Comment on [Serious] Why do so many people seem to hate veganism?
laverabe@lemmy.world 7 months agoA vegan diet - which only contains plant-based foods - can lead to deficiencies in calcium, iodine and other vital mineral nutrients. This is particularly risky for people who need extra nutrients and for growing children and adolescents. For these reasons, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ernährung (DGE) [German Nutrition Society] advises against following a completely vegan diet.
Omniforous@mander.xyz 7 months ago
Sorry that doesn’t actually prove that a vegan diet is significantly more difficult to get complete nutrition than a non-vegan diet.
The two mentioned in the block you quoted (calcium and iodine) are often deficient in non-vegan diets as well. According to this analysis only 6 countries in the world meet the daily recommended 1000 mg of calcium per day. Calcium is also present in the easiest changes you can make to your diet (vegan milk in place of cow milk and tofu as a protein). Iodine is difficult to get for any diet, which is why so many jurisdictions put it in salt. It is also usually present in vegan milk.
Regardless, non-vegans tend to be deficient in a totally different subset of nutrients. Both diets need attention in order to get optimal nutrition. On a vegan diet, you need a source of B12, omega 3, and calcium. Most of the other nutrients are covered by commonly fortified foods or are very easy to keep in mind. Non-vegan diets you need to watch for fibre, vitamin D, vitamin E, potassium, magnesium, avoid too much cholesterol, sodium, red meat, and mercury from fish.
Regardless of the diet you choose, you need to put more thought in than the average person in order to have optimal nutrition. Using nutrition to discredit veganism doesn’t work