How many times have we heard this, "I'm a vegetarian but..." followed by "....but I eat fish" or chicken or some other quite clearly non-vegetarian item. While this is a pet peeve for many vegetarians, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Clearly, people who are "vegetarian but...." see the value in reducing the amount of meat in their diets, and see vegetarianism as a good thing, though they are just as clearly not vegetarian! Which brings me to my point. The English language just doesn't have a good word for someone who eats a mostly vegetarian diet but occasionally eats fish or chicken. The only word, pescetarian, used to describe a "seafood and vegetarian" diet is awkward, uncommon, and difficult to say and spell. Technically, the word "pollotarian" refers to someone who eats a vegetarian diet with chicken also, but obviously this word is not yet in the common lexicon!Recently, I met a woman who runs what she calls a veggiquarium restaurant, meaning she serves only fish and vegetarian meals. Veggiquarium! I think it's catchy! It makes sense and you don't have to know latin in order to understand what it means, but I'm curious as to what you think. Is "pescetarian" good enough? Or should we adopt this new word into our collective vocabulary - "veggiquarium"?
What do you think? Discuss this in the forum
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Comments
We have a very popular restaurant here that serves mostly vegan food, but also serves a small number of seafood items. They market themselves as “macrobiotic”.
I just say “mostly vegetarian” since I eat vegetarian most meals but not quite always.
I’ve never understood why some people get so bent out of shape by the “vegetarian but” crowd. Why not describe your diet in the way that best gets you the food you want? Playing with different words is fun, but at the end of the day, if I’m telling someone what I eat, it’s probably because that person is about to provide me with food. In which case my priority is getting food that meets my requirements, and I will use whatever language I think most facilitates that. The end.
I call myself a piscatarian [a former vegetarian who now must eat fish because of diabetes]. “Piscatarian” was based on Pisces. But back to the question at hand. I prefer piscatarian to pescetarian; either refers to a person. “Veggiquarium” is a very clever word to describe a restaurant.
What happened to “flexitarian”?
Interesting thoughts on vegetarian terms yes. And I agree people who are ‘vegetarian but’ are not actually Pure Vegetarians therefore should maybe use another label for themsleves (whatever suits them best). Afterall “fish is not a vegetable”.
Fruit, eggs and grains are not vegetables either. Calling oneself mostly vegetarian is a sure way to be served up luncheon meat.
Calling yourself vegetarian but also eating non-vegetarian food is not just a matter of ignorance causing irritation to normally peacful vegos, it can cause actual problems. On a team-building course last year, the two other vegos (I’m vegan) were most put out to be offered food containing chicken and fish when they had clearly identified themselves as veggie.
“Oh” said the chef, “we’ve had people here who said they were vegetarian, and then got stuck into the chicken and fish, so we just thought…”
It also caused a problem where this remote restaurant obtained specialist food (e.g. tofu / soy milk) only to find out that the “faketarians” weren’t actually that strict. Big pain for a commercial organisation trying to cater for personal choice.
I agree it’s a good start on a healthy and ethical diet, but people should really stick to “mostly vego” as a label, to make sure people know what you really mean.
Perfect example, Shane, to respond to the earlier question why some of us consider this an important issue.
I’ve heard Macrobiotic as well… but i usually just hear the term pescetarian… I like the new term- it’s much cuter
I think the term is Fussy Meat Eater … I personally find it as insulting to my intelligence and the definition of vegetarian as as a Jew would to find that his kosher dish contains pork scratchings!
Pescetarian, vegetarian it isn’t.
If it’s got a face or has been a cartoon character.. easy – don’t eat it.
What about Veggietales? Those vegetables have been cartoon characters, so does that mean we shouldn’t eat them as well?
I lol’d. Hard.
I’m vegetarian but I eat bacon???
Chow.com just posted an interesting Q/A with this title. Thought the readers here might like to check it out. http://www.chow.com/stories/10125
this is the stupidest article i have ever read. Pescetarian is no harder to say than vegetarian, it is the same number of syllables with two slightly different sounds. I certainly am not fluent in latin but almost everyone knows that “pesce” refers to fish. Veggiquarium is a stupid word and no easier to say or spell. And really, who even cares, anyway? thanks for dumbing down reality, about.com/google.
Yaaaaaaay, this is the only good comment
Macrobiotic is actually something a bit different – a diet developed for nutritional purposes, which is basically whole vegan foods (ie. nothing processed or refined) and fish. I’m quite surprised to hear that so many of you are familiar with the term “pescetarian” as most people I know have never heard of it before! Very interesting feedback!
Oh wow – thanks for sharing, Amy! Please don’t tell me we all have to add “baconarian” to our pop lexicon now….
Who cares what you call it? Why such a concern?
Wouldn’t a pescetarian be someone who only eats fish?
While I don’t feel it’s my place to tell others how they are allowed to identify, I will say that it’s frustrating when people tell me that all the other vegetarians they know will eat fish/chicken/whatever.
I would personally just call these people omnivores who don’t like pork or beef. I wouldn’t apply any sort of -tarian label to someone who eats sentient beings. I definitely respect people’s right to define themselves, but I’d probably say something to them like, “I’ve noticed that the major vegetarian groups share the understanding that vegetarians don’t eat any sort of meat. It sounds like maybe you’re more of an omnivore-who-doesn’t-eat-certain-things.” I’m not going to play the “I insist that you stop identifying as vegetarian” game though, because it feels really immature and intrusive. It’s better to educate people in a respectful way than to be divisive.
What about mollusks (clams, oysters, mussels, scallops)? “Mollusco-tarian”?, “Bivalvetarian”? Most scientists do NOT regard bivalves as ‘sentient’. Some creatures higher up the animal chain are more debatable (re: “self-awareness” of being alive), e.g. shrimp. Thanks, HJ
If it’s got a face or has been a cartoon character.. easy – don’t eat it.
Hmm, have you not seen Veggie Tales?
I call myself a piscatarian [a former vegetarian who now must eat fish because of diabetes].
Can I suggest that you visit a more skilled nutritionist, if you’re interested in being able to still follow an animal-friendly and planet-friendly diet? It’s absolutely possible to get the proper nutrition for anyone’s particular body by only eating plant-based foods. It requires some planning and some education, but it’s just simply not true that any person “must” eat animal products to meet their nutritional needs. Maybe talk to a local vegetarian group to see if they know a veg*n-savvy nutritionist in your area? Also, keep in mind that most physicians have never taken a course in nutrition, if this is where you’re getting your information.
I was one such person who ate fish only. I tried to avoid vegan conversations for fear of offending a true Vegetarian or vegan as I knew I didn’t have a leg to stand on. Maybe with the dairy I could find a name for it… but not the fish. I knew there was nothing to identify my eating habits. But check this out, I took the plung after 10 years and now I eat no dairy, no fish, no bleached whites no cane sugar or refined stuff… and it’s been a wild month… I dropped 15 pounds immediately and feel healthier than I’ve ever felt.
No more excuses or exceptions for me and it’s alllll good.
I realize now when I say vegetarian, it’s just that… and so much easier to order in a restaurant now. (smile)
I am a vegetarian and my dd’s ages 5 and 9 are pescetarians. They are comfortable using it and explaining what it means.
Fish and Chipocrit.
i use pescetarian as well – i was vegetarian for decades but began having to eat wild fish on occasion for my arthritis .. – as pesce means fish – it seems to be the perfect word ..
The response re: catering issues makes an important point about the practical impact of part-time omnivores calling themselves vegetarians. My concern is more about the feeling that the word vegetarian invokes. For me, a flexitarian who identifies as vegetarian recalls for me the reborn virgins of my high school days. For many vegetarians, the lifestyle is a personal sacrifice.
Language matters. Words carry implied meaning. Flexitarians are no more vegetarians than born-again virgins are virgins.
Fish and Chipocrit.
I LOVE it!! As a vegetarian of 20 years, my term for someone who calls him/herself a vegetarian but also eats animals is simple: hypocrit. Sorry to offend anyone, but to be a sort-of vegetarian is like being sort of pregnant. PICK A PRINCIPLE AND LIVE BY IT.
