The bell rings as you grudgingly walk toward the lunch line. Not even half way there, the smell of meat hits your stomach. Images from the animal cruelty video your teacher just showed are flashing in your mind. “That’s it,” you think to yourself, “I wont eat meat. I’m going to be a vegetarian.” Confidently, you get in line until you realize it may be harder than you think. Almost everything is meat, so you start justifying. “Well, there are some fish sticks. Vegetarians still eat that, right? Is it easier to start in steps? Is any of this actually healthy?”
Many have had similar experiences, whether it has turned them into a Vegetarian or not. So, what is a vegetarian? How about a Vegan?  Why would someone want to pursue this life style? Is any of this healthy?

Vegetarians don’t eat meat of any kind, including fish. Those who are vegetarians but eat fish are called Pescetarians. Vegans are vegetarians that don’t wear or use any animal product. This means, milk, honey, leather, certain makeup and pills.

Is this healthy? Shane Brown, a Fitness Trainer and Health and Nutrition Consultant, has found it can be if done right. “The biggest thing are complete protein's.” Complete proteins are made up of essential amino acids that we need in our diet, an example being milk. People who don’t drink milk have to combine foods with specific amino acids that make up a complete protein. “Good food combinations would be brown rice and beans, or whole grain bread and peanut butter. Anyone can be a Vegetarian, Vegan, or a Pescetarian as long as they keep track of what foods provide what amino acids in order to create a complete protein.”

Everyone starts for different reasons, either for moral or health reasons. Mrs. Shields, a science teacher at Trabuco Hills, started with both. “I visited a slaughter house and have been a vegetarian since.” For the first ten years she was, until she had children and has been a Pescetarian for the past three. Carlos Canedo, a THHS, started with a little push. “My friend showed me a video on http://www.peta2.com/ and I just stopped eating any meat.” He started February 21, 2011 and has been going strong ever since.

For Mrs. DeGolia, an English teacher at THHS, it was a process that lasted for thirteen years. “It started with health reasons, but then became ethical. Ultimately I quit because it seemed like it had become an idol.” Even though she was a vegetarian for all those years, she does not encourage others to do the same. Instead, she finds doing your “own research and getting informed and not following a fashion” is more effective. Mrs. Degolia feels that since people vary with their needs, they should find what works best for them. Even though she is back to eating meat, her cupboards are filled of organic grains and foods that continues now. “Explore other things, like organic-grass fed meat, sustainable foods, and buy from more local farms,” Said Mrs. Degolia.

This has not been the case for Chris Quintos, a student who has been a vegetarian since he can remember. “I have never been unhealthy, I just eat right.” He receives support from his family who have all been vegetarians almost their whole lives, including his grandparents. “Once in awhile a restaurant will mess up or my friends will try to mess with me, but besides that it’s not that hard.” Canedo relates, “Its hard when all my other friends are eating meat and it smells so good.”

Shields gives advice to newer vegetarians by saying, “Give the animal a personality and you won’t eat it.” Instead of saying beef or pork, say cow or pig. Brown adds, “People are always going to make fun, and it will take time for friends and family to adjust. The most important thing you can do is to stay balanced and not let it take over your life.” Another tip is to start off by removing one kind of meat from your diet at a time. Also, do it when you know you can balance your diet wisely. If you don’t feel you can, then wait until circumstances change. The last thing you want to do is ruin your health.

Have you ever considered being a vegetarian, vegan, or pescetarian? Maybe now is the time to start. Try for a week, and see if it is right for you. If not, then the best thing you can do is keep a balanced diet. After all, at the end of the day, all you have is your health. This can mean physically, emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. Making this life decision affects all parts of your life.