The Perks Of Being A Vegan!

Around the world, people follow different dietary patterns and dietary norms. Some people eat a plant based diet while some go for mostly animal based diet and the rest fall in the category that eat both plant as well as animal products. The most trendy and ‘in fashion’ diet at present time is ‘vegan diet’. People who follow this diet are known as vegans. So what exactly is a vegan diet? It sounds somewhat like vegetarian diet but it is somewhat different! People often confuse between both of them. Nutritionally speaking, a vegan diet is that diet which completely eliminates consumption of animals or animal products except breast milk. You might have seen many celebrities promoting and consuming a vegan diet themselves because of its myriad of advantages and health benefits.

How to plan and make a vegan diet?

It sounds a little bit hard to make a diet that is totally plant based, without milk, without eggs and anything of animal origin. Trust me, if you dig deeper, it becomes pretty easy. You just need to have right knowledge and some taste in your hands and you are good to go. There are many substitutes available in the market which taste the same and are nutritionally safer and better. Soybean milk, tofu, almond milk, fresh vegetables and fruits, cereals, nuts are some of the food items to start with. There are a number of recipes available on YouTube which require few ingredients and are indeed tempting. Once you become a vegan, you start appreciating plants and plant products. In the beginning, you may find it monotonous and cumbersome, but it is way better than processed foods and animal foods.

Is vegan diet nutritionally sufficient?

Vegan diet is way healthier for humans but to be true, it is not nutritionally adequate. Few micro-nutrients are not available in sufficient amounts and are only found in animal origin foods. A vegan individual might become deficient in vitamin B12, calcium, vitamin A, vitamin D, Zn, Fe etc. the person might even suffer from megaloblastic anemia, osteoporosis, and weakness. The only solution to cope up with the deficiency of vitamins is taking mineral and vitamin supplements which meet the RDA of the person. A clever way to enrich your diet with sufficient amount of nutrients is my combining different food items in your diet. For example, you can have rice and beans together to meet up the daily protein requirement.

Veganism helps in keeping various chronic degenerative diseases at borderline like diabetes, obesity, hypertension etc. it also keeps the blood glucose levels and blood cholesterol levels in desirable ranges, but at the same time, there is a risk of acquiring micro-nutrient deficiency therefore, you should be careful and smart while choosing the ingredients and their amount in your diet. Regularly visit your dietitian for proper guidance and to prevent any deficiencies.