There’s a lot us meat eaters can learn from a vegan lifestyle. And if I haven’t put you off already, I challenge you to read on.

Following a vegan diet is not a new dietary choice, however, population research shows that it is becoming more popular. More than ever we are finding niche cafes popping up in our major cities catering specifically for the vegan/vegetarian lifestyle. The V-Spot Cafe and Sweet Bones Bakery are the two that come to my mind here in the capital.

For many vegans, the choice to completely eliminate animal products has less to do with health and more to do with strong ethical convictions about the treatment and use of animals. Not to mention the effect that our current food system has on our environment.

With that being said, the health benefits of vegan diets have been well documented. Vegan diets are typically higher in dietary fibre, vitamin C, vitamin E, folic acid, potassium, magnesium and phytochemicals (health promoting chemicals naturally occurring in fruit and vegetables). They’re also lower in saturated fats (typically thought to increase heart disease risk) and cholesterol. Population studies also show that compared to omnivores, vegans typically have lower BMIs (body mass index – a ratio of weight to height), are vernally thinner, and have lower rates of Type 2 diabetes.

Like I said, there’s a lot we can learn from the vegan diet.

Vegetable and fruit consumption

The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommends regular consumption of vegetables and fruit to promote long-term health. Specifically two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables should make it into our stomachs every day. The last survey of Australians from 2011-12 found that only 6.8 per cent of Australians were eating the recommended serves each day. This is a pretty shocking statistic and is perhaps the single biggest predictor of long-term health in our country beside lack of physical activity and smoking.

Cutting out all animal products (meat, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy) means that the food choices of the vegan eater become somewhat limited. Vegetables are the star of the show in a smart vegan diet, without which, the vegan eater puts themselves at considerable risk of vitamin/mineral deficiency.

The key that we can take from this – and I’m sure that all nutritionists and dietitians would agree – is that despite your attitude towards animal products, vegetables should be the star of the show. I recommend all my clients to fill half their dinner plate with non-starchy vegetables at as many meals as they possibly can. This leads to the immediate health benefits of weight loss, better bowel motility, higher levels of satiation and a stronger immune system. The long-term effects of an adequate vegetable intake include a decreased risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers.

In fact, recent research suggests that with every additional serve of vegetables into your daily diet, you decrease your risk of death from heart disease by 5 per cent. This is huge!

I’ve had clients lose weight by implementing this one recommendation alone. Eat more vegetables. Seriously. Do it.

Not sure how? Here’s a great article over at The Healthy Eating Hub that will tell you how to include more vegetables into your day.

Special planning required

Due to the removal of animal-based foods, vegan diets can be lacking in a few key nutrients. Namely good quality protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, long chain omega 3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA), iron and zinc. This means that a smart vegan diet requires careful planning to ensure that particular foods are regularly included to minimise risk of deficiencies. This involves planning specific meals, shopping appropriately, cooking in bulk and keeping the kitchen stocked with appropriate food choices.

The key we can take from this is that we’re all busy. Healthy, good quality food is predominantly fresh, has a short shelf life and requires some kind of preparation. Due to the nature of the way we live our lives, unless we’re prepared and we’ve organised ourselves enough to eat well, we’ll end up relying predominantly on convenience foods that tend to be poor sources of nutrition and contain excess energy through unnecessary amounts of sugar and/or fat.

A culture of excess and food being accessible almost everywhere you go means you actually have to think about your food choices in advance and plan accordingly. I’ve been working with people to change their eating habits for a long time. There just is no other way, unless you can afford a personal chef for the rest of your life. And in that case, I’m expensive, but you’d eat awesomely!

Removal of unhealthy foods

All the research discussing the health benefits of a vegan or vegetarian diet compared to the diet of an omnivore isn’t the type of research that can establish a causal relationship. In other words, they can’t say that a vegan diet is healthier than an omnivorous diet. They can just conclude that those who follow a vegan lifestyle tend to have better indicators of long-term health.

There are a number of reasons why this would be the case. Many vegans are generally more health conscious and tend to plan their diets a lot more than their omnivore friends. Vegans tend to eat higher amounts of fruit and vegetables, a good predictor of long-term health.

For most different diet persuasions (vegan, vegetarian, paleo, etc.) you can have healthy versions and you can have not so healthy versions.

Smart vegan diets remove foods such as cream, lard, butter, bacon, ham, smoked salmon, cheese and other highly processed foods that can be energy dense and high in salt and fat. These foods are not always moderated in an omnivore’s diet and could also be the reason why those who lead a smart vegan lifestyle enjoy the associated healthy benefits.

Putting it all together

When thinking about good nutrition information, it’s important not to take extremes in the research or single out individual foods. Yes, some foods are more beneficial to our health than others, but more and more research is uncovering the fact that overall diet quality is more important than individual foods and/or nutrients.

If omnivores took a leaf (pun absolutely intended) out of a vegan’s book, ate plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, took the time to plan their meals and also moderated their intake of unhelpful foods, they too could experience the same health benefits as their vegan or vegetarian neighbours.

A well-balanced vegan diet

If you’ve recently decided that you’d like to follow a vegan diet, or you’re considering it, it’s important to carefully plan your food choices to ensure adequate nutrition.

Like any special diet that involves some kind of food avoidance, I would suggest carefully considering why you’re avoiding the foods. If it’s for a good reason, the next step is to cover your dietary bases by becoming a smart eater. Smart vegans don’t just remove animal products form their diet and keep the rest of their food choices the same. For more information on what smart vegans do have a read of The Smart Vegan Diet.