Is Vegan Food Healthy? – All Myths In Check

Is the vegan diet healthy?

The vegan diet means not only avoiding meat but also avoiding any animal products. This includes, for example, milk products, eggs, and honey. But this diet also offers some advantages, it is not for nothing that more and more people are switching to veganism.

• A big advantage of this diet is the low-calorie and healthy food intake. Vegan food is usually rich in magnesium, vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, carbohydrates, and fiber. Therefore, vegans often find it easier to lose weight without dieting and starvation.
• If you eat vegan and also move a lot, this can help to optimize your attitude towards life.
• The risk of various diseases can also be reduced by a vegan diet. Diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity are much less common among vegans. Due to the low-fat and low-calorie food intake, the likelihood of cardiovascular disease and the risk of cancer is also lower. Avoiding animal products also leads to lower blood pressure and better blood lipid levels. Veganism is therefore also suitable as a therapy for various chronic diseases.
• Such a diet has great advantages not only for people but also for the environment since natural resources are used more optimally. Cows emit methane. This gas is 25 times stronger than carbon dioxide. For this purpose, the animals are often fed with soya or something similar, which is grown extensively in the rainforest area. The production of meat, therefore, causes a not-too-small part of the greenhouse gas emissions.

Disadvantages of Veganism

Despite the many advantages, you should also be aware of the disadvantages of the vegan diet.

• A balanced diet is just as possible and necessary with veganism as with a normal diet. However, the lack of nutrients, such as protein, iron, and calcium, is a major negative aspect.
• Many vegans have low levels of iron in their blood. Although the same amount of iron is absorbed through vegetables, salad, and dried fruit as with a diet containing meat, the iron from plants is not as easy for the body to process.
• To prevent a protein deficiency, you should eat foods with high protein content. The protein stimulates the metabolism in the body and is used to produce antibodies. Vegetable protein is mainly found in legumes, nuts, almonds, and cereals.
• A vegan diet does not necessarily mean a healthy diet: There are also numerous unhealthy foods that you can eat as a vegan. This includes sugar, for example.
• Children and young people, in particular, should be careful: the human body needs enough nutrients and vitamins, especially when it is growing. That’s why a balanced diet is best when you’re young. If you still want to eat vegan, you should discuss this with a doctor and possibly have regular blood tests to prevent any deficiencies.