Vegan for Life: Everything You Need to Know to Be Healthy and Fit on a Plant-Based Diet

by Jack Norris, Virginia Messina

Are you considering going vegan, but you're not sure how to start? Are you already committed to an animal-free diet, but are unclear about how to get proper nutrients? Vegan for Life is your comprehensive, go-to guide for optimal plant-based nutrition. Registered dietitians and long-time vegans Jack Norris and Virginia Messina debunk some of the most persistent myths about vegan nutrition and provide essential information about getting enough calcium and protein, finding the best supplements, and understanding the "real deal" about soy.Covering everything from a six-step transition plan to meeting calorie and nutrient needs during pregnancy and breastfeeding, Vegan for Life is the guide for aspiring and veteran vegans alike, complete with an easy-to-use food chart, tasty substitutions, sample menus, and expansive resources.

Genres: Nonfiction, Vegan, Health, Food, Nutrition, Cookbooks, Cooking

283 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2011

Reviews

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I consider Ginny a friend, but I can honestly say a top notch job was done with this material; even if I’d never had any personal contact with Ginny I know I’d have respected and enjoyed the book just as much as I did.

This book is absolutely the best book out there for up to date, as of 2011, vegan nutrition. It’s wonderful, full of indispensable information for vegans and vegan interested people at every stage of the life cycle, and those who know them, and those who work with them in various capacities. (I hope these authors write an update if/when new information comes to light, which it likely eventually will.)

Ginny Messina is my favorite R.D. and Jack Norris is my second favorite R.D., even though there are several other vegan R.D.s I highly respect and like. So, I was very eager to read this book. I immensely respect these two authors and what they’ve done with the creation of this book.

Okay, I’m a bit of a nutrition geek. I took a college level nutrition class and have read extensively on my own, including two editions of Ginny’s book for professional registered dietitians and other health professionals: The Dietitian's Guide to Vegetarian Diets: Issues and Applications. But, this book is definitely aimed for laypeople, though it doesn’t dumb down the information; the layperson reader is given respect in how the information is presented, not condescended to at all.

The book is very well written and very readable, and able to be enjoyed by and useful for both adults and teens.

As an ethical vegan, chapter 16 Why Vegan? was closest to my heart, and I particularly appreciated it being there and respected its placement as the last full chapter. Including it and having it at the end of the book was a wise choice, in my opinion. Each farmed animal gets just a short (not too overwhelming) section, which educates the reader how these animals raised for food are treated. I’m so glad this information was included in what is primarily an outstanding health-promoting book.

I normally read all books cover to cover, every word, in exact order, but I admit I headed right for chapter 11, which covers vegan diets for people over 50. So, I read that chapter twice.

There are so many great things about this book. I love the honesty re B12 and other nutrients, the scientific rigor of evaluating different types of studies and critical thinking re current information and acknowledgment that in some cases we just don’t know or there is more than one way to interpret findings. This is a book for laypeople, and it covers vegan diets at all stages of the life cycle.

This book is particularly recommended for new vegans and those who are interested in vegan eating, but as a long term vegan, I learned quite a bit, about which I was not at all surprised. I can highly recommend this book to all vegans, the vegan interested, those who cook for or know vegans, those who work in various capacities with vegans and those nearly vegan.

I love the attitude of the two authors, of promoting veganism for the animals, but also to encourage people to eat as healthfully as possible without being overly restrictive and definitely allowing for “treat” foods.

I’ve been fully vegan for nearly 17 years, and mostly vegan for over 23 years, and lacto-ovo for more than a decade before that, and I read a lot about nutrition, but I learned quite a bit about amounts. I also hadn’t know about USP for vitamin supplements, and am motivated to take a DHA & EPA supplement, especially given my age. The thing I learned that shocked me the most was that white pasta (I eat whole wheat/whole grain pasta 95% of the time) is lower on the glycemic index (GI) than brown rice. Whoa!

Most importantly, this book has motivated me to do a better job of eating more nutrient dense food, especially since I have to eat very low calorie to lose weight, especially since for over 7 years injuries have significantly reduced my ability to strenuously exercise.

The menu plans are probably especially helpful for new vegans and those considering veganism, but I got some lovely ideas for foods to eat more often or add in to my diet.

I thoroughly enjoyed the section by and about vegan teens and children.

The resources list is particularly useful, not comprehensive, but I think the authors chose the very best examples for each section, and I found a couple more blogs I’ll probably follow. (Whether I find the time to actually read them is another matter.)

