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Vegetarian diet can meet needs For more information about a vegerarian menu and to sample some chocolate pudding, visit the Wellness Wednesday booth from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 14 in the Children’s Hospital lobby.   A vegetarian menu is a powerful and popular way to achieve good health, and is based on a wide variety of foods that are satisfying and delicious.   Vegetarians avoid meat, fish and poultry. Those who include dairy products and eggs in their diets are called lacto-ovo vegetarians. Vegans eat no meat, fish, poultry, eggs or dairy products, and avoid other animal products such as honey.   Well-balanced vegetarian meals are rich in vegetables, legumes, fruits, and whole grains and typically low in sugar, total fat, and saturated fat, and usually contain little or no cholesterol.   Following a vegetarian diet may reduce your risk of hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, kidney stone, gallstones and osteoporosis.   It's easy to plan vegetarian diets that meet all your nutrient needs. Protein and iron needs are met by eating a variety of foods such as whole grains, dried beans, nuts and seeds, soy products (tofu, edamame, soy milk) and low fat dairy.   Vegetables are rich in protein and iron, too. Green leafy vegetables, beans, lentils, tofu, corn tortillas and nuts are excellent sources of calcium, as are enriched soymilk and fortified juices. All of these foods also contain high fiber, water, phytochemicals and other vitamins and minerals.   Find vegetarian cookbooks at your local library or bookstore and have fun experimenting with new foods and recipes.  A google search will produce a variety of results, too, or visit http://www.nutrition.musc.edu/ for some sample menus.   The Wellness Wednesday topic will also include asking people to pledge to go meatless for National Meatout Day Monday, March 19, and the cafeteria will be highlighting several veggie options on that day. Editor's note: The information provided on memory loss at the Feb. 28 Wellness Wednesday was an independent service provided to MUSC employees by Joy Wymer, Ph.D., licensed clinical psychologist. The preceding column was brought to you on behalf of Health 1st. Striving to bring various topics and representing numerous employee wellness organizations and committees on campus, this weekly column seeks to provide MUSC, MUHA and UMA employees with current and helpful information concerning all aspects of health.     Friday, March 9, 2007 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.