How to Go Vegan

There are plenty of reasons to go vegan, as more and more people are finding out. Vegan diets can be extremely healthy, since they contain no cholesterol and usually very few saturated fats. In particular, some people find that it's easier to maintain a healthy weight on a vegan diet.

Another common reason for a vegan lifestyle is ethical. Some animal rights activists believe that it is always exploitative to use animal products, while other people are just concerned that modern agricultural conditions are inhumane. There are also environmental and social reasons, since the grain that goes to feed commercial livestock could instead feed many more people than the meat of the animals will - thus, using the grain itself as food would leave more surplus for the hungry and cause less strain on the environment.

So What is a Vegan, Exactly?

True vegans avoid using any type of animal product as much as possible. These products include meat, poultry, fish, milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, yogurt, eggs, honey, leather, wool, silk, and some sugars . Of course, this also includes any product that uses even a small amount of these ingredients, such as cookies made with eggs and butter.

There are many hidden animal products too, since preservatives and other food chemicals are often derived from animals. You can see a much more comprehensive list here, although the simplest method to avoiding these is to eat natural foods that contain only whole ingredients you can identify.

Avoiding all animal products is virtually impossible since they are present in many ubiquitous items, including computer monitors and roads. However, vegans try to reduce their dependence on animal products dramatically, especially when there are alternatives.

On the other hand, some people may adopt a vegan diet for health reasons, but continue to use animal products in other aspects of their lives, although most vegans would agree that these people are technically not vegan.

What Do Vegans Eat?

Vegans eat all sort of foods made from plants. This includes fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, herbs, oils, and grains, plus all kinds of products made from these basic ingredients.

Common dishes that can often be eaten by vegans include vegetable stir-frys, soups, salads, curries, and side dishes, plus rice, italian bread, pasta marinara, french fries, hummus, nuts and nut butters, chips with salsa and guacamole, fruit, smoothies, many breakfast cereals, sorbet, dark chocolate, and much more.

Deciding to go vegan is also a great excuse to check out your local ethnic restaurants. Many cultures have a long history of vegetarian cuisine, so you can often find great options to get you out of the "meat and potatoes" mindset at Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Middle Eastern, Indian and Ethiopian restaurants. Do your research first, though, because you may discover hidden animal ingredients in some dishes.

Finally, there are lots of great specialty foods and substitutes available for vegans. Make sure to try tofu, tempeh, non-dairy milks made from soy or other ingredients, ice cream and yoghurt substitutes, veggie burgers and other subsitute "meats" and "cheeses". While you're at it, pick up some vegan sweets and snacks to satisfy your cravings, or check out this list of vegan comfort foods.

There are plenty of reasons to go vegan, as more and more people are finding out. Vegan diets can be extremely healthy, since they contain no cholesterol and usually very few saturated fats. In particular, some people find that it's easier to maintain a healthy weight on a vegan diet.

Another common reason for a vegan lifestyle is ethical. Some animal rights activists believe that it is always exploitative to use animal products, while other people are just concerned that modern agricultural conditions are inhumane. There are also environmental and social reasons, since the grain that goes to feed commercial livestock could instead feed many more people than the meat of the animals will - thus, using the grain itself as food would leave more surplus for the hungry and cause less strain on the environment.

So What is a Vegan, Exactly?

True vegans avoid using any type of animal product as much as possible. These products include meat, poultry, fish, milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, yogurt, eggs, honey, leather, wool, silk, and some sugars. Of course, this also includes any product that uses even a small amount of these ingredients, such as cookies made with eggs and butter.

There are many hidden animal products too, since preservatives and other food chemicals are often derived from animals. You can see a much more comprehensive list here, although the simplest method to avoiding these is to eat natural foods that contain only whole ingredients you can identify.

Avoiding all animal products is virtually impossible since they are present in many ubiquitous items, including computer monitors and roads. However, vegans try to reduce their dependence on animal products dramatically, especially when there are alternatives.

