A well planned vegan diet is one of the healthiest ways of eating right now. Find out everything you need to know about veganism in our in-depth guide for beginner vegans in 2023!
Nowadays, you can’t open Facebook, Instagram, or even a newspaper without seeing at least one picture or article about veganism. While this kind of diet used to be reserved for hippies or bohemians, today veganism is becoming more and more mainstream!
Popular celebrities such as Madonna, Ariane Grande, and Jennifer Lopez have become vegans. Even famous actors like Brad Pitt, Tobey Maguire (a.k.a. Spiderman), and Russel Brand are joining the vegan movement.
While we could spend a whole article writing about Hollywood (sexy *ahem*) vegans, we’re instead going to explain:
- Why vegan diets are becoming so popular and
- How you can painlessly become a vegan
WHAT IS A VEGAN DIET?
“Wait, can I eat butter? How about eggs? Oh c’mon, what about honey?”
Vegetarians don’t consume meat, while vegans go a step further. They remove from their diets all products that have animal origins.
This means that vegans don’t eat mean, avoid dairy products, eggs, honey, and even gelatin (which is made from animal collagen).
Why do people become vegans? Here are a few of the main reasons:
- Ethical reasons
Most vegans consider animal life equally as important as human life. Hence why many vegans don’t think it’s okay for animals to suffer for our own benefit.
- Ecological reasons
Cattle and poultry farms are proven to be some of the largest environmental polluters. Comparatively, producing plants requires far less energy and resources. This is why many scientists agree that transitioning to a plant-based diet is one of the most effective ways of reducing pollution.
- Health reasons
Recent studies point to the many benefits of a plant-based diet. Some of these benefits include lower cholesterol and a lower risk of heart disease.
WHAT DO VEGANS EAT
“How can you survive without meat? Where do you get the protein from?”
As vegans, we eat plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, and an occasional handful of chips (when no one is looking).
However, our friends often ask us where we get our protein from. Most people aren’t aware, but meat isn’t the only source of protein. Moreover, a vegan diet is actually rich in plant-based proteins such as:
- Beans – such as kidney beans, lentils, or chickpeas.
- Nuts – such as walnuts, almonds, or cashews.
- Seeds – such as sunflower, chia, or flax seeds
All of these sources of protein we use in our Barcode Mitra burgers!
If you exercise, don’t worry! Just as there are animal-based protein powders (such as Whey protein), there are also plant-based proteins that contain as much as 80% protein.
Our favorite plant-based protein powders are:
- Hemp protein – a complete protein that contains all 9 essential fatty acids that our body needs.
- Pumpkinseed powder – an excellent powder because it’s obtained naturally by extracting oil from pumpkin seeds.
- Rice, pea, and soy proteins – these are ok, but check where they come often. Often, it’s China and we prefer local!
HOW MUCH PROTEIN DO YOU NEED TO CONSUME?
“Umm, I’ve never counted proteins before. How much do I need?”
The average woman needs about 45g of protein daily, while an average man needs about 55g. If you want to be precise, however, then multiply your weight (in kg) by 0.8 and you’ll get the gram about you need for your body weight!
Take into account that if you’re regularly exercising, you need significantly more protein. How much you need depends on what kind of activity you’re doing and what your goals are (maintaining mass, gaining mass, or lowering your mass).
Don’t worry, you don’t need to be a nutritionist to calculate how much protein you eat! There are some fantastic apps which calculate your calorie and macronutrient intake (fats, proteins, and carbohydrates). These can help make it easier to measure things at the start before you get a natural inclination for it.
We use YAZIO, but there are other option, too. We’ve also used this application when we were on a diet and needed to know our daily calorie intake.
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF A VEGAN DIET
“Okay, but I’ve heard that pork fat is really healthy and that I should drink milk to keep my bones healthy?”
When we’re talking about food, almost everyone has their own idea about what is a healthy diet. There are plenty of myths circulating the internet and plenty of people who like to give advice without actually knowing anything about nutrition. For example, “yea, but I’ve heard that…”
We’ve made the effort and read the newest studies to come out this year and almost all of them agree that people who eat less animal products are generally healthier.
VEGANISM – LOWER CHOLESTEROL AND A HEALTHIER HEART!
A vegan diet is healthy for the heart. Studies have constantly shown that vegans have significantly lower rates of heart disease than people who consume animal products.
Diets high in fruits and vegetables, with low amounts of saturated fat or salt, are ideal for maintaining low cholesterol and low blood pressure.
These factors are important for heart health which makes a vegan diet recommended for people with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or who have a history of heart disease in the family (and realistically, that’s most of us!)
VEGANISM – LOW BLOOD SUGAR AND A THINNER WAIST!
