8 essential amino acids

April 20, 2003

hi as you all know I been a vegetarian for quite sometime. I

understand soybeans do contain all 8 essential amino acids. see

unfortunately I have become anemic which could also be from the

diabetes I have. now when I started out I heard that if you combine

beans other than soy and rice you will get all the amino acids. I

used to do that all the time until I was informed that soybeans

contain all of them. now would it be better to still consume rice

with the soybeans to make sure I get them all? sorry for all the

questions. also I heard quinoa and amaranth contain all of them too.

please if you can tell me how it all breaks down I would appreciate

it cause my crazy foot doctor keeps trying to get me to eat meat

again cause I also have charcot disease where the bones break down

but that is healing but I been told I would heal better if I ate

meat I dont want to do this. and worse yet my nurse who is a full on

hippie is telling me to eat meat to. so bottom line if I could get

some info about combining it would be appreciated. thanks Dave pbf

April 20, 2003

Hi Dave!

Yes, the combining of amino acids has been a real

issue for vegetarians. Thankfully, the American

Dietetic Association has found that the conscious

combining of foods at the same meal to form a

" complete protein " is no longer necessary. Thank

goodness! They say that as long as a variety of foods

(grains, legumes, etc.) are eaten in the same day

complete proteins are still formed just as well. Yes,

soy is a complete protein. I've also read that hemp

seeds are! I didn't know about quinoa and amaranth,

that's cool. Really anemia doesn't have much to do

with protein, and studies have shown that vegetarians

have the SAME incidence of iron-deficiency anemia as

meat eaters, not more. Try eating more iron-rich

foods such as lentils, molasses, beans, lentils,

spinach, fortified cereals, greens . . . also eating

vitamin C-rich foods with your meals greatly helps

your body absorb iron. Cooking in cast iron skillets

helps. Watch the amount of tea and coffee (herbal tea

is ok) - they can prevent your body from absorbing

plant iron.

Good for you for standing up for what you believe in

and not eating meat, even after being pressured by

your doctor and nurse!!! It's always good to question

your doctor - most doctors don't know much about

vegetarianism, or nutrition in general. Why don't you

ask him (and your nurse) specifically what meat does

to help your bones heal that vegetarian food doesn't

do. Ask him alternatives to meat that he thinks would

help. Speak with a dietician. Have you looked up

Charcot disease and found that you should eat meat for

your bones to heal? That sounds absolutely crazy to

me, but then again I know nothing about Charcot

disease. I would do some research on your own. Best

wishes, I'm glad your feet are starting to heal.

Mary

" I don't understand why asking people to eat a

well-balanced vegetarian diet is considered drastic,

while it is medically conservative to cut people open

or put them on powerful cholesterol-lowering drugs for

the rest of their lives. " -Dean Ornish, MD

The New Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo

http://search.

April 20, 2003

Food combining was later discounted by the very same woman who popularized

it decades ago, Francis Moore Lappe. Searching on her name brings up many

web sites, so exploring the issue to your heart's content ought to be quite

easy.

Essential amino acids only allude to the fact that the human body cannot

synthesize them from the other protein we consume. Their being essential

for optimal health is quite another issue and one which seems to have more

than one context of inquiry.

Regarding the health symptoms you experience, I suggest a bit of independent

web research would indicate they arise from a number of factors besides the

wrong kind of protein.

From my point of view, the human body is a vastly complex chemical engine.

It requires a variety of inputs for optimal efficiency. When it does not

get all it needs, it adjusts and compensates. Sadly, only a few of those

compensations present symptoms of the underlying deficiency, and it's even

sadder that they sometimes do not present for decades.

As we age, our body loses most of it youthful advantages, our diet

preferences change, and we experience a wide range of reduced and degraded

functioning. To address these anticipated bodily changes, a scientific

interest in research of antiaging technologies is emerging. Most of it is

only available on the web and in medical journals. The research is

facinating and going nose to nose with many of our old beliefs.

One resource that might be of interest to you is located at www.lef.org The

Life Extension Foundation is one of the oldest participants among the

antiaging technology companies, and they are a major force in the

antioxident research we've seen over the last decade.

I hope all of this is helpful.

Daveo

Dave [2davidm]

Sunday, April 20, 2003 1:17 AM