Ok I ahve been a vegetarian for 3 months now, going strong and no break downs yet. Lately though I have been wanting meat again but when i go to try it I cant do it, so my question in, when you have just given up meat, and basically one day just stopped eating it all together and went vegetarian, is it normal to feel like you might still want meat?
I really do not want to eat it, the thought makes me sick, but I am the only person in my family or circle of friends that is vegetarian and not only do they make fun of me for it, but they still eat meant in front of me, which is fine, is it normal to be tempted though?

Yes, it is normal. You've been eating meat your whole life, right? So the psychological effect is there - it is a comfort food, something you are in the habit of eating. But not being able to eat it when it comes right down to it is a good sign. In time, you won't even want meat any more (or the craving will only come very rarely).

Congrats to you on what you've done so far, and good luck with sticking to it :)

Incidentally, you might want to check your iron level, and make sure there's enough iron in your diet. I got terrible meat cravings the first time I tried vegetarianism - to the point of having really disturbing dreams about biting into the flesh of living creatures (sorry if that's a bit graphic). I figured out that I wasn't getting enough iron, started taking supplements, and the cravings went away.

Listen to your body - it's smarter than you think.

Thanks...
Fyvel, its funny that you mention it being a comfort food because lately I have been under extreme stress. So maybe the 2 have something to do with each other cause any other time I am fine, no cravings, no nothing.
larissa, I actually had my iron checked about a month back and the doc also checked my capability to hold onto and manage iro, I cant think of what thats called right now, and I was normal, but I do have vitamins, maybe I should take one and see if that makes me feel any better. I know too much iron isnt a good thing either, so I dont take them all the time.
As far as the dreams, I always dream that I am a vampire LOL

Thanks...
Fyvel, its funny that you mention it being a comfort food because lately I have been under extreme stress. So maybe the 2 have something to do with each other cause any other time I am fine, no cravings, no nothing.
larissa, I actually had my iron checked about a month back and the doc also checked my capability to hold onto and manage iro, I cant think of what thats called right now, and I was normal, but I do have vitamins, maybe I should take one and see if that makes me feel any better. I know too much iron isnt a good thing either, so I dont take them all the time.
As far as the dreams, I always dream that I am a vampire LOL

If you are craving comfort foods, just have some veggie burgers on hand. It may help.

I think the test you mention is a test of your transferrin level. Transferrin is the protein that binds to iron. It also binds to zinc, which is why supplementing with iron OR zinc can lead to your body not being able to absorb the other.

As for your friends that eat meat infrount of you.thats up to you.I mean weather or not you mind them eatting meat around you.I don't drink or smoke and won't allow eather in my house.But if out with friends I can't very well tell them they can't drink or smoke around me unless it bathers me to the point where I have to tell them I can't be around it,and if you have to do it then we can't be around each other when you might drink or smoke.If I found eatting meat that bathersom to me then I would have to say the same for the meat eatting.
As for your friends making fun of you because your a non-meat eatter.I found a perfect way to handle that.
#1 I don't talk about being vegan unless asked a point blank question and then I only answer the question and then drop it.
#2 some people want to debat the issue.I tell them I won't debat it with them.
#3If they feel a need to make fun of me because I'm vegan I tell them the samething I tell people that make fun of me because I don't drink. I say I don't know why they find it so hard to deal with my being vegan I'm not trying to convert them and I mind my own bussiness when it comes to their eatting habits or drinking habits.

If asked what I think of meat eattersI tell them ,not pulling any punches.......I hate that people find the need to kill something and eat it.I hate that people ware fur.I say its killing something just to show off and that means they have a very sick mind.
I once had a man say he just wanted to know why I have to be vegan.I told him if he really wanted to know I would get him information on it but it wasn't a pretty story,but that I felt he wanted to debat the issue and I would refuse to do so.
I also had a friend try to get me to take a bite of her BBQ rib one day I said no thx. she said Oh come on jackie it won't kill you.I said there's dog poop out in the back yard go take a bite it won't kill you.when she made a shocked face I said..you know I'm vegan eather respect me for it or don't be my friend.She dropped the subject.