Studies have shown that vegan diets are great at preventing and controlling diabetes. Veganism improves sensitivity to insulin (the hormone that controls our blood sugar) which means that vegans have healthier blood sugar levels than people who eat meat.
Being overweight is also one of the biggest risk factors of type 2 diabetes. Studies have shown that veganism can also help to lose extra weight and maintain it at a healthy level.
VEGANISM – BYE BYE ARTHRITIS, ALZHEIMERS AND CANCER?
Some studies have also shown that vegans have a lower risk of developing or dying of cancer.
Likewise, there are also studies that say a vegan diet can be an effective tool in reducing the symptoms of arthritis, such as pain, swelling of the joints, or morning stiffness.
They even found that some aspects of a vegan diet can help reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
To us, all of this sounds great, especially since we’re planning on living forever. Or at least running a marathon and completing sudoku puzzles when we’re 92. At the same time.
THE DANGERS OF A VEGAN DIET
“I’ve heard that a vegan diet can’t give me everything my body needs. Is that true?”
While vegans are generally healthier than meat eaters, one crucial vitamin is in fact missing from a vegan diet – vitamin B12.
We know what you’re thinking. Wait, what kind of healthy diet is that if I need to take synthetic vitamins?
Vitamin B12 is completely safe food supplement with which it’s practically impossible to overdose because your body naturally expels excess vitamin B12 through your urine.
Vitamin B12 is crucial for neurological function in your brain and for the formation of red blood cells, so it’s crucial you take this vitamin if you’re a vegan. Often, older people also lack vitamin B12, so while you’re buying some of yourself, you can also give some to grandma.
Other nutrients that vegans sometimes need are
- Calcium
- Vitamin D
- Iron
- Omega-3 fatty acids
Luckily, you can balance your diet with these nutrients if you watch what you eat and have a general idea of which ingredients are rich in them. More about that in the next blog!
Likewise, you can also supplement your diet with them. Though honestly, if you’re a die-hard vegan then we recommend you occasionally get a lab test laboratory test for these nutrients so you’re 100% sure about whether or not they’re missing.
In short, if you’re on a vegan diet and take vitamin B12, you’re well on your way to a healthier (and thinner) you!
LOSING WEIGHT WITH A VEGAN DIET
“I have a few kilos extra. OKAY, 10kg extra… How many can I lose if I become a vegan?”
We’ll tell you first what the studies have shown, and then what we think! Research has shown that vegans have a lower caloric intake, have lower weight, and a lower body mass index (BMI) than meat eaters. That’s great news! So, why’s that the case?
Here’s our experience. If you follow a vegan diet correctly, as in you eat lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains – you’ll feel full sooner than if you eat high calorie meals with meat.
This way you’ll lower your appetite and simple eat less than usual. As you eat less, your stomach will also shrink (currently it might be overstretched) which makes you eat less and less until your body comes to a natural caloric balance.
Don’t only count on your diet, though. You should absolutely incorporate exercise into your new lifestyle as well. This way you’ll lose weight even quicker and easier as well as preventing them from coming back.
IS A VEGAN DIET EXPENSIVE?
“I’ve been to health food stores and everything there is five times more expensive. I can’t afford to be vegan!”
A vegan diet is generally cheaper than a meat inclusive diet. This is because the vegan sources of protein we’ve listed earlier are usually more affordable than meat, eggs, or dairy products.
For example, a kilo of lentils costs about 15kn, and contains 260g of protein as well as an abundance of other, healthy nutrients! Seasonal fruits and vegetables are also quite affordable. Of course, vegans that eat avocado every day, special vegan products, or even 3kg of cashews will spend tons of money. However, that’s not you because you’ve read our article!
Just by itself vegan food isn’t expensive, but often you’ll find processed vegan products that have to be imported to carry a high price tag. Products with an organic ECO label are also more expensive, though not necessarily vegan.
Generally, we like to consider it like this: It’s better to pay for higher quality food now than for expensive medical bills later!
HOW EASY IS IT TO FOLLOW A VEGAN DIET?
“Wow, all of this sounds way too complicated. Realistically, do I even have time for this?”
Look, we’re not going to lie. Maintaining a vegan diet requires more effort than a normal one. After all, don’t things that are different from the norm usually require more work?
While following a healthy vegan diet demands a certain amount of planning, we think the health, animal, and environmental benefits far outweigh the challenges.
Broccoli lovers don’t fret, we have some good news! In recent years, there has been massive growth in vegan alternatives of traditionally animal products. Oat milk, coconut cream or vegan sausages are just some of the many alternatives available!
Don’t know any vegan recipes? No worries. The internet has an almost infinite number of vegan recipes, from vegan lunches to raw vegan cakes. The Minimalist Baker is one such blog we follow… as well as ourselves!
