Healthy Vegetarian

Healthy Vegetarian questions and answers

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Q: What does a healthy vegetarian eat ?
Hello, I am a vegetarian but I feel I am not eating right and instead of substituting meat with healthy alternatives I am just eating junk. What kind of thing should I be eating ? And if you have any recipe websites I'd be most grateful. Thanks. Thank you ! You've all been wonderful.

A: It's not that complicated we just replace the meat in our diets with: beans, peas, nuts, seeds and whole grains. Many vegetarians use dairy and eggs for protein too. Get the Vegetarian Starter Kit from - Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/ Vegetarian and Vegan Recopies http://www.vegan-food.net/

Q: Any tips on being a healthy vegetarian?
I want to become a vegetarian! But I know it going to be really hard.... plus, I am very obsessed with health! How can I get enough protein and healthy food being a vegetarian? Anyone have any tips? Also, if you are a vegetarian, do you have any advice to offer? I heard that being vegetarian can make people anemic or can make them have less energy. Is that true?

A: im not a vegan anymore because of my pregnancy [personal choice really]. when i was vegan i ate ALOT of beans, they are high in protein. also, make sure you take a GREAT multivitamin daily just to make sure you are getting all the nutrients your body needs. it is very easy to become anemic, i became anemic when i was a vegan because when i first became a vegan i didnt educate myself on what i needed to eat and supplements i shouldve been taking. my advise to you is to eat alot of different types of beans, also take a prenatal vitamin [even if you arent pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant]. prenatal vitamins are great for you, pregnant or not. they have great amounts of all the supplements you need and iron. if you start to get symptoms of anemia [bruising easily, getting worn out and tired easily, etc] go to the doc and get a simple blood test done, if you do end up being a lil anemic they will give you an iron supplement to take on the side. good luck! EDIT: also, being a vegan/vegetarian doesnt make you tired at all! you are actually more energized! the reason some people say that it makes you tired is because anemia causes you to get tired quicker, and people think that everyone thats vegan/vegetarian is going to become anemic EDIT: actually, vegetarians DO drink milk, eat eggs, etc. they just dont eat MEAT or anything that the animal has to die to give up. vegans are the ones that dont consume anything that comes from an animal in any way.

Q: Can anyone tell me how I can be a healthy vegetarian?
One of my new year resolutions was to be a vegetarian. It was hard at first but I think was getting sick because I had to ignore some of the foods my mom cooked and make my own. So i tried some meat and now that I havent eatin it in so long, its kinda gross. I still want to do this. Can anyone tell me what i can do to be a more healthy vegetarian.

A: Get the Vegetarian Starter Kit from - Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/ Vegetarian Nutrition for Teenagers http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/teennutrition.htm Get yourself a vegetarian cookbook. There are a few written just for teens like: The Teen's Vegetarian Cookbook - Judy Krizmanic A Teen's Guide to Going Vegetarian - Judy Krizmanic Student's Vegetarian Cookbook - Carole Raymond Vegetables Rock!: A Complete Guide for Teenage Vegetarians - Stephanie Pierson The Starving Students' Vegetarian Cookbook - y Dede Hall The Vegetarian Kids' Cookbook - Roz Denny Better Than Peanut Butter & Jelly - Marty Mattare & Wendy Muldawer

Q: Where can I find a good website about nutrition and healthy vegetarian eating?
I'm a new vegetarian and I'm looking for a reliable source. Thank you! I am a new vegetarian and I'm looking for a really reliable source on nutrition and healthy living in general. Thank you! Sorry for being repetitive. I can't figure this edit thing out.

A: I just google and search through different sites on diet and lifestyle. but whether or not you made the shift b/c of animal cruelty issues, PETA launched a great vegetarian resource with tips and recipes that some of my vegetarian and vegan friends swear by: http://www.goveg.com/ on this site, you can access something called the Vegetarian Starter Kit. it's a really good transition resource and excellent even for folks that have been there for a while (me for 13 years now). This is another great site with a starter guide and the 411 on most restaurants, grocers and bars that specialize or will cater to veg diets and even has events (it's a site from the folks of the "Compassion Over Killing" advocacy group) below is the DC page, but there should be links to others like it. http://www.vegdc.com/ Good Luck!

