How to Get Enough Protein If You are On a Vegan Diet
By Nmami Life Editorial 07-Jul 2020 Reading Time: 5 Mins
A vegan diet is well known for its various health benefits and from the past few years, many fitness enthusiasts are going through the lane of veganism to live a healthy lifestyle. Though this diet comes with plenty of benefits it also raises a concern of how to get an adequate amount of protein while relying on veganism. Lots of health experts said that a well-balanced vegan diet is all you need to get all the nutrients including protein. Certain plants are highly loaded with protein and a well-planned combination of such plants in your diet can provide your body with a significant amount of nutrients and thousands of health benefits.
Here are some foods that contain higher levels of protein and provide you with the best of essential nutrients if you are on a vegan diet:
- Add more of beans and lentils: Different types of beans and lentils are great to enrich yourself with the higher quantities of protein and other important nutrients. One cup of lentils provides almost 18 grams of protein and great amount of fibre, folate, manganese and iron. Similarly, different types of beans like black beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans are rich in protein content and one cup of such beans and chickpeas provide 15 grams of protein. You can consume lentils and beans into salads, soups, chickpea hummus or boiled. Both of these are extremely beneficial for the overall health and reduce the risk of various health complications as well.
- Don’t forget the tofu and soy products: Tofu and various other soy products offer a great quantity of protein and are delicious in taste. Tofu, tempeh, edamame are made up of soybeans and 100 grams of these three provide at least 10-19 grams of protein and other essential nutrients like iron, calcium, fibre and folate. You can consume these in the salads, add it in your soups with your favourite herbs or stir-fry it in your veggies.
- Incorporate more and more of whole grains: Whole grains are well-known to keep the body hale and hearty. Whole grains especially amaranth and quinoa are loaded with protein and a cup of these can provide about 8-9 grams of protein and heart-healthy nutrients like fibre, iron, manganese and magnesium. Similarly, half a cup of oats provides 6 grams of protein. You can enjoy a cup of oatmeal, add quinoa and amaranth in your salads and soups to relish the goodness of heart-healthy nutrients.
- Nuts and seeds are a must: Different types of nuts and seeds are a great source of omega 3s, protein and plenty of other nutrients and can shine your health like nothing else. Almonds, walnuts, cashews, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds and sesame seeds are all a great staple of various essential nutrients and 2 tablespoons of mixed nuts provide approximately 5-7 grams of protein. Add these nuts and seeds in your snacks time, sprinkle it over you salads, smoothies, pancakes and yoghurt and get the best of various nutrients.
Footnote
Deficiency of protein is majorly seen in vegans. Do include the above-written sources of protein in the diet to get the best of protein and other essential nutrients. In addition to this, don’t forget to add fruits and veggies, green peas, soy milk in your diet to get the high dosage of protein.