Some people have inherited the gift of vegetarianism from birth. Others are just beginning to realize that meat does more harm than good to health and want to change the way they eat. How can this be done in a reasonable way? Here’s what we recommend for you:
First step: Eliminate all red meat and eat fish and poultry instead. Reduce sugar, salt, and animal fats in your family’s favorite meals. Second phase: Limit your consumption of eggs to three per week. Start cutting back on sugar and salt by reducing the amount you eat when you cook. Eat more fruits and vegetables Instead of regular baked goods and pasta, start eating products made from wholemeal flour. Make sure that your food is varied, but, of course, do not eat all this variety in one sitting. The third stage: Now that your family is beginning to enjoy the variety of vegetarian foods that have been included in your diet, stop eating fish and poultry. Eat fewer eggs. Gradually move to the recipes of the “green-yellow” level. Remember to use grains, fruits, and legumes with a small amount of nuts and seeds Be sure to eat plenty of dark green leafy vegetables such as beet greens, sorrel, nettles, and spinach in spring, summer, and fall. In winter, sprout lentil, mung bean, wheat, alfalfa, radish, and clover seeds for a variety of nutrition. Fourth stage: completely eliminate eggs, fish and meat. The process we recommend for transitioning to a vegetarian diet may be too slow for some. You can speed it up. I would like to warn you right now. Your family members, church members, neighbors, and friends may not immediately understand your desire for healthy food and a healthy lifestyle. They may not be ready for it yet. Perhaps they will be ready for it tomorrow, or perhaps they will never be ready. And yet we know that our approach is correct! We are ready for change. And why are they not? How do we feel about those we love when they say they “know what’s best for them”? A touching confession from a very loving person: “I eat the simplest food prepared in the simplest way. But other members of my family don’t eat what I eat. I do not set myself as an example. I leave to everyone the right to have their own opinion on what is best for them. I am not trying to subordinate the consciousness of another person to my own. No one person can be an example for another in matters of nutrition. It is impossible to formulate a single rule for everyone. There is never butter on my table, but if any member of my family wants to eat some butter outside my table, he is free to do so. We set the table twice a day, but if someone wants to eat something for dinner, there is no rule against it. No one complains or leaves the table disappointed. Simple, wholesome and tasty food is always served on the table.” This confession helps to understand that if we love our friends and family members, then we should let them decide for themselves which food system to follow. Each of us as an individual has a wide range of opportunities. Please read our recommendations carefully. Then try to do them for 10 days.