ive read perfectly legitimate studies indicating an increase in bone mass resulting from high protien; again, who gives a rip about the theoretical loss of calcium from high protein, as excessive amounts of calcium can be found in whey protein.
i personally dont buy the lion arguement, even though its interesting to discuss it; if we were genetically herbavores we would only have molers for teeth, but we have incisors. also, predatory animals have eyes set in the center like us, while prey have eyes on the sides of their head (to look out for predators). i agree with any vegetarian that disgusting things happen to our meat in processing, but i always make it a point to warn about the vegetarian lifestyle (nutritionally speaking) because the ill effects are gradual and people dont realise they date back to when they started ommiting food groups. i tried it and it was vastly inferior, though i will make allowance for a certain type of person that produces so much extra blood they need regular transfusions; THAT person is a natural vegetarian pretty much. ive listed the pitfalls of vegetarianism below:
1. vegetable iron is inferior, being 0-15% absorbable, whereas meat (heme) iron is 45% absorbed
2. vegetarians are typically low in zinc; though it is abundant in vegetables, it is often bound up in phylates and thus rendered useless
3. no b12
4. vegetarian proteins are incomplete; for example, grains lack lysine; this is why responsible vegetarians have to mix beans with grains. why is it necessary to do them together? because the essential aminos form a link to make protein; ifone is missing the link aint formed, so your protein synthesis depends on everything being there
5. extremely low amino acid count in all vegetable and nut sources: people boost about, say, peanuts being high in protein; a thats true, but we dont build protein from protein; we build it from amino acids while we discard the protein. 40g of peanut protein vs 40g of mean protein reveals an amino acid content that is 1/10th of the meat amino content. when someone tries to tell you that you only need 40g of protein a day, he assumes youre a sedantic person and he doesnt care about how much more jacked you could be if you had more protein resources, and he certainly hasnt delved into the exciting realm of boosting hormones using them (ex: glutamine supplements can raise gh 500%, but most docs assume your levels are just going to drop at 30. they dont have to drop, but you arent considered unhealthy if they do>) i would challenge the idea that i dont need more protein by positing the awesome benefits myself and other derive from high protein and amino acid supplements.
6. omega threes arent in vegetarian diet; sure you can eat flax, but that isnt the endchain form of the omega 3. your body would have to convert as much of it as it can, usually under 15%. same with the omegas added to eggs (from flaxseed). go long enough without thosse omegas and the brains going to shrink
7. carnitine is only found in meats, and people tend to be low in this stuff as it is
8. vegetarianism, done properly with a host of supplements, is still a pain in the butt washing veggies that go bad on you all the time
