Vegan Diet - Healthy?

Pepperlady · Jan 4, 2009

Yes, I think a well thought out and planned vegan diet can be a nutritious diet for anyone, including teens. The raw food movement is quite strong where I live and while it can involve a lot of planning on a day to day basis, if someone is dedicated to doing it then it can be nutritious.

subee, MSN, CRNA · Jan 4, 2009

Yes, I think a well thought out and planned vegan diet can be a nutritious diet for anyone, including teens. The raw food movement is quite strong where I live and while it can involve a lot of planning on a day to day basis, if someone is dedicated to doing it then it can be nutritious.

I'm curious how vegans get enough calcium. I'm not challenging you - really just curious. I know they put calcium in soy milk but isn't that like throwing a vitamin pill in bread and then calling it "enriched" flour. If we're supposed to eat a vegan diet, why do we have canine teeth? I know calcium is also in leafy greens but its almost impossible to eat enough greens in one day to fulfill calcium requirement. What are we supposed to do with the animals we're not using for food? Should we let all the cows and sheep die out or is it OK to use them for leather and wool? I went to a raw food restaurant when visiting out in California and it was delicious but don't know if that would satisfy me in the cold climate where I live. Is there a vegan philosophy or do people just try it.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

It is possible for growing teens and kids to be healthy and vegan in my opinion. There are concerns about calcium, protein, B12, and other things, so it must be done with thought and care. Which is unlike most people who just throw a sugary bowl of cereal and milk in front of a kid and call it breakfast, open up a can of beef-a-roni and call it lunch, stop and get a happy meal and call it dinner. If it weren't for mandated supplementation these kids would be malnourished. I wouldn't worry about a vegan.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

I'm curious how vegans get enough calcium. I'm not challenging you - really just curious. I know they put calcium in soy milk but isn't that like throwing a vitamin pill in bread and then calling it "enriched" flour. If we're supposed to eat a vegan diet, why do we have canine teeth? I know calcium is also in leafy greens but its almost impossible to eat enough greens in one day to fulfill calcium requirement. What are we supposed to do with the animals we're not using for food? Should we let all the cows and sheep die out or is it OK to use them for leather and wool? I went to a raw food restaurant when visiting out in California and it was delicious but don't know if that would satisfy me in the cold climate where I live. Is there a vegan philosophy or do people just try it.

The dairy industry with their billion dollar budget and goverment subsidies have convinced people they have to have dairy or be unhealthy. With a little bit of Vit. D, i.e. sunshine, a little calcium goes a long way. Also the high amount of animal protein we Americans eat leeches calcium. Which is why, even though we eat a lot of dairy, we still have high rates of osteoporosis and hip fractures, etc.

I'm not sure about a "Vegan Philosophy", since vegans, like nurses, aren't always cohesive, but they do not eat, wear or use animal products to the best of their ability. This means they don't use soaps or burn candles with animal fat in them, don't wear leather, wool, or use feather pillows, and don't buy from companies that test on animals, just to name a few things that are part of the vegan lifestyle. For them it's not just about eating, it's about the animals.

BabyLady, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

I have a friend who is studying to become a registered dietitian. She told me once that osteoporosis was rampant in the Asian population because their normal diet is virtually absent of most all dairy products. The same was true for any other country with the same dietary practices.

A vegan diet is not natural. Humans were intended to be meat eaters. I do respect people's choices to be environmental, the animal cruelty issue, etc. I back it up 100%.

To me, those are adult choices.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

I have a friend who is studying to become a registered dietitian. She told me once that osteoporosis was rampant in the Asian population because their normal diet is virtually absent of most all dairy products. The same was true for any other country with the same dietary practices.

Absent of dairy products? Or just low in calcium? What about Africans in Africa. Not all of them eat dairy due to intolerance. How are their rates of osteo?

Also, how do you explain the high rates of osteo in the countries that consume the most dairy, such as USA and Northern Europe?

talaxandra · Jan 4, 2009

We have canine teeth because we evolved to eat an omniverous diet. That means we can eat meat and other animal products - it doesn't mean we have to.

To answer the OP's question, a vegan diet takes more effort to balance than that of an omnivore's but is generally considerably healthy than the average Western diet. As with all diets, the key to good health is variety.

Animal-free calcium sources include kale and other dark green vegetables, tofu processed with calcium sulfate, molasses, tahini and almonds, as well as calcium-fortified juice and soy or rice milk. As protein binds with calcium, those on lower protein, plant-based protein diets may have lower calcium requirements thatn those eating a higher protein, flesh-based diet.

To answer Tweety's question, this could be part of the reason for higher rates for osteoporosis in Western countries. Well, that and the lack of weight-bearing exercise combined with high phosphate soft drink.

HonestRN · Jan 4, 2009

To answer Tweety's question, this could be part of the reason for higher rates for osteoporosis in Western countries. Well, that and the lack of weight-bearing exercise combined with high phosphate soft drink.

Add to that smoking which leeches calcium out of the bones

BabyLady, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

Absent of dairy products? Or just low in calcium? What about Africans in Africa. Not all of them eat dairy due to intolerance. How are their rates of osteo?
Also, how do you explain the high rates of osteo in the countries that consume the most dairy, such as USA and Northern Europe?

Absence of dairy products, primary d/t the expense of such items...they are very expensive in Asian countries because of lack of land for which to keep them. Beef is just as expensive for the same reason.

The don't consume dairy past infancy like we do in the USA and Europe..and this is reflected in the normal dietary pattern even when dairy is available. For example, have you ever been to an Asian restaurant (Americanized or Authentic), where anything had milk or was covered in cheese? You generally will not find a dish that contain these ingredients in recipies.

What I meant by higher, I meant a major health issue that starts to plague women much younger in the East than their Western sisters. Yes, osteoporosis is a healthcare concern in women in the USA in Europe, but what I'm saying is that if you compare this to Asian countries, their rate/severity/age of onset is much higher than in the West.

FireStarterRN, BSN, RN · Jan 4, 2009

Compared to the average American diet of pizza, pop, and chips? Hands down a vegan diet.

**CalicoKitty, BSN, MSN, RN** · Jan 4, 2009

A well balanced vegan diet can be perfectly healthy. A poor diet, of any kind, is poor. Some vegans may need to learn how to balance their diet, as in the case of the couple (from Alabama?) that basically starved their newborn to death by only feeding it soy milk. Some cultures, like the Indian Jains and I think Krishnas, have been beyond vegan for a while (vegan, plus some other food restrictions). Obviously, their culture and religion has survived generations, so it can be done in a healthy fashion.