Vegetarian craving meat

[amandaleigh37]

I stopped eating meat a little over a year ago. I don't miss it at all. Except now I'm pregnant (not sure exactly how far I am - somewhere around 8-12 weeks?) and suddenly craving meat. A Burger King ad had me salivating yesterday.

I plan to bring this up to my midwife when I see her. I've tried upping my protein, I take vitamins, and eat well, but I still suddenly really want a burger. Or bacon. Mmm...

I'm not ethically opposed to eating any meat, though I am not sure if I should give in to this craving or not. Will it make me sick since I haven't eaten meat in so long? Obviously I won't go the fast-food route, although it is awfully tempting to just have somebody hand me a cooked and ready burger! (I am also not crazy about having to cook meat myself... ugh. My husband is vegetarian too but I'm sure he will prepare it for me if I ask.)

Anyone else have this problem?

[Marissamom]

I was okay being vegetarian through my first pregnancy, but with this pregnancy, well... I had been vegetarian for almost 10 years, now I eat meat a lot. I had to wean myself back on to it, at first I could only stomach ham, bacon, and hot-dogs (for whatever reason processed meats were a lot easier on my stomach). if you do think you'll go back on to meat, eat just a few bites at a time at first, you have to turn the meat-digesting enzymes back on, and it can take a month or two. 

[tzs]

i had incredible insatiable hamburger cravings with my first pregnancy. at the time kosher meat at the strict level of kosher that we personally keep was unavailable. i actually got an exception from a rabbi to eat a different brand of meat. it was THAT bad. and when i wanted it, it was like i HAD to have it immediately. 

it was weird and i was dreading that feeling this time....like i would ***die**** if i didn;t get a hamburger that instant. luckily it didn't hit this time.

[treeoflife3]

Have you tried taking amino acids?  It might not be the protein in the meat but other things that are harder to get from non meat sources that you are craving.  I know certain amino acids are good for cravings anyway though.

[Smokering]

If you don't have an ethical problem with it, I'd say go for it. It's very common for vegetarians to crave meat during pregnancy. I'm not sure why - bioavailable iron? protein? B12? K2? A and D? - but all those things are good for pregnancy, so hey! I've never heard of anyone craving meat this badly feeling gross after eating it, but I suppose starting small isn't a bad idea if you're worried. (That said I'm a Traditional Food-ie, and have been trying to eat more meat than usual this pregnancy, so I probably come at this from a very different perspective to you!)

As for the hamburger craving specifically, I'd chalk that up to pregnancy. I always crave really processed stuff during my pregnancies too - white rice, toasted sandwiches made with white bread (the cheap, gross, supermarket kind, no less!), hot dogs, MSG-riddled crackers... I guess the simple carbs are easier to digest? I dunno, but it annoys me - I usually like my brown rice and rye bread and similarly virtuous foodstuffs, and pregnancy seems like a darned inconvenient time to start craving junk. But there it is. :p I try to compromise - white rice cooked in chicken stock, but not the BBQ Shapes crackers (sigh!).

[amaayeh]

Me!  I have craved meat this pregnancy, but I didn't last pregnancy.  I have no idea why either, but I think, like someone said, it's somewhat normal.  I have a friend who is vegetarian that always crave meat during pregnancy.  I think it's gotten a bit less now than first tri, but it still sounds good.  I won't give in, though, because once I start thinking about it, I get grossed out (and I have ethical issues). 

[starbyfar7]

stay strong!!!

i've been a veggie for over 8 years and yeah.. this pregnancy i've definitely craved meat. its the craziest thing. but i haven't given in.. my partner is vegetarian and i've raised my daughter vegetarian (she's never had meat) so to change it up now over a pregnancy craving .. i couldn't do it. to have to start all over after having been meat free for this long is too much for me to handle.  i've ignored the cravings for the most part and tried to get to the root of why im craving it. so if i'm craving a big fat burger i try to think of all the components of a burger.. bread, lettuce, meat, cheese, tomatoes.. this tells me that my body needs carbs, veggies, and calcium. i load up on that and the cravings go away. try it out! but if you give in to the cravings.. its not the worst thing in the world..

[amandaleigh37]

Thanks for all the replies! Good to know this is somewhat common

I ate bacon last night.

A little bit.

It was good.

[erigeron]

I'm not vegetarian myself, but I remember they did this storyline on Friends when Phoebe was pregnant. So it must be common enough, otherwise I don't think they would have had it on the show.

[ursusarctos]

My mom has been vegetarian for most of her adult life, but craved and ate meat in all 4 of her pregnancies. As others mentioned, I think it's common. I hope you find a way to work with it!

Oddly enough, I normally really like meat but haven't wanted it now that I'm pregnant. Sort of the reverse. I'm also with Smokering in craving junk, unfortunately.

[Chloe'sMama]

I was vegetarian for 14 years and started eating meat in my second pregnancy (DD2 is now 5 months).  I didn't crave it at all during my pregnancy with DD1.  

The whole family started eating meat at the same time (DH, DD1 and I were all vegetarian).

[physmom]

I craved meat like CRAZY during my pregnancy with DD.  I tried to go back to being a vegetarian while breastfeeding but again the meat cravings were intense and now I'm pregnant again and just want meat all the time.  So basically I'm on an indefinite break until I'm done being pregnant/nursing. 

[Smokering]

Oddly enough, I normally really like meat but haven't wanted it now that I'm pregnant. Sort of the reverse. I'm also with Smokering in craving junk, unfortunately.

I was like that for several weeks. I went off pretty much all forms of food, actually, not just meat (and not due to nausea - I just lost my appetite). I could stand meat in yum cha dishes (minced chicken or pork combined with lots of spicy veggies in small, dumpling-sized portions) - but the thought of chewing through a whole chicken breast or steak just revolted me. It was weird. I even hated eggs, which I always always love. I lived off olives for about a week. I'm happy to report that my appetite has returned to some degree, but I still don't fancy big chewy chunks of meat. I've been making meatless dishes with chicken stock, and eating a few more carbs than usual, and just generally wondering when I'm going to return to normal!

[ursusarctos]

Originally Posted by Smokering 

Oddly enough, I normally really like meat but haven't wanted it now that I'm pregnant. Sort of the reverse. I'm also with Smokering in craving junk, unfortunately.

I was like that for several weeks. I went off pretty much all forms of food, actually, not just meat (and not due to nausea - I just lost my appetite). I could stand meat in yum cha dishes (minced chicken or pork combined with lots of spicy veggies in small, dumpling-sized portions) - but the thought of chewing through a whole chicken breast or steak just revolted me. It was weird. I even hated eggs, which I always always love. I lived off olives for about a week. I'm happy to report that my appetite has returned to some degree, but I still don't fancy big chewy chunks of meat. I've been making meatless dishes with chicken stock, and eating a few more carbs than usual, and just generally wondering when I'm going to return to normal!

I'm wondering that too! I can eat a lot more things now that the second trimester is starting but my relationship to food is still just not quite what it was. I've been eating a ton of carbs as well - seems like the only thing that consistently sounds good. Olives actually sound really delicious now that you mention it!