Vegetarian Dillemma--Alternatives to Soy Foods

Hi,

I have been a vegetarian for 30 years and a vegan for 20 years and I don't eat soy at all. Quinoa has complete protein, a vegan can get plenty of protein from grains like quinoa, buckwheat, millet, rice, and all the beans. Even vegetables and fruits have protein, it's just not widely known. Bee pollen is excellent. A vegan does have to take a supplement of B12. Greens have lots of protein...it's just a fallacy that only meat and soy have protein. C.

No judgments here! I think it's great that you are raising your daughter to be a vegetarian. I myself like that my kids eat like me =-)

You're right. Soy in moderation is fine.

You didn't mention if she drinks milk. My kids LOVE soy milk which contains a lot of protein. Also maybe you can try smoothies and add protein to them by adding the soy milk. You can pretty much make smoothies with any kind of fruit and veggies. Plus you can add protein powder.

Good luck!

The "soy is bad" myth is still out there, and it's pretty much been debunked by reliable sources, so I wouldn't listen to anyone who criticizes you for it! You are right that there are problems with soy being overprocessed, but it's not the soy, it's the stuff it's processed in (like alcohol) or the fact that it is stripped of its nutrients. Avoiding processed foods in general is a good idea. So I'd avoid soy hotdogs and that sort of thing, also the soy cheese slices. There are many clinical studies, including a phenomenal new one on breast cancer recovery and the lower likelihood of a recurrence, on a high soy diet - as long as it's quality soy to begin with and not stripped along the way.

Too much of any one food is a problem, yes, but I don't think you're there. There are many options in nutritional supplements (not pills, please!). No matter how well you eat, even organically, you cannot get all the nutrients you need from just food - everything is beautifully red or green, but deficient. It's grown too fast, shipped too far, or grown in depleted soils. I'm a nutritional consultant and work a lot with families, including organic farmers, who know they are deficient. So they go for a natural supplement - but a comprehensive one, and not just picking a bottle here or there. That's not how nature intended for us to be nourished - and we get in a lot of trouble when we mix and match, play "kitchen chemist" at the vitamin store, and so on. If you'll consider supplements, I'll help you with that.

In addition, nuts (raw or in nut butters, which you say she isn't into, but you can mix them in bars or other foods), eggs (again, disguised), and so on. My son loves these granola bars I make with almond butter, whole oats, flax meal, dried fruits, egg whites, and a little honey. Beans and lentils and chickpeas are excellent sources. Make her high protein pancakes with flax meal and oatmeal (my son devours these - calls them 'power pancakes'). Make her wraps or tacos with beans, add hummus as a veggie dip or sandwich spread. Alicia Silverstone has a new book out which addresses the ethical issues and provides recipes I think. I haven't read it but I've seen her on TV. She has very strong ethical reasons for being a vegetarian so that might fit in well with your views.

Let me know if I can help more.

I've been an ovo-lacto veggie my whole life, my boyfriend of 17 years is not, and we have 3 and 4 year old picky eaters. I have dieted on and off over the years, and by tracking my calories have found that most foods contain protein, even foods like watermelon have some protein in them. I always look at the nutrition labels when I buy things and make sure to choose bread and cereal that have a decent amount. I'm not sure how many grams of protein a 4 year old needs a day, but I'm sure you can find it online. I'd write down what she ate for a week and see if it looks like she is getting in a good amount over that time. If not maybe you could add a little protein powder to a fruit smoothie or something else she would eat to help boost it up.

I don't have a whole lot of suggestions, but kudos to you for trying so hard to feed your children a good diet!
The only thing I can think of that might help is quinoa. It is a high-protien grain that cooks really easily (I mix it with my rice to cook.) I get it at Costco in a 4 lb. bag for about $10 and it's organic.

