Veganism is more popular now than it has ever been before. There are various reasons why people are making the switch to a vegan diet including health consciousness, animal welfare and environmental awareness. Whatever your reasons for going vegan, it is really important that you take the right steps in order to ensure that you stay committed to your new diet and that you don’t leave your body short of any nutrients that you need.
This article is a guide to healthy tips to help you start your vegan diet adventure.
1. Take the Right Supplements
This is so important because a plant-based diet won’t cover all of the vitamins and minerals that you need. When you become a vegan, you will have to take supplements to provide your body with all of the nutrients that you previously got from animal products. You can often get everything you need from just one pill and so that are suitable for vegans, look out for ones that include these three things; vitamin B12, vitamin D and DHA.
B12 is responsible for cell production and if your B12 levels drop too low you can get anemia and become very, very ill. There is no vitamin B12 in plant products so taking a B12 supplement is absolutely essential. Vitamin D is very important, especially if you live somewhere that isn’t very sunny. A lack of vitamin D can affect many things including your hair, skin and immune system. DHA the fatty acid that is found in omega-3 rich foods like fish and which is vital for brain development and heart health.
2. Ease into It
For most people, it is usually not a good idea to go cold turkey, especially if you are switching from a diet that was meat and animal product heavy. If you cut out everything all at once, you may experience severe . Many people who try to turn vegan overnight find themselves cranky, sleeping all the time, angry for no reason, as well as needing to go to the bathroom frequently.
You can easily shock your body by making such a dramatic diet change and the effects can be really unpredictable. Some new vegans have described hair loss, an increase in colds and flu, and just a general malaise. Perhaps try going pescatarian first, then transition to a vegetarian, and finally progress to an all-out vegan.
3. Fill Your Fridge
Despite what many people believe, vegans have an incredibly and this third tip is really the exciting part. Fill your fridge with all kinds of wonderful, colorful whole foods like fruits, vegetables and greens. You might also want to have some meat substitutes like tofu and you should be cooking a lot of beans as well.
If you are worried about giving up dairy, then rest assured; there are a lot of wonderful vegan cheese and milk on the market. Coconut milk, almond milk and oat milk are all so delicious and you can use them in your smoothies and on your cereal so you will find that giving up dairy is far easier than you expected.
There are so many benefits to becoming a vegan and with so many animal-free products and recipes these days, there has never been a better time to make the switch. Try out the tips in this guide and you will find that switching to a plant-based diet is one of the best decisions you will ever make.
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