There are many reasons why being vegan is so good for you, and the benefits go beyond just your health. In this article I discuss 10 different reasons why eating a vegan diet is beneficial for your health.
In later articles I will discuss reasons why being vegan is the best option out there for food choices including; animal welfare, environmental awareness, and cost effectiveness.
I will be coming out with meal planning guides, cook books, and potentially workshops on topics that will aid vegan enthusiasts in their endeavours to being vegan. This may not be for awhile yet, but as demand sets in I will be eager to help those who seek it!
Onto today’s topic of 10 reasons why vegan diets are healthier for you!
1. Improved digestion
When one eats a vegan diet they incorporate way more fruits, veggies, whole grains, and legumes into their diet. This means fibre! Anyone who has lived with me knows that I am crazy about fibre. Fibre maintains the powerhouse of your gut health. Vegan foods are rich in fibre making toilet time shorter and easier.
Do not forget, an increase in fibre intake means that there must also be an increase in water intake in order to properly digest, so do not forget about your water bottle!
Digestion plays a role in more than just one's ability to break down food and extract nutrients, but also, influences hormones such as leptin which is produced in the gut to signal to your brain that you are full. Ghrelin is another hormone that does the opposite and tells you when you are hungry. The health of the digestion tract influences the production of key hormones.
2. Improved skin, hair, and nail health
Skin, hair, and nail health is improved with a vegan diet because of the increase in vegetables, fruits and whole grains eaten. These foods contain higher amounts of vitamins and minerals that pertain to stronger and better quality nails and hair as well as clarity of the skin.
Vitamins A, C, and E are attributed to skin, hair, and nail health because it promotes the growth of these tissues on the body. Foods such as bananas, cucumbers, watermelon, and avocados have high amounts of these vitamins. Minerals such as manganese, magnesium, and potassium are also found in larger amounts in fruits and vegetables.
Great egg replacements or additions to smoothies is flax, hemp, and chia seeds. These contain healthy fats and omegas which are beneficial for skin, hair, and nail health. Though the form that these plant based omegas come in are different from those found in fish, they are still needed and used by the body.
3. Improved energy levels
Energy levels are improved by a vegan diet due to many factors. Firstly, because meat protein is harder to digest so your body uses more energy for digestion. Secondly, because the foods being eaten contain energy (electricity), and life that gives your body nutrients, minerals, and proteins different from meat. Lastly, energy levels improve because a vegan diet decreases fat storage.
I found that when I first went vegan my energy levels were higher, I had more motivation, I could walk farther before getting out of breath, I wanted to do more. I attributed this to feeling less weighed down by what I was eating.
Eat life and energy to feel life and energy. Humans are electrical beings, so we need to consume electrical foods for energy to conduct through our being.
4. Improved brain function & memory
Brain function and memory are improved by the vegan diet because of the higher intake of foods such as nuts, seeds, and beans. These contain healthy fats and proteins that the brain requires in order to build neurotransmitter pathways.
There is a reason that walnuts are shaped like a brain, they are brain food. Walnuts are my absolute favourite when it comes to nuts because they are filling, taste good, and good for you in many ways.
Memory is also influenced by mineral intake, with a vegan diet done right you eat foods high in minerals and electrolytes for the brain to increase elasticity, build new cells, and store information longer.
Vegan diets have also been linked to a decrease in the likelihood of developing dementia, due to the aforementioned reasons!
5. Improved heart health
Plant proteins contain healthy fats that do not clog arteries, unlike meat protein which causes the heart to work harder. Eating less meat even can show a decrease in plaque in one's arteries.
Oils, meat, and dairy all contain high fats that cause a buildup of plaque and fat in the arteries because it tricks the body into storing it. The buildup of plaque and fat storage cause the heart to work harder from moving more mass and pumping blood through thinner pathways. A vegan diet acts as a natural internal cleaner.
Heart health is also attributed to vegan foods being lower in sodium and cholesterol than meat and dairy. Of course, the pre-made, processed vegan foods may actually be higher in sodium than meat products, but going vegan isn’t about replacing ground beef with ground round, it is about replacing beef with lentils or beans for a completely different taste profile.
6. Improved mental health
Receiving all the vitamins, minerals, and proteins that nature intended for us to consume, one’s mental state can be improved as well. Not to discredit the potential for natural imbalances in the brain which cause many mental health issues.
It has been proven that consuming B12 can decrease symptoms of anxiety. Consumption of specific forms of omegas such as DHA and EPA can ease symptoms of depression. These compounds are easily found in a vegan diet or through vegan supplements and are not required to come from animal products.
Animal products such as cheese have addictive characteristics and can do more harm than good. Same goes for fish being claimed as the best source of omegas. Fish does have omegas, but it also has incredibly high concentrations of heavy metals found in water from pollution and natural decomposition from flooding. You don’t get these heavy metals from walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, or hemp seeds!
Additionally, vegan diets can improve one’s relationship with themselves. If one feels stressed or depressed about their body, a vegan diet can give hope for a healthier, better feeling body that is not weighed down by dead proteins.
