The Vegetarian Resource Group of Tucson
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The Vegetarian Resource Group of Tucson |
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Q: How do you get your protein? A: The average American eats more protein than he or she needs. Meat-eaters often eat two or more times the amount of protein they need. What happens to the extra protein? Metabolizing protein produces toxic byproducts that the liver must process, and then it is excreted by the kidneys. Thus, too much protein intake stresses the organs. Also, excess protein is converted into fat. Most vegetarian get the right amount of protein, with common sources being soy products, beans and legumes. Q: Don't you need dairy to get your calcium? A: it's been shown that people consuming dairy products actually excrete more calcium than they ingest. Animal proteins break down into types of amino acids which leach calcium from the body, and this worsens conditions like osteoporosis. Beans, nuts, greens and soy milk are great sources of calcium. Q: Surely you need to get iron from meat or you'll become anemic, right? A: Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency in the United States, despite widespread iron fortification and meat-centered diets. Only 10 to 20% of the iron in meat is absorbed by the body. Vitamin C increases the absorption rate (meat has no vitamin C), which makes vegetables and grains a better source. "The research to date shows that vegetarians are no more likely than meat eaters to have iron-deficiency anemia", says iron expert Janet Hunt, Ph.D., R.D., a research nutritionist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, N.D. For more extensive information on these topics, please visit our Health page. If you have any other questions about a vegetarian diet, please contact us at info@vrgt.org. |
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