Q: How can I maintain a healthy vegetarian diet?
Like what are some specific examples of things I should eat each day to stay healthy without meat? Thanks for the help =]

A: eat salads...

Q: Any suggestions for a healthy vegetarian lifestyle?
I have been a vegetarian since last May. On occassion I will eat fish. I try to get enough iron and protein through multi-vitamins and soy. Any other hints on how to stay in good health?

A: Study up on which foods have the things you need. Nuts are good, so are beans and so are eggs. If you eat those things then you're probably alright! If you are very concerned, you can talk to a doctor and they can help you figure out if you need protein supplements or something:-) Good luck!

Q: I'm allergic to nuts and have low iron levels. How can I be a healthy vegetarian?
Im allergic to all nuts [severely] and Ive been told these are very good for iron intake. I dont want to have to take iron supplements. Also, I'd really like to be a vegetarian but I understand its going to be difficult. Does anyone have any tips on easing into it and still eating well?

A: It really causes me concern when I see questions like this posted on here. Reason is that you have a known medical problem and are indirectly asking for something that is nothing less than asking for medical advice. My suggestion is to talk about these concerns with your doctor that told you that you have these medical problems/concerns. They can help you to set up a diet. If your doctor can't, they can and should refer you to a good nutritionist/dietitian that can help you to set up a diet that meets your medical needs. A good one will also help you to set up a grocery list of things that you will need as well as help with recipes. They also will be informed of any medical concerns by your doctor and be able to adjust and adapt to those needs (example such as being a diabetic, low/high blood sugar, heart problems, iron problems, etc.) as well as inform your doctor of your progress and any special concerns that they may find. All any can do on an area such as this is to give an opinion. None here are totally informed about any medical conditions. For your own health, go to the one that knows about such and follow their advice. Not having your dietary needs met any any area can have serious physical effects that can be life changing, not for the better. Best to be safe with your body.

Q: What are some EASY HEALTHY VEGETARIAN things I can make with the stuff lying around my house?
I have lots of fresh veggies, veg. mayo & cream cheese, bread, tofu, rice, vegetable broth etc. all the basics, so nothing too too fancy. I am trying to cut back on sodium and I'm trying to lose weight so nothing too salty and too fattening. I just need simple easy recipes that are healthy and low sodium. Any ideas?

A: You might not have this laying around your house, but I like to make a sandwich with baby spinach leaves, swiss cheese, tomato, avocado, and mayo and honey mustard. Or I'll grate some cheese into a tortilla, fold it in half, and make a mini quesadilla. You could always steam some rice and vegetables.

Q: What is an example of a healthy vegetarian day?
What meals would you prepare for a vegetarian teenager for a day? (break, lunch, din, snacks,)

A: It depends on how picky the vegetarian teenager is? Well, here's a sample list, hope this helps Breakfast: You could do a tofu scramble, get a breakfast product (Morning Star has vegetarian meat substitutes like sausage) You could also do cereal/ or a smoothie with some fresh fruit Lunch: Anything from salads, to wraps. You could do Veggie Pinwheels, or Pitas. You could also do a greek salad. Dinner: Pasta, rice and beans. You could have casseroles (such as macaroni and cheese) The possibilities are great for a Vegetarian! Also, if you google Vegan lunchbox, there are loads of ideas. They may be Vegan, an intended for a child's lunch, but the ideas are so fun! Hope this helped! Samantha

Q: how to eat healthy as a new vegetarian?
How can I eat healthy as a new vegetarian.I have been vegetarian for couple of months but it seems like I can't get then hang of eating healthy.I have been eating like tv and dinners and don't eat the meat or grilled chesse sandwhich.For a while mostly just junk food(cuz I am home all day cuz of summer).How can I get the hang of eating healthy.I never did have a great eating habits when I did eat meat.How can I eat healthy as vegetarian

