The Accidental Vegetarian

Over the past several years, I drifted into vegetarian eating for no particular reason other than I liked the food and recipes. I was an “accidental vegetarian”: I did not set out to eat that way but drifted into it. I liked the vegetarian foods I was cooking and that came to dominate my eating, only having meat – almost always chicken – as a stir fry – once per month. I never thought of myself as a vegetarian and if asked, I would not have described myself as vegetarian. I was influenced by people who gave up meat eating, and media stories proclaiming vegetarian eating as “healthy”, and “will save the planet”.

I never woke up one day and said, I’m giving up meat and will eat only plants.

But almost meatless eating was causing me serious health problems.

In short, over a period of years, I gradually became vitamin B-12 deficient. That sounds like a minor issue, right? It was not – in fact, it caused extremely serious health problems and suffered numerous, serious health problems for over two years – and spent over $6,000 out of pocket on medical tests (due to very high deductibles) before finding the cause. Once the cause was found and B-12 was administered, within days the problems cleared up – and as of this writing, have been cleared up for 12 months.

Update: Eating vegetarian for 4 of the past 5 years did not prevent my having a blocked coronary artery in March of 2025, treated with emergency angioplasty and stents. My ten years of lipid panels were fine. The cardiologist said she saw nothing in my records that would have caught her attention in advance. I do not have the traditional risk factors – I have never smoked, drank alcoholic beverages, done drugs, am not diabetic or pre-diabetic, and I exercised.

This is important!

You should not drift into vegetarian eating by eliminating meat, especially if you are age 40 or older. You should let your doctor know, and you should consult with a nutritionist and plan to have your blood tested annually. Nutrient deficiencies are common and may have serious health effects. This is not a joke but serious advice – do not do what I did and cause harm to your health.

Even the USDA 2025 proposed dietary guidelines say this:

Meat is the primary dietary source of vitamin B-12. If we are deficient in vitamin B-12, we can suffer numerous and serious health problems – at the worst case, even death. This issue is downplayed in the vegetarian community – they say, “You should just know that you have to take supplements – duh”.

The problem is – there is very little communication to the public on this. I own 4 books on vegetarian eating, two of which are best sellers. 3 of the 4 books make no mention of vitamin supplements and one only mentions it in two sentences on page 275.

• As we get older, our internal store of vitamin B-12 decreases.
• As we get older, our ability to absorb dietary vitamin B-12 goes down.
• As we get older, we generally eat less, reducing the dietary intake of B-12 and other essential vitamins. In fact, it can be hard to eat the required quantity of plant-based foods to get necessary nutrients, vitamins and protein. You may have to eat a lot when consuming low meat protein foods.
• Some medications interfere the absorption of vitamin B-12.
• Some diseases such as celiac and others may interfere with absorption of critical nutrients.
• Some infections, such as hepatitis, can ruin our B-12 store.

You can cut out meat but you MUST DO IT RIGHT or risk serious health consequences including death: How to Eat Vegan and Avoid Heart-Damaging Nutrient Deficiencies | Dr. Sinatra’s HeartMD Institute

What This Post Covers

• What is vegetarian or vegan eating? Much to my surprise, in a study, one fourth of those self-identifying as vegetarian admitted to eating meat within the prior 24 hours, and 48% admitted to eating meat from time to time.
• What percent of the population eats vegan or vegetarian? In 2023, 4% of the US ate vegetarian and 1% ate vegan. In other words, very few people do this. And per the first item, perhaps just half of those percentages actually avoid all meat.
• Most vegans and vegetarians who start the lifestyle eventually give it up. The typical vegan/vegetarian is in their 20s, female, and pursues the lifestyle for a time, but may give it up due to health problems, social problems with not eating meat, or convenience issues. About 2/3ds of those who tried vegan or vegetarian eating, eventually gave it up, for many reasons.
• Vegetarian/Vegan Promotion – everyone markets a book promoting vegan/vegetarian foods. Today, meat less eating is wrapped into other topics including climate change and agriculture, and we should avoid meat because ruminants’ stomachs produce methane. Up to 30% of meat is consumed by pet dogs and cats – and if we think we should ban meat due to climate, then we will need to ban having dogs and cats… and there are proposals to do that.
• Health issues – Some surveys suggest 25-34% give up vegetarian eating because health problems developed.
• My own Health Issues – a lot!

