12 year old vegetarian?!
Answers: Ok so I'm twelve and I want to be a veggie.But I don't want to get unhealthy and sick and whatever crap happens to people who don't do it right. My friend that is veggie is always sick. So any suggestions or websites...
If your parents are supporting your decision, than it should not be too hard to switch over to a vegetarian diet. Both you and your parents need to do as much research as possible, this means looking at websites, reading books, and talking with people who are vegetarians.
The one thing to remember is that she needs to replace the nutrients she is no longer getting from meat with other food. Major concerns for most people are protein, iron and b12(although they shouldn't be since they are easy to get).
Protein
The average person only needs about 50 grams of protein per day. Protein is in everything, just look at the side of boxes. In todays world it is very hard to be protein deficient if you are eating a wide variety.
High protein foods include:
soy milk, tofu, nuts(Almonds, Cashews, Filberts, Hemp Seeds, Peanuts, Pumpkin seeds, Sesame seeds, Sunflower seeds, Walnuts (black)), seeds, legumes(Garbanzo beans, Kidney beans, Lentils, Lima beans, Navy beans, Soybeans, Split peas), grains(Barley, Brown rice, Buckwheat, Millet, Oatmeal, Rye, Wheat germ, Wheat, hard red, Wild rice), vegetables(Artichokes, Beets, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Green peas, Green pepper, Kale, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Mustard green, Onions, Potatoes, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnip greens, Watercress, Yams, Zucchini), fruits(Apple, Banana, Cantaloupe, Grape, Grapefruit, Honeydew melon, Orange, Papaya, Peach, Pear, Pineapple, Strawberry)
Iron
Like vitamin B-12, iron is a crucial component of red blood cells. Dried beans and peas, lentils, enriched cereals, whole-grain products, dark, leafy green vegetables, and dried fruit are good sources of iron. To help your body absorb non-animal sources of iron, eat foods rich in vitamin C — such as strawberries, citrus fruits, tomatoes, cabbage and broccoli — at the same time you consume iron-containing foods.
B12
Vitamin B-12. Your body needs vitamin B-12 to produce red blood cells and prevent anemia. This vitamin is found almost exclusively in animal products, including milk, eggs and cheese. Vegans can get vitamin B-12 from some enriched cereals, fortified soy products or by taking a supplement that contains this vitamin.
The one thing to remember is that you need to replace the nutrients you are no longer getting from meat with other food. Major concerns for most people are protein, iron and b12(although they shouldn't be since they are easy to get).
Protein
The average person only needs about 50 grams of protein per day. Protein is in everything, just look at the side of boxes. In todays world it is very hard to be protein deficient if you are eating a wide variety.
High protein foods include:
soy milk, tofu, nuts(Almonds, Cashews, Filberts, Hemp Seeds, Peanuts, Pumpkin seeds, Sesame seeds, Sunflower seeds, Walnuts (black)), seeds, legumes(Garbanzo beans, Kidney beans, Lentils, Lima beans, Navy beans, Soybeans, Split peas), grains(Barley, Brown rice, Buckwheat, Millet, Oatmeal, Rye, Wheat germ, Wheat, hard red, Wild rice), vegetables(Artichokes, Beets, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Green peas, Green pepper, Kale, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Mustard green, Onions, Potatoes, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnip greens, Watercress, Yams, Zucchini), fruits(Apple, Banana, Cantaloupe, Grape, Grapefruit, Honeydew melon, Orange, Papaya, Peach, Pear, Pineapple, Strawberry)
Iron
Iron is a crucial component of red blood cells. Dried beans and peas, lentils, enriched cereals, whole-grain products, dark, leafy green vegetables, and dried fruit are good sources of iron. To help your body absorb non-animal sources of iron, eat foods rich in vitamin C — such as strawberries, citrus fruits, tomatoes, cabbage and broccoli — at the same time you consume iron-containing foods. You only need about 15 mg per day.
B12
Your body needs vitamin B-12 to produce red blood cells and prevent anemia. This vitamin is found almost exclusively in animal products, including milk, eggs and cheese. You cancan get vitamin B-12 from some enriched cereals, and fortified soy products. If you are eating dairy than there is no reason to worry about b12.
The key to any good diet is variety and the proper amounts of the right foods. Simply cutting out meat and than only eating veggie burgers, or pasta is not a proper diet. You need to eat a variety of grains, nuts, seeds, vegetables, fruits, beans, etc. There are many great recipes that you could try, even if you don't like it the first few times, keep trying it. It took me eating broccoli 5 times before I liked it(when I first went vegetarian I hated veggies). Many dishes I made didn't come out great the first time, but after the second or third time they came out better.
Some helpful websites:
http://www.vegsoc.org/index.html
http://www.vrg.org/index.htm
http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/ (helpful message board)
Books
The New Becoming Vegetarian: The Essential Guide To A Healthy Vegetarian Diet
by Vesanto Melina, Brenda Davis
Disease-Proof Your Child: Feeding Kids Right
by Joel Fuhrman
Please Don't Eat the Animals: All the Reasons You Need to Be a Vegetarian
by Jennifer Horsman, Jaime Flowers
Recipes sites:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipes/Everyday-C...
http://vegweb.com/
http://www.simple-vegetarian-recipes.com...
http://vegetarian.betterrecipes.com/vege...
i used to be a veggie, and i took these protein pills from GNC. i never got sick or anything- they worked great!
first i think you should talk to your parents about if your going to make this choice and ask them parents always know best. and way to go veggitarians rule BAYBE!!! good luck :)
be sure to eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and lots of beans and nuts....a lot of vegetarians can often eat unhealthy foods like french fries and chips but just be careful not to eat so many processed foods.
