To be or not to be vegetarian?

My dad stopped eating meat thirty-eight years ago. According to my mom's account, one Sunday at a family meal, after devouring half a cow, my dad wiped the sweat from his forehead and said something like, “Last time I eat meat.” Everyone laughed at what they thought was a joke; something like the “I won’t do that again” that usually accompanies a hangover. For him, it was a promise. Today, his list of reasons for becoming vegetarian resonates with words like “commitment,” “karma,” “respect for nature.” Being vegetarian is not something that appears spontaneously; the decision is tied to convictions and personal philosophy. And what is more personal than the way we eat? Food is almost always linked to culture, to maternal milk, to home cooking. In mine – yours too – the menu was an inclusive seesaw and almost always cheese-centric: potato flautas with cheese and chicken, mushroom and meat pozole, mole with and without meat. But for most, vegetarianism remains a taboo. A life without meat? No chicken, no eggs, no fish? One of our home nutritionists, Mayte Martín del Campo, tells us that there are different levels of restriction in meatless diets: “Vegetarians usually do consume certain animal products like milk, yogurt, eggs, fish (if they eat the last two, they are called ovo or pescatarians). What they generally eliminate are red meats and poultry. On the other hand, vegans do not consume any animal products.” The question is, why would someone want to live without meat? There are chefs like master Dan Barber from Blue Hill at Stone Barns who claim that reducing the portion of meat on our weekly plates is the only sustainable way to face climate change, reduce nitrogen pollution in the soil, and halt soil degradation. In some branches of Buddhism, vegetarianism is indicated as a precept of ahimsa, which means “non-violence,” as they claim that eating animal flesh, in addition to directly harming living beings, constitutes a source of karma that will come back to you in the next life – for those who believe in reincarnations. Others choose a vegetarian diet simply out of a sincere love for nature or as an incendiary act against animal cruelty. There is a middle ground. Authors like Mike Bittman opt for this lifestyle without carving it in stone: the renowned food writer from the New York Times coined the term flexitarianism for the diet that wanders between vegetarian (or vegan) and carnivorous, alternating it at different times of the day or week. Two meals without meat, one with.Personally, I believe that what enters the body is a dialogue that belongs to each heart and mind. A personal decision like wearing your hair a certain way, believing in Santa Claus, or choosing motherhood. The truth is that a piece of meat has a large amount of uric, phosphoric, and sulfuric acid; as well as cholesterol, antibiotics, and hormones, in the case of non-organic meat.The current ecological and healthy trend is to eat meat only once a week. If you choose to leave it forever, our home nutritionist, Gina Rangel, recommends supplementing with vitamin B12, eating green leaves and vegetables every day, trying to avoid simple carbohydrates, and consuming sources of plant protein: quinoa, beans, tofu, seeds, nuts, in addition to eggs and cheese.Our nutritionist Jennifer Asencio states that the benefits that a vegetarian diet can provide are “a low intake of saturated fats, low cholesterol intake, and if grains are properly combined with legumes, a very good quality protein can be obtained without the need for supplements.” That said, she emphasizes that the more restrictive a meatless diet is, the greater the risk of being deficient in micronutrients, Omega-3, vitamin B12, calcium, iron, and vitamin D, so it’s important to pay attention to the body and consult a specialist. The important thing, as always, is to learn to combine foods properly and remember that just because you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, it doesn’t mean you are healthier. We must avoid filling ourselves with kilos of pasta, greasy food, or junk and consume ingredients of good nutritional quality.If you want some ideas to help you follow a vegetarian diet, here is a complete section with recipes that you will love.