A 2014 study suggested that about 84 of those who turn vegetarian eventually return to eating meat. This is common for people who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet to eventually return to eating meat. A former vegan shared how she felt low in iron and other nutrients, but how eating meat again improved her health and well.
Flexitarians are people who follow a mostly vegetarian diet but sometimes eat meat for health, taste, or convenience reasons. This step-by-step guide will help ease the transition so you can get your body functioning optimally. To experiment with meat or fish after a long time of vegetarian or vegan diet, here are some tips and ideas from experts:
- Choose plant-based foods with meaty textures,
- Learn about 12 common pitfalls of vegetarian and vegan diets, such as not getting enough vitamin B12, iron, or calories. Find out how to avoid these mistakes and stay healthy with plant-based diets.
- Learn about different types of vegetarian diets, such as lacto-ovo, vegan, and flexitarian, and their health benefits and risks.
- Plan your meals, get enough protein, B-12, and other nutrients.
- Eat meat once or twice a week, as a convincing study about a year ago said that eating meat once or twice a week was as healthy as a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet.
A flexitarian diet, also called a semi-vegetarian diet, is centered on plant foods with limited or occasional inclusion of meat. Vegans (total vegetarians) do not eat meat, poultry, fish, or any products derived from animals, including eggs, dairy products, and gelatin. Making small swaps to your diet can help without making radical changes. Aim to have red meat just once or twice a week, ideally swapping out meat sources once in a while.
📹 The Truth About Vegans Going Back to Meat
In this video, we dive into the controversial topic of former vegans who have returned to consuming meat. We take a look at the top …
Why do I crave meat as a vegetarian?
Meat cravings can be triggered by malnutrition, such as a lack of essential nutrients like protein or iron. Meal prep helps ensure you get the right amount of nutrients with every meal, and a balanced diet can help curb cravings. Additionally, examining if supplements are right for you can help identify nutrients that are only found in animal products. As a vegan, it doesn’t have to be impossible to stop meat cravings.
Willow offers a menu of homestyle favorites with a vegan twist, allowing you to enjoy meat without the meat. By preparing meals and preparing your nutrients, you can curb your cravings and enjoy a healthier lifestyle.
Can vegetarians live without meat?
The consumption of meat is not a prerequisite for maintaining good health or survival, as plant-based diets can provide the essential nutrients required for human sustenance. Cultural foods, which are passed down through family and ancestors, are foods and dishes that are integral to many food cultures worldwide. In contrast, meat is not a dietary component that is as widely embraced in other cultures. Proper planning and supplementation can facilitate the attainment of this equilibrium.
Can a vegetarian start eating meat again?
To start a new diet, it’s important to take it slow and avoid consuming meat for a while. The body may forget how to digest certain products, such as lactose in milk. If you’ve been avoiding animal products, start with eggs, yogurt, or cheese, as they’re easily digestible. If you’re vegetarian, consider eating fish or seafood like oysters, clams, and mussels. Start with easy foods and gradually increase your intake to ensure a smooth transition.
Can a lifelong vegetarian eat meat?
The body does not lose the ability to digest meat, even after being a vegetarian. Although you may feel heavy after your first meal with meat, you won’t be unable to digest and metabolize it. To comfortably reintroduce meat back into your diet, you can consider the following questions: Can you go back to meat?, Will meat make you sick?, What to Eat First?, Portion Sizes, Preventing Digestive Issues, Making Meat Appealing?, Is going back common?, Handling the Emotional Impact, and Expert Q and A. Eating meat again is easier than you may think, and easing back into it is likely to be easier than you may think.
What is it called when you are vegetarian but sometimes eat meat?
Flexitarian is a term used to describe individuals who primarily eat a plant-based diet with occasional meat or dairy. It gained popularity in 2008 with the publication of nutritionist Dawn Jackson Blatner’s book “The Flexitarian Diet”. This diet focuses on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, with meat and dairy occasionally added. Flexitarians can eat anything as long as it’s sourced well, with the majority of their diet being based on vegetables, whole grains, and fruits.
