Other Benefits of Going Vegan
Health
Over the years there has been a huge amount of misinformation about health, nutrition and diet, but now the fact that a vegan diet can be just as healthy as a non-vegan diet is recognised by official bodies at a national and international level - British Dietetic Association / American Dietetic Association / US Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidlines Advisory Commitee / United Nations
You can get everything you need from a plant-based diet. Obviously you need to eat a varied diet, ensuring you're getting a good mix of leafy greens, fruit, veg, nuts, pulses and grains, but it's not difficult at all to get everything you need. Obviously if you just eat lettuce you'll become ill, just as you would if you just ate cheese. Everyone should take a vitamin B12 supplement as none of us get that naturally anymore and many of us (vegans and non vegans) chose to supplement other vitamins such as Vitamin D (the sunshine vitamin). A lot of Vit D3 is made from sheep's wool but it is easy to get the vegan version. A lot of vegans take the Vegan Society Veg 1 as an easy way to ensure they are getting the essentials even if their diet is not as varied and nutrient filled as it should be (again, just like a lot of non vegans chose to take a multivitamin).
Unfortunately doctors generally have very little training in nutrition in the UK, with the result that they tend to default to the usual myths about protein, calcium etc. However, a growing number of studies and medical professionals are advising that cutting out animal products is actually one of the the best things we can do for our health. It's your health, have a look into it for yourself.
GVS has made a submission to the Scottish Government's Consultation on health, obesity and food, which can be viewed here:
Below are links to some additional resources, followed by some video clips of talks on the health benefits of a plant based diet, and finally some clips on the topic of veganism and sport:
Sport and Health Based Nutrition
It's entirely possible to be a competitive athlete on a completely plant based diet, in fact some of the strongest and fittest people in the world are vegan, check out the videos below:
Environment
It has become increasingly clear that we must switch to a plant-based diet if we are to have a chance of addressing climate change. Have a look at some of these facts from the Cowspiracy documentary.
The full Cowspiracy documentary is available on Netflix. For a review of criticisms that have been made about Cowspiracy see here.
Here are a sample of other resources on the devastating environmental impact of consuming animals:
United Nations News Centre - Greenhouse Gases
UNEP - Global Environmental Alert
UNEP - Priority Products and Materials
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN
World Hunger
Eating animals and animal products is very inefficient. We take a vast amount of plant crops from the poorer developing countries to feed animals which we in the richer countries then eat. If we ate the plants instead we could feed everyone. Of course there are other issues, politics, conflict etc, but the redistribution of food is a huge factor in world hunger. Have a look at the link and videos below:
Some organisations that provide useful summaries of the available evidence on climate change / world hunger and our consumption of animals may have links to welfare organisations. We do not support welfarism.
