Is it safe to be a vegetarian if you are lactose-in-tolerance ?

Question

My mom says "NO" because I need the protein. So what do you think...

Answer 1

nope.   i've been veg a long time and slowly laid off some dairy products... i've become somewhat lactose intolerant now... i can still do cheese but that's it, and not a lot of it... anyway, i stopped with eggs and milk a while ago... you don't NEED it for your protein... have you tried soy milk? i like it better than milk.  there's 6-7 grams of protein in a cup.  how about peanut butter? nuts? eat beans.... and try to the soy "fake" meats.... you'll have no problem getting enough protein even without dairy.

Answer 2

yes.  

Answer 3

thats basically going vegan.

u can still get enough protien with just a loaf of bread.all those nutritional facts are stupid.

Answer 4

you mean "lactose intolerant"? yes it would be a good idea to be veg actually bc then you won't be having any milk products anymore and you won't have to care if you're lactose intolerant!

Answer 5

If someone's nutritional knowledge amounts to "OMG you need protein", then they really don't know much.

Pick up a book like Becoming Vegan, so you can learn more about nutrition. You can get all the protein you need from tofu, legumes, seitan, whole grains, nuts and other goodies. You don't need any milk in your diet. You can get the calcium you need from leafy green vegetables like broccoli and kale. Soymilk can help on both counts too.

Your mom obviously cares about you and wants you to be healthy. It's up to you to really learn about what your body needs, and how you can eat healthily without consuming meat or dairy. You absolutely CAN do it, with just a little know-how.

If you can cook meals for yourself (since you'll have to for most of your life, it's a good skill to have!) it means you're not putting the burden on her to learn how to cook vegetarian meals for you, and that will make it even easier for her to accept.

Answer 6

Definitely, it's almost like being vegan.  You just need to be careful to get the protein you need and you're obviously already aware of milk substitutes if you're lactose intolerant.

Answer 7

You can get a perfectly adaquate amount of protein without meat or milk. There are lots of plant-based foods which have good protein, and in fact, most Westerners consume too much protein, which can lead to all sorts of problems. All that extra protein needs to be utilised, or it's just wasted or can do funny things to your body. I'm vegan and I eat quite a lot of protein, but I exercise a lot too, so it pays off.

Young girls should be aiming at around 45g protein a day maximum, but of course, everyone is an individual. Your height, weight, age, exercising, metabolism and loads of other factors contribute as well.

Here's some information from the Vegan Society website on plant foods containing protein:

Type of food Quantity providing 10g protein (g)

Soya flour 24

Peanuts 39

Pumpkin seeds 41

Almonds 47

Brazil Nuts 50

Sunflower seeds 51

Sesame seeds 55

Hazel Nuts 71

Wholemeal bread 95

Whole lentils dried & boiled 114

Chickpeas dried & boiled 119

Kidney beans dried & boiled 119

Wholemeal spaghetti boiled 213

Brown rice boiled 385

I hope that helps!

Tim

Answer 8

tell your Mom that doesn't make sense.. protein isn't in just animal foods!  Protein is in broccoli, sprouts, lentils, beans, etc.  Also  if you're not going to drink milk  while not eating meat  your a vegan unless you eat eggs!   There are many other milks  such as: Soya Milk,  Rice Milk, and my favourite is Coconut Milk!    These non-dairy milks are much better than the dairy milk  one gets in the supermarket!  Also there is no chance of getting mad cows disease from drink none dairy milk!   Some people have gotten mad cows disease from drinking dairy milk!   You're smart to give up dairy milk..   Learn Vegetarianism and Veganism   you can get books at your local library!

With knowledge in hand you can show your Mom that she is wrong!  Also learn to cook so she doesn't have to do your vegetarian or vegan meals!

Answer 9

That doesn't make any sense. Protein is not just found in animal products.

http://www.veganhealth.org/articles/prot...

Bread, pasta, cereal, rice, beans, peas, lentils, nuts, seeds, fruits and veggies can easily offer everything that you need except B12.

http://www.veganhealth.org/sh

http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo

All vegetarians should take a B12 supplement regularly since most people eat meat, dairy AND fortified cereals yet still have a B12 status that is lower than recommended.

http://www.veganhealth.org/articles/b12

It may help you if you see proof that vegan people have the same potential as anyone else.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/sto...

http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/phpBB2/...

http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/phpBB2/...

http://www.macdanzig.net/bio.php

http://www.scottjurek.com/career.php

If you need meat or dairy during any stage of your life or to live any certain lifestyle, why does the American Dietetic Association say otherwise?

http://www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada...

Answer 10

Of course. You can be ovo-vegetarian or vegan.

Answer 11

Your Mom need to do more research on where protein comes from.  It's abundant in a vegetarian diet.

Answer 12

I never knew that milk products are good source of protein.

Milk does not contain the proper amounts of protein you should be getting so it doesnt matter if you can't eat dairy.

There are other options, nuts, grains,veggie burgers have good protein.

Answer 13

you can get proteins tons of ways. buy books :) and that is exactly what vegans do.. they dont eat ANY dairy