The term “flexitarian” is a combination of “flexible” and “vegetarian”, and the philosophy is to consume plant-based foods with the flexibility to add other ingredients as they see fit. The meat, cheese, seafood, eggs, and milk they consume often fall into the categories of sustainably sourced, pasture-raised, free-range, wild-caught, and organic.
Can you be vegetarian and eat meat once a year?
Flexitarians are vegetarians who occasionally consume meat, with no strict guidelines for meat consumption. Some light flexitarians consume meat daily, while heavy flexitarians consume red meat, poultry, or seafood once or twice a week. A middle-of-the-road flexitarian might follow a seven-day meal plan, including chicken, beef, or fish three days a week and going meatless four days a week. Protein-rich plant-based foods and protein powder supplements can help offset deficiencies when eating less meat.
Is it okay to eat meat once in awhile?
Official dietary guidelines recommend a reduction in the consumption of red and processed meats, with a recommended weekly intake of 26 ounces of animal protein sources in a 2, 000-calorie diet. A healthcare provider or registered dietitian can assist in determining the optimal quantity of red meat to incorporate into a specific dietary regimen. For further information and recipes for healthy meat and poultry dishes, please refer to our website.
Can vegetarians suddenly eat meat?
The higher fat content of meat may result in the development of constipation, bloating, acne, and heartburn due to its slower digestive process compared to plant-based foods.
What percentage of vegetarians eventually go back to eating meat?
A lower incidence of backsliding is observed among vegans than among vegetarians, with only 70% of the former returning to the consumption of meat. Both groups exhibit a greater proclivity towards liberal political views. To identify optimal dietary strategies, it is recommended to complete the Healthy Lifestyle Test and seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional.
Do vegetarians age faster than meat eaters?
Research indicates that vegans who consume a high amount of fruits and vegetables have lower inflammatory markers compared to meat-eaters, which is beneficial for aging. Veganism offers numerous benefits, including the prevention and control of chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers, increased energy, reduced inflammation, and overall better health. However, the question remains whether vegans age better compared to meat-eaters.
Can you be vegan 6 days a week?
A part-time vegan lifestyle involves avoiding junk food and primarily eating vegan food, with non-vegan meals only occasionally. Flexitarian diets often involve consuming abundant vegetables and fruits, reducing animal products, avoiding junk food, not eating out, cooking at home, and consuming high-quality foods. These guidelines help maintain a healthy lifestyle and promote overall well-being.
📹 Transitioning to eating meat after a vegan diet
For a lot of people the transition away from a vegetarian or a vegan diet can be very challenging. For some there is guilt about …
Got diagnosed with Chon’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis at 17 and the research said I have a 30% increase in colon cancer. So I researched colon cancer and it said going plant based reduced colon cancer so from 17-24 I went vegan/vegetarian. I was mentally unstable, gained an eating disorder (orthorexia), craved food at all times, exercised constantly, irritable, cutting calories. At 24 I was so fatigued and irritable I got high one night, ordered a 24 piece of bbq chicken wings from Pizza Hut and never looked back. Learned about keto/carnivore, learned I was Autistic, and Autistic people have auto immune issues so low carb, low fibre was best for IBS, Autism, and Auto immune issues. If you have Austism, ADHD, Arthritis, or IBS, they are auto-immune issues and auto-immunes issues require keto/carnivore diets aka low carb/low fibre.
I live in a liberal area on the West Coast USA where veganism is common. I have found vegans to be mentally unstable and angry. I honestly think something is not good with the diet/lifestyle, or it attracts a certain personality type. I’m not sure, but I can honestly say that I don’t judge vegans, but over time I noticed they were mentally unstable.
