Poll | 10/01/2008 12:00 am

Could you live without meat?

Read more about: Diet, Food, Health, Vegetarian

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I don’t have to live without meat, but I have to live on a reduced protein diet because of a failing kidney. That covers just about everything we put in our mouths. Add reduced sodium, potassium and phosphorus, and it makes for an extremly dull and difficult diet. I absolutely hate it! I have said this before on WoW. Sometimes our bodies make choices we really don’t like. For me it’s either boring food or dialysis. There is an upside! I can eat sugar and I don’t have high blood pressure. WooHoo! CA

By C A Rose on 10/01/2008 12:32 am

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I quit meat 3 years ago…but occasionally I’ll have a self-destructive moment of indulgence… (Every time, it’s for a specific turkey sandwich at a local deli here. DAMN MY HUMAN WEAKNESS!) Even before I was veg, as a child I had this inexplicable GUILT about feasting on someone else’s flesh. I just don’t feel it’s my place to promote the slaughtering of a creature that I/we did not give life to. I just have issues with it PERSONALLY, though - I don’t care if others eat meat; however, it WOULD be ideal if carnivores would be more conscientious as consumers (i.e., eating meat that is free-range, hormone-free, or at least kosher), but this society is still a looong way away from becoming THAT progressive/enlightened. In this day and age, I don’t see how it is still necessary to put our animals through so much brutality before we eat them. When people quit acting like cavemen on the “farms”, THEN perhaps I will consider going back to eating meat.

By Kryssi K on 10/01/2008 12:48 am

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I consider myself a vegan, believe that it is a healthier, and go for very long stretches without any meat. But then I fall off the wagon when a fig cries out to be wrapped in proscuitto, or there’s a cheesburger calling out to me from the Pebble Beach Lodge, a favorite place to hang. But those times are increasingly rare. I do eat fish.

By Step away from the BLOG! on 10/01/2008 12:55 am

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I could go on for days without meat in the diet. Fish, vegetables and fruits is fine with me. I would sample some pork or chiken once in a while but if its not there, I won’t miss them.

By Chari Bonagua on 10/01/2008 1:25 am

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I actually love eating some types of meat, but like others, my body considers it the devil of all evil. I try to fool my body sometimes when I feed it tofu or vegan burgers and tell it this is real. My body laughs at my attempts.

By Rainbow Power on 10/01/2008 6:55 am

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I don’t eat read meat very often; of course, nothing is better than the occasional hamburger. In fact, I will make it a point soon to get to Columbus, Ohio and get the best hamburger I’ve ever had in my life at Thurman’s. But, I’d much rather have fish, if I know where it’s coming from, if it’s fresh and not from a supermarket. But, most of the time it’s fresh vegetables, different kinds of rices and beans, chickens(local if I can get them), and pasta, which is my downfall.

By Diana T on 10/01/2008 6:58 am

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Exactly how I feel, Diana. I could do without meat as long as I could have the occasional hamburger, preferably either from In N’ Out in CA/AZ, or The Burger Bar in Las Vegas, my two favorites.

By Lorraine Bates on 10/01/2008 8:36 am

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I too, agree with Diana. And, I would say, if I lived alone I would eat a lot differently. Having to have food around to feed a hungry man makes a difference for sure. Every now and then I have to have an Outback Prime Rib or, like you say, Lorraine, the In-N-Out Burger. Although I live in Las Vegas I’m not familiar with the Burger Bar. Might be well worth checking out!

By Hazel Lewis on 10/01/2008 6:05 pm

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i was a vegetarian, felt great—-then this ‘mind-over-matter’ deal, so common, i thought, ‘what-to-hell’, it’s an imaginary cow—-chomp! then there’s the B-12 deal—-‘supplement-pills’ don’t hack-it—-so they give B-12 probs a monthly ‘shot-in-the-buttocks’—-so, were we ‘born-to-kill-or die’? nope—-seems the Nitrogen-Fixing bacterial nodules of most plants produce B-12—-our foraging ancestors probable ate all they could find—-roots and all—-ever go 17 days w/o food? i have—-get’s scary—-so i rather imagine ancestors didn’t think twice on any ‘nodule, or oddly ‘clinging-soil’—-and hence had their B-12 w/o animals—- if we did not put chickens in tiny jails, i have no ‘beef’ with their eggs—-my ex and i only bought ‘unfertilized eggs, cheese not made with rennet—-that’s ‘vegetarian’—-but not ‘vegan’—-they eat no animal products—-period. w/o B-12. ‘rickets’ will kill ya—-as will no V-C—-we need a big mix of vitamins to live—-most Mexicans have survived on rice/corn/beans—-that provides all essential amino-acids, and beans are rich in iron, so many other needs—-when ‘The Burning Bush’ said, ‘Though Shalt Not Kill’.? it’s possible—-so why not heed? and absolutely if we survive to colonize space? we won’t be feeding some cow tons of valuable protein for a few ‘big-macs’—-nope—-

