Vegetarian: A Person Who Only Eats Side Dishes

Dear Journal,

WELL...I recently became 95% Vegan. I have my reasons - and no they do not consist of "feeling sorry" for the animals. I want to be as healthy as possible, and for that reason my husband and I have adopted the "eat meat sparingly" diet - or in other words, the whole foods plant based way of eating. OK, fine, I'll list my reasons...but don't argue with me - because I don't really care what you think.

• A good friend pointed out to me that it is quite strange that humans are the only species that drink another species milk. This got me to thinking....milk is meant for INFANTS! Why I did not realize this sooner, I will never know. Human milk is meant for human babies, cow milk is meant for cow babies. It's not meant for me - end of story.
• Research shows that those who eat meat have a higher risk for disease. I don't want disease.
• Research shows those who eat a whole foods plant based diet are among the healthiest in the world. I'd like to be apart of that.
• The Word of Wisdom says to eat meat sparingly, in times of winter and famine. Last time I checked, I've never been in a famine. And I have a thermostat in my house. I'm convinced that eating meat at Thanksgiving is enough for me.
  

So what do I eat you say? Well I'll tell you

• Whole grains (this means WHOLE - brown rice, quinoa, millet, corn, and oats)
• Legumes and beans
• Veggies and fruits
• Nuts and seeds

What I don't eat

• Meat (fish and poultry)
• Dairy (only 5% of my diet will be dairy)
• Processed foods
• Gluten

I've been eating this way for a few weeks now, and I totally love it. And yes, I get enough protein and I take a B vitamin.