Vegan Nutrition with Jill Nussinow, MS, RD

Jill Nussinow is a Registered Dietitian, culinary educator, cookbook author, speaker and consultant and all around proponent of a plant-based diet. She teaches vegetarian and vegan cooking at Santa Rosa Junior College in California and other places around the US. She has a son who is almost 15. One of her greatest joys is sharing her enthusiasm for vegetables and pressure cooking with anyone who will listen.

I am very interested in becoming vegetarian/vegan but I haven't a clue as to where to begin. I read about all of the incredible advantages of this. However I am a weight lifter and am concerned that I won't get enough protein in my diet. Also what is the difference in vegetarian and vegan? Thank you for your time. I appreciate any help you can give me.

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Let's start with the difference between vegetarian and vegan. Vegetarians often eat eggs and dairy products such as cheese, yogurt and milk. Vegans don't eat any animal products at all. Some vegans also avoid eating honey because it comes from bees, and avoid using animal products such as leather. For either diet, it often means looking at your plate in a new way. Without the meat, you'll want to choose some of the following foods as your protein sources: beans and lentils, tofu, tempeh (fermented soybean cake), seitan (wheat gluten), nuts and seeds and their butters. There are also protein powders from soy, rice and hemp that you can use if you think that you need extra protein, which you can add to smoothies but first I suggest that you give it a try without the supplements. I suggest that you start with whole foods to see how you feel. This means that you'll want to choose whole grains, such as quinoa (the highest protein grain), millet, brown rice, barley, buckwheat, oats, a number of times daily for a minimum of 6 and up to 11 servings. Additionally, strive for at least 9 servings of vegetables and fruit each day, and a few servings of protein foods. If you are used to drinking milk, you can use soy, almond, hemp or one of the other alternative milk drinks. The Vegan Food Pyramid is an excellent resource to use as a visual guide. As this is likely to be a big dietary switch for you, and you want to continue your weight lifting, you might want to consult with a Registered Dietitian to make the transition easier. VegFamily offers an online consultation service. Good luck.

Visit Jill's website TheVeggieQueen.com and her blog theveggiequeen.blogspot.com.

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Disclaimer: The advice given here is for eductional purposes only. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified health care provider.
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