What In the World Do Vegan’s Eat ???

Have you ever looked at a vegan in puzzled bewilderment, wondering “oh my gosh!, what do they eat!?!” Or maybe you have a family member who is now a vegan and you are worried sick that they will not get enough protein?

Well, if done correctly, they will have plenty of protein and nutrition. They will become healthier than ever. As mentioned earlier, when done right, a vegan diet is a healthy and a healing diet, therefore, beware! When first embarking on a diet that is vegan, there may be bodily signs of detoxification that will occur for a few days. This only happens when the person has an excess accumulation of toxic foodstuffs in the body which need to be released. It is totally natural and good for you. This cleansing action is clearing out the old and creating space for the new, real nutrients to enter within.

Eating familiar type meals at first will help some novices to not get bored or distracted from being a vegan. Go to the health food store and explore the amazing substitutes for meat that have been created. No, I am not talking about tofu; it goes beyond just tofu. You have sausages, burgers, cheeses, etc., that have been formulated to taste great and extremely close to their original counterpart, however are free of any animal products or by products. Some of these products do not even include soy. Try some rice milk, almond milk, cashew milk, hemp milk, try making them yourself as well. You can do it, it is really simple, and all you need to do is research and get a variety of recipes with instructions and try them out. Get some pasta that is free of eggs in its ingredients. Take a good look at the shelves, and a good look at the ingredients that are in the packages on those shelves. You will be surprised at what is now available to assist vegans to enjoy interesting, nutritional, balanced meals.

Then, you want to gradually move into eating meals that are congruent with proper food combining principles. Take it easy though! Don’t get too caught up in rules. As long as you are not suffering from gastric problems very often, it is acceptable to eat some foods that are not combined in the recommended way, periodically. All things in moderation.

After progress has been made with the above steps, then begin to incorporate more raw foods; salads, into your diet. Pick a variety of colors to go into your veggie salad. This helps to ensure that you get a variety of nutrients each time… sweet red peppers, non-gmo yellow corn or thinly sliced yellow squash, a green leaf salad vegetable, purple leaf lettuce or kale, grated orange carrots. You may want to work into being 80% raw eventually.

Some things to look out for:
• Avoid all gmo products and replace with those grown organically without any genetic engineering.
• Avoid synthetic preservatives, colorings, flavorings, MSG, etc., and replace them with simpler ingredients that are of natural plant matter or derivatives without the synthetic chemicals.
• Avoid irradiated foods and replace with non-irradiated. Best to get fresh produce and when dry or frozen; get from a health food store which sells foods that have not been irradiated. Frontier Natural Foods carries many dried seasonings, etc. that are non-irradiated.
• Avoid refined, white products including refined white sugar. “The whiter the bread; the sooner you’re dead” is an old saying to think about.
• To be a vegan you must eliminate all meats of ANY kind and dairy or its derivatives; including whey, casein, etc. and replace with vegan alternatives. Read your labels when buying commercial products. Don't get overwhelmed; diligently take it step at a time if this is difficult for you.
• Incorporate a few healthy, nutritional condiments which will add to your meals; such as nutritional yeast (de-bittered brewer’s yeast by red star, usually works very well for some of the B vitamins)
• Include a variety of seaweeds such as nori, kombu, etc. for their nutritional value and ability to help release heavy metals from the body.
• Support your local farmer's market; they work hard to supply the community with quality veggies ~ often organically grown.

A few menu ideas:
*Vegan pasta with falafel and humus spread, with a fresh vegetable salad.
*Steamed zucchini, battered broccoli flowerettes, green lentils soup, and salad.
*Vegan pizza with assortment of veggies grilled on top, salad and green split pea soup.

The sky is the limit. The key is to be creative and use a variety of foods to create your meals. I hope this article has helped to dispel a common illusion some people have about vegans. To be a vegan does not mean you have to starve or be boring with it. Enjoy!