i'm actually kinda fed up with vegetarians. thats not to say that i don't have my beef with atkins, as i can actually feel my heart struggle to digest a fat slab of cow. but when it comes to vegetarians, its just plain unnatural.

everyone probably knows that there are certain essential amino acids one needs to survive. others might not know that all these can either be self-made or consumed through a vegetarian diet... with one exception.

B12. this is only attainable through meat consumption. so "Vegetarians who do not eat meats, fish, eggs, milk or milk products, or B12 fortified foods consume no vitamin B12 and are at high risk of developing a deficiency of vitamin B12. When adults adopt a vegetarian diet, deficiency symptoms can be slow to appear because it usually takes years to deplete normal body stores of B12. However, severe symptoms of B12 deficiency, most often featuring poor neurological development, can show up quickly in children and breast-fed infants of women who follow a strict vegetarian diet."

jacked that from here: vitamin B12

anyway. from memory (i'm goin back to when i was 12ish), that period of time is roughly 6 - 10 years.
so people. this is telling you that somewhere along the evolutionary path of human evolution, man developed the need for MEAT.
so EAT it.
it doesn't have to be a daily habit. a one-time source will almost last you a decade, but unless you want fortified B12 from your cereal with a little bit of vitamin D fortified milk to go along with it, you best have some turkey or fish. or something.

as for myself. heres how i go about it. fuck diets.
if you're concious about what you eat, and you think its overly fatty, don't eat it. somehow bacon qualifies as a diet food in atkins (doesn't it), i don't know how that works, but i see its appeal.

so again. back to what, in theory, i do. eat a lot of vegetables, some fruit, and occasionally litter it with a bit of meat. eat some turkey or less perferably chicken if you're watching fat consumption.

evolutionarily, our large brains are thought to be indebted to meat consumption. protein is key for infant growth.
it's seen in birds who are highly insectivorous when young and turn to a more vegetarian lifestyle when older.
one might refute my argument by saying that only meat when young is necessary, but remember B12. yeah, you can go for a while without it, but it will eventually catch up with you.

what can B12 deficiencies do? yeah. i didnt know either, but heres what that website above says: "Characteristic signs of B12 deficiency include fatigue, weakness, nausea, constipation, flatulence (gas), loss of appetite, and weight loss. Deficiency also can lead to neurological changes such as numbness and tingling in the hands and feet. Additional symptoms of B12 deficiency are difficulty in maintaining balance, depression, confusion, poor memory, and soreness of the mouth or tongue."

so what is the moral of the story?

eat meat, use moderation.