What is Flexitarianism?
Introduction and Tips to Become a Semi-Vegetarian
Coined in the early '90s the term flexitarianism has been defined as 'vegetarians who occasionally eat meat', which according to a spokesman for The Vegetarian Resource Group amounts for 40 per cent of the American population.
But before you think it's another fad, think again. This interest in eating less meat dates all the way back to 1992 when chef Helga Morath described the cuisine she served at the Acorn Café in Austin, Texas as 'flexitarian fare'.
This year there's been a revival with registered dietician Dawn Jackson Blatner's new release, The Flexitarian Diet: The Mostly Vegetarian Way to Lose Weight, Be Healthier, Prevent Disease, and Add Years to Your Life, that provides readers with diet-altering tips and delicious recipes that include 'swaps' if you feel like adding red meat, poultry or fish to the meal.
Why Flexitarianism?
The health benefits seem to be the number one reason why people are making the switch, and rightly so. Research conducted by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm found that forty per cent of the women in the study group who ate everything had a high BMI of 25 or more as compared with 29 per cent of ladies who stuck to a veggie diet and ate some fish and dairy.
Similarly, Meatless Monday, a national health campaign in the US encourages eliminating saturated fat once a week in order to lower incidence of the top four diseases: stroke, diabetes, heart attacks and cancer that have been directly linked to its presence in meat and high-fat dairy products.
Their message is simple, eat everything in moderation but incorporate more disease-fighting fish and veggies into your weekly plan. On the website you have access to information from how to read labels to meal planning where you can try your hand at singer Ricky Martin's rice and beans or Hollywood-starlet Susan Sarandon's risotto with asparagus and scallops.
Going Flexitarian
It's advisable to consult a nutritionist or dietician before you embark on a new eating plan to ensure that your diet is providing you with the vitamins and nutrients needed on a daily basis. Here are some pointers from a Dubai-based nutritionist on how to get started.
- Choose darker coloured vegetables to make salads more potent and appetising because the more colourful your vegetable basket the more antioxidants you'll be consuming.
- Include more beans and pulses in your diet because they help stabilise the blood sugar levels and provide a good amount of protein.
- Don't have your diet depend on rice, potato and bread because a carbohydrate-rich diet could lead to diabetes in the long run.
- If you permit yourself dairy, milk is an excellent source of protein but you can also supplement your intake with tofu and soy. Chicken and fish are also good protein sources.
- Take a daily vitamin B complex, which has vitamin C included because it helps in absorption of iron from vegetarian sources.
- Since your meat intake is going to be only once or twice a week, make sure you reap all its benefits when you do. Always have a source of vitamin C with your meal (e.g. lemon juice on your salad) so it helps the absorption of iron.
- Avoid having a side of yoghurt or meat cooked in it since calcium inhibits the absorption of iron.
- Red meat is the only meat which has iron and B12 in it but if you're worried about fat intake just opt for leaner cuts of it or use veal. A 150g portion of it once or twice a week is sufficient.
Cooking Flexi
Seattle-based chef Belinda Guptill suggests adding equal amounts of soy and meat when making casseroles and beefing up stir-fries with tofu to make them more substantial.
Thanks to the popularity of vegetarianism, there are several 'vegetarian' meat options like mycoprotein-based Quorn or meat and soy hybrid products made by Canada's Chris and Tal's Better Foods whose menu includes burgers, meatballs and sausages that are lower on the scale of cholesterol, fat and calories in comparison to the original meat-rich varieties.
But as registered dietician and author Jackie Newgent wrote in her review of Jackson's Flexitarian Diet, "It's a positive, no-guilt approach to eating, which is the most effective approach to healthy eating for a lifetime." So if you are craving some smoked pork sausage, go ahead and have some. Just make sure it's balanced with some vegetables a well.
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