My only quibble (and I told Ginny this when I was reading this book) is the contention that swimming is not particularly useful for building bone density. I’ve read elsewhere that when swimming laps the water acts as a resistance and the body gets weight bearing exercise that way. And, over a couple year period when I swam a lot and did virtually no other physical activity, my spine gained a significant amount of bone density. But that’s the only information in the book that I question. I implicitly trust every other bit of information from these two authors. They’ve definitely done their homework, and then some.

And, Ginny, the co-author, is an active Goodreads reader member (she’s never participated in irritating author promotion, never ever) and I love discussing books with her here, particularly historical fiction and children’s books. As icing on the cake, in her acknowledgements she thanks her buddies at Goodreads, this site. Us! Hooray! Very cool! And thoughtful!

FYI:

Contents:

Introduction: Going Vegan for Life

1 Understanding Vegan Nutrient Needs

2 Protein from Plants

3 Vitamin B12: The Gorilla in the Room

4 Calcium, Vitamin D, and Bone Health

5 Fats: Making the Best Choices

6 Iron, Zinc, Iodine, and Vitamin A: Maximizing Vegan Sources

7 The Vegan Food Guide

8 Making the Transition to a Vegan Diet

9 A Healthy Start: Vegan Diets in Pregnancy and Breast-Feeding

10 Raising Vegan Children and Teens

11 Vegan Diets for People Over Fifty

12 Plant Food Advantages: Health Benefits of a Vegan Diet

13 Managing Weight, Heart Disease, and Diabetes

14 Sports Nutrition

15 Is It Safe to Eat Soy?

16 Why Vegan?

Vegan Resources
A Quick Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, and Vegetables
Metric Conversion Chart
Acknowledgements
Notes
Index

[David Rubenstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a comprehensive book on every aspect of vegan nutrition. The authors are experts, and answer every question one might have about virtually all the nutrients that are considered to be important to health. There are detailed charts that summarize the best foods for the major nutrients. Vegans are always asked questions like, "so where do you get your protein?" and "where do you get calcium?" and so on. The answers are here, along with more serious issues, like vitamin B12.

Keeping in mind that correlation does not necessarily imply causation, the book describes results of many studies of nutrition and health. In fact, to the authors' credit, they outline the different types of studies: in vitro and animal studies are the weakest type of evidence for nutritional health. Case studies provide slightly stronger evidence. Ecological studies investigate the correlations between nutrients and health, but are also weak because they usually cannot have good controls. Epidemiologic studies provide stronger evidence, but also suffer from some of the same problems as ecological studies, because they focus on correlations. But retrospective, cross-sectional, and prospective (cohort) studies provide stronger evidence for nutritional health. The best type of study is the so-called randomized controlled trial--sort of the gold standard for research, but they are the most complex and costly of all the studies.

I mention these different types of studies because there is so much misinformation and conflicting research about nutrition, and much of it is based on the weaker types of studies. It is important, before one becomes convinced of the nutritional value or harm of some types of foods, to understand how well-controlled the research was. This book summarizes the results of many studies, and emphasizes which ones are the most believable. From my perspective, this is a rational, scientific approach to nutrition that is often missing.

Unfortunately, the authors downplay the research of T. Colin Campbell, author of The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted And the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss, And Long-term Health. The reason they say, is that the study is of a weaker, epidemiological type. However, Campbell makes a major point that, while humans need all of these nutrients, they cannot be studied in isolation. There are many poorly-understood synergisms between combinations of nutrients, and studies that focus on individual nutrients are not very useful. This is an important point that affects most nutrition studies.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for anyone interested in eating a vegan diet. Beginners will find everything they need to know boiled down into a single page, on page 88, called "The Vegan Food Guide". People who have been eating vegan diets for a while will find updated nutrition information(the book was just published in 2011), including entire chapters debunking much misinformation and urban folklore about vegan diets. I found the chapters on soy food consumption and the real health benefits of vegan diets particularly interesting.

Instead of being a comprehensive ( and much longer ) book on nutrition, this book focuses on nutrition issues that people eating vegan diets should be aware of. This makes for a shorter, fact based book that is a bit more practical for people who aren't nutrition buffs.

The book has a strong focus on practicality, actually making a vegan diet work in day to day life. In chapter 8 the authors have some really good food preparation suggestions that can be used over and over for many types of food when people are rushed and not into making a recipe. There is also a section in the back of the book on page 243 describing basic cooking instructions for dietary staple foods.

