For some people, the thought of vegetarian food – new recipes, learning about nutrition, new choices and meals for a family – is a little overwhelming. Many worry that they will not get the nutrition or variety in food that they need. Unfortunately, that ‘balanced diet’ that we have been taught to eat has turned to many people eating very unhealthy, processed, chemical-laden diets of convenience-- ‘near foods’, instead of healthy, whole foods. Eating-based ailments such as obesity, heart-disease and type two diabetes are at an all time high and many people are waking up to the fact that the food they are eating is not only depriving them of nutrition, but actually making them sick.

Why Choose Vegetarianism?

People choose a vegetarian diet for a myriad of reasons. Some change their diet due the fact that they love animals and do not want to kill or eat them. Others do it for health reasons. Many choose not to eat other living beings due to spiritual beliefs and still others forgo eating animals due to the environmental impact upon the earth. I believe that I fall under all of those reasons. My logic was simply, “If I don’t need to eat animals, then why am I doing it?”

Vegetarian Cooking: New Recipes and Fancy, Healthy Dishes

When I first began my vegetarian journey I felt like a whole new world opened up to me. Unlike many people who try to fit their new diet into their old store, I decided to change my grocery store and choose a small, local health food store that focused on organic, local produce and a plethora of new choices. At first I was a little lost and admittedly, it took at least twice as long to grocery shop.

I began with organic macaroni and cheese, fake meat substitute sandwiches and easy-to-make new recipes I found online. Each recipe introduced me to a new ingredient and before I knew it I was buying a whole cart full of items I had never eaten a year previously, such as nutritional yeast, Bragg’s amino acids, garbanzo beans, fresh spinach, rice noodles, portabella mushrooms, tempeh and eggplant. I even discovered a love of cooking that I never knew I had.

Vegetarian Nutrition: Getting Your Vitamins and Minerals

There are thousands of delicious vegetarian dishes from appetizers and soups, to hearty main courses and unbelievably decadent desserts. The variety of food available when one isn’t buying all packaged, processed foods is unprecedented, while the quality of vitamins and minerals that can found in a healthy, organic vegetarian diet is much greater than the current American diet.

When I changed my diet, I immediately started feeling more energy and a calmer emotional balance. I also lost a significant amount of weight during my first year as a vegetarian. Beans, legumes, seeds, grains and leafy greens supply all the protein one could want. In fact, the only vitamin or mineral source that is not supplied from a well-rounded vegetarian diet is B12, which can easily be found in supplemental form. It is highly recommended that vegetarians take a B12 supplement.

Vegetarian Resources are Everywhere

Vegetarian eating can be a delight to the body in every way. If you are thinking about going vegetarian be prepared for a whole new world of veggie cookbooks, restaurant choices, online websites catering to vegetarians and veggie recipes, new food items and nutritional education.