My kids eat hardly any meat aside from the rare organic chicken nugget or Dr Praeger natural fish stick or some tuna or salmon in their organic mac n cheese, but they get PLENTY of protein without the processed soy stuff (though I do cave and give the soy dogs for rare treats as super convenience to myself.) YES, too much soy is BAD. Especially the processed soy disguised to seem like other food. Your system needs variety and natural food. A little plain tofu in the pasta sauce doesn't hurt here and there, but if you are mixing avocados, almond butter, hummus, beans, plain organic yogurt, eggs, organic milk, fish (for brain) etc, they will get more than enough protein. Meat isn't even a good source with all the bad things in it, but I don't flip out if it's in some pasta sauce if we go to friend's houses or something. My kids don't like it though, since we never eat it. They look at bacon or a burger on a plate like it's poo. But you do have to be firm and push those various proteins, not cave to their desires. They will get used to it. I mix pasta into any of the A.'s organic soups or chili's and the kids will scarf it down. Easy and loaded with protein, the medium chili is their favorite. No their favorite protein bomb is organic mac n cheese with fish and broccoli in it. It's the only time they'll touch broccoli.

There is a difference between soy products. Most soy products are alcohol washed (not good) and over processed (by heat). One doctor did some research and he used to use a lot of different soy products. He now uses only one soy product and that is Shaklee's. Our soy products are Non-GMO, water washed and uses low heat for the soybeans plus are checked for contaminants in the beans before, during and after processing. No other company claims this. They also have a wonderful taste and one is like a milkshake type taste soy product for kids and atheletes. Go to www.nutritionandhealthnow.com to view the different soy products. Shaklee has at least four different kinds to chose from depending on what you are using the soy products for in the diet.

That being said there is a lot of alternatives such as rice and beans. Rice and beans are a "complete" protein so if she eats this that might help her kind some type of protein. There is also lentils. Lentils makes a wonderful soup and adding some type of complex carbohydrate such as whole wheat muffins, biscuits, bread, even cornbread would be good if you can find Non-GMO corn. I think I would eat a log of the different beans and rice mixture because it is hearty and good for you.

N.
Health and Wellness Coach

Yes, the suggestions of a variety of legumes (there are a ton of beans out there and I've had fun trying them all and seeing which ones my family and I like) and quinoa (a grain). Other grains have protein in them too and you can find imitation meat products made with wheat gluten (my favorite is mock duck). Of course, other dairy products like yogurt, cottage cheese, etc. have lots of protein too. Good luck.

I have also been vegetarian for 12+ years and am also raising my kids veggie. They eat plain tofu often. Nut butter, flax, egg, lentils, beans, quinoa, yogurt. I do give them edemame regularly and they both like it. Sometimes I make frittata with edemame, cheese, broccoli, eggs, tomato, red pepper, mushrooms, onion and garlic. They love them! So easy and still very nutritious.

I have been vegetarian since 1980, and vegan the last 3 years, as is my extremely healthy son. If there are no wheat allergies, wheat gluten, also called seitan, is a great source of protein. It is easy to make at home. You can Google it and find tons of recipes. Feel free to email me if you want some of mine. Soy is also great, but not the overly processed forms. Organic non-GMO tofu is a great safe from of protein. Asian cultures have been eating it for hundreds of years. Additionally Asian cultures typically enjoy far lower rates of heart disease, strokes, etc. as a result. It seems to me if any of the "soy is bad" claims were true, we would notice corresponding health issues in the cultures that eat the most soy, and we do not! Good luck!!!!!

i haven't read all the responses, but wanted to give you some good sources as I can tell you are both educated and resourceful. I highly recommend Dr. Mercola (www.mercola.com) as a resource. He has a ton of information on healthy eating, toxic free living and so on. I would also recommend since you are eating dairy to check out raw milk as a protein source for your daughter. It is complete and extremely healthy compared to pastuerized milk. You can read about it at:

http://www.westonaprice.org/
http://www.realmilk.com/where2.html
as well as Dr. Mercola's site.

I do want to add that meat has received a bad rap and for due cause. But, research over the past 100 years has shown that grassfed beef is extremely healthy and good for you. It's the industrial beef in the stores that is bad. Industrial beef is grain fed and has a high saturated fat content, which is associated with heart disease and cholesteral). Grassfed beef is rich in Vitamin E, Omega 3, and CLA (cancer fighting fat). So if you do choose to offer meats to her, make sure she understands the difference between humane beef and processed beef and that may help her get a lot of easily absorbed protein and iron as well as B vitamins.