I’m please to hear of a Vegequarium as that describes me I went for a long time with no meat chicken or fish. I have recently added seafood to my diet for more balance. However I would never go back to a meat diet. I know that hypocritical but that is my choice.
Any word that ends with -quarium suggests that it was swimming when the restaurant chef caught it to cook. The word pescetarian is more straightforward, and does not connote such “live-from-the-aquarium” understanding.
In Thailand, macrobiotics is well-known and widely practiced. It is regarded more as a lifestyle, complete with body-mind training. The emphasis is on wisdom, not just how to maintain this body in this very life.
Being attached to any “labels” bring suffering. Emotional vegetarians who have confrontational view of “us” against “them”, regrettably, have lost sight of the whole picture of life. They do not seem to be spiritually mature enough to understand why human beings are born in this world for. Lighten up! Well, may be “Get Enlightened,” is more appropriate. There is so much to life than whipping up anger and calling someone hypocrite. Such attitude, accumulated over time, would not do anyone good, especially in time of death when one realizes, may be a little too late, that the world is merely an illusion.
My husband is Indian, and he has a pure veg diet; ie, vegetables and dairy products only, no eggs/meat/fish/poultry. The restaurants he likes call themselves ‘pure vegetarian restaurants’. This is for religious and cultural reasons.
I think some of us get a bit too rattled by these words, but I do agree that in the effort to save time and energy some type of clear definition is necessary. Often telling people that I don’t eat red meat is enough, but sometimes when I am feeling wordy I will say ovo-lacto-pescatarian. Most people will giggle at this, an ask even if they have an idea, I don’t mind mostly though as it creates a dialogue that gets the topic of eating a more vegetarian diet out there. I would be completely vegetarian were it not for the soy allergy…
I like the word “piscatarian”! That’s a word which accurately describes our lifestyle.
Thank you, Thailand, for your comment. I have struggled for years trying to be a pure vegetarian. With a full-time job, a toddler at home and a husband who would never in a million years consider giving up meat, it’s impossible to force my lifestyle upon my family and keep peace in the house. Since I do most of the cooking, I prepare veggie meals probably 85% of the time and then fish (and occasionally chicken) the other part of the time. The chicken I get from an organic farm, which probably doesn’t mean much to you who like to throw the word hypocrite around so casually, but it’s better than doing nothing.
Pure vegetarians should be evangelists for the cause and educate and teach, not criticize. It’s a huge lifestyle change to give up meat when it’s been a mainstay of your diet for a majority of your life, especially in such a meat-eating society.
I never heard of pescatarian but actually like how it sounds. Or you could say “pesco-vegetarian” (like ovo/lacto vegetarian). However, the person who suggested calling one’s self “mostly-vego” had a point. If I eat fish about once a month, and the rest of the time I am a pure vegetarian, then “mostly vegetarian” is a good term for me. This would not make me a hypocrite.
I was vegan for a year until I added some fish recently. I dont eat dairy (Im allergic) and I dont like chicken, pork or red meat. I suppose I fall into this category ‘vegequarium’. Ive given up on labeling myself. Life is here to enjoy and not to judge others by what they eat.
I am a vegetarian, but after reading the posts on this site I wonder if some vegetarians are truly interested in the cause or simply putting others down. Who cares what we call ourselves!
I have been vegetarian for the last 14 years, and I get so insulted when people will say to me “Oh, I’m vegetarian too, but I still eat fish/chicken/whatever.” At that point I challenge them by saying “So you’re really NOT a vegetarian, then, right?” It’s like they want the good karma and attention of telling people they are vegetarian but not practicing it properly. I feel like they mock the last 14 years of my ethical diet!
Too bad no one cares about your feelings.
For the diabetics in the house, I *highly* recommend http://www.pcrm.org/diabetes
This program is vegan and it has really worked wonders on my fasting glucose and A1c levels. As a side bonus, I’ve lost 30 pounds so far this year without starving myself (in fact, I eat as much as I want) and I feel great. I was really skeptical going in, but Dr. Barnard’s program gets results.
A great resource, Sparrow, thanks for sharing. PCRM is an absolute wealth of information about cutting edge health and nutrition from a highly trustworthy source.
“If it’s got a face or has been a cartoon character.. easy – don’t eat it.”
“Hmm, have you not seen Veggie Tales?”
Eeka- I had the very same thought.
Just reading these comments proves my point at how hard it is to be a vegetarian these days. Not from meat-eaters, but other vegetarians, come the scolding, the name-calling, the judging.
I made a decision 9 years ago to stop eating anything I wouldn’t have the guts to hunt, kill, clean, and cook myself. Easy to say, that took most meat out of my diet. And when I lived in a city and had money, it was easy.
When I moved to a Southern rural community and took a huge paycut, it was much harder to avoid meat–ham was used as “flavoring” in vegetables, etc.
So I slowly, guiltily, quietly began including fish in my diet because it met my requirements–in my youth, I fished, I cleaned the fish, and I cooked it. I know exactly what goes into the death of such an animal and think about it every time I take a bite. I honor the life and the death that is nourishing me, and I move on.
Meat eaters I speak to actually are amazed and astounded by this act, and are very opening to listening to me when I talk about vegetarianism and conscious eating. I won’t call myself a vegetarian anymore, even though 99% of my diet is non-fish items.
But I found that vegetarians are much less tolerant, even though I’ve yet to find a militant vegetarian who can offer me a sustaining diet where no living thing is sacrificed to nourish the eater.
It’s more honest to admit you have to take a life when you eat than to get on your high horse about killing animals. I’m sure those vegetables you’re eating were alive at one point, too.
I think people who are “vegetarian” but eat fish are stupid, why do they value fish less than chickens or cows or whatever, isn’t killingfish just as cruel as killing cows or chickens or whatever? I’m not vegetarian, but I just wanted to say that
Fashionista Librarian says, “For many vegetarians, the lifestyle is a personal sacrifice. Language matters. Words carry implied meaning. Flexitarians are no more vegetarians than born-again virgins are virgins.”
—-
This one of the most inane viewpoints I’ve witnessed in quite sometime. Flexitarians (if they actually understand the meaning of the word) do not claim to be vegetarians. They claim to be flexitarians: people who eat a mostly-vegetarian diet, but make allowances in certain situations (for social, pragmatic, cultural, or nutritional reasons). I find it difficult to understand how this should offend any vegetarian, unless said vegetarian has never learned the art of, or need to compromise (or, unless said vegetarian is a teenager, because, understandably and goodly, most teenagers have not yet learned about such a need).
Be careful about being hostile and judgmental to non-veggies or non-vegans. It causes more harm than good.
Case in point, my youngest sister has been a vegetarian for over 20 years but was so rabid and hostile about any “meat eaters” that she pretty much put everyone around her off of even considering such a lifestyle change.
I then met a young man, VERY young, but mature, grounded and above all TOLERANT. He has been a vegan for some time but he is honest and open, willing to answer questions, very laid-back about his personal choices and *gasp* you could even eat meat in front of him with out the sky crumbling into the ocean.
Because of him and his openness and TOLERANCE I made my first steps toward becoming a vegetarian. I don’t know that I’ll ever make it as far as being a vegan, but I get a little closer all the time. Why? Because someone with more maturity than people two and three times his age had the grace of character to be open and accepting.
Don’t put people off. Don’t attack them. It’s a personal choice but it’s one that is also affected by emotions in addition to intellect. And sometimes, frankly, you piss people off enough and they’ll dig in their heels and never change.
In the big scheme of things, is it really about who is “more right”? Is it really about labels? Or is it about setting an example that people WANT to follow. Don’t make them feel bad about themselves and the choices they’ve made. ENCOURAGE them.
If someone has at least made the step to eliminate red meat from their diet, that’s a good thing. If they have eliminated pork and chicken too, so much the better. Take every success you can get, no matter how small.
