Vegan

peninapearl wrote: »

Hi there, I've decided after many failed attempts over many years to turn to veganisn . I'm 48 and decided it's time. It's in my soul. Not for weight loss but for the love of animals as well as health . I can eat lentils, beans, etc all the time I love it. Does anyone have any information about supplements ? Which o Ed are better than others following this lifestyle?

Per VeganRD - https://www.theveganrd.com/2010/11/recommended-supplements-for-vegans/

All vegans:
Vitamin B12. You can’t get enough by eating unwashed organic produce or mushrooms grown in B12-rich soil. The recommended dose is 25 to 100 micrograms per day or 1,000 micrograms 2-3 times per week. If you have not been taking B12 for a while, start out with 2,000 micrograms daily for several weeks. Or get a blood test to see where you are and whether you might need a more therapeutic dose.

Most vegans:
Vitamin D. If you live where it’s sunny and warm all year and you spend time outdoors without sunscreen, you can make enough. The rest of us need a supplement or fortified foods (just like omnivores do) supplying 1,000 I.U.s of vitamin D. (This amount is well above the RDA for vitamin D but most experts think it’s warranted.

Iodine. Omnivores get most of their iodine from dairy products, which pick up iodine from solutions used to clean cows and equipment on dairy farms. Vegans who regularly eat sea vegetables may get enough, but the content varies a lot as it does for sea salt and other “natural” salts. Miso, which some vegans prefer to use in place of salt—because it’s a whole food—is not usually a good source of iodine. The only reliable sources are iodized salt or a supplement providing around 90 micrograms per day.

Some vegans:
Calcium. We don’t know if vegans have lower needs, but the old “low protein diets reduce calcium needs” theory has taken some real hits in the past years. Based on current understanding–which is admittedly pretty poor–we vegans should strive for the RDA. Our ancestors didn’t drink milk and got all the calcium they needed from wild greens. And even though modern cultivated greens have less, we could get enough calcium just from these foods, too. But the recommendation to eat four or more cups of cooked greens per day makes veganism a hard sell. Without fortified foods, many vegans fall short on calcium. (So do most omnivores; the food industry doesn’t fortify orange juice or instant oatmeal with calcium as a favor to vegans. Those foods are marketed to omnivore women.)

Iron. Young women with heavy periods may have a tough time keeping up with iron needs, and again, this is not a problem that is specific to vegans. Rates of iron deficiency anemia are actually very high among pre-menopausal omnivore women. It can help to take a low dose supplement (high doses can be hard on the stomach) with orange juice to boost absorption, or to include some fortified foods in the diet. There is some evidence that taking supplements of the amino acid L-lysine boosts absorption of supplemental iron.

Possible supplement requirements
DHA: 200 to 300 mg several times a week. It may be a good idea, but we don’t know for sure. I take this amount almost daily and would recommend it in particular for anyone who is prone to depression.
Sound like a lot of supplements? Well, here is some perspective: Omnivores get their vitamin D from fortified foods (cow’s milk is not a natural source of this nutrient) and their iodine from accidental contamination of dairy foods. Many omnivores—women especially—depend on supplements to meet calcium and iron needs. And the Institute of Medicine recommends that everyone over the age of 50 should add vitamin B12 supplements or fortified foods to their diet since it becomes increasingly difficult to digest and absorb the vitamin B12 in animal foods with aging.

As a fat vegan, I can say you need to still watch calories, 2000 calories of kale is still 2000 calories.

I have dermatitis and it was not caused by my diet but by soap. I put cold pressed flax seed oil on it and it helps.

As for weight gain, limit nuts and simple carbs. Keep fruit to a minimum and eat mostly greens and protein.

peninapearl wrote: »

Well it's been a long time since my last post about going vegan. Unfortunately, I had after 3-4 weeks in cold turkey some kind of bad skin rash develop. Started with terrible swollen lips and swollen eyes. I've been to dermatologists, allergists, primary dr., rheumatologists, and back to dermatologists for a skin biopsy. It came back as sponges dermatitis which i was told is an allergic reaction type of excema. I have no idea what i'm allergic too but I think it's some fruits and veggies in their raw state. so I was scared and went back to eating all animal food. since then I had my blood checked and i gained like over 10 lbs in a short 6 months, and for the first time in my life my cholesterol, triglycerides, ldl are all high. To say I'm shocked is an understatement. I don't really eat bad. Not sure what happened in my body. My dr wants to put me on statins but I'm against meds if I can handle this with food. When researching once again i read the best diet for lowering cholesterol is vegetarian. So I'm confused what to do but as of now i eliminated red meat from my diet and slowly going to eliminate more of animal products again and possibly eat cooked veggies instead in case I actually do have some sort of allergy. I can't believe needless to say the amount of weight i put on eating so healthy. I'm 49 years old and I know its even harder and I"m really getting discouraged at this. So anyones help/advice i would so appreciate.
Thanks

Some useful info here on reducing cholesterol, my mum has had issues https://heartuk.org.uk/cholesterol-and-diet/low-cholesterol-diets-and-foods

Calorie control is what is important for weight loss and being a healthy weight in an of itself can improve health markers.

peninapearl wrote: »

Thanks for your responses! I have no religious reason for not wanting to be on meds. I just prefer not to if I can help it due to it's number of side effects as well. I also read about Omega 3 fats helping which I'm gong to buy supplements. Truth be told I know I can't give up chicken so therefore being a vegetarian is only a wish for me. My point from my previous comment was that even eating healthy for some odd reason my cholesterol levels skyrocket in a year. I just was surprised and thought that cholesterol creeps up on you overtime not so quickly.
Thanks for your responses. Keep them coming they're motivating!!

See, I'd rather avoid supplements and pills to satisfy a nutritional need that I can get by simply eating properly.

Instead of swallowing a bunch of pills for supplements, made in a lab, sometimes from synthetic compounds of Lord knows what...(admittedly, not always)- if you're looking for Omega-3, just have a single fish meal once every week or two. Spinach as Omega-3, as does beef to some extent. Flax seed, walnuts, eggs, chia seeds to just name a few.

I'd rather eat something that gives me what my body needs than take yet another supplement or vitamin pill.

And yes, changed in diet as drastic as what you've undergone, for sure can change Cholesterol levels in such a short time. A month is plenty of time to see your blood tests go from good to bad.