Jack Norris and Virginia Messina are Registered Dietitians who stay regularly abreast of current nutrition research and who are scrupulously honest about reporting the complete story in regards to nutrition...even if it isn't always what people want to hear ( they both regularly maintain blogs dedicated to vegan nutrition information ). In other words, you can depend on them to give you complete, up to date and truthful information.

That is what you will get in this book, in plain, easy to read language.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vegan? Thinking of going vegan? Love/like/know a vegan? Want to eat less meat or dairy but not sure how to do it in a healthy way? If so, then you need this book. It's essentially an encyclopedia for all things nutrition-related as they pertain to veganism.

There are entire chapters dedicated to certain vitamins and nutrients. I thought I knew all there was to know about b-12, but I was wrong. They also discuss raising vegan children and being vegan during pregnancy, veganism for the over-50 crowd, transitioning to a vegan diet, managing your weight, heart disease or diabetes, sports nutrition and whether or not soy is safe, plus much more. This is a terrific resource to have on hand in case you need an answer to a question that you or someone else has.

The only thing I didn't like was that the "Why Vegan?" chapter was left for the very end. It seemed out of order! Overall though, this is an information and fact-packed book that provides all you need to know to be a healthy plant-eater. I never once felt like I was reading something too scientific or boring, which books of this type can sometimes be. Jack and Virginia have inspired me to clean up my diet, given me a new knowledge base, and have given me responses for the many, many questions and concerns that others have about veganism.

[Tisha (IG: Bluestocking629) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars/carrots (there is such a thing, I swear)

I don't think this book by itself would be enough for me to learn everything needed to make this lifestyle change. This book however as a companion book, with the other seven books I purchased, (Amazon and I are on a first name basis) has proven to be very informative.

I felt like this book pretty much told me the "why" but not the "how" to become a Vegan.

The chapter depicting what the farm animals go through on these factory farms was descriptive without being too overly graphic. Meaning they got their point across...if I had any doubts about becoming a Vegan this chapter would have changed that...I'm going to go hug my cat now...

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good comprehensive guide with very practical advice and tips

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome! This book will answer any question you have about remaining in peak health on a vegan diet. Well researched and extremely thorough, the two dieticians who wrote this book have done their homework and then some. The main premise illustrates the balanced and realistic attitude of the authors: veganism is not a natural human diet and romanticizing it as a perfect diet for human beings does more harm than good. They argue that if people are going to convert to veganism and stick with it they need to plan their diets carefully. It's not hard to be a vegan, but you can't just eliminate animal products from your current diet and expect to be healthy.

Human beings have evolved to eat meat--certainly not as much as most people consume, but a moderate amount is probably beneficial in some ways. Vitamin B12, for example, is necessary for health and only found in meat products. The thing to note is that NO ONE today is eating a natural diet. Our animal products and plant products are a far cry from what our paleolithic ancestors would have had access to. Much of our food is less nutrient dense and sometimes toxic if it's been treated with chemicals. Genetic modification and antibiotic use, depleted soil and insecticide, all of these things are new and therefore it's basically impossible to eat a "natural" diet.

Humans are unique in their ability to adapt to eating just about anything. That's why we can populate the entire globe. We also have access to a huge variety of foods as well as nutritional supplements. Such access means that while a vegan diet may not be "natural" it can still be extremely healthy and meet all the nutritional requirements of just about anyone from athletes to pregnant women, to children and seniors.

The authors provide a vegan food guide, explain the importance of key nutrients, and tell you how to get them. They don't pretend that you can get everything from food and recommend a small number of supplements. Honestly, most meat eaters aren't getting the right nutrients in their diets and should probably be supplementing too! Having to take supplements is not an argument against veganism. The authors suggest that since supplements are cheap and readily available they are a great alternative to getting the same nutrients from meat.

Veganism is,above all, an ethical choice and an environmental one. This isn't about picking the diet that is most suited to human beings. It's about picking the diet that rejects the current system of meat production in favour of viable alternatives.

The book provides menus, resources, a section on the soy controversy, recommendations for supplementation, and tailored recommendations for pregnant and lactating women, athletes, seniors, children, and teenagers.

An indispensable resource for anyone who is eliminating animal products from their diet. Unhealthy vegans will only damage the ability to promote such a diet. Being a healthy vegan IS possible, there are even some health benefits, but it's foolhardy to think that just eating enough kale will keep you alive and cancer free until you're 100. People will never be convinced to give up animal products if vegans are wandering around looking thin and malnourished. Read this book and be sure that you'll thrive on a plant based diet.

