Pescetarianism Questions.

Okay, so I have some questions about pescetarianism.

Let me start off by saying that I have been vegetarian for about 2 years, and I have never in my life tried fish.

I had been getting enough protein in my diet, through protein bars (mainly Luna), however, I no longer have a taste for them.  Those were my main source of protein and once I cut them out, I began sleeping a lot, and have been napping much too often. I'm not sure if the two are linked, but my diet is definetely devoid of something nutritionally. I am not the healthiest eater, I must say, so I need to get as much protein as I can in the smallest amount of food.

So my questions are...

Are there any mainstream seafood brands that are known for ethical slaughtering?

What type of fish would be most beneficial to me?

Is going pescetarian even a good idea?

Disclaimer: I know there are other protein sources (beans, nuts, legumes, etc.), but I don't really care for them much. I also can't imagine eating any type of beef or poultry again.

Thank you in advance for your replies.

one thing to be aware of is that ocean fish contain a really startling amount of heavy metals.  I imagine that coming from a vegetarian background you don't plan to eat fish all the time; but know how much is going into your body.

Generally, salmon is pretty good and it's easy to tell how it's caught and by whom, unlike, say, tuna.  Depending on where you live there may be local catch that you can get, which is generally fresher and better for you.

caveat: fish should never smell "fishy."  If it does, it's gone bad.  don't eat it.

If you haven't really ever eaten fish, maybe get a little smoked salmon if you like salty foods, or start with a mild whitefish such as cod or tilapia.  Those are sort of the tofu of the fish world, they pick up the flavor of whatever they're cooked in and don't have much flavor of their own.

I don't plan to eat a lot of seafood at all, just as little as possible, once a day for protein. Thanks for the fish suggestions also, I was thinking about salmon before you even mentioned it.

I live in the middle of a vast array of farms, so no fisherman or fresh fish here, only the fish that come from a grocery store.

I have an extremely low tolerance for fish that smell bad, so I think I am okay as far as that goes.

There's also many ways to get enough protein without introducing fish/meat back into your diet. I don't have the info handy, but a forum search will yield a number of results in the vegetarian forum alone.  Seems you have that covered already, though.

However, if you're interested in purchasing fish that was caught using sustainable methods, check out the Blue Ocean Institute's site for info on sustainable fishing methods, wild caught vs. farmed, etc.

I'm pescetarian, though I am generally vegetarian on weekdays; it's weekends when I go to restaurants that I use it as standby (and sushi, dammit!). I've researched on which fishes are currently sustainable and try to stick with that. The best I've discovered so far seem to be crabs, shellfish, etc (except shrimp--the bycatch on shrimp is absolutely disgusting, about 50%, and they just let it die). The strictest laws regarding overfishing are generally applied to crabs and lobster, so you should be pretty safe with that.

do you eat the "fake" meats?  soy stuff by quorn, boca, morningstar, etc.?  have you cooked beans/tofu in different methods and tried some different things? i thought i hated beans and tofu and now i'm trying them out in different ways and found some dishes i really like.... what about peanut butter and hummus?

I eat fake meats very rarely, I usually get a headache after eating them though, so I try to stay away. I don't care too much for tofu, and my mother hates it so that doesn't work. I eat beans, but I can't imagine eating them on a daily basis, nor can I imagine eating enough to get sufficient protein.

I do eat peanut butter and hummus nearly daily, however they don't have nearly enough protein.

heres a list of protiens in food:

http://heartspring.net/list_of_high_protein_f oods.html


no matter what, i dont think i could ever go back to eating animal products. however, i happen to love beans and whatnot so its not a problem for me. i might eat too much though =X

I'm just wondering how fish could be slaughtered any other way than suffocation when brought out of the water? I highly doubt there are any companies out there who haul in a net of fish and go around putting them out of their misery fast.

Dovebunnie: the seafoos you mentioned accounts for a large part of the destruction of coral reefs in the world. In order to catch shrimp, crabs etc the boats fish in very shallow waters close to the coast, and drag their nets along the bottom in order to catch all the creatures lurking there, dragging with them the coral reefs in the process. I know here in Norway shrimp, crab and lobster-fishing accounts for most of the destroyed coral reefs (over half our coral reefs have been destroyed in recent times, it'll take thousands of years for them to rebuild).

Hi,

I have been vegetarian for 8 years now.  One year of those was vegan, and the last four years have been pescatarian.  I find I dont have the discipline to eat the right balanced protein filled diet that you need as a vego and find eating fish and seafood so much easier, plus its so healthy for you!

Im lucky I live right on the ocean and basically only eat what my partner or father catch themselves.  Sometimes I will get a hankering for a rich salmon fillet, Im at a moral loss though because I love the farmed variety.  While sustainably speaking supporting farmed salmon is better, it also goes against some of my reasons for not eating meat, that they are produced soley for our consumption.  Not sure which is the lesser evil here.

For me the thought of eating any other meat or poultry makes me feel sick but for some reason fish and shellfish doesnt seem quite like flesh like the other meat does.  perhaps because i love it too much, or perhaps because i know how good it is for me.

 

Broccoli has more protein, per calorie, than steak.  How about lots of vegetables?  If you are a vegetarian and you are eating unhealthfully you are going to be devoid of some very important nutrients, besides protein! (Magnesium deficiency can lead to fatigue, for example).  You seem resistant to eating healthy but its the only way to be a vegetarian and get all the nutrients you need.  You really need to start adding in these foods you say you don't like.  Your tastes WILL change.  It only takes six weeks to change your dietary tastes.  If you are vegan (which I am assuming because otherwise you would have plenty of protein from milk and eggs) you need to eat lots of whole foods, otherwise you are seriously compromising your health and immune system!