What is a Vegan or Vegetarian?

• A vegan eats no animal products – meaning no dairy, cheese, etc, in addition to avoiding all meats
• A vegetarian is a plant-based eater but does consume eggs, dairy, cheese, etc.

One study found that about half of vegetarians eat meat from time to time, and in one study, about 1 in 4 admitted to consuming meat within the prior 24 hours. Thus, “vegetarian” encompasses a range of people who are meatless eaters to people who mostly eat plants but also eat meat some of the time. Perhaps because of this, the new wording is “plant-based eating” as a replacement for “vegetarian” – meaning people who eat mostly plants but still have some meat, some times.

With up to half of those who self-identify as vegetarian eating meat, some times, survey results may significantly over count true vegetarians.

You Must Apologize if You Cannot Eat Vegetarian?

After I learned of my vegetarian induced health problems, I looked online for more about vegetarian eating.

I ran across this article – where the writer wrote a 35-page, single spaced essay apologizing for why she is no longer a vegetarian (she developed health problems, like me): Why I Stopped Being Vegetarian After 11 Years | Healy Eats Real

After 11 years she had serious health problems and, it turns out, she can’t eat vegetarian. Yet she felt compelled to write a 35-page apology?

Do you need to apologize for doing what is best of your health?

Here is another apology from someone who did veganism “right”, took all the recommended supplements but ended up with health problems:

I’m a bit ashamed to admit this as I don’t want to lambast veganism. It’s not veganism’s fault, really. It’s mine for being so cavalier about my health and, of course, for being a woman. The veganism merely stripped back the already ailing reserves, and it is now my responsibility to ensure they are topped up.

I was vegan for five years and it has damaged my body long term

Discontinuing eating vegetarian is described with sharp tongued language: 5 Reasons Why Some Vegans Go Back To Eating Meat | LIVEKINDLY where such people who leave vegetarian eating are said to be “falling off the wagon”. This advocacy is dangerous.

There is no right way to eat – but those who are not vegetarian or who cannot be vegetarian (like the author of the above or me) feel they must apologize for their transgression of eating meat. That line of thinking is a religious belief system, unfortunately, and pits groups against one another.

Shouldn’t all groups want freedom to eat the way that works for them?

Why are we compelled to defend being vegan, vegetarian, lacto ovo vegan, flexitarian, chickentarian, plant-based, omnivore, carnivore, low fat, high fat, keto, high protein, low glycemic index, “No flour, no sugar” or whatever else one chooses?

Why do we have proponents of any eating style insisting others should adhere to their one true eating style?

Why is it necessary to insist that “my way” (whatever that is) is the only true way to eat, that this makes someone more sanctimonious than others, more worthy, a better person?’

Because all of the above have become religions.

Here’s an essay from a woman who quit eating vegetarian after 18 years, who concludes “You do (what works for) you. Don’t ever feel like you have to put a label on your eating patterns or defend your eating decisions as long as you’re being really honest and curious with yourself about your intentions behind them“

Another take:

And yet, there’s a vital piece of these conversations that’s been missing: the reality of being a vegetarian. And the truth is that, for many of us, it’s not actually a sustainable lifestyle; not long-term, anyway. Most vegetarians, regardless of convictions or reasons for quitting meat, ultimately go back to eating meat.

Lessons I Learned from Quitting Vegetarianism | by A. Elise | Wholistique | Medium

Vegetarianism Is Not Widespread

What Percent Are Vegetarian/Vegan?

From frequent media reports, you may think vegetarianism is widespread, but surveys find few people eat vegan (plant-based diet only) or vegetarian (plants + dairy and eggs).