If you must think of this as a war, then think in terms of gathering allies rather than making enemies.
JB – You are so right. Most people don’t become vegetarian or vegan overnight. If they make it that far, it is become they begin a process that hostility will never persuade them to attempt. My daughter played with vegetarianism beginning in middle school. She became vegan permanently in college and, I have no doubt, will be so for life. Through her example and instruction, I began the transition for health reasons. I, too, still eat seafood on occasion. My husband and I are in our 60′s and I work hard at trying to find ways to make our meals interesting and healthy (no meat or dairy, no to limited refined flour & sugar, lots of fruits and vegetables and whole grains). But that learning curve to learn a whole new way of cooking is huge. I have found that my extended family, friends and co-workers are paying attention and are making changes b/c of my efforts. I don’t judge, I talk health (but don’t preach) and I always try to bring foods that most of them will eat or at least try to family/social functions. If I walked in hard core, they would be defensive and never consider change. Further, I believe that the occasional seafood meal keeps my husband and I away from meat. I have lived near the ocean my entire life and totally giving up seafood would make me feel more deprived than anything else that I’ve given up. So to those who choose to be judgmental, I know the effort I have made, the temptations I pass up, and the progress I have made in changing my diet and influencing change in the people around me have made a difference.
“It’s more honest to admit you have to take a life when you eat”
- Thanks for your comments Debbie, I agree with everything you’ve said.
It’s silly that some people would get so offended about this whole issue and get so angry at others. I guess that I am pescetarian, or whatever you would want to call it; however if I did go to a restaurant and get served something with any other type of meat in it I would completely freak. This makes me usually request vegetarian food rather than take any risk. I don’t really need to call myself anything, my choices are mine. Personally, I do not want to eat intelligent life, although killing anything still bothers me. That is why I always say my prayers, and recognize any sort of sacrifice in life. I won’t kill a spider or bug in my house if I don’t have to, and I definitely do not want to eat anything that tends to or nurses it’s live young.
Vegetarian: Diet of plants and fungi, with or without addition of dairy products and/or eggs.
Vegan: Diet of plants and fungi only.
It seems to me that the definitions are clear. Either you are vegetarian and/or vegan or you are not. Without moralising. most of us who are now vegetarian/vegan grew up with a traditional Western omnivore diet and though it is hard to make the break, you either resolve to do it or you do not.
If it is difficult to be a meat eater moving towards vegetarianism – take the plunge and become fully vegetarian, then you can describe yourself as veggie in good conscience, likewise those moving giving up dairy products and eggs to become vegan. If you do eventually get there, you need to make the break at some time. What better time than the present?
Wow…after reading these posts, I now remember why I try to avoid contact with Vegies/Vegans. So tell me this, although I follow a vegie diet for health reasons and not for any social stance, am I still a vegie or should I coin my own label? I would hate to insult a veggie/vegan by using this term to describe my eating habits when I don’t agree with the standard social stance.
My son and I recently (w/in the last 6 mos.) made a conscious decision to become pescetarians. Since this, we have been sneered at, made fun of, taunted, you name it, by the people around us (friends, family, acquaintances, strangers). After reading these posts, I believe their behavior (inexcusable regardless of their reasoning) might be because in the past they have encountered many of the vegan/vegetarian likes on this board. Why the holier-than-thou attitude? What’s with the hostility? Those of us that have decided to be more conscious about what we eat are in no position to judge anybody. Just because a person decides to live a veggie life doesn’t automatically make them better than anybody else. Peace, love, harmony – seek it!
I am, by these definitions, a pescetarian, but I also use the term vegetarian. I made this choice due to health reasons. I have tried to find information on recipes, possible deficiencies and ways around them, etc., but at EVERY turn, I meet hostility from the “real vegetarians” on boards and websites. Why are they so angry at people like me? I am honestly seeking information and I do my best to not offend them, but they have no trouble calling me a hypocrite and worse. If all life is sacred, they shouldn’t be insulting people either. Really, why should a label make any difference? If we all treat each other with respect, doesn’t that help more than making someone feel bad for not meeting your definition of a lifestyle?
Because they have no life other than to rage at strangers on the interwebz.
This is a very interesting discussion. However, I feel that there’s some confusion. I have been a vegan myself for 30 years, and I respect others with a more transitional approach to vegetarianism. During the first 21 years of my life I was a meat eater. Then there was a two-year transition period during which I continued to eat chicken and fish, and practically no meat. I finally made the “plunge” into vegetarianism, when I felt ready, without turning back, in 1972. My issue is with people who eat fish and chicken and call themselves “vegetarian”, a term which excludes fish and poultry as well and their derivatives (ex. chicken bouillon, fish sauce in Asian restaurants…). Not only is it an ideological issue, it is a practical one. It makes it even more difficult for us “100% vegetarians” to find something to eat in restaurants. I have been to some restaurants advertising themselves as “vegatarian” whose daily menus consisting mostly of dishes with chicken or fish, greatly restricting the choice for “100% vegetarians”. I was also told very adamantly by the owner of a Thai restaurant in Montreal where all the “vegetarian” dishes contained fish sauce that dishes containing fish sauce were “vegetarian” and that “vegans” were those who did not eat fish and chicken…
Well said, Katherine, that just about summarizes the issue. It’s not about being “better” than others or about ego, it’s about social definition of terms!
I am a pescatarian (but never knew the terminology until now). People DO become confused when cooking for me b/c I eat fish but not chicken (which they feel is the same). I had to improve my protein, iron and other mineral intake and I lived in Hawaii so moving from a ful on lacto-ovo-vegetarian TO a pescatatrian was the most natural (easiest, yet slowest) progression. I must say, 5 years later, I am happy to have some sort of protein in my life – I feel so much healthier and I have found ‘my’ diet. I’ve always called it the Bible diet (Jesus ate fish, bread, and wine amongst other things) -b/c someone labeled it that when I told them what I eat- I am going to google it now and see if its legitimate. I am happy that I now have a legitimate label for my eating- pescatarian!!
It’s funny that so many veggies are upset about non veggies calling themselves veggies… BUT I would like to add that I get more annoyed when ppl call me a veggie when I tell them that I don’t eat meat, but eat fish. If you eat anything that once had a pulse you are NOT a veggie!!
Oh yeah Hellblower.. did you never watch the poddington peas??
Well I’m a vegan and several of my friends/extended family members do the whole “I’m a vegetarian but I eat…[insert animal product] It’s so annoying.
My mom just offered my a s’more earlier today and I nearly went into orbit. And she was like, “Oh, I forgot.”
I have to practically bite my tongue all the way off so I’m not constantly preaching to people…
*sigh* :/
Perhaps instead of nearly going “into orbit” you could casually remind her that s’mores contain ingredients that make them unacceptable to vegans since most people don’t think of s’mores as being derived from animals in the same way they would a hamburger or whatever. This kind of attitude is precisely what can make an ominivore decide that being vegan is something to avoid. Personally, I would not invite you to any parties or social events if I knew there was a good chance you might go “into orbit” just because someone offered you something you would prefer not to eat.
I think its better to have a word for people who eats seafoods, poultry and vegetables. Here in my place who do not have any vegetarian restaurant, it always happens that if you ask for a vegetarian in a non-vegetarian restaurant they always thought that fish or poultry or even non vegetarian sauces are called “vegetarian”.
I don’t see what the fuss is all about. Strictly speaking (check the dictionary), a vegetarian does not eat any animal products, including cheese and eggs. How many non-meat-eaters who do eat cheese and eggs go out and tell people that they are actually ovo-lacto-vegetarians, not vegetarians? I eat fish and poultry on occasion and tell people I’m “vegetarian most of the time.”
Why do we have to get our nickers in a twist over what we call our selves, whether we eat veggies 100%, occassionally eat meat, fish or dairy products. In this day and age names we give things or ourselves change, I was at a Open University summer school on the diatry form for veggies it asked whether you ate fish or chicken, I did not feel offened by this it is there choice what they eat and how. I get more offened by pepole who think that anyone who has dyslexsia is stupid.
