FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE SWITCHING TO A PLANT BASED DIET
This is a guest post from one of our regular customers in Withington, Registered Nutritionist, Aliya Porter. It’s an important guide for anyone who’s reducing the amount of animal-based products they consume. I’m sure you’ll find it useful. If you’re reading this and would like to produce a guest blog for our site, please drop us an email.
With a clear link between human activity and the long-term health of our planet, it is not surprising that many of us a moving to a more plant-based diet. Food isn’t the only thing that can help us save the planet, but it is clear that it’s one of the easiest ways that we can take control of our footprint on a day-to-day basis.
As a Registered Nutritionalist, these are my five most recommended actions for someone who is looking to make this change.
NUMBER ONE - PREPARE YOUR BODY
The first thing to consider as we move to include more plants is that our bodies can take time to adapt. This is particularly important when it comes to increasing our fibre intake. Increasing the amount of fibre you consume too quickly can lead to bloating, sluggishness and even diarrhoea! So, I would recommend making changes to what you consume gradually. For example, In the first week have one plant-based meal, two the next week, and so on. The key thing is to do it gradually.
NUMBER TWO - HYDRATION IS KEY
Alongside slowly increasing fibre intake we need to increase the amount of water we consume. Have an extra glass of water when you have a plant-based meal. (You may need more, but again, increase gradually and check for pale yellow wee).
You might be thinking: ‘this is a food article, why are we talking about wee?’. Well, we need to talk about it - and poo too. Both are really important for health. Bear with me though, it’s not all about bodily functions!
Why do we need more water? The way fibre works is to soak up water and increase the volume of our stool, so we need more water for it to be able to do its job properly. This helps reduce constipation, so it’s really important.
Of course, this isn’t a recommendation to go out and start consuming water from single-use plastic bottles of water! Get yourself a reusable water bottle to fill up and take with you when you’re out and about. At home, tap water is your friend!
NUMBER THREE - PLANT-BASED ISN’T NECESSARILY ALWAYS HEALTHY
This might seem like stating the obvious, but cake is cake whether it’s made with plant-based ingredients or not! That’s not to say we can’t have cake, but don’t be fooled by the marketing and think that because it’s made of plants it must be more nutritious. Plant-based meals are often just meals without meat; no consideration is given to replacing the lost source of protein, iron or iodine.
Take jackfruit as an example, as it’s often used in the place of meat. Jackfruit has less than 3g of protein per 100g and less than 1 milligram of iron. Compare this to peanuts, which have 26g of protein and 4.6 milligrams of iron.
Jackfruit is still a great ingredient when it comes to giving the mouthfeel of meat but it shouldn't be considered a meat replacement nutritionally so add in nuts, seeds or pulses to give the protein alongside the jackfruit.
NUMBER FOUR - KNOW WHAT BALANCE LOOKS LIKE
Ideally, our meals should have 2 portions of veg (ideally a mixture of fruit and veg), a source of protein (e.g. nuts, seeds, lentils, beans or tofu) and a wholegrain starchy carbohydrate (e.g. oats, brown rice, brown pasta, quinoa, wholewheat couscous and wholemeal bread).
As we’re talking about plant-based diets, we need to think about replacing dairy. Unsweetened and fortified plant-based milk alternatives are available. (Ed - Oato, a fresh oat milk, which we get delivered each week to Lentils and Lather, is fortified with Vitamins D3, B2, B12, and Potassium Iodide).
We also need a little oil. Rapeseed and olive oil are both good choices because they are low in saturated fat.
NUMBER FIVE - FORTIFICATION AND SUPPLEMENTATION ARE ESSENTIAL
If you choose to reduce your meat and dairy consumption you need to replace the nutrients that you are missing. Plant-based diets have a lot of nutritional benefits, but there are a few things that are missing that we need to pay specific attention to.
Removing dairy from your diet means that you will not have enough calcium, vitamin B12 and iodine. It’s important to look for plant milks that are fortified.
Nutrients like zinc, iron, selenium and omega 3, as well as calcium, vitamin B12 and iodine, can be found in fortified plant-based foods, but you need to understand the source of those nutrients and include them regularly.
Supplementation can be helpful too. Always seek advice from a nutritional professional when you need to. If you are pregnant, if you are on medication or if the supplements are for a child you need to check that the product is suitable for you.
Everyone in the UK is recommended to take a vitamin D supplement from October to April. Those under 5, over 65, pregnant and breastfeeding women and people who don’t expose their face and/or arms to sunlight are recommended to take supplements all year round.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Including more plant-based meals in our diet can be a really positive thing to do for our health if we do it well. Knowledge is key to making sure we are doing it correctly. There’s too much information to include in this article, but further detail can be found in my Veganuary blog here.
If you don’t have the time to do all of the background reading, why not book an appointment with me and receive advice tailored to your routine, likes, dislikes and needs?
Aliya is a Registered Nutritionist based in Withington and a long-time customer at Lentils and Lather. She can give you support tailored to your goals, whether you want to go fully vegan, address a health issue or just want support with a diet that isn’t costing the earth. Contact Aliya on porternutritionuk@gmail.com or visit her website to find out more.