If you are or have ever eaten Vegetarian, question for you.

[uppityperson]

Poll question: If you are or have ever eaten Vegetarian, question for you.

When you ate vegetarian diet, did you eat mostly organic vegetables, or did you eat mostly inorganic vegetables?

The topic about eating veggie for a few days made me wonder about veggie diets, since when I ate a vegetarian diet I also tried to eat as much organic as possible. I avoided processed foods, additives, mass produced fruits/veg's that were not organic to avoid as much bad stuff as possible. Cost was a factor, so I was not able to eat all organic.

I also know people who are vegetarians who do not particularly try to eat organic.

What made me wonder this is people who say they feel so much better on a vegetarian diet, wondering if it is also an organic/non-organic food thing. I eat meat, but have known my meat personally for the last yr (no factory meat), and I have felt better eating it, organic known meat.

So, what say you? If you do or have eaten a vegetarian diet, was it all, mostly, partly or didn't pay attention to organic-ness?

[Warpy]

1. Organic out of my garden in the late 70s and early 80s

mostly organic in Boston in the late 80s, commercial when I was poor.

Commercial in the late 60s to early 70s because little organic stuff was available in the city. We were lucky to get organically grown whole grains.

[flor de jasmim]

2. Whenever I've tried eating vegetarian I get so lethargic I can barely move

I think it's because of the carbohydrates (rice plus beans, for instance), and I have a tendency towards hypoglycemia. Does anyone have a solution? I'd like to eat a vegetarian diet (for both ecological and economic reasons).

[leftofcool]

7. Have you tried just eating fresh veggies and fruit and soy products

for protein?

[uppityperson]

22. I can do little soy due to health condition. Other beans in moderation are fine though.

If not vegan, eggs and dairy (cheese, yogurt) are good for protein.

[htuttle]

9. If you're willing to include milk products, try a mix of Indian foods

A little saag (spinach), a little chhole (beans), some matar (peas), some tomato sauce curries, some potato dishes, paneer cheese and some flat bread made with ghee pretty much cover all the nutrient bases. The spiciness gives sort of a kick, too.

[WheelWalker]

13. I'll second voice that.

[bean fidhleir]

27. Third voice. Lo-fat lassi fortified with whey provides all the protein I need

which makes it nice since then I needn't worry about getting protein from the rest of my food.

I really like that monumental cookbook that Yamuna Devi put together, though I add onion/garlic dishes from other traditions since the one her book reflects objects to them for some reason I don't understand. I'm trying to find another copy altho it's OOP now since my one is all spattered and gooped up from use.

[Warren Stupidity]

10. Stay away from the high fat american vegetarians

Indian vegetarians are much leaner. Most of the american vegetarians spend their entire life in a box and are force fed a high carb high fat diet.

[devilgrrl]

20. Hmm, I did not know about the difference between diets.

Thank you for giving me an excuse to eat more Indian food! :-)

[varelse]

11. If you aren't allergic to nuts

then raw walnuts, almonds, and brazil nuts are good additions to a vegetarian diet. Protein and essential fatty acids, and some trace elements (brazil nuts provide magnesium, for example).

[WheelWalker]

12. Try to eat smaller portions; try to exercise more; vegetate for spiritual reasons. Lethargy is

a state of mind.

[uppityperson]

3. kick to mark since it doesn't show up in mydu as a started topic

thanks for the votes

[Warren Stupidity]

4. I've never eaten a vegetarian.

As a vegetarian myself, it would just be wrong.

[AlCzervik]

5. i try and buy as much organic as possible, were pretty lucky here because the central

valley has many farms so a lot of what i buy is produced locally.

[leftofcool]

6. I eat mostly organic and anything hydoponic that is available

when I shop. No processed foods ever, no white sugar or flour, no packaged breads. We try to shop at our farmers market and we shop at the Amish market a lot for home made honey, ground herbs, fresh veggies. Hubby eats meat so we get meat from Amish market as well instead of from the local chain grocery.

[eggplant]

8. They taste just like carnivores.

n/t

[WheelWalker]

14. NOT !

[Fox Mulder]

15. Mostly organic.

I don't trust non organic foods.

[hulklogan]

16. I'm a vegetarian but I can't afford that fancy organic stuff

Not all of us are rich latte drinking Prius drivers ya know.

[bean fidhleir]

26. Cost is my issue on that, too. Plus "organic" seems to have lost any real meaning

in the past 8 years.

[LeftyMom]

17. As much as I can afford to, prioritizing highly contaminated foods first.

That said, even if one ate only conventional foods, a vegan would have a much lower intake of pesticides, flame retardants, etc than an omnivore, because they bioaccumulate in fats and move on up the food chain. Studies comparing body burdens (usually done with human milk, because it's the easiest way to get human fats for testing without hurting the humans involved) show that the bodies of flesh eaters are much more polluted.

[cornermouse]

18. They ate beans, vitamin pills and mineral pills

It didn't taste very good and I was hungry within two hours.

[flvegan]

19. Most of my diet is organic.

My biggest meal of the day is 90% raw, as well.

People largely feel better on a veg*n diet because they're not polluting their bodies with animal flesh. Especially vegetarians that avoid dairy, which is quite frankly, the worst garbage you can put in your body.

[uppityperson]

24. Ah, but you are adding organic to the mix. I'd like to see a study

comparing non-organic vegetarian diet, organic veg diet, organic omnivore diet, non-organic omnivore diets. And organic/non-organic vegan also.

Seems that people go from non-organic omnivore to organic veg, as I did. It would be interesting to see how they'd compare if organic/non-organic vector remained the same.

[flvegan]

25. No, not really.

When I went vegetarian, organic was unheard of. I still felt fantastic in comparison. When I went vegan, organic was still unheard of, but I felt even better. I've been in this game for a while, and I've spoken with hundreds of veg folks that were so pre-organic foods and said the same thing. Possibly *these* days, folks go whole hog and jump from Big Macs to organic vegetarian, and yeah, that would be quite the change.

I'd like to see a study like the one you mention, but for different reasons. A fully organic omni diet would be pricey.

[galledgoblin]

21. yeah, I try to eat organic or at least local as much as I can

processed crap from Kraft doesn't appeal to me at all.

[whistler162]

23. As the cannibal said....

yeah but he was too stringy.;-)

[etherealtruth]

28. "organic" is such a nebulous term

I was a vegetarian throughout the 1980's and early 1990's. My children and I eat very little meat ... with that said ... I have always tried to eat locally grown produce ("in season" in Michigan is a fairly briefly opened window). Admittedly the bulk of my produce throughout the year comes from the local grocery store ... choosing whatever is visually pleasing and fragrant ... so, I would have to say I have paid/ pay little attention to claims of "organic-ness" (except in the truest interpretation of the term.)