Meat-Free Food Pyramid. The Building Blocks To A Balanced Vegetarian and Vegan Diet

Support your meatless and vegan diet with the basis of nutritious, raw, and whole meals that the body needs. This vegetarian food pyramid has been designed to help you structure and create meals that will supply you with the nutrients you need, while eliminating the bad vegetarian foods from your diet.
All food pyramids are not formulated equal. The beloved USDA Food Pyramid that we all grew up with and were reminded of every single day in school, isn't going to quite satisfy the nutritional demands and desires of vegetarians and vegans. Two reasons why many individuals fall off the "vegetarian wagon" are; people really don't "feel full" or people say they become ill on a meatless food plan. The biggest causes of these two ill symptoms of vegetarianism are rooted in one problem; the lack of nutritional meals and supplements to support the body. Often times, vegetarians do not know how to eat properly, thus, leading them to feel ill or not feeling full and content from the meals they are consuming. This leads to vegetarians loading up on veggie burgers, pre-packaged meals, pizza, cheese sandwiches and junk food, just to try to satisfy their hunger, all the while losing their health.
To prevent vegetarians from failing at their life-style and diet; to prevent vegetarians and vegans from eating an excessive amount of of the wrong types of foods (i.e. veggie burgers, soy-based meat alternatives, and carbohydrates) and also to prevent vegetarians from being sick, here is a vegetarian food pyramid to empower vegetarians and vegans with the foods that they have to focus on eating each day to support their bodies and their appetites.
Vegetables and Fruits - The foundation of your vegetarian diet needs to be fresh vegetables; thus the word "vegetarian." Vegetarians must eat at the very least 6 servings per day of vegetables and fruits. This is really important considering that the plant kingdom provides several nutrients, natural vitamins and trace minerals that vegetarians and vegans require to provide their bodies with energy and vitamins to support cell growth and development. Avoid canned fruits and vegetables as these types of products do not add very much benefit to the body. Alternatively, choose to eat fresh or lightly steamed vegetables to maximize the nutritious benefits that the plant kingdom has to supply. Vegetables and fruits are additionally packed with fiber and are a great way to naturally cleanse the body. Vegetarians will be surprised at how much more energized they can feel just by eating fresh vegetables and fruit.
Pasta, Rice, Whole Grains, Cereals, and Bread - Take into account a number of years ago, everyone was "anti-carbohydrates?" During that time, carbohydrates caught a negative rap. The trick is consuming complex carbohydrates in moderation. As a vegetarian, grains and pastas are a staple of this meatless diet. Vegetarians and vegans shouldn't get rid of this important fuel from their diets. Just be certain to eat a minimum of 4 servings per day to support the performing of the brain and provide your body amino acids.
Legumes (beans), Seeds, Nuts - Beans and nuts are great resources of natural fats, fiber and proteins for the meat-free food plan. 3 servings is the appropriate amount that vegetarians and vegans should eat to balance their meat-free diet. Make an effort to steer clear of canned beans considering that these beans are loaded with preservatives and salt. To really attain the most nutritional benefit from beans, use dried beans cooked slowly in a crock-pot.
Meat Alternatives - Meat alternatives for example veggie burgers, textured vegetable protein (TVP), tempeh, tofu, and seitan should be limited to about 2 servings per day. It is much better to eat tofu, seitan, and tempeh then it is to consume the processed "faux meat" products on the market. The less processed the foods, the more nutrients vegetarians and vegans will receive from meat alternatives.
Fats, Oils, Sweets - Include fats, sweets, and oils in to your sparringly. When selecting fats and oils to eat or cook with, make an effort to pick out the healthier fats for instance oils from Avocado and Olive Oil. You might implement the same principal for sweets. Try making use of agave or applesauce as sweetners as opposed to sugar. If sugar is all you have access to, look at cooking with the raw sugar cane.
If you are a vegetarian that consumes dairy and eggs or a lacto-ovo vegetarian, then you want to make sure that you are consuming no more than 3 servings per day of dairy products such as cheese and milk. If you eat eggs then you should eat eggs sparingly. Only 2 to 3 times per week.
As a vegetarian, your fundamental goal is to have a very healthy and various diet plan that consists of a range of several vegetarian foods. Eat a selection of the foods in the vegetarian and vegan pyramid to ensure that a strong dietary base has been established to aid the commitment to your meatless life style and the commitment to a healthy life.

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