Calling vegetarians

[hercules1]

Okay. I've jusdt lost a lot of weight and have also decided to shange over to be a veggie for health reasons.

WHat are the basics I need to know. What must I make sure I eat in order to get the right nutrients etc?

Thanks

Well I eat everything except meat and have never been anaemic, so id say a bit of everything and youll be fine.
However someone will come along in a sec and scamble that theory

You can replace meat protein by using a variety of beans, pulses, grains, lentils, eggs, cheese. You can always use tofu, or meat replacements like Quorn or soya if you need to, but I don't bother. I'm finding them useful for dd at the moment, though, as she's just turned veggie but still likes to have some of the food she's familiar with - so Quorn mince for shepherd's pie, for example.

Don't rely on a vegetarian diet to keep your weight down though; there's plenty of fatty and junk food that's suitable for veggies!

I'll not scramble your theory charliecat. I also eat everything except for meat and fish and never had any health problems. I turned veggie when I was 11 and my Mum used to regularly ask for my iron levels to be checked but they've always been fine. I'm 8 months pregnant now and was expecting to have to take supplements but nope, I'm still fine.

I eat a lot of pasta, bread, quorn type things, vegetables (although I rarely did as a kid), lots of dairy stuff, some fruit but not huge amounts as I'm allergic, and biscuits and chocolate and other non-healthy things Just a normal diet with the meat bits taken out.

If you are worried you can get special veggie supplements that have things like iron and vitamin b12 in them but I don't like supplements and I can't say I've ever needed them.

Have a look at the Vegetarian Society website - they have lots of information for new veggies.

Thanks for the link. Very helpful.

ANy recommendations for books?

Agree with the others - just try and replace the meat with other protein/iron food, e.g. have kidney beans, canellini beans or lentils instead of mince in bolognese, have green leafy veg like spinach (I like it in curries, not keen on its own). Chick peas are really good - you can make your own burgers with them if you have the time/inclination.

I'm not anaemic but occasionally my iron levels are low if I'm not eating properly - so you need to make sure you mix things with vitamin C with things with iron - e.g. have a glass of orange juice with your dinner rather than a cup of tea (tea stops you absorbing the iron so efficiently apparently).

Mushrooms also good (although I don't like them because they taste like slugs).