Kicking “the meat habit”
June 11th, 2008 by admin
If there’s someone in your life who is leaning towards vegetarianism, there are two items on the web this week that would be great to share with them.
The first is a video on the website of the Sun-Sentinel newspaper that explains the dramatic environmental benefits of a vegan diet. Click here to watch the video.
Also, in today’s New York Times, best-selling cookbook author Mark Bittman writes about eating less meat- not why people should, but how to “ease your path to eating less meat.” Bittman gives some excellent tips on cooking and eating out without meat, but he begins his column by dispelling the protein myth. Bittman writes, “Roughly simultaneously with your declaration that you’re cutting back on meat, someone will ask ‘How are you going to get enough protein?’” Bittman explains that not only do plants have protein but, per calorie, many plants have more protein than meat. The truth is, as Bittman points out, “Americans eat about twice as much as the 56 grams of daily protein recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture.” If you eat a variety of plant foods, getting enough protein is not going to be a problem.