It’s interesting how veganism/vegetarianism affects people differently. My partner was vegan for a year but couldn’t shake the lack of energy no matter what he did – once he introduced dairy back into his diet, he felt so much better instantly. I’m pescaterian, I struggled to find much food I enjoyed as a vegan as I’m a very picky eater lol
I had type 2 diabetes & autoimmune diseases so I tried different diets. I was pescatarian for a while, then vegetarian with the intent to taper down to vegan. After about a year but I was not doing very well. Barely managed my diabetes (with insulin & meds), I was always hungry/craving more food. Had a lot of bloating/gassiness/the runs. Felt eh. Went back to eating meat and kept playing with my macros, discovered very low carb works best for me. Reversed diabetes, off insulin & meds, and rarely get flare-ups anymore for my autoimmune diseases.
I liked being a vegetarian until I got busy plus hour long workouts and yoga several times a week. I found myself eating 5xs a day or more– I was starving all the time and there was a noticeable increase in PMS. I tried b-12 supplements but it wasn’t enough so now I aspire to have veggies or fruit with every meal and limit my meats to quality cuts when I can.
Most vegetarians I’ve known eventually get told by their doctor that chronic malnourishment is destroying their health and they need to start regularly eating meat again. Going vegan/vegetarian is usually an experiment that last somewhere around two years before the victim relents and allows themselves a cheeseburger. Despite all the claims to the contrary by unhealthy vegetarians & vegans, the odds are extremely low that, even with all the supplements they take, they aren’t suffering from malnutrition. The human body isn’t set up with an herbivore’s digestive system – you need (cooked) meat to be healthy.
For a time, I couldn’t afford groceries at all, and I relied very heavily on a food pantry. I wasn’t at all picky and the ladies were super nice. Though, if I had the option for something non-dairy I’d choose it bc we’re lactose intolerant 😅 Fast forward to today, and we still remain non dairy, but as for meat, we still eat it in moderation. Our stomachs actually get pretty upset, and we feel kinda bleh if we eat too much, so we stick to whole food, plant based, maybe 80% of the time. Eggs are really the main non-vegan food we have. I do believe in compassion for life and that there’s certainly culinary and cultural places for meat substitutes like tofu and tempeh. However, in terms of environmental impact, I think some products can be rather labor and resource excessive. I’m not trying to turn this into a debate because obviously not all products/companies are made/operate the same. I’m just answering a question.
i was vegetarian for over 21 years,and vegan for some of it,been dreaming about chicken for 20 years,coudn’t resist 2 weeks ago and now i can’t stop eating meat,i do try to buy organic good raised,but i feel so much better,i am not hangry all the time anymore,i also sleep much better,and bowel movment inproved much.
Nutrition. Vegan and celiac is tough. My digestive system has lost about 30% of capacity because of celiac scarring. I just couldn’t get enough protein and vital nutrients. I got over mouth feel for meat, cravings. I had to go back to good grade white tuna and white chicken to restore my health. I still eat primarily legumes but add 10-15 ounces of meat a week.
I want to share my own perspective in favor of the opposite choice. I have been eating a vegan diet for 38 years, due to food allergies. I am allergic to everything that comes from animals. I am also allergic to wheat, but can eat other gluten containing foods. Even as a child, milk and eggs upset my stomach every time I had them. I was lacto ovo vegetarian for 9 years before eliminating eggs and diary, and only eliminated whet 10 or 15 years ago. I would occasionally eat foods that contain eggs, dairy products, or wheat, when away from home, or sometimes just wanted something I normally wouldn’t eat. I could get away with it so long as I didn’t do it often. But that led to eating animal source foods more often, and I ended up itching all over, all the time, along with other unpleasant results. So now I don’t ever eat any of those foods. I don’t really miss them much. Thankfully, I have no problem with eating nuts or legumes. My main source of calories that will sustain me and keep up my blood sugar between meals are whole grains and root vegetables. My husband eats a lacto ovo vegetarian diet, with occasionally some fish when we eat out. Yes, I do cook different foods for him than for me, but there are many things we can both eat, and I have a lot of good recipes my husband loves as much as I do. Please do not discount a vegan diet as being unsustainable or unhealthy. It’s not for everyone, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad for everyone either.
