All You Need to Know About Vegan Diet

The world over people are opting for Vegan diet not just to lose weight but also to stay fit and healthy. It has become a rage. But what exactly is Vegan diet which has gained so much of importance over the past few years?. Basically, vegan diet is a vegetarian diet but it excludes usage of eggs,meat and various other animal derived ingredients and products.

What is a Vegan Diet?

According to Wikipedia, “Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products, particularly in diet, as well as an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of sentient animals. A follower of veganism is known as a vegan”.

The term “vegan” was coined in 1944 by Donald Watson (co- founder of British Vegan Society) to mean “non dairy vegetarian”. Nowadays, the term vegan diet and veganism has been gaining momentum all the more. It is not just being appreciated by the athletes alone rather celebrities including health conscious people too are opting for the same. A majority of people turn to vegan diet owing to ethical issues, animal considerations while others do so purely for health reasons.

If eaten in the right manner, then Vegan diet is known to fight many diseases too like heart diseases, cancer, thyroid to name a few.

What is included in Vegan Diet

So, the big question is: What is included in vegan diet? Vegan diet is said to be rich in fibre, magnesium, folic acid, iron. It also contains a good amount of Vitamin C and E. Vegan diet primarily includes intake of grains, beans, legumes and different kinds of vegetables. Some of the popular vegan dishes include hummus, ratatouille, veggie stir fry, pasta primavera. The vegan dishes instead of using cows or goats milk make use of plant cream and plant milk like almond milk or soy milk. Thus, instead of chicken and eggs you will have apple sauce, ground flaxseeds, silken tofu, vegetarian sausages and veggie burgers. Organic canola, olive and sesame oils, brown rice, tortillas, organic corn chips, quinoa are other diet foods you might opt for being a Vegan. Tofu icecream, cane juice, decaf green tea is also popular.

How healthy is Vegan Diet

After understanding what the vegan diet is and what it includes it becomes important to find out as to whether vegan diet is healthy or not. There are different views and perceptions regarding the same. The opponents of vegan diet say that since the diet does not include some of the key vitamins and minerals it cannot be regarded as totally healthy. Vegan diet is said to be low in proteins, vitamin B12, omega 3 fatty acids and calcium. Thus, as far as optimum nutritional requirements is concerned, the vegan diet is seen with some concern by health experts.

Research have shown that vegan diet stands out amongst all the other diets when it comes to weight loss because vegans eat less of fat and calories and therefore have a lower body mass index. Vegan diet is said to be low in saturated fat and cholesterol level and hence prevents the outbreak of various heart diseases, keeps the blood pressure under control and thereby risks the chances of obesity.

Also, “Vegetarians have a 40% less risk of cancer and much less risk of heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease and other problems that are common among meat eaters”, according to Neal Barnard, president of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a non-profit organization that focuses on preventive medicine.

John McDougall, a physician and founder of the McDougall Plan for Healthy Living believes that milk and eggs are the prime source of food allergies in Americans and hence moving on to an all vegan diet is the best alternative.

Thus, there is certainly a mixed response amongst the researchers with regard to whether one should opt for vegan diet on a complete level or stick to a meat diet.