As regards to meat, think about it early humans domesticated animals to make their lives easier, without having to hunt all the time, they had more time to develope other skills like farming and metal working.
I am a veggie, but I don’t waste my valuble time getting upset by new terms to describe someones diet. If I go to a resturant that I have not used before I check on their veggie menue and I ask if they use any animal products in the veggi dishes. If they are worth their salt the resturant will know whats in the ingredents.
I think it matters less what people call themselves and more about what — and how — people eat. If people are eating less animal products in their diet, it’s a good thing.
That being said, the name which I give to myeating habits can start interesting conversations, and inform people about what I eat and the diet choices I make, which is all good for helping people to think about the choices that they themselves make. I live in Japan, where fish stock is in a large amount of products, and it is difficult to be vegetarian here (although certainly not impossible, as I have met many vegetarians). I sometimes call myself a “semi-vegetarian”, or say that I don’t eat mammals or birds (which isn’t completely true since I don’t eat snails either). I do eat fish and fish products, and I usually eat food that has been touched by meat, although it is a case-by-case basis. When others ask me why, I say it is for health, environmental, and ethical reasons.
I just started a forum for Pescetarians since there is really no place for us to share ideas and recipes. We are not vegetarians, but for the vegetarians who get upset with us saying we are “vegetarians who also eat fish”, look at it from our perspective. When I go out to eat, I do not want anything cooked in a beef or chicken broth, I don’t want gelatin, I don’t want bacon….if I just get a seafood dish, there is no guarentee I am not also ingesting something I don’t wish to. Its easier to explain that all the “rules” of vegetarianism apply with the exception of seafood, then to sit there and explain what I can and cannot eat. Until pescetarian is in the modern lexicon, this will have to do
This is a really interesting thread. I call myself vegetarian, though what I really mean is, “The vast majority of the time I make the most humane choice that is available to me aside from not eating.” Quite a mouthful! I have spent a lot of time traveling in parts of the world where pure veganism is not remotely practical, and if I’m given a choice between commercial cheese and locally caught fish, I believe the latter is more humane. But when I’m in the US I eat vegetarian, and I call myself that without worrying about that time a few months ago when I ate a fish in Africa, or whatever. I care about the impact I’m having on animals and the planet, not about adhering to a specific label, and therefore my diet is not always black and white.
Also, I am incredibly frustrated by the hostility of some of the vegos on here. Do you have any idea what damaging representatives you are for a compassionate lifestyle?? More honey, less vinegar!
As a vegetarian I will say that the “vegetarian, but..” does get irritating and can definitely cause confusion. I’m sure we’ve all had to deal with the little comments (“well, if this is all we had, if you were starving on an island, if , would you eat a hamburger?” etc) and when the issue gets complicated by actual confusion about what we eat instead of just meat-eaters being annoying it gets old twice as quickly. BUT the spiteful, judgmental BS a handful of people are spouting here is ridiculous. I hope we can agree that eating less meat can be a good idea for health reasons, for ethical, religious, and environmental reasons– even just because the idea of eating flesh grosses you out. Yes, I’d prefer that people said “I don’t eat red meat” or “I eat a mostly vegetarian diet with some fish” if that’s the case. But mostly I’m happy to hear that more people are eating less meat. It’d be nice to keep the drama out of it.
I eat fish simply because they have no souls haha. After reading these comments I am going to start calling myself a vegeterian more frequently and to anyone who will listen just to spite people like you. You act like you’re better than everyone else because of your particular diet and if someone doesn’t follow the same diet to a tee they are unequal. Worry about yourselves and no one else. By your logic you are all pretty much hypocrits unless you’re vegan. You won’t eat animals but you’ll wear them as shoes? You should be grateful that some people have at least eliminated the majority of meat from their daily diets.
You are god.
I love that term! If the word is veggiquarium, does that mean I’m a “veggiquarius?”
I need some kind of term to describe my diet.
I eat fish on occasion, like one a month maybe.
The rest of the time I eat vegetarian and mostly vegan partly because its healthy and yummy but mostly because its cheaper and i’m a broke college kid.
Any step taken towards the non-consumption of living beings – and thus creating less suffering in the world – is a noble one.
Nevertheless, one must be honest with oneself – if you eat living creatures, you are not a vegetarian.
IMHO saying that one does “not eat meat, but…” is just the ego talking – wanting to tell people that one has made the first step(s) towards being a noble herbivore, and is morally superior to “regular” meat eaters.
Vegetarianism is not a club, it is a personal thing, like one’s philosophical views on life, and should be kept to one’s self.
If you need labels to tell you who you are, you are deluding yourself.
Peace.
Well said, Matt. What would think of someone who says, “I’m Christian, but every once in a while I can’t resist praying to Allah..’
I find some of these comments really hostile.
I’m a proud pesceterian, and you know what, whenever I’ve told someone that I am, they either look at me with a blank expression or automatically assume that I mean “Presbyterian”. It requires a ton of explaining, that often, the person you’re explaining to could probably care less about (and that’s IF they ask rather than just assume!) It’s far more efficient just to say “I’m a vegeterian but I eat fish”.
If you’re a true veg for ethical reasons, (and by that I mean not because you’re driven by your ego/want to feel special), you’ll appreciate the fact that someone is making whatever effort they can to stay away from animals like beef, pork, and poultry, (especially as those ones are far more harmful for the environment/ethical reasons than seafood).
if you do have to eat fish for whatever reason, and i do not judge you if you do, just be sure to honor the life that has been given up to sustain you
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0F4LEcFoHc
I am stunned at the amount of energy being expended on defending vegetarianism as a sort of religion. If you don’t eat meat because you don’t like it, or for health reasons that’s fine. If you don’t eat meat because you love animals and can’t bear the thought of partaking in their death (and often its a horrible death!) then that’s fine too. If you don’t eat meat because you think it makes you an ethical person then take a long hard look at the country you are living in. Look at the labels on your clothes and consider the working practices of the countries they are made in. Look at your local neighbourhood and consider how many homeless people are looking for shelter tonight while you spend more money on tofu than they make in a year of begging. Look at the conditions of the rice-workers in Asia, many of whom are working in back-breaking, soulless conditions so that they can put meat on their kids’ tables because they need the protein. Then take another look at yourself and consider whether vegetarianism in itself is really a laudable objective. It’s not a religion folks, it’s a diet. No-one cares what you eat – your impact on the world is measured according to the overall pain and suffering you inflict/partake in/suffer to continue. Declining your mother’s roast does not rate on the same scale as volunteering in Haiti. Sorry.
Well said.
Wow, this seems to be a popular and controversial topic. Very interesting to read the wide range of views. I makes me sad to hear the words “silly” and “stupid” when referring to views differing from our own. I appreciate all the posts about tolerance and the very good website from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM.org). There are so many helpful websites out there that will dispel many of the myths such as those with certain medical conditions require meat/dairy/eggs. You’ll find all sorts of links on my website (that is full of helpful info and doesn’t try to sell you anything!) http://www.lifestylemedicinetoday.com. I think we are all at different places on the spectrum of aiming for better health and social/economic/ethical responsibilty. As a physician, I have found encouragement and specific non-judgemental instructions are the most helpful in motivating change. If our goal is to promote vegetarian/veganism and not to judge/criticize/devalue imperfect vegetarians/vegans then I imagine some of us may have to change our tactics.
Seriously, it is difficult to make the transition from an omnivorous to a vegetarian and even more so a vegan diet and lifestyle in the society that I live. So being a pescetarian was the decision that I made for me, for now. I made the decision just over 2 years ago and have never regretted it. But I do have to be careful that I have a nutritionally balanced diet since I have a major health issue that I’m dealing with. So as I’m learning more nutritional ovo vegetarian and vegan recipe’s I’m consuming less fish. It may be not the way some of you would do it but it’s working for me.
Quite honestly I love the term pescetarian, if for no other reason than it makes people raise their eyebrows and get funny looks on their faces.
