Plant Based Diet?
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BecomingBane wrote: »That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.
Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.0 -
Wheelhouse15 wrote: »BecomingBane wrote: »That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.
Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.
This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.2 -
BecomingBane wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »BecomingBane wrote: »That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.
Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.
This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.
Yes, this is great advice. When I told my doctor I was vegan, she was able to "recommend" the blood tests I requested based on that and so insurance covers them twice a year (I don't know if everyone's insurance will, but it works for me).
It's so much easier to get the blood tests than to try to wonder "what if" for various things. It also allowed me to catch a vitamin D deficiency before it caused any real problems for me.4 -
I made small changes over time, and now I am 90% vegan. I choose this because I truly enjoy the food I eat. But, it was a long process over years that got me to this point. You may want to start slowly by replacing one or two items in your diet with vegan options. And go from there. Upsides: health! energy! happy I am not harming animals and supporting an industry I do not believe in. Downsides: limited menus at restaurants
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frannieshack wrote: »I made small changes over time, and now I am 90% vegan. I choose this because I truly enjoy the food I eat. But, it was a long process over years that got me to this point. You may want to start slowly by replacing one or two items in your diet with vegan options. And go from there. Upsides: health! energy! happy I am not harming animals and supporting an industry I do not believe in. Downsides: limited menus at restaurants
I just want to point out that being vegan doesn't guarantee these. I've been vegan for 10 years. For at least 5 of those I was extremely unhealthy and weighed almost double what I do now.
Simply being vegan does not guarantee health, happiness, energy, enlightenment, or anything else.7 -
BecomingBane wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »BecomingBane wrote: »That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.
Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.
This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.
Do you find that you need much supplementation now that you are more experienced with the vegan diet?0 -
Wheelhouse15 wrote: »BecomingBane wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »BecomingBane wrote: »That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.
Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.
This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.
Do you find that you need much supplementation now that you are more experienced with the vegan diet?
I supplement B12 because ya have to.
I supplement D because I've always had a deficiency... I'm really really white.
I take a multi because I get them for free.
Other than that, not really, no.
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Totally nitpicky and off topic, but being pale actually makes it easier to get Vitamin D from the sun, as pigment tends to block the effect. It's probably one reason why paler skin developed (especially once people moved to farming -- not an issue if you eat lots of natural sources of D as with some hunter and gather populations).
In any case, I'm also pretty pale and take D when it's not summer (and do whether eating plant based or not). My doctor said in this climate she recommends it as a precaution.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »Totally nitpicky and off topic, but being pale actually makes it easier to get Vitamin D from the sun, as pigment tends to block the effect. It's probably one reason why paler skin developed (especially once people moved to farming -- not an issue if you eat lots of natural sources of D as with some hunter and gather populations).
In any case, I'm also pretty pale and take D when it's not summer (and do whether eating plant based or not). My doctor said in this climate she recommends it as a precaution.
Assuming you are willing to get sunburn or freckles in order to get it
. If I spend 15 minutes in the sun in the summer, I get pink. 0 -
I eat meat but most people whose diets have more carbs than protein in them probably eat plant based too.0
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I'm trying to do mostly plant based for breakfast and lunch but just can't get there with dinner. Additionally, I find it really difficult to be plant based and lower carbs. I need to do low/moderate carbs for insulin resistance so it's been a challenge but I figure even if I can make some changes it's better than nothing.1
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lemurcat12 wrote: »Totally nitpicky and off topic, but being pale actually makes it easier to get Vitamin D from the sun, as pigment tends to block the effect. It's probably one reason why paler skin developed (especially once people moved to farming -- not an issue if you eat lots of natural sources of D as with some hunter and gather populations).
In any case, I'm also pretty pale and take D when it's not summer (and do whether eating plant based or not). My doctor said in this climate she recommends it as a precaution.
Assuming you are willing to get sunburn or freckles in order to get it. If I spend 15 minutes in the sun in the summer, I get pink.
This is true, me too. Didn't think that people were talking about avoiding sun, makes more sense now.
Personally, I sort of assume I'm okay (for D in the summer) just being outside even if I don't get enough exposure to get burnt (or wear sunscreen) just because the amount of sun is so much more and I'm outside a lot (but I also always manage to get burnt at least once, usually in April or May assuming it's impossible to get burnt in Chicago that early in the year, or else doing so endurance thing where my sunscreen wears off -- yes, I know this is bad).
Re sun, most ridiculous burn I ever got was sitting outside for maybe 10 min in South Africa in January. We'd been walking around a lot, my sunscreen needed to be reapplied, and after sitting briefly while waiting for something I managed not only to get the tops of my legs turned bright red, but a charming white handprint on one where I'd been resting my hand.3 -
You just need to go to some vegan website at look at the main potential problem micros : B12, iron, calcium, potassium, selenium, etc. Find out what founds you need to eat in your day to meet your micros: lots of legumes, a variety of nuts, lots of veggies of different colours. Drink B12 fortified soy and take a supplement for anything missing.
Don't feel like you have to go Vegan straight away, transition it. To make the most of it and enjoy your meals, get lots of recipes off the net and build up your cooking skills -> that will help a lot.
Feel free to message me if you want any other tips or whatever.
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I started with a program that was plant based products. It got too expensive but during the program as I researched more I decided to transition into everyday eating. I am doing this in stages. Right now the only meat I eat is seafood once in a while. I do eat eggs and cheese but plan on cutting the cheese down or out very soon. Thanks I am enjoying the threads and advice. Taking all into consideration as I continue moving forward. Let’s keep this thread going there’s a lot of knowledge here and I thinks it great.1
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I started with a program that was plant based products. It got too expensive but during the program as I researched more I decided to transition into everyday eating. I am doing this in stages. Right now the only meat I eat is seafood once in a while. I do eat eggs and cheese but plan on cutting the cheese down or out very soon. Thanks I am enjoying the threads and advice. Taking all into consideration as I continue moving forward. Let’s keep this thread going there’s a lot of knowledge here and I thinks it great.
