The Vegan Diet
What's the vegan diet about? vegan (pronounced vee-gun) is a diet of no animal food. No meat, fish, poultry, eggs or dairy. It's all plant based. So what do vegans eat? Plenty! The vegan diet consists of whole grains, soy, fruits, beans, herbs, spices, oils, veggies, nuts, seeds, and condiments like chutneys, sauces, and salsas. Nutritional Concerns If you are vegan, you get many questions about nutrition. If you know a vegan, you wonder if it's harmful. We have been taught that we need animal food for health. There is some reason for concern if a vegan eats lots of sugary food, chips, and junk food. Then they will become deficient, for sure. But with proper planning, it is possible to be healthy on a vegan diet. Go for it! If you want to try a vegan diet, you need to choose the best quality whole foods and have strong digestion. You may need some supplements and/or fortified foods, too. Consider these Nutrients IRON: you can get iron from beans and dark leafy greens. If you add vitamin C food to these, the iron absorption is increased greatly. So have salsa with beans, lemon with greens, eat colorful bell peppers for vitamin C. VITAMIN B-12: this is one place you must supplement. Tempeh, miso and spirulina are not reliable sources. B-12 supplement or fortified foods are needed. CALCIUM: get calcium from greens, tofu made with calcium sulfate or nigari, fortified soy, almond, rice or hemp milk, tahini, sesame seeds and almonds. ZINC: Found in whole grains, nuts and seeds, especially pumpkin seeds. Soak your grains before you cook them to release the zinc. VITAMIN D: comes from sunlight exposure. We don't always get enough sun, so you will need a supplement or vitamin D fortified soy, rice, hemp or almond milk. VEGAN PROTEIN: nuts and seeds combined with grains, grains and beans, quinoa, amaranth, hemp seeds and milk, and soyfoods are your proteins. Don't rely on processed soy products. I know they are popular and convenient, but they are hard to digest and can hurt your thyroid in excess. Choose a variety of beans, nuts and seeds. How to be a Healthy Vegan in a Nutshell --Eat whole grains and beans for protein --Eat a variety of whole foods --Eat dark leafy greens for calcium --Eat colorful produce for vitamins and antioxidants --Eat fortified foods or supplements for B-12 and Vitamin D --Eat healthy oils for Vitamin E and essential fats --Add herbs and spices. These help you digest your food --Chew well, eat in peace. your digestion needs to be strong --Avoid sugar, fast food and junk food --Choose natural sweeteners: fruit, stevia, rice syrup Dr Micheal Klapper's research on long term vegans Dr. Klapper did research on the health status of 900 long term vegans. He ran blood tests on them. He found that when vegans failed to thrive, they were low in zinc, magnesium, cooper, molybdenum, and some amino acids. and EPA and DHA, Vitamin D and Vitamin B-12. He notes that those who had these deficiencies were eating a lot of bread and pastas. He advised vegans to eat more greens, beans, nuts and seeds and less bread and pasta! Vitamin B-12, DHA and EPA essential fats are especially important for vegans. Omega 3 oils such as flax oil, are not easily converted to EPA and DHA. Only 10 to 30% of peopel can do this conversion. So we need fish oils. Refined cards, bread, potatoes and pasta are not nutrient dense and crowd out other nutritious foods for your diet. Nutrient density is key to vegan health. Dr Klapper has seen vegans with cardiovascular disease, neurological damage and compromised cognition due to B-12 deficiency. Meat eaters can be low in B-12, too. We need enzymes and good digestion to get B-12 from our food. Take B-12 supplement a few times a week is wise. I use blood builder formula from New Chapter.
Return from vegan diet to healthy foods lifestyle Hummus recipes, good protein for the vegan diet, with garbanzos, lemon and tahini |
