Vegan Diet - Healthy?

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Today I was talking to a preteen and her mother about nutrition, and her mother explained that the family follows a strict vegan diet (no dairy, eggs, or meat). The mother was actually a raw vegan or raw foodist, and she only eats unprocessed vegan foods that have not been heated above 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Do you think a vegan diet is healthy enough for growing kids and teenagers?

P.S. I am not criticizing any type of alternative diet as I am a lacto vegetarian (no meat or eggs, yes dairy).

Specializes in ER/Trauma, Home Care, Corrections.

I have no doubt that we need a whole lot less animal protein than we usually get. Our ancestors may have had a tough time getting meat. Actually, they were probably always on the verge of survival except for the occasional cro-magnon lucky find of an injured animal. If they were lucky they got maybe 50gm per week, including grubs and that sort of thing. I hear that wild Bonobos (chimps and their cousins) eat little meat, but have been known to gorge on other primates when they get the chance. I suppose they don't know about brain wasting diseases and retroviruses.

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And, this just in from Men's Health on-line bulletin:

20 Worst Foods in America

By David Zinczenko, with Matt Goulding

Worst "Healthy" Sandwich

Blimpie Veggie Supreme (12")

1,106 calories

56 g fat (33 g saturated fat)

2,831 mg sodium

96 g carbohydrates

"Sure, a Veggie Supreme sandwich sounds healthy, but this foot-long comes with three different kinds of cheese, and it's drenched in oil. After Blimpie gets done with this vegetarian nightmare, you'd be better off consuming two Big Macs than sitting down with this sandwich."

Good Lord!

Jim in Ocala, FL

That might be so, but this thread is on vegan food and cheese is not vegan, as a vegan diet is free from all animal products - including cheese, milk and even honey.

For those wanting to know more about maintaining a healthy vegan diet I would have to recommend Becoming Vegan by Brenda Davis, R.D and Vesanto Melina, M.S., R.D.

You also mention that essential amino and fatty acids are not present in a vegan diet - which ones are you referring to?

Omega-6 Fatty Acids can be found in sunflower, safflower, corn and grape-seed oils, seeds, walnuts, grains and primrose oils. Omega-3 Fatty Acids can be found in flaxseed, hempseed and canola oil, walnuts, butternuts, greens, soy and seaweed. You'll notice that they are all vegan sources of essential fatty acids.

As for essential amino acids a balanced vegan diet can provide all EAAs. EAAs are found in protein rich foods and while milk and eggs can provide all the EAAs needed in the human diet so can tofu. For the daily requirement of protein and EAAs somebody requiring 50g of protein would need to eat 1 1/4 cups tofu, compared to 9 eggs or 6 cups of milk

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

The concern about essential amino acids is unnecessary.

Soy (tofu, tempeh) contains all essential amino acids, as does the grain quinoa. A plate of beans and rice contains all the aminio acids. Lentil beans are 98% complete. A vegan diet that includes a variety of beans, nuts, whole grains and soy products, along with fruits and vegetables includes all essential amino acids.

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Specializes in ER/Trauma, Home Care, Corrections.

The Veggie Blimpie story caught my eye because it showed how easy it is for companies to market "vega" stuff which can be bad for the body. I was not confused on what Vegan means. There are valid reasons for choosing to be a vegan, vegetarian or omnivarian, but all of us are subject to what information is being fed to us, whether by the fast food industry or by the people who market their products, on the Internet, TV Infomercials, at your local whole foods/health foods market or vitamin shop. They are all part of industries and they all have their profit-drive point of view. So, how do you know the truth? Is the Soy Industry Council more right than the Beef Council? They both represent industries worth million$ and have been in business for decades. I suppose if you really, really, really love animals, the Beef Council would be like Satan, and the Soybean people more credible. And if you just kind of like animals, then you would naturally have a more centrist point of view. But how much is your view driven by marketing? Are you sure?

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I follow a vegan diet. I am healthy (strong immune system, ideal wt, energetic) and I know I am doing a huge part to save the environment. I do not condone anyone who follows a meat-based diet (my entire family eats meat-including my hubby).

