Q&A: Any health/diet advice for someone going vegetarian to replace all those nutrients in meat?

Posted by admin on 03/31/2011

Women’s health blog edited the following:

Q&A: Any health/diet advice for someone going vegetarian to replace all those nutrients in meat?
I’ve been a meat eater for most of my life, and have recently for religious/personal reasons decided to go vegetarian. So far i’ve been going veggie for almost two weeks, and have noticed my energy levels are lower. So i’m just looking for advice on good protein (and any else meat offers) alternatives.

The answer in the following:

Answer by Susan M
Seeds, nuts, peanut butter, tahini. Soy products like tofu and the various lunch type meat substitutes. There are lots of choices. Eat more beans. Without knowing what you used to eat and what you are eating now, I don’t know why you don’t feel as energetic. Usually people don’t get their immediate energy from protein sources.

Answer by Drew
I doubt that your energy levels have actually dropped, as there is more than adequate protein in the normal vegetarian diet. What I’m saying is, be wary that you aren’t experiencing a kind of reverse-placebo effect because you still hold the collective bias that veggy diets have low protein levels.

Answer by Godself
Meat has minimal nutritional value, as per the definition of nutrition. It has protien and iron, and some fish has omega 3. The best source of Omega 3 is flaxseed oil, the best and healthiest sources of protein and iron include beans, lentils, legumes, sprouts, leafy green vegetables, and nuts.

Also, you need to catalyse the protein so that it can be broken down and absorbed more easily by the body, which means that things like wheat and corn need to be digesting in the stomach at the same time as nuts and beans, etc.

Vege diets are not usually deficient in anything, but you can live a vege diet on french fries and coca cola (which you understand is just as bad as eating meat), so there are no absolutes in this world. Vege diets can be protein deficient, or perhaps your eating enough but your not processing it, and the good stuff is expelled unused.

Eat compatible. Go veg!

Answer by reddolphy
Normal everyday veggies dont have much protien in them… you must eat pulses – the yellow kind. one way of cooking them is to soak it in water, then cook till soft. then you can take a li’l bit of oil in a pan, add some mustard seeds, and maybe a cut tomato and the cooked pulses and let it boil.
you can eat this with rice.
this preperation is the best sourse of protien for a vegetarian! you can also eat sprouted greengram pulses as a snack

Answer by tantravaya
It is possibly a high carbohydrate intake that is causing poor energy levels rather than lack of protein. A diet high in grains, pasta, bread, buns, sandwiches, rolls, pastry etc will leave one exhausted, with no energy and wanting to sleep all day, particularly after meals.

Make sure you reduce carbohydrate in you diet (that is the above mentioned food) and stick with fruit and vegetables for energy and nuts and seeds for protein.

Sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds and soya beans are the only vegetarian complete protein. Other nuts and seeds have to be combined to get all the essential amino acids.

Keep a jar of ground sesame, pumpkin and sunflowers seeds to sprinkle on cooked veggies and salads. Have a tablespoon or so at every meal and you will have a great balanced diet. Also you can make great patties from the mixture, combined with an egg (if you eat it) or bind it with a mixture of glutinous boiled linseeds. Use some herbs or spices you like to flavour it how you prefer.

Just be careful to stay away from processed grain products that will sap your energy and your health.

Answer by LX V
If you’re not getting enough protein then that will impact your energy levels.
Learn to cook tofu. It is tasty stuff. If you’re allowed to eat eggs then eggs are your new best friend. Almonds are also a protein-packed superfood.

And listen to the other folks on this page. They know what they’re talking about.

It may be that it’s taking your body a little to adjust its metabolism to your new diet. (I have no proof of this other than personal experience when I change up my diet). Try eating more frequently (smaller meals but more of them) to avoid major dips in your blood sugar.

Good luck!

Answer by Meg V
Dont laugh, but parsley is full of iron. You just chew it.It is an excellent source of iron and it’s great for the breath. Just remember not to chew it at work and smile!!!!!!!

