Nutrients You May Be Lacking in a Vegan Diet

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Nutrients you may be low in if you are VEGAN

 

While studies have shown that there may be many health benefits to a vegan lifestyle, there may be potential health risks in store if you are not eating the right combination of foods and are not getting all the nutrients your body requires for optimal health.

 

Documentaries, social media and overall planet and health awareness have increased the popularity of living a vegan lifestyle at a very fast rate over the past decade.  While years ago it was difficult to find premade foods or a restaurant that would cater to a vegan lifestyle, now it is more unusual to notfind several animal product free options in both grocery stores and trendy restaurants alike.

 

And while there is plenty of scientific research that encourages cutting out (or even reducing) animal products from your diet to promote positive changes in your health, there is a risk that you may not be getting optimal amounts of all the essential nutrients your body needs from your food alone.

 

Organic, pasture raised, high quality meat, fish and eggs provide certain nutrients that are very difficult to get from a plant based way of eating.  While I am not suggesting that you need to abandon a vegan lifestyle, you should be aware of what nutrients you could be missing.

 

Listed below are the top nutrients you might be lacking along with hints of how you can find ways to add them back into your diet.

 

B12 – Studies show that vegans (and vegetarians) have a higher risk of having B12 deficiency than those who eat meat.  Symptoms of deficiency include low energy, muscle weakness, pale skin and mucous membranes.  B12 is needed for the formation of normal red blood cells, a healthy nervous system, growth in children and is essential for mental health.

 

It is mostly found in meat, fish and eggs and is therefore a hard one to get in a vegan diet.  Vegan options for B12 sources are either foods that are fortified with B12 such as some plant milks, soy products and breakfast cereals, or supplementation.  If you choose to supplement, do your research.  Not all supplements are created equal and many have unnecessary (and unhealthy) fillers and additives.

 

Iron – Iron is necessary for the formation of hemoglobin in bone marrow, for carrying oxygen in the blood and to make new DNA and red blood cells.  It is also key for energy metabolism which is why one of the main symptoms of iron deficiency is fatigue.  Other symptoms include paleness, headaches and dizziness.  While animal sources of iron (heme iron) is more readily absorbable by the body, there are plenty of non-heme, or plant based, sources of iron as well.  These include nuts and seeds, beans, lentils, tofu and potato skin.

 

Omega 3’s – Omega 3’s are one of the essential fatty acids that our bodies need for a variety of functions.  They are essential because our body cannot make them – they must be obtained from food.  While the best source of Omega 3 is through fish, vegans can get Omega 3 from flaxseeds, chia seeds and walnuts.  There are also many plant based Omega 3 supplements available. Omega 3 is an important fatty acid that increases blood flow, can improve symptoms of depression, is beneficial for the skin, lowers blood pressure and is essential for a healthy brain among other things.  Omega 3’s are also anti-inflammatory which can protect the body from many inflammation related diseases.

 

Vitamin D – This is a very common deficiency in all people whether you are vegan or not.  Most of our vitamin D is manufactured by our bodies via cholesterol in our skin when it is exposed to sunlight.  Vitamin D is responsible for regulating calcium and phosphorous metabolism and normal calcification of our teeth and bones.  It is also helpful in maintaining the nervous system, normal blood clotting and supports a health immune system.  Best sources of vitamin D are fatty fish, beef liver, eggs and cheese which again is not in a vegan’s favour.  If you are vegan it is best to take a supplement to ensure you are getting enough of this important vitamin.  It is important to note that vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin meaning it needs to be taken with a source of fat in order for our bodies to properly absorb and use it effectively.

 

Protein – Last but most certainly  not least is protein.  Protein is often overlooked by vegans as something to look out for because it is well known that many plant products contain protein.  What is often less known is that the majority of plant products do not contain a complete protein profile which is why combining the right types of plant based protein is so very important.

 

Protein is composed of amino acids – the building blocks of protein.  There are 22 amino acids and 9 of them are considered essential, meaning the body cannot make them and they must be obtained from food.  Every tissue and organ in the body is made up of protein. It makes up nails, hair, muscles, tendons, ligaments and many other body structures.  If our bodies do not take in adequate protein for its needs, it will breakdown our muscles and reassemble those amino acids for growth and healing.  Protein also balances blood sugar, can increase energy, increase muscle tone and stabilizes mood.

