| Today's Message | 21-Day Meal Plan | Nutrition Webcasts | Celebrity Tips | Community Forum | Resources |
| New Topic Reply Subscription Options |
Page:
1
|
| Forums: January 2011 Kickstart Forum: going vegan in a family of omnivores... | |||
|
|||
| instanthuman
Joined: 01/04/11 Posts: 2 |
going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 8:59 AM just curious how many out there are doing the kickstart on their own, without the participation of their families. i am a mother of 3, and while they are very good veggie eaters, they are not interested in becoming vegan. i'm hopeful that if i can stick to it this time, they'll decide that they, too, want to eat like mommy. they are fairly adventurous, they LOVE gardein seven grain chik'n tenders, and i can get them to eat my "meet" sauce with smartground, but they do not care for vegan cheese (daiya) pizza and these kids love some pizza! my husband supports me in my endeavors, but he's not ready to make the change. i've been trying to adopt the vegan lifestyle for the past year and a 1/2, but i get so tired of making different things for me than i make for them (i am the chef in the house). i'd appreciate any gentle suggestions or ideas...but know that i am not willing to pressure them into anything. i really am just hoping that they will see the changes in me and realize how much healthier a vegan diet is for our family. thanks in advance! |
||
|
|||
| Bugsmom
Joined: 09/13/10 Posts: 2070 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 9:30 AM Kids love do-it-yourself pizzas. Make your own dough (or buy it pre-made if you can get it) and shape it into mini pizzas instead of one big round. Then each person "decorates" their pizza their way (sauce, cheeses, pepperoni, veggies, etc) That way you're just making one meal and each person gets exactly what they want. Likewise, a good tex-mex meal of nachos or burritos can be customized as well - lay out the tortillas, the vegetarian refried beans (or just cook and lightly mash your own beans), diced veggies (bell pepper, onion, lettuce, tomato), salsa, cheese, etc. Pasta is easy - pasta, cheese, sauce, meatballs all served separately and mix'n'matched at the table. Kinda catchin' the trend? When they're mostly getting their own choices, the occasional vegan casserole dish or the items you mentioned aren't as big an issue. --Deb R |
||
|
|||
| chefcrae
Joined: 01/02/11 Posts: 14 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 9:34 AM @instanthuman; I too am doing this alone. I am only a wife and mother of one, but still have to make several different foods for everyone. I cook alot on weekends. Like a turkey breast or roast. That carriers the meat eaters for the week. And for myself I will prepare grains ahead of time, and as I want them then add all the veg and flavors I am in the mood for at each meal. Yes it takes a little planning and several hours of one day, but it saves me time during the week. |
||
|
|||
| soon2BVeg
Joined: 08/24/10 Posts: 225 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 9:46 AM I just have to comment on something, and I hope I don't offend anyone ... but where does the concept come from that children get to choose what they eat? I raised three kids who are now 30, 28, and 26. I did the cooking, and the family ate what I cooked. When my daughter was about 12, she saw a television program on PBS that showed how cattle were slaughtered, and it really disturbed her. We discussed it and I decided to try vegetarianism, and I stopped cooking meat for a time. Never did my ex-husband or two sons complain. We didn't stay with it that time over the long haul; we weren't ready for it emotionally ... and we didn't have the correct information ... but my point is that while I was making strictly vegetarian meals, I didn't get, nor did I expect, any flak from the kids, who were about 12, 10, and 8 at the time. The parents should be in charge of what the kids eat; and feeding them a vegetarian or vegan diet is to their advantage and their benefit. Today my kids, as adults, are not picky eaters, and they still happily eat vegetarian food when they eat out with me or at my house. They also often choose it on their own at their homes or while out with friends. Don't make a New Year's Resolution...make a Decision! |
||
|
|||
| peasandrice