Well I don't think you should be a vegetarian that early in age. As a growing child, you need protein to grow taller and stronger. While you may still want to be a vegetarian nonetheless, its true that you can take vitamins that can supply you with protein and the benefits of meat. Consult your doctor and of course, tell your parents first.
Try:
www.eatright.org
Soy proteins are good. Just make sure you balance all of your amino acids.
you and your parents need to consult a registered dietician.
Don't eat junk food.
http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/f...
I know tons of people that have been vegetarian ever since they were born, because their families didn't eat meat. Vegetarian is fine. Just don't become vegan until you are older and have some experience.
Other than that, there's really nothing to worry about.
Why do you want to be vegetarian? Many people do it for a variety of reasons but if you re doing it because "it's cool" then maybe you should rethink your decision. Seriously, at your age, many factors that go into such life long (and life affecting) decisions may be too complicated for you to consider properly. It's best that you involve your parents and seek medical supervision before you even start anything. Any suggestions you will get here regarding foods that you can try are all anecdotal and frankly might be even dangerous for you if done incorrectly.
I became a Veggie at about 14. First I cut out red meat, then fish and chicken after a while. It's a lot easier if you still eat dairy foods and eggs as they both contain good protein. You also need to eat legumes and tofu is good too. You can buy quite a few items in supermarkets like veggie sausages etc which make it more interesting than just eating vegies all the time. You should also take iron supplement too. Girls need extra iron because of menstruation. Good Luck.
my guess would be to eat more peanut butter then you do its got some protein in it
http://www.fitnessandfreebies.com/fitnes...
There is a new vegetarian food pyramid that helps guide you on what to concentrate on food wise. This is a good balance of food.
My main sources of protein are from dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese) and soy (tofu, etc). I also get it from nuts, veggies, rice, beans, peanut butter, whole wheat foods.
Congratulations on the change, and it's wonderful that you're parents are supportive, I know that's a problem for many young vegetarians. Don't listen to others who say "you're still growing, eat meat". I've been vegetarian since I was 9 years old, and my sister since she was 7. We're doing good.
I'm with your parents on this. Just make sure that you're getting proper nutrition. If you need to take protein and Iron supplements, do it. This is especially important as your body is still growing.
THis is a great question - it maens you are trying to research before delving into something you don't know about - well done.
There are some great web sites out there. Here they are
adventist.org.au - the seventh day adventists practice vegetarianism and they have some practical meal plans
www.vegsoc.org - this site is a wealth of information and has a teenage section
www.vegsoc.org.au - this website is the vegetarian society of Queansland Australia snother very helpful site
www.veganwolf.com - very good for beginners - gives you a great list of the staples you require and is a fabulous source of information for vegetarians and vegans
www.supermarketguru.com - for teenage vegetarians
www.vrg.org - another excellent site for young vegetarians
Taste.com.au
www.leedsveg.co.uk this is a great website which may help - it has the web addresses to other organisations as well.
Good luck
I'm not a "veggie" but my favorite "veggie meal" is roman noodles boiled w/spinich or brocoli & chopped burritos (from the microwave) along with additional seasonings-sometimes I'll fry it all up on the pan & make a "skillet" out of it. (if that's not considered a veggie snack, sorry, but it's close enough to me when I'm low on cash like tonight!)
Don't let people fool you into believing that a vegetarian diet lacks anything. The protein scare is the biggest misconception about vegetarian diets. There are quite a bit of misconceptions so here are some web sites I think will help. The first is a list of vegetables with protein and how much the second are calcium sources in raw veggies. The third is an article about B12. It is actually a microbe found in soil and is abundant in seaweed, tempeh, miso, and root veggies. The last one is a list of foods with iron and how much.
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm
http://health.rutgers.edu/factsheets/iro...
http://www.carrotcafe.com/f/calevel.html
http://www.pamrotella.com/health/b12.htm...
Well, the easiest thing to do for you, because you're so young would be to talk to your doctor, or a dietician. But, if you choose to handle this on your own, I'd search websites for the vegetarian or vegan food pyramid. You have to make sure you get every type of nutrient you deprive your body of when becoming a vegetarian. I had a site, but it's favorite-ed on my other computer. So the best thing I can think of is to just search that. And makes sure you get the proper nutrition! My friend has been a vegetarian since she was almost ten, and it's been roughly five years now. I can search the site for you later. My e-mail is Michellerose121191@yahoo.com.
As for your friend, I'm sure she's only sick if she isn't getting the type of vitamins she needs. I suggest taking a multi-vitamin daily, which can give you exactly what you need.
And another thing, because you aren't eating meat, you can't just skip that whole portion of the meal, you need to substitute it with something else, maybe a soy-protein meal, or something with a good protein source.
i am 18 now and started being a vegetarian when i was your age and have been healthier since