Introducing meat in a vegetarian family

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m unclear as to why you feel you need to introduce meat. A vegetarian meals are available everywhere and so common and easy to accommodate as opposed to a vegan diet.

+1. I would’ve been deeply upset if my parents tried this. And nowadays, dietary preferences and allergies are incredibly common ALL over the world.

As I shared, I tried it on my own, even in the less vegetarian friendly days of my youth, and all it made me feel was ill and nauseated. I can’t imagine if my parents had tried to force this on me.

+1

I'm flashing back to negotiating with my mom about how many bites of meat I had to eat at dinner. I never liked beef, pork, or chicken. It's not a matter of being rigid. I just don't find meat appetizing.

He's getting protein and other nutrients with lentils, beans, and veggies. You know there are people who live long, healthy lives without animal protein. Why embark on this campaign? If anything, you're coming off as the rigid one, who has decided that a common diet is some sort of problem.

I agree with this. I would really reconsider your line of thinking, particularly if your son hasn’t expressed the desire to start eating meat himself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op again. My son is in middle school and not going to college for a few years now. He thinks being a vegetarian is restrictive, particularly when we vacation. He'll eat Chipotle 3 times a day if possible, during that time. He just thinks he is doomed to be a vegetarian since he is not used to anything else. I'm trying to gradually expand his options. Not forcing anything on him. I know that one bad experience will make him swear off it for the rest of his life and hence making this effort to find the right options.
At home, he eats a healthy diet. He eats yogurt, eggs and beans, rice, vegetables etc. He is active and skinny. (This is genetics. One side of the family is skinny.) Maybe meat will help him gain some weight as well.

If he’s asking to try meat, and he regularly eats and enjoys chipotle, I think asking to switch out 1/2 the protein that he usually gets for chicken at Chipotle is a good way to start.