Joined: 12/29/10 Posts: 77 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 12:24 PM I am lucky that my family is in it together now but when we first got married my husband ate meat several times a day and I was vegetarian. I tried to make food for him but it really bothered me to touch/prepare meat. I finally told him that it bothered me too much, and that I would prepare all the other food but he would have to cook the meat himself, even adding it to sandwiches so I would't have to touch it. He made a couple sandwiches, but then told me he would rather I made him veggie food than do it himself. He only ate meat at restaurants and then after a year or so stopped all together. I never verbally pressured him to change, I always told him I won't pick on his diet if he won't pick on mine. I just felt that it was equally important that I not have to dread making him food. Cooking for someone should be an act of love, not revulsion. My kids are too young for this to be much of an issue. The only thing that really changed was stopping dairy. I am still giving a little bit of strawberry cream cheese to my 2 year old because he is super picky and it's the only way I can get him to eat grains. He still wants all his food pureed. I am working on switching him to vegan options. He does like vanilla soy milk so that was a victory. I think it's totally reasonable for you to not prepare foods you have given up because they are either/both 1) morally objectionable 2) temptation. Then people can either make it themselves or go the path of least resistance and eat the healthy food you make. The fun lunch box ideas sound like a good idea as well. I may try them to make my toddler less picky. |
||
|
|||
| Pam
Joined: 12/28/10 Posts: 50 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 12:43 PM My daughter and I have been vegitarian/vegan on and off over the past 3 yrs (more off than on). But we are familiar with the program and know what to do. That's why I am so happy to have found the challenge, because otherwise I wouldn't have been doing this, at this time. In the meantime, she is a college student, and works at a raw food culinary school here in town part time. So this month she is going completely raw with some of her co-workers! Then, a friend of mine has been staying with us for 4 mos. and he is a sad eater! So the kitchen is a busy place these days, what with vegan, raw and sad foodies in it. But so far so good. If all goes well, I might try a week totally raw, with my daughter's help. I am already feeling great after one day on the kickstart, so I can imaging that it will only get better. Thanks Lani! |
||
|
|||
| Shadowheart
Joined: 09/05/10 Posts: 83 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 1:08 PM We were all meat eaters when I signed up for the last kickstart, didn't really know how to make a meal without chicken, turkety, etc. My family agree to try the plan and have no complaints. Every once in awhile my husband will bring home something non vegan, and that's ok. But I follow the meal plan and don't cook anything else unless they really want some meat, which has only happened once since September! The Holidays were an exception since I made food for plant based and meat eaters. |
||
|
|||
| tinabean
Joined: 09/08/10 Location: Pasadena, TX Posts: 113 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 1:17 PM I can identify with you (mostly)! I don't have a husband and so it's just me & my son. He's 16 and eats an utterly sad diet and no vegetables - unless you count potatoes and refried beans. When he was little he would eat what I made if I was home for dinner or my mom would completely cater to him if he was at her house. Even when he went latch-key, he'd call my mom as soon as he got home from school and she'd bring him fast food & junk food. There was really no going back from that. Nowadays I usually just do heat&serve stuff for him - it's unhealthy but it's what he likes. Most of it is stuff he knows how to make for himself, but expects me to do if I'm around. I think for this kickstart I'm going to tell him to cook his own darn pizza, because that is my biggest temptation and my biggest downfall. |
||
|
|||
| soon2BVeg
