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At lunch time on any given day, first-year biology major Diana Macmahon enters Stodder Commons and foregoes the hot plates of beef stew, chicken fingers and steak kabobs in favor of stir fry, wraps or vegetable lo mein. But if that doesn’t work, there’s always the salad bar.
“A lot of the time I don’t like the entrees,” said Macmahon. “The sandwich bar is OK, but I always insist that the sandwich maker puts on new gloves. That way, if they just made a ham sandwich before, they don’t get ham slime all over my food.”
Macmahon is part of a growing population at the University of Maine: vegetarians.
Vegetarianism is a lifestyle in which the participants eat a meatless diet. The term vegetarianism is a misnomer, as even the strictest vegetarians usually eat more than vegetables per se. Most enjoy fruits, beans, nuts and almost anything else that is not derived from animals. Some vegetarians will also eat eggs and dairy products, as well.
There are three basic categories of vegetarians. Vegans are the most dedicated vegetarians, eating only plant products and no fish, eggs or dairy products at all. In some cases, vegans will not eat any kind of animal-derived food, including honey. Lactovegetarians eat dairy products, but not eggs or fish. Ovolactovegetarians include eggs and dairy products in their diets, but no meat or fish.
People choose to become vegetarians for many reasons and for some, religion is the deciding factor. Hindus, Buddhists, Moslems and Seventh Day Adventists are, of a necessity, vegetarian.
For other people, like Macmahon, the decision to become vegetarian is inspired by other factors.
“I choose this way because I think the way they turn animals into meat is disgusting,” said Macmahon, who became a vegetarian five years ago. “Meat is absolutely disgusting and repulsive to me and I don’t think I could eat it if I had a gun to my head.”
“My decision came about not unlike Lisa Simpson’s decision to be a vegetarian,” says senior English education major and ovolactovegetarian Bridget Madden.
“One day, my family had lamb chops for dinner and I felt so horrible, I almost threw up,” Madden said. “I just felt bad about eating such a cute animal. And after that day, I realized I felt bad about eating all animals.”
Other students have discovered edible preferences through classes.
“I was in a philosophy class in which we were discussing various moral problems, and one week we did animal rights. I realized that with the beliefs I have it was totally hypocritical to continue eating meat,” says senior political science major Brea Williams, who passed her one-year anniversary as a vegetarian this month. “Morally, taking the life of another being just seems unconscionable given that it’s completely unnecessary to live a full and healthy life.”
A healthy life is one of the largest reasons people become vegetarians. Vegetarian diets tend to be low-fat, high fiber and vitamin-rich, which promote health in a number of ways. It reduces the risk of heart disease, cataracts and strokes. Studies have also concluded that diets rich in fruits, vegetables and grains can reduce cancer rates.
Just as a vegetarian diet can promote good health with what it includes, it can prove beneficial through what it excludes. Diets rich in meat and high fat dairy products are known to be contributing factors to heart disease and cancer, while reducing fat in the diet may reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. Switching to vegetarianism can also sometimes ease the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis.
However, vegetarianism limits the number of options a practitioner has to get a number of essential nutrients. The most common deficiency is a lack of vitamin B12, which occurs naturally solely in animal products. Vitamin D, which comes from sunlight and fortified milk, is also frequently lacking in vegetarian diets. To counter such problems, which are usually rare, most experts recommend that vegetarians regularly take nutritional supplements or multivitamin pills.
With their range of acceptable foods already limited, many UMaine vegetarians are frustrated by the lack of cuisine choices offered in a meat-oriented culture.
“The hardest thing about being a vegetarian is eating at restaurants,” said Williams. “You can usually find at least one thing that you can eat, but it’s often the same everywhere.”
“Subway is the only fast food place that I can eat at,” said Macmahon. “The other night I was at a Ground Round and was impressed that I had 4 meals to choose from, but all the meat-eating people probably had over 50.”
Madden found similar discouragement.
“I dislike how hard it can be to find a variation of things to eat when I go out to eat,” said Madden. “However, I am finding more and more places have vegetarian items on their menus because the movement is growing.”
Opinions are mixed concerning UMaine’s efforts to serve its vegetarian population. Of the four dining commons on campus, only Stodder Commons offers a vegetarian line, called Beans n’ Greens, as an alternative to its regular fare.
Williams professes to be a “a fan of Stodder Commons. They usually have a good selection and the food is actually pretty good.”
“My experience is that Stodder Commons is amazing with their vegetarian [and] vegan selections,” said Angela Fileccia, a graduate student in the school of social work.
Not everyone is so easily convinced. Valerie Martin, a senior biology major and vegan of two years, disagrees.
“Last year at Stodder Commons, I ate a salad almost every meal due to lack of choice. On those special theme nights, it’s impossible for me to eat since they get rid of the salad bar.”
Sandra Donahue, Dining Service Manager at Stodder Commons, says that Stodder’s Beans n’ Greens program has improved vegetarians’ options since its inception in the mid-nineties.
“When I took over the line back in ’97, vegetarians were offered three choices of entree,” said Donahue. “I decided that the vegetarians and vegans here deserved the same amount of choices as everybody else . I spent a lot of time doing research and coming up with new recipes, and I think I’ve compiled about 120.”
Donahue adds the menu is an “ongoing process,” and she adds and deletes items to accommodate students’ tastes and preferences.
“In the very beginning there was a lot of critical feedback,” said Donahue. “This year, I haven’t heard anything one way or another. I think most vegetarians are happy with what we’re offering, which is good.”
Maintaining a colorful, varied diet isn’t the only challenge out there. For many vegetarians, their lifestyle change has social ramifications of varying degrees as well.
“Some people, for some reason, get really defensive when they find out you are a vegetarian,” said Madden.
“Probably the most challenge I’ve had with a group of people has been my own family,” said Fileccia. “Cause, you know, I’d come home for dinner and my mom would cook regular meals, and I wouldn’t eat it. I think that was really hard for them to rectify, but they’ve gotten over it.”
Even still, most UMaine vegetarians think giving up meat is a choice worth making.
“There’s an instant connection that you get with other vegetarians a lot of times,” said Fileccia. “Having vegetarianism in common with someone is often a quick connecting bond because . you know that the fellow vegetarian has experienced the same things as you.
“I actually like how creative you have to be with your food,” Fileccia continues. “I’ve ended up using products that I don’t think I would have eaten otherwise like tofu or soy milk. In order to get variation in my diet, I had to learn recipes from other cultures like Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Latin American countries, African countries, Indian, etc.”
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