Vegan Meal Planning

By Denise DeWitt HERWriter

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If you have chosen to eat a vegan diet, you have made the decision to eliminate all meat and animal products from your food selections. While this kind of diet can have health benefits including lower cholesterol and reduced risk of heart disease and obesity, limiting your food options also means you need to use special care to make sure you are getting all the nutrients your body needs to stay healthy.

There are many sources of vegan recipes available on the internet, as well as many comprehensive guides to help you plan your diet. Try these vegan recipe links to help you get started:

• The Vegan Society recipes
• Food.com recipes
• Recipes at AARP
• AllRecipes.com

The Vegan Society website also offers several nutrition guides to help ensure your diet is nutritionally complete. Their recommendations for meal planning include:

• Eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables every day, including foods of different colors to ensure you get a good selection of nutrients.
• Eat whole grains rather than refined grains to get the best nutrients. Many nutrients are lost in the refining process.
• Look for fats containing omega 3s, such as rapeseed oil. Avoid hydrogenated oils.
• Limit salt

Although some people may worry about getting enough protein in a vegan diet, eating a combination of beans, lentils, tofu, soy, seeds, and nuts can easily fill this nutritional need as long as you eat a good variety of them each day.

Vitamin B12 and calcium are two nutrients of concern for vegans, since non-vegans get most of these nutrients which are critical for bone health from milk and other dairy products. Vegans should be sure to read labels carefully and look for fortified cereals and dairy substitutes such as soy milk that contain these added ingredients. Dark leafy vegetables are also a good source of calcium.

Iron is necessary for production of healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body. Vegans can get the iron they need from dried beans, dark leafy vegetables, and fortified dairy substitutes.

The body is better able to absorb iron when vitamin C is also included in the meal. Vegan recipe planning should include a good mix of nutrients in every meal.

Sources:

The Mainstreaming of Vegan Diets. HealthDay. Web. January 9, 2012.
http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=656882

The Vegan Society. Vegan Nutrition. Web. January 9, 2012.
http://www.vegansociety.com/lifestyle/nutrition/

Medline Plus. Vegetarianism. Web. January 9, 2012.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002465.htm

Reviewed January 11, 2012
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith

Add a Comment1 Comments

Anonymous

Mostly good information except about milk being good for calcium. Animal protein actually leaches out calcium from the body and that is why so many Americans suffer from osteoporosis and hip fractures. Counties that eat or drink little animal protein have the least amount of problems. Here is more about how Harvard School of Public Health feels about it: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/harvard-declares-dairy-not-part-of-healthy-diet.html

January 11, 2012 - 10:23am

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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.