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by justin66 3219 days ago
These are tragic instances of children being underfed or, in the case of the 'vegan babies,' being fed very, very stupidly. Babies should be breastfed and children should get enough to eat. I don't think any mainstream or even oddball medical or dietary understanding is being challenged here.

(promulgating the myth that "complete proteins" are an important idea is still bothersome, but now I'm not sure that's what you were doing)
1 comments
hammock 3218 days ago
Do you think someone can survive without getting "complete protein" (aka all essential amino acids)?
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justin66 3218 days ago
The issue I have is with the dietary trend of pairing foods in order to obtain a "complete protein," which is extremely silly. Dying because one of the amino acids is not represented in your diet is something that basically never happens to a well fed person (it would take an extreme example, and the internet can supply those, but...) so I have no issue with it one way or the other in a discussion about diet.
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hammock 3218 days ago
If by "well-fed" you mean getting enough total calories, you are still mistaken.

Kwashiorkor is the condition of not enough protein while actually getting "enough" total calories. What's more, low overall protein intake actually increase your need for essential aminos, due to the body synthesizing non-essentials from its supply of essentials.

There are also serious health effects (eventually leading to death) associated with deficiencies in specific essential aminos. Lysine deficiency is one. You only need 28mg a day but if you are eating mostly wheat it can happen.[1] If you are lysine deficient it comes with its own disorders and it also leads to micronutrient deficiency.

[1]http://www.pnas.org/content/101/22/8285.long

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