Veg.Head wrote: With that said, all the medical related topics I've been taught do not cover much vegan/raw food type of stuff and I feel a little out of my element.
See the hyperlink in my signature. It points to a *SHORT* article about where to find Reliable vegan nutrition information ( as in by registered dieticians who are vegans and who keep up with the latest nutrition research ).
Jack Norris RD, has a daily checklist of nutrition to-dos. You might want to print one off one per day make sure you do EVERY THING for two weeks to see if that makes a difference.
I realize B12 & iron can be complicated. I take a multivitamin everyday and eat a whole cornucopia of fruits & veggies.
You might want to read this *SHORT* article on vitamin b-12 by Jack Norris RD. B-12 can be hard to absorb, multivitamins can impair that, particularly the big horse pill type. You might do better with the kind of lozenge you hold under your tongue until it dissolves. Furthermore some people don't absorb cyancobalamin ( the cheap form of b-12 ) well. They need to get the more expensive form or possibly even need to get b-12 shots. Again, the article is short, its solid and one of the best so read on...
I could be lacking a bit on the protein a few days a week though.. I'm still trying to get the nutritional side of a vegan lifestyle down.....
The 10 second guide to [b]*OPTIMAL* ( not just minimally "adequate" ) vegan protein intake:[/b]
At every meal, eat one of the following combinations:
- legumes (beans, peas, lentils, soy, peanuts ) and *WHOLE* grains
- legumes and seeds
Optional: have a protein drink once a day. I recommend Lewis Labs Brewers Yeast.
Unlike protein powders brewers yeast is a real, whole, food. In addition
to protein it has a lot of iron, a ton of b vitamins, other vitamins and gobs
of minerals.
I've been monitoring my blood pressure the last 5 months and have noticed a huge change. Prior to last September, my blood pressure always sat around the typical 120/80. It is now reading 97/68. Is this normal?
Ask a doctor if it is normal. Your blood pressure could have dropped due to inadvertently cutting your sodium intake by getting off of processed foods. It could help to increase your sodium levels. If that is the case, I prescribe kosher pickles.
As far as getting enough calories goes, it is possible to feel full and still not get enough calories. This is particularly true if you are very active and eat a lot of produce. Produce has a lot of bulk ( fiber and water ). Since your stomach only has so much room you will get the signal to "feel full" on fewer calories. That is why people who eat vegan diets consisting of *mostly* whole foods tend to lose a little fat.
You might want to try some more concentrated sources of calories like nut butters, *WHOLE* grain breads and pastas, soyfoods, etc.
Remember, read the short article in the link in my sig and read the materials there. As far as anything you can do to help yourself short of going to an RD & an MD, that literature has it.
Good Luck.
