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Originally Posted by yesyesyes  B12 and just get enough protein from mixing beans and rice to make a complete protein. |
From the article,
The Great Protein Myth:
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Myth #2: Plant proteins are incomplete
Another myth is the idea that you need to combine different plant foods to form complete proteins. The idea was that most plant foods only contained some of the essential amino acids, so you’d have to combine “incomplete” foods like beans and rice to form meals that contained complete proteins. This idea was put forth in the 1971 book Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappé. It was a million-copy bestseller. Unfortunately, many people still aren’t aware that this theory was later found to be completely false, as Lappé herself recanted her original theory in later works that were far less popular. The truth is that most plant foods do contain all the essential amino acids, but furthermore, your body will store amino acids in a pool between meals — it doesn’t even need to get all the essentials in a single meal. So the theory of combining plant foods to form complete proteins isn’t even remotely correct. Of course, lifelong vegans already knew Lappé’s theory was wrong, as they weren’t suffering from protein deficiencies regardless of how they combined their meals.
Many people today are still under the mistaken assumption that getting enough protein from plants is difficult or impossible. I particularly love it when people explain to me why I should either be dead or suffering from protein deficiency symptoms. I haven’t eaten any animal protein in 8.5 years now, and I’ve never had any protein deficiency symtoms.
Plus I’m not dead. On the contrary, I feel fantastic.
So don’t worry about getting enough protein. Just eat your veggies, and you’ll be fine.
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I recommend reading the entire article. Most non-vegans (or vegetarians) who speak of protein have no idea about health. As such, listening to them is mostly a waste of time. Listen to those who are disgustingly healthy and vital. For me, I choose to listen to raw foodists and my own intuition. Combining the two seems to work for me.
FYI, months ago I had a few blood tests and my levels were fine. I've been vegan since late 2006. I'm having another blood test soon, and will report back if my results are dire. The good thing is that if your results are dire, your body tends to show it. Often just looking at yourself and observing how you feel is a great way to tell how healthy you really are. Just don't tell the companies that fund healthy studies and the pharmaceutical companies that.