Myths of the Vegan Diet
Critics of the vegan diet tend to use a common set of excuses to bolster their viewpoints. However, many of their claims are a result of cherrypicking statistics that support their opinion. These claims spread myths, which are believed by the general public, that revolve around the same four nutrients: protein, vitamin B12, iron, and creatine.
Vegans Cannot Get Enough Protein
This is usually the first myth critics tend to pull from their wheelhouse, and it is simply untrue. Nuts and legumes are packed with protein and will easily provide enough protein for an athlete without the need for supplements. On top of that, scientists conclude that the general public is overestimating the amount of protein they need and are eating too much, which may cause liver damage.[1]
You Can Only Get Vitamin B12 from Meat
This one is tricky, vitamin B12 is not found in any plant sources. It is actually a micororganism found in soil. Animal meat contains B12 because the food they eat comes straight from the ground, where as humans tend to wash off all the dirt on our produce.[2] However, as a result of living in the 21st century, the vitamin can be reproduced in pill form. You may be skeptical to ingest something made in a lab, but vitamin B12 supplements shouldn’t be viewed any differently than daily multivitamins, fish oil, or other common supplements.
Vegan Athletes Cannot Absorb Enough Iron From Their Diet
In case you are unaware, the iron in animal products differs from the iron in plants. The problem is not that iron is less abundant in plant sources, it is that iron from animals, or heme iron, is absorbed easier than plant iron, or non-heme iron. However this is easy to combat with the right strategy. Vitamin C has been shown to increase the absorption of non-heme iron. Preparing meals with foods high in iron and vitamin C — such as pasta with tomato sauce and spinach — will increase the amount of iron you absorb from the spinach. You should also avoid consuming calcium when eating iron rich foods because calcium is known to hinder your body’s ability to absorb iron.[3]
Vegans Cannot Build Muscle Because of Low Creatine Levels
Creatine is a naturally occurring substance in the human body, meaning we produce the same amount of creatine regardless of diet. Carnivores tend to have higher creatine levels than vegans because the meat they consume contains creatine. Thus, carnivores have two sources of creatine, their body and their diet, whereas vegans only have one source. Supplementing creatine may have a bad reputation set my college students looking to maximize weight gain, it is the only clinically proven supplement to show time and time again to decrease recovery time and increase muscle development. Better yet, studies have shown that vegans respond better to creatine supplementation than carnivores, resulting in better muscular gains.[4]