Mod Post Please be more specific about your thread titles. One should be able to get an idea of what your thread is about without opening it. This one's been edited for you, but please be more careful in the future. Thanks.

Sorry about that im still new and so used to just posting short titles, thanks for fixing it up.
Ok well the cravings wouldnt stop, so I grabbed a piece of lunch meat and had it in my mouth, ewww ewww ewwww my tongue touched it and I started spitting and I felt sick and I cried. I dont want meat at all, I hate the fact that i am having this battle in my mind that I crave it but I hate it. Even when i ate meat I only ate chicken, I didnt like steak or anything else.
I really dont know what it is, I mean yes I am stressed, I have resumed taking my vitamins for iron, but whats up with me.
I think something else it might be is because, everyone keeps telling me how sick I look now, that I am way to skinny and pale, I personally see no change, sure I have lost a little weight, but I always do in the summer.
I think they are saying it cause they know I have given up meat and if I didnt they would never notice any change.
Everytime I see a family member I have to hear about how I need a piece of meat to feel better or look better, I do not agree.
I have been so proud of myself lately and have felt great, so why do I feel so low right now, so weak.
:cry: :help:

Part of me is saying you ate meat before whats the big deal, maybe everyone is right and just do it....then the other part is saying you always hated yourself when you ate meat, you learned about where it comes from and it is still flesh. Makes me feel a little crazy, this is still very new to me, Im sorry if I seem like such a baby.

I haven't had a craving YET, so my advise isn't going to be all THAT great, but maybe think about WHAT it actually is that you would be eating, if you were to eat meat? That's what finally pushed me over the edge, actually picturing chewing an animal's skin and swallowing it made me sick to my stomach. Good luck and don't beat yourself up over cravings! :)

around 3 months into being vegetarian, I started craving a good bacon cheeseburger every day around lunchtime, like clockwork.
To make matters worse, I worked in a place where getting a bacon cheeseburger was very easy, and getting vegetarian food was not.
Luckily, I'm very stubborn. Extremely stubborn. Some have gone so far as to call me "difficult". :)
I started thinking about why exactly I was having this craving. As in what parts of a bacon cheeseburger was I really missing. Grease? Saltiness? Meaty texture? I found that if I broke down the compotents of what I was really craving, I could find acceptable substitutes and if nothing else, something with an insane amount of garlic in it cut through any craving.
Eventually the cravings went away. It's been 8 months since officially going veggie (unoffically about 10 months), and for the most part I've stop considering meat real food.

Well I wasnt able to eat it so that told me that I dont really want it. And I do think about all the animals and that is why i stopped in the first place, I told myself I am going to eat htem so I can have food, how is that fair?
Then I said to myself, I cant give this up to save them? And I was able to really easily.
Oh and as far as people making fun of me, some of them I can shut up, by saying, Do you want me to tell you what really goes into the meat your eating?
Then they get grossed out and leave me alone and others will just say good, its still good.
I just got done a section in my vet assistant course about how the treat slaughter animals and it openly admitts what they are eating, people have to realize that they are also eating that.
So why I have cravings is beyond me, but because of last night, I am now sick today :sick:

There are loads of reasons a person craves meat. Low iron stores, a desire for comfort food or even stress can trigger it. Having iron-rich foods will help this out (iron supps are nice, but iron-rich foods give the full benefit, IMO) as will creating a new set of comfort foods or veganising whatever most comforting to you.

The stress, unfortunately, I can't help much with but I've found that snacking on nuts seem to help keep any stress cravings at bay.

Sometimes, just being hungry will cause a crave, too. That's why it's important to make sure you are eating food that will stay with you a while. Nuts, whole grains, beans/legumes are good "heavy hitters" for this.

