Many people have made the transition to a vegetarian or vegan diet, often for health or ethical reasons. Swearing off animal products can offer some health benefits, but it can also make getting proper nutrition a little tricky. A diet without meat can be low in iron, vitamin B-12, and most importantly, protein. However, vegetarians can pick up these vital nutrients.
Requirements
According to guidelines published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adult women need about 46 g of protein daily and men require 56 g. One glass of milk contains about 8 g of protein, while beans tend to contain around 16 g per cup. Rice and most grain products average about 4 to 5 g of protein per serving. Not all proteins are equal, however.
Amino Acids
Protein consists of molecules called amino acids, which are important to many functions of the body. Twenty different amino acids make up protein, 11 of which your body can create on its own. The remaining nine amino acids, called "essential" amino acids, must come from your food. If you're lacking in any one of the essential amino acids, your body might have difficulty repairing wounds, you might feel fatigued, and you might lose muscle mass.
Complete Proteins
Protein has many sources, but they all fall into two distinct categories. A complete protein contains all the essential amino acids, and an incomplete protein lacks at least one of these vital nutrients. Complete proteins include most types of animal products, meat, milk and eggs. Vegetarians who still eat eggs or dairy products can get all the protein they need from those sources without consuming meat.
Non-Meat Sources
Other sources of protein are all incomplete, meaning each one lacks at least one of the essential amino acids. Grains, beans, nuts and seeds all contain significant amounts of protein, but each group of foods tends to lack the same type of amino acids. This makes it difficult to get your essential amino acids by eating one type of food. However, by mixing and matching ingredients from these sources, you can create complementary proteins, in which a single dish contains all the vital amino acids.
Complementary Proteins
One of the simplest complementary protein meals to create is rice and beans. The amino acids that most legumes lack are present in most grains, so when consumed together these foods serve as a complete protein. Peanuts and sunflower seeds are a high-protein snack that delivers all the amino acids your body needs. Peanut butter on bread, tofu and rice, and hummus with pita are other ways you can get the proper amount of protein without eating any animal products.
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