Nutrition guide, vegan nutrition, the five food groups you need

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Nutrition Guide

This nutrition guide will show you the five food groups we should all be using on a daily basis for a varied intake of the right nutrients. Vegan nutrition isn't a problem as you will see.

If you are interested in taking harmful meat, egg and dairy products out of your diet but are concerned that you will not be able to give your body what it needs to run smoothly, then this guide will help you.

Worry not!!

As long as your diet is varied and not based on sugary foods, then nutrition from plant based foods is - in my opinion and many health professionals' opinion - easier to achieve than a typical western diet. Not only that. If you eat a healthy diet but choose to eat "lean meat" as part of the five food groups which are recommended - think about the growth hormones and anti-biotics the animals are given. When you eat their flesh and by products, you are putting these chemicals into your body!

A diet without animal pollutants will benefit your health in many ways and vegan nutrition is far from a problem.

I wanted to start off by showing you what the Food Standards Agency advises as a nutrition guide.

The Food Standards Agency has designed an "eatwell plate" as a nutrition guide for people who want to ensure they get the correct amount of nutrients in their daily diet. This eatwell plate has five sections of food groups which the FSA recommends.

Nutrition Guide:

Fruit and vegetable group:

It is recommended that fruits and veggies should make up around a third of your diet and you should consume at least five portions of these a day. We all know that nutritionists advise that we eat plenty of fruit and vegetables and this is because research has shown that the unique nutrient and plant compounds that they contain can help protect against chronic diseases.

Carbohydrate Group:

This group is needed as it provides the body with the energy it needs to move around. Carbohydrates should also take up around a third of the daily diet, but be sure to select complex carbohydrates as these contain fibre and other nutrients to benefit your body. People who eat complex carbs - which are rich in wholegrains - appear to have a reduced risk of certain cancers, diabetes and heart disease.

Calcium group:

This group is needed for healthy strong bones and teeth. Most people think they can only get their calcium from dairy products but this isn't the case. Actually the FSA recommends that these foods are only eaten in moderation as they contain a high level of saturated fat. Saturated fat is dangerous as it clogs up the arteries and can lead to heart disease and stroke.

It is important to remember that the dairy industry spends an awful lot of money promoting dairy foods and so the public believe that cow's milk is the best source of calcium. Milk is full of cholesterol and saturated fats and you can get more than enough calcium from far healthier foods.

Protein group:

Protein is needed in our diets to help our bodies grow and to repair our tissues. The FSA advises protein in our diets for this reason. However, many people are concerned with eating animal flesh because of the health implications and we can readily get our protein from plant based sources.

Fats and
sugar group:

This is the smallest group on the eatwell plate. Most of us know about bad fats and good fats and we need good fats for our bodies to function well. Sugar gives us energy but contains no nutritional value and so needs to be limited in your diet.

As you can see from the nutrition guide, the fruits, vegetables and carbohydrate sections are vegan foods anyway. The calcium section can be met with healthier alternatives to dairy products, and remember most health organisations will tell you to cut down on dairy products for a healthy diet. Same with the protein group.

And if you have a wide and varied diet based on whole foods , your body will get all the vitamins and minerals that it needs. This is because all foods have different nutritional qualities, so the more variety in your diet, the more likely you are to get all the nutrients your body needs.

The only things you may choose to supplement on a vegan diet are vitamin B12. and iodine. Read up on vitamin B12 and iodine and find out if you could use a supplement. You can get vitamin B12 and iodine on a vegan diet from foods which are fortified with the vitamin (and by eating seaweed in small amounts for your iodine intake), but a lot of vegans do take a supplement to be sure they are getting enough. I do.

Another worry for people who are thinking of giving up animal products is iron intake. This needn't be a problem as we can get iron from plant based foods too. Vegan vitamin D is not a problem either if you get around 15 minutes of sunshine a day.

Try to add these top super foods to your weekly diet to benefit from their unique vitamins and minerals. Stay away from heavily processed foods and limit your salt intake and you will be giving your body everything it needs to benefit from health giving nutrients.

Remember a vegan diet and vegan nutrition is also endorsed by the World Health Organisation, American Medical Association, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, the American Dietetic Association and the American Diabetes Association so it isn't just vegans saying we can get all our bodies need from a vegan diet.

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