I think something else it might be is because, everyone keeps telling me how sick I look now, that I am way to skinny and pale, I personally see no change, sure I have lost a little weight, but I always do in the summer.
I think they are saying it cause they know I have given up meat and if I didnt they would never notice any change.
Everytime I see a family member I have to hear about how I need a piece of meat to feel better or look better, I do not agree. This part concerns me a bit. Sometimes people assume no meat = starvation, but sometimes fears are well-justifed because the person is eating next-to-nothing (I'm not saying this is you persay, but it *is* something that I have seen in the many years of being on this board). Can you post what you eat in a day?

Well I have never been much of a big eater when the weather is hot, all my life. And Im not a breakfast person either soooo I start at lunch, I will either have a chik patty or corn dogs (morning star)
For dinner I will have one of the morning star meals or I make hamburger helper and substitue the fake meat, or pasta. Then later on I eat a snack, either corn dogs again cause I love them or chik nuggets or peanut butter and jelly. My biggest problem is snacking late night cause I am up till about 3am...so that will be whatever is around, chips, candy, anything I feel like having.
I also eat alot of cucumbers and salad and my new green friend broccoli.
I have yet to try other veggies out there, I never liked them. But Im getting there.
They also have mock lunch meat out so every once in awhile I get that and will have sandwiches. I know that I should eat better and eat more, but its no different than what I have always done, except instead of real meat its all substitutes. If I slept better I would get up earlier and have breakfast.
So maybe I need to just redo my whole schedule.
I am no paler then usual. I am very fair skin, I had a tan and lost it which is why it may look like I am so pale.
I have been to the doctor and in 3 months of being vegetarian, I have only lost about 5lbs, but I am also vert active so thats normal for me.
My doc also yelled at me for giving up meat, I was diagnosed with osteopenia and she said that giving up meat will make it worse. But in all honesty how when i have always eaten meat and I still have it, she also oesnt believe in vegetarianism, at least thats how it comes across.

According to what I've just read, there are many diseases that cause osteopenia, osteoporosis being one of them. iirc, giving up meat will not make it worse (since meat is over-laden with protein and too much protein will cause the bones to eventually become pocked) but the doctor being anti-veg is a very large possiblity.

FWIW, my GP thinks being veg is silly, too but can't deny that my levels are much better than any meat-eater my age (especially the meat-eaters I'm directly related to :) ).

I'm seeing immediately that you eat a lot of processed foods. The excess sodium will play havoc on your bones for sure. It might even mess with whatever gave you the osteopenia in the first place. My advice would be to keep working on getting yourself to like veggies. If you like whole grains like brown rice then get more of that into your diet, too along with some beans. Since you're prone for night-snacking, I would say make your evening-late evening meal mostly whole grains or beans and you should be nicely set in the later hours. If you absolutely want a snack, then reach for hummus and veggies or fruit.

I hate breakfast foods, too but leftovers for breakfast is quite nice (mmmmm... stirfry). :yes: :lick:

Well I dont drink milk, never have, cant stand it, so doc said thats why. I am only 22, so she of course jumped on me that in the future any other doctor will blame the bone loss on being a vegetarian.
I do have to get alot more veggies in me, I live on processed food, your right.
Guess I figured since its soy and veggie, its good for me.
I will have to take a look at the recipes section, I have yet to make anything besides meat dishes with substituted meat, I will be shopping this week so I will stock up on new things. Thanks:hamster:

I have a craving every once in a while, then the rational logical part of my brain just reminds me of how much the thought of eating flesh disgusts me, and it goes away, or at least lessens.

Well I dont drink milk, never have, cant stand it, so doc said thats why. I am only 22, so she of course jumped on me that in the future any other doctor will blame the bone loss on being a vegetarian.
I do have to get alot more veggies in me, I live on processed food, your right.
Guess I figured since its soy and veggie, its good for me.
I will have to take a look at the recipes section, I have yet to make anything besides meat dishes with substituted meat, I will be shopping this week so I will stock up on new things. Thanks:hamster:


First of all, since you've only been a vegetarian for three months, it seems odd that your Dr would blame that on your osteopenia, or assume it would affect it in the future. Try to drink soy milk. Be sure it is fortified with calcium and vitamin D. Do some weight-bearing exercise, as this will help your bones become strong.


