"Vegan" and "Healthy" are, to many, synonymous terms. But the truth is that while eating a vegan diet carries a number of recognized health benefits, it can also lead to chronic deficiencies or imbalances if you don't take particular specific steps to keep healthy as a vegan.
Instructions
1. Enjoy a wide variety of foods. If you're only going to follow one step, make it this one; eating a wide variety of foods goes a long way toward ensuring that if one food is not adequately meeting your nutritional needs its shortcomings will be covered by the others.
2. Take in lots of protein in the form of soy, legumes, meat substitutes, nuts, seeds and whole grains.
3. Maintain adequate calcium intake for healthy bones and teeth. Dark leafy greens like kale, broccoli and spinach are usually good sources of calcium; other vegan options for calcium include supplements or fortified soy products or fruit juices.
4. Get adequate vitamin B-12 in your diet; B-12 is crucial for the creation of red blood cells and comes almost exclusively from animal products or by-products, so eliminating these from the diet may lead to anemia. Vegans can take in B-12 from fortified soy products, enriched cereals, or taking supplements.
5. Eat leafy greens, dried peas and beans, lentils and whole-grain products to maintain adequate iron intake, which is also crucial for preventing anemia. Eating foods rich in vitamin C at the same time you eat iron rich foods help your body to absorb the iron. Examples of foods rich in vitamin C include broccoli, citrus fruits, tomatoes and cabbage.
6. Continue eating whole grains as a good source of zinc as well. This mineral is crucial for enzymes, cell division and the formation of proteins.
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