OT: I tried to send this directly to Kathryn but for some reason it form didn't like me. Sorry so long everyone.
Kathryn,
My info comes quite a few different places, the ones who did a very intentensive study, with the muscle and bone deformity, was from the Univerity of California as well as reports from the British Journal of Nutrition as they did a simular tests, and also a Netherlands Nutrition Journal. They put people on a diet of 20 different vegetible and 20 different fruit, they could eat all different rice and beans with this diet, but they could not eat any other fruit or veggies that wasn't on that list. And from the different places they did it quite a few different ways, one group had to eat all 20 fruits and 20 veggies every week. Another group got to pick from the veggies and fruits and what ever they choose that was their fruits and veggies, they were allow to eat. This test was run from from 3 months to 2 years. As every 3 months the people went threw various tests, and the results from this, if they did this for over a year, in some of them their bones got weak and were easily fractured, some even became anticoagulant, and some even had some type of nerve damage, and also caused muscle swelling, as well as the muscle fibers under the microscope looked different then normal fibers, which the scientists considered a deformity, in Britian and the Netherlands journal. Yes this is a test case and they only used 20 different fruit and 20 different veggies. But on the other hand, there aren't all that many people who eat 20 different fruits and 20 different veggies every week. The test group that was only limited to what they pick to eat had the worse results, as they really weren't getting enough variety. Which is way I recommended to balance your fruit and veggies with your meat first and get use to them, especally if you don't like the taste, and then throw the meat out once you can variate and balance. As I have seen mild cases of some of what is above, the main one is bone weakness, the other is muscle swelling. When I see it, it's usually do to eating the same thing over and over again, and usually there are high amounts of some fat soluble vitamin.
Which is why I said if you only like 10 or so of fruit and veggies, to expand before switching to vegetarianism. And yes I have personally seen cases where people become a vetetarian and have weaken their bones, because they either don't eat the right food, too much or not enough of certain foods, as something is their favorite, and they decide they they can eat it each day. I work with a lot of doctors so I get sent a lot of cases that a lot of people don't hear about or don't get to see, or just think it's a myth when they hear about it, and think it doesn't really happen. I have also been sent clients who have stop eatting meat all together and then went cold turkey into being a vegetarian and have put their body in shock, as their system just hit the breaks. Sometiems it is because they don't balance the meals right, other times, it is their system. As that's what I get told by the doctors, as well as doing my own reasearch and questioning. Basically what I get told by the doctors is, their system couldn't handle it. Which doesn't tell me much but after talking to the person, I get more of what happen and what they did, and yes they could be leaving out things, but they really don't have a reason to, I can't report back to the doctor, and I'm there to set things up and get them back on track, so its usually best to tell me stuff like that so I know, and don't plan the diet wrong. And quite a few of them had described what they did and what they ate, and it was a pretty balanced vegetarian diet. There wasn't any red flags that pop up in my head or in the nutrition program I use, that analyzes their diet before, and the one I set up to make sure everything even trace amounts is marked and checked. I honestly can not see so many being able to give me a balanced diet and be lying, I can see one or two, but it's beyond one or two. As usually when people try that, they slip up in some way, and I pick it up by other indicators. And I do have those on occassion. And yes I found it very odd that their bodies went into shock, and some even gained weight, and shouldn't have, when they switched their diets. But then again, on this I usually end up with the pretty bad cases, and it forces them to seek out their doctor for help. But from where I stand it really isn't that odd for it to happen, a lot of vegetarian that have been vegetarians for a while and decide to start eating meat again, do feel sick or get sick to their stomach, and depending on the person's system, it can last for a few hours to a few days, I've even seen a few that have had flu like symptoms for about 5 days when they drop their non meat protien and started to eat red meat and had it for more then a couple of meals straight. Some people's systems just don't do change very well, I don't know why, though I do know it happens. And I haven't had very many that have went into shock decided ro continue on with their *new* diet. It usually convences them to stay with the old one. So I don't know if it was too fast or if it was the actual diet. But from my own experiences and research I would say that they just made the change too fast.
As the one thing I found, if someone really likes meat and then they go into vegetaranism, it is one a lot harder for them, and secondly, they always complain about a headache and no energy, and feeling weird after a week or two of starting the vegetarinism.
Those who are already doing a very light diet of meat, and keep it very lean and very small and few poritions, and then takes the meat out and then balances it with soy protien or something else that isn't meat, don't usually feel anything like the person above, some will complain about a little less energy, at first and then tell me, how much energy they have.
And the ones who didn't care for meat in the first place only ate it on occasion, have no problem transitioning to being a vegetarian, and I don't think I have ever head any one of them complain about a headache, or feeling weird, they usually tell me they feel so much better, and have so much more energy and the world just seems to be a brighter place to them.
So yes I've seen both ends, but it does worry me when I hear someone who likes meat and doesn't do vegetables all that well and fruit and wants to become a vegetarian. If they'll be another case, or if they'll make it threw the process. And I much rather save the person the agony and frusteration, if I can give some simple advice to do a slow change over and concentrate and adding more fruit and vegetables and getting use to them and the taaste before dropping something they like. As that is hard to do in the first place, and when you replace it with things you don't care for that much it can be frusterating, the first instict is to ignore the food you don't like and then just eat the foods you don't have much of a problem with to get over the craving of the food you just took out of your diet. And usually if they are willing to eat a variety of fruit and veggies every week, the transition isn't that hard, and your not fighting off two or things at one time. And you can concentrate more on your diet and recipes and making it work for you, as your already use to a variety of different fruits and veggies, your not so happen to slip and your not so happen to stick to only a few things that you care for. And it keeps from being unbalanced.
Kit
...Good Luck....