It’s kind of sad how offended people get over this topic. For people who do not know the term pescetarian, (which by the way, my spell checker does not even recognize), the only way to describe your diet choices are vegetarian. It’s really not a big deal, and people are taking it way to personally and seriously. As another commenter said, militant vegetarians are so concerned with the lives of animals but have no qualms about putting down human life. That, in my eyes, is the mark of a true hypocrite.
I would like to consider myself a vegetarian, but for practical reasons I cannot stop eating meat with become sick, anemic, and malnourished. I am the only person in my family who chooses not to eat meat, so there is little support there. I go to a small college (~2500 students) and the vegetarian menu of one of the cafeterias consists of “garden veggie burger” and “grilled cheese.”
For me to get all the vitamins, nutrients, and nourishment I need, besides taking my vegetarian multivitamin, is to eat fish. We have a small sushi bar which is my only other option.
For many, it is not practical to become full vegetarians, and to attack someone for that is illogical. To attack a person for calling themselves “vegetarians who eat fish” because they have no other way to describe their diet is also illogical and nonsensical. I agree with the person who said, “it is a diet, not a religion.”
Open your minds and stop fighting over things that do not matter in the long run.
i dont know if to consider chicken a meat
I really hate the name calling by zealots vegans… So I call myself carnivorus although 99.9% of the time, I eat vegan. This boils down to a personnal choice and you have to live with your own decision. I can understand why you want this lifestyle adopted by the greatest number of people but one should educate and not antagonized them. And the 0,1% is the broth for the miso soup I love so much. Without the dashi, it’s just not the same taste.
By the way, if you are invited by colleagues or what not and you can’t say “vegetarian” because it offends true vegan, you might end up in a steakhouse… try eating vegetarian there!
i always tell people im a vegie because if i came out with the word “pescitarian” they have nooo idea what i am on about. i used 2 b a proper veggie 4 bowt 6 months but i had 2 change my diet, due to the fact i was ten years old and my mother would not buy me any veggie foods. so i started eating fish again. ive been a pescitarian 4 12 years now.
I had only this past year heard the term “pescatarian”. 5 years ago I went stricktly vegan and found that it was nutritionally challenging and per my doctors advice added fish and eggs and some cheese to my diet. At which point I no longer considered my self a vegan or vegitarian, just a person who eats lots of veggies and only fish. I always had to explain this to people, no i dont eat chicken, no beef, no pork, no thank you… 2 years ago I discovered “RAW” foodism. This is being vegan to the exteem…. and I knew would be impossible to be 100% RAW vegan. I am settling in very nicely as a 60% Raw Pescatarian. By no means do i consider my self a veggie…. there should be a decided difference. If you eat fish you are not a vegetarian.
It makes MUCH more sense and is easier to figure out that pescatarian which sounds like a negative word!!!
to me it is more similar to the terms ovo-vegetarian & lacto-vegetarian.
Wow – talk about intollerant imbaciles. You nasty vegans/vegetarians really do make me want to stay away from you and your kind FOREVER. Karma is a b**ch – so when your attitude comes back to bite you in the a**, don’t go crying to anyone, cause they won’t give a rat’s rear-end.
realize – you’d all likely be D E A D if you lived in a world w/o multivitamins and other supplements, cause the human body cannot live w/o iron and other nutrients that are harder to find in a veg diet.
i have been pescetarian my whole life. it’s what my parents fed me. i have never eaten poultry, beef, pork. i always told people “i eat vegetables and fish” when it was necessary (eating at someone’s house, etc.). other than that. it’s not something i’m telling people for the hell of it. stop talking your eating choices when it’s not necessary. stop judging and stop bragging. it is NOT a religion and comparable to a Christian who sometimes prays to Allah. ridiculous analogy.
To Raine: Bravo! Ah, thank you so much for your post. You nailed it. I am a vegetarian because I’m an animal lover, and it warms my heart to hear anyone talk about taking steps to make a diet change in which they rely less on meat. I don’t care what they label themselves or why. And you’re completely right, too, about getting some perspective on the vegetarian’s place in the world. Not eating animal products doesn’t make you special or important; it’s how you treat the entire world around you (that includes other people).
To those who get bent about someone calling themselves a vegetarian when they eat fish once or twice a month: I don’t understand you and I’m glad. There is something very sad about people who berate others for doing something different. There’s something even sadder when those people you’re berating are actually starting to come over to your way of thinking. While I do think the few posts about the labels causing confusion in restaurants make a valid point, overall I’ve never heard of anything so counterproductive and stupid.
People who eat meat dont insisit on calling themselves carnivores. but some people need to define themselves, and have chosen their diet as the means. If you actually knew how much of a dildo you sound like when you say things like -”No, no Im not a vegetarian anymore, im a pescatarian, but im considering pollotarianism now too”
Just tell people you don’t eat Red Meat -simple! communicate, dont try and make yourself sound important -most people really dont give a fuck what you eat, unless they have to cook for you -and then they just think you’re a fussy arsehole.
I should know, i haven’t eaten red meat (or bird… (or reptile for that matter) in over a decade. But that doesn’t make me any better then those slavering carnivores.
Point is: People couldn’t care less what you eat, as long as they dont have to deal with your fussy habits you can call yourself an organotrophic semi-saprophytic heterotroph for all anyone cares.
Counter productive and stupid was how liz put it -listen to her, she seems to know what she’s talking about.
I would class myself as vegetarian….but I eat fish. When I say to people :
‘I’m Vegetarian’
they say: ‘but you eat fish so you are not’.
If I started the sentence with:
‘I’m Pescetarian’
They would say:’What’s that?’
So I think that the word ‘veggiquarian’ would be a lot easier to say to people, if it became known.
It really doesn’t matter. I know that some people are offended, but if someone identifies with something more than another it can take prescedence for them.
Why make up a new word when people don’t even understand the other one?
This is just ridiculous how we get caught up on this label. When you order you food say what you want, and after that keep moving. I am sure it is not hard to say “I am a vegitarian and I do NOT eat fish, or any type of meat” GOSH!
Wow. You people act like being a vegetarian is all about who’s the best at it, and bashing anyone who eats eggs, or fish or chicken.
And here I was, thinking I was doing it for a actual reason, not just to prove my superiority..
I eat eggs, and dairy. Does that mean I’m not a REAL vegetarian? Is everyone going to start attacking me now, and telling me to stop calling myself a vegetarian, that I’m really only “mostly vego”? Seriously people, you’re slightly stuck up.
You people….besides the fact that your skin is turning gray, you whine too dang much!! My goodness…be who you wanna be and stop judging others for their way of life. And stop trying to push your personal lifestyle on others. I’m not normally so opinionated on such matters…I’m tired of all the animosity towards people who want to be their own person. Eat red meat….God put it on this Earth to feed us all. Now am I pushing that onto you? No, its just my personal choice.
I bet a few of you just gagged to read that….sorry about that.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vegetarians-Dont-Eat-Fish/133219446733732
I don’t understand how anyone who eats any member of the animal kingdom can call themselves a vegetarian. I don’t care what you happen to eat, you are free to do what you like, but don’t call yourself a vegetarian if you eat animals.
People who call themselves vegetarian but eat animals have given those of us who actually are vegetarian an added burden when we go to restaurants now. When I politely ask what is vegetarian at a restaurant, I am sometimes suggested fish, shellfish, or poultry. This happens because other customers who still eat those things have referred to themselves as vegetarian.
This isn’t judgmental. This is serious stuff. Because of people who aren’t vegetarian claiming they are, actual vegetarians have a harder time just doing the same things everyone else does because other people feel they should be called something that they are not.
It’s that plain and simple. It’s not “pure vegetarianism”. It IS vegetarianism to not eat animals. If you eat animals, you aren’t a vegetarian. You may have a healthy diet, you may even have a diet that is very good for the environment and is more ethical than other omnivores, but if you eat animal products, you are NOT a vegetarian.
Why is that so hard to understand?
