CR5 Issue 175 January 2020

The Healthy Way to Do
Veganuary
Over the last few years, growing concerns about the
environmental cost of eating meat and dairy products
have transformed veganism from a fringe dietary
choice to an everyday concept embraced by more
and more people. Unsurprisingly, then, Veganuary
– founded in 2014 to encourage people to go vegan
throughout January – is more popular than ever.
However, if you’re going vegan for a whole month
or more, it’s important to understand how to get the
vital nutrients you usually might get predominantly
from meat or dairy.
Protein
One of the most often voiced concerns about
veganism is that a plant-based diet makes it hard to
meet your protein requirements. But with knowledge
and planning, it’s perfectly possible to get all the
protein you need from a vegan diet.
Proteins are made up of amino acids, which fall into
three categories:
• Non-essential amino acids: this misleading name
doesn’t mean they’re non-essential to our health,
but that they’re non-essential to our diet, as our
bodies can produce them.
• Conditional amino acids: only normally required in
our diet if we’re ill or under stress, when the body
may not be able to make enough to cope with
increased demand.
• Essential amino acids: amino acids our bodies can’t
make, so they are ‘essential’ elements of a healthy
diet.
Essential Amino Acids
There are nine essential amino acids and between
them, they perform functions such as: hormone,
energy, neurotransmitter, protein, haemoglobin
and enzyme production; mineral absorption; muscle
growth; detoxification; blood sugar regulation and
wound healing. You do not need to eat essential
amino acids at every meal, but you do need to include
them all in your meals over the day.
There are a few foods that provide all nine
essential amino acids in good quantity, including
soy, quinoa and buckwheat, so incorporating
at least one of these into your meals every day
is an easy way to ensure you’re getting all your
essential amino acids. Quorn products contain
all nine too, but check you’re buying the vegan
rather than vegetarian options that often include
egg. Spirulina is blue or green algae that’s high in
protein, iron, manganese and B vitamins (although
not B12). It’s available as a supplement or as a
powder that can be added to meals or drinks.
Some other dietary sources:
Phenylalanine: lentils, beans, nuts (particularly
peanuts, pistachios and almonds), seeds
(pumpkin, squash, watermelon and chia), and
vegetables (kale, broccoli and baked potatoes).
Valine: tofu, lentils, pumpkin seeds, peanuts,
mushrooms, whole grains, figs, apricots, kidney
beans and vegetables (broccoli and baked
potatoes).
Threonine: lentils, watercress, spinach, sesame
seeds, kidney beans, almonds, walnuts, asparagus
and wheat germ.
Tryptophan: sesame seeds, sunflower seeds,
chickpeas and almonds.
Methionine: grains, peanuts, tempeh and seeds.
Leucine: tofu, tempeh, lentils, figs, apples, beans,
legumes, seeds (hemp, pumpkin and sunflower).
Isoleucine: lentils, beans (black, pinto), nuts,
seeds, apples, blueberries.
Lysine: black beans, lentils, pumpkin seeds.
Histidine: tofu, lentils, beans, oat bran, pumpkin
seeds and whole grains.
Minerals and vitamins
Iron:
Men aged 18 and over need about 8.7mg of iron
a day, while women (aged 19 to 50 years) need
about 14.8mg a day, and women over 50 just
8.7mg of iron a day. Sources: pulses (beans, lentils
and peas), nuts, dried fruit such as raisins, darkgreen
vegetables (watercress, broccoli and spring
greens), cereals fortified with iron, wholegrains
such as brown rice and brown bread (two slices
of wholemeal bread (80g) contain around 1.9mg
of iron).
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