gettingvetted: ethicallyomnivorous: ★ Vitamin B121. The main finding of this review is that veg
gettingvetted: ethicallyomnivorous: ★ Vitamin B121. The main finding of this review is that vegetarians develop B12 depletion or deficiency regardless of demographic characteristics, place of residency, age, or type of vegetarian diet. Vegetarians should thus take preventive measures to ensure adequate intake of this vitamin, including regular consumption of supplements containing B12. 2. Vegans have lower vitamin B12 concentrations, but higher folate concentrations, than vegetarians and omnivores. Half of the vegans were categorized as vitamin B12 deficient and would be expected to have a higher risk of developing clinical symptoms related to vitamin B12 deficiency. 3. Vegans are at a higher risk of vitamin B12 deficiency than some vegetarians. (4, 5, 6, 7)4. Especially if you’re avoiding processed vegan foods (which are often fortified with vitamin B12), you’ll need to find a supplement and take it consistently, since there are really no reliable dietary sources of B12 for vegans. (Algae like spirulina, often rumored to contain B12, only has B12 analogues that won’t actually improve your B12 status.)5. A lot of people are sensitive to or have no access to “Vitamin B12 fortified foods” like yeasts, cereals, soy products, etc. ★ Vitamin D31. Of the two types of vitamin D, cholecalciferol (from animals) is much more potent than ergocalciferol. In other words, it increases blood levels of bioactive vitamin D much more efficiently. (57, 58, 59) ★ DHA 1. In the body, DHA can also be made from the omega-3 fatty acid ALA, which is found in high amounts in flaxseeds, chia seeds and walnuts (65, 66, 67).However, the conversion of ALA to DHA is inefficient (68, 69). For this reason, vegetarians and vegans are often lower in DHA than meat eaters (70, 71, 72). ★ Heme-iron1. Heme-iron is a type of iron only found in meat, especially red meat. It is much better absorbed than non-heme iron found in plant foods (76). Not only is heme-iron well absorbed, it also improves the absorption of non-heme iron from plant foods. This phenomenon is not entirely understood and is called the “meat factor.” 2. Unlike non-heme iron, heme-iron is not affected by antinutrients, such as phytic acid, often found in plant foods. For this reason, vegetarians and vegans are more prone to anemia than meat eaters, especially women and people on macrobiotic diets (5, 77). Meat, especially red meat, contains a type of iron called heme-iron, which is much better absorbed than non-heme iron from plant foods. Don’t forget that soy and veggies have hundreds of thousands of times more estrogens than animal products -- source link