Please allow me to preface this tangent by telling you that I do not care what you eat, why you eat it and will not be offended by you eating. Dietary choices are entirely personal, and though mine may be extraordinarily different from yours, it is not my place to impose my choices onto you and vice versa.

That being said, there is a stigma paired with vegetarianism and veganism that must be addressed thoroughly and with finality.

I don't know what the deal is with people and meat, but for whatever reason, it's a severely personal issue when someone chooses to avoid it. I'm pretty sure that collectively, we're sick of being berated and questioned constantly over a personal choice. The next time you want to say one of the following to a vegetarian/vegan/pescatarian or anything in between – please don't.

"My cousin/friend/associate was a vegetarian, and they got really sick!"

I'm so sorry about your friend – I'm also very sorry about their poor eating habits. Please stop telling me about the person you know who stopped eating meat for three months and ate nothing but bread. I have done this. I have no shame. Without maintenance of a balanced diet, anyone can get sick. The difference between those who eat meat and those who don't is made abundantly clear. Without meat, the only real way to get sick (based on dietary habits) is a mass deficiency, whereas if you eat meat every day, your risk for heart disease or stroke increases exponentially over time. It's much easier to take a vitamin supplement than it is to treat heart disease.

"Don't you miss bacon?"

Believe it or not, bacon isn't even near my train of thought, nor has it been since I stopped eating it. I don't miss it. I haven't for years, and I'd rather you stop assuming that I crave meat because I don't eat it. To be honest, I don't even remember what bacon tastes like.

"Plants have feelings too!" or "You're eating the animal's food!"

If you were even remotely concerned about the feelings of those you ingest, this conversation would never happen. Every time you say this or derivatives of the sentences above, a vegan rolls their eyes so hard that it hurts. Vegans have feelings too, you know.

"We were born to be carnivores, you know."

Not only is what you're saying so deafeningly obnoxious that I may not recover, it's also wildly incorrect. For one, as a species, we are omnivorous (feeding on food of both plant and animal origin). We also cannot obtain the nutrients we need on meat alone; however, we are very much able to thrive on a plant based diet. You can substitute plants for animal products much of the time, but it is near impossible to find the nutrients you need on just a carnivorous diet.

"Where do you get your protein?"

This is it. This is the worst thing you could ask someone that doesn't eat meat. When confronted with this question, I think back to the weeks in elementary school spent studying the food pyramid, and then wonder where the hell everyone else was during this time. I have answered this question in so many different ways, both civilly and not as much so, and I think my final answer is Moe Monday's. Five dollar burritos with black beans, guacamole and grilled vegetables. That is my only source of protein, but I'm not complaining.

I don't demand you give up meat, tell you about the clogged arteries you'll be facing just a few years from now or crack jokes about your diet. I'd rather you do the same to me.