The Benefits of Going Vegan

By Caroline Wimberly

A 2015 peer-reviewed study by Canadian academics comparing bias against target groups found that vegans and vegetarians were viewed more negatively than any other group except drug addicts.¹

Its fair to say that people adhering to a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle (often written jointly as veg*n) can easily feel estranged or ridiculed during social settings, holiday gatherings, or business meals. While there is much information about whether following a vegan (plant-based) diet can solve climate change (and to what degree), reverse cancer, or destroy an otherwise perfect dinner party, here is some information about the benefits of vegan diets.

Health

Almost all foods with near universal nutritional supremacy are plant-based: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. Humans can easily thrive on plants alone with a proper balance of diverse ingredients. Any necessary nutrients can be found in plants, with rare exceptions (like Vitamin B12), which can easily be found in fortified products or approved multivitamins. In fact, places around the world where people naturally live the longest dubbed Blue Zones are also the areas where people consume very little, if any, animal products.²

Though dairy products are marketed as bone strengtheners due to their high calcium content, the World Health Organization and other health researchers have pointed out the calcium paradox in which countries with higher calcium intake, especially from animal protein, also have higher rates of hip fractures. Its possible that animal proteins in dairy products have adverse effects on calcium intake that outweigh the high calcium concentration in those foods.³

While difficult to recommend any singular diet to broad swaths of people, its increasingly conceded by health and nutrition professionals that vegan or vegetarian diets can be healthy and appropriate for all stages of life.⁴

Environmental/Humanitarian

While repetitive, catastrophic news headlines can sometimes numb the general public instead of set off alarm bells, theres scientific consensus that our planet is in trouble.⁵ Several scientific reports, such as the EAT-Lancet Commission to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Climate Change and Land, detail the importance of reducing our reliance on animal products for public and planetary health.

Although it can be difficult to see on a local or even national level due to perceived abundance, the world has limited resources. Agriculture in general, but mostly animal agriculture, requires a huge amount of fresh water. While conflicts and migration over water access arent new, they will probably become more frequent and intense with more unpredictable weather patterns and global population growth.⁶ Adjusting to food production that requires less land, water, and other inputs will be increasingly important. Growing plants for direct human consumption is one of the easiest, most cost-effective ways to do this.

Forests play an essential role in regulating our climate as well as holding a huge amount of biodiversity. Also, many indigenous groups rely on these ecosystems for their continued survival, which theyve maintained for much longer than the industrial age.

Yet, an area of forest the size of the United Kingdom is lost each year, mostly due to demand for agricultural commodities like beef and soybeans (the top two sources of agricultural deforestation).⁷ About 75% of soybeans are turned into animal feed to supply intensively raised cattle, pigs, chickens, and fish (only around 6% are turned into products like tofu for human consumption).⁸ These land disruptions result in human rights crises, as local communities are displaced, and they are a leading cause of species extinction.

Food choice and diet are commonly viewed as personal decisions. While this is true, there are far-reaching implications for the foods we choose to produce and consume, most of which arent spelled out on any product label. The inequities in our food system are enabled by a veil of lengthy supply chains and willful ignorance. Investigating where food comes from and how it was produced, whether plant- or animal-based in origin, is a step towards reducing these inequities. As the old adage says, knowledge is power.

Sample Grocery List

Any vegan grocery list is probably going to weigh heavy on produce. While intimidating at first, produce-heavy diets are easy to adapt to in food preparation, and they are certainly tastier and more colorful. And for nights when time is limited, frozen and canned products are great to have on hand. Heres a sample grocery list:

Fresh
Leafy Greens
Mushrooms
Celery
Carrots
Potatoes
Onions
Garlic
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Lemons
Limes
Bananas
Herbs parsley, thyme, rosemary, chives, oregano, sage, etc.
Summer corn, tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers, artichokes, peaches, berries, beets, melons, lima beans, cherries, okra, summer squash
Fall squash, sweet potatoes, oranges, grapefruit, pumpkin, fennel, pomegranates
Winter Brussels sprouts, parsnips, rutabaga, turnips, pears, cabbage, fennel
Spring asparagus, fava beans, green beans, leeks, radishes, rhubarb

Nondairy Alternatives
Oat Milk (or any other plant-based milk)
Coconut Yogurt
Nut-Based Cream Cheese
Nondairy Butter Spread

Frozen
Edamame
Peas
Artichokes

Dry/Bulk
Nutritional Yeast
Dried Fruit
Nuts
Legumes
Whole Grains farro, barley, quinoa, brown rice

Canned/Packaged
Crushed Tomatoes
Sundried Tomatoes
Vegetable Stock
Canned Beans  
Gluten-Free Pasta
Nut Butter
Oatmeal
Coconut Palm Sugar
Spices

Its easy to be overwhelmed by the idea of going vegan, but dont let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Find a community, in person or online, to ask questions, look for inspiration, or simply feel a part of something. The most important thing is to find a path and lifestyle, including diet, that works for you.

Sources
1. MacInnis, Cara C., and Hodson, Gordon. It Aint Easy Eating Greens: Evidence of Bias toward Vegetarians and Vegans from both Source and Target. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, Vol. 20(6), 721-744. 2017. DOI.org/10.1177/1368430215618253
2. Buettner, Dan, and Skemp, Sam. Blue Zones: Lessons From the Worlds Longest Lived. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, Vol. 10(5), 318-321. July 2016. DOI.org/10.1177/1559827616637066
3. World Health Organization. Recommendations for preventing osteoporosis. WHO.int/nutrition/topics/5_population_nutrient/en/index25.html
4. Craig, W.J., Mangels, A.R., and American Dietetic Association. Position of the American Dietetic Association: Vegetarian Diets. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Vol. 109(7), 1266-82. July 2009. DOI.org/10.1016/j.jada.2009.05.027
5. Ripple, William J., et. al. World Scientists Warning of a Climate Emergency. BioScience, biz088. November 2019. DOI.org/10.1093/biosci/biz088
6. Fergusson, James. The World Will Soon Be at War Over Water. Newsweek, April 24, 2015. Newsweek.com/2015/05/01/world-will-soon-be-war-over-water-324328.html
7. New York Declaration on Forests Assessment Partners. Protecting and Restoring Forests: A Story of Large Commitments yet Limited Progress. Climate Focus, 2019. ForestDeclaration.org
8. Brack, D., Glover, A., and Wellesley, L. Agricultural Commodity Supply Chains: Trade, Consumption and Deforestation. Chatham House, 2016. ChathamHouse.org/publication/agricultural-commodity-supply-chains-trade-consumption-and-deforestation