VeggieVox™

What's the most important thing to think about regarding protein? Many people think it's quantity. The more, the better. In fact, what's more important is quality. Your body does need the macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein and fat), but micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) are just as important, along with phytonutrients, bioflavonoids, water content and above all the ratio of all these components to each other.

Let us start with a brief background on some the reasons people have chosen a vegetarian diet in our history.

The idea of vegetarianism is not a new one, by any stretch of the imagination. Man has in one way or another eaten vegetarian diets since his beginnings. Granted, the first vegetarians did so only out necessity. Meat may not have been available due to harsh winters, animal migration patterns or even poor tribal leadership. Only foraged food would have been available under such circumstances.

Zinc is an important mineral, which is essential for protein synthesis and helps to regulate the production of cells in the body's immune system. It is mainly found in the muscles. Zinc is also found in high concentrations in red and white blood cells, the retina of the eye, bones, skin, kidneys, liver, and pancreas. In men, the prostate gland and semen (zinc is one of its constituents) store high amounts of zinc.

More than 300 enzymes in the human body require zinc for normal functioning. It is believed that around 3000 out of the 100,000 proteins involved in human life contain zinc. Our body contains about 2-3 g of zinc.