I find the wording rather curious; what does "plant based products" mean? Are you talking food or supplements like greens? If you are going on a plant based diet it shouldn't be too expensive, and I would imagine it should be cheaper than an animal based diet, in fact.
Good luck to you and I hope it works out the way you hope it will.1 -
Wheelhouse15 wrote: »I started with a program that was plant based products. It got too expensive but during the program as I researched more I decided to transition into everyday eating. I am doing this in stages. Right now the only meat I eat is seafood once in a while. I do eat eggs and cheese but plan on cutting the cheese down or out very soon. Thanks I am enjoying the threads and advice. Taking all into consideration as I continue moving forward. Let’s keep this thread going there’s a lot of knowledge here and I thinks it great.
I find the wording rather curious; what does "plant based products" mean? Are you talking food or supplements like greens? If you are going on a plant based diet it shouldn't be too expensive, and I would imagine it should be cheaper than an animal based diet, in fact.
Good luck to you and I hope it works out the way you hope it will.
I found this to be true as meat and dairy were the most expensive parts of my grocery budget... but then again, if I just swap out for pasteurized, processed, vegan protein food (my generic term for vegan frozen stuff) it wouldn't change much or might get more expensive as I think meat and dairy are technically cheaper by volume in most places.
That said, the closer to whole food and in season I eat, it can be drastically cheaper... but the tradeoff is time.1 -
I am plant based and I love it! Also anyone feel free to add me I log all meals.
I started solely for health benefits. Meat is not good for you and dairy causes inflammation and bloating. I noticed when I stopped eating meat a year ago that I would boost significantly less than when I was eating meat. I always felt smaller and lighter.
Unfortunately I haven’t lost weight, I’ve gained weight, because I’m more of a junk food vegan and I eat a lot of sugar and cliff bars. This is something that I’m working on now. I’m trying to eat more raw foods and less boxed foods.
My favorite quick meal is quinoa (made with veggie broth not water, makes for better flavor) and a crap ton of veggies. Topped with hemp seeds (great source of protein!) and chia seeds and a pinch of walnuts and a pinch of pumpkinseeds
It’s all about education! When I first started I was constantly watching documentaries on benefits of plant based diet and I use the app called Yummly to research different foods to make. The biggest reason that people fail the diet is because they don’t know what to eat. So constantly looking up vegan alternatives and yummy new foods to make will help! I love Yummly and I still use it.
Also cauliflower wings. Literally taste like chicken.12 -
Also meant bloat* not boost0
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BecomingBane wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »I started with a program that was plant based products. It got too expensive but during the program as I researched more I decided to transition into everyday eating. I am doing this in stages. Right now the only meat I eat is seafood once in a while. I do eat eggs and cheese but plan on cutting the cheese down or out very soon. Thanks I am enjoying the threads and advice. Taking all into consideration as I continue moving forward. Let’s keep this thread going there’s a lot of knowledge here and I thinks it great.
I find the wording rather curious; what does "plant based products" mean? Are you talking food or supplements like greens? If you are going on a plant based diet it shouldn't be too expensive, and I would imagine it should be cheaper than an animal based diet, in fact.
Good luck to you and I hope it works out the way you hope it will.
I found this to be true as meat and dairy were the most expensive parts of my grocery budget... but then again, if I just swap out for pasteurized, processed, vegan protein food (my generic term for vegan frozen stuff) it wouldn't change much or might get more expensive as I think meat and dairy are technically cheaper by volume in most places.
That said, the closer to whole food and in season I eat, it can be drastically cheaper... but the tradeoff is time.
I tended to eat a lot of pasta, beands and rice for caloric fill ups and that's super cheap. In Canada, we don't subsidize any crops or meat productions so there isn't a huge advantage to corn and wheat based snacks vice fresh produce that we seem to hear about from our southern cousins. Meats and dairy here are rather expensive relative to the US as well so our experiences up here probably differ a bit on costs but I always found plant based diets were pretty cheap.
Now if you hang around Whole Paycheck, I guess your produce will be very expensive but I like to buy a membership for local farm produce delivered weekly for a really good price. Summer and fall are certainly a lot cheaper for my produce!0 -
hoopsandsunshine wrote: »I am plant based and I love it! Also anyone feel free to add me I log all meals.
I started solely for health benefits. Meat is not good for you and dairy causes inflammation and bloating. I noticed when I stopped eating meat a year ago that I would boost significantly less than when I was eating meat. I always felt smaller and lighter.
Unfortunately I haven’t lost weight, I’ve gained weight, because I’m more of a junk food vegan and I eat a lot of sugar and cliff bars. This is something that I’m working on now. I’m trying to eat more raw foods and less boxed foods.
My favorite quick meal is quinoa (made with veggie broth not water, makes for better flavor) and a crap ton of veggies. Topped with hemp seeds (great source of protein!) and chia seeds and a pinch of walnuts and a pinch of pumpkinseeds
It’s all about education! When I first started I was constantly watching documentaries on benefits of plant based diet and I use the app called Yummly to research different foods to make. The biggest reason that people fail the diet is because they don’t know what to eat. So constantly looking up vegan alternatives and yummy new foods to make will help! I love Yummly and I still use it.
Also cauliflower wings. Literally taste like chicken.
I've been vegan for 10 years and while I enjoy cauliflower wings... you're wrong. Really wrong.3
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