A: You should be eating grains(pasta, bread, rice, cereal), legumes(beans, peas, lentils, soy and meat analogs), fruit and vegetables. http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/food_groups.html I recommend that you eat junk food as little as possible. You shouldn't even need a little bit everyday. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm vegan and these are some of my favorite things to eat: Breakfast: bananas, cream of wheat with brown sugar and soy butter, cereal, pancakes or french toast with real maple syrup, vegan "sausage" patties, smoothies. Lunch: VEGAN "SAUSAGE" SANDWICHES, sandwiches with vegan deli slices(Tofurkey is the only one that's kinda funky), fruit, dinner leftovers, couscous salad, vegan sushi, potato or pasta salad. Dinner: sloppy joes, "sausage" and gravy with homemade biscuits, Spaghetti and Trader Joe's "meatballs" or TVP, lasagna, Thai pad see ew, pad khi mao(drunkard's noodles), tofu+eggplant with basil sauce, yellow thai curry with tofu or vegan chikn and veggies and jasmine rice, Indian dal with homemade roti or dosai, channa masala, aloo gobi, vegetable or minestrone soup, pizza, STEAMED "PORK" BUNS with potstickers or spring rolls I use these sites to find recipes: http://www.foodnetwork.com http://vegweb.com http://www.recipezaar.com ----------------------------------------------------- If you are become a lacto-ovo vegetarian, the transition should be quite simple. Almost all meats have widely available commercial replacements. All that you have to do is replace any flesh in your diet (beef, pork, poultry, seafood) with meat analogs or just leave it out altogether. You should keep in mind that a journey such as this can be quite short but should just be the beginning of a longer one to a plant-based diet with no animal products. This is because of the reality of factory farming in which animals that are kept alive to produce milk, eggs, etc suffer much more and longer than animals that are raised to a certain weight and then slaughtered.http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/ http://meat.org Some people use the word "vegan" in reference to this idea, but be aware that that applying that label to yourself should always come with the inclusion of wise activism and advocacy.http://www.veganoutreach.org/advocacy/index.html Two extremely important examples of this are that you should never speak to someone about vegetarianism/veganism without their consent and genuine interest or as a comment on what they are eating AND your dietary beliefs should never be used as an introduction or explanation of who you are as a person. Veg*ism should be something that comes up AFTER people get to know you and they offer you a situation that makes it confusing to withhold the information/dicussion. Also, if you are presented something that you choose not to eat or you are ordering food/eating together somewhere/picking the best place to eat. When you you hold off on the subject until it's necessary and then act like it isn't a big deal at all, people are usually surprised and WAY more interested and curious than if you were to bring it up when someone's eating or just using it as a conversation starter. Just to clear things up, the vegetarian/vegan diet is not composed of salads, vegetables, fruit and fake meat. A balanced plant-based diet includes grains(breads, pasta, rice,cereal), legumes(soy, beans, peas, lentils), fruit and vegetables. http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/food_groups.html http://www.peta.org/accidentallyVegan/ http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/eating.html Being vegan can be an art, one whose challenge is to take things that involve the suffering of the innocent and change them into something free of cruelty. Technically the term "vegetarian" does imply that you don't consume anything that comes from the body of an animal that requires killing it. Many ingredients such as gelatin and glycerin are found in many candies, Fig-Newtons, and many of other foods as well as rennet found in many cheeses. http://www.happycow.net/health-animal-ingredients.html The best thing to remember is to take your time so that for example: when you are comfortable not eating beef and pork you can then give up chicken when you are sure you can make the commitment permanently. Depending on your age or reliance on parents or regional options, it may not be best to give yourself a label. The important thing is to do your best to make progress and be committed to your compassion towards animals. Never put your focus onto what you or other people use to describe yourself. If you meet someone that talks down to people for eating meat, dairy, etc or to you because they think they are "more veg" than you, laugh in their face and tell them they are a disgrace to the entire philosophy. People like this only hurt the idea of veg*ism AND the animals. The point of all of this is to live compassionately and and as free from cruelty as you can, all the while maintaining your health and a positive attitude. People who don't maintain either, need not open their mouths and represent our beliefs. If you actually choose to read all of this, I hope it helps. If not, feel free to e-mail me if you have questions.