When Students Choose to Become Vegetarian or Vegan
Sometimes, students decide against meat. This may have happened to your student, a tip she shares just as the Thanksgiving turkey is thawing nicely. What does it mean when students become vegetarians or vegans? Here is a primer to make sense of it all.

Being a Vegetarian
Going meat-free is not a recent fad. A variety of people advocate or advocated for vegetarianism, from Albert Einstein to Mr. Rogers to Clara Barton, according to The Vegetarian Resource Group.

What Does It Mean? Vegetarians abstain from eating meat, fish or poultry.
Why? Reasons vary for being a vegetarian, including compassion for animals; a belief in non-violence; and economic, health, religious and ecological concerns.

A vegetarian diet can meet people's known nutrient needs, according to the American Dietetic Association. The key is eating a wide variety of food from different food groups and limiting the amount of fatty, sweet substances. Check out the meal planning tips boxed here and the Vegetarian Food Guide Pyramid for more information.

Being a Vegan
Vegans go one step further by steering clear of animal products. This, too, is not a recent fad; it's just becoming more mainstream and recognized.

What Does It Mean? Vegans avoid using or consuming animal products. This includes items such as milk, cheese, eggs, leather, fur, wool, silk, down and products tested on animals (such as chemicals or cosmetics).

Why? Veganism is the touchstone of a cruelty-free lifestyle, plus it provides benefits to the lives of animals, to the environment and to individuals' health.

Students often choose to make a commitment to a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle during their college years. The reasons for this vary: their awareness is raised, they are able to talk with more people making similar choices, they are stirred to get active and this lifestyle choice is one part of it, and more. It's typically not intended as a desire to make family life more difficult or to disparage your pork chops. Your vegetarian or vegan student may just be testing her wings and deciding what is important to her.

Luckily, most college dining halls offer a variety of options that provide adequate nutrition for vegetarians and vegans. Your student can also talk with folks in dining services about this lifestyle choice for assistance in planning nutritionally sound meals.

So, if you find that your student has decided to go meat- and/or animal product-free this holiday season, consider how he is growing and maturing into his own choices. Whether the decision to become a vegetarian or vegan "sticks" in the long run, for now it is about who he wants to be and how he wants to put his passions into action.

Sources: American Dietetic Association at www.eatright.org; Vegan Action; The Vegetarian Resource Group

Vegetarian Meal Planning Tips
From the American Dietetic Association
There is a Vegetarian Food Guide Pyramid available from the American Dietetic Association (ADA). In addition, here are some meal planning tips they provide:

• Choose a variety of foods.
• Choose more foods from any of the food groups to meet your energy needs — those listed are for minimum daily intakes.
• Choose eight or more servings per day from the calcium-rich food group.
• Include two servings per day of foods that supply n-3 fats, like 1/4 cup of walnuts, 1 teaspoon flaxseed oil, a tablespoon of ground flaxseed, or 3 teaspoons of canola or soybean oil.
• You can use servings of nuts and seeds in place of servings from the fats group.
• Get adequate vitamin D through fortified foods or supplements, or from daily sun exposure.
• Include at least three food sources of vitamin B-12 every day, such as 1 cup fortified soymilk, 1 large egg, 1 oz. of fortified breakfast cereal, 1.5 ozs. of fortified meat analog, 1 tablespoon of Red Star Vegetarian Support Formula nutritional yeast, 1/2 cup of cow's milk or 3/4 cup yogurt.
• Consume sweets and alcohol in moderation. Get most of your daily calories from the foods in the Vegetarian Food Guide.