Vegetarian Advice: 30 Yr Veg, Energy, Health Issues

Question: What do I need in my vegetarian diet to increase my energy?

I would like to know what I need in my vegetarian diet to increase my energy level. I have had very low energy for about 15 years or more and have been a vegetarian for about 30 years - V.A

Savvy Vegetarian Advice

Dear V.A.,

I'm not a doctor or nutritionist, and know nothing about you or your diet besides what you've told me, so can't give a diagnosis. It could be any of a number of different things: a nutritional deficiency, such as - iron, magnesium, folic acid, B12.

Vitamin B12 is a major suspect, especially if you've been a vegetarian for 30 years, and you've been tired for 15, and that you would then likely be in your fifties?? But as I'm sure you know, nutrition is synergistic, so it could be a combination of factors.

Interesting Fact: From "Becoming Vegetarian" by Vesanto Melilna et al: 'doses of Vitamin C over 500 mg appear to be able to destroy Vitamin B12 by converting it to analogues' These analogues can't be absorbed by the body. For vegetarians who already eat lots of fruit and vegetables containing Vit. C, and have limited amounts of B12 in their diets, these high doses of Vit C could be particularly harmful.

Your fatigue could be also be hormone related, or it could be an illness. You should have blood tests done for deficiencies, and if that's not the problem, then consult a medical practitioner (your choice of what sort) to look at other causes.

Here are two SV articles which could be helpful:

Let me know how it goes! Judith Kingsbury, Savvy Vegetarian

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