People Can Never Keep Their Mouths Shut About This Life Choice – And Now We Know Why

<script>!function(n){if(!window.cnx){window.cnx={},window.cnx.cmd=[];var t=n.createElement('iframe');t.display='none',t.onload=function(){var n=t.contentWindow.document,c=n.createElement('script');c.src='//cd.connatix.com/connatix.player.js',c.setAttribute('async','1'),c.setAttribute('type','text/javascript'),n.body.appendChild(c)},n.head.appendChild(t)}}(document);</script><script id="68f0f2fee4b061265b2bc023">(new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b';cnx.cmd.push(function(){cnx({"playerId":"ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b","mediaId":"9bef2a5a-f57a-44ce-9600-7127c7fedd89"}).render("68f0f2fee4b061265b2bc023");});</script><div class="content-list-component text"><p>I was a teen in a small Midwestern town, surrounded by cornfields and cows, when I went vegetarian 45 years ago.</p><p>While my parents tolerated it, I soon realised that many people took it personally and weighed in with “you won’t get enough protein” or “live a little, have some ham,” as someone angrily tossed a slice onto my plate.</p><p>But it’s not just vegetarians who get under other people’s skin. When a friend or family member makes a change, whether it’s going gluten-free, paleo or vegan, everyone involved has feelings. Over the years, I’ve seen relationships forever changed, even professional ones.</p><p>I was just a teenager at the time, but I could sense that people’s reactions to my meatless plate went deeper than just wanting me to enjoy Thanksgiving.</p><p>Now, as a chef and educator, I’ve watched the debates rage over special diet requests, assessing some as valid and others as attention-seeking.</p><p>So I asked three experts to weigh in on why people react so strongly. Understan