[Russ · Rating 5 out of 5]

New vegans (or older struggling vegans): this is the one! The authors, both registered dietitians, are very careful in outlining a healthy vegan diet. They are also very honest, which is helpful on topics like B-12 (and it comes down to the fact that supplements are the most dependable way to go, so why mess with the uncertainty of other sources simply for the notion of being "more natural"?). Some other vegan diet books rely on inconclusive studies with small sample sizes to bolster claims. Norris and Messina are straight-forward about results of studies and, where possible, rely on the cumulative data from several studies. In cases where the jury is still out, they'll tell you the jury is still out.
This is a really essential approach for vegans. We get bombarded with questions (about iron deficiency, protein, calcium), and it doesn't help our cause to respond with unproven claims that still require more research. Furthermore, going vegan for many years only to end up with B12 deficiency looks bad. Why not do everything you can to be healthy, especially when health is one of the best reasons to go vegan?
In the final chapter, the authors get into the ethical issues of animal treatment, especially in factory farms. This almost cost the book one star for me, because it didn't seem to fit what this book was about. Why does every vegan book have to have this section, especially one titled Vegan for Life that seems to hold the assumption that you've already started down this path? They handle this chapter well, though, and I found it to be a nice summary of a lot of the things I learned from Foer's excellent Eating Animals. Anyone with questions about animal treatment and other arguments about going vegan could read these 20 pages and get many answers (in fact, it would make a nice booklet or pamphlet).
Overall, an essential book for the vegan's shelf.

[Bart Kleijngeld · Rating 5 out of 5]

An essential (beginner's) guide for going (and staying) vegan for life, providing information for young and old, active and sedentary, pregnant or not.

It is practical, sometimes -although responsibly- prioritizing comfort over addiotional nutritional benefit, with the ultimate goal of keeping one's diet realistic and doable. One example is the recommendation of not having to refrain from the occasional consumption of mock meats, and the embrace of (certain) supplements where they can enhance the diet.

I also like how honest the authors are about the diet. Going vegan has potential pitfalls, and they shed light on the most important ones. They, rightly so, warn people for naturalistic fallacies ("it is unnatural to take in supplements") and emphasize research and science in all of their advice and reasoning.
Of course, a well-planned vegan diet also provides many benefits, which are treated and mentioned in the same fashion.

For nutrition freaks the book might be a little too permitting of sub-optimal habits, but I absolutely agree with that approach. Most people aren't interested in such extremes, and the most important thing is for people to stick with the diet for as long as possible. Also, a serious nutrition freak has to admit honestly that the path they are following is uncertain and in part fueled by belief, since nutrition science is young and riddled with conflicting and confusing information. This is okay, but it is understandable that most people aren't interested in diving into this rabbit hole.

I'm certain nearly anyone who reads this book and follows its advice will improve their health significantly, and there's no doubt that any movement in the direction of fully plant-based will benefit the animals currently suffering for the the demand of consumption of their products and bodies.

Highly recommended.

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't come to being vegan for animal cruelty issues but instead for health and lifestyle reasons and I found the approach in this book very helpful.

Vegan for life covers nutritional and health issues for vegans in a very solid scientific way. The conversation unveils both the nutritional challenges and benefits of being vegan. Many of the myths are busted in a convincing manner and if followed, the advice in this book should allow vegans to make healthy lifelong choices.

The book does end with a chapter on animal cruelty and skips over environmental and food safety saying they are beyond the scope of the book. Given that many vegans are just as concerned about the ignored issues it seemed like a slightly biased way to end the book.

I think if you are a vegetarian or vegan or just considering the idea this book should be on your shelf. It's practical nutritional information is super helpful and if followed should lead to many years of healthy living.

[Serena Long ﺕ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Making my vegan diet even healthier. The nutrition recommendations in this book which are based on solid, current science are aimed at making your vegan diet healthful and realistic. You will see that it's easy to meet nutrient needs by eating a variety of cooked and raw plant foods. The amount of nutrition information in the media and on the internet is staggering. Much of it is conflicting and often studies looking at the same question come up with completely different answer.

[Alanoud · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good book that i would give to someone who's considering switching to a plant-based diet. Not only it discusses all the iterate issues that a vegan can face, but also gives practical guidelines on how to start eating\cooking vegan while keeping daily nutritional needs meet.

However, the book adopts at a dietary school that i don't fully agree with. For example, it suggests that dietary supplements (e.g. vitamin D drops, B12 capsules) should be part of your life as you can't get the required portion from your plan-based diet. I totally disagree with that, and I believe one can find all nutritional needs in food.

