Have you been having a constant battle with yourself recently for whether or not you want to become a vegetarian? There are many people who are vegetarian for many different reasons. Some people become vegetarian to be more sustainable, others do it to be healthier. Some other people do it because it helps save money.
If you are becoming a vegetarian, there are a few things that you may want to note. From how to gradually reduce your intake to how to get the nutrients you need and understanding the different labels, here is a quick and easy guide on how you can become vegetarian, whilst remaining healthy.
Gradually Reduce Your Meat Intake
There are many people out there that would make the sudden change of not eating meat. However, we strongly advise you against this as it can actually shock your body, causing fatigue or illness in some cases.
Some vegetarians will gradually reduce their intake of meat. For example, they will perhaps start by eating meat free Monday to Friday and then eating some meat over the weekend. Other people will cut out red meat but continue to eat white meat.
There are many variations you can cut down on your meat intake. It is all about what you think is best for your body.
Resist The Temptation of Meat
There are many different types of diets to help you reduce your meat intake. Some people are not able to completely cut out meat from their diet, so they might choose a diet that only contains fish for example.
If you are looking to completely exclude meat from your diet, you want to find alternatives for them to both help you fill the gap left by meat as well as making sure that you nourish your body. One of those alternatives is Quorn, which is a brand that a lot of vegetarians will eat with veggie burgers, veggie chicken nuggets and many more. Many brands will do those alternatives for the meats you have always loved to also help you have the protein you need in your diet.
Another way to resist the temptation of eating meat is to try new recipes. Cook new variations of dishes that would usually include meat but now contain vegetables. Instead of chicken curry, cook butternut squash and chickpea curry. There are hundreds of vegetarian dishes to try, so don't shy away from it and embrace the veggies.
Understand Your Labels
There are a lot of products out there that say they don’t contain meat but they do. Make sure that you understand what is in certain ingredients to help you become the vegetarian you want to be. Here are some of the ingredients that you should look out for:
- Gelatin - Gelatin is found in marshmallows and fruit snacks. It is animal collagen that is found in several processed foods.
- Honey - Comes from bees, this is something that a vegan would usually avoid. A good alternative would be maple syrup.
- Casein - This is a protein that is received from cows and sheep. This would often be found in cheeses.
- L. Cysteine - Can either come from human hair or animal feathers. It can be found in bread products and other baked goods.
Should You Become a Vegetarian?
If you want to be more sustainable, a vegetarian diet is a good start. Furthermore, if you wish to be healthier, a vegetarian would also be good for that. Nonetheless, you need to make sure that you are eating all of the required vitamins and minerals that you need to be healthy.
If you are becoming a vegetarian, you need to establish what diet you are going to choose. There are many out there to suit the different needs, such as vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian, pollotarian and flexitarian. Make sure you do your research on all of these diets to find out which one would suit you best.
Summary
Overall, vegetarian diets can be extremely good for both your health and the environment, so it is certainly worth trying. If you don’t feel confident in knowing how to fuel your body with a vegetarian diet to begin with, you could do research to get some inspiration or try a vegetarian prepared meal delivery service that may be better for you. That way, you can get inspiration for your future vegetarian meals when you have time to cook as well as knowing the sorts of ingredients you need to consume a healthy and balanced diet.
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