- Michelle Hasan,
Junior psychology major
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Junior arts technology major Martha Warfel prepares herself a vegetarian snack before class. She has been a practicing vegetarian for almost a year.. (Photo by Lisa Bartasius/ Staff Photographer) |
NORMAL -- 11:48 a.m. 11:49 a.m. 11:50 a.m. Class dismissed. You walk outside onto the quad and feel this terrible panging in your stomach. It is lunchtime and you have not eaten since you sleep walked into your 8 a.m. class this morning.
You head toward Main Street, hoping to satiate this basic desire and see up ahead those delicious, welcoming, golden arches of McDonalds. After a few brief moments of deliberating whether to stay on your healthy eating streak or throw your diet restrictions to the wind, you decide that you cannot pass up your old fast food friend.
You are standing in line and your mouth starts to salivate at the thought of a juicy Big Mac, soon to be in transit to your stomach. The delicious, meaty burger will be sure to stop those annoying pangs that keep aching up your body.
Your patience is waning and you listen in on what exactly the guy in front of you is ordering that has the cashier so puzzled. “I’ll have two cheeseburgers, hold the meat please.” You think to yourself, “Really? You came to McDonalds for a non-grilled grilled cheese? Where are you from?”
After you settle from the shock, you walk over and start a conversation with this stranger and realize what your meat mindset has neglected to initially recognize. No, he is not crazy- he is a vegetarian. But your newfound fast food companion is not such a rarity as you might think.
According to the Vegetarian Resource Group’s interactive poll, about 4 to 10 percent of the population follows the dietary restrictions of vegetarianism, with a significant and continuing increase in younger age groups. However, vegetarianism is not as meat and non-meat as people often generalize it to be.
Vegetarians classify themselves into one of four types, lacto-ovo-vegetarian, lacto-vegetarian, vegan and pesco-vegetarian. The most common type, lacto-ovo-vegetarians, confine their diets to dairy, eggs, fruit, vegetables and grains. Lacto vegetarians have much the same limitations, except they additionally exclude eggs. With the most restrictions, vegans avoid all meat, dairy and fish, in addition to all grains and other products that are made with animal products as ingredients. Lastly, pesco-vegetarians refer to those who only exclude meat and poultry from their diet, while allowing fish.
Michelle Hasan, junior psychology major, is a pesco-vegetarian who abstains from eating any meat products at all. For Hassan, the choice to switch from meat to tofu was a personal one. “Deciding to go vegetarian was a conscious, personal choice that I made in high school. Up until that point, I was an avid meat lover. My entire family grew up eating meat,” said Hasan. “I became vegetarian my sophomore year in high school after my sister sent me a video link documenting the inhumane treatment of animals in U.S. slaughterhouses.
After witnessing such horrific acts, I immediately knew that I in no way wanted to endorse the meat industry,” said Hasan. However, in addition to being a part of a cause she is passionate about, Hasan also feels that she reaps some health and lifestyle benefits.
“I feel like I am less tempted to go out to fast food places and indulge in fattening hamburgers. I watch what I eat a bit more than the average person and feel that not eating meat makes me more conscious of making better food choices,” said Hasan.
Hasan is neither preachy about her choice to not eat meat, nor eager to force her vegetarianism on others. Nevertheless, she still encounters some aversive social interactions from avid meat lovers. “The negative reactions that I get from peers are often made in a passive manner. The only thing that bothers me is when people express to me that it is weird or gross that I eat meat substitutes and enjoy tofu and other non-meat meals,” said Hasan.
Like Hasan, everyone has their own reason for becoming a vegetarian, whether it is religious, ethical, health, personal or economical. For instance, most Hindu and Buddhist sects are strict vegetarians and regard meat sources, like the cow, as sacred.
Additionally, as we are in the season of Lent, many Catholics also adopt vegetarianism for the weeks leading up to Easter. And for those feeling the hurt of the economic times, a vegetarian diet is often cheaper than a meat-based diet. Aside from padding your wallet, another one of the many benefits to going veggie is the positive effects it has on your health.
Those who choose this meat-free lifestyle have lowered risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, stroke, obesity and certain cancers. For the fit-focused individual, vegetarians also have been reported to have lower body mass indexes than non-vegetarians and are generally slimmer.
However, there are some risks, such as vitamin and mineral deficiencies, that accompany a vegetarian lifestyle if one does not plan out a well-balanced diet. Particularly with vegans, it is important that individuals take the supplements necessary, such as vitamin B12, which they do not get from their non-animal products. B12 is key to a healthy nervous system and a deficiency can lead to anemia.
Additionally, vegan children are at risk of a vitamin D deficiency that can lead to rickets. However, concerns that arise with a vegetarian diet can be avoided through proper planning and supplements.
Here on campus, the dining centers have plenty of options available for individuals with varying dietary needs. Dianne Feasley, campus dietitian, works with students who have food allergies or special diets, such as vegetarianism, to help educate them on the options ISU has to offer.
“We have a variety of alternatives for students who are vegetarians and make sure every meal offered on the rotating menu has a vegetarian option at all three dining centers, such as the veggie taco,” said Feasley. “Additionally, the grill stations offer three types of vegetarian burgers, black bean, boca and garden. Also, students can enjoy access to the salad bar with a variety of beans and nuts, in addition to tofu, for other protein options."
With the rise in healthier eating becoming more prevalent, the Campus Dining Centers have been renovating their buildings to offer more health-friendly venues. As a part of the Watterson Tower’s dining renovation, Fresh Bites was added to the assortment and offers whole grain options, salads and fresh fruits and vegetables.
However, if students still are having complications with finding variety for their vegetarian needs, they just need to speak up.
“We try to work with students and encourage them to contact us in the dining centers, on the phone or through our website if they’re not happy with the choices that are offered. We want to figure out options that we maybe don’t know about or that are specific to them in order to best suit our students needs,” said Feasley.
However, vegetarian menus are sprouting up other places besides campus dining venues. Fast food royalty Burger King offers a veggie burger and McDonalds in recent years has begun offering a variety of meat-free salads and parfaits.
Plenty of other restaurants also offer vegetarian selections and vegan coffee cravers can get their Starbuck’s fix with a soy milk option. So the next time you’re standing in line, deciding what to eat to hold you over for one more class period, don’t be so quick to shun the veggie burger.