I became a vegetarian while I was in college in the early 1990's, but I still ate tuna fish occasionally.  I was a nutrition major and most of the students in my classes were vegetarians as well.   I became a vegetarian at that time mainly for health reasons.  I have since given up eating all fish and am a vegan (eat NO animal products) 90% of the time when I am at home and a lact0-ovo (eats some dairy and eggs) vegetarian when I am traveling. 

It is really tough to avoid all dairy products and eggs when you are traveling.  For example, when I visit a breakfast buffet, I don't know if some of the bread's or casseroles served are made with eggs or dairy products.  I will not eat meat under any circumstances at this point in my life and that includes fish. I do miss eating sushi, but still can eat some of the cucumber rolls.  I have blood work done every year and my iron levels are actually a little on the high side from eating so many green leafy vegetables like broccoli.  I am a vegetarian for many reasons including health, but mostly for not eating animals as I feel they are not treated right.

Being a vegetarian is also advantageous to the environment for the following reasons.     

*Contaminating the air:  Factory farms produce methane and carbon dioxide, and other polluting gases.  It is estimated that two thirds of man-made ammonia is generated by raising livestock and is a major contributor to acid rain.

*Deforestation:  Raising animals that will later be used to feed humans meat has contributed to the loss of forests as a lot of land is needed.

*Making us prone to disease - high cholesterol, E-coli, and Salmonella to name a few.

*Spoiling the oceans:  Sewage, nitrogen compounds and fertilizer cause algal blooms that take up a lot of oxygen in the air.

*Using up too much water:  Raising animals for meat uses up 70% of the water that could be used for drinking or for crops.

I've known many people who are interested in becoming vegetarians and go from eating meat or fish every day to trying to become a vegan overnight. I've known some people who have stocked their refrigerators with hundreds of dollars of produce in hopes of becoming a vegan.  It's usually just too much of a change for many of them.  Often these people just give up and feel like they failed.  The people who I've known that become a vegetarian successfully do it in stages.  They usually give up meat a few days out of the week then later eliminate fish and have been able to sustain their vegetarian diets. 

I've had a lot of people tell me that it's not healthy for me to be a vegetarian.  I tell them that there are many ways for people to get enough protein in their diet.  Eating, nuts, hummus, tofu and other soy products are ways of getting protein in our diet without consuming meat.  Being a vegetarian can also taste good.  The two photos below are up some desserts I ordered when I was in Thailand a couple of years ago.

Here are a couple of photos of the breakfast buffet at the hotel I stayed at in Barcelona a few months ago:

I do still eat ice cream occasionally.  There is ice cream made with soy milk which really isn't bad in my opinion.
There are produce markets in most places around the world like the one below in Venice:
I made the following treats for my husband on Valentine's Day this year.  I made a fruit tray and a dip made from coconut products:



I can still have coffee with soy milk as well!

  Thank you so much for visiting.   I'd love to hear I'd love to hear if you are a vegetarian or have thought of becoming one.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

~Michelle