Many dieters who fail to carefully research and plan complain that they lack energy - and often experience a significant loss in muscle mass. Others observe a number of other more peripheral problems that come with a poorly-planned vegetarian diet.
The first group--the group that most failed dieters fall into--is actually experiencing a form of protein-energy malnutrition (PEM). PEM emerges when a person fails to consume enough protein, leading to muscle loss - and subsequently feelings of weakness that are often accompanied by head and muscle aches.
This problem can be circumvented by dietary alterations. A vegetarian who is experiencing PEM should either a) find out what foods contain what amino chains, so they can combine them to form proteins; or b) start consuming larger amounts and more diversified sources of protein, such as nuts, soy milk, and yogurt.
The first group is often iron-deficient as well. Because vegetarians can only consume nonheme iron, which is more sensitive to iron inhibitors, they often do not consume enough to maintain healthy blood-iron levels. This can cause pervasive weakness and even anemia.
Most nutritionists suggest that vegetarian and vegan dieters consume roughly twice the recommended amount of iron while greatly reducing their consumption of iron inhibitors.
People in the second group--the smaller one--who suffer from a range of other peripheral, diet-related problems are often not consuming enough of the nutrients that they would normally take in unknowingly on a diet that includes meat and dairy products. These nutrients include, for example, zinc, calcium, vitamin b, and riboflavin.
Some recent studies have suggested that vegetarians also process certain types of foods with less efficiency because they consume different amounts and varieties of absorption inhibitors and enhancers.
Recent studies also suggest, however, that a vegetarian or vegan diet, when done right, is not only as healthful as a non-vegetarian diet, but it is also much more heart-healthy - and usually contains higher amounts of antioxidants.
What does this all mean for you as a prospective vegetarian? It means that eating a healthful vegetarian diet is not only a good alternative to your current diet, but it can also lower your chances of getting heart disease and cancer.
However, in order to eat a HEALTHFUL vegetarian diet, you must actually put in the time to research and plan; if you don't, you most certainly will end up in one of the two groups discussed above.
Conversely, you might not be a vegetarian yourself, but have a child who is going through a vegetarian "phase," where she rejects meat, but doesn't consume enough healthy foods to compensate for the nutritional gap.
Whatever the case is, you may have wondered whether or not a vegetarian diet is sustainable, healthy choice for your child. You may have heard that putting your child on a vegetarian diet could potentially stunt her growth.
These concerns probably prevented you from putting your child on a vegetarian diet up to this point.
And all of these concerns are legitimate. In fact, if a vegetarian diet is poorly planned, it can cause serious short and long term health problems, especially for children, who are growing and developing--and who do not yet have sufficient stores of vitamins.
If you aren't well-prepared to put your child on a vegetarian diet, you definitely shouldn't. However, if you have done your nutritional research and you are familiar with the nutrients vegetarians commonly lack, then you know that these problems can easily be overcome with some meal planning.
You also know that putting your child on a healthful vegetarian diet can greatly improve her health in both the short and long term. It can also reduce her exposure to animal products that contain hormones and preservatives, which have been linked to developmental problems and cancer.
If you haven't researched vegetarian diets thoroughly, but you are anxious to start your child on one now, you should start by ensuring that you plan meals to boost amounts of the following nutrients (that most vegetarians lack):
1. Protein. Make sure your child is consuming enough protein by adding additional sources, such as wheat, soybeans, isolated soy protein, and nuts.
2. Calcium. Ensure your child is consuming enough calcium by adding calcium-fortified processed foods and leafy green vegetables to his diet.
3. Iron. Add more iron to your child's diet by increasing servings of soybeans, pinto beans, tofu, and cereals.
4. Zinc. Enhance your child's zinc intake by increasing his servings of almonds, peanut butter, and mushrooms.
If you concentrate on compensating for all of these common nutritional deficiencies, you absolutely can put your child on a vegetarian diet without any negative health consequences.
Just ignore the mythology surrounding vegetarian diets and instead focus on research and meal-planning.
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