All in all, the book is a good read

[Edmund Schaefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an information dense book, but an absolute must for anyone looking to live a healthy vegan lifestyle. The advice is based on research, and there are specific chapters for certain periods in your life (pregnancy, children, athletes, etc). I also like how the authors attempt to make following the guidelinea easy without having to count nutrients. However some portion advice is a little vague, making it a bit harder to follow. All in all, very much worth a read! My advice is also to take notes.

[Isa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Een belangrijk boek voor mij dat meop vriendelijke wijze er weer van overtuigd heeft (weer) beter mijn best te doen voor een veganistisch dieet. Dat heeft alles met mijn eigen gezondheid te maken (waar het gros van het boek over gaat), maar zeker vooraanstaand heeft dat te maken heeft met het willen boycotten van producten die dierenleed veroorzaken (het laatste hoofdstuk vat dit goed samen..).

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is a very important book, and mostly done quite well. It makes it clear that we need to really clean up our diets if want to have optimum nutrition. Unfortunately this message for me, is too depressing, since I'm not able to clean up my diet to that extent, while keeping my calorie count low enough so that I will be as slim as I want. It takes real effort and planning to pack that much nutrition into the 1200 calories I need to limit myself to (on days when I don't exercise), to lose the weight I want to lose. (If I exercise, I add calories to the limit, such as 80 calories per mile run.) But at least this book is here, and has a lot of great information. If I ever get organized enough to figure out how to pack the needed nutrition into my diet, it will be a great reference. In fact, I already think it is a great reference; I read the copy borrowed from my friend Lisa, but afterward I bought a copy for myself and plan to make a permanent space for it on my real-life bookshelf.

----------------
Above is a summary of my reaction to the book.
I figure not everyone is interested in all of this, but if you are interested, read on for more of my impressions below.
----------------

I was initially enthusiastic, but in the end, I felt disappointed by this book. I feel that, although it tries very hard to tell you how EASY it is to get all the nutrients you need with a well-balanced diet, in the end, it is not easy at all. Not when I don't have the opportunity to plan out exactly what I eat all the time. (I believe this difficulty would be true for vegan diets or meat-eater diets.)

I actually ended up feeling depressed by the end of the book, as I will never be able to live up to all the things that the book says I need to eat on a daily basis to get optimum nutrition. If I could take a supplement for most of the important nutrients, that would help a lot (a magic pill! YES!), but the authors are reluctant to recommend supplements in several cases. (They are proponents of B12 and DHA/EPA supplements, but not much of any others.) The reluctance to recommend supplements is for a good reason ... as the authors mention, supplements can cause other unintended consequences. For example, excessive zinc supplements can cause a copper deficiency. And calcium supplements (if taken with meals) can cause an iron deficiency. Etc etc etc ...

So! Supplements are not a smart way to make up for bad nutrition ... yes, I hear that wisdom. But ... I can't be sure to get awesome nutrition every day. Maybe someday I will be able to, but right now I am (and for the past few years I have been) too stressed out with various things in my life to get THAT ORGANIZED about my diet. I'm sorry, right now I just can't do it. And that's depressing for me.

By the way, during August, when I was reading this book, I started eating extra foods that the book said I should be eating to get missing nutrients, and even though I started running and exercising during the same period, I gained FIVE POUNDS in just 3 weeks!!! At the end of August, I was the heaviest I have been in 20 years! I guess because I was eating all these extra beans and nuts that were not part of my diet before. Goodness gracious! Talk about unintended consequences. I started off the month at what I consider to be my "maximum weight" ... the one that when I see it, I say, OH BOY, time to get back on the treadmill. That's why I started exercising IN EARNEST again. And it wasn't that I gained extra muscle from the exercise, I could actually SEE the extra flab around my middle. I caught my figure in the mirror as I was stepping into the shower and said WHOA! What is THAT!??! I thought maybe it was my imagination, so I stepped on the scale, and whaddyaknow ... I was 5 pounds over what I consider to be my maximum weight! I started off the month with extra flab I didn't want, but now I had extra extra flab!

I know the book says that it's better to be slightly overweight, than underweight. But .. well, I'm sorry that I'm this superficial, but I honestly desire to be much slimmer than I am now. Over the past 15 years, my weight has been fluctuating between 103 pounds and 123; ideally I like to be around 108, not 123. So believe me, I was not happy to suddenly be at 128! I am starting to worry that it might not be possible for me to get all the nutrients I need on the lower calorie diet I would need to limit myself to, in order to be as slim as I want. Again ... this is depressing for me. I want to be slim AND healthy.