Joined: 08/24/10 Posts: 225 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 1:42 PM tinabean wrote: I can identify with you (mostly)! I don't have a husband and so it's just me & my son. He's 16 and eats an utterly sad diet and no vegetables - unless you count potatoes and refried beans. When he was little he would eat what I made if I was home for dinner or my mom would completely cater to him if he was at her house. Even when he went latch-key, he'd call my mom as soon as he got home from school and she'd bring him fast food & junk food. There was really no going back from that. Nowadays I usually just do heat&serve stuff for him - it's unhealthy but it's what he likes. Most of it is stuff he knows how to make for himself, but expects me to do if I'm around. I think for this kickstart I'm going to tell him to cook his own darn pizza, because that is my biggest temptation and my biggest downfall. Yep Tinabean ... take it from the mother of two grown sons ... as long as you do it for the guys, they will continue to expect that of you; and then when he grows up he will expect his wife or girlfriend to wait on him hand and foot. Time for a Tinabean Revolution! Don't make a New Year's Resolution...make a Decision! |
||
|
|||
cch22
 Location: New York State Posts: 1000 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 2:06 PM When i started in September I got a bit of flack from my new husband of 2 weeks. "hey i married you and now you are a vegan?" he was convinced it was going to happen when he said, "I will eat whatever i want for breakfast & lunch. THen i will eat whatever you are fixing for dinner. I mean it's food." I agreed to that. I even offered to cook him a burger if he wanted. He said no. He stuck to that and after a little while he stopped eating meat altogether. Now he calls himself & me v-8's.. mainly because we are not super strict. We wear leather shoes. We have eaten eggs in baked goods & cheese over the holidays. NO beef or chicken tho. It was easier after he saw the peta video of Meet your Meat. It bothered him. Also of course there is the health part of eating meat. Neither one of us think factory farmed meat is good for us. In fact we are convinced it is just the opposite. |
||
|
|||
| pippin
Joined: 09/07/10 Posts: 175 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 5:05 PM I am beginning to appreciate how much easier it is for our single gals with no kids in the house! But, I do have lots of company, and travel quite often to visit my parents who live 90 minutes away. When I do that, I always bring food so that I can feed everybody "my" food. They call is "Liz's vegetarian food" and they always love it. But, they always say that they can do it for a couple of days, but not forever. Last time I made veggie and bean quesadillas. My dad decided to smother his in cheese. Oh well. Some battles aren't worth fighting. Anyway, I understand how hard it is to convince others to eat in a particular way. Kudos to those of you who have figured out a way through that minefield. |
||
|
|||
| djunamod
Joined: 01/02/11 Posts: 55 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 8:29 AM At the moment, I am staying at an in-law type unit attached to my parents' home in Israel. I cook for myself but I frequently eat with my parents (and eat out with them a few times a week). They are not vegan and my dad is a huge meat-lover. But they do eat fairly healthy and are supportive of my vegan lifestyle. The bigger issue with my mom's cooking is fat. She doesn't believe that no added fat (even olive oil) is healthy. I argue with her because she insists that you can't eat veggies without at least a little olive oil added because some vitamins won't digest without it (if someone has some study to disprove this, let me know - I would love to show my mom). She doesn't add huge amounts of fat, but enough if it. So I try not to eat with them too often and ask her to make a dish especially low fat for me if she's making some vegan dishes. Djuna |
||
|
|||
| chefcrae
Joined: 01/02/11 Posts: 14 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 8:41 AM Your mom is correct to an extent. Some vitamins and minerals are fat soluable, some are water soluable. I cant say which ones right off the top of my brain this early but later I WILL LOOK UP WHICH ONES. bUT IT IS TRUE. Sorrry hit the cap button. Even just a teaspoon of oil will do the trick and olive oil and walnut oil is very healthy for us. And coconut oil. Some spices are oil soluable too, and therefore give off their flavor and micro nutrients better when dissolved in fats. The good thing is you dont need lots of oil. |
||
|
|||
| theodore
Joined: 09/16/10 Posts: 641 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 9:59 AM chefcrae wrote: .......olive oil and walnut oil is very healthy for us. And coconut oil. Some spices are oil soluable too......... I must admit, that's what I used to think until I discovered the work of PCRM, Dr McDougall, Dr Caldwell Esselstyn and Jeff Novick RD. They really opened my eyes about this matter. I try to use oil as little as possible these days. Susan also mentioned in the last Kickstart that fat-soluble is not the same as oil-soluble. Most (possibly all) plant foods contain some fat, even broccoli for instance. Best Theodore Never make assumptions. You'll end up being an A**, and the UMP will TION you. -- Coach Smiley -- Fresh Prince of Bel Air |
