By Matthew Marango
Being a vegetarian is a difficult task for anyone, but just how hard is it on the University of Louisville campus? Furthermore, how much more difficult is it for a student to be a vegan?
Students turn to alternative diets for many reasons. One of the most cited reasons for adopting a vegetarian lifestyle is health. Vegetarian diets are lower in saturated fats, cholesterol and animal protein. A British study that tracked 6,000 vegetarians and 5,000 meat eaters for 12 years found that vegetarians were 40 percent less likely to die from cancer during that time and 20 percent less likely to die from other diseases.
Some reasons given for vegetarianism are ethical ones. Many vegetarians look to prevent animal cruelty and needless slaughter, and simply don’t wish to contribute to the deaths of living creatures.
In addition to vegetarianism, there are some who have taken the vegetarian ideals a step further. Known as vegans, or pure vegetarians, these are students who, whether for ethical, health or other reasons choose to avoid using or consuming animal products. While vegetarians choose not to use flesh foods, vegans also avoid dairy and eggs, as well as fur, leather, wool, down and cosmetics or chemical products tested on animals. Following the strict demands of a vegan diet obviously requires a lot more work and diligence than standard vegetarianism.
“A vegetarian on campus should be okay,” said nutritionist Karen Newton. “The salad bars are great, and have everything they would need. Being a vegan is much harder, because even though there may be no meat in the food, it still may have come into contact with animal products.”
Apparently, there is a misconception concerning leading a healthy vegetarian lifestyle. According to Newton, “A common nutritional mistake people make is to just not eat meat, and they forget to add vegetables.”
However, most vegetarians were encouraged and applauded current campus menus. Some cited the Chartwells menu, which provides vegetarian sushi and salad bars.
Sara Wiley, a sophomore history major, said that Chartwells does “provide the choices of salads and a salad bar as well as Subway, which has vegetarian sandwiches. It’s not hard to be a vegan or a vegetarian with the [food options] they provide on campus.”
Wiley did, however, acknowledge that availability of vegetarian foods is not the only determining factor in the success of a vegetarian diet.
“What is hard is that people have to control their own temptations to not eat meat and to strictly follow their diet beliefs,” Wiley said.
Chartwells Dining offers vegan and vegetarian options, which are marked by particular symbols next to items on their menus. According to their peers, vegetarians should not have such a hard time surviving on the U of L campus if they stick to the salad bars and other vegetarian options. A vegan, however, can expect a much more difficult time.
