Vegetarian sources of essential amino acids and fatty acids please! (Can a veggie that has reasearched this...

Question

tell me EXACTLY what they eat each day to get all the essential nutrients they need! )

How much of each food do I need to eat each day to get all my essential amino and fatty acids (i.e. 1 teaspoon)?

i.e.

1 teaspoon flaxseed oil

x grams of seaweed

4 teaspoons of flax seeds

etc...

(Female, average, teenager)

Answer 1

I'm not quite sure what you're asking. Just eat food. Plants contain everything we need. Just eat a variety of foods.

Answer 2

Amino acids are the building blocks of protein molecules.  Pretty much every plant food on the planet contains amino acids.  Eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds daily will assure you're getting all your essential amino acids.

Flax seed oil is a perfect food for obtaining balanced EFAs in appropriate ratios.  2-4 teaspoons a day is usually enough for adults.

Vega brand offers an EFA & antioxidant oil blend that's got all your needs covered.  Check it out at MyVega.com.  You can find it at most health food stores.

Answer 3

Amino acids are simply the components of protein.  If you are eating a variety of vegetarian foods, including fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, you're getting plenty of protein and are covering your bases, amino acid wise.  It's simply not necessary to worry about it.

Personally, I don't measure out my sources for omega-3, either.  I use ground flax seeds or flax oil most days, and I eat walnuts and other nuts and seeds that are good sources.  I take a vegan DHA supplement from blue-green algae once a day, just for insurance purposes.  Vegans can tend to get too much omega-6 in relation to the amount of omega-3 they get and the imbalance can make it difficult for us to convert ALA to DHA efficiently.  Rather than measure out my sources of each, I take some DHA directly and call it good.