I’d like to know what ex vegans/vegetarians think of the taste of quorn and other meat substitutes after they have gone back to meat for a while. I think vegans only find the taste nice because their bodies are craving meat and quorn tastes a little like it. To me it tastes similar to meat that I might eat because the next day it would have to be thrown out because it’s going off, not wanting to waste it. Mainly though, it tastes like what it is. Processed mould.
I suffer from high uric acid which led to gout. My elder cousin fixed his issues by going vegetarian, so I thought I’d give it a try. Bc I’m also lactose intolerant basically became vegan. Then went raw vegan and lost a lot weight but felt good, always just really cold and kind of annoyed. Turned out I was severely low in b12, iron, and salt so the doctor told me I should probably consider adding animal fats to my diet. You can do everything in moderation, eat meat conscientiously, and still be concerned about the planet. Just don’t need to eat meat everyday or for every meal. That being said, Christians/Muslims that eat meat 3 meals a day, every day just makes me so grossed out. I enjoy meat but THAT amount is unhealthy.
For ethical reasons I would love to be vegetarian or even vegan because what we do to our life stock is beyond cruel. I just cannot convince myself that plants only is suitable for humans no matter how many happy vegan articles I watch. While we can survive a vegan diet for some years it does not mean we will thrive on it, and sometimes the damage might be irreversible even if you start eating meat or dairy again. I believe meat helped us evolve into what we are: we needed bigger brains to catch our prey and once we had those brains we needed a lot of energy to keep them running. Before agriculture I do not believe that this would have been possible with plants alone.
None of my peers have (I work in the animal welfare industry). For us it’s more about the ethics of eating other animals rather than health, so even if it does take more planning to maintain a well-rounded diet it’s worth it to us. I’m in excellent health as far as my diet goes, so I have no reason to stary eating animal products or meat, anyway.
I was a vegan for a bit. Then I bought some Church’s fried chicken. Along with some peppers, fried okra and a Coke. And a half dozen rolls After the first ” I bought 2 boxes” box of 8pc legs and thighs I arrived in Excelsior Springs Missouri ” I bought the chicken on Vivian rd and N. Brighton in Kansas City ” I was no longer vegan. I did not eat meat for 60 days. I wish Excelsior Springs had a churches chicken.
I have been vegetarian for 7 years and vegan for 3 1/2. Originally it was fantastic. I felt amazing but now I realize it was the elimination of processed foods and increased vegetables and fruits that make me feel amazing. Now 21, I have horrible digestion, chronic migraine, I have not gotten my period in months, my hair is falling out and I am constantly sick. Something is not right and I have decided to begin introducing grass-fed, pasteurized farmed meat and eggs back into my diet. For those vegans who say I am not eating well enough is wrong, I eat the cleanest diet out of anyone I know. I manage a health food store and have never felt more unhealthy. Thank you for making this article I am going to continue to heal and listen to my body. I hope I can encourage anyone else who feels the way I do and is nervous about the vegan community backlash.
Thank you for making this article. I’m an ex-vegan, still in recovery from the vegangelical cult. Accepting the cycle of life, that you’re not a filthy, heartless, selfish murderer for consuming animal products, and that you deserve to be happy and healthy just as much as any other creature, can take a very long time. I’m slowly getting there.
I’ve been vegetarian for 4 years and it’s been giving me so many side effects. My doctor has been urging me to go back to a normal diet for my health. I want to, but I will feel terrible. I have nothing against non vegans/vegetarians it’s just how I personally feel. I have been more scared to go back because I was given chicken instead of tofu and didn’t notice and from one piece I was sick all night. I really appreciate this article because it’s not judging and very helpful. ❤️
Vegans are delusional and rude. In many areas in the world people feel blessed to eat meat because they still hunt and gather and they eat with respect and love and understand the cycle of nature. In my opinion you should have a deep connection with your food whether vegan or not this will bring you peace of mind because that’s all that matters. I’m happy to start my paleo diet after being vegan. Most natural way to live.
