Vegan diet must-knows

Veganism has come a long way. Interest in a totally animal-free diet is at an all-time high, with celebrities like Jay-Z and Beyoncé leading the charge. But before you jump on the no-meat-eggs-or-dairy bandwagon, you should know what you're getting into. Here are 12 things to expect when you're sticking to a vegan diet plan.

You'll need a B12 supplement

Vitamin B12 occurs naturally only in animal foods. Going on a vegan diet means consuming no animal products at all, so you'll want to stock up on a variety of B12-fortified foods as well as a B12 supplement.

B12 is an essential vitamin; it keeps the body's nerve and blood cells healthy and helps make DNA. A deficiency can lead to tiredness, weakness, constipation, loss of appetite, weight loss (the bad kind), nerve problems, and depression. To find out if you need to up your intake, ask your doctor for a simple blood draw.

…And maybe an iron supplement, too

Iron comes in two forms: heme and non-heme. Heme, which makes up about 40% of the iron in animal foods, is easily absorbed by the body. Vegan diets contain only non-heme, which is less readily absorbed. That means you may need to ingest more iron if you want to get the same benefit, says New York City nutritionist Christian Henderson, RD.

Good vegan iron sources include legumes, sunflower seeds, dried raisins, and dark, leafy greens. Vitamin C-rich foods (think: red peppers, citrus, and broccoli) aid iron absorption.

Your friends and family will ask a lot of questions

Maybe you've decided to start a vegan diet because you've heard plant-based foods can promote better health. Or you hope giving up meat will kick-start weight loss. (There's something to that notion; one study of 40,000 adults by Oxford University researchers found that meat-eaters had the highest BMIs and vegans had the lowest.) Or perhaps ethical concerns have led you to embrace veganism.

Whatever your reason, expect people in your social circle to notice and ask questions. "People are very sensitive about their diets, especially when you challenge what they have always believed," says plant-based dietitian Julieanna Hever, RD.

"The best way to minimize conflict is to emphasize that you are going vegan for your own reasons and that it seems to work for you. In other words, make it about you, so nobody feels they need to defend their choices."

You'll have to find new protein sources

Every meal should contain protein, says vegan dietitian Valerie Rosser, RD. Proteins are the building blocks of life; they break down into amino acids that promote cell growth and repair. The Institute of Medicine recommends that adults get at least 0.8 grams of protein daily for every kilogram of body mass—that's about 54 grams for a 150-pound woman.

The best sources of vegan protein include natural soy, lentils, beans, quinoa, and seitan, says Rosser.

You shouldn't replace animal products with junk

Swapping out meat for white bread, chips, and other packaged foods sets you up for failure on a vegan diet, says Rosser. "It's not a good idea to trade in animal products, which contain protein, vitamins, and minerals, for processed foods that provide little nutritional value other than calories." The result: hunger, weight gain, and a grumpier mood.

Take it easy on soy-based products

Though scientists are still arguing over the effects of soy-based food products on cancer and heart health, one thing is for certain: "Consuming too much soy-based vegan 'meat' is arguably worse (than) consuming high-quality animal products," says Henderson.

Meat substitutes are often highly processed and loaded with sodium and preservatives. Read labels carefully. The healthiest sources of soy are miso, tempeh, tofu, soy milk, and edamame.

You don't have to go vegan at once

You won't just wake up one morning magically vegan. It takes work, so it should also take time, Henderson says. "Start by adding more plant-based foods to your diet, while at the same time cutting back on animal products, especially those that are non-organic, and more importantly processed, refined foods. Making gradual changes and assessing how you are feeling along the way is key," she says.

Be prepared to read food labels

If you're serious about being vegan, checking food labels and verifying ingredients is a must. "Just because a food product is not glaringly non-vegan doesn't mean that it's suitable for a vegan diet," says Rosser. Casein and whey, which come from milk, are present in many cereal bars, breads, and granolas, while gelatin and tallow (also known as suet) are derived from meat. Then there's Natural Red 4 (also known as carmine, cochineal, or cochineal extract), which is a food coloring derived from the dried bodies of female beetles. Head spinning yet? The Vegetarian Resource Group's list of common food ingredients can help.

