For some reason, every time I try to go vegan, the reason I fail is because I start getting sick more and more frequently – becoming more vulnerable to every cold and flu and other bug that goes around.
Does anyone have any idea what missing nutrients could be responsible for this — and what I can do about it?
I’m vegetarian, and don’t know about being vegan, but I do know that changing your diet to vegan will be like a detox for your system and that may be why you are experiencing the gunk clearing, manifesting as flu symptoms. . . like a healings crisis. . have you ever heard that term?
Also, have you ever read Louise Hay’s book Heal your Body? It defines physical symptoms as having emotional causes. . . cold symptom can be defined as ‘inner crying’ If you change your belief system about bugs and viruses, you may find you don’t manifest the same symptoms.
When you go from one diet to a ‘purer’ one, you are raising your vibrational energy, and it may take time for your system to adjust, emotionally as well as physically. . .
Sorry I cannot comment on nutrients. . I have a book on it but don’t have much understanding of biology, though i’m sure other answerers will, and there’s always the net to search.
I just thought my angle may be of interest.
xx
You may be lacking calcium Iron or B12
not having nutrients from Meat and other animal-derived food products is what making you sick.
First off, Vegan will never be healthy. You may not want to eat meat, but eggs and dairy can come from ethical sources and are essential to good health with a meat free diet. Firstly, where is your primary protien source coming from? I’m betting soy products, heavily processed soy products (boca nad morning star farms products?). When soy is processed, it changes chemically, and causes both males and females to start producing mass amounts of estrogen. It’s why you never see a vegan man or woman who has muscle tone, yet you can still find vegetarian men and women who are in shape and toned. Heavy estrogen production causes a loss of mucle tone, sine it is supressing testosterone production. Excessive estrogen van also cause other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, hot flashes, disrupted menstrual cycles in women, decreased sperm counts in men, and has been linked to several types of cancer. This is one of the worst misconceptions in the world of meat free living, that processed soy is healthy, it isn’t, and shouldn’t be consumed in great quantities.
Second, most vegans don’t eat healthy. An oreo cookie is technically vegan, along with a long list of other junk foods recommended on PETAs website (which is where a lot of newbies refer to for foods they can eat). Not eating meat means you have no room in your diet for junk foods, you must eat a 100% healthy diet to meet basic nutritional requirements. An oreo will never be healthy, whether you eat meat or not. Fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, pastas, rice and beans are your key to a healthy diet when you don’t eat meat. Processed food should be eliminated from your kitchen. If it can’t be bought out of the bulk bins at the local health food store or bought off the produce stand, it shouldn’t go in your mouth, period. Step one to living a healthy meat free lifestyle: learn how to cook from scratch. In today’s world, there are literally thousands of vegetarian and vegan cookbooks available for all skill levels, buy a few and make them your friends. Juicing is also an amazing way to get nutrients. A good juicer costs about $100, and it’s a worthy thing to spend your money on. Can you eat 10 carrots in one sitting along with other food for a meal? Neither can I, but if you juice those same 10 carrots, you still get all the vitamins and minerals without the bulk. I use my juicer multiple times everyday. It is one of the most worthwhile investments I have ever made.
Now I will never be a supporter of veganism. I stopped eating meat at 10 years old after a friend showed me a particularly disturbing article on factory farms. My parents didn’t like the idea, so they took me to a nutritionist to learn about healthful eating without meat. It is where most of my facts come from. They made me learn to cook for myself, I was never allowed to eat processed “fake meat”, because the nutritionist explained the risks. He also told them in no way shape or form should I stop consuming dairy or eggs, because there is no way to be healthy without a little help from animal sources. He gave us a list of local dairies and farms where we could visit to see the conditions the animals lived in, and that sold to the local health food store. For those 2 animal sources, I have always visited where my eggs, milk, butter and cheeses were coming from. Local farmers are always happy to give a pre arranged tour when it means gaining a new customer. I make sure they are well taken care of animals, and I have no problem consuming products that don’t harm a healthy animal to produce. You can’t hide a sickly animal, or patch up living conditions to look good for one person. These folks are good hardworking members of the community, and I like that I can support them. I have always been very very healthy, my husband is very healthy even though he occasionally eats meat when we go out (never at home, I cook, I choose what’s for dinner). I hope you’ve gained a little knowledge from my information. Not many people eat meat free for the long term, I hope you can by making sound nutritional choices that help your health rather than hinder it.
It’s really hard to answer this question without knowing what you’re eating. Vegan tells us what you’re not, but not what you are. Are you eating whole grains (not white bread/pasta, etc) fruits, veggies, beans, seeds, nuts etc? or are you eating a lot of processed foods?
I would recommend registering to nutritiondata. com Once registered there’s a tool that lets you track the food you eat during the day, and then you can ‘add it up’ and it will tell you what percent of nutrients you got and what you’re missing. B-12 is once common thing missing from a vegan diet, but it takes years before any symptoms show.
Are you drinking enough water? Are you eating good fats (olive oil, coconut, flax seed oil, peanuts, etc)? Eating green veggies? I’d also read up on nutrition so you understand what all people need.
You may have protein deficiencies or B12. . . but it’s really not that hard to get those things as a vegan as long as you eat right. All things considered your problem is probably iron. Iron deficiency would make you susceptible to all sorts of illnesses. It’s a common problem for vegans, but it’s not something that you can’t fix without eating meat. Eat lots of dark leafy greens. Spinach is excellent for this. And if all else fails you can take iron pills. Otherwise consult a doctor, you may have something else going on.
Are you eating balanced vegan meals? I’ve always been pretty healthy, but since going vegan I haven’t been sick at all with the exception of a cold that lasted three days. You have to replace the animal products that you’ve given up with healthy foods. Make sure you’re getting enough nutrients and calories by eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts. If you don’t use fortified soy milk or cereal you will need to take a B12 supplement. You can get iron from things like dark green leafy vegetables, blackstrap molasses (I mix it in soy milk), fortified cereals, beans and dates.
It’s really important to enjoy a varied diet. It could be an iron deficiency? Simple changes like changing white bread to wholegrain can boost your intake of iron. You should speak to your doctor who can:
a) Give you a blood test to find out if you’re lacking anything and rule out any underlying health problems.
and
b) Refer you to a dietician who can work through your worries with you.
Good luck.
Make sure by being a vegetarian, you arent saying to yourself it is okay to eat all kinds of junk foods like cake or donuts just because they don’t have meat in them. Sugar is one main reason people’s immune system gets weaker.
Like others said, you have to eat a well rounded diet. you can get plenty of protein from quinoa and lentils and other beans. Eat a lot of vegetables since they contain phytochemicals and will boost your immune system. Eat all kinds of veggies including peppers and add garlic to meals.
Do not eat processed or junk foods just because they do not contain meat, they do contain chemicals. Read ingredients and stay away from a lot of added sugar and high fructose corn syrup.
Talking a good multi-vitamin is something you should also do, and possibly an added D vitamin. Especially now as we get into the winter months.