by Susan M. Kleiner, PhD, RD, FACN, CNS, FISSN

In the world of diet and nutrition, while sensationalism may be what sells fast, it’s science that gives you the results that last.  It’s too bad that one of the latest fad books that promotes a vegan diet bases the recommendation on fad diet myths and plain old bastardization of nuggets of true research data.  It’s as if the authors were writing a parody of all the ridiculous, urban legend, unscientific garbage that is sold as the latest weight loss discoveries. The fact is that there is enough good science to promote a vegetarian, and even a vegan diet as healthy, earth-friendly and even weight-loss promoting. You don’t have to make it up as you go.

The Vegetarian Way
A Harris Interactive poll conducted in 2003 by the Vegetarian Resource Group found that four percent of the U.S. population responded that they do not eat meat or poultry, 2.8 percent avoid meat, poultry and fish. About one-third to one-half of the 2.8 percent of the respondents call themselves true vegans, avoiding all animal food products. I have found that most consumers can apply the term “vegetarian” very loosely. Even the very clear definition of vegan can seem to have a broader definition. An article titled “The 247-lb. Vegan”, about NFL star Tony Gonzalez, published in the January 25, 2008 edition of the Wall Street Journal, clearly refers to this athlete as a vegan. However, the description of the star’s diet includes whey protein, fish oil and fish; none of which would be included in a strict vegan diet.

A Healthy Diet
There are many, many studies that have investigated the health benefits of following a vegetarian, or vegan diet. Most of these studies don’t control the diet. They are population studies, where they either survey the population about their diets, or they give the subjects a diet to follow on their own. But once you understand that the definition of vegetarianism can be pretty loose, who knows what the subjects in these studies are really eating? Despite possibly eating some animal foods, though, these populations that have been studied unquestionably have an emphasis in their diets on consuming plant foods.

The problem is not really that meat is so bad for you – but that grains, beans, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables are so good for you! If you make meat and animal proteins the center of your diet, you just don’t have enough room left to eat all the fabulous plant foods necessary to promote health and ward off disease. Plant-based diets appear to be protective against several types of cancer, including cancers of the breast, ovaries, lung, colon, esophagus and stomach. Vegetarian-style eating may protect you from cardiovascular disease, diabetes, age-related macular degeneration, and overall mortality.

It’s not just what you don’t eat as a vegetarian – saturated fats and cholesterol; it’s what you eat so much of – antioxidants, carotenoids, folate, fiber, mono- and polyunsaturated fats, that might actually make the big difference. A recent Chinese study investigated whether consuming cruciferous vegetables (bok choy, white turnips, green cabbage, Chinese cabbage and cauliflower) would be cancer-protective for women with and without a genetic predisposition to developing breast cancer. In both groups, high cruciferous vegetable intake was associated with lowering the risk of developing the disease. Even in those women with a gene that predisposed them to breast cancer, eating high amounts of these vegetables modified the impact of that gene, and decreased their risk.

There are numerous studies investigating links between high intakes of plant foods, and nutrients or food factors like fibers that come from plant foods, and their impact on the risk of developing diseases. While not all studies show a positive impact, in fact, most studies do find significant health benefits to including a wide variety of plant foods in your diet daily.

But you can call yourself a vegetarian and not eat many plant foods at all. It’s not unusual to find lacto-ovo-vegetarians who have high intakes of cheese and processed foods, leading to diets high in saturated fats, cholesterol and refined starches and sugars. While they may be truly vegetarians, this is not a healthy diet.  I have worked with vegans who have become frankly nutritionally deficient in protein and many vitamins and minerals because they limit the variety in their diets: one type of bean, only brown rice, very limited nut, seed and oil consumption, and a narrow range of fruits and vegetables.

A healthy diet, whether vegetarian, vegan, or not, is a diet that is abundant in plant foods. If you eliminate all animal products, then there are some important nutrients that you must add back to your diet. Vitamins B12 and D should be supplemented in your diet. You can purchase foods fortified with them, or you can just take a multivitamin-mineral supplement.  For active women especially, it may be hard to get in enough iron and zinc. These nutrients can be in your supplement, too. Eat plenty of dark green, leafy veggies. You will get calcium and iron there. Also choose calcium-fortified soymilk and orange juice. A supplement is also good to cover your calcium needs.

A Hip Diet
With the publication of books like Fast Food Nation, Food Politics, and The Omnivore’s Dilemma, we are becoming more aware as a nation of the societal issues that surround meat production in this country. Whether your concern is animal rights, sustainability, climate change or food contamination, the beef, poultry, fishing/fish farming, and dairy industries are right in the middle of it all. Food production has a tremendous impact on our Earth, and we can impact these industries by voting with our pocketbooks. How and where we spend our food dollars affects the bottom line. That’s where it counts, and that’s where we can create change.