You may feel happier

Animals won't be the only ones happy if you go vegan; you will, too. One reason why: Compared to vegetarian diets, omnivorous diets contain more arachidonic acid, which can spur neurological changes that drag down mood, according to a Nutrition Journal study.

You won't have to ditch your favorite restaurants

Just as veganism is becoming more popular, so are vegan options on restaurant menus. Word to the wise: Even if your item of choice looks vegan, tell your waiter about your dietary restriction to ensure that no animal products are used to make your meal (think hidden butter or chicken stock), advises Henderson.

It doesn't have to cost more

At $3 or more per pound, meat is one of the most expensive items in the grocery store, so saving big can be easy—even if you are buying more produce than ever. Save even more by swapping some of your fresh produce for frozen.

Plants might cover your calcium needs

The NIH recommends that adults between the ages of 19 and 50 get a minimum of 1,000 mg of calcium a day, but preliminary research shows vegans may be able to get away with less than that.

A European Journal study found that when vegans consumed at least 525 mg per day of calcium, their risk of bone fracture was no different than that of non-vegetarians with similar calcium intakes. The key is eating a variety of naturally calcium-rich foods such as kale, bok choy, almonds, soy beans, figs, and navel oranges as well as calcium-fortified foods such as cereals, plant-based milks, and tofu made with calcium sulfate, advises Henderson. Bonus: soy, leafy greens, and most fortified foods are also high in vitamin D, which helps your body absorb calcium.

Source: For more information on Health and diets visit Health.com: https://www.health.com/nutrition/12-things-you-need-to-know-before-going-vegan

Who Started PALEO DIET?

Dr. Loren Cordain is Professor Emeritus of the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.

His research emphasis over the past 20 years has focused upon the evolutionary and anthropological basis for diet, health and well being in modern humans.

Dr. Cordain’s scientific publications have examined the nutritional characteristics of worldwide hunter-gatherer diets as well as the nutrient composition of wild plant and animal foods consumed by foraging humans.

He is the world’s leading expert on Paleolithic diets and has lectured extensively on the Paleolithic nutrition worldwide. Dr. Cordain is the author of five popular bestselling books including The Paleo Diet, The Paleo Answer, The Paleo Diet Cookbook, and The Real Paleo Diet Cookbook summarizing his research findings

Visit the site: https://thepaleodiet.com/

WHAT IS THE PALEO DIET?

Quite simply, The Paleo Diet® is the only diet to which the human species is genetically adapted. In other words, when you eat a Paleo Diet, you are eating the optimal foods for your body, literally programmed into your DNA [1-4].

This is the diet of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. It comprises the basic foods eaten by every human since our first appearance over a million years ago, until the invention of agriculture a mere 10,000 years ago [2, 3, 5-9]. Of course, many of the foods that ancestral man consumed no longer exist. Therefore, the modern Paleo Diet mimics the foods that we would have consumed in our historic past. It is as close as we can get to a diet unadulterated by modern agricultural methods, animal husbandry, or processed foods, elements that have only existed for a short amount of time relative to the span of human evolution.

While Dr. Loren Cordain may be considered the originator of The Paleo Diet, he likes to emphasize that he didn’t create it [7]. That job belonged to nature. Over the past three decades, Dr. Cordain, along with many of his colleagues from the fields of medicine, nutrition, and anthropology, such as Boyd Eaton and Stefan Lindeberg, simply uncovered the science that stands as the foundation of the diet to this day [2, 3, 9-16].