 

Deficiency symptoms include excess fluid retention, nausea and dizziness, low immunity, muscle wasting, low hormone levels, dull hair, poor wound healing and more.  While the most obvious sources of protein are meat, fish and eggs, protein is also found in beans, grains, nuts and seeds, vegetables and fruit.  Combining these plant based items in the right way is what will ensure you are getting the entire amino acid profile that your body needs.  Here’s how you do it:

 

Combine beans with:

-brown rice

-nuts & seeds

-grains

-corn

-quinoa

-sweet potato

 

Combine brown rice with:

-beans

-peas

-nuts & seeds

 

Combine other grains with:

-peas

-peanuts

-legumes

-leafy greens

 

Don’t be fooled that nutrient deficiencies only occur to vegans – even plenty of meat eaters can have significant nutrient imbalances that can lead to a host of health issues. The best way to prevent any nutrient deficiency is to eat a variety of real, whole foods.  Eat the rainbow and continuously rotate through different vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and healthy whole grains like brown rice and quinoa.

 

If you would like help creating a balanced meal plan – whether you are a vegan or not – please check out the services offered on my website at www.besimplyfed.comor send me an email to info@besimplyfed.com. There is no one size fits all method of eating and I would love to help you find the best way of eating that will have you experiencing optimal health.

 

The Fine Print

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Do you read food labels? If not, you are not alone! Many people get drawn in by the claims the large print says on the package: 100% whole wheat! Contains 20% of the recommended daily intake of fibre! All Natural Ingredients!
 
But what is really inside some of the most commonly consumed foods? Let’s take a closer look at one of the most common staples for lunch – sandwich bread. We’ve all had sandwiches. And most likely many of us have made sandwiches for our own kids using this very brand of bread I’m talking about today. What I found in the ingredients is exactly why we need to be reading the fine print on everything we eat.
 
Aside from the gut irritating gluten, the added sugar/glucose-frutose and the soybean and/or canola oil (the fact that they can’t definitively say which one was used is in itself concerning) there are two ingredients that stood out to me and should be avoided.
 
1) AZODICARBONAMIDE: This is an industrial chemical used to make yoga mats, shoe rubber and synthetic leather. And yet it is in our BREAD. It is used as a dough conditioner in bread and other baked goods.
 
This chemical has been banned in Europe, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand and has been found to cause hyperactivity, asthma, insomnia, food allergies and other adverse reactions.
 
2) CALCIUM PROPIONATE: This is an anti fungal that is added to bread and other baked goods to prevent mould growth. It is claimed that small amounts seem to be okay however, chronic exposure, especially in children eating it daily in sandwiches, etc, has been linked to irritability, restlessness, inattention, sleep disturbances, behaviour and learning problems, skin irritations, migraines and food intolerances.
 
The bottom line is that commercial bread is adding all kinds of things to the bread that is unnecessary and can cause some scary health issues.
 
This post is not to say that bread is bad. It is only to bring awareness to what we are putting in our own mouths and the mouths of our children and to get back to eating real, whole foods. Traditional bread that our grandma’s made contained 4 things: flour, water, yeast and salt, not this long list of additives and chemicals.
 
Have a great homemade bread recipe you’d like to share? I’d love to see it – please post it in comments!

Homemade Granola Bars

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Looking for a school safe, healthy snack?  Or maybe you just have a craving for something healthy and delicious!  These homemade granola bars are for you.  Full of fibre and healthy fats, these bars are one tasty treat.

Gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free…and allergen free, too.

Homemade Granola Bars

Ingredients:

-3 cups gluten free oats
-2.5 cups gluten free rice crisps
-1/2 cup ground flax
-1/3 cup coconut oil
-1/2 cup honey
-2 tbsp maple syrup
-1 cup sunflower seed butter
-2 tsp pure vanilla
-1/4 tsp sea salt
-3/4 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips

Directions:

-line a large jelly roll pan in parchment paper
-mix oats, rice crips and flax in a large bowl
-in a small saucepan, melt coconut oil, sunflower seed butter, honey and maple syrup.  Once melted add vanilla and sea salt
-remove from heat and pour into dry ingredients, mixing well
-once cooled a bit, add 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips, saving the remainder
-pour mixture into jelly roll pan and push down hard to flatten
-add remaining chocolate chips, sprinkling them on top and pushing them down
-let sit for 2-3 hours at room temperature and then cut into bars
-these can be individually wrapped and frozen for convenience
-ENJOY!

Breathe

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Have you ever paused in traffic, or on a busy sidewalk, or even in a huge line-up in the mall at Christmas and wondered, “What the heck are we all doing?” All bustling from place to place, everything so urgent, so important that we lack the courtesy to even be kind to one another anymore.

