by Doug Wolinsky

Created on: September 20, 2008

I would like to point out that I am not a doctor. I don't even play one on TV! As with any health concerns one should be very careful with regard to the source of their information and whose advice they take.

There are literally hundreds if not thousands of books out there on this subject. All of which are much better equipped to deal with something of this scope and preferable to an article of a few hundred words no matter how well intentioned. Therefore, this article and any similar articles should be treated only as an introduction or overview to vegetarian dietary guidelines. There are also varying degrees of being vegetarian which can greatly affect your dietary needs. Therefore another important thing to bare in mind is that dietary guidelines are just that, guidelines.

That being said, I am a vegetarian who is still alive and kicking so I'll throw in my two cents. It's interesting to note that it wasn't until recently that the FDA acknowledged that a vegetarian could maintain a proper diet. However, if you trust your Uncle Sam and you are an "average person" nutritional guidelines are rather straightforward since the FDA lays out for us our daily requirements. The trick is putting together a diet which keeps you within these nutritional guidelines.

As noted there have been volumes written on diet and nutrition and that's because everyone has a slightly different take on things. It's not that it's an overly complicated subject, but the many different vitamins and minerals along with the hundreds of sources for these nutrients creates a lot of variables which must be considered.

The general rule though is that a well balanced diet with good variety is the way to go. This holds true whether a vegetarian or a carnivore, but it can be argued that it is more critical for vegetarians. So don't just concentrate on "vegetables" Remember to also ingest cereals, grains and fruits. Including nuts and beans both of which are technically fruits and not vegetables. It's somewhat surprising to learn that fruit can be a great source of both protein and zinc providing similar levels as meat.

Most "meat" proponents will tout it as a good source of Protein, Zinc, Vitamin B12, Iron, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Riboflavin and Phosphorus. Possibly insinuating that vegetarians will be deficient in these nutrients. While significant levels of these nutrients are found in meat, a well balanced vegetarian diet will also be a sufficient source of all these same nutrients with the exception

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