Exam 1 - Vegetarian/Soy Flashcards
Why might someone choose a plant based diet? (5)
- They may not like meat.
- Religious values.
- Some may think that it is a healthier choice.
- Refuse to use or eat meat products
- Reduced risk of chronic diseases
What are the health benefits of a plant-based diet? Beyond diet, what might impact health in vegetarians? (4)
- It can lower hypertension and stall diabetes.
- There can be a lower cancer mortality rate when there is an increase in vegetable, fruit, and whole grain consumption; while reducing animal source proteins.
- Lower rates of heart disease by lowering blood lipids.
- People who follow a vegetarian diet tend to live a more healthy lifestyle.
What is special about a vegetarian diet in regards to protein?
The meat, which is the protein, is mainly eliminated from a vegetarian diet. Therefore, the absence of protein must be replaced with a plant-source protein in its place.
How many essential amino acids are there? What are they?
There are 9 essential amino acids.
Phenylalanine Valine Threonine Tryptophan Isoleucine Methionine Histidine Leucine Lysine
Define limiting amino acid.
A limiting amino acid is the essential amino acid that is found in the shortest supply.
What are the four main limiting amino acids?
The amino acids most likely to be in short supply are: Lysine, Methionine, Threonine, and Tryptophan
Which foods have limiting amino acids?
The foods that will contain limiting amino acids will be those that have incomplete protein sources (i.e. plant-source proteins)
What types of foods are a source of complete protein?
Complete protein sources will come from most meats and dairy products. (i.e. meat, fish, poultry, cheese, eggs, milk).
What is BV?
Biological Value (BV).
The biological value measures a protein’s efficiency in meeting the body’s needs.
The value starts at 100 and goes down; with Milk Protein and Egg White ranking at the top of the list.
What is PDCAAS?
Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS)
Corrects amino acid scores for the digestibility of the protein
It is used on nutrition labels for %DV
Name the 8 different types of plant-based diets.
- Fruitarian
- Macrobiotic
- Semi-Vegetarian
- Lactovegetarian
- Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian
- Ovo-Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Pollo-Vegetarian
Define Fruitarian
Fruits and seeds (some vegetables, nuts, honey, olive oil)
Extremely restrictive
Define Macrobiotic
Whole grains, vegetables and some beans.
A way of life- focused on spiritualism, balancing yin and yang through food
Define Semi-Vegetarian.
Plant -based diet with some fish, poultry, and meat products
May include some animal-derived products
Define Lactovegetarian.
What does this diet lack? (1)
Includes milk and milk products
This diet lacks iron.
Define Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian.
What does this diet lack? (1)
Includes milk, milk products, and eggs
This diet may lack iron.
Define Ovo-Vegetarian.
What does this diet lack? (4)
Includes eggs.
May lack iron, calcium vitamin D, and riboflavin
Define Vegan.
What does this diet lack? (5)
Completely shunted away from any animal products and meats.
May lack iron, vitamin D, calcium, and Vitamin B2 and B12.
Define Pollo-Vegetarian.
Eat chicken and seafood, but no red meats
Define protein complementation
Protein complementation are two or more proteins whose amino acids complement each other so that the essential amino acid missing (or limiting) from one is supplied by the other.
Why is planning a balanced vegetarian diet important? Explain what a well balanced vegetarian diet looks like.
Planning is the most important factor in a vegetarian diet; it is more complex than simply replacing meat with a plant-source protein.
Due to the reduced intake of meat proteins; the diet must contain sufficient nutritional needs from plants to meet the body’s needs.
The two most common nutrients that should be taken into account are PROTEIN and IRON. Variety and quantity will be key; too little calories can result in gluconeogenesis.
Why is iron a problem nutrient for vegetarians? How can this be overcome?
Iron is a problem because the iron in plant-based proteins (nonheme iron) is poorly absorbed in our gastrointestinal tract.
This can be overcome by either increasing the intake of vegetables (RDA for iron for vegetarians is higher by 1.8x) or by increasing the Vitamin C intake (which will increase the absorption).
Good sources of iron for vegetarians include:
Legumes, tofu, greens, dried fruit, iron fortified cereals, etc.
What other nutrients are problem nutrients for vegetarians? Why are these problem nutrients?
Zinc -> not absorbed well
Calcium -> well absorbed
Vitamin B12 -> found only in animal products, therefore must get from fortified foods and supplements
Vitamin D -> normally obtained from fortified dairy products and fat fish
Omega 3- Fatty Acids -> Alpha-linolenic Fatty Acid, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Docosahexenoic Acid
What challenges exist for children and adolescents consuming a vegetarian or vegan diet?
By consuming a vegetarian diet, they have a more challenging time to meet the RDA for their nutrients. It’s hard to even get kids to get food in their mouths.
