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Vegan
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Most of the vegans I know are fruity.3
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johnnylakis wrote: »Most of the vegans I know are nuts (drum crash)
Correlation doesn't equal causation. Maybe they are nuts because they know you, they just happen to be vegan. :laugh:
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graceyscholl wrote: »Veganism is by far healthier. How many vegans are found in hospitals?
I have no idea. I bet you don't, either. Last time I was in the hospital it was because I got hit by a car while riding a bike. As far as I can remember (and I was pretty messed up at the time) nobody asked me about my diet. Maybe people saw me in the hospital and assumed I must eat cheese because I was there?9 -
NorthCascades wrote: »graceyscholl wrote: »Veganism is by far healthier. How many vegans are found in hospitals?
I have no idea. I bet you don't, either. Last time I was in the hospital it was because I got hit by a car while riding a bike. As far as I can remember (and I was pretty messed up at the time) nobody asked me about my diet. Maybe people saw me in the hospital and assumed I must eat cheese because I was there?
Clearly a Vegan would never be so irresponsible as to do anything like ride a bike, therefore you had to be one among the animal consumers.0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I've been vegan for ten years and I'm very pro-vegan. B12 supplementation (or eating fortified foods) is required for vegans, as there are no plant sources of B12.
Being a "real vegan" (whatever that means) won't magically create B12 in plant foods. It's totally possible to be happy and healthy as a vegan, but it's also important that we stay grounded in reality.
@janejellyroll -
What all do you supplement your vegan diet with? Any timing issues?
(I was listening to a Loren Cordain lecture just yesterday, and he rattled off half a dozen examples of nutrients vegans are likely to be deficient in. Now I'm curious how reality-based vegans handle this.)
Thx.
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jeebieheebies wrote: »-- This is kind of vain, but also because vegans have a reputation of being skinny, I feel more of a social pressure to lose weight. Additionally, since I really really support the cause, I feel that if I want to be the best "ambassador" I can be, I should look my best, because that will reflect well on the lifestyle.
--
That may be the reputation, but the reality is vegans are no skinnier than meat eaters if they don't watch their caloric intake. I know so pretty hefty vegans. There are 165 calories in 100g of skinless chicken breast. There are 553 calories in 100g of cashews....
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janejellyroll wrote: »I've been vegan for ten years and I'm very pro-vegan. B12 supplementation (or eating fortified foods) is required for vegans, as there are no plant sources of B12.
Being a "real vegan" (whatever that means) won't magically create B12 in plant foods. It's totally possible to be happy and healthy as a vegan, but it's also important that we stay grounded in reality.
@janejellyroll -
What all do you supplement your vegan diet with? Any timing issues?
(I was listening to a Loren Cordain lecture just yesterday, and he rattled off half a dozen examples of nutrients vegans are likely to be deficient in. Now I'm curious how reality-based vegans handle this.)
Thx.
I supplement B12 and iodine three times a week (the iodine because I use sea salt at home). I take Vitamin D, iron, and a vegan DHA daily. The D is because I don't get a ton of sun, the iron I took even as a non-vegan because I am a runner and regular blood donor, and the vegan DHA is because the best information available to us is still unclear on how well our bodies convert ALA into DHA. I get plenty of ALA, but I figure I might as well cover my bases. I don't pay a lot of attention to supplement timing -- I take my vitamins in the AM with breakfast and just make sure to wait about an hour to drink my coffee (for the iron absorption).
For all vegans who can, I recommend getting blood tests to understand what, if anything, they might want to supplement in addition to B12. For vegans who don't want to do this or can't do this, "Vegan for Life" by Jack Norris and Virginia Messina is a great guide to what supplements vegans might want to look into (both authors are science-based vegans and both are RDs). Jack Norris also maintains the veganhealth.org website, which is a great source of information on vegan nutritional needs.
I also track my food on a website that offers a breakdown of micro-nutrients as well as macro-nutrients. I find that I'm regularly meeting or exceeding needs for everything but the stuff that is listed above (except for the iron, which I do meet through food, but supplement due to the reasons listed above and the fact that my annual blood tests show that I'm at a healthy level with my diet plus supplements). My blood is checked for B12, D, and iron each year and I've never had a blood test showing low levels so I'm happy with my current level of supplementation.
I agree there are some deficiencies that vegans should pay special attention to -- you will find science-based vegan nutritional authorities agree. But with attention to these, I don't think we're any more likely than a non-vegan to be deficient in these. In my anecdotal experience, the vegans who tend to struggle with deficiencies are either trying to avoid supplements and fortified foods or are layering additional restrictions on top of their veganism (like going very low fat or raw).
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Thanks - much appreciated.0
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BillMcKay1 wrote: »jeebieheebies wrote: »-- This is kind of vain, but also because vegans have a reputation of being skinny, I feel more of a social pressure to lose weight. Additionally, since I really really support the cause, I feel that if I want to be the best "ambassador" I can be, I should look my best, because that will reflect well on the lifestyle.
