The Highs and Lows of a Vegan Diet

         A Vegan has a diet that doesn’t contain anything of animal origin. Vegans do not eat animal products such as eggs, dairy, meat, fish and honey. Strict vegans don’t even wear clothes that contain animal based products. People decide to maintain a vegan diet for many health, environmental, and animal right reasons. A vegan diet has many advantages, but there are some underlying disadvantages that some vegans do not consider. Did you know that two out of three vegans are Vitamin B12 deficient compared to only one out of two meat eaters? Meanwhile the listing of 171 species under the Endangered Species Act are caused by environmental damage from grazing livestock. The question is whether being a vegan is really that great or if the disadvantages out weigh the advantages. 

Some health advantages of being vegan consist of lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and an increased intake of antioxidants. It has been proven by a nutritionist, Jackie Keller, that vegan diet can lower cholesterol because she conducted a study with people that have Type II Diabetes. She found that when the people with Type II Diabetes switched to a vegan diet their LDL lowered by 21%. A dietician, Paragi Mehta, proved that vegan diets can lower blood pressure by studying people that changed to a vegan diet and resulted in a decreased risk of death from ischemic heart disease. Mehta also suggested that vegan eating also increases the intake of vegetables, fruits, beans, legumes, and whole grains. These foods are rich in antioxidants, dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals. It has also been proven that eating animal fats and proteins can raise cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease. Another U.S. study showed a correlation of premature death with consumption of animal meat. These advantages make a vegan diet seem like an incredibly healthy alternative to meat eating diets, but there are still many disadvantages.  

Becoming vegan is a complete change from a regular diet and dining out can become difficult. Not many restaurants are vegan friendly and usually don’t offer anything vegan to eat that contains all of the required nutrients. It is also difficult to change to a vegan diet without being fully educated. Our bodies need a certain amount of certain nutrients, and if we take away our sources for those nutrients we need to replace them with others. There is evidence to show that most vegan diets don’t contain adequate vitamin B12, Vitamin D, and calcium. The only way that vegans can get calcium is by consuming dark leafy greens or fortified soy products to meet the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) of 1,000mg. Vegans can only obtain Vitamin D by taking supplements, drinking Vitamin D fortified soy milk, or by sun exposure. To obtain Vitamin B12 vegans can take supplements because this vitamin is mostly found in animal products. Vegans are also at risk of iron deficiency. The most common source or iron is from beef and shellfish, but obviously vegans would not eat these. Between ages 19-50 Females need 18mg of iron and men only need 9mg to avoid iron deficiency. Iron deficiency can result in fatigue and problems with brain function. Vegans need to make sure that they consume plenty of soybeans, white beans, and spinach in order to get the RDI of Iron. Vegans also need to make sure that they receive an adequate amount of protein. Most people get their protein from eggs, dairy, fish, and meat, but vegans need to substitute those foods for beans and nuts to get the RDI of 46mg of protein for women and 56mg for men. There are many health risks for becoming a vegan because they need to make sure that they get a balanced amount of nutrients from their diet. It can be difficult to keep up with all of the supplements and foods in order to get the required amount of nutrients. There are dangerous risks associated with being deficient in any of the nutrients, but there are also health risks with being a meat eater. Here is a great article on how to get the proper amount of protein in your diet in this article by FOXNEWS. 

Becoming a vegan can be healthy if it is done correctly with plenty of planning, but health reasons are not the only reasons why vegans cut animal products out of their diets. Vegans believe that by going vegan they are preserving animals rights. They believe that by going vegan they are letting the animals exist freely without human interference. They also do not use any animal products because egg laying chickens and dairy cows are killed when they do not produce eggs and milk anymore. They think that just turning vegetarian is not enough because the animals will still be slaughtered when they can no longer produce the needed products. Bulls and cockerels would also be killed at birth because they can’t lay eggs or make milk at all. People kill the “unproductive” animals. Some animals are even given supplements in order for them to produce more. Animals are treated terribly in factories because they are cramped, killed, and have multiple health problems. Choosing to go vegan would show compassion for these animals. 

One argument shows that eating meat is the circle of life and that humans were made to eat animals. For 2.3 million years we have been eating meat and it is just a part of life. There is no proven fact that vegans have reduced the slaughter of animals in the United Staes. It has also been said that vegan diets do not help the animals, animals die regardless of whether we eat them, and every other animal eats animal meat. It has not been considered unethical to eat meat and you do not need to be a vegan to love and respect animals. 

Last but not least people turn to a vegan diet because they think it helps the environment. Vegans believe that livestock farming is harmful to our environment. They make a good point by saying that the amount of resources used to raise livestock animals are inefficiently used, and those resources could be used to feed humans instead. There is also a massive amount of polluted runoff caused by animals and factory farms. They also think that vegan diets reduce the emission of green house gases. A study by the University of Chicago found that the U.S meat eaters generate 1.5 tons more carbon dioxide per person than vegans. 18% of greenhouse gas emissions are a result of the livestock industry. Vegans argue that using fertilizers and pesticides to raise livestock are harmful to the environment, but growing plants, crops, fruits, and vegetables uses the same amount of fossil fuels and  fertilizers. Vegans also think that the only way to raise livestock is by the modern factory farming, but before this technique there was no harmful environmental effects. There is nothing environmentally wrong with farming the traditional way, therefore the argument should be against factory farming. Vegans also do not account for the fact that animals die as a result of vegan diets as well. To create soy products, people have to clear animal land for their factories. Everything that we eat now is made from the result of animals and fossil fuels regardless of whether your diet is vegan or not.  This link by the vegansociety includes the reasons why people turn to a vegan diet for environmental reasons. 

To sum it all up there are advantages and disadvantages to both vegan and meat eating diets. Either diet is not helpful for the environment, so that factor is not a legitimate reason to turn to a vegan diet. Some people think that vegan diets are healthy, but they are only healthy if they are done the right way. If you don’t cover all of the nutrient RDI’s then you could become deficient in almost every nutrient. Being vegan could be very dangerous for your health if you only eat fruits and vegetables. Omitting foods such as meat, dairy, eggs, and any animal product can be detrimental because they need to be replaced by other alternatives. If they are not replaced the effects could be life threatening. Some people also become vegan because it is compassionate for animals, and this is true for the most part. Animals can still be harmed as a result of a vegan diet, but the amount is much less. There are many advantages to being a vegan, and I agree that the advantages out weigh the disadvantages. Vegan diets are only helpful and effective if they are done the right way. I will still eat meat but that doesn’t mean that a vegan diet doesn’t work for some people. Everyone just needs to find the diet that works for them whether its paleo, vegan, vegetarian, meat eating, or pescatarian. No diet is wrong or unhealthy if it is gone about the right way. 

 

Watch these insightful videos on the vegan vs. meat diet debate 

Sources 

http://www.medicinenet.com/vegetarian_and_vegan_diet/article.htm

http://www.aarp.org/food/diet-nutrition/info-02-2011/9-pros-and-cons-to-going-vegan.html

http://www.livestrong.com/article/482780-disadvantages-of-being-vegan/

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/149636.php

http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/vegan.htm

http://www.vegansociety.com/become-a-vegan/why.aspx

http://authoritynutrition.com/top-5-reasons-why-vegan-diets-are-a-terrible-idea/