What is a Vegan or a Vegetarian - How to Become One

Most people who are vegetarians or vegans make it a way of life and not just because they prefer vegetables and fruit. These are two terms that seem to be interchangeable however they are not the same. Vegetarians do not eat meat at all. Vegans do not eat meat or anything from an animal. This would include, eggs, cheese, ice-cream, yogurt and many other dairy products. Vegans say if it comes from an animal it's not edible.

There are a few reasons why people choose to do this. One reason could be religious. Another could be because they've had health problems and others, just because they think it is important to protect animals as much as it is to protect humans.

I heard a vegetarian say one time that she parked her car at a field and watched the cows. She said, “After watching the cows and how they interacted with with each other, and also just plainly looking into their eyes, I just knew I could never eat an animal again”. She does however eat bi-products of the animals because it does not harm the animal. Meaning she will eat eggs and dairy.

Others believe it's Biblical to not eat meat because of some old testament cultures. However afterwards, people in the Bible did start eating meat with God's approval. If you don't believe that, then I challenge you to read your Bible before jumping to conclusions and not reading articles, other than the Bible. Anyone can say anything in an article. They even say God does not exist, however no one has ever been able to prove that one!

Anyway, being a vegetarian or a vegan isn't a bad thing. In fact it's very good for you as long as you get enough nutrients.

If you want to start being a vegetarian or vegan, you'll need to find some recipes on the Internet and buy vegetarian or vegan cookbooks.

Another thing to consider is most vegetarians and vegans prefer organic foods. They are a little more expensive at the store, but not if you grow them yourself. The reason for this is because produce that is not cleaned well and it's coated with pesticides and fertilizers that are dangerous. That depletes the whole idea of being a vegetarian to be healthy. The idea is to protect your body. You should even get organic eggs which simply means the animal were organically fed and not pumped up with hormones to make them grow.

They do have a lot of organic farms, so look around for those. They will often sell in small quantities or larger ones. Consider buying all your foods in bulk with your friends that are vegetarians. It really helps keep the cost down. You can sometimes find co-ops in your hometown by asking around where a group of people do this. Eating healthy can often be expensive.

Another thing you should do if you want to be a vegetarian or vegan is acquire a taste for soy products. They are actually very good and good for you. You just need to eat them until you like them. Once you do it for awhile you will more than likely end up liking them. I liked them right away. I especially like soy milk. My favorite milk is almond milk though.

Vegetarians and vegans can eat a lot of different foods which include, beans (legumes), nuts, fruits, all veggies and fruit and a few other things involving breads and grains. Cook books will offer way to make whole grain breads or I'm sure you can find it online. As long as you are eating a wide assortment of these foods you can be more sure that you are getting the right nutrients.

Some people are allergic to soy, but if you can eat it (or drink it) it is a wonderful source of protein as well as other benefits such as antioxidants. It is best to find soy products that have marginal processing (very little processing if any).

You can pretty much eat as many vegetables as you can possibly eat. It is just best to mix them around from day to day. They should also be raw for best results. Steamed veggies are the next best thing to raw.

Fruit should be eaten as well, but you should eat more vegetables than fruit. You can't really over do it, so I wouldn't worry about it as long as you are getting regular health check-ups.

There are vegetarian groups online that you can join to interact with other vegetarians for motivation and tons of ideas. Just use your good search engine and type in “vegetarian groups.”

Make sure you are drinking plenty of water whether you are a vegetarian or not! The best water should be determined by your health professional. If your body is high in acid they might recommend water that is low in acidic levels. Naturopathic or natural medicine health professionals are usually the ones to ask. Again, you can find more information about this and other things online. Type in alkaline water to get results in search engines, or best drinking water. Reverse Osmosis is good but it is still high in acid. But if you don't have access to anything else then that is what I would go with. Another thing to consider about water is: you should drink it at room temperature. Any other way tends to shock your body. It is understandable if you cannot do this, but at least try.

I am writing from my own experience on this subject. I have gotten a lot of advice from Health Helpers in Peru Indiana. He is an expert in natural alternatives and is certified in many areas. He also does bio-feedback which is another thing definitely worth looking into.

If you live in Indiana and are close to Peru I'd recommend that you get the bio-feedback done at Health Helpers. He can even tell you which vitamins you are low in. Bio-feedback is harmless and painless. It is simply a machine that attaches to your wrists, ankles and head with Velcro and it's hooked up to a computer. To read more about bio-feedback, you can also do an Internet search.