• In the U.S., 4% of adults are vegetarian, down from 6% twenty years ago per Gallop 2023 survey.
• A 2018 Gallop survey found 5% were vegetarian.
• An estimated 2% of the U.S. population is a “long term” vegetarian (Microsoft Copilot answer)
• Another study estimated about 3% are vegetarian: Vegetarianism. A blossoming field of study – ScienceDirect
• 1.7% of adults age 65 or older are vegetarian.
• In 2017, NPR reported an estimated 3.3% of Americans were vegetarian.
• A 2006 US FDA study found 2.3% are vegetarian and 1.4% are vegans.
• A way to obfuscate low numbers is to create categories that sound like vegetarian but are not: flexitarian (eats some meat), and pescatarian (eats fish). Each is about 3% in the ipsos survey of 28 countries. There are also locavores, reducetarians and climatarians.
• Food Intake Patterns of Self-identified Vegetarians Among the U.S. Population, 2007-2010 – this study found that 27% of “vegetarians” admitted to eating meat within the prior 24 hours, and 48% admitted to eating meat occasionally. “Very few (n=10; 3%) self-identified vegetarians reported consuming no animal protein foods at all on any given consumption day (Figure 1). The majority of self-identified vegetarians reported consumption of dairy (93%), and eggs (65%). In addition, more than one-fourth (27%) reported consumption of some type of red meat. When meat, poultry, and seafood were grouped, almost half (48%) of self-identified vegetarians reported consumption of some food from this combined grouping (Figure 1)“
• The UK government defines “vegetarians” to include people who eat some meat: Nutrition for vegetarian, vegan and plant-based diets – “Some people may also define themselves as vegetarians but still eat some fish, meat, or poultry occasionally.” So what is a “vegetarian?”
• A study found about half of those who said they are vegetarian actually ate meat sometimes. Which means reported percentages of true vegetarians may be twice the true value.
• “Tracye McQuirter, MPH: Black women are the current face of veganism in this country. According to a 2016 Pew Research Center Study, African Americans are the fastest growing vegan and vegetarian demographic in the country, at 8% as compared to 3% of Americans overall. And it’s estimated that the majority are women.”

• When this is taken into account, the actual % of the population truly eating vegetarian may be as little as 2% plus 1% vegan.

These values, above, are likely lower than you were expecting, based on the media promoting vegetarian eating. There are many vegetarian promoters who discuss hypothetical benefits – but give little or no attention to health risks. This skews us into thinking we can casually start eating vegetarian or vegan and you will be “healthier”.

As noted in the intro above, and more below, you can eat vegetarian if you do it right – and know what you are doing. Because of this, though, you should not just eliminate meat and think everything is fine. Eating vegetarian safely is more complicated than that.

Sadly, the official USDA Dietary Guidelines poorly communicate the vitamin B-12 issue (as shown way above). Popular vegetarian cookbooks make no mention of B-12 or other nutrient issues. The result of this poor communication is that people who pursue this eating style long term will have a high likelihood of encountering health problems.

Comparing Vegetarian % to Other Diets

At any given time about 17% of the population is on some type of diet – about 10% are on a weight loss or low-calorie diet. The % who are on a diet is higher among older ages, and lower among younger ages.

An estimated 2.2% are eating a low carb diet, which for most, means a lot of meat. A slightly larger percent are on a “diabetic” diet.

Compare these figures to the 4% who are vegetarian and 1% who are vegan.

What Percent of Vegetarians/Vegans Give it Up?

