Next up in our nutrition series is the vegan diet. It’s an approach that has grown in popularity over the last decade or so, going from a niche nutritional practice to a mainstream diet. In the last five years the number of vegans has quadrupled, with over 600,000 people in the UK now claiming to be full time vegan.
Few diets spark moral and ethical furore in the way that the vegan diet does, with supporters and opponents of the diet clashing in person, in the media and online. In this article we’re going to dig a little deeper into the diet, its effects on health and performance and finally, whether or not you should follow it.
What is the vegan diet?
The vegan diet is a diet containing no animal products in any form - even ethically raised and sourced. It differs from a ‘plant based’ diet in the sense that it removes animal products in their entirety, whereas plant based diets allow non-meat animal products such as eggs, cheese, milk and in some cases animal fats. In many ways it’s an ethical choice as much as nutritional one, but not all vegans are following the approach for moral reasons.
Is the vegan diet healthy?
This is a matter of huge debate and interest in nutritional circles, mostly because the evidence is non-conclusive in the sense that it depends on so many factors - the person eating it, their health status and their nutritional deficiencies. There are both positive and negative links to health outcomes regarding vegan diets, but unfortunately statistics and research are often twisted to back up a previously-held agenda.
The general consensus is that eating a largely plant based diet is a good thing. However, avoiding all animal products isn’t generally recommended for health because of the sheer diversity of vitamins, minerals and protein quality found in meat and fish.
A lot of people report feeling fantastic on a vegan diet, but in many cases this feeling is a relatively short-lived experience. The reason they feel better is because by being vegan they won’t be eating a lot of junk food and are likely to be eating far more fruit and vegetables. This factor alone is going to make you feel better - if you’ve gone from a diet of takeaway curries and fish and chips most nights to eating vegetables and drinking water, of course you’re going to feel better.
Despite the nutrient density of vegetables however, people following a plant-based or vegan diet are more likely to suffer from nutritional deficiencies because they are excluding food groups containing important complete amino acid profiles and associated minerals such as collagen. These can be supplemented, but it’s far more difficult when following a vegan diet.
What isn’t in doubt is that a diet high in fruit and vegetables is a good thing, given these foods are the most nutrient dense of all.
Veganism and exercise
Despite the low calorie element of a vegan diet, studies have shown that it’s easy for vegans to achieve adequate calorie intake to exercise well. What is of greater concern to an athlete is the amount of protein in the diet and in many vegans, protein intake and absorption has been shown to be significantly lower than recommended, which certainly will impact on recovery and subsequent muscle building.
Most studies suggest no clear differences in the physical performance in healthy young subjects, when they are ensuring adequate intake of all macro and micro nutrients within their diet. In fact, some studies even suggest that for endurance sports vegans seem to post higher VO2 max scores.
The effects of a vegan diet seem to impact various age brackets in different ways. There is evidence to suggest that in older populations, a vegan diet is less effective when it comes to maintaining and building muscle mass. This is particularly noteworthy, because maintenance of muscle mass as we age is a key factor in longevity, therefore it would suggest that in older populations a vegan diet is rather a bad idea.
When it comes to sporting performance the vegan documentary ‘What the Health’ has been heavily criticised for misleading the public, claiming certain athletes were vegan at the time of their sporting success, which has since been disproven. Examples include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Novak Djokovic and Lewis Hamilton. The reality is that at the top level of sports, there are very few vegans.
What is important is that you don’t look at a few examples and extrapolate too much meaning from them. For example, using a handful of successful vegan athletes as justification for going vegan yourself is nonsensical - it’s like taking up smoking because you heard of a smoker who lived to 100.
Should you go vegan? Final thoughts…
The first question to ask yourself here is what would be the reasons for going vegan?
If it’s because you think you’d be healthier, chances are that’s not the case. You’re more likely to be nutrient deficient if you follow a vegan diet than an omnivorous one. You can always eat more fruit and vegetables alongside your meat and fish if you were worried about your fibre/vitamin intake.
If your reasons are because you don’t want to eat animal products, that’s a whole different ball game. If they’re your reasons, go ahead. Just be aware that you’re likely to be making yourself less healthy, you’re going to be missing out on some vital minerals and amino acids unless you supplement well, it’s likely to cost you a lot more money and finally, your eating will be a lot more restricted and difficult.
Generally speaking, veganism isn’t a great idea for many. It’s certainly more difficult to get right and be healthy with, it’s far more restrictive and there are simpler diets to follow.
At AdMac Fitness we’re not about fads, fashions and short term fixes. We want you to succeed properly over the long term, so with our help and advice you can get your fitness back on track! If you’d like us to help you, contact us on 07921465108 or email us at admacfitness@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!
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