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Throughout the year, the Mac Veggie Club seeks to promote a healthy vegetarian lifestyle, to educate the McMaster community about vegetarianism and to debunk myths about vegetarianism. All of March, the Mac Veggie Club will be promoting the worldwide movement Meatless Mondays. Please go to http://www.meatlessmonday.co m and pledge to give up meat on Mondays! If you are already a vegetarian or vegan, why not convince a friend or a family member to try it out for the month? There are multiple reasons (very good ones at that) to give up meat on Mondays.

Get involved! Pledge to eat vegetarian on Mondays! Join us every Monday in March, as well as March 10th, in the student center, and don’t forget to pick up the second annual Mac Veggie Club Cookbook!

We will also be having a bake sale on March 14th as well as an outing to Mex-I-Can on March 25th (meeting at the student center 7pm in front of Compass).



Key Benefits of Meatless Monday

FOR YOUR HEALTH

• REDUCE HEART DISEASE
  Beans, peas, nuts and seeds contain little to no saturated fats. Reducing saturated fats can help keep your cholesterol low, and cut risk of cardiovascular disease.
  
  
• LIMIT CANCER RISK
  Hundreds of studies suggest that diets high in fruits and vegetables can reduce cancer risk. Red meat consumption is associated with colon cancer.
  
  
• FIGHT DIABETES
  Research suggests that plant-based diets – particularly those low in processed meat – can reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes.
  
  
• CURB OBESITY
  People on low-meat or vegetarian diets have significantly lower body weights and body mass indices. A plant-based diet is a great source of fiber (absent in animal products). This makes you feel full with fewer calories, ie. lower calorie intake and less overeating.
  
  
• LIVE LONGER
  Red and processed meat consumption is associated with increases in total mortality, cancer mortality and cardiovascular disease mortality.
  
  
• IMPROVE YOUR DIET
  Consuming beans or peas results in higher intakes of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium with lower intakes of saturated fat and total fat.

FOR YOUR WALLET

• CUT WEEKLY BUDGET
  Food prices continue to rise. Current increases are especially sharp in packaged items and meat, which require extra expenses like feed and transportation. Forgoing meat once a week is a great way to cut the weekly budget.
  
  
• CURB HEALTHCARE SPENDING
  Treatment of chronic preventable diseases accounts for 70% of total U.S. healthcare spending. By reducing our risk for these conditions, we can curtail healthcare spending nationwide.

FOR OUR PLANET

• REDUCE CARBON FOOTPRINT
  The UN estimates the meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that accelerate climate change.
  
  
• MINIMIZE WATER USAGE
  The water needs of livestock are huge, far above those of vegetables or grains. An estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef.
  
  
• REDUCE FUEL DEPENDENCE
  On average, about 40 calories of fossil fuel energy go into every calorie of feed lot beef in the U.S. (compared to 2.2 calories of fossil fuel for plant-based protein).
  From http://www.meatlessmonday.co m/spread-the-movement/

For menu ideas, check out the recipe section of our website www.macveggieclub.com .

Great idea!

Meatless would go a long way if it wasn't so complicated.

One thing I hate about meatless dishes is the amount of ingredients require compared to the meat counterpart.

It just seems like if you go the meatless route, you have to make a conscious effort to have a variety.

I'm probably wrong though.

I'll try it... only its SOOO hard to ask for unhealthy greasy nasty cheeze Pizza Pizza pizza, when theres yummy scrumptious tasty unhealthy greasy nasty pepperoni Pizza Pizza pizza...
(what I usually eat on Mondays)

Originally Posted by PHLN

Great idea!

Meatless would go a long way if it wasn't so complicated.

One thing I hate about meatless dishes is the amount of ingredients require compared to the meat counterpart.

It just seems like if you go the meatless route, you have to make a conscious effort to have a variety.

I'm probably wrong though.

You're not entirely wrong. There are some dishes that require a lot of extra effort to make up for the lack of meat, but that's only a small percentage. Being a vegetarian is actually really easy, especially now.

Also, soy ftw. FTW

Originally Posted by AelyaS

You're not entirely wrong. There are some dishes that require a lot of extra effort to make up for the lack of meat, but that's only a small percentage. Being a vegetarian is actually really easy, especially now.

Also, soy ftw. FTW

I'm wrong a lot so that isn't a surprise.

Are you a vegetarian?

I hate soy. The texture just turns me off. Tried it steamed and stir-fried.

Originally Posted by PHLN

I'm wrong a lot so that isn't a surprise.

Are you a vegetarian?

I hate soy. The texture just turns me off. Tried it steamed and stir-fried.

I'm not a vegetarian, but I'm not a huge meat eater either. Chicken mostly, and occasionally red meat if my mom gets on my case about iron (she's deficient and thinks I might be as well). I love vegetarian food though.

I love soy, but steamed soy sounds disgusting.

I think about going back to veganism sometimes. When it's done properly, there are so many health benefits to it. It was really difficult to keep on top of it at times, though. Perhaps other people never ran into this problem, but I found it really expensive at times (vitamin supplements, etc.) compared to the expense of my grocery trips now.

