By David Magallanes/ Guest contributor
Wikipedia, the online free (but very informative) encyclopedia, defines what I practice:
Pescetarianism is the practice of a diet that includes seafood, and excludes other animals. In addition to fish and/or shellfish, a pescetarian diet typically includes all vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, beans, eggs and dairy. The Merriam-Webster dictionary dates the origin of the term “pescetarian” to 1993 and defines it to mean: “one whose diet includes fish but no meat.”
Being a pescetarian (pronounced “pes-ke-tarian”) is not easy in our American culture, and even less so in the Mexican American culture that formed my life and defines my environment. When I attend a Mexican house party, I’m often handed a beer and a taco, quite automatically, without any suspicion that one of these items is a serious issue for me (but “gracias por el Tecate!”). I take no offense, of course, and neither do I criticize anyone else’s dietary choices in this regard. But the sharp divide in our dietary views is painfully evident when Mexican delicacies such as “cabeza de vaca” (“cow’s head”), “lengua de res” (“beef tongue”) ,” or “sesos de cordero” (“lamb brains”) are on the menu. Still, when this is the situation, I humbly and with no judgment whatsoever eat my “ensalada, arroz, frijoles y tortillas” (“salad, rice, beans and tortillas”), hoping that no one takes offense for my lack of participation in the main course. Whereas many people question the validity of my choice (it’s not that difficult to “come out of the closet” on this issue), a certain segment of the population sneers at me for my lack of commitment to their vegan lifestyle.
Rather than condemning myself to a hellish life of bigotry and hate, being a pescetarian simply subjects me to a certain awkwardness in social situations, the occasional mild scolding, and curiosity or attempted guilt-inducing behavior on the part of others. For example, one time a friend, who knew that I leaned toward vegetarianism, had prepared a soup with tiny bits of beef and told me that it was “only a little bit of beef.” I appreciated her assurances, but she didn’t understand that the dietary choices that people make are often not unlike religious vows. I tried to explain without sounding haughty. She felt bad. I felt awful. Where do we draw the line between etiquette and strong personal convictions? I’m still grappling with that one.
People almost always mean well, as in the case of my friend, but only if we were malicious would we urge — or worse yet, taunt — Hindus to eat cows, Jews to eat pork, and Catholics to eat meat during the Fridays of Lent.
I sometimes explain to people (though only if they request an explanation of my convictions) how and why I became a pescetarian. I was about 25 years old and became very interested in diet and nutrition. I read several books on vegetarianism, including John Robbins’ Diet For A New America and Diet For A Small Planet, by Francis Moore Lappé. Both made a strong, logical case for vegetarianism. Robbins’ book was more emotional, but it was difficult to refute (or is that “refudiate,” as Sarah Palin would say?) his appeals to consider the vegetarian lifestyle.
In his book, Robbins states1:
“The United States has the most sophisticated medical technology in the world, and one of the most temperate of climates. One of the highest consumers of meat and animal products in the world, it also has one of the lowest life expectancies of industrialized nations.”
Being the natural skeptic that I am, some quick research tells me that he’s correct on this point. See this link here, the “List of countries by life expectancy” in Wikipedia. The United States is 36th on this list, behind Japan, France, Germany, Australia, Spain, Canada, Greece, Chile, and Great Britain!
Initially, I had declared myself a vegetarian. But soon after, I deemed total vegetarianism to be untenable for me, and rather than having to denounce my new “faith,” I tweaked my status to “pescetarian.” I had to admit it: I love occasional grilled salmon steaks! And at times I’ll eat halibut and other fish. Hell, even Jesus ate fish. But I digress.
So what are my reasons for avoiding meat? There’s no quick, easy answer. The reasons touch on environmental, health and — this is hard to admit as a man in our culture — there’s even an emotional component. We use (I was tempted to use the term “waste”) enormous amounts of water raising cattle and other sources of meat; the statistics indicate clear long-term and unfortunately quite common health hazards in the frequent consumption of meat; and, yes, in fact I do have feelings for higher forms of life going to slaughter.
There — I said it.
But now I can say, after more than thirty-five years of pescetarianism, that the journey so far has been highly successful. My blood pressure is always low-to-normal, my cardiovascular system is in fine shape, and most of the time my doctors tell me that I’m doing amazingly well at my age and to “keep doing what I’m doing.” I don’t attribute all of this to my diet; it’s a matter of paying attention to the whole package: diet, weight, exercise, nutritional supplements, optimism and inner peace.
If for no other reason, let’s take care of ourselves, however we decide to do that, to watch our children and grandchildren grow up, and maybe even get to know our great-grandchildren. Just maybe we can influence their food choices so that they, too, learn to live a life free of completely avoidable maladies and suffering.
1Vegetarian Guide. Diet for a New America. Retrieved from http://michaelbluejay.com/veg/books/dietamerica.html on June 14, 2011.
— David Magallanes is the creator of his own enterprise, Real World Projects, a business primarily dedicated to building distribution outlets for highly reputable products that offer a healthier life and a more vibrant lifestyle. An emerging branch of Real World Projects is Edifiquemos, a Spanish language enterprise dedicated to teaching the Spanish-speaking how to create a profitable international (U.S./Mexico) enterprise with low investment and high earning potential. David may be available for speaking opportunities. To contact him and for more information, you are invited to visit and explore his web sites at www.realworldprojects.info and at www.edifiquemos.com