Vegetarian
Diets
SHERRI SHAFER, R.D., Certified Diabetes Educator
Vegetarian
diets can be very healthful if well planned. Vegetable-based
diets tend to provide more fiber, less cholesterol, and less
saturated fat than meat-based diets. For these reasons, vegetarians
tend to be at lower risk for getting several diseases, including
heart disease, some forms of cancer (breast and colon), hypertension,
gallbladder disease, and type 2 diabetes.
There are several types of vegetarian
diets:
- Lacto-ovo vegetarians include
milk products, eggs, and plant foods.
- Lacto-vegetarians include milk
products and plant foods.
- Ovo-vegetarians include eggs
and plant foods.
- Vegans include only plant foods
and avoid all animal products.
Protein requirements can be easily
met in any of the diets that include milk products and/or eggs.
The vegan diet must be planned a bit more carefully to ensure
adequate protein intake.
It’s important to get the
full complement of amino acids to assure adequate substrate
for endogenous protein synthesis. Animal foods contain a balance
of all 20 amino acids and are sometimes referred to as “complete
proteins” for that reason. Plant foods have the same amino
acids, but individual plant foods may not contain balanced amounts
of all 20 amino acids, so they may be referred to as “incomplete
proteins.” For example, grains tend to be low in an amino
acid called lysine, yet they have plenty of another amino acid
called methionine. Legumes (dried beans, split peas, and lentils)
are high in lysine but low in methionine. It was once believed
that grains and beans had to be eaten at the same meal to complement
each other and form a complete protein. Now it is accepted that
eating them in the same day is good enough. The focus should
be on eating a well-balanced and varied diet from day to day.
Restricting all animal foods,
as the vegan diet does, may result in other nutrient deficiencies.
Again, careful planning can prevent problems. The nutrients
most likely to be lacking in the vegan diet are calcium, iron,
zinc, vitamin D, and vitamin B12. It’s important to seek
out these nutrients.
Here are some suggested sources:
*Vegetarian calcium sources
include calcium-fortified tofu, calcium-fortified soymilk,
and calcium-fortified juices. (Keep in mind that most individuals
with diabetes have to be cautious regarding juice intake or
risk hyperglycemia.) Other sources include dark green leafy
vegetables, legumes (especially soybeans), fortified cereals
or breads, almonds, and tortillas processed with lime. (By the
way, lime is calcium carbonate.) Adequate intake of calcium
is important for everyone, but especially children, teens, pregnant
women, and lactating women. So, if in doubt, supplements are
available to assure sufficient intakes.
*Vegetarian iron sources
include enriched grains, enriched cereals, enriched breads,
skins of potatoes, legumes, dark green leafy vegetables, and
wheat germ. Eating vitamin C at the same time greatly enhances
absorption of the vegetable-based, non-heme iron. Foods that
are high in vitamin C include citrus fruits, strawberries, kiwi,
cantaloupe, tomatoes, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, bell
peppers, and cauliflower. (I bet some of those surprised you!)
*Vegetarian zinc sources include
whole grains, wild rice, wheat germ, bran, legumes, and nuts.
*Vitamin D is sometimes
added to soymilk. Vitamin D can also be made in the body when
the sun shines on your skin. You don’t need to grease
up and lie in the sun, either. Just a few minutes a day of mild
exposure on your face and arms is enough. Be sure not to get
too much exposure or to get burned. Excess exposure to the sun’s
rays increases the risk of skin cancer.
*Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)
sources are tough to come by if you don’t use any animal
products. Apparently, cooked seaweed offers some vitamin B12.
Some soy beverages are fortified. Some breakfast cereals are
fortified. If you don’t include those products, you should
take a vitamin B12 supplement.
Note: Some vegetarian
mineral sources are less bioavailable than animal sources because
of phytic acid and oxalic acid, which decrease the absorption
of dietary minerals. Phytates are found in whole grains, and
oxalates are found in some leafy vegetables. These substances
bind with minerals such as calcium, zinc, and iron and inhibit
absorption.
Soy Protein, a Healthy Alternative
Soy protein offers a healthful
alternative to meat. Soybeans contain all of the essential amino
acids. A diet rich in soy foods can actually reduce your risk
of heart disease by lowering LDL and VLDL cholesterol levels,
as well as triglycerides. Studies have shown that eating 25
grams of protein from soy foods each day reduced LDL cholesterol
in the blood by as much as 10 percent. (This means 25 grams
of protein, not 25 grams of product weight. Read the food labels
for the grams of protein supplied.) Soy isoflavones have also
been shown to inhibit LDL oxidation.
How to Add Soy to Your Diet
Many meat-substitute products
are on the market. They tend to be good sources of protein,
don’t have cholesterol, and are generally low in fat.
Read the food labels. Lowfat is defined as 3 grams of fat per
serving or 3 grams of fat per ounce. Available items include
tofu, tofu burgers, tofu hot dogs, tofu bologna, soy sausages,
veggie-breakfast links, soy cheeses, veggie ground round, marinated
tofu cutlets, tempeh, and texturized vegetable protein (TVP)
products. Go ahead, fire up the grill! Throw on some tofu burgers!
Or make your own chili with veggie ground round. Give the breakfast
links a try. You might be surprised at how good they are--and
there’s not one speck of cholesterol.
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SHERRI
SHAFER received her BS in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University
of California at Berkeley. She has been a Dietitian at UCSF
Medical Center for 10 years. Sherri specializes in medical nutrition
therapy counseling for individuals in adult and pediatric diabetes
clinics, and is an Instructor for classes on diabetes self management
for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. She has just completed her first
book, Diabetes Type 2 Complete Food Management Program from
Prima Publishing.
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