Briefly explain how a child can obtain adequate dietary protein if they don't include any meat in their meals.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

If a person does not include meat in their diet, a majority of their protein intake will come from plant-source foods. However, some vegetarians also include animal-source food items, such as eggs, dairy products, and/or seafood. Plant-source foods yield incomplete proteins (because they are lacking one or more of the essential amino acids). There are two ways to compensate for this deficiency and to achieve a complete protein: (1) by combining a small amount of complete protein (eggs, cheese, dairy) with an incomplete protein (grain product) to form a supplementary protein (e.g., fried rice, macaroni and cheese, pita with hummus) or, (2) by combining two incomplete proteins (grain plus a legume, such as a peanut butter sandwich) to form a complete protein (complementary protein). Relying on either of these approaches requires the meal planner to pay special attention to food combinations and to make sure children receive adequate protein to support growth. The advantage of relying on plant-source foods is lower cost and reduced fat intake (especially saturated fat and cholesterol).