Slow down mom!, You are doing great. The protein scare about vegetarianism is a crock. Americans get far too much protein even in low meat diets. What you want to focus on is fruits and veggies, whole grains and low fat dairy, the occasional nut is perfect. Too much soy is not good , you are right, but thats true with everything. Beans are powerhouses of protein, if your kids like beans i say more power to them, but you need not frett on reaching the protein quota every day, they are probably getting more than enough. What quota does need to be reached however is the vegetable one, introduce as many greens, in as many ways as possible. this task is much harder. I have been vegetarian for almost 20 years also, and so are my children. My oldest went through a phase where she tried meat and then upon discovering what it really was she never touched it again, she gets teased about it, but it doesnt matter to her. Please dont worry about trying to introduce meat to your daughter over some fear she might not be getting enough protein. It is 99.9% likely that she is.

The concern over soy is based on the fact that it turns to hormones to estrogen within the body, it is actually not the worst for females. Fermented soy (miso) does not do this, and actually is the only thing on earth than has proven it reverses radiation damage(just a little fact), but when we compare soy to the hormones transferred into the body by meat products the difference is phenomenal , not to mention the antibiotics you get with it also.

The diet of meat comes with economic, ethical, environmental and health implications and facts that far outweigh the scare of soy, or the idea of not enough protein.

You have been doing great, keep on truckin'

some fun foods you might try with the kiddos, Braggs liquid aminos, quinoa, flax crackers, jeruselum artichoke pasta, hummous, agave nectar, shiritake noodles, miso paste, edamame, portabello burgers, lentils, tahini, greek yogurt, almond milk, rice milk, vegenaise.......i could go on forever

Maybe you should do some more research about soy. My understanding is that it is the highly processed soy products that are bad for us. Meaning fakey " meats" and soy cheeses, etc. However eating minimally processed soy foods, namely tofu, tempeh, and of course edamame, are good to eat daily and help fight cancer.

Another thing to research would be how much protein your daughter really needs. I have read that you divide their weight by 2.75 to get the number of grams of protein they need. It's really not all that much. But I can't remember where I read that.

In terms of alternat protien items, that are vegetarian, but not strictly soy, I think you listed them above and she is getting them - Beans, Lentils, nuts, etc.
I am not a dietician, but there could be some online comparison charts on the American Dietetic Assoction or the USDA that show the ammount of protien per serving of both animal and plant sources.
Oh, as a vegetarian, do you eat eggs? I know that some do, some don't, but that,too is a source of protien that could be viable option.

you can also make nut and seed milks with a good blender and nutmilk straining bag. there is actually plenty of protein in veggies as well. and it's true most people in this country eat far too much protein, it's the cause of many diseases. and cow's milk products are especially bad for people (see notmilk.com). i say good for you, and good for her, refusing to eat meat! good books i know of include baby greens, evie's kitchen (emphasizing raw vegan).

You will have to supplement with other forms of protein - like PediaSure drinks or whey protein shakes. She needs to have protein in some form. Make stir fried rice with scrambled eggs in them. Hide certain foods in other foods. I would look for books that pertain to children and vegetarianism. You are correct that soy is extremely bad - there are many people out there clueless about it, so for anyone reading this who still is in the dark, PLEASE do yourself a favor and read these articles here, they are totally factual and will shed the truth that you have not found on soy products:

http://search.mercola.com/Results.aspx?q=soy&k=soy

http://www.mercola.com/article/soy/index.htm

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/0...

Hi A., I don't check this often, but I looked at this today and wanted to answer. We're a vegan family and both my son and I cannot eat gluten or soy. I will sometimes give him some eggs from my friends backyard though. This is the best way I get him to eat a lot of protein, and it's his favorite: Fruit smoothies with hemp powder and/or maca root powder with spirulina and vitaminerals greens. It takes a bit to get use to all those powders in the drink, but your body will crave it and get use to the powdery taste to where you want it all the time. My son has it everyday without fail and usually asks for a 2nd cup full at some point during the day.

Maybe your daughter might like nut butters in a smoothie too. I use coconut milk with a little banana and strawberries and almond or peanut butter, and maybe some maca powder and cinnamon.

Don't forget greens have protein in them too and even a "green" smoothie will help her get her greens and protein.

You already got a LOT of responses, and I just don't have the time to read them all, so I apologize in advance if I am just repeating info already posted.

