Exam 1 - Vegetarian/Soy

Question 1

Why might someone choose a plant based diet? (5)

Answer 1

1. They may not like meat.
2. Religious values.
3. Some may think that it is a healthier choice.
4. Refuse to use or eat meat products
5. Reduced risk of chronic diseases

Question 2

What are the health benefits of a plant-based diet? Beyond diet, what might impact health in vegetarians? (4)

Answer 2

1. It can lower hypertension and stall diabetes.
2. 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.
3. Lower rates of heart disease by lowering blood lipids.
4. People who follow a vegetarian diet tend to live a more healthy lifestyle.

Question 3

What is special about a vegetarian diet in regards to protein?

Answer 3

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.

Question 4

How many essential amino acids are there? What are they?

Answer 4

There are 9 essential amino acids.

Phenylalanine
Valine
Threonine
Tryptophan
Isoleucine
Methionine
Histidine
Leucine
Lysine

Question 5

Define limiting amino acid.

Answer 5

A limiting amino acid is the essential amino acid that is found in the shortest supply.

Question 6

What are the four main limiting amino acids?

Answer 6

The amino acids most likely to be in short supply are: Lysine, Methionine, Threonine, and Tryptophan

Question 7

Which foods have limiting amino acids?

Answer 7

The foods that will contain limiting amino acids will be those that have incomplete protein sources (i.e. plant-source proteins)

Question 8

What types of foods are a source of complete protein?

Answer 8

Complete protein sources will come from most meats and dairy products. (i.e. meat, fish, poultry, cheese, eggs, milk).

Question 9

What is BV?

Answer 9

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.

Question 10

What is PDCAAS?

Answer 10

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

Question 11

Name the 8 different types of plant-based diets.

Answer 11

1. Fruitarian
2. Macrobiotic
3. Semi-Vegetarian
4. Lactovegetarian
5. Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian
6. Ovo-Vegetarian
7. Vegan
8. Pollo-Vegetarian

Question 12

Define Fruitarian

Answer 12

Fruits and seeds (some vegetables, nuts, honey, olive oil)

Extremely restrictive

Question 13

Define Macrobiotic

Answer 13

Whole grains, vegetables and some beans.

A way of life- focused on spiritualism, balancing yin and yang through food

Question 14

Define Semi-Vegetarian.

Answer 14

Plant -based diet with some fish, poultry, and meat products

May include some animal-derived products

Question 15

Define Lactovegetarian.

What does this diet lack? (1)

Answer 15

Includes milk and milk products

This diet lacks iron.

Question 16

Define Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian.

What does this diet lack? (1)

Answer 16

Includes milk, milk products, and eggs

This diet may lack iron.

Question 17

Define Ovo-Vegetarian.

What does this diet lack? (4)

Answer 17

Includes eggs.

May lack iron, calcium vitamin D, and riboflavin

Question 18

Define Vegan.

What does this diet lack? (5)

Answer 18

Completely shunted away from any animal products and meats.

May lack iron, vitamin D, calcium, and Vitamin B2 and B12.

Question 19

Define Pollo-Vegetarian.

Answer 19

Eat chicken and seafood, but no red meats

Question 20

Define protein complementation

Answer 20

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.

Question 21

Why is planning a balanced vegetarian diet important? Explain what a well balanced vegetarian diet looks like.

Answer 21

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.

Question 22

Why is iron a problem nutrient for vegetarians? How can this be overcome?

Answer 22

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.

Question 23

What other nutrients are problem nutrients for vegetarians? Why are these problem nutrients?

Answer 23

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

Question 24

What challenges exist for children and adolescents consuming a vegetarian or vegan diet?

Answer 24

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.

Question 25

What are the most common mistakes made by individuals consuming a vegetarian diet? (4)

Answer 25

1. Over reliance on fruits and vegetables at the expense of grains/legumes.
2. Diet limiting- an individual needs to consume a wide variety of products to meet nutrient needs
3. High in fat due to over reliance on cheese/eggs
4. Not allowing any fortified foods

Question 26

What are the overall principles of a good vegetarian diet? (7)

Answer 26

1. Include calcium-rich foods
2. Include a good source of vitamin B12 and Vitamin D daily or take a supplement
3. Consume enough energy to maintain an ideal weight
4. Include good sources of vitamin C to improve nonheme iron absorption (which must be eaten at the same time)
5. Include moderate amounts of beans and seeds/nuts daily.
6. Diet should be based on whole grains, vegetables, and fruits.
7. Choose oils that contain linolenic fatty acids.

Question 27

Why has the popularity of soy increased? (4)

Answer 27

1. Baby boomer era is interested in health and longevity.
2. Growth in the Asian population here in the U.S.
3. People choosing more plant-based foods.
4. Belief that soy is healthy.

Question 28

Discuss the nutrients found in soy.

Answer 28

Soy Isolate has a “complete” protein profile

35-38% of the calories in soybeans in protein

PDCAAS of Soy isolate = 0.99

It has less fat and saturated fat than animal products

Whole soybean foods are high in fiber

Many soy products are a good source of:
Calcium, copper, and magnesium

Question 29

Which nutrients are soy products low on? Why?

Answer 29

Iron and zinc are less available because soy products contain phytates, which bind to these nutrients, unabling us to use them.

Question 30

What’s one important type of chemical found in soy products? What about them? (5)

Answer 30

They contain Phytochemicals which are:

Naturally occurring

Non-nutritive

Physiologically active compounds

They appear to work alone and in combination, and perhaps in conjunction with vitamins and other nutrients in food to prevent, halt, or lessen a disease.

This makes it important to eat whole foods in place of supplements.

Question 31

What is one type of phytochemical found in soy?

Answer 31

Isoflavones, specifically phytoestrogen.

Question 32

What are the two primary isoflavones?

Answer 32

There are two primary isoflavones: Genistein and Daidzein

Question 33

What are the health benefits of isoflavones? What about health risks?

Answer 33

Health benefits: lower cholesterol, reduce risk of cancers, promote bone development

Health concerns: may increase risk of breast cancer, damage to infant endocrine systems, may affect reproductive health in male infants

Question 34

What are the proposed health benefits of soy?

Answer 34

“25 grams of soy protein a day, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. A serving of _________ supplies ________ grams of soy protein.

“Diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol that include 25 grams of soy protein a day may reduce the risk of heart disease. One serving of __________ provides __________ grams of soy protein.

Question 35

What are the different types of soy foods? Be familiar with them.

Answer 35

Soy Flour

Soy concentrate

Soy isolate

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) -> contains a lot of MSG/Glutamate

Textured soy protein (TSP) -> used as a meat analog

Soy grits

Soy oil

Soy milk

Tofu or soybean curds

Edamame

Soy nuts
Soy nut-butter

Soy cheese, yogurt, and ice cream

Soy meat analog mixtures

Fermented soy products

• Miso - paste
• Temph - snack or meat alternative
• Natto- condiment used as a spread or in soups
• Soy sauce - fermented soybeans