6 Essential Nutrients And Their Sources For Vegetarians

There are six essential nutrients required for our body to function well. If you follow a vegetarian diet that includes dairy products, then this post can help you with the sources for essential nutrients required for a balanced vegetarian diet.

 So, let’s see what are the six essential nutrients.

1. Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are macronutrients that provide energy to cells and tissues in the body.

vegetarian sources:

• All types of grains
• Vegetables like potato, sweet potato, peas, corn, pumpkin, carrot, beans, tomato, broccoli, cumber
• Fruits like apple, banana, orange, grapes, pineapple, berries
• Soy, milk, and milk products

2. Protein

Protein is also a macronutrient, important for the growth and repair of body cells. It keeps skin, bones, muscles, and organs healthy.

vegetarian sources:

• Milk and milk products
• Tofu and soy milk
• Grains like oats and quinoa
• Nuts, seeds, peanut butter, almond butter
• Beans and lentils
• Vegetables like spinach, cabbage, mustard greens, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peas, sweet corn, potato, sweet potato

3. Fats

Fats are macronutrients essential to provide your body energy and help the body absorbs vitamins like vitamins A, E, D, and K. It also helps produce hormones.

vegetarian sources:

• Nuts and seeds like walnuts, almonds, cashews, chia seeds, flax seeds
• Fruits like coconut and avocado.
• Oils like sunflower oil, soybean oil, wheat germ oil, canola oil, coconut oil
• Cheese, butter, clarified butter, mayonnaise
• Soybeans, soy milk, tofu

4. Vitamins

Vitamins are micronutrients. Our body needs vitamins to maintain good health and fight off diseases. There are 13 essential vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, B vitamins( vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, vitamin B7, vitamin B9, and vitamin B12.

Vitamins like A, D, K, and E can be stored in our bodies. So, we don’t need a daily supply of these vitamins. But we need a daily supply of vitamins like B vitamins(e.g, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12) and vitamin C as our body can’t store these vitamins.

vegetarian sources:

• whole grains and enriched grains
• fruits and vegetables
• dairy products
• nuts and seeds

5. Minerals

Minerals are chemical elements that help different parts of our body to function properly. Minerals also help in making enzymes and hormones. Our body needs a larger amount of minerals like calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, and sulfur. But minerals like iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, fluoride, selenium, and cobalt are called trace minerals and our body needs them in a very small amount.

vegetarian sources:

• whole grains and enriched grains
• fruits and vegetables

6. Water

Water is a vital nutrient that our body needs. Water is the main constituent of our body, as 60% of our body weight is made of water. Drinking enough water throughout the day keeps our body hydrated, flush out toxins from our body, helps in transporting nutrients.

All the above six nutrients are essential for our body to stay healthy. A vegetarian who eats a balanced diet can get all the above essential nutrients.