Vegetarian diet yes or no?

More and more people choose to eat less meat, become vegetarian, or even vegan. From an environmental standpoint I totally understand and respect this choice. From a health standpoint though I don't really understand this choice. Instead of going straight to being a vegetarian or vegan I would suggest to get free range and grass fed meat. It is so important to get lean protein at every meal and although there are plenty of protein-containing foods these are often higher in calories, carbs, and soy for example has to be consumed in moderation. So rather than avoiding meat you can achieve all the health benefits of a plant-based diet by just eating more veggies, legumes, nuts, seeds and fruits.

Going for a plant-based diet? You hopefully know that you need to get protein from other sources, but what you might not know if that you're also short on other nutrients. Here is the list and what you can do to balance your intake.

Vitamin B12. Mostly found in animal foods so make sure you get a supplement or get it from fortified foods like grains or non-dairy milks.

Calcium. Found in leafy greens, tofu (large intake can compromise thyroid function and raise estrogen levels though), fortified non-dairy milks, legumes, and nuts. 

Iodine. Kelp and other sea veggies, asparagus, leafy freens, iodized salt/sea based salt.

Omega-3 Fat. Flax, hemp, walnuts, seaweed and other marine-based supplements. Make sure it's high in both DHA and EPA.

Vitamin D. Get some sun! Around noon is the best source for Vitamin D. No sun? Get a supplement, about 1000 IU/day should do it unless a test tells you otherwise.

Zinc. Zinc absorption from plant food is lower than from animal foods. Have calcium in between to help zinc absorption. Good sources of zinc are quinoa, wheat germ, lentils, chickpeas, tahini, almonds, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, goji berries, dried apricots, cocoa powder/nibs.

So if you do choose to give up animal foods make sure that you plan carefully. Your body could miss out on essential nutrients such as protein and other vitamins and minerals plus it's often not beneficial for fat loss, but that's another subject :)


Article on grass fed beef
http://www.lifetime-weightloss.com/blog/2010/3/14/5-reasons-to-choose-grass-fed-beef.html