With Christmas now on the agenda …
It’ll be January around the corner before we know it.
Some people have said to me
They’ll start in January
(Don’t forget it’s still dark, cold 🥶 but without Christmas lights then)
And wondering what they should do..
From vegan and keto to carnivore, shakes and calorie counting.
I was then asked about whether you need to supplement on a vegan diet.
They had just gone vegan for health reasons and were told they can get everything from the diet.
They don’t want to eat ‘processed food’ or ‘fake processed meat’…
Which – I’ll be honest – will make it more difficult to cover your nutrients in order to be OPTIMAL..
(notice, I didn’t say survive…)
Now, this is not my opinion
This is just what the science says..
And I want to say first and foremost
That I will always put science over my own beliefs
Because – well – our beliefs can make us pretty biased..
So…
Put simply,
🛑 Vitamin B12 is one that you will have to either get from:
A supplement / pill / injection
Or
Fortified foods (some cereals, nut milks, nutritional yeast will have it)
Without Vitamin B12?
Red blood cells may not function properly
And you may experience tiredness, lack of energy, mouth ulcers, psychological issues / depression, and even pins and needles.
You might have heard that you can get:
🛑 Iron, calcium, zinc, choline, and omega 3 from a vegan diet..
Now, you can get them from plant-based foods.
But when you look at studies looking at large populations?
It seems people following a vegan diet tends to lead to higher deficiencies..
Thought to be because your body doesn’t absorb as much nutrition from these plant based sources and / or you have to eat so much of them to get enough…
Example being that the type of iron found in beans and spinach is not so easily absorbed by the human body compared to the iron found in red meat.
Now, this is not to say you can’t do a plant based / vegan diet and be healthy..
Far from.
Many people do fine.. providing they do pay more attention to these minerals and vitamins.
And after all, cutting out food groups gives you a reason to say to no to many cakes, biscuits, and limits your food choices
^^^ which can also be a negative and hence why vegan diets are associated with eating disorders (more on that another day)
Which can make it easier to eat less (although that is changing with all the vegan cakes, pastries, burger and chips etc)
But if it were me going vegan?
Based on what the science says, I’d probably supplement with:
-Iron
-Vitamin B12
-Omega 3 (look at algae supplements for alternative to fish)
-Calcium
-Zinc
-Choline
-Vitamin D3 (even if you eat fish, eggs, meat and dairy, I’d still recommend this one)
To decrease my risk of anaemia, bone fractures, and even depression…over TIME…
I hope this helps…
This isn’t about what is right or wrong
But actually considering that if you cut out a food group
You need to ask the question:
Where can I get this nutrient from?
Because – ultimately – your reason for eating ANY way or doing ANY type of diet…
Has to be the right one for you and your lifestyle and your goa
I mean, one of the ladies did it purely for ‘health reasons’
but didn’t get on with it and felt so much better eating some fish, eggs and some meat again.
Interesting part
Is that she said
‘I feel bad about it as I was committed to being veggie and still eat mostly veggie stuff. Just can’t believe it took me so long to work it out.”
Like I side, the most important part
Is that you do what makes you happy…
Aligns with your values..
And gives you
energy, mood, body, and – dare I say it again – happiness
Matt ‘supplements’ Fruci