Is a vegan diet truly healthy?

Question

As an established dietitian, I am here to tell you that a vegan diet is not truly healthy. I have seen many cases of individuals who have suffered permanent neurological damage from following a vegan for too long.

Humans are natural meat eaters. Our dietary requirements are that of an omnivore. Meat provides zinc, iron, protein and B vitamins.

Even if you still wish to be a vegan, you will still need to include some red meat in your diet. I would recommend that you include red meat at least 3 times a week.

Rhia, in reference to "You spelt dietician wrong. Go get an education for real please."

Dietitian is the correct British spelling.

Answer 1

You spelt dietician wrong. Go get an education for real please.

Answer 2

How can you be vegan or vegetarian and eat red meat? that right there makes no sense. I believe that you can remain healthy and live the life style. My daughter is a vegetarian and has a number of friends that are vegan. They eat well, are healthy, some look even better that all of these so called "meat eaters". My daughter takes vitiams every day and makes sure her diet is well balanced. Even Her Doctor gave her pamphlets and info on living a healthy vegetarian/vegan life. She said it can be done if it is done right. What about the permanent neurological damage from eating a diet that is full of chemicals and god knows what else the business adds to our food using the words that not everyone can understand what they mean. I don't think that it would hurt anyone to try to eat less meat and eat more healthy fruits,vegetables, whole grains, etc. Well you get the pic right?

Answer 3

You can get all the the proper nutrition from a completely vegan diet, yes. You just have to do a little research into your nutritional needs, and which fruits/veggies/grains/legumes etc contain that nutrition, so you can eat a balanced diet. As for B-12 (The ONLY nutrient that strict vegans can sometimes lack.) A good source is Brewer's Yeast (aKA Nutritional Yeast Flakes) They're full of B-12, and taste kinda cheesey. Learn to love them on air-popped popcorn, or in your scrambled tofu. If you're a marmite/vegemite/Vegex kinda person, that also gives you enough B-12. Veganism is good for your health, if you know what you're doing. Animal products today are so full of disease that it's pretty much unsafe to eat meat, drink milk, eat eggs...

Answer 4

First off I don't think you're a dietician. Secondly, it is possible to acquire all of your vitamins and minerals from vegetables and vegetable products...in the right combinations i.e. beans AND rice together. Iron can be found in spinach and other green leafy vegetables. B vitamins can be found in yellow vegetables. Zinc is found in several foods, but the body needs iodine to process it, however iodine can be found in table salt. Red meat leads to increased levels of ldl cholesterol while decreasing levels of hdl. The question isn't whether or not it's possible, it's whether or not the vegan in question is eating properly. I was 5'10" tall and weighed 195 lbs. I lifted weights and could bench press 325 lbs. During which time I WAS A VEGAN! I had no side effects other than a decrease in blood pressure, which is why I became a vegan in the first place. I was never sick and had an incredible increase in energy. I began eating meat about three years ago and since that time I've gained 30 lbs. of fat, experienced a decrease in energy and had an over 30 point increase in my blood pressure. Which is why I've decided to become a vegan again! If done properly, a vegan diet is probably the healthiest choice you could make! If you really are a dietician you need to 1st :Go back to school and pay attention 2nd: Do some research before you tell people your opinions. and 3rd: Sue whatever crap school you went to and get your money back for your online degree!

Answer 5

I must say that I disagree with your assessment of the effects of a vegan diet. I, myself, followed a vegan diet for quite some time and I must say that it was the best time of my life. I felt so much healthier and had so much more energy. I also looked better in regards to my complexion. I think the most common problem with people who decide to follow a vegan diet is that they do it under the assumption that all they can eat are fruits and vegetables. A vegan diet doesn't mean that you're restricted to produce. There are plenty of alternatives and many of them taste excellent. Also, you can get your daily dose of vitamin D without the whole milk- just get 15 minutes of direct sunlight a day and you're set! Some tasty vegan ideas and products are also available at lots of local supermarkets and healthfood stores. A good read to check out to get more information on veganism and loads of great recipies and products to try is "Skinny *****." The title may sound a bit off, but the authors are excellent.