As a last resort, talk to your Dr about a calcium supplement.

Osteopenia at 22? *horrified*

Certainly, then you'll want to make sure you're getting plenty of calcium-rich foods. Fortified foods, too, if you can get it (chocolate silk is fortified and oh, so yummy :lick: ).

If I'm remembering right, calcium, iron and I think magnesium all help to build bone so it would be good to shoot for all 3 in your diet. Weight bearing exercise will also help build bone.

This (http://www.nutritiondata.com/) is the site that I use a lot. You can use it to run searches on foods highest in calcium, iron, magensium, B vitamins... tons of things. There's also loads of other tools in there, too that are really fun to play around with.

Oh yea, and check out the recipe and food section here. There's looooooooads of good info and ideas in there, too. :yes:

I'm a new vegetarian, too (only a couple of weeks). I haven't had a problem with craving meat, but sometimes I start thinking about seafood. I love seafood like shrimp and crab legs. I haven't had the temptation yet, though, because I haven't gone to a restaurant or anything, but, say, if I had to go to like Red Lobster with my family, I might be in trouble! lol

I do the same thing that some of the other people wrote- if you see a hamburger, think about seeing a cow grazing in the field or something. I'm a new mom so I think of animals with their babies and how I wouldn't want to take their "mom" away just because I was hungry. Sounds weird, I know, I know.... :-/

And *yay* on your choice to veg!

No one should become a vegetarian without getting the proper info on how to take care of oneself nutritionally. Thats how you end up with sickly looking vegetarians, and of course, the inevitable, "i used to be vegetarian but I was sick and tired all the time so now I love my hamburgers".

Actually, after going veg, I never really craved meat. I found that what i craved were teh sauces and seasonings i typically used to PUT on meat (BBQ sauce, breaded things, etc.) You can make BBQ tofu, breaded tofu or gluten, and you'll realize you aren't actually craving meat at all, more than likely. Make sure you are taking a good multivitamin (with B12), and calcium and iron supplements. Good luck!

I have those same meat cravings. And I don't even like meat anymore, but I do have a weakness for seafood. What I've come to realize about myself is that I want what I tell myself I can't have.

So when I am drooliong over the good smell of some kind of meat meal that my unsupportive family and friends are eating, I tell myself that I CAN have it if I want to. I just remind myself of how disappointed I will be AFTER I have it and how icky it makes me feel. That usually works.

And when all else fails and I am about to break down, a mouthful or two of raisens and nuts followed by a huge glass of water or soy milk has saved the day many a time.

No one should become a vegetarian without getting the proper info on how to take care of oneself nutritionally. Thats how you end up with sickly looking vegetarians, and of course, the inevitable, "i used to be vegetarian but I was sick and tired all the time so now I love my hamburgers".

Actually, after going veg, I never really craved meat. I found that what i craved were teh sauces and seasonings i typically used to PUT on meat (BBQ sauce, breaded things, etc.) You can make BBQ tofu, breaded tofu or gluten, and you'll realize you aren't actually craving meat at all, more than likely. Make sure you are taking a good multivitamin (with B12), and calcium and iron supplements. Good luck!


I agree the seasonings are what tempt me half the time. Do you have any advice on where to find info about taking care of yourself nutritionally when going vege?

*looks around for official nutritional spokespeople*

Ok, there are threads that talk about this specifically, but one book that I relied on HEAVILY at first is "Becoming Vegan"
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1570671036/002-0219320-1597637?v=glance

There is also a book called "Becoming Vegetarian" which is equally as good, but not wholly focused on just vegan nutrition. There are other books as well. Get out and read as much as you can. Good luck!

Everyone's going to be a bit different, I think, I've been vegan for a decade and hardly pay attention to 'am I getting enough of this or that', and I'm fine.

I think craving meat is a sign of needing fat, protien, calories or vitamins, it really has nothing to do with meat itself it's just what our bodies associate with having all of these things.