Is veganism no longer for me?!?

[register]

Hi everyone, I'm new here. Pleased to meet you all.
I'm Tom, a 21 year old student living in London. I've been vegan for nearly 4 years out of my own choice.
At the moment I'm finding it pretty hard to feel well nourished. I try to eat well, and try to eat 3 decent sized meals a day, though I often substitute a meal for a few snacks out of lethargy to cater properly.
I tend to eat a lot of rice, pita bread, tofu, oats, soy milk. I eat fruit and veg daily, and nuts in some form or another (spreads or in a dish).
However although I'm pretty reluctant, as I still hold the morals that made me become vegan, I'm considering intaking small amounts of dairy- namely eggs. This would be to boost my protein / fat intake.
Right now, my state of health is making me feel very unsure about myself. I'm reluctant to go out sometime, and I sometimes have dizzy spells. Being Vegan also seems to take its toll on my digestive system... if u get what I mean???
I drink plenty of water, and don't smoke.
If someone could please help me out and give me some advice I'd be very gratful.

[Erin Pavlina]

Consult a registered dietician familiar and supportive of the vegan diet and let him/her check out your nutrition. That's what I would do.

The dietician who answers questions for my readers at VegFamily is Dina Aronson. She could probably help you. Visit her site here:

NutraWiz

[Cron]

Go to a nutrionist who knows what s/he is talking about. Your problem may not be protein, but something like b-12, or something else altogether.

Guessing and asking internet mavens for advice will not help.

Jack Norris is an RD and a cofounder of Vegan Outreach. He answers his email. I'm sure he can recommend a nutrionist in your area to get you back on track:

Vegan Health.org : Home

[escapee]

Are you getting enough Methycobalamin (b12)

Symptoms of B12 deficiency

Elevated Homocysteine: No Symptoms

Please note that the symptoms listed below are found in overt vitamin B12 deficiency. You can be B12 deficient, increasing your risk of disease because of elevated homocysteine without suffering any noticeable symptoms.

Early, Noticeable Symptoms of Overt B12 Deficiency:1

unusual fatigue
faulty digestion
no appetite
nausea
loss of menstruation
Other symptoms of Overt B12 Deficiency:

numbness and tingling of the hands and feet1
nervousness1
diarrhea2
mild depression1
striking behavioral changes1
paranoia1
hyperactive reflexes1
fever3
frequent upper respiratory infections4
impotence5
impaired memory5
infertility6
sore tongue2
enlargement of the mucous membranes of the mouth, vagina, and stomach117
macrocytic anemia
low platelet count3,7 and increased bleeding3
neutropenia3
Neurological Symptoms

Neurological symptoms, often referred to as subacute combined degeneration (SCD), are the biggest concern regarding B12 deficiency. The damage can be irreversible if not caught early enough. SCD affects peripheral nerves and the spinal cord, and is normally different in children than adults.8 .

Japanese research on Methycobalamin

At strict Vegan diet may be dangerous for some ?

The universal antioxdant often dieter lacking - Alpha lipoic acid

[escapee]

Choline Birtatrate

The foods richest in phosphatidylcholine, the major delivery form of choline, are beef liver, egg yolks and soya. Beef liver, iceberg lettuce, peanut butter, peanuts and cauliflower are some foods that contain free choline.

Choline is involved in several basic biological processes. Choline is a major part of the polar head group of phosphatidylcholine. Phosphatidylcholine's role in the maintenance of cell membrane integrity is vital to all of the basic biological processes: information flow, intracellular communication and bioenergetics. Inadequate choline intake would negatively affect all these processes. Choline is also a major part of another membrane phospholipid, sphingomyelin, also important for the maintenance of cell structure and function. It is noteworthy and not surprising that choline deficiency in cell culture causes apoptosis or programmed cell death.