As a dietitian, I often get asked about the benefits of going vegan, and the reasons are more valid than ever. In this post, we’ll explore five reasons to go vegan and how it can positively impact your health.
What is a Vegan?
A vegan eliminates all animal-derived products, including meat, dairy, eggs, and honey, and instead focuses on plant-based foods like fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
Balanced meal and snack planning provides essential nutrients and can help reduce the risk of chronic conditions like obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. (1)
Additionally, vegan lifestyles support health, environmental sustainability, and animal welfare.
5 Reasons To Go Vegan for Your Health
Going vegan can offer significant health benefits. A well-planned plant-based diet is rich in essential nutrients, like fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, supporting overall health and preventing chronic diseases.
Plant-based or not, a poorly planned diet will leave you lacking in the nutrient department. Planning your meals and examining the nutrient breakdown using a tracker like Cronometer or MyFitness Pal can help ensure you get what you need.
Do you want ideas for healthy and balanced vegan meals? Check out these dietitian-created vegan meal plans.
May Reduce the Risk of Heart-Related Issues
Typically, plant-based diets are lower in saturated fats and cholesterol, which can help keep your heart healthy. Normal cholesterol levels improve cardiovascular health.
High cholesterol, specifically high “bad” LDL cholesterol is a major contributor to atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty deposits in arteries that can lead to heart attacks and strokes.
Numerous studies have shown that plant-based eating behaviors lower the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. Those who follow a vegan diet experience lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels than those who follow diets that include animal products.
PS: cholesterol is only found in animal products; plant products do not contain any cholesterol.
Support Healthy Digestion
Another one of the 5 reasons to go vegan is the high fiber content in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains promotes gut health and promotes short-chain fatty acids, which help aid in better digestion and gut health. A diet rich in plant-based foods has been linked to better digestion.
Fiber is essential for a healthy digestive system. Plant-based foods are its richest sources. There are two types of fiber:
- Soluble Fiber (found in oats, beans, and apples) absorbs water and forms a gel-like substance, aiding in smooth bowel movements and regulating blood sugar.
- Insoluble Fiber (found in whole grains, vegetables, and seeds) adds bulk to stool and may help prevent constipation.
Fiber also acts as a prebiotic, feeding beneficial gut bacteria. This encourages a balanced gut microbiome and may help reduce inflammation, better digestion, and improve immunity.
95% of Americans don’t meet the daily fiber recommendation. (2) The recommendation is 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Increasing plant-based foods makes this goal more achievable since fiber is only found in plant-based foods. Want help reaching your fiber goal? Try making this Vegan Walnut Taco Meat from my recipe collection.
Promote Weight Management and Weight Loss
Eating a more plant-based diet can be a great tool for weight management. 100% plant-based diets emphasize nutrient-dense, low-calorie foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes.
Like the digestion section, the fiber in plant-based food is important for weight management. High-fiber meals promote satiety and regulate appetite, helping you feel full for longer and reduce unwanted cravings and extra calories from extra snacking.
One of the most convincing studies is the Adventist Health Study-2. This study included 60,903 men and women 30 years of age and older. The mean BMI among meat-eaters was 28.8 kg/m2, while those who avoided meat, dairy, and egg products had a BMI of 23.6 kg/m2.
This study and similar studies show a high potential for plant-based food to help people achieve better weight goals.
Support Healthy Blood Sugar Levels
There are two types of diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2. However, this post focuses on type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is caused when the body's immune system attacks pancreas cells and inhibits insulin production. Type 2 diabetes results from insulin resistance, which can be improved with diet.
In 2021, there were nearly 36.4 million people with type 2 diabetes, a preventable and very possible to avoid chronic conditions with necessary lifestyle changes. Some even argue that eating a plant-based diet can reverse type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is very costly and causes a great amount of stress and worry to those who have it. Increasing activity and making dietary changes like eating more plant-based foods can lower the incidence of type 2 diabetes, as seen in the Adventist Health Study-2 above.
When eating a plant-based diet, the incidence of type 2 diabetes and the likelihood of developing it decreases.
May Be Protective Against Certain Cancers
The last of the 5 reasons to go vegan is to protect your cells. Antioxidants are incredibly protective of our cells and help fight free radicals—the unstable molecules that damage cells and lead to cancer development.
Plant-based foods, especially those with bright, vibrant colors, are rich in antioxidants like carotenoids, lycopene, and vitamins E and C to keep our cells healthy. We are made up of over 30 trillion cells, so keeping as many of them as healthy as possible is a priority.
Antioxidants and phytochemicals naturally occur in plant-based foods and may help fight cancer-causing disruptants at the cellular level before they cause enough damage to become a cancer diagnosis.
Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli have sulforaphane, which may help protect cells from DNA damage, but too much DNA damage can lead to abnormal cells we don’t want. Flavonoids are also widely found in plant-based foods and have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
When working with patients, I like to explain that each color has its own set of nutrients. The more colors on your plate, the more nutrients!
Wrapping Up
All in all, there are 5 reasons to go vegan, but there are many, many more that I might touch on in future posts. Eating more plants can significantly improve your health and make a positive change for the environment and animals.
Even starting by eating one vegan meal per day is a great start. I’ll teach you how to go vegan with day-by-day steps in this {free} guide so it’s a change you can keep forever!