• 12% of Americans have at any time, pursued a vegetarian diet per Gallop. Which means 66% quit (12% compared to the 2021 estimate of 4% is a loss of two-thirds).
• As noted above, just 2% of Americans have been long term vegetarians.
• Another study (Faunalytics) estimated 84% give it up eventually. Vegetarian activists say the study is flawed or misleading. They say eating plant-based food is irrelevant to classification as a vegan or vegetarian: “if a vegetarian or vegan diet is only adopted for health, then it isn’t veganism at all, but a plant-based activity.” About half self-identify, then, as true vegetarians or vegans which proponents define as someone who does not eat meat for philosophical or ethical reasons. If you avoid meat for other reasons, then you are not vegetarian or vegan. They argue that one should not count someone who tries vegan or vegetarian eating for a few months and then gives it up – basically, to count how many people quit, we should exclude most of the people who quit – or something …
• The Faunalytics study found about 12% of Americans have tried vegan or vegetarian eating at some point (mentioned in this article). This is inline with the Gallop survey results.
• Another group claims only 25% of vegetarians/vegans give it up – however, they biased their results by only considering people aged 35 and older. Younger people are more likely to have tried being vegan/vegetarian but gave it up before age 35: Do 84% Of Vegans And Vegetarians Really Go Back To Eating Meat? (FYI – when researchers cherry pick the starting age to 35, it calls into question all of the findings.)
• Here is a 2019 survey with similar values.
• Another survey claims 79% of vegetarians are women, 21% are men. The Gallop poll found 60% were women and 40% were men. There does seem to be a bias towards young women in the vegetarian/vegan community.
• Globally, 4-10% +/- are vegetarian (varies by country) and vegans are 1-2%. India has an estimated 20-40% of its population as vegetarian and: Vitamin B12 Deficiency is Endemic in Indian Population: A Perspective from North India – PMC (nih.gov)

Why Do People Give Up Vegetarian Eating?

• 35% give up vegetarian eating because their health declined (small survey, not really a study).
• 25% found it difficult to find quality food at the right price, took too much time to prepare vegetarian dishes, or “grew tired of the lifestyle”.
• 15% found eating vegetarian interfered with their social life.
• 20% found they wanted to eat meat again.
• Some discovered they used vegetarian eating to hide an eating disorder.
• For some, vegetarian eating is a way of protesting actual or perceived U.S. farming practices

Whether or not you can successfully be vegetarian may come down to genetics as researchers think there may be genetic differences between the small % who eat vegetarian and the rest of the population: Being a vegetarian may be in the genes, a new study finds : Shots – Health News : NPR and Being a vegetarian is genetic and could explain why some people can’t give up meat (msn.com)

Vegetarian/Vegan Promotion

• There are numerous vegetarian/vegan book authors who promote this way of eating.
• There are vegetarian/vegan doctors who promote this way of eating – and typically publish books on the topic. Similarly, there are many authors who promote “keto” diets, low carb, high protein and the extreme – the Carnivore diet – literally, only meat and eggs.
• There are many media articles falsely implying vegan/vegetarian eating is common and spreading rapidly. But see the survey results above – it’s in decline and about 4% vegetarian/1% vegan.
• Some climate enthusiasts insist we must stop eating all meat to “save the planet”, not realizing that pet dogs and cats consume up to 30% of the meat in the U.S. -which means, they also wish to ban all pet dogs and cats (really). And indeed, that is the case as several climate scientists say we must ban pets or at least ban all large and medium size dog breeds. Do you support banning all pets? The climate connection has become a focus of “eat vegetarian” or “plant-based” media promotion.
• Promoters have a religious zeal – and proclaim hypothetical benefits but omit or hide legitimate health concerns (they won’t sell many books if they say “Eat this way and get sick!”)
• This has created a skewed public perspective on vegetarian/vegan eating – since eating this way worked for the promoter, it can work for everyone! And everyone will be better! And the planet will be better!
• The reality is – whether vegetarian eating works for you “depends” on many factors. Just because it works for you does not mean it works for everyone else.

Health Issues

Vitamin B-12 is an essential vitamin. Without out, we eventually become sick – even causing permanent damage. The primary dietary source of B-12 is meat.