The idea that anyone should eat any certain way is preposterous. Everyone lives in different parts of the globe, has different DNA and history of food intake in ancestry. I respect animal ethics and environmental preservation in veganism, but imposing it as the absolute right way on people (as i have done before) is silly because our bodies are all so unique. Some people are allergic to peanuts, some people thrive from it! So it cant be completely congruent because everyone has different gut flora, DNA, and living conditions that factor into what diet is more in alignment for them. Animal cruelty is a harsh reality but you can almost always find a local or farm raised source rather than corporate farm or factory farmed. But the idea that eating creatures is diabolic is wrong,because life always has death in it and exists perpetually throughout nature. Thing is, we dont have to be viscious towards animals,we can respect and honor them. Eating a cow by giving it sudden death can yes unfortunately be emotionally challenging for its communion but at the same time will be far less painless than it to get sick and die slowly and painfully… “Right” and “wrong”, “good” and “evil/bad”are dualistic concepts that dont reflect the ultimate truth and constrict consciousness. “Right” can be more equated to intuition and wrong can be ignorance. But no idea itself is wrong or right in absolutism. Nature proves this through its relentless fury but equally its abundant resource The truth is that no ego makes it out alive so if i got eaten by a shark or a bear so be it.
I’m really struggling with this, I was vegan for 2 1/2 years and vegetarian for another when I was pregnant with my son, now I’m pregnant again with a daughter and I feel like I’m starving and I dont have any energy not to mention I’m still weaning my son off breastfeeding I only have interest in chicken, Turkey and lunch meats right now but I haven’t started eating anything. I’m struggling because I know I’m hungry and I know I need to eat a full satisfying meal to provide for my son and daughter but I’ve raised my son vegetarian for a year, he’s never had meat but he’s starting to show interest in it. It’s very hard for me because I really truly love animals and just the thought of eating them makes me sick to my stomach, we have a cow pasture just down the street from us and all the females have recently had babies and knowing what’s going to happen to them just breaks my heart
I tried to go vegan once, my body couldn’t handle it. I tried to go vegetarian, and I was unhealthy. So I decided to still eat meat, but less than what I ate before. When I tell people about this I’m always attacked, people say I wasn’t trying enough and I should follow their diet. But I’d rather stick with my doctor’s instructions.
You bring up a good point, which is that when you stop eating meat, and especially dairy, you lose the gut flora to digest these things. This is why you may have to start small. Vegans don’t realize that by excluding themselves from dairy, for example, they are actually making it so that their gut flora no longer digests it very well. However, according to Savaiano of Perdue University, it is possible to slowly reintroduce these animal-products (milk in particular) if you do it in a slow way.
I have had hair falling out (until my wavy hair started looking straight), years of back pain, joint pain, teeth breaking down and many other problems, and after perusal Lierre Keith’s article, everything clicked, ‘oh so I don’t have some random diseases wrecking my body and health, at the same time, but it was my diet’… I drank bone broth yesterday, barely kept it in, I absolutely hate the smell and taste of meat and even bone broth. I hate the taste of eggs and milk, so I usually eat eggs hard boiled and with sauerkraut or kimchi or sriracha with sauerkraut. How can I get used to the smell and taste?? I don’t think I can ever eat meat, the texture is disgusting. What can I do to make the taste bearable? How long does it take to get used to/like it? Btw, I have a very strong sense of smell, i only recently realized I could smell stuff others couldn’t or barely did. So that makes it harder, but I would appreciate your thoughts!
