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Eating a Plant Based Diet

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What are the benefits of eating a plant based diet? And why I became a vegetarian. | A Virtuous Woman #vegetarian #health

I became a vegetarian in November of 1998. Just before Thanksgiving. And just before my 23rd birthday.

At the time I was dating my {now} husband, who was a vegetarian. We’d go out to eat to places like Fudruckers and I’d order a huge burger. He’d get the vegetarian option. We’d go to TGIF’s and I’d get this big juicy steak and he’d order onion rings and a salad.

By this point we’d been dating since January and admittedly he loved to make gross comments while I was eating.

  • “You know that’s a dead animal.”
  • “Did you know it takes 72 hours to digest that steak?”
  • “Have you ever seen meat rotting?”

Yeah. But then he also would tell me the benefits of being a vegetarian.

  • “You know, vegetarians live an average of 8 – 10 years longer than meat eaters.
  • “Colon cancer is almost non-existent in vegetarians.”
  • “You’d feel better if you stopped eating meat.”
  • “The Bible says your body is the temple of God.”

And so it went. As time went on, I ate less and less meat. The idea of hamburgers, fried chicken, and steak just lost it original appeal. {And believe me, I used to think there was no way I could ever give up southern fried chicken, steak, bacon, and bbq shredded pork!} So, a couple of weeks went by and I hadn’t had any meat and then we went to Fudruckers and I ordered my usual massive burger.

I couldn’t even finish half of it. My stomach felt heavy. I noticed a real difference in how I felt.

And that was that.

Now, for me, it was pretty easy. I haven’t regretted my decision to stop eating meat at all. In fact, I am so glad now that I did!

My three oldest children became vegetarians right along with me. I think their ages ranged from 8 – 2 years old. From the time my first child was born, the kids had frequent ear infections, throat infections, and other illnesses. We spent a lot of time each year at the doctor’s office.

Since we stopped eating meat 15 years ago?

I haven’t had to take them back to the doctor since.

Okay, well, my oldest daughter was born with Chron’s Disease, so we did go to the doctor for initial testing. And my other daughter has a circulation problem in her hands and feet. We did go for a diagnosis for that.

As for my two children who have always been vegetarian? Hannah has never been to a doctor. Ever. She was born at home, delivered by her dad and we never took her to a doctor. She’s been the picture of health. My youngest child (also born at home) did contract Meningitis when she was 8 days old and was hospitalized for that. And then when she was 18 months old came down with pneumonia and was hospitalized for that. Otherwise, she’s never needed to see a doctor.

Now, I’m not saying we never get sick, because we do. We catch the occasional virus, flu, or stomach bug. However, very rarely does it ever turn into anything more than that.

There are a lot of reasons why being a vegetarian is good for you and for the environment. Not to mention, God created us to be vegetarian in the Garden of Eden and we’ll all be vegetarian in Heaven!

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