Answer 6

I disagree with this.

The federal government says we need about 50 grams of protein daily so milk and meat companies will have business.

I know a person who has a total vegan family. Her daughter, who is now 11, is 5' 6", so don't say veganism stunts growth.

I have been a vegan, and let me tell you, I feel much better than when I eat meat. My weight is a very healthy one, and I always feel my best. I grew normally, and through out my childhood, I was very healthy.

Meat causes several cancers and diseases. Meat is one of the main causes of obesity. So, meat cannot be all that healthy.

Also, meat causes impotence.

Humans also have the teeth of an herbivore.

So, I thoroughly disagree with you on this matter, but then again, it is my opinion.

Answer 7

Have you not hit the books since 1970 or something? I am not vegan but I know that a vegan diet can be truly healthy and it can also be done horribly wrong, just like any other dietary plan. Yeah, meat provides those vitamins and nutrients, but so do veggies (especially greens), soy, yeast, whole protein grains (like quinoa), beans and legumes, nuts and nut butters and fruits, not to mention the plethora of widely available dietary supplements to assist in proper nutrition. You should study up doc.

P.S. you don't look like you take your job very seriously.

Answer 8

I don't know much about the vegan diet, but I do know what the vegetarian lifestyle has done for me over the past six months:

My cholesterol level is now completely normal, as is my blood pressure. I've lost 45 pounds, my joints don't ache nearly as much, and I have a lot more energy than ever before. My blood sugar has also dropped into the near-normal range, and I've been able to cut waaaay back on my meds.

As far as humans being "natural meat eaters" and "omnivores," please cite your sources. Anyone can come here and claim almost anything, but without some good solid references, then the scientific validity of their arguments is far from established.

And how about telling us more about how you became an "established dietitian." For example, how about the name of the school or program you graduated from, your work experience, etc. Credentials would certainly help support the validity of your statements.

Answer 9

Seriously, the only reason a vegan diet might be unhealthy for some people is because you could eat nothing but potato chips and vegan pastry and still be a vegan.

Answer 10

My dietician would totally disagree with you. She has seen far more people damaged by excessive intake of saturated animal fats than undernourished vegans. I'm not talking percentages here, just sheer numbers. I'm not saying that all meat eaters are unhealthy either. The key is, no matter what your type of diet, that it is varied and contains lots of whole grains, fresh fruits and veggies, and lean protein. Vegans need to take special care in making sure they get the right vitamins, but it can work.

Answer 11

Hmmm, so you didn't really want to ask a question, you just wanted to spew out some falsities. Ok, let's conversate.

Zinc is easily found in nuts, grains and legumes.

Iron is easily found in different vegetables. In fact, calorie for calorie, iron is most densly found in dried beans and dark leafy vegetables. I know its hard, but think Dried Soybeans and spinach.

Protein is one of the easiest things to find. lol. You are saying that a rice & bean meal has no protein? Tofu? http://www.soystache.com/plant.htm A 100 g serving of soybeans has more protein than a 100g serving of pork, chicken, turkey, lamb, fish, beef, etc. Ok, so not everyone eats raw soybeans. But Peanut butter, various beans, various grains, and tofu all have enough to easily make the RDA for protein.

B vitamins, B12 to be specific, are added to most vitamins and grain sources, along with soymilks. So, this argument is also moot.

So, you've seen a few cases of people who did a diet incorrectly. Woo-hoo. Not everyone can follow directions. People can't even follow the "South Beach Diet" without screwing it up. Aside from the fact that so many archane dieticians and doctors have done little to no research on the advantages of veganism, so they find it easier just to blame that which they don't fully understand.


But my question back to you is: why you are picking on people who choose to make a healthy lifestyle change and eat with a conscience rather than focusing on the millions of obese omnivores in the world? Seems they do a lot more damage than vegans do. . .