Written by Mitali Bellamkonda
Today is World Vegetarian Day, a holiday established by the North American Vegetarian Society in 1977 to promote the vegetarian lifestyle and espouse its benefits.
A vegetarian is typically defined as a person who abstains from meat, but the community is far more diverse than that. And, there are several options for people who want to maintain a meatless or meat-restricted diet.
Here are just a few options:
Pesce-pollotarians’ diets include white meat, like fish and poultry, but exclude dark meat, like beef.
Pescatarians only eat seafood.
Ovo-lacto vegetarians can enjoy cheese, eggs, milk or any animal product living animals produce.
Vegans painstakingly ensure that nothing they ingest contains any animal byproduct
So, why is there so much variety within vegetarianism when vegetarians all claim to not eat meat?
Vegetarians vary in their motivations and draw different ethical and nutritional lines. For example, one person may consider eating a fellow mammal to be just as morally reprehensible as cannibalism, but have no problem with other meat sources. Yet, another person may have no moral objection to an omnivorous diet, but opt to avoid animal products they deem unhealthy. Others may abide by certain religious practices that prohibit certain, but perhaps not all, types of meat.
As for me? My vegetarian diet helps me maintain good health. I eat lots of lentils, kale, swiss chard and tomatoes to get my fill of protein. I also enjoy choosing from millions of vegetarian recipes that have absolutely nothing to do with salad, such as dhal (lentil soup), vegetarian lasagna, sandwiches and more. Who says vegetarians live on salads and “rabbit food”?
So, if you are considering going vegetarian, today is the perfect day to try it out. So, pour a glass of your favorite drink, dig into the vegetarian version of your favorite meal and enjoy!
Tags: vegetarian