When we compare The Paleo Diet to a modern Western diet, the differences are stark. A large portion of the foods typical to a Western diet have only been introduced in the past 100 to 200 years. This includes vegetable oils, refined sugar, and processed foods. (Refined flour only appeared after the invention of steel roller mills in the late 1800s.) In fact, 70 percent of the foods in the modern Western diet were only introduced within the past few generations. Because of how recent those changes have taken place, our bodies haven’t had ample time to evolve to properly digest these foods [3, 4, 6, 7, 9-13, 17, 18].

However, on The Paleo Diet, you will eat copious amounts of nutrient-dense foods such as vegetables and fruits, lean meats and seafood, all the while eliminating inflammatory foods such as grains, dairy, refined sugars, refined oils, and processed foods. For a quick and easy guide of what to eat and not eat on a Paleo Diet, click here.

While other fad diets have come and gone, and new ones appear on the marketplace every few months, The Paleo Diet remains. That’s because it is based on decades of scientific research, and its fundamental principles are recognized by medical and health professionals who firmly believe in the supporting data.

A vast and growing body of evidence strongly suggests The Paleo Diet has wide-reaching therapeutic effects on metabolic diseases, autoimmune disorders, mental health, and much more [19-47]. In fact, since the diet is anti-inflammatory in nature, there are very few chronic illnesses or diseases that do not respond favorably to it.

THE PALEO DIET PREMISE

Now, let’s take a closer look at the core principles of The Paleo Diet®:

Feed your DNA. You will eat the foods humans have evolved to eat.
Improve nutrient density. You will consume the most nutrient-dense foods, including green leafy vegetables, blueberries, and salmon. (Click here for a complete chart comparing nutrient densities.) By contrast, the bulk of foods found in a typical Western diet—cereal grains, dairy products, and fatty feed-lot meat—lack that depth of nutrition. Eliminating those items from your diet means you’ll need to replace those calories with something else. By the very nature of The Paleo Diet, that means eating more foods densely packed with a variety of essential vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals.
Forget macronutrients; focus on healthy foods. On The Paleo Diet you don’t focus on macronutrient ratios (i.e., how much protein versus carbohydrate you consume). This falls in line with our ancestral habits. Consider the range of foods our ancestors ate: hunter-gatherer societies living near the equator consumed higher levels of carbohydrates, while those farther north consumed higher volumes of protein and fat. Likewise, our ancestral diet changed seasonally, so macronutrient ratios fluctuated throughout the year. The truth of the matter is that focusing on macronutrients runs counter to one of the main tenets of The Paleo Diet: a focus on eating healthy foods, and not how much carbohydrate you eat relative to protein or fat. That said, eating healthy natural foods leads to a diet that is higher in protein and lower in carbohydrates than the typical western diet.
Stop cravings. Eating the foods your body needs will greatly reduce your hunger signals. It does this by stabilizing fluctuations in insulin and, therefore, improving your glycemic control, a tremendous benefit for those with diabetes. Even though simple sugars are high in calories, they actually spike hunger signals, creating a vicious cycle. On a Paleo Diet, you will consume a lower overall calorie count, while getting the nutrients your body needs. You will also eliminate spikes and dips in your energy levels. The benefit is threefold: you will remain more consistently energetic; you’ll eliminate daily cravings; and, finally, by eating foods that are lower in calories and higher in nutrients, you will more readily control weight.
Reduce dips in energy. You will eat foods with a lower glycemic load. Glycemic load is a measure of how much a meal will impact blood sugar and insulin levels. A Paleo Diet meal almost always has a low glycemic load.
Eat more natural and plant-based foods. By the very nature of the diet, you will eat more foods in their raw form, and fewer processed foods. That means large amounts of vegetables, fruits, seeds, healthy lean meats, fish, eggs, and a sparing amount of nuts. Contrary to popular belief, The Paleo Diet is not based on the consumption of meat. That is a fallacy. In fact, while a Paleo Diet is not vegetarian, by volume the diet is primarily plant-based.
Improve key nutrient ratios. There are certain ratios that are extremely important to your health, and The Paleo Diet brings those ratios back into the balance our bodies were designed for. For example, the sodium-potassium ratio, which in a Western diet typically sits at 10:1, should actually be around 1:2 for optimum health. Contrary to current belief, neither added salt nor sea salt are part of a healthy Paleo Diet. In fact, high sodium consumption relative to potassium contributes to a high acid load in the body, which has many negative health conditions. For example, research has shown that the high sodium content in many people’s diets contributes to osteoporosis. Another key ratio is the magnesium-calcium ratio and it likewise has a tremendous impact on your health. The Paleo Diet, by nature, keeps you in balance with regards to these crucial nutrients.
Eat the right ratios of fatty acids. For years, the USDA and nutritionists have promoted a low-fat diet as healthy. It was believed that consuming fat—any fat—led to elevated cholesterol and, ultimately, heart disease. This belief has been mostly debunked, and we now know that it was even based on bad research. What’s more important is the types of fats you eat. In particular, the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids. A Paleo Diet, based on fish, fresh lean meats, and healthy fruits and vegetables, naturally provides an optimal ratio.
Improve your acid-base balance. A typical Western diet is by nature acidic. The high sodium-to-potassium ratio is a contributor to this imbalance. An acidic diet can lead to inflammation and contributes to osteoporosis. This is one of the reasons why there is next to no research showing that calcium supplementation can help osteoporosis. Increasing potassium consumption (with vegetables) can.
Eliminate anti-nutrients. Grains such as wheat and quinoa contain many anti-nutrients such as saponins and lectins. These tiny molecules are extremely effective at evading your intestinal defense mechanisms, opening the tight junctions in your gut, and making you very sick if you consume them raw. Cooking grains eliminates many but not all of these anti-nutrients, which causes an even bigger concern. Over time, the small quantities of anti-nutrients cause chronic inflammation and lead to inflammatory diseases like autoimmune illness and cancer. A Paleo Diet eliminates foods high in these anti-nutrients.