The philosophical reasons that many people voice for becoming vegetarian today are often the same issues that we all care about. We want animals to live better lives, we want the Earth to be able to continue to support life, we want food available for all people worldwide, we want a safe environment, and we want safe food to eat. These values have gone from the fringes of the population to the core values of families everywhere. Being a vegetarian is now a more popular choice.

A Weight-Loss Strategy
When a vegetarian diet is truly a plant-based diet, it may be a great weight-loss strategy. One of the hardest things about losing weight is keeping it off. Several studies have shown that there are many different diet plans that can help you lose weight, but the problem is finding a plan that you can stick with for longer than a few months. Subjects in several studies have been able to stick with a vegetarian weight loss plan longer than some of the well-known diet fads.. A study conducted at The University of North Carolina at Chapel investigated the difference in weight loss outcomes after one and two years between groups of post-menopausal women that followed a vegan versus a more moderate low-fat diet, and between those who were offered support group follow-up and those who were on their own. Vegans lost more weight and maintained a greater weight loss after one and two years. Those subjects who received follow-up support maintained an even greater weight loss.

A study published this year in the International Journal of Obesity showed no greater weight loss or maintenance over 18 months in subjects following a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet pattern versus a group following a standard calorie- and fat-reduced diet. The authors note, however, that those following the vegetarian diet pattern “had a significantly greater reduction in animal protein and greater increases in vegetable protein and in dietary fiber, all beneficial changes.”

Skinny? Really?
And finally, do you really want to be skinny? Or do you want to be healthy and fit? While the Hollywood elite may look like their last meal was last year, clothes look better on girls with some muscle, giving shape to the drape. You really don’t want to look like a clothes hangar, do you?

A plant-based diet, a vegetarian diet, and even a vegan diet, when well planned can give you all the nutrition that you need to be toned, fit, and feeling great.

References
Albergotti R. The 247-lb. Vegan. Weekend Journal. The Wall Street Journal. Friday, January 25, 2008, page W1.

Burke LE, Warziski M, Styn MA, Music E, Hudson AG, Serelka SM. A randomized clinical trial of a a standard versus vegetarian diet for weight loss: the impact of treatment preference. International J Obesity 2008;32:166-176

Dewell A, Weidner G, Sumner MD, Chi CS, Ornish D. A very-low-fat vegan diet increases intake of protective dietary factors and decreases intake of pathogenic dietary factors. J Am Dietet Assoc 2008;108:347-356.

Freedman R, Barnouin K. Skinny Bitch. Running Press, Philadelphia, PA, 2005

Kleiner SM, Friedman-Kester K. The Be Healthier Feel Stronger Vegetarian Cookbook. Macmillan, Inc., New York, NY, 1997

Lee S-A, Fowke JH, Lu W, Ye C, Zheng Y, Cai Q, Gu K, Gao Y-T, Shu X-o, Zheng W. Cruciferous vegetables, the GSTP1 lle105Val genetic polymorphism, and breat cancer risk. Am J Clin Nutr 2008;87:753-760.

Turner-McGrievy GM, Barnard ND, Scialli AR. A two-year randomized weight loss trial comparing a vegan diet to a more moderate low-fat diet.  Obesity (Silver Spring) 2007 Sep;15(9):2276-81.

Sidebar

Enhance Your Iron and Zinc Absorption
If you have decreased the amount of meat or excluded animal proteins from your diet, you should carefully plan your menu to enhance the availability of iron and zinc. To increase iron and zinc absorption:

Include good sources of iron and zinc in your diet
There are good meatless sources of iron and zinc. Don’t forget that egg yolks (if you are still eating eggs) are an excellent source of heme iron. Because your iron and zinc intake may be low or marginal in a completely plant-based diet, an extra effort must be made to include these sources in your diet daily.

The MFP Factor
Meat, fish, and poultry also contain a special quality called the MFP Factor, which helps the body absorb more nonheme iron. If you do eat some meat, when meat and vegetables are eaten together at the same meal, more nonheme iron is absorbed from the vegetables than if the vegetables had been eaten alone.

Include vitamin C sources
Fruits, vegetables, and other foods that contain vitamin C help the body absorb nonheme iron. For example, if citrus fruits are eaten along with an iron-fortified cereal, more iron will be absorbed from the cereal than if it had been eaten alone.

Avoid iron and zinc absorption blockers
Some food constituents, called tannins, polyphenols, phytates, and oxalates, can block the intestines absorption of iron and zinc. Coffee and tea (regular or decaf), whole grains, bran, legumes and spinach are a few examples of foods that contain iron- and zinc-absorption blockers. These foods are best eaten with heme iron sources and/or vitamin C sources to help the body absorb more iron.

Good Plant Sources of Iron and Zinc
Iron                                                Zinc
Farina                                           Fortified cereals
Oatmeal                                       Wheat germ
Fortified cereals                         Pumpkin seeds
Soybeans