Okay so... vegetarian help?

Question

I've been a veg. for a few months now.. 5 or 6. and everyones bi*ching to me about it. I've managed to get them on my side. I'm a member of PETA. I'm 14 years old. but the thing is.. i need to find ways to get protein without meat. i eat fish, but i just dont eat that much. i need to get a way to eat something that is full of protein AND good for me. i usually eat 1, 2 at most, meals a day. and theyre all fruits, veggies, and a veggie burger or something of that sort. i tried protein shakes and theyre good and all, but not enough. and theyre crazy expensive. any ideas? HELP!!!! DX

Answer 1

Enough of the protein in the diet! That is not the most important thing in a person's diet!

Does anybody stop to think where the protein for that piece of meat came from? Chickens, cows, pigs, and fish all get their protein from plant sources! They are all herbivores! And we could be too. Why should we give a cow oats and green stuff instead of ourselves eating it? It is a very depleting ratio of what a cow eats to what we can get when we eat the cow. We could feed 10 families grains and vegetables, instead of letting one cow feed 1 family. It is just not environmentally sustainable.

When people get diseases, the first thing they recommend is eating more fruits and vegetables, and cutting back on fatty meats and processed foods. I have an idea, why don't we just eat fruits, vegetables, grains, and whole foods, and then have a better chance of not getting the diseases in the first place?

Answer 2

Sorry hun, you are not a vegetarian.  Fish is not and will never be part of a vegetarian diet no matter what you have read.

Protein is in everything..even broccoli!  Really good sources include beans, whole grain pasta and bread, nuts, your veggie burgers, peas, eggs, soymilk and many other things.

Answer 3

You can get protein from:

Amaranth

Cereals and grains - buckwheat, rye, corn, rice, pasta...

Leafy green vegetables, including spinach

Legumes - beans, lentils, peas, peanuts

Nutritional yeast

Nuts - almonds, walnuts, cashews, peanuts (and peanut butter)...

Quinoa

Seaweed - spirulina, kelp ...

Seeds - hemp, sesame, sunflower...

Soy* products -  tofu, tempeh, soy milk, fake meat...

Vegetables - Brussel sprouts, potatoes, yuca

Answer 4

lentils, beans, pulses... amazingly baked beans count too, not too much though! lol

Answer 5

Look for soy proteins, soy milk, soy burgers and such, nuts are a good source of protein, and since you eat fish I assume you eat eggs (I make sure all of mine are from cage free/ free range chickens)

Answer 6

PEANUT BUTTER

Answer 7

Well, if you eat fish you're considered a pescetarian... not a vegetarian.

Vegetarian: doesn't eat fish, chickens, turkeys, cows, etc.

Pescetarian: eats fish but no other animal flesh.



It's important to use the right labels to prevent confusion. For instance, I've been served fish by someone who was under the impression that vegetarians can eat fish.  

Anyway, there are plenty of healthy vegetarian sources of protein. They include almonds, black beans, cashews, faux meats, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), kidney beans, lentils, peanut butter, pinto beans, seitan, soybeans, soymilk, sunflower seeds, and tofu.

A 12.3 ounce box of Mori-Nu tofu has 24 grams of protein. You could mash up the tofu in a frying pan, add your favorite spices & chopped veggies, and make a stir fry.

The most important things are geting enough calories and eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and grains. Protein deficiencies are extremely rare in developed countries. Hope this helps!