I plan my meals carefully. For B12 I use nutritional yeast, which is fortified with B12 and B6. It is very yummy, it has a cheesy flavor. I also sprinkle wheat germ, which has a nutty flavor on a lot of my foods.

To the OP, how was the health of the preteen you assessed? Was she malnourished, underweight? Those are clues I would look at to evaluate her health, not specifically what diet she is on.:heartbeat

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Specializes in Med-Surg., Agency Nursing, LTC., MDS..

I wonder how many nutrients my body would become deficient in,in order for it to digest the HUGE amounts of beans,soy and vegetables needed to get the healthy amounts of essential amino acids and calcium..... ? My teenager already spends almost half his home time in there...

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I wonder how many nutrients my body would become deficient in,in order for it to digest the HUGE amounts of beans,soy and vegetables needed to get the healthy amounts of essential amino acids and calcium..... ? My teenager already spends almost half his home time in there...

I'm sorry, but this post doesn't make the slightest bit of sense to me. Why would you have to eat "HUGE" amounts of beans, soy, and vegetables to get healthy amounts of amino acids and calcium? And why would your body become deficient in other nutrients trying to digest beans, soy, and vegetables?

And you teenage son spends half his home time where? And what does that have to do with following a vegetarian/vegan diet?

It's this type of nonsensical, hysterical, uneducated remark that turn people away from what is actually a very healthy, peaceful, and environmentally friendly lifestyle.

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ED.

In my year and a half in cardiac telemetry, I have not cared for one single vegan.

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Specializes in Med-Surg., Agency Nursing, LTC., MDS..
I'm sorry, but this post doesn't make the slightest bit of sense to me. Why would you have to eat "HUGE" amounts of beans, soy, and vegetables to get healthy amounts of amino acids and calcium? And why would your body become deficient in other nutrients trying to digest beans, soy, and vegetables?

And you teenage son spends half his home time where? And what does that have to do with following a vegetarian/vegan diet?

It's this type of nonsensical, hysterical, uneducated remark that turn people away from what is actually a very healthy, peaceful, and environmentally friendly lifestyle.

Is the human digestive tract designed for the amount of burden placed on it by massive amounts of vegetables,soy and beans ? Yes, he lives...in the bathroom,40 minute showers...mirror check,shave,oh,no...a cold sore,a pimple...and I guess, 15 year olds use the toilet when they have the time...!! :no:

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.
In my year and a half in cardiac telemetry, I have not cared for one single vegan.

Well there ya go. The evidence speaks for itself. According to my nutrition textbook, heart disease is very low among vegetarians.

(Posted as I'm gnoshing on my chicken lunch)

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Specializes in Medical.
Is the human digestive tract designed for the amount of burden placed on it by massive amounts of vegetables,soy and beans ?

We evolved able to eat an omniverous diet, which is part of the reason why people are able to live in such a variety of terrains and on such varied diets. For the vast majority of history people ate a primarily vegetarian diet supplemented by meat when available. It was only with the development of agrarian culture that regular supplies of dairy and cultivated animal protein were regularly available. Our societies change a lot faster than our anatomy, and yet despite the vast differences in our diets (both across the globe and in the West over the past 50 - 100 years) people thrive everywhere. In other words, the human digestive tract is remarkably adaptable.

In response to your statement that massive quantities of food are needed if one eschews animal products (flesh +/- dairy, eggs and honey), and that this is burdensome, I can only say that you might benefit from reading a little about what going meatless actually involves.

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To the OP, how was the health of the preteen you assessed? Was she malnourished, underweight? Those are clues I would look at to evaluate her health, not specifically what diet she is on.:heartbeat

The girl was healthy, a swimmer, by no means malnourished, but definitely on the lower edge of the weight range. Her mom was asking if she needed to start taking vitamins because she is beginning puberty. We also discussed her daily diet just to be sure she was covering all the bases despite the vegan lifestyle and strenuous exercise.

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