Modern dieting can be exhausting. Which one says you can’t eat carbs? Atkins. But, don’t you need carbs? Yes (in moderation).
From the South Beach Diet to the newly touted Paleo track, well-marketed diets are forever trying to tell us what we can and can’t eat. They catch on and then they fade, people lose huge amounts of weight quickly and then just as quickly gain it back. But one diet has stayed consistently on the radar: vegetarianism, in all its forms.
In the strictest since, to be a vegetarian means to not eat meat. Veganism is a more extreme sect of vegetarianism — vegans do not eat dairy, eggs or other animal products, including honey. On the other end of the spectrum lie pescatarians, vegetarians who eat fish but no other meat. Finally, there are selectatarians — people who consume meat and dairy sparingly but only if they know and trust its source.
Before its reawakening in 19th century Europe, vegetarianism was the way of life for many ancient Greeks and Indians. Historically, people who practice Hinduism do not eat meat. As beliefs have loosened, however, so too has strict vegetarianism been released from the religion’s practice. Still, up to 42 percent of India’s population is meat-free.
Though vegetarianism is not so popular in Greenwood, it claims devotees worldwide. Alec Baldwin, Jessica Chastain and Bill Clinton are all meat-free, and vegetarian restaurants are common in cities across the country.
Vegetarianism is not inherently healthy; a person could eat a dinner of waffles, spaghetti and pickles and call themselves meat-free. As a weight-loss tool, it’s probably as good a diet as any. So why do it?
The simple answer is that there is no magic weight-loss solution. Losing weight and getting healthy both require smart eating and plenty of exercise. Healthy eating requires conscious decisions about portion control, nutritional value and a knowledge of individual health needs. But awareness is key, and vegetarianism offers those looking to make a change a chance to stop and notice what’s on their forks.
Many vegetarians are also morally opposed to the idea of eating animals. In Hindu culture, the voluntary decision not to eat meat is based on a desire to treat all living things with respect and dignity.
Anne Marie Kornelis, the city’s recycling coordinator who is not herself a vegetarian, but is “pro-vegetable,” said that an ethical argument can be made for vegetarianism beyond animal rights: environmentalism.
“It’s better for the earth because it’s more economical. There’s a lot of water going into the grain that cows eat, so less energy would be wasted if humans just ate the corn themselves,” she said.
That’s belief holds clout in the scientific community. Consumption of meat worldwide has more than tripled since 1961. As a result, swathes of forests are being trampled to make way for livestock. Animals also produce huge amounts of methane, one of the more potent greenhouse gasses, and more livestock means more pollutants released into our atmosphere.
Another reason some choose to eat less meat, only fish, or no meat at all is a knowledge of the way meat is processed in the U.S. Movies like “Food, Inc.” and books such as Jonathan Safron Foer’s startling investigation “Eating Animals” have exposed Americans to similar truths once made clear by Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”: that eating meat is not as simple as raising an animal, slaughtering it, and putting it on a plate.
Lisa Norwood, owner of the Whole Foods Store on Park Avenue, is encyclopedic when it comes to healthy living. She regularly consults customers on the benefits of a well-balanced diet, promoting non-GMO (genetically modified organism) based foods and low-glycemic sugars. She is a selectatarian because she knows where most American processed meats come from.
“With cattle, they inject them with steroids to make them grow, then they have to give them antibiotics because they’re sick,” she explained. “They don’t feed them the diet they need. Cows weren’t intended to eat that way, eating GMO grains. They were supposed to be out in the grass. They have them all on these feed lots, clumped together. They’re sick, they can’t stand up on their own; it’s horrible.”
Norwood said that documentaries and books about mass meat production made her question the sources of her food.
“Do I really want to put that sickness in my body?” she asked.
Norwood carries meat in her store — she herself is still a meat eater, after all — but the meat she sells is grass-fed and pasture-raised.
“If you’re going to do meat, do it the right way,” she advised.
Another healthy option, one adopted by 94-year-old Mike Ballas of the Crystal Grill, is cut down on the amount of meat you consume.
According to Johnny Ballas, owner of the Crystal, “Mr. Mike” eats mostly vegetables, with a bit of chicken or fish thrown in occasionally.
“It’s his choice. He wants to stay heart-healthy, so he avoids red meats and other fats,” he said.
Mr. Mike will be 95 next month.
Norwood said that she eats less meat than she used to, a challenge since her husband and family like to eat meat most nights a week. Sticking to it, however, has made her feel better and has given her more energy.
Though being a vegetarian, or some version of a vegetarian, can be a healthy choice, it isn’t always easy in Greenwood. Restaurants in town offer few vegetarian options. Greenwood residents looking to try something new do have a few places to turn, though.
What’s Cooking, Veronica’s and Turnrow Cafe all offer meatless sandwiches, soups and salads, and the Crystal Grill has a vegetable plate that Ballas said is popular with customers.
The Greenwood Market Place carries veggie burgers and other meat substitutes, and co-manager Orlando Toten said that many customers say the meat-free products are just as good as the burgers they seek to emulate.
But Norwood said that not many people come into her store looking for vegetarian goods.
“We’re still trying to get them to stop eating fast food,” she said. Norwood carries all kinds of protein-rich grains, like flaxseed and quinoa, to enrich a low meat or meat free diet.
Those looking to go meatless can also supplement their diets with tofu, beans,lentils and some protein-rich veggies.
Though they may lack the salty fat of a thick steak, Kornelis said that veggies are often tastier since cooks tend to season them more. There is also a economic argument to be made: a handful of beans costs far less than the rump of a cow.
• Contact Jeanie Riess at 581-7235 or jriess@gwcommonwealth.com.
