 Iron
Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutritional problems in a typical
British diet. Research shows vegetarians are no more prone to iron
deficiency than meat-eaters, in fact only 14% of iron in the household
food supply is obtained from meat and meat products. Iron is found
in leafy green vegetables, pulses, wholemeal bread, dried fruit and
pumpkin seeds. Including Vitamin C with a meal (such as a glass of
orange juice) can increase the amount of iron absorbed by threefold.
Tea can reduce the amount of iron absorbed.
Vitamin
B12
B12 should not be a concern for vegetarians consuming dairy products
and eggs, however vegans should look out for fortified foods such as
breakfast cereals and soya drinks, since B12 is not naturally found
in plant foods..
Calcium
Again should not be a problem for vegetarians consuming dairy produce.
It is also found in leafy green vegetables, almonds, sesame seeds,
dried fruit, pulses and fortified soya drinks.
Protein
Many years ago it was thought
that since most vegetarian sources of protein do not contain all the
eight essential amino acids in the right proportions
it was necessary to combine different vegetarian sources at each meal
to produce a “complete protein”. However it is now understood
that since the body holds a short term pool of amino acids there is
no need to worry about complementing amino acids all the time so long
as the diet is a varied and well balanced one.
Good vegetarian sources of protein include beans, lentils, nuts, seeds,
grains, soya products, dairy products and eggs.
Fatty
acids
The omega 3 essential fatty acids found in oily fish are also found in
vegetarian foods such as rapeseed oil, flax seeds and walnuts. Or if
you wanted to take a supplement, you can buy them made from algae rather
than fish livers.
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