*sigh*

I also have comments about specific concepts mentioned in the book that I found confusing / unclear. I am going to re-skim the book so that I can write all my comments and questions here. Hopefully the comments would be helpful for a future edition of the book.

[Jordana Carlson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this, and mostly picked it up because I was curious about veganism. I didn't become vegan, but I did incorporate different aspects of this book into my life, such as using alternative protein sources sometimes to help mix it up, and also looking at ingredients I never would have really considered using in daily life, such as soy milk, nutritional yeast, etc. What I liked the most about this book is that is wasn't judge-y, it didn't feel like the author was judging non-vegans, or on a moral high horse. It felt like just a really good informational book on the nutritional aspects of veganism.

[Katey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. I appreciated the authors' approach: that following a vegan diet is definitely a choice in American culture, and there are very good reasons for it (ethics/morals, health, environmental) and there are very real concerns about nutrition as it relates to the vegan diet. I also appreciated the fact that the authors' are realistic about many things, such as that since a vegan diet is a choice presently, certain biological needs from the past need to be addressed specifically- but they quickly come back with the fact that NO ONE eats as their ancestors did (what some people say to defend their meat-eating diet). New advances in science are leading to more discoveries about nutrition, but it still is a relatively new science, and further limits are put in place for vegans since they have not been studied specifically or extensively. But from the data available, the authors' have extrapolated information as it pertains to vegans, and are very honest when the research is lacking, yet make sensible posits when warranted. They know their stuff. Heavily notated and researched.

I really liked this pairing of science and ethics. While some would classify being vegan for ethical reasons as "emotional" and therefore silly, I think there's nothing wrong with letting certain strong emotions help shape our choices, especially when it comes to something so simple and basic as eating, yet eating like you give a damn has so many positive effects, it becomes difficult after a time to use anything else as an excuse or reason or even see the downside. New vegetarians/vegans: it will get easier and "normal," that I promise you, and this book helps tremendously. It's helped me learn new information, and I have been veg for 9 years.

To round out this book, besides discussing the basics (essential nutrients, vitamins, supplement use) it also discussed certain foods that have become "controversial" like soy or even EFAs. It also had chapters dealing with geriatric vegan nutrition, pregnancy and lactation, and even children's nutritional needs.

This book warranted me getting out my highlighter. The facts are too important to forget specifics.