--
That may be the reputation, but the reality is vegans are no skinnier than meat eaters if they don't watch their caloric intake. I know so pretty hefty vegans. There are 165 calories in 100g of skinless chicken breast. There are 553 calories in 100g of cashews....
It absolutely does come down to CICO and there are vegans of all sizes. But on a wider population level, I've seen some studies that show that vegans and vegetarians tend to have lower BMIs than non-vegans/vegetarians. This doesn't mean any individual is going to lose weight by cutting meat and/or animal products from their diet.0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »BillMcKay1 wrote: »jeebieheebies wrote: »-- This is kind of vain, but also because vegans have a reputation of being skinny, I feel more of a social pressure to lose weight. Additionally, since I really really support the cause, I feel that if I want to be the best "ambassador" I can be, I should look my best, because that will reflect well on the lifestyle.
--
That may be the reputation, but the reality is vegans are no skinnier than meat eaters if they don't watch their caloric intake. I know so pretty hefty vegans. There are 165 calories in 100g of skinless chicken breast. There are 553 calories in 100g of cashews....
It absolutely does come down to CICO and there are vegans of all sizes. But on a wider population level, I've seen some studies that show that vegans and vegetarians tend to have lower BMIs than non-vegans/vegetarians. This doesn't mean any individual is going to lose weight by cutting meat and/or animal products from their diet.
But more vegans/vegetarians lead an overall healthy lifestyle and pay attention energy intake. That could skew the numbers I assume.
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Personally, I became a vegetarian after my physician saw my cholesterol levels and took my BP. Over a decade I slowly moving into a vegan diet. I have been vegan for a year and my blood panels look amazing. My physicians and nutritionist support the decision, as I would need to be on medication otherwise.0
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Like any diet, vegan diets can be healthy or unhealthy. I'm a prime example of the latter.
I think that since many vegans are highly focused on their overall health and wellness, they may be in great health. But I'm sure the same could be said of LCHF dieters, proponents of the paleo diet, keto, etc.
I feel that I'm in good health, especially as someone who used to be class II obese. I don't eat the most well-balanced diet, of course - I'm not perfect, and that's okay. I sorta cheat and take a women's chewable multivitamin everyday. My understanding, based on the vitamin content provided on the label, is that this more than covers any B-complex deficiencies. 0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »BillMcKay1 wrote: »jeebieheebies wrote: »-- This is kind of vain, but also because vegans have a reputation of being skinny, I feel more of a social pressure to lose weight. Additionally, since I really really support the cause, I feel that if I want to be the best "ambassador" I can be, I should look my best, because that will reflect well on the lifestyle.
--
That may be the reputation, but the reality is vegans are no skinnier than meat eaters if they don't watch their caloric intake. I know so pretty hefty vegans. There are 165 calories in 100g of skinless chicken breast. There are 553 calories in 100g of cashews....
It absolutely does come down to CICO and there are vegans of all sizes. But on a wider population level, I've seen some studies that show that vegans and vegetarians tend to have lower BMIs than non-vegans/vegetarians. This doesn't mean any individual is going to lose weight by cutting meat and/or animal products from their diet.
But more vegans/vegetarians lead an overall healthy lifestyle and pay attention energy intake. That could skew the numbers I assume.
Oh, absolutely. Which is why I would ignore those population-type numbers for any sort of individual situation. There are too many factors to know for sure what is going on.1 -
Wicked_Seraph wrote: »Like any diet, vegan diets can be healthy or unhealthy. I'm a prime example of the latter.
I think that since many vegans are highly focused on their overall health and wellness, they may be in great health. But I'm sure the same could be said of LCHF dieters, proponents of the paleo diet, keto, etc.
I feel that I'm in good health, especially as someone who used to be class II obese. I don't eat the most well-balanced diet, of course - I'm not perfect, and that's okay. I sorta cheat and take a women's chewable multivitamin everyday. My understanding, based on the vitamin content provided on the label, is that this more than covers any B-complex deficiencies.
Why is that a cheat?1 -
graceyscholl wrote: »Veganism is by far healthier. How many vegans are found in hospitals? How many vegans have heart disease? Cancer? Etc.
In addition to physical health, veganism improved health in a stretch by ridding guilt of murder and torture.
Murder and torture....
One day you might grow up - and live forever, as I suppose vegans don't die either? 2 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I supplement B12 and iodine three times a week (the iodine because I use sea salt at home). I take Vitamin D, iron, and a vegan DHA daily. The D is because I don't get a ton of sun, the iron I took even as a non-vegan because I am a runner and regular blood donor, and the vegan DHA is because the best information available to us is still unclear on how well our bodies convert ALA into DHA. I get plenty of ALA, but I figure I might as well cover my bases. I don't pay a lot of attention to supplement timing -- I take my vitamins in the AM with breakfast and just make sure to wait about an hour to drink my coffee (for the iron absorption).
How about Vitamin K2 and magnesium?
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