Curing the carb on a vegetarian diet

Adapting the Fast Track, No Backtracking and Keep on Tracking plans for vegetarians raises all sorts of issues. It certainly isn't impossible, but your level of choice will be somewhat restricted in the initial phases of the plan — especially if you are a bona fide vegetarian who doesn't eat fish or eggs, as well as meat. A balanced healthy diet is the ultimate aim of these plans.

Many people adopt a vegetarian diet for reasons of health rather than ethics, but unless you are careful about menu-planning, the average vegetarian diet isn't necessarily any healthier or less fattening than that of a non- vegetarian. There is often a tendency to combine too many complex carbohydrates with high levels of saturated fats — think pizza, jacket potato and cheese, fries with manufactured mayonnaise or sugar—ridden ketchup. In fact the chances are your diet could be less healthy. This is because vegetarians need to eat a variety of plant-based foods to provide all the essential amino acids that are readily available in animal protein. If just one of the essential amino acids is low or missing then protein synthesis will fall to a very low level or stop altogether.

Complimentary proteins

The key to ensuring that you recive the full compliment of essential amino acids on a vegetarian diet is to combine beans and grains. If you always choose a protein and a grain from the two lists below then your protein intake should be balanced.

The risks of a diet too low in protein

If you arenot careful then you may not have enough protein in your diet. Protein deficiencies in adults may result in lack of vigour and stamina, mental depression, weakness and poor resistance to infection. Antibodies will not function as well as they could — a condition that impairs the healing of wounds and recovery from disease. If you have been through a period of ill health then a higher intake of protein is vital in order to rebuild or replace tissues that are no longer functioning properly.

Good nutrition

In addition to making sure that you eat enough protein, a vegetarian diet may also be lacking in iron, zinc, calcium and vitamin B12 and D — all of which are normally found in animal products. However, these vitamins and minerals can all be found in alternative animal-free sources, and these foods should be staple foods on a vegetarian diet.

Low-carb plans for vegetarians

You may think that it is impossible to follow the Fast Track, No Backtracking and Keep on Tracking plans if you are vegetarian, but you would be wrong. If you want to create vegetarian versions of these plans then there are a number of simple rules that you will find it helpful to follow:

• Eradicate all processed and refined carbohydrates from your diet.
• Follow all the general guidelines for the individual diet plans, such as drinking lots of water and eating the bulk of your fruits and vegetables raw.
• Use the individual plans as a starting point and adapt the recipes to suit your diet.
• Use tofu, whey protein drinks, certain cheeses, eggs and nuts to provide adequate levels of protein and help you to balance your blood sugar levels.
• Always carry snacks such as nuts, protein drinks or hard-boiled eggs with you as it may sometimes be difficult to stick to your diet when you are eating out.
• Try to avoid situations where it would be very easy to break your resolve, such as when you are hungry and the only lunch option available is a sandwich.
• If a book exists called A million and one things to do with tofu — buy it.
  

• Make food as interesting as possible by experimenting with fresh herbs, spices and oils rich in omega-3 fatty acids such as flaxseed oil.
• Boost the nutritional value of your food by adding fresh sprouts, such as alfalfa, to your salads, soups and smoothies.
• If you start to feel tired and lacking in energy, add small amounts of brown rice or other wholegrains to your meals.

What Kind of Protein is Best?

There is a lot of confusion about "superior" and "inferior" proteins—so called "complete" and "incomplete" foods. At the beginning of the century, researchers doing animal experiments discovered that rats could live and grow on a single food such as eggs. Eggs, like meat, fish, and cheese, were therefore dubbed "complete" proteins. Vegetable foods such as rice, legumes, seeds, nuts, corn, and wheat were called "incomplete" since on their own they were unable to maintain life and growth. What all this meant is that the so-called "complete" proteins contain all the eight acids which humans cannot make for themselves in adequate amounts. But what they didn't take into account is that vegetable food—say, corn— together with another—say, red beans—also contains the eight essential amino acids and, provided you eat one vegetable together with another, you are getting the full complement of the eight essential amino acids in good balance. Better still, you are getting them without the fat that accompanies protein from animal foods. The idea that we need animal foods in order to be healthy is simply untrue. Populations numbering in the millions in different parts of the world have lived and developed enviable health and strength for thousands of years on a purely vegetable diet.

The best—and often the cheapest—sources of protein are the unrefined, unprocessed vegetable foods—complex carbohydrates complete with their natural fiber content, vitamins, and minerals—whole grains such as rice, wheat, oats, barley, legumes including lentils and beans; mixed seeds or mixed nuts; fruits, and vegetables from salad greens to carrots and potatoes. Eaten together in salads and casseroles, bread and soups, they provide low calorie menus without the danger of high fat from the intake of animal foods. The Lifestyle Diet provides 15 percent of your daily calories in the form of protein. It allows you to eat four ounces of meat, fish, or poultry (preferably fish) three times a week. On the days when you choose not to eat these foods you can have instead four ounces of mixed nuts or two eggs. It completely eliminates all cheese except those such as cottage cheese and curd cheeses made from low-fat milk.

