According to recent studies, only about 3% of Americans follow a vegan diet – yet the term “vegan” (in all its variations) is increasingly common on menus, recipes, and packaging.
This is because vegan eating has gained the perception of being healthy and light.
But upon closer inspection, there is much more to know: there is actually a lot of ignorance about its real implications – both positive (in terms of health and sustainability) and negative (regarding nutritional needs not always met by those who become vegans without the proper preparation).
In fact, a vegan diet presupposes being aware of what goes on your plate because to meet the complete nutritional needs, it requires some precautions. And this is the first point: when you want to start a vegan diet, the first thing to do is to consult a nutritionist for guidance.
To clarify some key points, we asked Babaco Market for help – the fruit and vegetable delivery service that fights against waste that originates from the field to the market, bringing fresh (and seasonal) fruits and vegetables with slight aesthetic imperfections (or overproduction) to Italian households to prevent waste.
The result is a mini-guide to help all those who are thinking of joining the world of veganism, or even just those who want to better understand what it’s all about.
Who Eats What? Demystifying Veganism
ABC of the Vegan Diet
Many of the terms that define the vegan world are not that easy to grasp.
Here are some common ones:
Plant-based diet: a type of diet that consists of products from sustainable and certified crops and livestock, not just vegetables. A real philosophy of life, in total respect for the rhythms and biodiversity of nature.
Veganuary: this curious and unusual term combines “vegan” and “January.” It refers to a challenge launched in 2014 by a British non-profit organization that encourages people to follow a vegan diet for the first month of the year, a collective experience of awareness of their environmental impact on the planet.
Fruitarianism: fruitarianism is followed by all those who choose to embrace a diet based on fruits, making it the most radical form of the vegan diet.
Flexitarian: a “flexitarian” dietary style (literally a fusion of “flexible” and “vegetarian”) is a particular type of ‘plant-based’ diet that does not, however, eliminate meat consumption, but rather limits it to once or twice a week.
Cheegan: this English word is a fusion of “cheating” and “vegan,” indicating people who declare themselves as vegans but often give in to temptation and abandon the ‘right path.’
Veggan: this is another mix of “egg” and “vegan,” referring to vegans who regularly consume eggs.
What are the Benefits of the Vegan Diet for the Environment?
The environmental benefits and the advantages that our planet can derive from a predominantly plant-based diet are mainly three: saving water, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and using less fertile land.
It is enough to know that 43% of the land (excluding glaciers and deserts) is used for intensive agriculture, and 83% of this is used to grow vegetables that will become animal feed.
How do you Become Vegan?
According to science, a well-planned vegan diet is feasible at any stage of life, bringing benefits and advantages both individually for health and collectively for the environment.
But what does “well-planned” mean?
“The most common mistake is trying to replace what you used to eat with processed plant-based counterparts. So you put vegetable chicken made from pea flour instead of chicken, coconut oil-based cheese instead of cow’s cheese, and a burger that imitates the taste of meat instead of minced meat: this is certainly more respectful towards animals and more sustainable, but it is not a type of plant-based diet that will bring particular health benefits. These products can be pleasant exceptions, but they should not become the rule and are by no means necessary for planning a vegan diet,” explains Dr. Silvia Goggi, a specialist in food science.
The correct way to approach a plant-based diet, instead, is to rethink your diet starting from the basics, i.e., from plant-based food groups, and understand how to combine them throughout the day to obtain all the necessary nutrients for daily caloric needs.
Therefore, it is advisable to ask yourself very specific questions every day to understand if each food group has been introduced correctly.
What do Those who Follow the Vegan Diet Eat?
Veggies
In any dietary approach, a fundamental principle is the abundance of vegetables on your plate, but if you adhere to a plant-based diet, it’s beneficial to go an extra mile.
Dark green leafy vegetables that belong to the cruciferous family are particularly rich in calcium and iron, two nutrients that you should pay attention to when planning a diet without animal products. In addition to these, we can take advantage of the convenience of drinks and plant-based yogurts fortified with calcium, now available in any supermarket.
These plant-based dairy alternatives contain as much calcium as their cow counterparts, as well as the same culinary uses.
Fruits
The consumption of fruit should not differ from what one should already do in an omnivorous diet. Fruit is a concentrated source of readily available energy, where simple sugars are accompanied by fiber, vitamins, and valuable phytochemical substances.
If you find it challenging to consume the recommended portions, you can try adding fruit to a salad, having a fruit smoothie with plant-based milk as a snack, or bringing pre-cut fruit to work in an airtight container to consume throughout the day.
Grains
The majority of our daily energy should come from grains and their derivatives. Cereals are a source not only of complex carbohydrates but also of proteins, fiber, and valuable minerals, especially when consumed in their whole form.
An additional tip for those transitioning to a plant-based diet: varying the type of cereal consumed as much as possible will help more easily meet the requirements for some nutrients considered “critical,” such as iron and zinc.
There’s no need to spend hours cooking grains in a pressure cooker: why not use oatmeal for breakfast, choose spelt flour bread, and occasionally try buckwheat pasta?
Legumes & Oily Seeds
Nuts and oily seeds contain fiber, proteins, and minerals. In a plant-based diet, the protein source (i.e., legumes) contains almost no fats, and the energy saved can be converted into more nuts and oily seeds.
Have I taken in all the nutrients? When transitioning to an exclusively plant-based diet, some nutrients need to be monitored through blood tests and supplemented under medical guidance to meet physiological requirements.
**Apparently, Kim Kardashian Makes A Tasty Vegan Marinara Sauce**
This article first appeared on grazia.it — Author: Giada Borioli
