nutrition help??

[angelic]

hi...i'm new to this site so i hope this works :)...anywayz, my 10 year old daughter and i are currently lacto-ovo vegetarian but i've been wanting to switch to a vegan diet but i'm worried about making sure we, but especially she is getting adequate nutrients blablabla...any suggestions on sites/books/meal ideas that would be helpful?

[Erin Pavlina]

A great book to read that provides a backbone for knowing how to eat for nutrition is Becoming Vegan by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina. Read our review here:

http://www.vegfamily.com/book-reviews/becoming-vegan.htm

For how to transition your children and deal with the social and emotional challenges you will face raising a vegan child in today's society, there hasn't really been a book written about that yet.

But that will change shortly. VegFamily is going to publish a book on this very subject in the coming months. If you want to be notified as to its release, sign up for the VegFamily newsletter:

http://www.vegfamily.com/newsletter.htm

[Kristin]

here is a not so quick list of nutrients resources for vegans

wheat germ: zinc, folic acid, E, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, iron
tempeh: sizable amount of iron, calcium, higher than tofu in protein
flax seed oil: EFA's, omega-3's
vitamin A: carrots! yellow & orange peppers
Vitamin C: no problem here just eat your fruit
the phytates in legumes and soy products tend to inhibit mineral absorption so it is important to take a good vegan multi vitamin
eat something with C in it to enhance iron uptake in the gut
ex: small glass of OJ with your black beans
fortified breakfast cereals for B12
fortified soy & rice milks for B12, calcium, D,
sunshine is great for vitamin D!
nutritional yeast is a boon for B vitamins including the ever important B12, also contains zinc and proteins, makes a nice chessy-like pasta sauce too, you can buy it in bulk from roads end organics web site
iodine! found mainly in dairy products an absence causes goiter. A recent danish study of danish teen vegans found that they often don't get enough iodine. Iodized salt is an option but so are sea veggies esp dulse
protein awareness is also key
you probably won't have trouble finding enough carbs or fat but protein can be tricky. aim for 50-60 grms a day if an adult. kiddies should be fine with 30-40 but if their vegan they may need a little more
and finally don't eat too many hyperprocessed soy products (veggie dogs, burgers, luncheon meats) stick with whole grains and legumes in their natural state along with generous portions of leafy greens.
Hope this helps
Consult a dietician to be sure that your diet is adequate and a simple blood test would reveal any deficiencies