October is National Vegetarian Month and with millions of people choosing to eat a meatless meal at least once a week, vegetarian diets raise a lot of questions.
Many people believe that you can't get enough protein without meat.
Carolyn O'Neil, a registered dietitian, says protein is packed in foods like nuts, seeds, legumes, whole grains, beans and lentiles.
O'Neil also warns that if vegetarians, and non-vegetarians, skip milk and choose more expensive fortified soy drinks and orange juices, research suggests that gaps in calcium and also in protein can occur. "What a lot of people don't know or realize is that milk is a super source of protein, in fact an eight ounce glass of milk has eight grams of high quality protein and that is more than an egg," said O'Neil.
For those who are lactose intolerant, Chef Billie Raper with Hotel Roanoke says to try rice milk.
Many vegetarians would disagree with O'Neil.
Vegans that WDBJ 7 spoke with say that milk is not necessary. They mentioned that protein and calcium can be found in other foods, you just simply have to do the work to find them.
Other alternatives to milk are oat milk, hemp milk, coconut milk, almond milk and cashew nut milk.
