One of the biggest trends of recent years has been almost completely off the radar.
At the events for the German and American exchange students I advise, the number of vegetarians has been increasing steadily over the years. Back in the 1990s, there was, on average, only one at each event. In the last decade, there were two, then four, then six. Last weekend, nine out of 36 seminar participants were vegetarians. That’s no longer the proverbial 10 percent; that’s one fourth.
The German students returning from America said that in the land of bacon and hamburgers, they hadn’t expected to find any vegetarian options. To their surprise, that was actually easier than in Germany. Restaurants, they said, were happy to adapt what was on the menu by leaving out the meat or making a substitution. The American students have noticed that more and more restaurants have also been offering legitimate vegetarian dishes. The realization that it is not impractical to stop eating meat has removed a hurdle for those considering making that change.
That includes me. I stopped eating animals last year.
I don’t go around talking about it, but people find out, and it makes them very curious. Apparently I don’t fit the image they’ve got in mind. “Why have you become a vegetarian?” they ask with the same curiosity as if I had become a rastafarian or a Scientologist. For this reason, I don’t like the term “vegetarian”. It sounds more like a belief system than a diet. Not eating meat shouldn’t be any more spectacular than not eating, say, onions.
The people who ask about this rather personal choice — and it’s nearly everyone — are not making idle conversation. They really want to know, so I will let the cat out of the bag.
Confusing signals
Here’s how I see it. Humans have maybe not evolved, but have certainly adapted, to eating meat. Meat can be healthy if it’s fresh and the animal has been raised in a healthy way. However, the processing, storage, and preparation of meat often make it much less healthy. Meat dishes often come with gravy, which is made from animal fat. Processed meat contains a lot of added salt and sugar, which change the body’s metabolism and insulin levels. These confusing chemical signals cause us to overeat.
“What do you eat?” is what people want to know next. We are brought up to construct our meals as one part meat, one part carbohydrates (such as potatoes) and one part vegetables. But instead of “one part meat”, just say “one part protein”. Protein comes in many forms.
The cuisines of other cultures are very helpful in this regard: chickpeas, which can be eaten whole or as a paste called hummus; lentils; and, of course, soybeans in their myriad form, including tofu. Good old corn, in large servings, contains a significant amount of protein, as does wheat. Nuts of all kinds are also very, very good. Dark green leaves and vegetables give you the iron and calcium that meat would otherwise provide.
The effect is that you do more of your own cooking and think more closely about what you’re eating. That is the real change.
All you can eat
Eating still has to be fun. In fact, it should be more fun than it was before. A diet of grains and vegetables keeps your digestive system working so that it doesn’t interfere with your ability to concentrate. I sleep better, think more clearly, have more energy during the day, and never get too hungry or too full. What is more, I can now eat as much as I want and not gain weight. I was healthy before, but my doctor is now very excited about the results.
Which explains my answer to the third question I always hear: “Don’t you miss steak / hamburger / etc.?” Not as much as I would miss having those health benefits.
I strongly advise you to take what I say with a grain of salt and get your nutritional information from more reputable sources. But, as the saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. After a heart attack in 2010, our former president, Bill Clinton, switched to what he calls a “plant-based diet”. He greatly lowered his cholesterol level, lost a lot of weight, feels great and added years to his life. What better result could there be?
