Analyzing a vegan diet and weight loss
Given the tendency for our society to push food as a product for mass consumption and huge profits, it’s no wonder Americans are having a difficult time staying healthy, keeping fit and obsessed with losing weight.
It’s been proven that a vegan diet CAN help one to lose weight and promote a healthy lifestyle, but one can never know if he or she is getting all the proper nutrients (in the proper proportions) unless he or she is tracking food intake with a nutrition app.
I have been using Cronometer for years now, and it’s really helped me to understand my eating habits, and what nutrients are abundant in my diet and which nutrients are at low levels.
And it’s now just how we eat (i.e. vegan, keto, etc), it’s also the frequency and the times during the day that we eat.
I personally eat 5 times a day. Smaller meals, and as high carb and low fat as possible. Chances are, the typical American does the same. If you think about it, everyone has their 3 squares a day (hopefully), and chances are that you have a mid-morning coffee break with a little something to eat, then some afternoon snack. In other countries like England, they have high tea at 4pm. Americans like their coffee break. And so if you analyze our habits we tend to have 4-5 meals a day.
Regarding nutrients, when we overeat I think our bodies are telling us that we aren’t getting enough of the balance of nutrients we need, so we tend to overcompensate for the lack of certain nutrients.
And we can just overeat until we get all the nutrients we need, but then our macronutrients like carbohydrates, proteins and fats will be too much, thus leading to weight gain.
A healthy vegan diet emphasizes plenty of whole foods, in the form of fresh organic fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, etc. and whole foods in general tend to be lower in calories but contain plenty of the necessary nutrients we need.
As much as everyone loves pastries, donuts, pizzas and sandwiches, they can be the worst foods you can eat because many of these are ultra-processed, contain lots of white flour, white sugar, saturated fats and cholesterol.
Vegan Diets can be unhealthy if we eat lots of vegan versions of the foods mentioned above. They are full of empty calories and have been overly processed.
So, a vegan diet should be a healthy one, containing a lot of whole foods in the form of fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts & seeds in limited quantities.
Unfortunately, food is a product that can be promoted and advertised as delicious, yet those companies that promote food are doing it to maximize profits, and aren’t it the business to make sure you eat truly healthy. They want to cater to desires and temptations to eat sinfully unhealthy foods. And ultimately it’s you who need to be responsible for your own personal health, while at the same time sifting through the propaganda, advertisements and slogans to realize what is truly healthy for your body.
Image by silviarita from Pixabay
