Dietitians Debunk Vegan and Vegetarian Diets
Donna Hayek, RD
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough protein.”
Fact: Protein is found in dairy foods, nuts, seeds (hemp and chia), beans (lentils and chickpeas), peas, spelt, quinoa, oats, wild rice, potatoes, Ezekiel bread, spirulina, mycoproteins (meat substitutes that are fungus-based), seitan and soy-based foods such as edamame, tofu and tempeh.
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough calcium.”
Fact: Calcium is found in dairy foods, dark-green leafy vegetables; such as kale, mustard greens, collard greens, broccoli, bok choy, dried beans and peas. It is also found in salmon and tofu. Some foods are fortified with calcium, such as plant-based milks (soy & rice) and orange juice.
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough iron.”
Fact: Most plant foods contain iron, such as green-leafy vegetables; which include spinach and kale. Others include dried beans, watermelon, dried fruits like raisins and figs, blackstrap molasses and prune juice. Eating foods with vitamin C help to absorb iron from foods. These include citrus fruits, tomatoes, potatoes, green bell peppers, broccoli and cabbage.
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough zinc.”
Fact: Zinc foods include legumes, nuts, whole grains and wheat germ.
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough vitamin D.”
Fact: Vitamin D is found in sunlight. Since most foods do not contain vitamin D, they need to be fortified. Dairy foods have the most vitamin D.
- Myth: “Vegetarian/Vegan diets do not provide enough vitamin B-12.”
Fact: The RDA for this vitamin is only 2.4 micrograms; which is very little. Vegetarians can get enough through dairy foods, but vegans won’t be able to get enough through foods since it is only found in animal products. They would need to take a supplement or eat foods that are fortified such as some breakfast cereals, soy milks, rice milks and nutritional yeast.
