Vegan Diet, Veganuary & Beyond: What You Need To Know
What is Veganuary?
Established in 2014, Veganuary is an annual event that encourages non-vegans to adopt a vegan diet for the month of January. Participants are also encouraged to exclude all forms of exploitation and cruelty to animals, by buying vegan clothing, cosmetics, and other products during the month (7,8).
Veganuary Mission: To inspire and support people to try veganism, drive corporate change, and create a global mass movement championing compassionate food choice; this aims to end animal farming, protect the planet, and improve human health (7).
Veganuary Vision: To create a world without animal farms and slaughterhouses. A world where food production does not decimate forests, pollute rivers and oceans, exacerbate climate change, and drive wild animal populations to extinction (7).
In 2021, over 580,000 people signed up to the campaign compared to the 3,000 participants in 2014. This shows the rise in Veganuary’s popularity. Individuals from 209 countries and territories took part, and more than 825 new vegan products and menus were launched for Veganuary 2021 (7).
Vegan diet vs Plant-based diet
Firstly, let's determine the differences between a vegan diet and a plant-based diet. Following a plant-based diet refers specifically to one’s diet alone, whereas a vegan diet also includes the lifestyle that one chooses to lead. People who follow a plant-based diet eat meals based mainly around plants, with some optional meat and fish consumption. Whereas vegans do not eat any food that is derived from animal products. There are many reasons people choose to adopt a vegan lifestyle, such as ethical considerations. However, plant-based diets are less stressful and possibly more sustainable long term!
Nutrients in a Vegan diet
A vegan diet is higher in:
- Fibre eg. fruit, veg and legumes.
- Antioxidants eg. fruit and veg.
- Magnesium eg. banana, nuts, leafy greens.
- Folic acid eg. leafy greens.
- Vitamin C, A and E eg. colourful veg.
- Phytochemicals - beneficial compounds only found in fruit or veg.
- Iron (although plant based so it is harder to break down) eg. leaf greens (5).
While whole-food vegan diets are generally higher in certain nutrients, poorly maintained vegan diets may lead to deficiencies in several key nutrients such as:
- Omega 3 fatty acids
- Vitamin D
- Calcium
- Zinc
- Vitamin B12
- Iodine
However, a vegan diet is beneficially lower in:
- Saturated fat
- Cholesterol (5).
Take your supplements!
As a vegan diet eliminates all animal products and their derivatives, it is vital to ensure that key nutrients, vitamins and minerals are not being missed. Therefore, supplementation is required. Here are some tips for you!
1. Calcium – found in many dairy products that vegans don’t eat, so for optimum calcium intake:
Consume at least two portions of calcium rich foods daily.
- 400ml / 2 glasses of fortified milk alternative.
- 30g/1/2 a cup of fortified ready oat cereal + 100g/1/4 dinner plate of calcium set tofu.
- 150g/1/3 cup of fortified yoghurt alternative + 200ml/1 glass of fortified milk.
2. Vitamin D – helps with calcium absorption.
If you live in the UK or a country with a similar cold climate, consider taking a minimum of 10 micrograms supplementation per day, as advised by the UK Government. Vitamin D supplements may contain D3 from an animal source called lanolin. Vegan supplements will have D3 from lichen or D2.
3. Protein - here are some non-animal protein sources:
Kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, peanut butter, tofu, tempeh, soya mince, vegan quorn, and seitan.
4. Omega-3 fatty acids – Essential for brain function.
Consider taking supplements or a handful of nuts daily, particularly: cashews, pistachio, ground seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, and shell hemp seeds – all rich in omega-3.
5. Vitamin B12 –
According to The Vegan Society, fortified foods and supplements are the only reliable source for vegans.
Fortified foods: VB12 is added to nutritional yeast flakes, alternative milk and vegan spreads.
Supplements: at least 10mcg daily, or at least 2000mcg weekly – consult your GP first!
Why adopt a vegan diet?
Benefits of a vegan diet:
- Balanced vegan diets have many health benefits. Some research has shown that following a vegan diet can help lower blood pressure and cholesterol, and shows lower rates of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers (9).
- Environmentally friendly - reduces a single person's carbon footprint by 73% (University Oxford, 2018) (2).
- In recent years, it has become easier to follow with a wider variety of vegan products available, fortified foods and supermarkets having vegan sections (3,4).
- Vegan diets prevent the exploitation of animals.
What you need to know about a vegan diet:
- Can be difficult to adjust to and maintain, especially if pulses have never been a part of your diet, as they can initially cause bloating and discomfort within the digestive system.
- Promotes weight loss (possibly excessive), which if not managed appropriately can lead to weight regain and an unhealthy, unbalanced diet.
- Can be time consuming as it needs to be planned in order to ensure you are getting all the nutrients which are lacking in the diet (3,4).
- Iodine is essential for thyroid hormone synthesis. Individuals adhering to vegan and vegetarian diets have been found to be vulnerable to iodine deficiency.
Is veganism a one-size-fits all diet?
Veganism is not for everyone, so do not feel pressured to take part in the lifestyle if it does not work for you. Other ways to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle include reducing your food waste, supporting sustainable businesses, switching to renewables, and reducing your carbon footprint.
If you want to attempt veganism, our advice to you would be to take it day by day and one meal at a time. You can take a flexible approach by aiming to increase your plant based food intake and minimise animal based food consumption. Ensure you are well informed before trying a vegan diet, so that you can ensure it supports your health instead of harming it!
Do what works best for you…every little step towards a better environment counts!