||
|
|||
| chefcrae
Joined: 01/02/11 Posts: 14 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 4:43 PM theodore wrote: chefcrae wrote: Sorry I don't think I did the Qoute thingy right........olive oil and walnut oil is very healthy for us. And coconut oil. Some spices are oil soluable too......... I must admit, that's what I used to think until I discovered the work of PCRM, Dr McDougall, Dr Caldwell Esselstyn and Jeff Novick RD. They really opened my eyes about this matter. I try to use oil as little as possible these days. Susan also mentioned in the last Kickstart that fat-soluble is not the same as oil-soluble. Most (possibly all ) plant foods contain some fat, even broccoli for instance. Best Theodore But... All foods have fats also known as lipids. I haven't read the works by the people you have mentioned but am looking forward to doing so. Fat Soluble vitamins include vitamins A,D,E and K.They generally occur in foods that contain fats.These vitamins are stored in our bodies in the liver and adipose (fatty) tissue until they are needed. ( I got this from my Nutrition book from Le Cordon Bleu) Before I read this sentence I thought lipids(fats) needed to be added to foods to release these vitamins. But according to this statement They occur in foods that contain fats so not extra fats should need to be added. |
||
|
|||
| Bugsmom
Joined: 09/13/10 Posts: 2070 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 5:44 PM It's pretty amazing how foods are designed to work as 'units' - foods high in fat soluble nutrients tend to include fat; foods that have calcium tend to also have some level of the co-'conspirators' that help us use calcium (like phosphorous, if I remember correctly); foods that have an endosperm (like grains) also have a bran layer that helps move the starchy endosperm along through the digestive tract (so it doesn't just sit there in a lumpy doughball). --Deb R |
||
|
|||
| tinabean
Joined: 09/08/10 Location: Pasadena, TX Posts: 113 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 5:51 PM chefcrae wrote: Soluble vitamins include vitamins A,D,E and K.They generally occur in foods that contain fats. I've never really thought about it before, but that makes a lot of sense. They get into the plant (or animal or human) somehow and it's probably difficult for vitamins to migrate without a proper solvent (in this case oil). There's probably some kind of mineral oils in the dirt that figure into the nutritional lifecycle too. |
||
|
|||
| hippiechic68
Joined: 01/06/11 Posts: 1 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Thursday, January 6, 2011 at 10:17 AM A, D, E, and K are fat soluble vitamins. Based on my research, if you're eating a variety of colors, esp, carrots and greens, just add some nuts or seeds on a salad and you'll have the fat to take in the vitamins. And you have to get daily sun or Vit D supplement. |
||
|
|||
| Bugsmom
Joined: 09/13/10 Posts: 2070 |
RE: going vegan in a family of omnivores... Posted Thursday, January 6, 2011 at 10:22 AM We have a colorful fun poster on the kitchen wall from leafygreen.org that shows veg*n sources for all sorts of nutrients - not just the "biggies" like C, but K, potassium, selenium, etc. We bought it maybe 6 years ago so our now-12 yr old could check out what foods had what nutrients himself (he wanted to be able to check it out himself without having to always ask us about it). We all still check out things from time to time, though we know a lot more of it know by heart. He had fun (still does really) figuring out what kind of snack he could put together to get x,y,z combination (like picking strawberry jam versus grape because strawberry is in the potassium category). Many plant milks are fortified with D, as well as B12 sometimes. --Deb R |
||
|
|||
The only one I have to argue with about food is ME. | New Topic Reply Subscription Options |
Page:
1
|
| Subscription Options |
| Subscription options are available after you log in. |
There are 139 active user sessions right now.
Registered Users Online:
ronjenk
|
home | contact us | about us | support us | full disclaimer | privacy policy PCRM Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine |