Vegetarian and Vegan Diets: 9 Nutrients You May Be Missing

Vegetarian and Vegan Diets, it’s a personal choice. But be cautious to get in these nine nutrients that you may be low on in following one of these diets!

Hello my friends! I’m back on this lovely Tuesday for another nutrition focused topic post: Vegetarian and Vegan Diets!

I’ve been getting questions quite often on whether Vegetarian and Vegan Diets are “healthy”, or how to stay healthy on either of these diets as an active individual.

So even though I’m personally not a vegetarian or vegan (I actually LOVE my chicken, turkey and seafood), I’m sharing the nine nutrients you need to be cautious of while following Vegetarian and Vegan Diets.

I’m providing a template at the bottom of this post on everything that is said in the video and this post, as a spark notes to go back to when needing the reminder! Pin it by clicking here so that you always have it on hand 🙂

With further adieu, let’s get down to it! Here are the NINE nutrients to be cautious of getting enough of when choosing to follow Vegetarian and Vegan Diets!

But as always… you’ll have to watch my video down below on Vegetarian and Vegan Diets in order to find out:

• WHY these nutrients are super import
• WHAT are plant-based food sources of these nutrients you should be including
• WHICH ones you should definitely be taking a supplement for, and which you can get in through food alone

Oh and PS: here’s a great service that offers vegetarian meal options if you’d like to try them out for FREE!

9 Nutrients You May Be Missing on Vegetarian and Vegan Diets:

1. Protein
   1. This is the most obvious nutrient you could be low on, but is it really possible to get in enough protein through Vegetarian and Vegan Diets? YES! Watch the video below on what the best sources are!
2. Iron
   1. The other obvious nutrient you could be deficient in.
   2. Most people think of beef and spinach, but find other great sources in the video! (Popeye the Sailor Man anyone? Sorry to burst your bubble, but that’s a myth!)
3. B12
   1. Did you know the only natural form of B12 is in ANIMAL PRODUCTS? So if you’re Vegan, you definitely need to be supplementing with this one! (But why B12 is important can be found in the video)
4. Vitamin A
   1. Yes there is animal and plant forms of this one, but animal forms are absorbed about 6x more than their plant based counterparts. Should you supplement? What to be careful of if you do? Watch the video!
5. Vitamin D
   1. Sources? Sunshine, Egg Yolk, Meat, Fish, Dark Leafy Greens. So if you’re follow Vegetarian and Vegan Diets, you most likely should be supplementing!
6. Calcium
   1. This is pretty well known that calcium comes mostly through dairy products. So what if you’re vegan? Thankfully, many foods are fortified now with this and Vitamin D.
7. Zinc
   1. What’s the first food you think of with this one? I think of oysters! However there are many other sources if you’re wanting to get enough of this in on Vegetarian and Vegan Diets.
8. Iodine
   1. Answer to getting enough of this in when avoiding cheese, fish, and meat because of both Vegetarian and Vegan Diets? Iodized Salt! I’ll give you this one instead of directing you to my video again 😉
9. Omega-3 Fatty Acids
   1. This nutrient is SUPER important to be getting enough in your diet of. If you’re avoiding fatty fish sources (or even if you’re not on Vegetarian and Vegan Diets), I suggest supplementing this one!

 

SO TELL ME:

• Vegetarian and Vegan Diets, do you follow one of them?
• If so, what results have you seen?
• What are your thoughts on Vegetarian and Vegan Diets?
• If you don’t follow either one…what’s your favorite NON Vegetarian and Vegan Diet foods??

Until next time,

xo Sarah Grace

_______________________________

Okay Okay, here’s your cheat sheet unless you REALLY don’t want to listen to my beautiful face tell you all about these nutrients! PIN IT HERE so you can come back to it as you need!