By gulliver fourmyle on 10/01/2008 10:29 pm

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There are lots of meats that I enjoy and I eat meat fairly often. However, I found, when trying the high protien diet, it is much harder for me to give up all carbs than to give up meats. Let’s face it, I, unfortunately, love all kinds of food and have the body to prove it. I’ve always said that “will power” has never been a problem for me. It’s “won’t power” that’s lacking.

By Jo Vaughn on 10/01/2008 7:08 am

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I don’t eat much meat. And never a steak…..just too hard to digest. But I love an occasional hamburger. I am into soups! I just picked up three different kinds of squash and will be making some yummy soup today. Just in time as it’s already in the 40’s here and will soon be below zero!! Gotta love northern Minnesota!!

By Yvonne Faye on 10/01/2008 7:42 am

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I have lived without meat since the early 80’s. The biggest thing I noted at the beginning was that I had no natural craving for meat. As a child I had a hard time chewing it, not to mention digesting it. It wasn’t long before my natural cravings for veggies and fruits dramatically increased. I found if I ate enough ‘sweet’ veggies and fruits I didn’t need sweets either. Or pasturized dairy. The few times I went back to them, I gained weight, had elevated bp or got the many viruses going around. I have never had an upset stomach or regurgitated since.

By ellen chase on 10/01/2008 7:55 am

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“I found if I ate enough ‘sweet’ veggies and fruits I didn’t need sweets either.” Yes! After my nutrition professor explained that all you need to do is MAKE yourself eat healthy once or twice before your body not only LOVES it, but CRAVES it (because it’s actually being nourished). So I tested it out - any time I craved sweets, I’d eat a piece of fruit, maybe drink some tea sweetened with honey, or munch on some raisins (basically anything healthier than the honkin’ piece of ice cream covered chocolate cake I was actually craving), and it worked! Now, I’m not saying I’m perfect, because come that “special” Time of the Month, it’s impossibly difficult for me to resist a snickers bar or peanut butter cup. Sigh. As for non-pasteurized dairy, aren’t there risks involved in consuming non-pasteurized? Or is that just another myth perpetuated by the greedy farm industries? I’ve tried to quit dairy - specifically cheese - SO many times. I don’t know how vegans do it! (Although, MILK was easy to quit. That crap never tasted right to me, even as a child. And it makes me all mucousy. Soy milk not only has a better, more natural flavor to it, it also has a clean/fresh feel to it…and doesn’t make my nose and eyes all runny - ew.)

By Kryssi K on 10/01/2008 1:38 pm

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KYRISSI, PASTURIZATION KILLS ALL THE GOOD AS WELL AS THE ‘BAD’ STUFF IN JUICES AND DAIRY, SO WHY SPEND THE MONEY FOR DEAD FOOD WHEN YOU’RE ‘ALIVE?’ i STARTED WITH SOY, THEN SWITCHED TO ORGANIC ENRICHED RICE MILK. tHE SOY CHEESES ARE A GOOD SUBSTITUTE, EVEN THE RICE ONES. tRY THEM. wATCH THE SALT CONTENTS THO, NOT ALL ARE HEALTHY EVEN THO THEYT ARE IN A ‘HEALTH FOOD’ STORE!

By ellen chase on 10/01/2008 2:49 pm

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I can’t imagine not eating meat. I don’t feel full if I don’t have meat. On some days my diet looks like this… wake up and eat a piece of cold leftover chicken for breakfast.. eat fish and veggies for lunch and beef/pork or chicken with beans for dinner… with some fruit and grain mixed in here and there. If i could carry around a piece of chicken for snacking on at all times I would LOL..

By Chrome Toe on 10/01/2008 8:10 am