SO, WHAT SHOULD YOU EAT ON THE PALEO DIET? THE LIST IS LONG AND FILLED WITH INCREDIBLE CHOICES.

Try these recipes!

Have you heard myths about the Paleo diet? Check here!

We’ve also answered some of our most frequently asked questions on this page.

REFERENCES

1. Cordain, L., The nutritional characteristics of a contemporary diet based upon Paleolithic food groups. Journal of the American Nutraceutical Association, 2002. 5(5): p. 15-24.
2. Cordain, L., et al., Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health implications for the 21st century. Am J Clin Nutr, 2005. 81(2): p. 341-54.
3. Eaton, S.B. and M. Konner, Paleolithic nutrition. A consideration of its nature and current implications. N Engl J Med, 1985. 312(5): p. 283-9.
4. Eaton, S.B. and S.B. Eaton, 3rd, Paleolithic vs. modern diets–selected pathophysiological implications. Eur J Nutr, 2000. 39(2): p. 67-70.
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7. Cordain, L., The Paleo diet : lose weight and get healthy by eating the foods you were designed to eat. Rev. ed. 2011, Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. xv, 266 p.
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41. Lee, J.E., et al., A Multimodal, Nonpharmacologic Intervention Improves Mood and Cognitive Function in People with Multiple Sclerosis. J Am Coll Nutr, 2017. 36(3): p. 150-168.
42. Otten, J., et al., Benefits of a Paleolithic diet with and without supervised exercise on fat mass, insulin sensitivity, and glycemic control: a randomized controlled trial in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Metab Res Rev, 2017. 33(1).
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47. Wahls, T., et al., Dietary approaches to treat MS-related fatigue: comparing the modified Paleolithic (Wahls Elimination) and low saturated fat (Swank) diets on perceived fatigue in persons with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials, 2018. 19(1): p. 309.

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Vegan Diet - Must know facts