If you prefer, you can take all your protein from vegetarian foods. The question of a vitamin B12 deficiency on a vegetarian diet is always brought up as evidence of the need to eat meat, although long ago biochemist Schweigert of the American Meat Institute researched the question and discovered that the need for B12 rises and falls with the amount of protein eaten. B12 is available in dairy products and eggs included in the Lifestyle Diet. In this kind of protein-economical diet it is correspondingly low. Schweigert also discovered that the whole wheat grain is a usable source of B12 provided it is not processed into white flour. If it had not been, then the millions of people in different countries who have lived almost exclusively on a vegan diet (vegetarian with no milk, dairy products, or eggs) would have suffered B12 deficiencies.

Dietary Carbohydrates & Protein

Dietary Implementation: Carbohydrates

Consume at least five servings of vegetables and/or fruits each day. Servings of green and yellow vegetables as well as citrus fruits are

recommended. A serving of vegetables equals approximately one-half cup. A serving of fruit equals one medium-size piece.

Consume at least six servings of complex carbohydrates such as breads, cereals, and/or legumes. A serving of legumes or cereal equals approximately one-half cup. A serving of bread is one slice, or one roll or muffin.

Limit intake of desserts, baked goods, and other
foods high in simple sugars or empty calories.

Dietary fiber supplements other than in the form of food (such as oat bran) are not recommended unless prescribed for medical reasons.

Protein is the basic building block for the body, but dietary protein constitutes a relatively small amount of daily calorie intake.

It is said that proteins are the building blocks of yourbody because all body cells are made of protein. Proteins are formed from twenty-two different amino acids.More than 100 proteins are made up of these amino acids. Fourteen of these amino acids are made in your own body, but Tight essential amino acids are not. You must consume foods that contain these eight essential amino acids if your body is to function properly. Certain foods, called "complete proteins," contain all eight essential amino acids. Examples of complete proteins are meat, dairy products, and fish. Incomplete proteins contain some, but not all, of the essential amino acids. Examples of incomplete proteins are beans, nuts, and rice.

Experts agree that there are no known benefits and some possible risks to consuming diets exceptionally high in animal protein. Certain cancers and coronary heart disease risk have been associated with high dietary intake of animal protein. Researchers are not certain whether the increased risk of contracting these diseases due to a high intake of animal protein is because of the protein itself or the fact that diets high in animal protein are also high in fat. There is evidence that excessive protein intake can lead to urinary calcium loss, which can be dangerous, especially for women.

Some scientists are concerned that restriction of animal protein might result in lower than necessary dietary intake of essential nutrients such as iron, especially for women and children. If the recommendations suggested in this section are followed, this should not be a problem. It is not our intent to suggest that animal protein should not be part of the normal diet, rather that consumption of animal protein be restricted somewhat, especially when the fat content is high.

Dietary Recommendation: Protein

Protein in the diet should account for 15 percent or less of the total calories consumed.

Protein in the diet should exceed the RDA of .8 grams per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of a person's desirable weight. This is about 36 grams for a 100- pound person.

Protein in the diet should NOT exceed twice the RDA (1.6 grams per kilogram of a person's desirable weight).

Vegetarians or those who severely limit the intake of animal products must be especially careful to eat combinations of foods that assure adequate intake of essential amino acids.

Dietary Implementation: Protein

Consume at least two servings of lean meat, fish, poultry, and dairy products (especially those low in fat content) or adequate combinations of foods such as beans, nuts, and rice in the diet.

Dietary supplements of protein such as tablets and powders are NOT recommended.

Adequate vitamin intake is necessary to good health, but excessive vitamin intake is NOT necessary and can be harmful to good health.

Vitamins do not provide energy since they do not contain calories. Nevertheless, five of the ten "key nutrients" shown in table 20.1 are vitamins—vitamins A, B1, B2, C, and niacin. They are needed for growth and the repair of body cells. Certain vitamins, B and C, are called "water soluble" because they dissolve in the blood and excess quantities are carried from the body in the urine. Your body cannot store these water-soluble vitamins. They must be replaced daily.

Other vitamins—A, D, E, and K—are called "fat soluble" because they dissolve in fat rather than in the watery fluids of the body. Excess dietary fat-soluble vitamins in the diet are stored in fat cells in the body. Excessive intake of vitamins, particularly fat soluble vitamins, can cause health problems such as liver damage as the body stores excessive amounts. Even excessive amounts of water-soluble vitamins can be toxic when taken in very large doses.

Consuming foods containing the minimum RDA of each of the vitamins is essential to the prevention of disease and the maintenance of good health. Recently, the National Research Council revised the RDAs for vitamins, lowering the amounts for B vitamins and setting a standard for vitamin K, which previously did not have a standard listed.

Though the National Research Council reduced some of the RDA amounts, it also has recommended the consumption of foods high in carotinoid and retinoid because these foods are associated with the reduced risk of some forms of cancer. Carotinoid- and retinoid-rich foods contain high amounts of vitamin A. Diets high in vitamin C (citrus fruits and vegetables) are also associated with a lower risk of cancer. There is limited evidence associating other vitamins—vitamin E, folacin, riboflavin, and vitamin B12-with cancer-restricting capabilities. The apparent discrepancy in the National Research Council actions (lowering RDA amounts of vitamins vs. recommending foods high in vitamins to decrease the risk of cancer) is the result of the fact that RDAs are intended to prevent deficiencies and insure health today while recommendations for increases in vitamin-rich foods to help reduce the risk of cancer are based on decreasing long-term disease risk.