Your Vegan Questions Answered - Everything You Need To Know About Vegans

Perhaps you have heard about the vegan diet and you are somewhat curious about what it involves. Or maybe you are considering becoming a vegan. This article will answer 6 common questions asked regarding this diet: 

• What is a vegan? 
• Vegan Vs Vegetarian - What is the difference? 
• What do vegans eat? 
• Where do vegans get their recipes? 
• Is the vegan diet healthy? 
• Why go vegan?

What is a vegan?

A vegan is a person who does not consume any animal products including red meat, white meat, fish, seafood, eggs, butter, cream, milk and cheese. Sometimes a vegan will make lifestyle changes that go beyond their diet such as avoiding wearing fur, leather and other animal-based clothing.

Vegan Vs Vegetarian - What is the difference?

Both of these two diets exclude the consumption of meat, whether it be red, white or from the sea. A vegetarian however does consume dairy products such as cheese and milk, whilst a vegan does not consume these.

What do vegans eat?

This healthy diet is based on fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, vegetable oils, whole-grains, tofu, legumes, beans and sprouts. A vegan will enjoy a variety of tasty dishes such as legume soups, tofu stir-fry's, bean salads, guacamole, hummus, chick-pea wraps, roasted potatoes and root vegetables, juices, smoothies, date and nut brownies, dairy-free cakes and slices etc. They can make many delicious meals and recipes and are not deprived.

Where do vegans get their recipes?

Nowadays, with the increased popularity of veganism, a person who is seeking to find a dairy-free and meat-free recipe has unlimited options. They can go online and get their recipes via websites, blogs, or professional gourmet vegan recipe e-books. Or they can substitute ingredients from just about any recipe book to accompany their dietary needs. They can also create their own delicious meals and recipes.

Is the vegan diet healthy?

Studies indicate that non-meat eaters can increase their life span by over 10 years. Eliminating meat and fatty dairy products from ones diet has also been proven to prevent certain cancers, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and a number of other chronic diseases. Adopting veganism will lower high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Persons who have embraced this diet have also noted a clear-up of their acne and other skin conditions, have seen an improvement in their hair and nails, have lost excess weight and have seen an overall improvement in their health. Is the vegan diet healthy? You decide.

Why go vegan?

Persons adopt the vegan diet for a variety of reasons. Often times it is to improve their health and to lose unwanted weight. Others adopt this diet for animal rights or environmental issues. Some people also eat mostly vegan food because it is delicious and healthy and makes them feel good.



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A Starting a Vegan Listyle

With a large number of people being overweight in the United States, the idea of a healthier lifestyle is becoming more popular choice and reason why many people are turning into Vegan diet.  For the vast majority of people, the Vegan diet is aligned to going back to the old traditional ways of eating food, which is considered much healthier.  If you are still not sure whether the idea of a Vegan (diet) lifestyle is good for you, there are several things that you should consider first.  If you are just rushing out to change and become healthy  without considering all of the benefits of eating Vegan you could be in for a rather alarming surprise.

Many people discover Vegan diet through their quest to eat healthier.  By doing this, it is possible to find a healthier lifestyle and ensure that you are getting the biggest benefits for yourself, but also the environment.  Many environmental groups claim that Vegan is the ultimate way to go green with your eating habits.  In many ways, they are very correct and because of this, many people are turning to a Vegan lifestyle like never before.  While many people might only claim to live a truly green lifestyle, those who are eating Vegan as well are really living the lifestyle instead of just talking it.

Other benefits to eating Vegan is the decrease in blood sugar levels.  This is something that is extremely beneficial for diabetics because it can substantially lower the need to use insulin and other medications to control blood sugar levels.  However, if you are being treated by a doctor for any reason you should talk to your doctor before changing your diet significantly to ensure that you are getting all of the nutrients and benefits that you really need.  Making changes without talking to your doctor could have devastating consequences and will only take a few minutes of your time to ensure that you stay as healthy as possible.