I understand this is an important issue, especially for ordering in restaurants. And while I think intolerance is never helpful, I don’t think it’s that hard to use proper language. I’ve been meatless on and off since childhood. I usually explain that I don’t eat dead animals. That means I eat eggs and cheese since animals aren’t killed for us to eat them, but I don’t eat geletin or rennet and I check restaurant ingredients to see if products from dead animals are included. But I don’t say that I’m vegetarian since I don’t feel that I am. I have leather products. I don’t eat a lot of cooked vegetables (though I love them raw). So saying I don’t eat dead things covers what I do and don’t eat without offending or confusing anyone. Similarly, people can say “I avoid eating red meat” or whatever their preference is without saying they are “vegetarian but.” You don’t have to be a zealot or rude to ask that people be careful with their language.
I used to be someone who ate meat rarely, perhaps once or twice a week. When people caught me doing it, they often would say, “Wait! Don’t eat that! Aren’t you a vegetarian?” My standard response was, “I’m not a vegetarian; I just don’t eat a lot of meat.”
If you eat meat, even a little, you’re not a vegetarian, plain and simple. Why people can’t just say they aren’t big meat eaters is beyond me. As for the word “pescetarian” I grew up knowing from a very early age what that meant, so I say keep it, use it and embrace it.
On a related note… I recently started following a plant-based diet, and I struggle when people ask me if I’m vegan. For me, being a vegan implies all sorts of politics and beliefs, and extends beyond just your eating habits. While I am not necessarily against any of those things, I would just say that at this point they are not the driving force for my way of eating. Now… there should be a word for that!
I am a pescetarian. I know what I am, but if I am going somewhere for dinner (ex: a wedding, client meeting, international flight, etc.) I will call myself a vegetarian. I slowly started cutting land animals out of my diet four years ago, and I am more than comfortable eating solely vegetarian food. If I am not going to complain about being served a vegetarian meal, what difference does it make how I classify my diet. I don’t have to have fish in my meal, but I surely don’t want certain items on my plate. If calling myself a vegetarian keeps my meals to my liking, it shouldn’t matter to anyone else what term I use to describe myself. Nobody owns the rights to the term vegetarian. It isn’t a special club where people have the right to determine if I’m allowed to be a member. For the vegetarians who don’t want to answer the “extra” questions that fish eating vegetarians are causing, try using a word to describe your diet that nobody has ever heard.
I’m a pescetarian as well. I understand completely the argument that fishing is often bad for the environment, as well as the argument that it is hypocritical for me to call myself vegetarian. I associate myself with vegetarianism like others have said, because in most cases it best describes what I chose to eat.
To the vegetarians and vegans that attack me for eating fish and accuse me of hypocrisy, I simply explain that pescetarians are usually not pescetarians because they want to save animals or be “green”. That is, if they fully understand what pescetarianism is and its implications. That isn’t to say that pescetarians don’t care about animals or the environment, but any dietary choice that deviates from the norm isn’t always chosen in order to be seen as a better person, save anything, become a part of a movement or fit into any club. I am a pescetarian simply because I chose to be. I, for the most part follow a vegetarian diet, but I often enjoy seafood. I say that I’m vegetarian not because I’m pretentious and want to fit into some dietary elite that feels entitled to be looked apon as saviors of the planet. I say that I’m vegetarian because that is the diet that, for the most part, I follow, however I do eat fish on occasion. It’s simply what I like to eat. It’s not always as political as people make it.
Wow, serious thoughts on this word “pescatarian”
’ And everytime I saw a burger, I imagined a cows face looking at me! Honestly, I couldn’t take it anymore and so now here I am. A proud vegetarian 
Personally, that word is ZERO hard to say.”Veggiquariam”, mm now THAT’S a toughy lol and yes, I agree with most of you. They SHOULDN’T be considered Vegetarians. I’m a vegetarian myself and find it rather insulting of them to consider themselves that. I don’t eat any animal flesh.. to make it clear, I don’t eat anything that breaths! It’s just gross. Anyway, when I told my family bout me becoming a vegetarian, they all got a good laugh and said things like “what are you gonna eat? Grass?” But when it settled in their heads, they supported me 100% and that same day my mom took me to the grocerie store to buy food.(: my reason for becoming a vegetarian? Simple. I went on YouTube and watched a video called “From farm to the fridge: the truth behind animal cruelty” or something along those lines.. Anyways, when I saw the way they treated those poor animals, I felt awful! Especially because that was what I ate so I said to myself ‘by eating them I feel like I’m a part of their killing!
I like Esteli’s Comment…
I am a proud Pescetarian and most people know the term or can figure it out… There are the few that are missing some chromosomes that respond with a, “So you don’t eat meat?! Not even chicken?!?” Lol. Seriously? It’s not that uncommon these days for people to give up mass produced, bacteria ridden, tortured meat products.
I have read through all of the comments… and a lot of them are very harsh. I’ve been a pescetarian for 2 years now and it’s one of the best decisions I could have made. I’m 15 and my parents both eat and serve a LOT of meat. Although I would love to exclude all meat from my diet, it really isn’t possible. If I was to stop eating fish, eggs, and dairy products I would most likely become malnourished. I don’t mean that it is like this for everyone, I realize that it is possible, but not in a family of “carnivores”. They seem to think that all of this is just a phase that I will grow out of… not a chance. I care soo much about animals and the environment!! I hope that when I’m older I will take on a full vegetarian life style.. but for now I will have to be a hypocrite.
The diet I follow is vegetarian. It is not vegan. I don’t eat anything with gelatin or rennet. I do consume eggs and milk but refuse to buy these if not labeled as organic and cruelty free. I completely understand the notion of not consuming these too. But I have yet to go that far. I don’t feel guilty about this! And I don’t think that ANYONE who is even making an attempt to not eat meat should either. I would LOVE it if all carnivores cut out even one meal that includes meat a week. That has GOT to save one more animal’s life than before!!
I wasn’t always a vegetarian. I rarely ate meat even before though. I had been around a lot of vegans/vegetarians and had heard the militant, angry ramblings and it really turned me off! I felt so overwhelmed with all the rules and no appreciation for the attempt to save animals’ lives that I just said oh well!
Then, I met K. She politely and quietly told me she was a vegetarian (only when it came up over dinner) and didn’t preach at me. She explained to me (only when asked questions) that she did eat eggs and milk but tried to be as cruel-free as possible with that. She told me how one person cutting out meat could save up to 50 animals’ lives in a year! This so inspired me to do better and I have been a vegetarian ever since.
Honestly, I was always a good cook and with all the vegetarian recipes out there…I do not miss meat at all (with the exception of a craving of shrimp once in awhile, but not enough to fall back and eat them).
Please support those who are intrigued by vegetarianism!! Every person who sacrifices even one meal is helping the cause! Don’t be so stuck on the “titles” but the fact that a precious, innocent life can be saved!
Here’s a term we should start: VEG-HOLES! As in, pompous preachy vegans who call “lesser veg” people hypocrites, instead of cheering them on for taking another step toward this good lifestyle we should be sharing and supporting. If pescetarians cut out land animals and birds, that’s a great “two-thirds” gone for meat! Rock on!
There’s a vegan group in my town and I’ve gone to a few of their potlucks thinking I’d learn some great recipes and tricks to increase the vegan meals in my repertoire. Instead, they criticize anyone who’s not “full-time”, and interrogate them why they still eat this-or-that. When will those jackals learn that the right way is to say, “Welcome! So glad to hear you’ve gotten rid of that junk. Try this dish I made, and you’ll never want to eat anything else again, it’s so good!”
If THAT was how we treated everyone, by high-fiving them for taking steps in the right direction, instead of criticizing them for not being absolute black-and-white every bite, then I bet we’d get a hell of a lot more support than pitiful glances.
Everyone knows fish are a swimming vegetable:D
Hilarious, Liza! But of course!
After 20 years of being a vegetarian, I found out I was extremely deficient in omegas 6 & 9, and taking fish oil supplements was the only way to fix it. I figured I may as well eat the fish then. I just heard about the term pescetarians and was thinking i could use it tii i read rhe one post about being confused with Presbyterian!!! ROFL!!