Being in the health and wellness field I’m in the wonderful position of being a listening ear, a trusted ally, a confidant.  And in the 10 years that I have been that person professionally for others, there have been a few common threads – one in particular that I feel connects more than have admitted.

We’re too busy.  We are trying to do too much, too fast, too often.  We have too many balls in the air – it doesn’t even resemble juggling anymore – it’s more like dodging the balls that are being fired at us faster than we can think or react.  How are we supposed to do all of this and be the very best and have the cleanest house and smartest kids and be fit and eat well and get that promotion and be that considerate partner to our spouse…walk the dog two times a day, keep up with laundry mountain, bake allergen free cupcakes for the kid’s fundraisers, keep up with social media, answer all those texts….oh and have time to compare ourselves to everyone else we see online who seems to have it all together and have great hair?

Even as I type this my mind keeps flitting to my to-do list, wondering if I actually even have time to be writing this right now.  But I need to.  So many of my lovely clients and dear friends have been coming to me lately, telling me of their feelings of being overwhelmed, of feeling lost, feeling inadequate, getting panic attacks in the middle of nowhere.  Anxiety and depression are real but many of us don’t even have time to acknowledge that is what is going on or know where to start in getting better.

I wish we could all just stop.  And breathe.  And look around us and see there are really very few things that TRULY matter.  Hold those things and people close to you and press pause on everything else.

There’s been a big movement to go through all of our physical possesions and purge what does not bring us joy.  Well, maybe we should purge our lives of the things that steal our time and attention, our health and our joy – the things that don’t matter, that won’t mean anything in 5 minutes let alone 5 years.  Let those things go.  And breathe.

Health Renovation

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Have you ever renovated your house or a room in your house?  It’s a big job.  A whole house renovation goes through many stages, it takes time to see the final result and a whole lot of work goes into the process.  When you see before and after pictures it looks fast, easy and painless but for those who have lived through it you know it’s anything but. It’s a process.

Before spending time and money renovating, the first thing to ensure is that the foundation, electrical and plumbing is intact.  Only then do you start patching walls, painting and filling the house with more permanent fixtures.

Renovating a home takes patience.  Lots and lots of patience.  But at the end, when everything works perfectly and looks just the way you imagined, it all becomes worth it.

Renovating a house is similar to renovating yourself.  The word renovation isn’t often heard in conjunction with health but I think that’s really how we should be looking at it.  It is often called a health “transformation” as though it’s as simple as snapping your fingers and ta-da – you’re transformed – but it is a process, too. It does not happen overnight.  It takes hard work, time and dedication.

Sure, you can do a quick “renovation” – throw paint on the walls, hang some curtains – but if you neglect the leaking plumbing or the poor electrical then you will end up having to rip out and undo all of the work you did later on.

It’s the same thing for quick fix health solutions.  You can mask symptoms or lose a quick 10 pounds with one of the many fad diets but if you don’t heal the underlying issues like the foundation (gut, digestive system), plumbing (detoxification/elimination pathways) and electrical (brain, nervous system) you will end up with the same or worse health issues later on.

Take the time to do it right.  Get to the root of the issue.  Heal the gut. Start to absorb the nutrients you eat. Detoxify and support the liver. Create a sustainable, lifelong health plan.

If you’re ready to begin a health renovation, I can help.  My Health Renovation 6 Week Program begins January 14, 2019.

What exactly is the Health Renovation Program all about? In 6 weeks you will learn:

-how to heal the gut and repair your digestive system

-what foods are inflammatory and cause damage to your gut and digestive system

-what foods support healing and disease prevention

-how to support your liver and detoxification process

-what foods promote healthy elimination (bowel movements)

-how to enable your body to handle stress more efficiently and support your nervous system

-how to create simple meals for yourself that are healthy, nutritious, sustainable and delicious

-how simple lifestyle changes can positively enhance your health

What else do you get?

-access to an online community support group where you can ask questions, share recipes and connect with like-minded individuals

-a detailed powerpoint presentation that clearly outlines all the topics and aspects that you will learn as outlined up above

-unlimited communication with me via email/messenger regarding any and all questions you may have throughout the duration of the challenge

The challenge begins JANUARY 14, 2019.  The cost is $35.  Take charge of your health and join me for this lifechanging challenge.  Register by January 7 and receive a free 10 day meal plan plus 5 healthy snack ideas and tips for kitchen essentials!

Signing up is easy!  Simply click here to send me an email to get started!