What if you’re totally old-school and like to list through cookbooks with floury fingers? There are also plenty of vegan cookbooks in Croatian, including a fantastic collection of recipes for vegans which can be found here: vegan cookbooks in Croatian.
Feeling lonely? In Croatia there are more vegans than you might think! Croatian vegans share their own tips, recipes, and memes in Facebook groups such as:
- Veganske dostave restorani i ponude
- Moja vegan kuhinja
- Veganska zajednica
- Iz moje vegan kuhinje
- And our favorite: Zeleni, al zreli – dating for vegans!
VEGAN RESTAURANTS IN ZAGREB
“I haven’t really heard of many vegan restaurants ☹ What about when I want to go out for dinner with my friends??
One great resource for vegans is Happy Cow where you can choose a city and see all of the vegan restaurants that are there! We have it as our home screen.
Here in Croatia, we still have some problems finding vegan food in restaurants, but we’ve made that a little bit easier! In Barcode Mitra you can find vegan versions of the following delicious dishes:
- Raw Smooth Superfood – superfood smoothies with over 40 ingredients!
- Vegan desserts – our homemade cakes and brownies
VEGAN REPLACEMENTS FOR MEAT
“Does this mean I can’t eat sausages, pâté, or burgers? Noooooooo plz.”
Don’t worry! Some plant-eating geniuses have invented vegan versions of almost all of your favorite meat products.
So more and more often you can find supermarkets with vegan hotdogs, vegan ham, vegan pâté, vegan rolls, vegan sauces such as vegan Bolognese, vegan burgers…oh hey, that’s us! *blush blush*
These meat replacements are often made from soy or wheat, while other sources of protein can also be found in them, like lentils or chickpeas.
Other popular replacements for meat are tofu, tempeh, or seitan. Tofu is made from soy milk, tempeh from whole soy beans, and seitan from wheat proteins. They often come in a variety of flavors, such as smoked, with basil or with peanuts.
If you want to use them for cooking, then take the ‘Natur’ version without flavor and make something like vegan pan stir-fry or baked tofu in the oven.
VEGAN REPLACEMENTS FOR MILK
“Vegan milk? What, they milk almonds?”
Do you drink your oatmeal with oat milk? Then you’re almost certainly a vegan. Plant based milks are made from cereals or nuts but can even be made from seeds or coconut.
Oat milk is our favorite because it’s usually the cheapest and has the least amount of sugar. However, the following plant-based milks are popular, too
- MILK FROM CEREALS: rice milk, soy milk, spelt milk etc.
- MILK FROM NUTS: cashew milk, almond milk, milk from Brazil nuts etc.
- MILK FROM SEEDS: hemp milk
The good news is that all of these are lactose free! Often adults have problems digesting lactose, hence why all of these milks are fantastic alternatives to normal cow milk. If you usually have stomach aches or find yourself running to the bathroom after drinking normal milk, try a plant-based milk instead.
But that’s not all! *Billy Mayes commercials start playing* These milks also come in different flavors, such as chocolate, vanilla, almond, etc.
Prices have become quite affordable in recent years and you can even find soymilk or wheat milk for as little as 10kn per liter.
VEGAN ALTERNATIVES FOR CHEESE, BUTTER, AND EGGS
“I can’t imagine a sandwich without mayonnaise, or a pizza without cheese. This vegan thing isn’t for me.”
You think you’re the first person to think that? Luckily, vegans also love these tasty foods, so they’ve invented substitutes for all of it.
Vegan cheese is most often made from coconut or cashews, vegan butter also from coconut, vegan mayonnaise from sunflower oil, and vegan egg substitutes we actually make ourselves!
PRO TIP: Eggs are important when cooking because they give consistency and structure to foods such as pancakes or cakes. Instead of eggs, vegans often use a mix of ground flax seeds and hot water in a 1:3 ratio. Let the mixture sit briefly and then add it to the batter as if it were eggs.
CONCLUSION
“I didn’t want to read the whole article; can you give me the summary?”
If you inform yourself and get organized, a vegan diet isn’t difficult to follow, and it offers many health benefits which have been proven by many studies.
A vegan diet has its risks (a lack of vitamin B12 and other nutrients), but after reading this article you’ll have more than enough info to make sure it doesn’t happen to you!
As with any diet, to see the benefits you have be consistent and eat healthy, whole foods and not junk food.
Luckily, it’s becoming even easier as the food industry becomes aware of new demands on the market. Consumers are more aware and educated than ever about healthy, ethical, and eco-friendly food options and veganism has appeared as the answer to all three of those concerns.
Author: Martina Beg