Thanks so much for posting this! I consider myself to be a "Spiritual BEing" and have long felt uneasy around vegetarians and vegans who "preach" against eating meat from a spiritual perspective. One lecturer I took issue with during a workshop said "You'll never become enlightened if you eat meat!"

I am one of those people, cited in the article, who can not tolerate legumes of any kind, and can not eat grains, and can not eat milk products either--all three food groupings give me major digestive problems, lethargy, headaches, etc.

I eat organic fresh fruits and vegetables, and free-range, organic, hormone-free, antibiotic-free, additive-free meats and fish-- primarily fish, chicken, and turkey although I do, on occasion, eat beef or lamb. I get carbs primarily from quinoa, occasionally rice. Quinoa is not classified as a true grain because it is not a grass, but the fruit of a bush. I don't eat sugars of any kind including honey, no alcohol. I try and stay away from processed packaged foods especially anything with soy in it, but do have a weakness for potato chips and sometimes "pig out" on organic chocolate-chip cookies, although always with consequences from the grains and sugars (lethargy, digestive distress).

So, does this make me less of a "spiritual" person because my body will not tolerate most foods that vegetarians eat? I never thought so, but it is nice to see that those of us who eat meat are not "murderers". and yes, I am very aware of the horrors of factory farming. I very much admire and indigenous peoples who raise their own animals for food and/or hunt for their own food, because this is not recreational or for trophies, but part of their way of life and they are respectful of the animals.

Blessings, Liora Leah