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vegan health

CuriousCub-
One of the first vegetarian nutrition guides (written in the 70s) made a big deal about combining proteins. The author has since revised her view to the one ebola! stated, which is now the accepted view on protein intake.

DHA is essential to memory, eye sight and other brain functions. Many people have deficiencies. If you've never heard of it, maybe you should read more about nutrition.
 
i said i've never heard about DHA being a big deal or a point of focus on either sides of the spectrum, period. I've never heard of DHA deficiency being common among veg-diets either. With that said, i am wondering just how essential this nutrient is, since i have not seen, in all the vast publications talking about a plant-based diet, it ever be a focal point.

Vitamin B12 is overrated too. any basic multivitamn gives more than 5X the daily recommendation. Further, majority of foods and beverages are supplemented with it. Soy/rice/almond milk typically have a massive 50% of the RDA per serving alone. I drink more than 4 servings of those milks a day. I'm not trying to preach to the choir, i just think DHA may be getting similar hype that B12 generates.
 
^I agree that b12 may me over hyped. However, a b12 deficiency can be life threatening.

A DHA deficiency is not life threatening like a b12 deficency, but DHA is important. The only source of DHA is algae, so vegans don't get any (from fish) unless they eat a TON of algae or take supplements.

The books "Becoming Vegan" and "Nutrition for Dummies" both dedicate several pages to DHA and other omega-3 fatty acicids. So while DHA isn't a HUGE focus of health, it is very important (which is reflected by the attention payed to it in nutrition litturature (sp?).

On a personal note, I was vegan for a year before learning about DHA. Since I started taking supplements, my memory, my vision, and my other cognitive facilities have improved greatly.

I'm just currious, have you read nutrition liturature extensively?
 
^^flaxseed and hemp have those omega acids, so they too are another source of DHA.

yea i have read nutrition literature extensively, but how extensive are you talking?
i've certainly read enough to be able to authoritively question how the hell R.Ds and nutrionists got through school and got hired with knowing next to nothing about different diets like raw foodism.

on the note of supplements, most vegans i know don't even take ANY, and do fine. The raw foodists i know don't take any either, because vitamins aren't raw. As for me, i take supplements and vitamins, especially calcium.

b12 is overhyped because b12 deficiencies, while life threatening, are VERY RARE. B12 is the most abundant vitamin in a multi-v, and it's heavily fortified in almost every processed meal and drink. I point it out because so many people i've talked to think that if you are depressed, you must have a b12 deficiency, likewise if you are vegan. it is the most asinine rationale i've ever heard considering how much b12 one is able to get without even trying on a daily basis. b12 is stored in your body so you don't even have to replenish it on a daily basis like you would vitamin C or calcium.
 
While I find contradicting information on the internet, the book "Becoming Vegan" maintains that DHA is only found in algea and fish. It says omega-3 is found in hemp and flax seed.

You probably won't notice the effects of a DHA efficency, but you will notice the effects of a proper DHA intake.

If you haven't tried it, pick up a bottle and see what I mean.
 
Flaxseed meal does wonders. You can replace oil to flaxseed 3:1 in anything, I love doing it in cupcakes. It contains so much good cholesterol & essentials..

I once thought cake and cupcakes were bad until I discovered the incredible combo of soymilk, flaxseed, egg replacer, and natural sugars.
 
i am completely vegan, so how would i be able to take DHA if it is only sourced from animals? if it were so necessary, why would it only be found in the most unlikely and difficult consumable sources? people in landlocked states may not have good access to fish or algae, for example.
i am wondering the same thing about iodine, which is only found in sea vegetables. because of its rarity, people idiodize table salt or get iodine from their multi-v. it is essential for thyroid health, but extremely hard to acquire naturally for majority of people.
 
DHA's original source is algae, not fish. I'm preatty sure that DHA supplements come from algae. Look in the supplement section of your local health store.

Around me, they unfortunately only come in gelatin caps.

Its almost impossible to be a good vegan sometimes... :(

I don't know about iodine, I figure my iodine salt and multi v is enough. I have no idea of its source though.
 
oh, the gelatin capsules isnt the big bother for me. I look at it the same i way i look at films: To watch a movie isn't vegan, because film celluloid has animal-based product in it. I get many pills prescriped, and they all have some animal-based product in them, as binders. I can't help that. I admit to what i cannot help, and i try not to feel too bad about it, because in every other damn area of my life, i am vegan...from the shampoo i use to some of the shoes i wear.
 
yeah in cases like that it really is pretty pointless, it wont make any difference really i mean, i eat honey and i dont really feel bad about it..
 
honey i do feel plenty bad about. bees work hard to harvest the stuff and that is their only source of nourishment.
 
Jimmy the Gun said:
^do you have a recepie?
Click to expand...

To be honest, I simply took the german chocolate cake mix (sadly, it has a little milk in it I think), replaced the oil call with 3:1 flaxseed, replaced the milk call with soy milk, replaced the egg with Ener-G egg replacer, and put it in like a normal cake.

The results were beautiful. They taste so moist and the cupcakes fall apart into yummy morsels when you touch them. My cat LOVES them.. I topped them off with a maple syrup icing of which the recipe I've misplaced.. I believe it called for powdered sweetener (I powdered up brown sugar), margerine (veggie oil margerine I used), and add the syrup until the consistancy is right.

I kept them in a pyrex cassarole dish with aluminum loosely covering it, and they stayed perfectly moist for a week.


As for being a "good vegan", I figure it really doesn't matter as long as you're cutting out the direct animal killing from your lifestyle, which means eating meat, dairy, eggs primarily. Anything else is pretty much miniscule to those in comparison. And yeah, you can't do much about some things.. but we don't want to be vegan nazis, now.. :P
 
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