If Veganism Is the Healthiest Diet, Why Do People Need to Take Supplements?

Learn more about the most important supplements for vegans

First off, I have to tell you this question is completely senseless, mainly because of the way it brought veganism to the topic. Owing to the fact that even if a diet is the healthiest, it still needs some supplements because In today’s world, our bodies can’t get enough of some minerals and amino acids only from the food we eat.

That’s the reason that supplements are around and we try to complete our diet with them.

So, in order to have a clean bill of health, taking supplements is necessary.

So now, we are going to talk about different supplements and dive right in the debate of which supplements are the most important ones and then I’m going to give you information about vegan diet based on my vegan journey.

Do We Really Need Supplements?

The answer to that question is definitely yes, because as I said before we can’t meet the needs of our body with only food.

The main reason that I say that is because of the fact that most people think that if they have a proper meal plan, then everything is ok.

But that’s a totally wrong assumption.

For instance, if we take vitamins as an example, vitamin c is an important vitamin and it is really essential for our body but we can’t get enough of it from normal food.

Dietary supplements help you maintain your overall health and they also help you to reach your daily requirements of essential minerals and supplements or even macronutrients.

Because your health and your diet are linked together and they improve with each other so if you are trying to improve your health you must improve your diet and taking supplements is a key element of having a complete nutritious diet.

• Nutrition

There is a famous statement that most fitness influencers and well-known body builders say when they are trying to emphasize on the fact that nutrition is really important.

Some of them say abs are made in the kitchen and some of them upgrade it by a certain level to make it profounder by saying your whole physique is made in the kitchen.

Both of them statements showcase the importance of your diet and indicate that proper nutrition doesn’t only improve your health, but also it is going to help you to build your dream physique.

Because how are you expecting to look shredded if you are not eating nutritious food?

And supplements definitely play a big role in a great diet.

There is also an another exceptional saying by the famous influencer and body builder Noel Deyzel:

“If you put the wrong grade of fuel in a sports car, it’s not going to function at its best performance. The same goes for our bodies, we put our bodies through hell in the gym and how do we expect to see progress if we don’t fuel them correctly”

And like other body builders he is also pointing to the fact that everything you eat directly affects your body.

That takes us to the topic of the most important supplements.

• Vitamin C

Because we used vitamin C as an example before, we are going to talk about it first.

Vitamin C is the only essential vitamin that is not found in needed amounts in cooked foods.

According to Healthine.com:

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that is important for the maintenance of connective tissue. It also functions as a co-factor for many enzymes in the body.

Moreover, they talk about the deficiency of vitamin C.

Deficiency of vitamin C can cause scurvy which is a condition characterized by spotty skin and fatigue and advanced scurvy can cause yellow skin, loss of teeth, bleeding and eventually death.

A diet of only animal foods usually doesn’t contain enough vitamin C and for this particular reason people need to get it from fruits and vegetables or supplements.

Sometimes vitamin C supplements can be unnecessary if the person gets enough vitamin C from their diet.

Even nowadays there are vitamin C face serums that are used in order to treat fine lines and dark skin and it also helps the collagen production in your face and based on the reviews, it has gotten people’s satisfaction.

With all that being said, I was trying to prove the point that vitamin C is great and useful in all forms. But don’t forget that too much of everything can be harmful.

Before we get to my own personal experience, I’m going to bring the list of nutrients that you might not get from plants.

Vitamin C Rich Foods for Vegetarians

• Vitamin B12

The first nutrient is vitamin B12

Although some people don’t get enough vitamin B12 from their diet even the ones that are not vegan.

Talking about the benefits of vitamin B12, studies show that it helps in maintaining nerves and normal brain function.

The reason that doctors try to warn people about deficiency of vitamin B12 is that the deficiency of it can lead to fatigue, heart diseases and mostly brain and nerve problems such as impaired brain function and Alzheimer, plus neurological disorders that are serious problems.

Right now, I can give you a lot of different vegan foods that have vitamin B12 but those foods might not be enough for you as a vitamin B12 source.

The best thing to go with in order to have enough vitamin B12 and help you to complete the nutrient density of your diet is vitamin b12 ampoule or different vitamin B12 supplements.

The reason that I mentioned the ampoule first was because of the fact that it has the most sufficient amount.

If you don’t like injections due to any reason, you can also get oral vitamin B12.

What Foods Are High in B12 Vitamin For Vegetarians and Vegans

• Vitamin D3

Vitamin D3 is an important nutrient and interesting thing about it is that it doesn’t have to come from your diet!