I can attest to a vegan diet aiding in mental health improvement. I struggled with some body dysmorphia, catastrophic thinking, and anxiety. With a vegan diet my mindset has been transformed and I struggle significantly less on a daily basis.
7. Improved sleep quality
Sleep quality is improved by eating a vegan diet mainly due to mineral intake being more regular and in larger amounts. The serotonin found in bananas and cherries to the magnesium found in many vegetables and fruit contribute to better sleep quality.
The body needs sufficient minerals to create the hormones for sleeping and relaxation. When there is a lack of minerals, sleeping is harder to come by, maintain, and one will not wake up feeling rested.
Serotonin and melatonin are related and work together for sleep quality. Both are hormones created in the brain, though the minerals and proteins needed to create these compounds come from what you eat.
Sleep quality is also improved because of weight management and feeling of satisfaction not overly fullness from meat proteins and your body is digesting your food faster and more efficiently so you aren’t digesting rather than resting.
8. Weight management
Finally, the big section everyone wants to know more about! Weight management comes from the efficiency of one's body to convert food into energy. When food and the body have an inefficient relationship, fat storage takes over and prevents the body from being able to efficiently break down all aspects of what were eaten.
In addition to being able to digest food more efficiently, the types of food eaten play a role in fat storage. Vegan diets often include significantly more fruits and veggies which are the easiest for the body to digest. This means higher efficiency and lower likelihood of the food being converted into fat storage rather than immediate energy.
When I went from a meat eating diet to vegetarian I lost approximately 20lbs my first semester of college. When I went vegan, I lost another 10lbs or so. When I started college I weighed 160lbs, by the end of my first year away from home eating meat and less healthy options, I weighed 130lbs and have maintained this weight for the most part.
If weight is a struggle or concern for you, it is best to assess what may be causing it. It could be caused by diet, lack of exercise, stress, poor sleep, or it could be a medical issue. Keep this in mind when making goals for yourself
9. Improved hormone function
As I have touched on briefly in other sections is how a vegan diet can better aid in regulating hormone production in one's body. Hormones essentially run your body and have more impact than most people are aware.
For all of the women out there that struggle with hormone irregularities, before deluding to medications, consider your diet! Hormone irregularities are shown through longer periods, heavier periods, no periods, irregular periods, and influence how and when you ovulate. Eating a healthy diet can significantly help the hormone pathways become unblocked and allow your body to find its natural rhythm. Some things, though, are genetically programmed into our bodies, but some are not. Find out about your genes and make your own inferences of what is related to lifestyle choices.
Hormones impact your metabolism and thyroid, brain function, sleeping abilities, hunger, sexual inhibitions, skin, nail, and hair health, and weight management, so having fully functioning hormone pathways is essential to a healthy body.
10. Improved inflammation
Lastly, a vegan diet can improve inflammation throughout the body. Inflammation of the bowels is a common problem, and what one eats can significantly influence how they move waste through their system.
Vegetables, fruits, herbs, whole grains will decrease inflammation, where meat, dairy, and animal byproducts will cause inflammation. They don’t cancel eachother out when eaten together, the inflammatory foods take over. Eating herbs such as turmeric, ginger, goldenrod, dandelion root, blueberries, etc... are beneficial for inflammation and with time, can aid in reducing inflammation and reversing damage.
Inflammation can impact the body beyond being uncomfortable, but it impacts the functioning capacity, mental capacity, and physical capacity. Within days of eating only vegan whole foods inflammation can be noticeably relieved! This isn’t because herbs and veganism are a magical cure, but because we are giving our bodies exactly what they are trying to tell us they need which is shown as pain and inflammation.
Summary
Following a vegan lifestyle is just getting you one step closer to achieving the health goals that you have made. Of course, to achieve any goal there is usually a plan involved that has multiple aspects to it.
Part of a healthy vegan lifestyle includes exercise or movement, mindfulness, and working through one's own trauma and drama. Changing your dietary preferences may be the first step to being aware of these aspects of your life. As well as, building a healthy relationship with yourself.
Meat, meat byproducts, high saturated oily fatty foods, and highly processed foods can inhibit brain function and awareness making one easier to influence. Therefore, making decisions will be of sound mind and body when making them while eating clean.
Please, as a disclaimer, I am not a doctor and have never claimed to be a trained practitioner in health medicine. Before making the decision to go vegan if you aren’t already, consult your doctor or health care practitioner if you are concerned about a vegan diet being harmful for you.
Some health care practitioners may try to persuade you not to be vegan, but that is a rant for another day. Do what feels right for you, it is your body and you know how you want it to feel. Just do it right!
Do your own research, never take one person's word for anything. Critical thinking is becoming harder to come by these days, so question everything for your own benefit. Would you go into a forest to eat a mushroom that one guy on YouTube said you should try? Neither would I! Fact check everything.
A clean diet is grounds for a clean mind. Food is medicine!
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