Living Vegan For Dummies - Alexandra Jamieson [13]
The good news for vegans is clear: Even if you’re choosing to eat a cruelty-free diet for ethical or environmental reasons, you’ll still gain substantial health benefits. And improving your own health gives you the stamina needed to create a healthier, more positive world for the rest of life’s creatures!
What can a vegan eat?
As you transition to veganism, you’re bound to hear people say, “You don’t eat dairy? Or meat? What do you eat?” For strangely deep, emotional reasons, people will get passionately weird about your eating choices, but don’t let this scare or deter you.
The world is ripe with vegan options if you know how to look for them. And more than 300 vegan cookbooks are on the market, so you’ll never be at a loss for inspiration or delicious recipes. Table 1-1 provides a sample of vegan foods that most people eat regularly without realizing it. Included in the table are the nutrients that those vegan dishes provide.
To get started with your vegan culinary skills, check out Part IV. These chapters offer delicious, healthy vegan recipes to get you through breakfast, lunch, and dinner as well as snacks and desserts.
Is it a balanced diet?
At first you and your family may question whether you can get all the nutrition you need from a plant-based diet. The answer is absolutely! Protein, calcium, iron, and B12 are the main nutrients that newbie vegans need to pay attention to — and it’s so easy to get enough from whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, vegetables, fruit, and a couple of supplemental foods or vitamins.
Not only do vegans get enough protein, calcium, and iron, they get more fiber, vitamins, antioxidants, and phytochemicals than nonvegans. That’s because they tend to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables! Chapter 4 uncovers the truths about bone health, the mysteries behind common diet-induced diseases, and options for nutritional healing.
Table 1-1 Common Vegan Foods and Their Nutrients
Food
Nutrients
Beans and rice
Protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates
Garden salad with oil and vinegar
Fiber, phytonutrients, and monounsaturated fats
Coconut curry with vegetables and rice
Healthy fats, vitamin C, calcium, complex carbohydrates, and fiber
Hummus, pita bread, and olives
Protein, complex carbohydrates, and monounsaturated fats
Black bean dip, salsa, and guacamole with tortilla chips
Iron, protein, complex carbohydrates, fiber, vitamin C, and lycopene
Gazpacho and grilled corn on the cob
Vitamin A, and lycopene
Three-bean salad
Protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates
Lentil soup with whole-grain bread
Protein, fiber, iron, and complex carbohydrates
Oatmeal with almonds, raisins, and maple syrup
Protein, complex carbohydrates, iron, and fiber
Steamed broccoli, tofu, and brown rice
Calcium, iron, protein, and complex carbohydrates
Stir-fried vegetables with udon noodles
Complex carbohydrates, vitamin C, iron, and calcium
Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole-grain bread
Protein and complex carbohydrates
Couscous with chickpeas, parsley, garlic, and lemon
Complex carbohydrates, protein, iron, vitamin K, vitamin C, and fiber
Pasta primavera with white beans, olive oil, and basil
Fiber, complex carbohydrates, protein, and monounsaturated fats
Chapter 2
Understanding the Impact of Vegan Living
In This Chapter
Understanding the environmental effects of raising animals for food
Looking at what really happens to animals raised for consumption
Avoiding circuses and zoos
Four main areas of thinking inspire people to become vegan: health and environmental reasons, treatment of animals, and spiritual beliefs. These four main points have something grand in common — a deep, empathetic caring for others.
If you’ve chosen to live a vegan lifestyle, you’ve probably thought a lot about the impact your choices have on the world around you. As a conscious consumer and citizen of the world, you’ve begun to understand that everything you eat, do, buy, and use has an effect on someone else beside yourself. This understanding is what