine, but it is not better than consuming meat at all in any respect, so what's the point? Chicken and pork are better than diary if you care about ec…
Not a vegetarian, but recently (a couple of months) I had to eat much more vegetables and fruits than I usually do, due to digestion and other related issues. No more pure meat/steak for me, only a little of bird, for at least half a year, and then the prospect is still unclear. The journey included sleeping with an open window for a week or so, then I had to adjust my gut biome using antibiotics (non-systemic). Now…
> I had to adjust my gut biome using antibiotics (non-systemic). Overuse of antibiotics is not a good thing. If you want to gradually reduce antibiotics then I would recommend adding curd, natural yogurt, buttermilk and home made butter(a by-product of making buttermilk) to your diet. Curd and buttermilk can be made at home so that also reduces cost. I would recommend home made, because the ones available in the mark…
Like many, I'm not an absolutist, and still use things like bacon essentially as a seasoning.
If you're considering this, I think you should consider it like any lifestyle intervention: every little bit helps towards your goal, and you need to find a way to make it sustainable and enjoyable, and not a chore you have to continue for the rest of your life.
I think we need more people to not have absolutest/religious type positions on diet and just eat less meat. I view meat now like I view chocolate. I am not self banned from eating chocolate but I certainly do not need to eat chocolate every day. I am basically sometimes vegetarian, sometimes vegan until I want to have "cheat meals" and sometimes enjoy meat like I sometimes enjoy chocolate.
As a result, I don't ever feel guilt anymore about impulsive decisions. When the opportunity arises to experience something new, I'll take it.