I have to say that based on my decades of experience as a vegetarian and all the reading I've done on the subject, I can say without doubt that vegetarianism doesn't cause tendonitis. Also, it isn't necessary to eat meat to get more protein in your diet, there are many ways to do that.

The idea that vegetarian diets are low in protein is an old one. It dates back to a time when I was young...when boxers in training ate a lot of steak. Anyone who tells a vegetarian to eat meat to increase their protein intake is a person with zero knowledge of nutrition. Unfortunately a lot of doctors have little or no education in this area. That's something about the medical profession that has often been raised as a deficiency in their training that should be remedied.

Most vegetarian diets are not different from the diets of meat eaters when it comes to protein. In fact vegetarians often have more protein in their diet, not less. Whole wheat, for example, can be as high as 25% protein in some cases. If you're eating whole grains and legumes, tofu, soy milk, and similar foods, you don't have a protein deficiency. It's the diets of people who consume a lot of meat where you see all kinds of deficiencies...vegetarian diets are far more nutritious in every respect.

And there's no evidence that a vegetarian diet causes tendonitis. That's completely wrong. I've never even heard of anything like that. If you're eating a variety of foods with lots of vegetables, you don't need supplements. That's been well established by research many, many times. Even the CDC has stated this in its dietary recommendations.

If you want I can find pics of vegan fitness devotees and bodybuilders who would make your doctor look like a total wimp physically. He or she doesn't know what they're talking about. You don't need to eat meat to build muscle, that's a Nineteenth Century notion that has no basis in reality. There are vegan bodybuilders who not only build muscle, they win competitions.

Henry David Thoreau had friends among the local farmers where he lived, and one day a farmer told him that very thing about building muscle by eating meat. Mr. Thoreau pointed to the ox that was pulling the farmer's plow. He said "Well that ox of yours doesn't eat meat and he certainly looks strong to me."

If you wanted to build courage in a child, would you feed him the hearts of lions and tigers? That's what people used to do at one time, and it's the same folkloric source that says we need to eat muscle to be strong.

Do you have trouble digesting tofu? Unless you have a specific allergy to soy, that's a form of protein that's very easy to digest and it's a complete protein, which means it has all the amino acids that humans need. I drink soy milk to help me build muscle in the strength training I'm doing now. That's a very good protein source that's easily digestible. Tahini is another good protein source, also nutritional yeast and many other vegan foods.

I saw a study that was done once about the recommendations that medical doctors make to their patients. They found to their dismay that a large percentage of the medical advice being handed out by doctors comes not from science or medical courses, but from folklore. Much of it turned out to be what's commonly called "old wives' tales" and it had no basis whatsoever in anything factual.

Thanks so much for all of the wonderful information Richie. I might have misunderstood her about the tendon damage, I think she was more worried about my protein levels because I cannot eat a lot of wheat. I am missing a good size of my large intestine. I do have trouble digesting any type of protein, I do eat tofu and soy but it still takes forever to move through my system. Not as hard as digesting meat though. I lost a lot of weight when I stopped eating meat and bread, my system is so picky!

I think you are very right on a lot of this here, my last doctor was awesome and a natural path doctor but I cannot see her because of my new insurance.

Oh, yes...insurance companies...bless their tiny little hearts...LOL.

Bodybuilders take protein supplements that are easy to digest, because they believe in taking protein within an hour after working out. They consume a lot of whey protein for that reason, but if you want to go vegan you might try making drinks with nutritional yeast...it's 50% protein, far more than the protein content of meat...plus it's very high in B vitamins too. I've been using it since the sixties.

I used to buy it in the supermarket back then, now I buy it in Whole Foods. They have it in bulk or in small round drums in the supplements section. You only need a few tablespoons a day. I put it in my soups and noodle dishes.

I can see why meat would give you trouble, it's hard for the human digestive tract to deal with even when it's working right. We're not designed for it really.

Keep in mind that you only need about 26 grams of protein a day if you're average size. Excess protein is converted by human metabolism to carbohydrate...the nitrogen is then excreted in urine. So eating more than you need is really pointless. People who are building muscle through lifting need more, but most people only need the basic amount to be well nourished. Even during training for strength, you still only need about fifty grams a day. That's not much.

Thank you!!!! I had no idea if you eat excess it is converted to carbohydrate! It gets difficult for me to find recipes that have no noodles or meat. I have a lot mind you, but they get old!

I've been eating tons of brown rice since the sixties. Rice is very versatile, you can build a whole meal around a pot of rice. And potatoes are what I grew up with, not noodles so much.

Last night I just boiled some potatoes, mashed them up with chives and organic margarine...also had a salad and a bowl of lentils with a lot of spices. I'm really please now that the supermarket right up the road from me has started carrying organic russets in five pound bags...I used to have to drive twelve miles to Whole Foods for organic potatoes.

In France they have a gourmet society that's entirely devoted just to potato dishes...and on the other side of Planet Earth there's a whole continent of people eating rice like crazy...LOL. BTW, the Chinese invented noodles, not the Italians...and you can make noodles from grains other than wheat, which I'm sure you already know.

Also there's grits, something that makes a nice addition to any meal...polenta, which is more or less the same thing, and millet too.

Thanks Richie :) Have you had Kale and mashed potatoes? I like that. I have honestly never had grits. There is a really great produce market by my moms, the largest I have seen and it's all organic. They have everything that's hard to find. I stop there once per week. I suppose thats why the French invented the French Fry ;)

I have never made noodles either, hmmm. Something new perhaps!

Many European cooks make their own noodles...freshly made noodles are different from the dried ones in the boxes. I had a pasta machine years ago...don't know what happened to it.

I like soup made with kale and potatoes, and mashed potatoes with spinach too.

That market sounds really fabulous...I'm envious. Of course I shouldn't be, not with my own kitchen garden. I was just admiring my young Mizuna plants a few minutes ago. I keep all my young plants on the carport overnight to protect them from marauding beasts of the night like snails.

LOL. I have slugs and they like to climb up my patio blinds that I keep up year round for privacy and to block harsh weather. I don't know how to get rid of the little buggers in a humane way. The one year I planted some veggies on my patio they were a good meal for the slugs, not me.

I wonder if I could make a bread I could digest without all of the crud and carbs. I have never made bread either

Oh ya, I came here to say the probiotic supplement is working wonderful. I can give that a thumbs up

I have something here called the Cuban brown snail. They can be quite large and they eat everything. I don't have the heart to kill them either...I've always been very fond of snails.

So when I find them I just relocate them. I mean, how far can they crawl? There used to be dozens of them around my garden, but not so much lately. I went out to my garden with a flashlight a little while ago to pick chives, and there were spider webs all over everything. That's probably why I don't have trouble with bugs...the night-flying moths don't get to lay eggs with all those spiderwebs around. We get a lot of warblers here too, they love caterpillars.