How to Get Enough Protein as a Vegetarian
You don't need meat to get enough protein every day. Follow these steps and you'll have protein to spare.
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Get more nutrients into your diet with the crash course in nutrition provided by these videos.
You Will Need
- Beans and bean products
- Nuts and nut products
- Grains and grain products
- Soy milk (optional)
- Tofu (optional)
- Dairy products (optional)
- Eggs (optional)
Steps
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Step 1
Have some beans
Learn to love beans. Beans, peas, and other legumes are excellent sources of vegetable protein. They also provide needed fiber, including heart-healthy soluble fiber.
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Soybeans pack the most protein per ounce and offer a complete protein, comparable to meat. Soy milk and tofu are good sources of soy protein.
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Step 2
Eat like a squirrel
Add nuts and nut products to your diet. An ounce of peanuts or almonds provides nearly as much protein as an egg.
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Adding nuts to your diet can help you lose weight. Although they are high in fat, nuts contain "good fat" from omega-3 fatty acids.
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Step 3
Go grainy
Eat plenty of whole grain foods. Oats, wheat, and rice all add protein to a meal.
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Step 4
Get milk
Drink milk if you're not vegan. Dairy products are a good source of protein. A cup of milk gives you 9.2 grams, a cup of yogurt almost 10.
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Step 5
Eat eggs
Eat three or four eggs each week. Eggs have been called the gold standard of protein because they provide the most complete protein available, and plenty of it.
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Step 6
Mix it up
Combine complementary vegetable proteins to get complete proteins. For instance, grains provide amino acids lacking in legumes, but a dish of beans and rice provides a complete protein.
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Combine different vegetable proteins throughout the day, rather than during each meal.
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Step 7
Don't sweat it
Follow these guidelines and you'll get plenty of protein. Recent research indicates that we need only half as much protein as was previously believed.
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A 2009 government study found that one in 200 U.S. adolescents is a vegetarian.