[George Jacobs · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://healthpartners.sg/review-vega...
This book is full of clearly written, extensively detailed nutrition information. Indeed, the authors fulfil the promise given in the book’s subtitle: “Everything You Need To Know To Be Healthy on a Plant-Based Diet.” ‘Everything’ includes lists of foods, menus, and diet tips for key nutritional needs.
But the main purpose of the book is not to teach human nutrition.
The authors emphasize that vegan nutrition can be easy: “A vegan diet isn’t difficult; it’s just a different way of meeting nutritional needs.” The book focuses on nine nutrients that vegans and the vegan-curious often wonder about: protein, calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, alpha-linolenic acid, and vitamins B12, A, and D. In addition to chapters on those nutrients, other chapters delve into making the transition to vegan, soyfoods, pregnancy and breastfeeding, children and teens, people over 50, sports nutrition, and a compassionate approach to weight and dieting.
But the main purpose of the book is not to teach human nutrition.
So, what is the authors’ main purpose? This is revealed in the book’s dedication: “to all farmed animals, and to those who work to end their suffering.” Jack Norris and Virginia Messina explain that they are long-time vegans who became nutrition professionals to empower people to move away from animal based foods: “We want you to have the best nutrition advice possible, because a vegan diet isn’t a realistic choice if you aren’t meeting nutrient needs or eating in a way that supports optimal health.”
And, if we aren’t healthy vegans, we can’t be effective ambassadors for veganism, even though, “A vegan diet is the world’s most simple solution to a host of complex problems.”
Norris and Messina are myth busters, myths believed by meat eaters, and myths believed by vegans. Here are 9 of the myths they bust.
Myth #1: Plant protein is incomplete.
Fact: All plant sources of protein contain all the essential amino acids. The death-by-research of the old belief that vegans need to do food combining is another example of how modern science supports the efficacy of vegan diets.
At the same time, Vegan For Life debunks something that many vegan activists, myself included, have said, “I’ve never heard of anyone, outside of someone suffering malnutrition, having a protein deficiency.” The authors clarify: “Diets that are marginal in protein—not quite deficient, but not quite optimal—can result in loss of muscle mass, poor bone health, and compromised immunity.” Furthermore, seniors may need extra protein.
Myth #2: Eating vegan is difficult.
“You can build healthful and appealing vegan meals around convenience foods and easily prepared dishes. You can be a happy, healthy vegan without ever cracking open a cookbook.” Yes, people need time to adjust and to learn new foods, but being vegan is eminently doable, especially with all the new vegan foods flooding the market these days.
At the same time that Vegan For Life addresses this myth among meat eaters, the authors also challenge the view held by some vegans that only a completely whole foods diets will work for vegans. While the book encourages whole, un- or lightly-processed foods, Norris and Messina also see a place for processed foods. Similarly, they see no advantage to diets weighted heavily towards raw foods.
Myth #3: Going vegan will work wonders for people’s health and appearance.
Many people do experience short- and long-term health benefits from becoming vegan, and this is supported by a growing body of research. However, if your health “benefits are smaller than you expected, it doesn’t mean your vegan diet doesn’t work. A vegan diet always works because it always reduces your contribution to animal exploitation and shrinks your carbon footprint. There is no other diet that can make those promises. Focusing on these guaranteed benefits of veganism makes it easy to embrace it as a long-term commitment.” I love that quote!
Myth #4: Going vegan is almost impossible because of all the animal ingredients hidden in food processing, such as bone char in white sugar. So, why try?
Fact: “Avoiding these minute animal ingredients won’t make your diet any healthier. Nor will it lessen animal suffering or help protect the environment in any meaningful way. The only thing it will do is make your vegan diet more restrictive, time-consuming, and difficult to follow.”
Myth #5: Eating soy products destroys the Amazon.
Fact: “Eating beans and grains directly instead of feeding them to farmed animals conserves land, water, fertilizer, and fossil fuel.”
Myth #6: We know everything we need to know about nutrition. The only task now is to disseminate this knowledge.
Fact: There is still a huge amount we do not know about nutrition, and “experts” who do not admit our species’ ignorance are not to be trusted. Norris and Messina do admit that scientific knowledge is sometimes lacking, for example: “A lot more research is needed before any definitive conclusions about the role of soy in preventing and treating prostate cancer can be made.”
Myth #7: Soy foods bring about a host of health problems.
Fact: Some soy foods, such as tofu, are more processed than others, such as tempeh and edamame, but the research supports a belief that all soy foods are health-promoting, for example, “The World Cancer Research Fund International suggests that soyfoods consumption might possibly improve survival in women who have had breast cancer.”
Myth #8: There is controversy among nutrition professionals as to whether vegans should take B12 supplements and/or eat foods specially fortified with B12.
Fact: “Among nutrition professionals (including those of us who specialize in vegan diets), there is no controversy at all. All vegans need to take a vitamin B12 supplement or consume foods that are fortified with this nutrient.” Older people, whether or not they eat meat, can suffer B12 deficiency, and the B12 in supplements tends to be more bio-available than the B12 in animal foods.
Myth #9: Some prehistoric people ate plant-based diets.
Fact: “[T]here is a tremendous amount of evidence that humans evolved eating some animal products.”
To sum up, Vegan for Life (2nd edition) is a book that belongs on every vegan and vegan wanna-checkout’s bookshelf (or hard drive in the case of the e-book or audio book versions).
To continue learning from Norris and Messina, visit Jack’s Vegan Health website - website (now a collaborative project including Ginny and such other experts as Reed Mangels and Taylor Wolfram). Vegan Outreach, the hyperactive organization that Jack co-founded and leads, has a very useful project, 10 Weeks to Vegan. Also highly recommended are Ginny’s other books, including Never Too Late To Go Vegan and Vegan for Her, not to mention her blog, The Vegan RD.
Returning to the authors’ purpose for writing Vegan For Life, let me leave you with more of their words of animal-focused wisdom: “Good diets are good advocacy.”

[Daniel Luces · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very easy to understand, not a lot of "science mumbo-jumbo", mentions most important aspects of a vegan diet and its effects on our health with its strengths and weaknesses; it's not claiming eating vegan automatically makes you immune to all diseases nor that eating meat automatically gives you cancer, diabetes and clamidia, as a lot of vegan advocates seem to believe and spread. Also talks a bit about soy and its weird reputation as of late, busting the myth that soy is terrible for you and you should avoid it, which is a relief to me because soy is awesome in all its forms. As a plus, it tells you how to properly cook legumes, grains and vegetables for optimum nutrient preservation and absorbtion, which is cool.