People who avoid eating meat are also often able to lose weight much faster.  Many of the reasons for this is due to the increase in carbohydrates in vegetables as well as the decrease in calories and fats.  Plus many of the fruits and vegetables that are common in a Vegan diet also assist in weight loss due to their negative calorie effect.  While this is not a huge benefit for all people, it is something that can be a massive help if you are trying to lose weight.  Of course, working to eat only fresh fruits and vegetables as opposed to highly processes foods will help to really maximize the negative calorie impact.

A Vegan diet also has a huge perk of providing a substantially lower fat content to your diet as well.  Consuming excessive amounts of dairy products as well as meats tends to be closely accompanied by fat; by omitting substantial amounts of fat from your diet, you can make some substantial differences to not only our physical health, but also make great improvements to lower your weight.  This can provide you with ample reasons to lower your intake of meat if you have been struggling to actually manage your weight.

A final benefit is that you are consuming far more carbohydrates on a Vegan diet.  This has been considered good because it provides a great source of energy all during the day.  Foods such as meats tend to be extremely low on carbohydrates, while being much higher on protein.  While protein is an essential part of your diet it can take much longer to digest, which will allow you to pack on weight faster and have lower energy levels.  If you are instead looking to increase the amount of fruits and vegetables that you consume you will find that your energy level will go up significantly.  However, you should still ensure that you are consuming ample protein to fully protect your system and receive all of the nutrition that you need.

Starting A Vegan Lifestyle

Most experts and health organizations have documented the benefits of living a pure vegetarian lifestyle or vegan including permanent decrease in obesity, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, as well as the decrease of risk for heart diseases and some forms of cancer such as lungs and colon. Also, arthritis, rheumatism, allergies and asthma also reacts with vegan nutrition that means no meat, fish, poultry, dairy and eggs. A vegan lifestyle also advocates non-smoking and non-alcoholic practices.

All the important organic nutrients that are needed by humans such as amino acids, vitamins and minerals are produced by plants and micro living things. Animal products contain these nutrients too, but since most animals have also the same nutrient requirements of animals, we get the nutrients second-handed. The unique components of animal foods are really saturated fats and cholesterol which cannot be found in plants.

In switching to a vegan lifestyle, the food transformation is easy since it’s often much easier to prepare vegetables than the usual recipes we are used to. A vegan diet is very easy. You could eat only vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fruits and still meet all the body requirements for essential nutrients. However, for those people who like to cook, there are countless recipes in different books and thousand of vegan recipes available online for the cost of a small subscription fee or for free.

Most vegans are referred to some clinics for serum cholesterol reduction or for treatment of obesity. The reasons are direct: a vegan diet contains no significant amount of cholesterol and very low amount of saturated fat.

As for losing extra pounds, the vegan diet does not contain refined sugar and harmful oil. The average food recommendations are focused on fresh vegetables preferably green leafy ones, and raw in whatever you like, with calorie requirements filled by grains such as rice.

" There are no limitations in the amount of food you can eat, and most experts encourage vegans to eat as much as you want as long as the foods are not refined and generally vegan. It is not important to measure the food servings. Our body has three sense mechanisms that can work on this. First, your stomach has the sense receptors that will send impulses to our brain when the stomach has reached the capacity. Second, our body can direct us to eat until we have enough energy to run our metabolism. Lastly, there are complex biochemical processes that can detect the amount of minerals, vitamins, or other nutrients."

You will not have to make big renovation to your kitchen just to suffice your new lifestyle. In reality, there are ways that will favor the whole maintenance of your kitchen. Your kitchen can be very simple because you will only need tools and utensils that will help you in preparation of vegan meals. Usually, vegan meals are very fast, easy and cheap to prepare, once you make some investments. You should purchase a rice cooker, steamer, popper and microwave oven.

The most important kitchen tools that you need so that you can prepare your vegan meals are the following:

1. baking utensils
2. chopping dish
3. colander
4. grate
5. pots
6. pans
7. soup ladles
8. jars
9. lids
10. measuring cups
11. bread knife
12. paring knife
13. cooking spoons
14. chopping knife
15. bowl
16. muffin tins