Answer by little_vegan_girl
Hi, when eating veggie food you need to make sure that you actually eat enough calorie-wise – that’s obvious but vegetables and fruit have fewer calories therefore it is pretty easy to lower your calories intake and that may lead to lower energy levels… I think you just need to make sure you eat nutritious breakfast- let’s say whole wheat cereal with chopped summer fruit (mango or strawberries taste good) try add maple syrup instead of plain sugar, and in moderate amounts of course… Whole wheat cereal is really good source of healthy carbs and will give you energy, drinking water helps keep body clean inside/ get rid of toxins and therefore helps it function properly – giving more energy.
Lunch is as important as breakfast so make sure you eat a enough fiber and protein with that meal… Good source of fiber are green vegetables and apples, for protein I suggest eating different types of beans… let’s say three bean salad with buckwheat, red and green peppers and onion and black olives topped with olive oil and thyme.
I have also been told to eat one table spoon of sunflower seeds a day – it has all the goodness. Tofu is good source of protein but some people either don’t like it or are allergic to it.
Dinner: for dinner I would suggest something light, nothing deep fried, or too oily, and no nuts – ideally I would suggest cooked baby potatoes (they are good energy source) and baby corn, with brocolli and some meat fee chicken style pieces – so that you will not waste your energy on digestion, and so you will fall easlily asleep and wake up lighter and more energetic.
A little bit of exercise wouldn’t hurt to boost energy and get you going. Try also looking on Internet for some nice recipes – vegetarian websites usually have nice and balanced meal suggestions. Hope that helps… Best.

Answer by vegan&proud
Eat a variety of “whole foods,” with plenty of beans, nuts, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. Avoid unhealthy foods like trans fats, which are usually listed as partially hydrogenated oils. Deep-fried foods often contain trans fats. Choose margarines that use nonhydrogenated oil, like Earth Balance or Smart Balance. Although a diet consisting of Coke and French fries is technically vegan, you can’t be healthy if you eat nothing but junk food. Vitamin B12: Vitamin B12 is produced by bacteria, and some experts believe that vegetarians used to get plenty of this vitamin from bacteria in drinking water. Since drinking water is now treated with chemicals that kill the bacteria, it’s important to make sure that you get enough vitamin B12 from fortified foods (like most brands of soy or rice milks, some breakfast cereals, and many brands of nutritional yeast,also eggs and milk) on a daily basis or by taking a sublingual B12 tablet of 10 mcg per day

Iron-beans, dark green leafy vegetables (like spinach),whole grain breads, Also eat something with vitamin c when you eat something with iron, it increases absorption

Calcium-dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli, soymilk)

Protein-Isn’t really hard to get, just eat a variety of foods, good sources are beans, brown rice, nuts, whole grain breads, soy foods

Omega-3 fatty acids-flax seeds/oil,walnuts,canola oil

Zinc-pumpkin seeds (best source), beans and lentils, yeast, nuts, seeds and whole grain cereals

Selenium-Brazil nuts are a particularly good source of selenium, so try to eat a couple every day. Eating a small bag of mixed unsalted nuts can be a convenient way to get your daily selenium intake, but make sure it contains Brazils. Bread and eggs also provide some selenium.

Vitamin D- Vitamin D, often called the sunshine vitamin, is another common deficiency in those not drinking vitamin D fortified milk. Synthetic vitamin D is added to both cow’s milk and most brands of soy milk today.

Vitamins A (beta carotene),C, K, E and Folate-variety of fruits and veggies

Iodine-Iodine is a trace mineral that’s important for healthy thyroid function. Table salt is the most common and reliable source of iodine in Americans’ diets. (However, sodium in processed foods usually does not contain iodine.) If you don’t consume table salt, you can get iodine from a multivitamin or from kelp tablets.

Answer by beebs
If you do some research, you will learn that meat is not nutritious at all. It provide a source of protein and B vitamins, especially B12, but those come from synthetic supplements fed to the animals. Animals do not produce B12 on their own, any more than humans do. Meat contains cholesterol, purines, amines, glut amines, steroids, growth hormones, antibiotics, blood, pus, urine, feces, parasites, bacteria, and a host of other unpleasant things. It comes with a warning label to cook it to a certain temperature to kill the bacteria and parasites. You can get protein that doesn’t have the unhealthy aspects of meat, from beans, legumes, pulses, lentils, and whole grains such as quinoa, millet, rice, etc. Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of protein and B vitamins, including B12. Nutritional yeast is added to the feed of animals to boost their B vitamin content. It can be added to baked goods, sprinkled on popcorn, whipped into smoothies, or to make a mock cheese sauce. A well balanced vegetarian diet makes good sense. Nothing has to die, and the body does not have to work too hard to break down meat protein which is to similar to its own. Good luck on your vegetarian diet-no doubt you will feel and look great!

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