B-12 deficiency is common among those who pursue vegetarian or vegan eating, over a period of years. Most of us have a 2–5-year store of B-12 in our livers – such that we can go a while without consuming meat before B12 deficiency symptoms strike. Most vegetarians, however, give up vegetarian eating in less than 2 years and do not encounter B12 deficiency (unless they go longer than that).

It is possible to avoid b12 deficiency on a vegetarian or vegan diet BUT it requires careful planning and monitoring and generally consuming vitamin supplements: Vitamin B12 among Vegetarians: Status, Assessment and Supplementation – PMC (nih.gov)

Managing B-12 is more difficult for older adults who, in general, eat less food, absorb less B-12 in their gut, and may be on medications or have health conditions that interfere with absorption.

The various levels of blood markers are defined differently by country – with a wide variation, suggesting no one knows what an adequate level is for everyone. Many people are not average, as well.

Per a video by Dr. Greger, the recommended 2.4 micrograms of B12 per day came from a 1958 study. Other countries (other than the U.S.) recommend about twice that level and some recent studies suggest 7-8 micrograms per day.

Recent studies reported low serum cobalamin among vegetarians [103]. A deficiency in 11%–90% of elderly, 62% of pregnant women, 25%–86% of children, and 21%–41% of adolescents has been documented [110]. In a systematic review of literature based on the blood concentration of Cbl among vegetarians, a deficiency was present ranging from 0% to 86.5% among adults and elderly, up to 45% in infants, from 0% to 33.3% in children and adolescents, and from 17% to 39% among pregnant women [111]. The use of supplements or fortified foods seems to prevent deficiencies, indicating that a well-planned plant-based diet has proven to be adequate and sustainable [112,113]. However, despite the use of fortified foods, deficiency over a period of five years could occur, demonstrating a continuing insufficient intake or a possible decline in the absorptive capacity due to aging [114]. In all likelihood, even when supplementation occurs, it is possible that concentrations sufficient to avoid the reduction of body stock in the liver, blood and kidney cannot be reached. The liver is the main reservoir with a capacity of around 1–1.5 mg of Cbl [114].

and

Currently, the official position of associations and government agencies is categorical and unequivocal: in the case of a vegetarian diet, including LOV, LV and OV, supplementation of Cbl [B12] is required [11,13]. Cbl concentration per 100 g of cow’s milk, dairy products and chicken eggs ranged from 0.5 to 0.4 μg, from 4.2 to 3.6 μg, and from 2.5 to 1.1 μg, respectively [139,140]. Taking into account the losses during cooking and the specific absorption rate, these quantities are not sufficient to ensure the daily intake in a balanced diet [141].

To illustrate the absorption issue – my doctor has me taking 1000 mcgs of B-12 daily – because we may absorb just 5 to 10 mcg of that.

How much B-12 you need can vary based on your age, your health conditions, drugs or other supplements you may be taking, and the types of food you consume. This is why you need to consult with an expert – and not rely on news media reports, online blogs (like this) or online forums and social media posts.

If You Wish to Eat Vegetarian

If you are considering eating a vegetarian diet – and especially if you are a mature adult (40s and up), you should consult with your doctor and a registered dietician before starting. You may also need to have blood tests to ensure you maintain proper vitamin levels.

In June of 2021, I read the book How Not to Diet by Michael Greger, MD. He presents benefits of a plant-based diet but only mentions b-12 deficiency in two sentences on page 275. This critical item should have been prominent in the first chapter. (He does emphasize the importance of B12 in online videos, which I had not seen before: The Optimal Vitamin B12 Dosage for Adults (nutritionfacts.org)).

The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook (it’s good), has no mention of the need to use vitamin supplements. An older book, The Vegetarian Epicure, makes no mention of vitamin deficiencies. In fact 3 of the 4 vegetarian books I have made no mention of any supplements or nutritional deficiency issues. Two of the four books were or are best sellers!

My Health Impacts From Eating Vegetarian

As mentioned, I was an accidental vegetarian who drifted into this. I did not view myself as vegetarian. I just rarely ate meat anymore.

