I Eat Fish

Anyone else?


It's SOOOO good for you and doesn't, like red meat, plug up or rot in your tummy.


Just curious.

If you do, why?  I know that some people HAVE to because if they cut out meaty things, they'd nearly die.

I love seafood, and I have to eat it anyway because I'm super anemic.

But even if I weren't I think I would.

Does anyone here consider pescatarians non-veg?

Original Post by pumpkin314:

A couple of things:

-Bugs are animals, so even if shellfish are bugs (which they aren't - not all invertebrates are "bugs," but let's not turn this into a taxonomy lesson), they are still animals and if you eat them, you are not being vegetarian.

-If you habitually eat fish or any animal (including invertebrates) and yet you call yourself a vegetarian, chances are you are just trying to be fashionable. Unless you are 6 and can't explain your dietary preferences, you are just being lazy or a poser by calling youself vegetarian when you aren't.

Is that rude? Sorry guys, just callin' 'em like I see 'em.

Agreed 100%

Original Post by fairydust125:

I eat seafood-fish, lobster, mussels, crabs mmm i love it! I just dont eat mammals or chicken and regardless of what ppl say i still call myself a vegetarian. Not to be 'fashionable'....i didnt even know ppl considered it to be fashionable or anything. W.e. most ppl around me don't care or even know the true meaning of a veg. btw i have fish like once a month, not that much.

Most people around you don't know the true meaning of a veg because you mis-lead them.

Original Post by fairydust125:

I eat seafood-fish, lobster, mussels, crabs mmm i love it! I just dont eat mammals or chicken and regardless of what ppl say i still call myself a vegetarian. Not to be 'fashionable'....i didnt even know ppl considered it to be fashionable or anything. W.e. most ppl around me don't care or even know the true meaning of a veg. btw i have fish like once a month, not that much.

it doesn't matter how often you eat fish. you're still not a vegetarian.

omg oxymoron00 I am just like you I can't get enough of fish! (that sounds so odd haha)  I love every type and hAVE to have it everyday XD

The worst part of a misunderstanding between pescetarianism and vegetarianism:

When the veggie meal you order looks completely vegetarian, but in fact contains fish sauce.  I can deal if I get a piece of fish - at least I know not to eat it. 

Fish sauce--yuck!

Original Post by mdmoks1:

I don't think it is a "holier than thou" issue. Part of it has to do with the annoyance of having to explain that the fish dinner you were just served is not in fact vegetarian, or answer the question "oh but you eat fish?" when you explain that you are veg*n, or even that there are people who call themselves vegetarian but eat fish and chicken. I think words should have meaning, and when everyone wants to be a *atarian you dilute the meaning of those words for those who have very strong feelings about the ethical choices that those words mean.  There are a lot of groups who dislike when another person does something that falls outside of their moral boundaries and yet appropriates their title. 

 100% correct.

1. I've never really gotten the "Holier than Thou" vibe before... until I visited this forum... YIKES!
2. You are pescatarian, OWN ITT!! (:
3. I don't think anyone here is trying to be "fashionable".
4. Don't like the term "pescatarian"? Just say "I usually abide to a vegetarian diet, but I have been known to eat fish occasionally". Tells them that you do not eat meat and that what you eat is not always vegetarian.
5. Last thing: Y'all need to calm down. It's all alright, okay?

Original Post by ewwxroflzz:

Original Post by fairydust125:

I eat seafood-fish, lobster, mussels, crabs mmm i love it! I just dont eat mammals or chicken and regardless of what ppl say i still call myself a vegetarian. Not to be 'fashionable'....i didnt even know ppl considered it to be fashionable or anything. W.e. most ppl around me don't care or even know the true meaning of a veg. btw i have fish like once a month, not that much.

it doesn't matter how often you eat fish. you're still not a vegetarian.

 You're right, she isn't A vegetarian. But she does regularly consume a vegetarian diet.

I am suffering from mercury poisoning.  I didn't eat swordfish at all.  It's in tuna, it's in all fish.  Be careful.  It's serious.

Original Post by athenaoly:

1. I've never really gotten the "Holier than Thou" vibe before... until I visited this forum... YIKES!
2. You are pescatarian, OWN ITT!! (:
3. I don't think anyone here is trying to be "fashionable".
4. Don't like the term "pescatarian"? Just say "I usually abide to a vegetarian diet, but I have been known to eat fish occasionally". Tells them that you do not eat meat and that what you eat is not always vegetarian.
5. Last thing: Y'all need to calm down. It's all alright, okay?

 Amen, and hallelujah!  I was vegetarian for four years before moving to a small town in Kentucky.  Finding vegetarian food to eat in Phoenix is NOT the same as trying to find it in Podunk, Kentucky.  The cost is higher, the selection smaller, and unless you're willing to drive to one of the large cities, you can be sure those veggies you ordered are "seasoned" with ham or beef stock or something.

About three years ago, after two years of struggling, I slowly introduced fish back into my diet.  I felt guilty as sin for about the first year, then eventually just owned it.  However, when I decided to enter this lifestyle, I made my OWN rules about what I could ethically eat, what I would and wouldn't compromise on (I still won't eat beef, chicken, pork, game, or shell fish), and how I would address people who tried to tell me who and what I was.

I am a vegetarian who occasionally eats fish.  I eat this because I grew up near the water, and I know personally what it means to capture, kill, clean, and prepare a fish. I know this, and I think about it every single time I eat fish.  I honor the life that was sacrificed to nourish me and move on.

I hardly think it's fair to impose one's moral perception of food on other people.  There are so many great reasons to reduce the amount of meat in your diet--partially or completely.  Guilt and peer pressure doesn't even have to make the list.