You can get vitamin D3 from sunlight because your skin can produce it when it’s exposed to sunlight.

Vitamin D3 has 2 different dietary types that one of them is found in plants and the other one is found in animal-based foods.

Vegans can be at a high risk of vitamin D3 deficiency if they are not taking supplements.

According to Healthline.com:

Deficiency of vitamin can be critical just like other deficiencies because it is linked to cancer, heart diseases, depression, muscle wasting and reduced strength and exactly like the deficiency of vitamin B12 it can lead to impaired brain function.

• Creatine

The last supplement that we are going to talk about is creatine which is mostly known as a body building supplement.

Creatine is a molecule and naturally-occurring substance that is found in meat and fish.

Many people don’t our body makes creatine itself and they think creatine is harmful.

The reason that most people use creatine supplement is that there is no food that is rich in creatine even beef, tuna, salmon and pork contain 2.3 grams of creatine per pound at most.

Foods High Creatine for Vegetarians and Vegans

The Truth

The moral of the story is that even some diets that some people assume is better than other diets don’t have that much of creatine and that’s the reason that people buy creatine supplement.

In contrast, I was showcasing the needs of our body just get to the point that whatever diet you follow, you will need supplements no matter what.

Because the main goal of this article is just to open your eyes about the fake information about vegan diets.

Based on the things said above, you can easily see the pattern of companies representing veganism as an incomplete diet.

Personal Experience

I have been a vegan for years and because I’m an athlete I must take care of my body pretty well and I’ve been taking supplements for more than 10 years and I feel like they are great because all they do is just to help you maintain your diet.

As a whole, dietary supplements are appropriate for everybody.

Next up, I’m going to talk about the supplements I take and a little bit of information about them

The best advice I can give you is that at first you should get a blood test just to know what’s going on in your body.

I know that sounded like an old school advice but that’s really it.

Besides all the diseases, you should be aware of the condition of your hormones and the amount of different nutrients.

• Ferrous sulfate

Speaking personally, because I have anemia I take ferrous sulfate every day.

Keep in mind that numbers vary from person to person.

Also, I have to that I don’t take supplements by my own decision and they are prescribed by my doctor.

• Vitamin B12

The next supplement that my family and I take is vitamin B12.

The interesting fact is that my parents are not vegan so they eat meat and as you can see they take vitamin B supplements too!

• Vitamin C

The other supplement is vitamin C and to be honest with you I may take vitamin C tablet once month, thanks to my vegan diet which makes me eat more fruit.

I also take multi vitamin and that’s why I don’t take vitamin C tablets that much.

Another supplement that I take in order to have great hair and skin is zinc.

• Omega 3

Last but not least, omega 3.

There is a myth that omega 3 is only found in fish and other seafood but they don’t know that walnut and chia seeds are great sources of omega 3 and in my personal opinion they are better sources than fish and other seafood because they don’t contain mercury.

Mercury is toxic and can badly damage your nervous system, kidneys, liver.

So even if you are not vegan, just try to get your omega 3 from vegan foods or sources that are rich in omega 3 and are apparently safe.

You can also get sufficient amounts of omega 3 from supplements.

These were the supplements that I take even before I started my vegan journey.

The Wrap-Up

In this article, all my concern was just to show you the reality and benefits of going vegan plus proving that everybody needs dietary supplements with disproving the myth and lies that we are told by the meat industry.

So, to finish this article let me ask you a question

If Veganism Is the Healthiest Diet, Why Do People Need to Take Supplements?

(Hint: even if a diet is the healthiest, it might still need supplements)

References:

• https://www.vegansociety.com/news/blog/VEG12021/do-vegans-need-supplement
• https://www.worldofvegan.com/do-vegans-need-vitamins/
• https://drvegan.com/blogs/articles/nutritionists-top-5-tips-for-plant-based-diets
• https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/how-to-eat-a-balanced-diet/the-vegan-diet/
• https://www.goodrx.com/well-being/supplements-herbs/vegan-vitamins-and-supplements

sara

Hi, I’m Sara, and I’ve been living a vegan lifestyle for the past eight years. Initially, I had concerns, but after researching, I concluded that veganism is a great choice for animals, the environment, all living beings, and me. As a mother of two daughters, I’m always looking for plant-based vitamins and minerals to ensure their healthy growth and development. I hope to share useful information about veganism and a vegan lifestyle through my posts. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them in the comments section or email me through the contact form on the website; I usually respond within 24 hours.