How can I eat more fruits and veggies as a particularly picky eater?

This may sound a little weird but... I've never eaten an apple, never tried an orange, won't eat a salad, won't even taste a grape. I'm scared of fruits and vegetables. I don't know what it is, I haven't touched a fruit or vegetable since I was force fed baby food by my mom. When I was 8, I was pressured into trying a banana and I threw it right back up.

To make matters worse, I refuse to eat animals, this is more recent. I've been vegetarian (I guess you would call it that, but I don't eat vegetables) about a year now. I eat Boca burgers and meat substitutes and take one-a-day vitamins, but that's now 3 food groups that I'm lacking.

I want to be healthy. I don't wanna die when I'm 30 years old, but I just can't make myself eat fruits/vegetables. Is there ANYTHING that I can do??


Why have I started fantasizing about women when I've only ever liked men?

I have always been attracted to men, and have only been with men. I am currently happily engaged to a man, and have no doubts about our relationship. However, I've discovered over the past couple of years (even when I was with my previous boyfriend) that I do not like porn with men in it. I like lesbian porn! And anytime I've masturbated I've fantasized about women (never one that I know or have seen.) It's made me very uncomfortable, finally admitting it to myself. I do remember when I was in 7th grade there was a new girl at our school. When she got a boyfriend I was very jealous; I just assumed it was because she was new and I didn't have all her attention *ha* Is this normal? Am I out of my mind!?


Are grains and vegetables sources of protein?

I know that plants (besides soy) are considered "incomplete" protein sources, because they don't contain all of the essential amino acids. However, why is it that the nutrition facts of many grains and vegetables say they have protein? For example — a serving of pasta has seven grams of protein, corn has twp grams, and chickpeas have six grams. Is this considered "incomplete" or "complete" protein, and how can you know how much complete protein you are eating when you mix, for example, a serving of corn, and beans? I think average people should eat 50 to 60 grams of protein a day, but how can you ever know how much you are really eating if you are mixing incomplete proteins that together contribute to your day's protein requirement?


Is it possible to have testicles that are too large?

I'm on my school's track team and I don't know if I'm doing something wrong. When I run, my testicles seem to get in the way and are sore afterward. They seem too big. Is that possible? The jocks I've tried don't help much and we are issued stretch shorts that don't hide them well at all! It's embarrassing and sometimes it hurts to ride my bike, too. They have always been that size but is there something else I can do?


How can I get over my boyfriend using porn magazines?

So my problem is that recently (about 6 months ago) I discovered that my boyfriend keeps pornographic magazines. We have been going out for 6 years. Much of that has been long-distance, but we have lived together for the last year. This discovery blew me away in part because until then my only complaint about our relationship was the fact that he didn't want sex nearly as often as I did — so now I'm angry that while I was feeling less than satisfied, physically, he was masturbating, and leaving me out in the cold. Since then, I've also noticed that he only wants to have sex after he's spent some time with his mags.

Given that I am horrified by the mere existence of this kind of material — I'm not going to get into a debate about its legality, but I truly believe it is exploitation worse than slavery. Given this, is there any way to work things out with him? In short, how far am I supposed to stretch my ethics, just because part of me believes that sexually, each of us is free to do what we want??


Is bagged tea or loose leaf tea better for you?

You've been a hero(ine) of mine for quite some time. I hope YOU can answer this question (it seems no one else can).

I've been reaping the benefits of green tea for about a year now, and I feel great! Just recently I began opening the tea bags after brewing, and putting the tea leaves in with the actual brew and drinking the leaves as well. Does this add more health benefits to green tea? I would think so! So far, no one has been able to answer this question directly. Please let me know if you know!

Stay Awesome Alice! May your boards hum forever!