How to stop eating meat

Meat has become an excessively consumed food. Although it is true that it is an important source of animal protein for our body, the recommended amount of meat per week is lower than what most people incorporate into their diet. In fact, meat is not an essential food in our diet, so with the right information and knowledge we can choose a diet absent of meat. This must be done responsibly, since meat provides nutrients that must be replaced when we stop consuming it, since otherwise we could suffer a nutritional deficit and put our health at risk.

If you want to know how to stop eating meat, here we give you some tips that can be very useful. However, do not forget that the best way to eliminate these foods, apart from your will, is to consult a nutritionist who can tell you which diet to incorporate to enjoy good health.

Steps to follow:

1. Step by step. The benefits of eating meat are many, but don”t try to run. It is a great step that you must take little by little, laying down the foundations that will allow your body not to find lack of the nutrients that meat had provided until now. Do not try to stop eating meat overnight, but do it gradually. If you are very used to eating meat, your body could be resentful, so start by reducing your consumption of this type of food. In this article we explain how to reduce your meat consumption.

It is also interesting, if you have not already done so, find out about what it means to be a vegetarian. As? Does stopping meat mean I”m a vegetarian? So is. A vegetarian is one who does not eat meat, which includes poultry, beef, pork, and fish. In addition, vegetarians can also choose to withdraw from their diet any other products derived from animals, such as cheese, milk or eggs. In case of eliminating the latter, we would be talking about someone vegan, so they only eat foods such as fruits, vegetables, rice and other grains and nuts.

2. Seek the help of other vegetarians. Do you know someone who doesn”t eat meat? Great, then talk to him and try to get him to tell you how he managed to stop eating this food. Listening to their experience will help you learn first-hand about the most difficult parts of this process, as well as the advantages that the person experienced when they achieved it. In the event that you share a flat with someone who is vegetarian, the advantages are many, since both of you can follow a vegetarian diet and it will be more difficult for you to fall into the temptation of preparing a hamburger when you see it in the refrigerator.

Having the support of someone who has successfully stopped eating meat will help you learn and make it easier to achieve your goal.

3. Incorporate vegetables into your diet. Start by cutting back on meat and introducing more plant foods. However, note that at this point you should not remove meat from your diet, but progressively reduce its consumption in favor of vegetable products. Make the purchase keeping this in mind and filling the basket with vegetables, legumes, cereals, nuts, rice and fruit. It is recommended that, if until now you have consumed a lot of meat and little fish, you try to balance your meat intake, substituting part of the meat rations for fish.

The goal at this point is to get used to consuming more of the foods that make up the vegetarian diet, reducing meat as much as possible.

4. Make sure you know how to substitute for protein. Once you are aware of the variety of foods that you can use to obtain the benefits of stopping eating meat, you must be sure that you know how to substitute the animal protein that meat has provided you until now. One of the best options is to combine legumes and vegetables, since despite not containing as much protein as meat, they can provide the levels we need if they are combined properly. We must bear in mind that a vegetarian diet is much more complete in terms of vitamins, minerals and trace elements than meat products.

In the case of wanting to stop consuming meat, but not wanting to set aside other products derived from animals, such as dairy products and eggs, these will help us to have the necessary proteins in our body. According to the WHO, an adult needs a total of 0.62 grams of protein per kg of body weight. This amount may vary depending on some particular conditions of each person, such as in the case of pregnant women or people of growing age. So, you must learn to build your own vegetarian menu.

These are the foods that you should incorporate when you stop eating meat:

• Nuts and seeds.
• Dairy products.

Learn all the vegetarian recipes you can. Buying a recipe book or learning from someone who has experience in a vegetarian diet will help you create a wider range of rich and flavorful dishes. Find out about vegetarian products that are a good option to replace meat and accompany your dishes: tofu, sauces such as soy, vegetable oils, etc. Some stores specializing in vegetarian food may surprise you with snacks, desserts, ice creams and other high-quality products that will help you forget about eating meat. In addition, we can also prepare dishes that we have always consumed and that we love like pizza, but using only vegetable products. In this way we will continue eating as we did before but in a healthier way.

5. Find out about the consequences of eating meat. Although this step is not strictly necessary, stopping eating meat has enormous benefits, not only on a personal level, but for animals and the environment. Finding information about the negative effects of consuming meat, as well as the positive ones of removing it from your diet, will help you convince yourself about your goal and will prevent you from giving up.

This article is merely informative, here we do not have the power to prescribe any medical treatment or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.