My son ate anything and everything until his first birthday. For reasons completely unknown to me, he suddenly became vegetarian (for the most part) all on his own. Every dinner and most lunches in our house contain meat. I won't feed my kids soy, and I don't eat most other protein sources you mentioned, so iron and protein have always been a big issue with my son. The doctor suggested I let his eat the way he wants (within reason). So, he eats a lot of cheese, string cheese, cottage cheese, etc. I try to add beans to most dishes (black beans and white beans go over best), and I buy a HUGE can of honey roasted peanuts from WalMart for under $5 that he snacks on constantly. FYI, he HATES nut butters (even Nutella), and eggs.

Good luck

I always laugh when people say vegetarians are bad. May daughter is off the charts for both weight and height - she's super tall and very healthy. My husband has been a vegetarian for 21 years and I for 19 years.

I agree the non processed food is good - so soy is probably OK. But a good mixture of beans and rice, plus quiona as suggested. Soba noodles have higher protein count.

My daughter has always been a great eater - so no problems for us. But from her friends. Most four year olds are pretty picky so even if she was eating meat you'd be having the same issues. I'd also check protein levels needed for kids - I think you'd be surprised to find that they really don't need that much. Continue to give her healthy eating foods and she'll make the right choice. Just because she doesn't like something doesn't mean she'll always not like it.

no real answers, but I am in the same position as you - a 4.5 year old son and 18 mo. old daughter - i haven't eaten meat since 1994...My son won't eat it, they both eat some soy...I think that you can get protein in her with dairy products, and with at least some bean and lentil dishes each day - I think that my kids get enough with that. My son won't eat eggs, but I try to give my daughter one egg a day (she usually only eats about half). Cottage cheese is pretty good...interested to read your responses!

whole wheat pasta actually has quite a bit of protein in it. Greek yogurt is good and has twice the protein as regular yogurts. you said she likes beans, there are dozens of ways to fix them, black bean soup is my favorite. and some soy here or there is not going to hurt her.

dunno, I did pretty well for 5 years with milk/cheese and beans as my primary protein sources (now I eat meat again because I can get humanely raised meat, and that was enough to tip my scale back, and I always stuck with eggs in baking). When I figured out I was lactose intolerant and cut the milk/cheese, I started to loose weight unstoppably until I started cooking with more oil ... that was my major difficulty. And I never made a real effort to gain balance, so I think you are probably light years ahead of me, ever ;). I went another five years as a near-vegan (except I used eggs in baking).

I have read and do give credence to the unfermented-soy-is-bad-for-you stuff, but I'm probably prejudiced since I feel funny (vibrations is all I have to describe it) when I eat non-fermented soy. It's like so many other foods, eating them the traditional ways is healthier than the fancy ways we can create now with all our technology ;). Sigh ... . I do enjoy a good soy sauce, yum :).

Have you ever read the history of Quorn (that protein stuff from which they make fake chicken)? By implication mushrooms have a lot more protein than I ever would have given them credit for ... perhaps explains why Shiitakes have umame.

Sorry that was so disjointed.

I think a lot of the other moms have made some great suggestions. Another source of protein that didn't come up is seeds, like pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds. If you make a yummy trail mix, that came make a great addition to a varied diet. I, along with a dietitian, write a blog that is vegan, but also free of soy and other allergens. Please check it out if you'd like some other ideas for recipes and product reviews, www.welcomingkitchen.blogspot.com.

My 15 year old has been a vegetarian for over a year now and is very dedicated. I could join him but I love fish and chicken. I still struggle with the protein and iron intake for him, and I suppose that will be for some time. At one point he said he would eat meat in college, but I kinda doubt it. As for your situation, 4 year olds are tough! I struggled with my kids at that age as well, its really not related to being a vegetarian, just part of the age group!

Hopefully by the time your kids are in high school there will be some lunch options available for them, I have to pack a lunch for my son every day!

Try quinoa. It's a high-protein grain and you can use it in muffins, breads (like banana breads), etc. Also, we eat a lot of Almond butter in this house. Not a big fan of peanut butter myself. What about tofu? There are tofu desserts, too, so you can get protein that way - also tofu dogs and burgers... We are meat eaters, but just so you know, my 3.5 year old son is a very picky eater and would never eat beans, lentils or eggs. He eats a lot of cheese, yogurt and ... I hate to say it... things like pizza or chicken nuggets. I think every child goes through this, meat eaters or not and we all worry they're getting enough protein/vegetables/calcium, etc., but somehow they all survive and grow big and healthy!