How can I become a vegetarian, with out getting light headed?

Question

If I do not eat a steak or chicken breast at least once a week, I become light headed. I have even blacked out a few times. I know the cow and chickens have moms and families, but I need protien suggestions. I drink 2 carb or less whey protien every day, but that is not enough. Does whey come from animals.

Answer 1

Sounds like you are not eating enough and your blood sugar takes a dive. Not eating steak or chicken is not the cause. Balance your diet. Google the vegetarian food pyramid

Answer 2

What are you eating??

First of all, whey does come from animals. Whey is the gross junk part of the milk that they remove after the milk has curdled. It is used in many things as 'cheap protein', but it is actually quite disgusting in my opinion.

What do you eat for your protein? I am vegan and eat too much protein, which surprises many non-vegetarians. I eat about 60 grams too much protein for my body, but I like the taste of protein-rich foods, so I eat them a lot.

The kind of foods I eat include a lot of meat substitutes.. Here are some brands: Yves, Tofurky, Morningstar Farms, Boca.
You can find them all at any regular grocery store or you could get a big cheap box of Boca burgers from Costco. (very thrifty) These meat substitutes taste a lot like meat, but the texture is a little dif. They are healthier than meat, and are rich in protein, iron, B-12, and other nutrients that your body needs.

Eat whole wheat pasta. Each serving of whole wheat pasta has about 7-8 grams of protein. If you eat this pasta with pasta sauce and a meat sub, you'll have more than enough protein for a meal.

Some grains are very protein and iron rich such as quinoa. Quinoa is the only grain that is a complete protein, meaning it has all of the essential amino acids in it. It is protein rich and tasty, and you can eat it like you would pilaf.

The average person only needs .34 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. So the average person needs about 50-60 grams of protein per day. When you look at it this way, it becomes very easy to meet your protein requirements and exceed them like I do every day.

One thing to consider is that it may not be the protein that you are lacking, since getting enough protein is usually very simple. You may have an iron-deficiency and be borderline anemic. Iron-deficient people will feel faint and black out if not getting enough iron. You should have your iron checked through some blood tests with your doctor.

For getting iron-rich veg foods.. again, eat some meat substitutes, dark leafy greens, and broccoli (the good parts of broccoli are in the stem area). When you eat these foods, it is always good to have something with vitamin C in it, because vitamin C increases iron absorption by 9 times!

Another reason why you may be blacking out is if you're not eating very much. The only time I have ever blacked out was when I was on a serious crash diet (and this was before I was a vegetarian). You have to be eating a good deal of food, and well-balanced meals. You should always have a starch, a vegetable, and a protein, and it should fill you up.

Good luck :)

Answer 3

Yeah, whey comes from cow's milk.

You might not be getting enough calories. I know when I go vegetarian, I feel a real lightness (which makes me nervous), but not to the point of passing out.

Are you having some sweets and fat? That's important too, and there are vegetarian sweets and "ice cream" out there.

I think some people do fine on a vegetarian diet, and others don't. You really have to listen to your body. And if you need to eat meat once or twice a week, you should do it. Try to choose humanely raised animals.

One thing to help your guilt -- those animals wouldn't even be alive today if it weren't for people eating them. They couldn't survive on their own, and they might even be eaten by other animals.

Try the vegetarian advice first, but your health is very important. Take care of yourself, too.

Answer 4

Not eating meat should not make you dizzy unless your diet before was all meat. Are you eating enough food during the day? If you severely cut your calorie intake and exercise you are going to feel light headed. Also, you do not need a multivitamin supplement when you are vegetarian. You can take them if you want but don't think that you need them.

Answer 5

There are several reasons you could be passing out -- it could be a difference in electrolytes like sodium, which causes a change in your blood pressure or cardiac functions . . . if that's the case -- drinking something like Pedialyte (which is made for children who are sick) will help to restore the balance.

If the issue is a lack of iron (which, theoretically, could cause you to pass out, because red blood cells are bound with iron, and it helps carry oxygen) you could take a multi-vitamin supplement twice a day.

If it's actually a decrease in the protein, you could add things like tofu (yuck), or something like morning star Farms or Boca Burger veggie patties (I'm particularly fond of the fake chicken patties, and the fake sausage -- they're pretty good). You could also have some peanut butter or almond butter . . . cottage cheese and yogurt are good sources of protein, too.

There are a number of potential reasons for your passing out when not eating meat -- I'm not sure which would be most concerning. I'd say -- try each of the options for a little while -- if none of them work, then see your doctor or a dietitian.

Answer 6

I don't eat animal foods and that happens to me when I don't eat enough or often enough. My fiance says the same thing happens to him. Try eating small meals 5-6 times a day. Also, I have found that nuts give me more sustained fullness and energy than anything else, so if I want a breakfast that will hold me I have something like bread with nut butter.

Answer 7

vegetarian light headed

Answer 8

eat beans peanuts oatmeal in morning now you need to look out for protien and fiber, vitamin c and and get some vitamins call 1888 vegfood for free box of veg food and more info also go to heb and buy boca patties they have everthing you get from meat but its healthier

Answer 9

eat Boca burger or something, it has practically the same amount of protein as a normal hamburger. you might also want to see a nutritionist, they can tell you what to eat so you won't get sick
*save the animals =)*

Answer 10

Not eating meat does not cause people to black out. Not unless you are eating very poorly. In that case diet is not to blame you is, that is on you.