Anyway, even though I now eat fish, which does make eating out a lot more fun, I don’t feel I gave up some kind of exclusive membership or I’m a fallen angel now. Really, its just a diet! Vegetarians who feel morally superior becauenvironmentally much lower environmental impact than anyone who eats meat need to become better informed. What we eat is only a small part of the impact we make. As for not eating anything that breathes… trees are the lungs of the planet! The greatest impact on animal populations is loss of habitat. While there is some habitat loss due to raising domestic animals, I imagine there is at least the same or more from growing crops. The biggest impact comes from cities, roads and industrial development.
Yes, vegetarianism can be lower impact, and can be healthier. But where did the food come from? How far was it shipped? How was it grown? Etc It is impossible to truly calculate the real impact of what we eat or wear. You can be veggie and still have a crap diet. You can be the purest vegan ever and be as green as Kermit but you’re impact on the planet will still be devastating compared to a simple villager in the 3rd world.
He who lives in a glass house should not cast stones.
yes im a vegitarian butt… because i am just starting out but i useto just say im a pecatarian but people would ask “whats that meen” “whats that” and look at me weird so now i just say im a vegitarian. it is sooo much easier….
WOW! Who knew vegetarians could be so uppity!(and I suppose I should’ve since I am one, I just apparently didn’t get the memo lol) I don’t make a fuss about it, don’t shout it from the rooftops, and don’t scorn others for using the term! My choice happens to be a personal one that I’ve had since I was 13 (I’m now 28.) Mine was easy because I’m lactose intolerant, have always disliked meat and I never liked eggs either. I grew up volunteering in a Humane Society, yes I love animals and yes, eventually I joined PETA…for a bit.
After seeing alot of the same negativity towards people who chose to eat anything other then a strict vegan diet, it was a no more PETA for me. I’m not trying to force my eating habits on others, just like the guy eating a steak next to me at a restaurant isn’t looking at my veggie mix and yelling at me for eating that. I even (GASP!) MARRIED A BOW HUNTER!I don’t like the idea of hunting, I don’t prepare anything he hunts, but I love him and he tolerates my tofu and soymilk so I tolerate what he likes! He will only hunt what he will eat (deer & pheasant) and doesn’t do it for sport. Not my thing, but ya know what? By me not making snide little remarks like some of you in here have, he now eats a diet with more veggies then meat of any kind.This month, he’s even made his New Years Resolution to go the entire month of January completely meat free! Hes still going to eat seafood, but its a HUGE step for a guy who loves steak. With all of the unhealthy stuff in meat, ill take him being “mostly vegetarian” and eating fish over meat.
Being tolerant and patient with others….. And also having a sense of humor, especially about yourself, is always the best way to be.
With that, I’ll leave you with a quote from one of my favorite comedians, Jim Gaffigan:
“Those vegetarians always act like they’re so special. Oh, I haven’t eaten meat in 10 years. I say so what, I haven’t eaten broccoli in 10 years but you don’t see me advertising it” LOL!
I agree completely with the above poster. I’ve been vegetarian for a week, and probably will eventually go vegan. I’m 16, and because of that, a lot of what I do has to be allowed by my parents for me to do this. Because of that, I’ve asked 3-4 times for my parents to let me go vegetarian over the past couple of years. I hadn’t eaten it much at all since I first took interest in it. Finally I had enough and just stopped eating meat, and my mom decided that she would allow me to keep it that way.
So for 2-3 years of my life, it is safe to say that I was a semi-vegetarian. I ate it at most once a day, and sometimes more like only a few times a week. I’ve heard people use the terms “pescetarian”, “pollotarian”, etc, and honestly I don’t care at all about it. At least they are doing something. I don’t understand how people can get so bent out of shape about people referring to themselves in a simple way. I mean, I don’t like cheese, and am vegetarian, so to help myself out, I might just say to someone cooking for me that “I’m vegan but I eat eggs,” or even “the simplest way to describe how I eat is vegan.” Our goal shouldn’t be to proclaim to the entire world how amazing we are as vegetarians, but rather to make it simple for other people to understand, thus helping them make the transition as well. Some people go from eating only fish to no meat at all. Some people (like me) go from eating meat a few times a week to never. It’s just different people, and different ways to go about eating. At least they don’t eat meat at every meal..
This is why I haven’t told my friends that I’m vegetarian, and won’t until it is completely necessary. People completely get the wrong impression of vegetarians because they snap so easily when other people disagree…
What a bunch of nonsense- vegetarians – ok to a certain point – vegans- elitists who have no understanding of nature and have NEVER been hungry. You all are a joke.
My thoughts were that on various vegetarian sites online, that they don’t consider people who eat fish but not beef, poultry or meat from a pig, not vegetarian. If that’s true, then I consider myself as “semi-vegetarian”. My husband & I have cut down on eating fish, and maybe someday we might just cut all of it out, but right now, we’re happy without meat – period!
I personally consider myself “Flexitarian” – has that come up in this conversation at all? I don’t have time to read 115 comments, so I apologize if it has. I am a beginner to vegetarianism, and cooking in general. I’m in school, so balancing a work schedule, an internship schedule, and a class schedule makes it kind of hard to have time to experiment with anything that takes more than 5 minutes to cook in a microwave. In any case, I don’t eat meat often, but when I do, it’s often because it’s the only thing available. And if I choose to buy meat products for home, I, too, try to buy organic, free range, etc. Eventually I may transition to full-on vegetarian(e.g. I may experiment with it as going fully vegetarian for Lent), but it’s going to take time and learning to cook a heck of a lot better than I can right now!
I’m a pesca-ovo-pollo-tarian, with gluten-free. I am allergic to soy, thus a lot of vegan and/or ‘veggie vegetarian’ food wouldn’t work for me.
I eat eggs. I don’t believe in veganism, lol.
Chad: I love the flexitarian. That’s me.
You are all selfish bastards. Taking the name vegetarian as if it were your own. You act like little kids making team names. If someone wants to eat fish but no other meat then whoppdi doo. Just because you fascist asses are so high and mighty about being vegetarians. Do any of you know why most people go vegetarian? They want to be nice people. I used to tell people i was a type of vegetarian; I dont eat any meat but i do eat fish. I didn’t know of a name that described that, I dont just sit on the internet all day looking for something to call myself. Get over it. And why would anyone want to stick to the name Vegetarian? I dont want to eat just vegetables my whole life ;P .. Dont be anal. There is a wide beautiful world out there and all you guys can think of is what to call a person.. Just because i have short black hair and i wear mascara are you gonna call me Emo? Drop it Children.
It humors me to see people calling each other hypocrites because they eat fish and call themselves vegetarians. Who cares? Why are we arguing over our DIETS? Just seems ridiculous. If you eat fish, great, if you eat meat, fine, if you eat all veggies and that’s it, well, that’s fine too, you don’t have to act like you’re above somebody because you have vegan shoes and eat tofu all day.
It does annoy me a little when people say “I’m a vegetarian,but..” but I don’t say anything. A friend of mine does not eat red meat and generally avoids chicken, but she would never refer to herself as a vegetarian. She finds it quite irritating that people call themselves vegetarians even though they are not true vegetarians.
What does annoy me is when people assume I eat fish. At restaurants I have been offered fish dishes after I say I’m a vegetarian. That really gets on my nerves.
Although I try to be casual and accommodating about my diet; I don’t mind if people eat meat in front of me, I will go to steakhouses, I don’t mind ordering a salad instead of entree, I don’t push m values on anyone, etc; I have been heckled about my diet. At one point, during a seafood luncheon, I had a conversation something like this.
Person: Why aren’t you eating anything?
Me: Oh, I’m a vegetarian.
Person: But vegetarians eat seafood!
Me: No, they don’t. Pescatarians do, but vegetarians don’t.
Person: No, I’m pretty sure vegetarians eat seafood. I met a guy who was a vegetarian, and he ate seafood.