My health gradually deteriorated during the last two and one half years of vegetarian eating.

The first oddity was visual auras and occasional migraines. A visual aura, for me, was the classic “crescent shaped” flashing lines that would emerge near the center of my vision and slowly move outwards in either the left field or the right field of vision, lasting about 30 minutes. These are common migraine pre-cursors. Sometimes this was followed by an intense migraine headache (a “migraine” is far worse than “just a headache”), and sometimes by fatigue (I would fall asleep).

Trying to identify a cause, I logged all visual auras and headaches. By the end of 2023, I was experiencing scotomas and auras up to 5 to 10 times per day. A scotoma is a blind spot or area in our field of vision. When they occurred, I had to stop doing everything, due to the vision disruption.

From late 2021 to the very end of 2023, the migraine problem became severe – eventually so many that I stopped logging all of them, but the pattern is still clear in this chart.

• In the 2nd half of 2023, visual auras/scotomas occurred up to 5x to 10x per day. There were so many in the last six months or so that I stopped logging all of them. The short blue lines on the graph are an indicator of lots of short scotomas or auras that happened every day.
• Migraine headaches occurred every 2-3 weeks with associated severe headache pain and/or intense fatigue.
• I experienced extreme dizziness, at times, so intense I could not stand up – even sit up.
• I experienced irregular heartbeat – specifically a non-specific ST anomaly where the timing of my heart rate varied and expected beats were missed (literally, there was a gap in my heart beats)
• I had chronic fatigue and brain fog
• Memory issues – for me I began to be unable to remember the names of people; memory issues are a common effect of B-12 deficiency.
• I had nonA/nonB/nonC hepatitis, of unknown cause (possibly non-viral hepatitis). B-12 deficiency can be either a cause or an effect of hepatitis.
• I suffered gall bladder inflammation (abdominal pain, high fever). The cause was not found, but B-12 deficiency is a known potential cause.
• I suffered from trigeminal nerve pain in the head, forehead and side of my head; B-12 deficiency can be a factor.
• “Pins and needles” and itching on the back of my scalp, neck and shoulders (B-12 deficiency can be a cause)
• Growth of warts on my eye lids, and warts below my eyes (B-12 deficiency can be a factor)
• Acceleration of hair loss (can be caused by B-12 deficiency).
• Accelerated graying of hair.
• I also suffered two broken bones in a foot, and two torn tendons. B-12 deficiency was probably not a factor, but vegetarian eating is confirmed to reduce bone mineral density and is known to increase the risk for hip fractures, and possibly other types of fractures.
• Muscle wasting, particularly in the left leg – possibly due to lack of protein as well as injuries.

Once the B-12 deficiency was corrected, ALL problems went away

In 12 months afterward, I had one short scotoma – which is on par with what I had pre-vegetarian eating – once or twice per year. All of the other problems are gone, and I am getting on with my life.

Over two years, my health became worse and worse. The visual auras were to the point I could not plan activities.

When a scotoma occurred, I lost partial vision for 1-10 minutes for each of the 5 to 10 times they occurred every day. The dizziness would strike at random – so dizzy I could not stand up or walk unless holding on to furniture or a railing. I did not know what was going on and this was scary – but usually passed in a few minutes.

I paid about $6,000 out of pocket on my doctor’s recommended medical tests (due to insane ACA policy deductibles) trying to find a cause for the rise in visual auras (ECGs, heart imaging and stress tests, ultrasound artery imaging, ultrasound abdominal imaging, blood tests, vision tests – optometry, ophthalmology and neuro-ophthalmology, and more), and investigation of the hepatitis and gall bladder inflammation, but the tests found nothing other than confirming the ST anomaly which was initially detected by my doctor by taking my pulse. I had felt the irregular heart beat myself when taking my own pulse. Note – my doctor was following the Evidence-Based Guidelines for someone presenting with migraines and auras. Some of the tests were due to hepatitis and gall bladder inflammation, for example.