Most vegans can rely on foods that are fortified with B12 and other nutrients that are absent from a vegan diet as well as supplements, so it's really not as difficult as it seems. My doctor recommended I see a nutritionist for a little while to make sure I was doing it properly, so I did that for a couple of months. That helped a lot to reassure me that I wasn't making myself unhealthy by cutting out meat sources.

Can't stand soy/soy milk at all. I used rice milk with everything, and I still do out of habit. In cooking, it's virtually no different. Not something I'd drink on its own, though - too thin.

For the MacMeat Club members are going to triple their rations of meat in response to the MacVeggie club

Maddox inspired

Originally Posted by AelyaS

I'm not a vegetarian, but I'm not a huge meat eater either. Chicken mostly, and occasionally red meat if my mom gets on my case about iron (she's deficient and thinks I might be as well). I love vegetarian food though.

I love soy, but steamed soy sounds disgusting.

Ahh. Maybe that is why you don't see the complicated nature of going on a meatless diet. My understanding is that you really need to watch the nutrient you take in when you don't rely on the easiness of meat.

Should try out the desert version of steamed soy. I don't like it, but it is a big hit. Can be found in most Asian Supermarket.

Originally Posted by alh24

I think about going back to veganism sometimes. When it's done properly, there are so many health benefits to it. It was really difficult to keep on top of it at times, though. Perhaps other people never ran into this problem, but I found it really expensive at times (vitamin supplements, etc.) compared to the expense of my grocery trips now.

Most vegans can rely on foods that are fortified with B12 and other nutrients that are absent from a vegan diet as well as supplements, so it's really not as difficult as it seems. My doctor recommended I see a nutritionist for a little while to make sure I was doing it properly, so I did that for a couple of months. That helped a lot to reassure me that I wasn't making myself unhealthy by cutting out meat sources.

Can't stand soy/soy milk at all. I used rice milk with everything, and I still do out of habit. In cooking, it's virtually no different. Not something I'd drink on its own, though - too thin.

How long were you able to keep up the vegan diet?

Did you find that beside the research time, preparing food also took longer being a vegan?

I actually like Bridges.

So I guess now I'll sorta have an excuse to go there more often...

Meat is what kept your ancestor alive. Eat it, love it, get strong from it. Dessert soy? my god....

Originally Posted by PHLN

Ahh. Maybe that is why you don't see the complicated nature of going on a meatless diet. My understanding is that you really need to watch the nutrient you take in when you don't rely on the easiness of meat.

As someone who doesn't eat a lot of animals to begin with, I have to watch my nutrient intake as well. I'd think that the process of seeking out nutrients from sources other than meat can only be difficult for someone who eats a lot of it.

Originally Posted by PHLN

How long were you able to keep up the vegan diet?

Did you find that beside the research time, preparing food also took longer being a vegan?

Research only took up a lot of time until I established what I liked and what I didn't like. At first, I was definitely in the "I need to eat X amount of this food/food group in order to stay healthy" mindset. It's a little difficult getting started because it's new, and I had to think a lot about what I was eating and whether or not I was eating properly. After a month or so, it wasn't so systematic and seemed familiar.

It was kind of discouraging when I realized I have absolutely no taste for traditional meat substitutes (e.g., tofu, soy), because I had mistakenly thought those were necessary staples in a vegan/vegetarian diet. But that really doesn't matter that much unless you're seeking out something to replace meat not in nutrients, but in texture. There are always so many foods that can replace the nutrients from meat, and in the case of B12, there are supplements and fortified food to replace that. In my opinion (and some will disagree), if you're looking for something that feels and tastes like meat in soy/tofu, you're not going to find it.

I honestly can't recall how long I did this. I want to say a year, but I'd be lying if I said I was anywhere over 50% sure of that.

EDIT: I'm sorry, I didn't answer part of your question. If I recall correctly, preparation took significantly less time than it does for me currently.

Originally Posted by thedog123123

Meat is what kept your ancestor alive. Eat it, love it, get strong from it. Dessert soy? my god....

Vegetables are what kept your ancestors from regularly finding blood in their systems. Eat it, love it, don't spend an hour going 'HRRRNNNNNNNNNGGGGGUU UUHHHH' every few days from it.

And I can't think of any dessert with meat in it off the top of my head (well depending on whether or not you count eggs)

One of the reasons we're the top animals on earth is the fact that we take advantage of the fact we're consuming all the nutrients that other animals have already taken the time to collect (i.e. by eating a cow). Most vegetarian options on campus suck.

Why is it that most of those cheap pre-wrapped sandwiches are meat, and the only veg stuff consist of unfilling or gross alternatives such as tomato & lettuce and egg crap?

Why can't there be a quick pasta supply in La Piazza? I don't care for wasting 10 minutes in line to buy a magical custom pasta?

Obviously there is the trade-off of accumulating cholesterol that leads to vascular disease (health arugment in original post), but in place of having cheap 'vegetarian' options on campus (that taste decent), I'll stick to meat eating... :(

I'll still announce my 'almost-veggieness', because awareness at this point in time is more important than actual practice (meat eaters outnumber vegan/veges by a lot)..


Bridges seems nice but its far too out of the way compared to just popping into the hospital cafeteria between classes or before going home.