Eating a vegan diet is one of the most healthy and compassionate things you can do, but many people are hesitant to adopt a plant-based lifestyle because they fear they’ll be deficient in B vitamins. Good news: that’s absolutely not the case—and today I’m going to explain why. Let’s get started!
First of all, what are B vitamins?
The B vitamins are a collection of eight, water-soluble vitamins, including Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B7, Vitamin B9, and Vitamin B12. All of the B vitamins are important for a healthy body and play an important role in everything from metabolism to nerve function to digestion. A balanced vegan diet that includes fruits, veggies, whole grains, legumes, seeds, and nuts will cover all of your B vitamin needs except one: vitamin B12.
The importance of vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is critical for the maintenance of the nervous system and the formation of red blood cells. Vitamin B12 deficiency is serious and can cause anemia, nerve damage, neurocognitive changes, and, over time, paralysis—all problems you definitely don’t want!
Where does B12 come from?
B12 is produced by bacteria found in soil, but in order for the bacteria to make B12, the soil needs to contain the mineral cobalt.
Early humans never experienced B12 deficiency because they didn’t have the advanced farming and hygiene techniques that we use today. Their food had enough B12-containing bacteria on the surfaces to meet their needs. Due to modern farming practices and thoroughly washing our food, our produce is no longer naturally covered in B12-containing bacteria.
The declining soil quality isn’t just a problem for humans—it’s a problem for farmed animals, too. Cattle naturally obtain B12 by eating clumps of dirt around grass roots. Chickens get B12 from pecking around for worms and other insects. Because of poor soil quality and the fact that most factory-farmed animals are kept indoors and never even see soil during their lifetimes, farmed animals are typically given B12 supplementation to ensure adequate levels.
People who then consume the meat of these animals receive B12 which originally came from the supplements fed to the animals.
Cut out the middle man
Based on what you now know about B12, don’t you think it would be better to simply take a B12 supplement yourself, rather than through consuming animal products that have been shown to increase our risk of heart disease and cancer?
While vegans do need B12 to be healthy, they certainly do not need to eat animal products to get it. Those on a plant-based diet can easily get their B12 through supplementation or by eating foods fortified with B12 such as nutritional yeast, some non-dairy milks, and some breakfast cereals.
Keep your B12 levels in check
Everyone should check their B12 levels. Interestingly, studies show that 1 in 6 meat-eaters are also deficient in B12. Regardless if you’re a meat-lover or a salad aficionado, everyone should have their B12 level checked by their doctor and add supplementation if necessary.
The bottom line
We don’t need to eat animal products to get the vitamins and minerals we need. With a balanced plant-based diet and proper supplementation of B12, we can achieve excellent health while protecting the well-being of our furry friends and our beautiful planet.
If you are a vegan or are plant-based and are curious to know How to get protein as a vegan, then check out my blog post HERE.
Stay healthy friends,
xoxo
Xio💚
References:
//academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/71/2/514/4729184?login=true
//www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200203114328.htm
