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Survey: Vegan, Vegetarian, or Omnivore?

2008_01_07-Veggie.jpg

New year, new foods, new kitchen choices. As we move into a new year of eating, we are curious about what you eat. It seems like there is a strong contingent of vegetarians in this community, and vegans too. So, time for a poll! Tell us what you eat - and comments are open for full discussion, especially if you fall into some category that doesn't quite fit in these choices.

Vegan, vegetarian, or omnivore?

 
 

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Veganism, Vegetarianism, Surveys

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Comments (13)

After being vegetarian for 11 years, I am now mostly vegetarian but eat the occasional seafood. Reading Marion Nestle's What to Eat helped me make the decision to add sustainable/low- to no-mercury seafood back into my diet because of the health benefits.

posted by staratlas on January 7th 2008 at 8:45am
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I just turned vegetarian after being vegan for 6 years. It was a difficult decision, but I felt that being a vegetarian would be more sustainable in my current circumstances.

posted by bubble on January 7th 2008 at 8:55am
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Lactose-intolerant vegetarian. Egg-and-goatcheese-itarian.

posted by surplusj on January 7th 2008 at 10:42am
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I was a vegetarian for over a decade. However, as I re-thought my reasons for doing so, I realized that buying organic meat and limiting the amount of meat I ate was a much better choice for my health (I gained a lot of weight as a vegetarian as I consumed much more calories) and supported local farmers much better, as I'm in a good ranching area.

posted by Kuri on January 7th 2008 at 10:49am
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Vegetarian-turning-vegan for both ethical and health reasons. Going vegan may take more planning and effort than just being vegetarian, but I know that my health and conscience will benefit. I've become ten times more adventurous with food now than when I ate meat, which is funny as I always get the question "What do you EAT????". :)

posted by Joy R. on January 7th 2008 at 5:57pm
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I was a long-time vegetarian who converted back to omnivory a couple of years ago. In my case, I started to feel really run-down and lousy. It turned out that my iron levels were really low, probably because I was still nursing my then-eight-month-old son. (This isn't uncommon for women who nurse past six months, I found out later.) I wanted to continue to nurse for a long time, and I needed to feel better quickly, so I started consuming meat in moderation. I don't regret my choice.

I don't know if I would have started eating meat again if I didn't live in an area with access to local, non-medicated, free-range poultry and beef. I didn't miss meat almost the entire time I was vegetarian, because I found non-free-range meat kind of gross, frankly.

posted by TammyE on January 7th 2008 at 8:30pm
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I eat a primarily vegan diet.

posted by SleepyDweller on January 8th 2008 at 6:20am
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Vegetarian since 1990 for every reason.

posted by Pixie on January 8th 2008 at 11:34am
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Joy R-

That's the number one question for me as well! :) I have been a vegan since 2000 and I even tried raw veganism for while (which is very hard in Indiana in the winter!). I love the way I feel.

Hooray for diversity and inclusion on a food & cooking website!

posted by SkippyB on January 8th 2008 at 4:57pm
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I can't seem to vote, but I'm mostly vegetarian (will eat seafood occasionally).

posted by JJJ111 on January 8th 2008 at 7:01pm
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i eat meat, but not much. i'll often make vegetarian meals but use chicken stock or some bacon or something.

posted by thinkingwoman on January 10th 2008 at 11:21am
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Vegetarian since '96, vegan since '04. Not missing anything. Like Joy R., I get a lot of "what do you eat?!?" To which I reply, "The thousands of grains, vegetables, fruits...I guarantee you that I have a much more varied diet than you do." It is a bit of a pain, though, when I go to my hometown in very rural Iowa. Have to bring a little stuff with me if I want to make anything complicated. But simple stuff I can make with no problem.

posted by gretchenkjer on January 12th 2008 at 8:06am
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I'm mostly vegetarian. I only eat seafood and occasional chicken.

posted by suzyblue on December 27th 2008 at 1:54pm
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