Deb

I'm "technically" a pescatarian as well, but I can see where it would just make more sense to tell someone (a waiter, chef, etc.) that you're a vegetarian if you're not planning on ordering fish from the menu to simplify things. However, I wouldn't consider anyone who eats seafood to be a true vegetarian, myself included.

the conclusion to this discussion topic could be said easily as this:

the truth; if a person consumes meat, NO MATTER THEIR ETHICAL VALUES morals etc, he or she is not vegetarian and will not be unless he or she omits meat from his or her diet.

though, even saying this, one cannot convince another of their thought process being illogical and so it goes without saying that many will claim a label without it applying to them.

it is a bit strange, however, that one might bring up their ethical/moral values as defense for being vegetarian.  if you care for the animal, understand it's living situation, make sure it was not ill-treated before death, care about it's feelings, et cetera, love-love, et cetera, then proceed to consume it's meat, or another animal's, you are still NOT VEGETARIAN. no matter your relations with the animal or your understanding of it's personality and emotions and oh how sad, you are not vegetarian.  if you sometimes eat it, you are consuming it on some type of basis and are therefore non-vegetarian.  You either eat meat or you don't. there is no inbetween.

evident by my post, to answer your question, yes, I consider pescatarians non-vegetarians.

I did actually think that some vegetarians ate meat, and now I realise that it is still an animal and that some vegetarians feel strongly about not wanting people who eat fish to call themselves vegetarian. I sometimes feel bad about eating fish because it still once was alive but I don't think it is as bad as eating other animals. I am happy to be a pescetarian but I still call myself a vegetarian to my friends because it is easier than explaining why I eat fish and not meat. Plus my boyfriend would hate me if I stopped eating fish, I already don't eat loads of things that he likes such as cheese, meat and spicy food lol, I would do anything for him and he wants me to become completely non-vegetarian but that I wont do.

Nah, not vegetarian. Just don't call yourself vegetarian :P You can call yourself a non-red meat meatatarian ;)

You know what's interesting?

Fish is rich in Selenium, which is a known chelator of Mercury.

So it's kinda like nature already thought of that.

Just sayin!

Original Post by edamame3:

You know what's interesting?

Fish is rich in Selenium, which is a known chelator of Mercury.

So it's kinda like nature already thought of that.

Just sayin!

hmm, thanks for the info. i've been looking up a few things about that because i still have some old fillings in my teeth that i can't afford to change just yet. but it seems that selenium & other chelators are really only effective to help detox the body of mercury once the source is not in or introduced into the body. meaning once the fillings are completely out & once a person does not consume fish regularly. i would love to know otherwise tho since i still have fillings & i do eat fish occasionally.

Original Post by mib666007:

Nah, not vegetarian. Just don't call yourself vegetarian :P You can call yourself a non-red meat meatatarian ;)

 But then people might think you eat white meat such as chicken and pork which isn't true. Most people say what's a pescetarian when I tell them it's annoying lol

Sorry to all the vegetarians who get offended by people who eat fish!

I'm a vegetarian.  When it's really worth it or when there is no other option on the menu, I eat fish.  On those days I'm a pescatarian, and then I go back to being a vegetarian.  On the days where I eat no animal products at all, I'm vegan.  That's how I define myself.  If you don't agree with me, that's fine.  All these labels can be really defeating to ourselves and others who want to be more progressive in their diets.

How long after my last fish meal do I have to wait until I can officially be called "vegetarian" again?  What threshold must I cross to earn that badge of honor? 

If we really want more people to embrace a vegetarian diet, we must not make it an exclusive club.  This is not AA, where you get a badge for being x-many days meat free.  This is a gradual movement towards the understanding of how damaging meat is to our planet and our bodies, and some people need more time to adjust.  But if you fall off the wagon one day, or even make a choice to try a food that doesn't fit into the exact definition of your diet, I think you should still get to call yourself by what you aspire to be. 

Otherwise, no one will ever be perfect, and fewer people will be willing to try.  We'd benifit from more people calling themselves vegetarian, even if we can't all agree on the definition. 

What the heck....a word is a word...but instead of all the labels why not just say:

The only meat I eat is fish

I do not eat any meat

I eat fish and chicken

I pretty much eat any meat

I mean having a term makes you seem "smarter" haha..every damn thing in life has a label. I personally hate it. Of course, I did come in here once and ask for a simple term on the stuff I ate out of curiousity and people got snippy at me and I did not once imply that I was a vegetarian they were slandering me for asking about a term when they use a term to describe themselves.

Yes, some fish has mercury in it, but if you read pretty much any health book they say eating fish is the best choice to make when choosing a meat product to have in your diet. If it was so bad with the mercury then they would not recommend it constantly at all. 3 times a week for fish eaters is usually recommended.

The discussion on mercury is very troubling.  I suffered for YEARS before my doctors finally performed a toxicology panel.  I was severely elevated in mercury.  I was chelated in 2004-2005, and am still suffering the side effects of my poisoning.  I got the mercury PURELY from eating fish.  All fish has mercury in it...mercury is in the environment.  It doesn't settle on selected bodies of water.  It is, however, much more concentrated in larger fish, as they live longer, thus ingesting more mercury than smaller fish.  The "books" telling people to eat more fish mean eating two small portions twice a week.  Have you seen the serving sizes when you go out?  Due to blood disorders that have stemmed from this, I am required to weigh and record all the foods I eat.  When I go out, a 4 ounce serving of salmon is almost always at least 6.5 ounces.  Be careful.  You might want to be careful where your sources come from.  This has been a very painful and difficult time as a result of "these books".