If you are thinking about going vegan, first of all, congratulations. Secondly, today I want to help you with a few things you should consider while going vegan.
Generally speaking, every change in your life comes with positive and negative aspects, some are easier to accept than others.
Still, it is important to be aware of some changes that could happen, so you can make the right decision for yourself.
Knowing all the facts will make your transition to veganism much easier.
So today let’s talk about 5 aspects that you should be aware of when going vegan.
Know that not everything will apply to you, your body and your lifestyle.
Everybody is different and unique. That’s what makes us all so amazing!
A lack of certain nutrients
Your going to hear, “If you are going vegan you are going to end up lacking essential nutrients”.
Trust me on this one. This is exactly what I heard when my extended family and friends found out.
Most of the time people don’t really know what they are talking about they just make huge assumptions.
Fact is almost every essential nutrient can be consumed though eating a well-balanced diet that is based on whole foods.
There are only a few that you should be conscious about when going vegan.
Vitamin B12 – Why do you have to be conscious about your vitamin B12 intake?
B12 is responsible for the formation of red blood cells, growth and function of cells and a well-functioning nervous system.
Your body can store this vitamin up to 3 years so you might not notice a deficit right away.
B12 is found predominantly in animal products (e.g. eggs, meat, milk) and only in a few plant-based foods.
Only fermented plant-based foods, such as sauerkraut and beer, and the
alga Chlorella contain small amounts of vitamin B12.
Vitamin D – There exist different vitamin-D variations, but vitamin D2 and D3 are especially important for us humans.
They play an essential role in the regulation of calcium levels in the blood and in bone formation.
While vitamin D2 can be found in a few plant-based foods (e.g. mushrooms, avocados), vitamin D3 on the other hand only exists in animal products (e.g. some kinds of fish, eggs, cheese).
Don’t just assume you will be deficient in the nutrients. Often times there are many vegans who are never deficient.
If you are concerned then have your levels checked at your doctor’s office.
I love the My Kind series of vegan nutrients which can be found HERE on Amazon. So if you find yourself deficient then definitely check My Kind out.
Saving or at least protecting the environment
One of the main motivators behind going vegan is the environmental aspect, but what exactly does that mean?
How is eating vegan contributing to the well-being of our environment?
Up to 73 percent of your own carbon footprint can be reduced by cutting meat and dairy products out of your diet.
How so? Well, here are just two examples among many other examples.
Being vegan saves water. A large amount of the worldwide water consumption (20-30%) goes into the production of animal products.
To produce one pound of beef for example, it takes about 100 to 200 times more water than to grow a pound of plant-based foods.
Practicing veganism also protects the atmosphere. Now this sounds a bit ridiculous at first, but this actually plays a huge role in the pollution of our atmosphere and is linked to the rise of greenhouse gases.
When a cow passes gas that produces methane and nitrous oxide can be found in their manure.
If we would stop eating meat and consuming dairy, we would need less cows on this earth.
Less cows = less methane and nitrous oxide.
Eating the same thing over and overw
Transitioning into a vegan diet can be overwhelming at first.
We have to change or adapt our favorite recipes. Some of our favorite snacks before going vegan we no longer can consume.
Not to mention our favorite places to eat could very well end up on our not so favorite places to eat anymore.
So when you find new recipes, new snacks, new restaurants that you like, it is easy to fall into the habit of eating the same foods over and over again.
Now there is nothing wrong with that if your diet is consisting of a wide variety of vitamins and nutrients.
If it’s not, then consider expanding your options so you don’t neglect the nutrients and vitamins your body needs.
Eating enough
What? Eating enough? I think I got that one covered. I never had that problem, but all joking aside there are people who do not eat enough when going vegan.
A vegan diet is mostly based on a lot of whole foods, which are lower in calories than animal products.
A possible consequence that you should be aware of is that you might be under-eating.
If you don’t give your body enough calories and important nutrients, it will start to crave other things and your health will suffer in the long term.
So make sure you are always feeding your body properly with enough food.
Tracking your food for a few days can help you to get a good idea for the
amount of calories you are consuming.
Preventing yourself from different diseases
There has always been a lot of discussion around veganism and different types of diseases.
It is said that following a vegan diet is really effective in protecting you from hypertension, type-2 diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
Furthermore, the plant-based diet is low in saturated fats, which means that vegans are less likely to exposed to obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
So going vegan can actually be a wonderful thing for your health.
As you can see, there are quite a few things to consider when going vegan. Many of these are positive and not just negative.
I created this post to help you become aware of things to consider when going vegan and help you make the right decision.
Always remember, your body will tell you what works and what doesn’t. Sometimes you just need simple, small adjustments.
If you are looking for some free recipes then make sure to click on the image below. Also you will find lots of great recipes right here on our blog.
