Are you thinking about becoming a vegetarian? What does all this involve? You will have to replace meat, fish and chicken with something else and also the nutrients that are in them. We give you 7 tips!
You notice that dietary changes are easy for some and more of a switch for others. Here are 7 products that together ensure a healthy (vegetarian) diet.
Read also: '10 inspirations for vegetarian spreads'
In fact, everyone should eat about 200 to 300 grams of cooked vegetables daily. You can also steam it to keep it a bit crunchy. This amount certainly applies to vegetarians and sometimes they also eat 100 grams of raw vegetables.
Make a mix of different vegetables, so that you get a lot of variety. Preferably use more of the dark green leafy vegetables, as they are excellent sources of calcium and folic acid. You can also think of kale or other green vegetables that contain a lot of iron, which is normally also found in meat.
And if you want to eat more vegetables per day, that's no problem at all. You can in fact eat green vegetables without restriction (even when you are losing weight). They are also vitamin bombs and dietary fibers are also richly represented ... also very important, because there are still a lot of Dutch people who do not get enough of this.
Fruit is healthy due to the presence of vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. It plays another important role for vegetarians (but really everyone); and that is the iron absorption.
It has long been thought that vegetarians do not get enough iron, but that is not entirely correct. There is an important difference in the type of iron. This is because vegetarians get very little non-heme iron.
It is also important to know that iron absorption is promoted by the intake of vitamin C, in which fruit can play an important role. For example, you can eat an orange with meals or drink freshly squeezed orange juice. Or eat other fruits that contain a lot of vitamin C, such as kiwis and mandarins.
And just take fruit more often (2-3 pieces a day), because you also get a lot of other healthy nutrients with this.
It is wise to vary this again, so that you get a wide possible range of vitamins and minerals.
Of course you can always eat nuts, because they are very healthy. They contain rich proteins that are important building blocks for your muscles. But they are also important for cell construction, the production of antibodies and your hormone balance. There are also quite a few healthy fats in nuts.
Want to get even more protein? Then preferably choose almonds, peanuts and pistachios. They have slightly more protein per 100 grams than other nuts. Furthermore, cashew nuts are known for the most iron and zinc. And these crooked nuts also score high for magnesium, with only almonds and Brazil nuts still above them.
But it's also smart to mix it up once in a while. Because each nut has a slightly different composition. And with this you also get in as much as possible.
You can also eat seeds and kernels; the large ones out of the hand and the small ones preferably through dishes or mixed with products. You can think of chia seeds, hemp seeds, linseed, poppy seeds, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds (also very tasty), sesame seeds and sunflower seeds.
Many seeds and kernels are also rich, to very rich in proteins (hemp seed, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds are outliers in this). Seeds and kernels also contain many vitamins and minerals, in particular vitamin B complex, vitamin E, potassium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, calcium, iron and zinc.
And they are also very tasty, for example you can occasionally take a handful of sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds (mixed). Or make dishes nice and crispy with chia seeds. Give it a try and you will discover how delicious it is.
If you are (or become) vegetarian, you by definition do not eat meat, fish or poultry ... but dairy and eggs. With vegetarian we usually mean “lacto-ovo vegetarian” … where these types of products are allowed.
And eggs are a very healthy food source. You will find all essential amino acids in it, along with many vitamins and minerals. It is therefore fine to eat 1 or a few eggs a day ... you can also not eat eggs a few days a week and alternate it with other products.
You can also eat and drink dairy products. Preferably take the full varieties with little to no sugar. And eat and drink it in moderation.
Nowadays there are also many meat substitutes based on, for example, seeds, kernels, nuts and other things available. You can (usually) also take these on the side and they also become tastier.
A healthy diet is paramount, but you can of course also supplement with vitamin and mineral supplements. Make sure that your diet is in order first and only then supplement it with sports or nutritional supplements.
You can also take tasty smoothies, green juice (Nutribites Green Juice, the green juice from Superfoodies or Amazing Grass are recommended) or more often freshly squeezed juice. It also contributes to a healthy diet. Although it is better to replace juice by actually eating certain fruits because you get more dietary fiber with this.
