To Eat Meat or Not to Eat Meat, That is the Question . . .

 Kara Ghiringhelli, Department of Public Health

 

Kara Ghiringhelli is a Nutrition Education Specialist at DPH

Vegetarian diets are becoming more and more popular. For one reason, the recent economic downturn is causing people to look for creative ways to save money. One way includes eating meat-less meals. Another added-bonus is that most vegetarian diets are lower in total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol and higher in fiber than non-vegetarian diets. If you decide to adopt a completely meat-free diet, it is important to remember to eat a balanced diet and to be aware of nutrient deficiencies like protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, iron, and zinc.

Many of us did not grow up eating vegetarian meals, so it’s understandable why we may not know how to cook hearty, savory, meat-less meals. An easy and fun introduction to vegetarian cuisine and products already available in grocery stores is this weekend’s Boston Vegetarian Food Festival, October 31st and November 1st at the Reggie Lewis Athletic Center. Some of the country’s top speakers and chefs will be there alongside vegetarian food providers giving free food samples, tips, and recipe ideas. Even if you aren’t considering being a vegetarian, but would like to learn how to make healthy meat-less meals, this is a great place to start.

If you make meat-less meals, do you have tips or recipe ideas to share? We’d love to hear from you!

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Comments

[Kerry Higgins]

Thank you for the link to the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival! Anyone who is looking for some good books to read on healthy eating, which can include less meat, might want to read Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food or Jane Goodall's Harvest for Hope.

[Golf Clubs]

the vegetable in my place where I live is so expensive, but meat is more expensive than vegatable, life is so defficult.
:(