Vegetarian/vegan support
 

I'm a vegetarian, well obviously, and an on/off fish eater, as my mum always guilts me into eating salmon, eurghh. I know how hard it is get a balanced diet, especially when eating out, in Tescos for example if you dont eat fish theres cheese or egg sandwiches and sometimes theres some couscous <3, but it is annoying eating that everyday. I can only imagine how hard it is for vegans

Excuse my rambling, but I'm tired of people waving meat into my face.

Also does anyone know what is high in iron?, I'm apparently very anaemic.

Anyone know any good products? Or have any questions? Then suggest or ask away.

And also I am aware that Quorn sausages and falafels are heaven, whilst the other stuff is plain nasty!

Any suggestions please?

Erm, I think some nuts an stuff are high iron, or you could take a suplement type thing, thats what i do.

i know what you mean about people waveing meat in your face, i have even had people try and trick me into eating it.

my mum, while not a vegitiarian, is anemic, and she has found some suppliment tipe things, liquid sachets which you put into fruit juice and barely notice the taste. they are sutable for vegitarians as she has offered them to me. i think this type of thing would probably be your best bet.

Oooh not a veggitarian but my mum has been anemic.
I'd say get some iron supplements as they would be your best bet.
I think Frosties have a fair bit of iron in them for a breakfast cereal as well. At least that's what my mum said =/.
Well I'm not much help am I?
But supplements would be good.

I'm a veg too =)
I take vitamins because my iron was really low too.

Plus I hate meat substitutes, so it makes it harder to find food. Tofu is nastiness.
<3

I don't eat meat, I'm reluctant to call myself a vegetarian though as I still eat fish here and there. But anyway that's beside the point. I think it's advisable to supplement your diet with iron and B-vitamins if you're not sure you're getting the right nutrients from your food at the moment. How do you feel about eating beans and pulses, as they are very good for you - chickpeas, lentils, borlotti beans etc are nutritious and also cheap and versatile. Obviously veggies contain lots of good things, and nuts and seeds are highly concentrated sources of vitamins, minerals and good fats. A small handful of something like almonds is a great healthy filling snack. A vegetarian recipe book might be a good idea for some inspiration, Rose Elliot is one of my favourites for healthy easy recipes.

Well hope some of that helped!

If nothing else go to the doctors, my frends eanemic so she had iron pillls, Ill never know if i am as im too phobic to have a blood test : D Hope this helps tho.

The Food Standards Agency website has a good page (linkypoo) with an assortment of meal and snack suggestions including vegetarian and vegan options.
There's also a page here by the British Nutrition Foundation. A search on Google will probably turn up plenty more suggestions.

Hope that helps!

(love from a fellow veggie :-) )

I might be wrong (and will look it up later) but I think broccoli is high in iron?

I'm a veggie and so is all my close family. My dad's a vegan aswell but he eats like no-one's business :) We all take vitamin tablets and supplements and stuff and we have a wall chart in the kitchen which says that spinach, dried apricots, dates, prunes, wheatgerms, tofu, pumpkin seeds, cabbage, wholegrains and molassess all have high iron content. But I don't eat much of all that because it all sounds so dull. :) Hope that helps.

you may also want to take a look at the Vegetarian Society website, that's quite good as well

http://www.vegsoc.org/

....and the BBC Food website's veggie messageboard

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mbfood/F2670472

http://www.whfoods.com/index.html - This is an awesome website that should be able to provide you with some good information about eating right and making sure you're getting all the nutrients you need while still keeping up with your commitment to be vegetarian I'm going to get all "mom" here for a second, but that is so important because what you eat now sets you up for later in life. / Mom mode off ;)

I can understand why it would bother you to have other people trying to coerce you into eating meat -it's a pain in the behind, isn't it? Perhaps consider investing in a vegetarian cookbook or look on a site like AllRecipes.com, or the one I already listed, and practice cooking for yourself and your family. I'm sure your mom would love to have someone cook for her, and maybe it will show her how great vegetarian food can be!

Good luck and take care!!

Oh wow, thanks everyone, so much advice and links, ooh, I feel so loved. I cook everyday for myself, and there are a few veggie cookery books around the house, but I'm soo lazy, the house is a tip, so there's no chance of even finding them!
Thanks again for all the suggestions and all the links.
x

Brocolli,Spinach high in iron, other green veg not cooked too long

If you are very anaemic you should really see your doctor, they can get you iron pills and will discuss why you became anaemic.

Also - iron is absorbed better if it's taken with vitamin C (I think but don't quote me on that)

Great! I'm vegan as well.

Definitely eat lots of soy products. Soy milk as a replacement to cows milk and tofu are great sources of calcium and iron. Sugarkane is correct, iron is absorbed best taken with vitamin c.

At times when I am anemic I've taken iron supplement pills.

Good luck and if you ever need any recipes or anything, PM me =)

Jess xx

Boy do I know what you mean about people waving meat in your face. Thankfully I have remained faithfull to my veg ways...after betraying my vegan ways. I was vegan for two years and then after spending some days in a ward, where I coukd only eat vegetarian, I had to go back to being vegetarian 'cause I did not have a job and couldn't buy my own groceries and there are no vegan restaurants here...anywhere! So I'm vegetarian, hoping to be vegan again...thogh my mom always tries to get me to eat meat climing I'll starve, but I'd rather starve than eat meat and even if I did I'd pribably get sick for it. My last stay at a ward was hard, I was always hungry because they did not have a vegetarian menu and every day when we went to the dinning room they did not have smething prepared for me so they threw some potatoe with cheese in an oven and that's what they fed me for 7 days, I hate potatoes now. It's hard being veg here and even worse being vegan, you have to buy your own food at the only veggie/vegan super market there is and cook at home, can't eat out 'cause there's nowhere vegan to eat at. Sucks hairy balls.

But being vegan is so worth it

doesn't brocolli have lots of iron in? along with spinach and other dark green leafy veg or something like that?

i'm veggie, i tried to be vegan a few times but i lasted about a week (slightly pathetic i know) but when im' older and living by myself (so no mum nagging me) and doing my own shopping (no no refusal to buy anything soya) then i think i might try and go vegan again

what really annoys me is when people give you big lectures about why you shouldn't be veggie; i'm not trying to force you to be veggie, don't try and force me not to be! gah..