Awesome article Catalina! My husband and I tried the vegetarian diet for a few months and one food network program that had a guy marinating and then slowly grilling chicken had my hubby craving meat… (LOL) God created it, Blessed it, and so we eat meat again. We do however try to eat only lean meat. Blessing & Take Care, 🙂 Peaches
Thank you for this. Slowly transitioning back to animal meats and you are very right about it being more of a mental than physical thing. It’s something I am trying to work through but I know eventually I will just have to give in and give my body what it NEEDS and drop the guilt part of it. My main focus will be getting my food from the best ethically sourced places possible✨
One commenter fears being labeled a “filthy, heartless, selfish murderer” for eating meat. “Filthy” would be a non-sequitur, obviously. “Murder” is a legal term for unlawful killing of another human being. Very tribal, we humans are. “Selfish” seems right on the money, since that is the essence of taking another life for one’s own nourishment and pleasure. “Heartless” also seems accurate, in the sense that killing another for one’s own sustenance and pleasure clearly shows a lack of empathy, and the acceptance of inflicting pain and suffering on the living beings one enjoys eating. A better critique of vegetarianism would be to point out that plants are also living beings.
I worry about the effect animal agriculture is having on the planet and the animals who have to die. In ten years time if people continue to consume animal products the way we are now the planet and all that live are going to suffer, The sad thing is that a lot of people are not doing a vegan diet correctly they just give up without looking into researching the causes of thier issues and finding the best solutions without having to consume animal products. I struggled at first but found out what foods i could eat and what i couldnt and what I needed to supplement, I dont get why people say thier hair is thinning my hair is thicker than ever, blood levels perfect ect. I just feel we need to take a good look at what we are doing to this planet and its animals. I dont think it is possible to help everyone to go vegan but maybe think about cutting certain animal products out and cutting thier meat consumption down to once or twice a week instead and maybe even less over time.
Hi beautiful Catalina I hope you are doing well. I’ve been switching back and forth between a vegan diet and a high fat low carb paleo diet and I am little bit confused. Although I feel way much better with the HFLC diet, I am still hesitant to consume animal products such as eggs or milk because of the hormones it contains. I have endometriosis and high levels of estrogen . Any thoughts/ advices?
and if you put in mummies and heart disease more studys come up there seems to be no way to escape heart disease if it is your destiny. I still think it could be a Nutritional deficiencies of some kind not vegan or paleo or even sugar all thoe sugar can cause nutritional deficiencies and inflammation I have studied this topic alot can’t figure it out.
dogs are I believe are 95 percent and monkeys are 99 percent when it comes to dna with us and that is what I wrote. that 1 percent makes a big difference we adapted to eating meat and that grew our brains and that is why we drive and do all the wonderful things we do. cardboard probably couldn’t grow a brain or at least a healthy one lol
I do paleo with goat kefir cheese and yogurt beause of you Catalina I was vegan before and I love the way I eat now but I still worry about cholesterol and heart disease. scientists ct scaned some mummies and found most of them had heart disease the mummies were from different cultures most of them ate a paleo diet just makes me wonder one of the scientists said he is so confused on how to eat after this.
I’ve been eating meat for 22yrs, If she says eating meat is healthy then I don’t know what to believe in, cause I was been diagnosed with severe asthma, drop in bone density and I was skinny as hell, but I went Vegan for animals, not for health reasons. then few months later I realized the health benefits and I kid you not I’m not suffering from asthma anymore, I’m very active in my life I’ve gained adequate weight and I’m loving it.. this self-proclaimed nutritionist spread wrong shit about Vegans and Veganism and people who say it’s a life cycle and other crap trust me you’ve been brainwashed from centuries…LOL just admit it you don’t care about animals or the planet you just need those few minutes of satisfaction…
Hi people of the YouTube comments! Guys… please stick with your vegan diets!! No, meat is not good for you and neither is milk or eggs. Catalina ( you are awesome btw ) is talking about vegans who don’t eat a well balanced diet. There are so many ways of getting everything you need without killing and torturing a defenceless animal that didn’t want to die. ( Also this is not me shoving veganism down anyone’s throat this is me opening up a conversation ) Thanks 🙂