I inadvertently ran across something about B-12 and took a vitamin B-12 supplement. In one day, I saw improvement. By 3 days, my migraines and visual auras ended. I discontinued taking the B-12 tablet and my visual auras returned. I resumed B-12 and the scotomas vanished again. My dizziness was gone, my brain fog faded.

I notified my doctor who used blood tests to confirm the B-12 deficiency and who now has me taking 1000 mcg of vitamin B12 indefinitely.

I understand I did vegetarian eating all wrong.

• I did not eat meat and ate egg whites instead of whole eggs (eggs have vitamin b-12 but egg whites have essentially zero b-12); I did not know that.
• I used to have one or two 12+ oz lattes every day and would get some b-12 from milk – but after I went to decaf, I no longer had coffee every day and had just 6 oz cups of decaf coffee with a little milk.
• I did not eat manufactured “fortified” cereals and breads that contained added B vitamins.
• I did not take any vitamin pills.

I had unknowingly become vitamin B-12 deficient – which is a serious health problem.

Vegans/vegetarians tell me “Well duh, everyone knows you must take B-12 and other supplements for iron, calcium, etc“. Well, I didn’t know, and I’d read a few books that did not even mention these things – so just how are ordinary folks supposed to know this?

UPDATE October 2024 – I learned from a cousin, who is an M.D., that there is a family history of vitamin B-12 deficiency among my Norwegian ancestry, and that one of my grandmothers had to have periodic B-12 injections. I also learned that an older brother was put on a B- vitamin months ago and nearly all of is visual auras have disappeared. How many of us would know our family history for B-12 deficiency?

UPDATE NOVEMBER 2024: Four blood tests suggest I am still slightly deficient in the level of B-12 – which surprised me as I take B-12 every day. There may have been a medication interference – specifically, you should not take vitamin C within 2 hours of taking B-12 as vitamin C interferes with B-12 absorption.

THIS IS IMPORTANT!

If you are thinking of eating vegetarian, you should consult with your doctor and a registered dietician before starting on that eating style – especially if age 40 or higher. You need to plan on taking vitamin supplements to replace those provided by meat. You should have your blood tested for nutrient levels, at least once per year. You may need a spreadsheet or an app to track your food and nutrients. This is important if you are an older adult; vegetarian eating is not something, contrary to the media and peer pressure, that you can take up casually for a long period. Follow the advice of your doctor and nutritionist.

If you experience problems like dizziness, hair loss, etc, you need to discuss with and tell your doctor about your eating habits. For any visit to your doctor, you should mention you are vegetarian. I had discussed my migraines and my dizziness with my doctor – but never told him I was eating vegetarian-like. If I had, he likely would have noted the B-12 problem early on.

Young people have a different health profile than older adults and can eat vegetarian for years before problems develop. Older adults may not store as much B-12 and are known to not absorb nutrients as well, particularly B-12, are more likely to have medication interference with vitamin B-12 absorption, and naturally eat less food, meaning less nutrients.

Older people may “crash” sooner than young adults eating vegetarian.

VEGETARIAN EATING IS NOT SOMETHING THAT CAN BE DONE CASUALLY BY JUST STOPPING THE CONSUMPTION OF MEAT.

I did not understand this until now. I am now a meat-eating omnivore again and will be careful to consume sufficient animal protein. My health deterioration was scary, and I will not risk that again.

I blame myself for the damage that occurred, but I am, realistically, a brain injured idiot so that may have played a role here. I fell for the media stories -which were misinformation and nonsense from incompetent reporters. I no longer trust the media to get anything correct. Very few stories about plant-based eating mention B-12 or other nutrient issues; they are promotional propaganda, not useful and actionable information.

Afterward – look up “vegetarian and hair loss” – you’ll find tons of pages and videos on this subject (see this for example). Look up “vitamin b12 and migraines” – you’ll find published papers on this subject. Look into “vitamin b12 and dizziness” – yep, lots on that too. These are real problems for vegetarians.

See vegetarian hair loss – YouTube