May I to become vegetarian?

Question

I'd like to become vegetarian, But I'm not sure if is it healthy not to eat any meat, especially when I have physicaly hard work.

Answer 1

You can be a vegetarian in a healthy way, but you have to be careful and pay attention to your diet. There are things in meat that your body requires, and meat provides a good and easy one-stop source of those things. The main one is protein. There's a ton of protein in meat. It's mostly protein, and that is an absolutely vital ingredient in any person's diet, but even more critical when you lead a physically demanding lifestyle.

The other big one is iron. At the very basic level, your blood is red because of iron. You need it. When you don't have it, you can become anemic. Anemia is something that vegetarians need to watch out for because without meat, it's easy to develop an iron deficiency.

You can most certainly find protein and iron elsewhere. Protein is abundant in nuts, and to a lesser extent in beans. Soy beans and tofu have high protein content. Milk and eggs are good sources as well. If you are willing to eat fish while being a vegetarian, there's a ton of protein there as well as omega-3 fatty acids which are really good for you. You can also take protein supplements, but I prefer to get protein through foods.

The iron found in meats is called HEME-iron. HEME-iron is easier for your body to absorb than non-HEME iron. HEME iron is only found in meat because it is produced by the processes that produce blood in animals.

You can find non-HEME iron in some vegetables like spinach, peas and broccoli. Beans and rice are also a good sources. The iron content of these is much lower than that for meat. Breakfast cereals are often iron-fortified. In order to absorb non-HEME iron effectively, you need to increase your vitamin C intake. Excess calcium, coffee and fiber decrease your iron absorption. You can also take iron supplements.

As long as you make sure you replace the nutrients you would find in meat, going vegetarian should be no problem. But, you'll miss eating bacon!


By the way... people seem to be confusing vegetarian and vegan. Vegan means no animal products whatsoever. Vegetarian means no meat.

Answer 2

Of course you can, its fine.

I own an arable farm and run 4 businesses. I generally have far more energy than the people that work around me.

I've been veggie for 28 years so its a sustainable choice.

Go for it, its not a one-way street. If you find its not for you then change back. But please don't blame vegetarinism, it will likely be more to do with finding a balance of foods than the absence fo meat.

I've never done research, spoke to a nutritialist, seen a doctor nor taken pills. All i do is EAT food and i do just fine. People are trying to apply far too much science to diets these days.

Jane has the simple accurate answer

Answer 3

You need to do your reasearch beforehand to make sure you are mixing your protein sources (beans, rice, etc.) to get adeqate protein your body can use, adequate iron, and enough calcium. Plus, make sure you LIKE the foods that will give your body protein instead of meat. If you don't like beans and rice, are allergic to peanuts, and don't care for lots of leafy green veggies, you may want to rethink being a vegetarian.

Answer 4

Probably not if you do physically hard work. However, you probably don't have to eat as much meat as you think you do.

Google, "Flexitarian Diets" and check out the websites. I think you will find great ideas to help you balance and moderate your meat intake.

For example . . . "white meat" ... fish, seafood, poultry . . . can supply the meat you need in your diet with little or no red meat needed.

Answer 5

Well, if you don't want to eat meat you'll still have to get your protein else where.
As long as you eat things like peanut butter, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seed, dried aprictots, all types of nuts, fruit, and pasta then you should be good.
Also, if you're just not going to eat meat, you can still eat fish, like tuna, salmon, etc.

Answer 6

This shows the different types of veggie foods that you would be consuming and the grams of protein


Tempeh 1 cup 41 9.3
Seitan 3 ounces 31 22.1
Soybeans, cooked 1 cup 29 9.6
Lentils, cooked 1 cup 18 7.8
Black beans, cooked 1 cup 15 6.7
Kidney beans, cooked 1 cup 13 6.4
Veggie burger 1 patty 13 13.0
Chickpeas, cooked 1 cup 12 4.2
Veggie baked beans 1 cup 12 5.0
Pinto beans, cooked 1 cup 12 5.7
Black-eyed peas, cooked 1 cup 11 6.2
Tofu, firm 4 ounces 11 11.7
Lima beans, cooked 1 cup 10 5.7
Quinoa, cooked 1 cup 9 3.5
Tofu, regular 4 ounces 9 10.6
Bagel 1 med.
(3 oz) 9 3.9
Peas, cooked 1 cup 9 6.4
Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP), cooked 1/2 cup 8 8.4
Peanut butter 2 Tbsp 8 4.3
Veggie dog 1 link 8 13.3
Spaghetti, cooked 1 cup 8 3.7
Almonds 1/4 cup 8 3.7
Soy milk, commercial, plain 1 cup 7 7.0
Soy yogurt, plain 6 ounces 6 4.0
Bulgur, cooked 1 cup 6 3.7
Sunflower seeds 1/4 cup 6 3.3
Whole wheat bread 2 slices 5 3.9
Cashews 1/4 cup 5 2.7
Almond butter 2 Tbsp 5 2.4
Brown rice, cooked 1 cup 5 2.1
Spinach, cooked 1 cup 5 13.0
Broccoli, cooked 1 cup 4 6.8
Potato 1 med.
(6 oz) 4 2.7
Sources: USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 18, 2005 and manufacturers' information.

The recommendation for protein for adult males vegans is around 56-70 grams per day; for adult female vegans it is around 46-58 grams per day (see text).



It is very easy for a vegan diet to meet the recommendations for protein. Nearly all vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds contain some, and often much, protein. Fruits, sugars, fats, and alcohol do not provide much protein, so a diet based only on these foods would have a good chance of being too low in protein. However, not many vegans we know live on only bananas, hard candy, margarine, and beer. Vegans eating varied diets containing vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds rarely have any difficulty getting enough protein as long as their diet contains enough energy (calories) to maintain weight. [See the sections on Pregnancy, Lactation, and Infants and Children (pages 176-197 in Simply Vegan, 4th edition) for details about protein needs during these special times.]

Answer 7

yes you may!

If you are eating properly as a vegetarian it will be just fine.

Answer 8

It is definalty healthy to not eat meat...Veg*n's very rarely suffer heart disease or high cholesterol, plus they don't get all the nasty antibiotics, steroids and chemicals that are fed to meat animals.

There are a whole lot of very hard working individuals who are Veg*n's, including triathalet's

Answer 9

eat beans and tofu for the protein...

Answer 10

Then don't.