QuestionI've long been a fan of Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy. I've also been an ovo-lacto vegetarian for the past 10 years or so. However, lately I've been wondering what Steiner's views were on a "vegetarian" diet including seafood. I've read conflicting statements and am not sure if it is due merely to mistranslations, misinterpretations or omissions. I know that Steiner was against advocating an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet even though he believed it to be something we would evolve towards naturally ... ie, tolerance and compassion is more important than what you're eating in many circumstances. But did his vegetarian Ideal include any seafood?
Also, on a more practical level, do you feel that eating seafood has more positive nutritional benefits than remaining an ovo-lacto vegetarian ... at least without artificial supplementation being taken into account? Personally, my concerns involve a serious lack of energy in spite of moderate exercise and a history of anemia. I'm also trying to lose weight/fat and would like to do so as healthily as possible.
And, from an Anthroposophical perspective, what, in your opinion, would be the ideal diet for a toddler with no known food allergies?
Thank you much in advance.
AnswerDear Lisa, your question is very interesting to me, as I have given it much thought meself the past few years. I can only answer it fro another layman's personal perspective, since to my knowledge Steiner, indeed gave no information on seafood or fish.
We have to always bear in mind that "you cannot eat yourself to heaven" as he put it, and by this we must "measure" our motivations for cutting out one food or another.
Nutritionally speaking ovo-lacto vegitarians are prone to suffer, in many cases some significant sort of nutritional lack. B12 being the most notorious one. But from a Steinerian point of view, the main issue is that you are going to have to make an unnatural demand on substitutes, if your demand for animal based protein remains. To fill this lack with nuts or seeds may nutritionally offer some solution, Anthroposophically it does not. As a vegetarian, I am well aware that I am violating a basic principle understanding of nutrition by using the milk of a cow, forcing an unnatural over-breeding of calves; and my compensation by wearing leather hardly rebalances that! However, one hopes that in bio-dynamic farming this problem is constantly addressed and dealt with as best as it can be within the double standards of modern society. My motivations for being a vegetarian are purely based on a physical need (or rather a non-need of meat). This need has extended itself to exclude seafood, recently, simply because my system cannot tolerate the "animal" energy of it anymore. It is too "rich". It used to be that I could not eat two (avian) or four legged creatures, now specifically not six legged either (shrimp) or one footed (coquilles, mussles, oysters, etc). Also sweet water fish are a lot harder for me to consume than oceanic fish; even if they spend only half the time there, salmone and eels being the most notable example. Eight plus "legs" seem less of a problem: crab and squid and octopi. Now it's probably nothing to do with legs, but I haven't figured out yet, what is does have to do with.
What I might add is that all foodstuffs carry aside a nutriional value a "biography" and a "soul history". This "feeling" probably underlies a lot of the religious laws (beyond basic hygien and nutrition).
Low energy will indicate that you are insufficiently able to absorb and benefit from plant protein, which requires a very hardy digestive system. I believe that all people, and maybe especially women, need at intermittant stages an extra boost from Nature to keep their system running at full speed. Providing you eat "high vibration" fish (not bred in tanks or fished up out of stressful areas)you will be consuming a very "clean" food. Pollutants and preservatives, as well as over cooking corrupt the regenerative nature of fish rather instantly.
If you don't want kids to become fat (on cheese or carbohydrate overload) you might do well to help them acquire a taste for fish around age 3-5 in small doses (more for tase than for nutritional purposes). For the rest keep a toddler's diet low on protein,milk fat (especially in full fat yoghurt or in porridge) being ideal. You might like to read up on the temperarments and find out which foods suit your type of child. Do not overdo the nuts, walnuts in moderation being alright, and white almond paste a good starter. Tahin even better, or sunflower paste. Make sure the bread is not too heavy (no or little rye till around 3,4)and opt for porridges where possible. Millet, buckwheat amaranth, barley, rice, try to offer variety and try to avoid wheat dominance. Also choose kamut or spelt over modern wheat where possible, which tax the digestive system less. Predominantly boil vegetables, plenty of carrots, few potatoes and restrict considerably tomatoes, peppers and other solanacea fruits. Take care still with nitrate rich veg (spinach and other greens) alternating them with other colours. Corn is very hard to digest and cannot be a regular veg or grain. Treats are rasins, rice crackers and breadsticks; don't be tempted to go for "healthy" biscuits. Apple sauce and pear compote should go down with great relish. Go easy on the bananas! Can make prone to colds. No melon or pineapple. Definitely no peanutbutter or soy. Try rice milk or oatmilk. If you really can't avoid soy, only a morsel to begin with.
Go easy on pulses - kidneybeans too heavy - chick peas in a small serving of humus on bread perhaps, lentils (red) make excellent staple food.You don't eat eggs, and I feel the child is not missing out there (yet). But if he starts "bingeing" it could be sorted with a soft boiled egg once a week or fortnight. Butter though is her great loss. as is yoghurt. Don't buy into margarine and steer clear of artificial sweetners : they ruin your energy utterly. Some sugar on special occasions is not so bad, but try to go for rice syrup or barley syrup in pastries. Maple syrrup is great on buckwheat pancakes, apple syrup is best in most situations where sweetning is required. Apple jam is good for its minerals (iron)and more nutritious than other kinds of jam. Don't go for sugar free, but natural sweetners.
Just a few hints in a row for you there. As regards your own diet, you may be retaining the weight because of actually not ingesting enough calories at the moment (survival mode holds on to fat deposits).
I suggest you reevaluate your original motivations for going ovo-lactarian and ask your heart what you feel it is making you miss out on.
Please feel free to ask about any further details about how to feed todlers, if you have any more specifics, or if you come up with any feeling as to why you are failing to loose the weight you want. Run it by me anytime.
Good luck and god bless,
Evelyn
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