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Testing the impact of the vegan diet
One study supplemented Kenyan schoolchildren with three different types of soup (meat, milk and oil) as a snack over seven school terms.
The children who ate the soup containing meat each day had a significant edge: they outperformed all the other children on a test for non-verbal reasoning. The children who received meat soup or soup with added oil did the best on arithmetic ability.
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Veganism is one of the fastest-growing millennial trends. In the United States, it grew by 600% between 2014 and 2017.
Recent concern about the nutritional gaps in plant-based diets has led to warnings, such as restricted brain development and irreversible damage to a person's nervous system.
Several essential nutrients are not available from plants or fungi. Creatine, carnosine, taurine, EPA and DHA omega-3, haem iron and vitamins B12 and D3 generally only occur naturally in foods from animal products.
The nutrients found in vegan foods are minimal. To get the minimum amount of vitamin B6 each day from the richest plant sources, you'd have to eat about five cups worth of potatoes.
Vitamin B12 is only found in animal products like eggs and meat.
Low B12 is widespread in vegans. There are some cases of children whose brains failed to develop because of their vegan parents.
Later in life, the IQ is directly correlated with the amount of B12 in a person's blood. the brains of those with lower B12 is six times more likely to be shrinking.
Iron plays a prominent role in brain development and is essential throughout our lives. One study found that giving women iron supplements led to intellectual gains. In those whose blood iron levels improved, their cognitive performance increased between five- and seven-fold.
Those adopting a vegan diet are particularly prone to iron deficiency. The form most readily absorbed by the body is only found in animal proteins.
Some of the essential nutrients can be acquired from supplements. However, nutrients such as taurine are easily overlooked. Others are so obscure that vegans are unlikely to have even heard of them.
- There are small amounts of taurine in some dairy products, but the primary dietary sources are meat and seafood. Vegetables do not contain taurine.
- Choline is found in eggs, beef and seafood. People who consume eggs tend to have almost double the choline levels and enjoy a lasting cognitive edge.
- Creatine supplies our cells with energy. Vegans and vegetarians have deficient levels in their bodies.
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If someone can find vegan food in pubs, restaurants, and fast food outlets, then the spillover to a vegan lifestyle will be easier.
However, there is a risk that nutrient deficiencies might develop over time that will not be immediately apparent, like tiredness with low B12 levels, infertility with low iron or osteoporosis from a calcium deficiency.
- They may have more saturated fatty acids (beef and dairy especially)
- They may have more omega-3 fatty acids (fish especially)
- They don’t contain any fiber or carbohydrates.
- They tend to be very high in protein.
If you need a lot of protein in your diet, meat is a great way to satisfy that need.
Since this diet is focused on having you eat more plants and plant-based protein like beans, lentils, and tofu. You can also mix it up with whole grains, potatoes, eggs, avocados, and even fish.
While there are no off-limit foods, keep in mind that its goal is to eat less meat so it is also important to keep in mind to limit the intake of poultry, red meat, pork, and animal fats.