5 Tips On Making The Switch To Vegetarian



Posted: Saturday, June 13, 2009

by
http://allinonefood.com

The number of vegetarians in the United States is increasing. Vegetarians diet includes legumes, dried beans, peas, grains, and vegetables instead of the traditional meat entrees which have been the major source of protein in most people's diet. The largest group of vegetarians are Lacto-ovo vegetarians, who consume animal products in the form of eggs (ovo), milk and milk products (lacto).

Another group of vegetarians are lacto vegetarians, who consume milk and milk products but do not consume eggs. The third vegetarian group is called Vegans, they do not eat egg or dairy products and have to rely on plant foods to meet protein and other nutrient needs. It is estimated that only 4% of vegetarians are vegans.

Some vegetarians eat seafood also, this group is called pesco vegetarians. Most vegetarians stay away from foods that contain pesticides or have not been grown organically. Most also stay away from foods that contain certain additives and preservatives.

These are 5 tips that will help you make the switch to vegetarian:

  1. Try to use a variety of plant protein sources at each meal like legumes, grain products, nuts, seeds, and vegetables. Use small amounts of nuts and seeds in dishes.
  2. Eat a wide variety of vegetables. When cooking vegetables, its easy to lose the flavor, nutrients, and color that was originally in the vegetable. To make sure you retain the flavor, color, and nutrients in the vegetable, steaming, stir frying, or microwaving will help.
  3. Choose low fat and fat free varieties of milk and milk products and limit the use of eggs. This is important to prevent a high intake of saturated fat.
  4. Eat dishes made with soybean based products, like tofu and tempeh. Soybeans are unique because they contain the only plant protein that is nutritionally equivalent to animal protein.
  5. Eat foods with good sources of vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, iron, Zinc, and linolenic acid. These foods contain nutrients of special importance to vegetarians.
Making the switch to vegetarian is easier when you understand a vegetarian's nutrition and learn the foods with good sources of vegetarian nutrition. To find out more about a vegetarian's nutrition and learn the right foods to eat you can visit vegetarian's nutrition.

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