On the other hand, some people may adopt a vegan diet for health reasons, but continue to use animal products in other aspects of their lives, although most vegans would agree that these people are technically not vegan.

What Do Vegans Eat?

Vegans eat all sort of foods made from plants. This includes fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, herbs, oils, and grains, plus all kinds of products made from these basic ingredients.

Common dishes that can often be eaten by vegans include vegetable stir-frys, soups, salads, curries, and side dishes, plus rice, italian bread, pasta marinara, french fries, hummus, nuts and nut butters, chips with salsa and guacamole, fruit, smoothies, many breakfast cereals, sorbet, dark chocolate, and much more.

Deciding to go vegan is also a great excuse to check out your local ethnic restaurants. Many cultures have a long history of vegetarian cuisine, so you can often find great options to get you out of the "meat and potatoes" mindset at Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Middle Eastern, Indian and Ethiopian restaurants. Do your research first, though, because you may discover hidden animal ingredients in some dishes.

Finally, there are lots of great specialty foods and substitutes available for vegans. Make sure to try tofu, tempeh, non-dairy milks made from soy or other ingredients, ice cream and yoghurt substitutes, veggie burgers and other subsitute "meats" and "cheeses". While you're at it, pick up some vegan sweets and snacks to satisfy your cravings, or check out this list of vegan comfort foods.

Vegan Nutrition

A vegan diet can be very nutritious, and balancing it is not nearly as difficult as some people make it out to be. Sure, vegans can become malnourished, but mostly if they subsist on junk food like potato chips and white breads. Another mistake is to lean too heavily on salads and other raw foods -- don't do this, at least not until you're quite accustomed to the diet, since it can be hard to get enough calories. Include a variety of different colors of fruits and vegetables, some protein sources like beans, tofu, soy dairy, meat substitutes, or nuts, and a moderate amount of added fat. In fact, you may find that you can add more fat than you are used to and still lose weight, since most vegan foods are naturally lower in fat to begin with.

Many new vegans (and non-vegans) are concerned about getting enough protein, but this really isn't an issue for most people. While the USDA suggests a large daily protein intake, it's widely rumored that this is influenced by animal farmers, and a much lower level is actually required. It's also frequently mentioned that since pretty much all foods contain low levels of protein, there has never actually been a case of protein deficiency that wasn't also a case of starvation. If, on the other hand, you're trying not just to survive but to build muscle, you should be fine -- just increase your intake of the protein foods mentioned above.

Calcium and Iron can be issues for some vegans. You will likely have a reduced calcium intake if you're used to consuming a lot of dairy, but eating lots of dark green veggies should help, and it's also debatable how concerned you should be since while milk has a lot of calcium, it may also block calcium absorption to some extent, meaning that vegans actually require less calcium. Iron can be a valid concern, but you can probably increase your levels sufficiently by cooking in cast iron pans.

The main nutrient you should be aware of is vitamin B-12, which is rarely or never found in plant foods (some argue that it is present in fermented foods, but the jury is still out on this). B-12 is found in dirt, so this is probably how historical vegans managed to get enough. But dirt today isn't necessarily that healthy, so you should probably just wash your veggies and supplement with fortified products or a vitamin pill. Some vegans also choose to supplement their essential fatty acids or EFAs, healthy fats that are found in flax oil and a few other vegan foods.

For more on vegan nutrition, check out the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group of doctors that promotes vegan lifestyles and nutrition.

Vegan Cooking

If you don't cook already, it's probably a good time to learn. Since your commercial food options will be much more limited, especially if you don't want to pay a lot for gourmet specialty items, you can really do yourself a favor by learning to prepare your favorite foods with vegan substitutions (or discover new favorite foods that you can cook from scratch).

Many substitutions are very straightforward, for example, a cup of soy milk for a cup of milk, or a tablespoon of vegan margerine for a tablespoon of butter. One formula that's good to know is that one and a half teaspoons of cornstarch plus two tablespoons of liquid (part oil if you find that your recipes are consistently coming out dry) can be substituted for each egg in most baked goods.