We are currently at a stage where the words Plant-Based and Vegan are being used more and more and a lot of the world’s population are aware of this movement and are interested in joining it. This is supported by the 500,000 consumers which joined the Veganuary Challenge this year which was a 25% increase from last year.
But some of you may be wondering, why is the Vegan diet so good for your health? Or why is the Vegan diet so good for the environment? We are here to show you and hopefully answer some of your questions.
Firstly, let’s start with the benefits to your health, as this tends to be the main reason that people start cutting out their meat and fish in take. A vegan diet is in general higher in fibre and lower in cholesterol, which in turn results in less risk for high cholesterol diseases such as Coronary Heart Disease and Diabetes, which ultimately creates a healthier diet.
However, a common concern for a plant-based diet is the lack of Vitamin B12, which is an essential vitamin, that prevents nerve damage, improves brain function and helps re-produce red blood cells and the lack of protein. Naturally B12 is found in meat, fish, dairy and eggs but not in vegetables or fruit. The amount of people who believe that they won’t consume enough protein unless it is in the form of meat, fish or eggs is endless.
Although in the past Vegans and/or Vegetarians have had to take supplements of B12 in order to consume enough of the essential vitamin, the beauty of Greedy Vegan is that you no longer have to do this.
We are supplying you with the alternatives to Meat and Fish, which provides you with the texture and taste of meat but without the high cholesterol and with the addition of Vitamin B12 and large amounts of protein. There is a myth about protein only being present in animal products, when actually protein is in everything, nuts, beans, vegetables, to name a few.
The brands that we work with here at Greedy Vegan work hard to ensure that their products contain all the necessary nutrients that we need in our diet and don’t include the bits that may increase our cholesterol levels and contain saturated fats.
In terms of the health benefits from a vegan diet, the amount of vegetables and fruit consumed outperforms anything else, so as long as you eat a balanced diet, which you should be eating no matter what your diet is, and as long as you’re choosing alternative products that contain all the nutrients you need, the Vegan diet is the healthiest diet out there!
Now going onto the benefits that the Vegan diet has on the environment, it can be said that turning Vegan is the single best thing that an individual can do to reduce the environmental impact you have on the earth. It has been said that this is a lot more beneficial than changing to an electric car or reducing the amount of flights you take. This is a pretty big statement but we are going to explain why we at Greedy Vegan support this claim.
Researchers from Oxford University have proven that cutting out meat and dairy products from one’s diet can reduce an individual’s carbon footprint from food by up to 73%. If everyone did this the amount of global farmland required would consequently be reduced by 75%, equating to the size of China. This would not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also reduce the amount of wildlife extinction which results from the demand for agricultural land. These are shocking statistics but it is true that the meat and dairy industry contributes to 60% of all the greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural industry. Therefore in terms of how much effect the Vegan diet has on the environment, the answer is A LOT!
For more information on these topics we recommend reading the below articles