Me: Then he wasn’t a real vegetarian.
Person: Yes, he was.
Me: Well, it doesn’t matter. I don’t even like seafood, and besides, I ate earlier.
Person: Hey, if you’re a vegetarian, don’t you not drink milk?
Me: I’m a lacto-ovo vegetarian.
Person: What does that mean?
Me: It means I drink milk and eat eggs.
Person: But vegetarians don’t drink milk!
Me: They can if they’re lacto-vegetarians.
Person: I don’t think that exists. Vegetarians aren’t supposed to drink milk at all.
Me: Well, it does exist, and I am one
That was very irritating, and the whole time I wanted to shout “I’m the real vegetarian here; I think I know what I’m talking about!” Finally another vegetarian stepped in and explained the vegan, lacto-, ovo-, vegetarian, pescatarian thing to her.
I get why it matters what each individual calls themselves, what I dont get is why there are any of the above stated classifications. I have never met a person that was any of them. I have come across infertility problems which have caused me to find a donor father, the one I chose is soooo amazing! What an awesome biography, without looking at photos (he has many pictures available to view) I chose him. He seems like such a caring loving human being that loves all human beings equally. The reason I found this page though is because the very first sentence that the donor site uses for him is THIS DONOR IS A PESCATARIAN. I had no idea what that was so considering the all caps I figured I better find out before I give myself a disease, lol, well quickly I find that it’s a vegetarian that eats fish by definition. And then I come across this site. I have no ill thoughts or sarcasm towards any of the people that have a dietary title. I’m just curious what the belief is or reason behind not eating meat. Especially for someone who has always eaten meat n then just decides they dont eat meat anymore. Also I have ulcers, I eat veggies and spend the next two hours puking. How could I be a vegetarian, what would be my option?
I don’t understand why some vegetarians are so prejudice against
Pesco-vegetarians. Pescotarians aren’t identifying themselves as full-vegetarians, so why is it unaccepted by some vegetarians to call themselves this? It’s somewhat ridiculous. I myself am a pesco-veggie, and it seems to me like some vegetarians, who are accusing us of just trying to get attention, are trying to get praise themselves, for their 14 year diets, or their ethical beliefs. I will get cancer and soy will only cause more complications, so eating fish is necessary in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
I am a vegetarian but I eat fish…(technically pescetarian). So what I call myself vegetarian even if I eat fish. So what if I became a veggie for the animals. ITS MY LIFE. I can call myself what I want to, tell people what i am…THE END PEOPLE. Sorry but today people tried to gang up on me about this and I should have said this to them.
You are a ‘Pollopescetarian’. That is a person that also eats poultry and seafood/fish. Some will even consume dairy on occasion. ‘Pollo’, comes from the Spanish word meaning ‘Chicken’ and ‘Pesce’ from the Italian word meaning ‘fish’. Pollopescetarian!
Hi,
I went vegetarian, not for ethical reasons or political ones, but because meat & I don’t agree with each other. I also don’t eat eggs.
I am not, or will I ever be, a vegan. I’m quite thin & struggle to keep my weight at a healthy level – therefore I need as many calories as I can get and cheese & whole milk help with that.
I’ve always read that vegetarian means “A person who does not eat meat, & sometimes other animal products, esp. for moral, religious, or health reasons.” and that a vegan means “A person who does not eat or use animal products.” There is a big difference between the two.
I don’t see anything wrong with considering myself a vegetarian even though I drink milk and eat cheese. I’ve also been known to – occasionally – eat fish -as fish doesn’t affect my digestive system the way other meats do. However, I eat fully vegetarian 95% of the time & prefer it that way. When I go to a restaurant I make sure to ask what animal products are used in what I’m ordering & – most of the time – just stick to a fully vegetarian item as that’s easier than trying to list what I will & won’t eat.
One of my biggest pet peeves is militants & extremists. Whether you are militant in your religion, militant in your politics, or militant in your diet doesn’t give you the right to abuse me over my choices. Just because you (general) don’t believe in eating eggs/beef/wearing leather – doesn’t mean that the vegetarian over here that DOES eat eggs/wears leather is wrong or less than you for doing so. It just means they’re different.
Our differences are what makes this great big world of ours so awesome – so why don’t we embrace them instead of trying to change those that are different from us into being exactly like us!
Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Vegan, Carnivore, Omnivore, I dont’ care what you eat because what you eat doesn’t affect me or my life just as what I eat doesn’t affect yours so stop all this damn judging. It’s pathetic and sad!
i think vegetarians are hypocrites. Unless ur vegan, u are still ignorant. Do u know the horrible truths about the dairy and egg industries? If u drink cows milk ur essentially supporting the veal industry. Veal are baby cows killed because they are byproducts of the dairy indutry. Mother cows have to be pregnant to have milk. Baby cows need to be killed so humans can have the milk.
Why not see it as some people who dont eat mammals but poultry and seafood are trying hard to make a difference in the world just like vegetarians and vegans and pescatarians are also making a difference too?
I recently decided to try pescetarianism, because I tried a vegan diet for a few months but could not stick to it. I liked beans but I got tired of having beans for my ENTIRE source of protein every single day. Because of the monotony, I slipped up a few times and went out for fast-food chicken. I felt guilty for slipping up, but I think expecting myself to become a vegan is just not feasible for me at this point in my life. Quitting dairy, beef, and pork is easy, but quitting animals entirely is difficult.
So I switched to eating fish a few times a week- and no other animal products. It really does work for me. I know I’m not filling the pockets of the big meat industry that tortures animals, and I find this much easier to stick to. I hope to get off all meat eventually, but this is a good transition option for me at this point in my life.
What is wrong with simply stating what you do not eat?
“I do not eat red meat or pork.”
Most people, when inviting people over for dinner, enquire “is there any ingredient particularly that you do not eat?” to avoid serving up something to someone who has a lifelong aversion to that dish, or an ingredient in that dish; worse, to avoid serving up anything containing nuts to someone who might die right there in your dining room!
If the hostess doesn’t enquire beforehand, then let her know:
I’m allergic to nuts
OR
I do not eat red meat or pork
OR
I’m a vegetarian (if you really are), in which case the hostess will enquire: “do you eat milk and eggs?” so that she will know whether to exclude these ingredients in a special dish for you.
If you say you do not eat milk or eggs, the hostess will further enquire: “Are you a strict vegetarian?” So that she will know whether or not to exclude the fish sauce; the bouillon and anything else that might be tainted with a meat product.
Why create problems for everybody by claiming to be something that you’re not – and thus creating misunderstandings because you’re actually just a wannabe vegetarian and have no problem with the oceans being stripped of life, because out-of-sight, out-of-mind.
I applaud the posters that advocate tolerance and understanding!
Just because I identify myself as a pescetarian does not mean I am attacking anyone else’s choices. A number of years ago I tried to go to ova-lacto-vegetarian but it was not working for me so when I found out about other pescetarians I realized I was not the only person who ate a mostly vegetarian diet but also occasionally fish and seafood. At that point, I realized that was the best path for me. It is true not everyone knows the term but I was surprised the number of people I say it to and it either starts a positive conversation with them or they just say “fish, huh.” I tend to use the term vegetarian if I think the listener is not educated enough to figure it out or at restaurants because that way I can be sure to avoid getting meals with hidden meat, pork or poultry. If I say “mostly vegetarian” or “vegetarian but also fish”, it tends to confuse them. Also if I say, “I don’t eat meat, poultry, or pork,” they don’t think about the broth or add-ins only the whole dishes. Being in CA, I guess I am luckier than some, since there are many vegetarian options and many restaurants recognize vegetarian also means no chicken or beef pieces or broth. Not everyone is educated in the proper hosting of a meal and do not think to ask if I have any dietary requirements and when I tell them I eat fish but no other meats they forget the “no other meats” part and I end up not being able to eat any of the dishes. But if, when I am invited, I offer that I am vegetarian they will make sure to have dishes I know I can definitely eat.