[Barbara Drury · Rating 5 out of 5]

A comprehensive guide for novices, as well as committed vegans, who are looking for valid scientifically based information to help them to lead a healthier vegan lifestyle or to iron out any confusion about fats/calories/raw foods/soy etc.
I found it to be very informative in terms of advice regarding supplements and fats. Ginny is a registered dietician and so is Jack Norris, so they clearly know what they're talking about.

[Marta Marecka · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book if you're interested in going vegan. It's science-based and very honest. It didn't turn me into a vegan, but it taught me much about nutrition and made me follow a more plant-based diet.

Edit: I re-read this, as I attempt to eliminate diary from my diet. I still believe this is an excellent resource, very helpful in the transition to a dairy-less diet

[Nikole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the one stop shop for all things vegan. This book is heavy with information but if you pick out the basics you can create a great lifestyle for yourself. I got it from the library but I might just buy a copy to keep around the house. Next time someone asks where I get my protein from I know exactly what to say because I know exactly where it comes from... I'm so tired of that question.

[Debbie Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good reminder to eat healthy. Not a pushy book. I don't think I could ever be completely vegan, I love cheese and ice cream! But it reminded me to eat more whole grains and fruits and veggies. Also motivated me to get my garden going.

[Jon Allanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent resource. Well written and thoroughly researched.

[Fred Ayres · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very thorough book on veganism. Way to go!

[Baroness · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being Vegan for many years brought me to this book.
It was OK.

[Trini · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is hard for me to review non-fiction books and I also don't have too much time to write this one down, so I'll just list off a few things I liked and those I disliked.

The Good
-In my opinion, the most useful part of this book was the specific quantities needed for each nutrient in your body, and if they suffer any modifications in a plant-based diet, which comes very handy if you want to change your setting in a nutrient-tracking app, such as Cronometer.
-The writers are registered dietitians so you know you can trust them over some random YouTube person with not a ton of reliable education on the subject.
-The book goes into the ethical side of why you would want to be vegan, although I would argue that this is not as effective in written form as when you watch a somewhat more graphic video.
-It seems very appropriate if you are just getting started on vegan nutrition because it goes over all of the relevant macro and micro nutrients and demystifies some common misconceptions.
-It explores vegan nutrition in situations where one might think it is "dangerous": pregancy, lactancy, childhood and old age, as well as plant-based nutrition for athletes.
-They list resources for further research on the ethical issues veganism fights against, as well as food blogs and recipe books.
-It didn't sugarcoat any of the benefits of a vegan diet, and was purely based on science and research. It was honest in the issues one might have when consuming a diet free of animal products.
-It has a vegan food guide for choosing your meals on a daily basis.

The Bad:
-I felt like the vegan food guide was a bit confusing, and Dr Greger's The Daily Dozen seems clearer and easier to follow to me.
-There were quite a few meal ideas thrown around in the book, but with no images, it is hard to picture what these would look like and I found myself skimming over most of them.
-If you are already quite educated on veganism, some sections, especially from the second half of the book might seem redundant and obvious.
-There was so much information to take into account when planning you diet that it made meeting all your nutritional needs seem overwhelming at times.
-Some of the nutrition advice was overly repetitive.

Overall, a complete guide on vegan nutrition, very to the point and quite useful.

[Jeff Zell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most helpful book to define terms (i.e. What does vegan really mean?) and introduce the reader to the benefits and ease of maintaining a plant-based diet. Both authors are long time practitioners and registered dieticians. The sixteen chapters address numerous questions: What nutrition do we really get from this kind of diet? Is it enough? What do we give up when we give up meat, dairy, and eggs? Is a vegan diet good for women who are pregnant, lactating, or undergoing menopause? Should children and teens be vegan too? They also address health issues such as weight, heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease. I found their writing style engaging and their answers compelling.

Regarding nutrition, chapter 3 is titled Vitamin B12: The Gorilla in the Room. Within the vegan research and community, there is disagreement about whether a B12 supplement is warranted. The authors agree that a B12 supplement is a benefit.

Is a vegan diet bland or boring or tasteless or filling? They emphatically deny these myths. They draw on a variety of cultural recipes to demonstrate the wide variety of options. The authors are sensitive to budget issues and cognizant that many people do not have a lot of spare time to spend in the kitchen, so they regularly describe meals that are inexpensive, quick, easy, and tasty. They provide examples of brands that make plant-based substitutes for meat and dairy products. Clearly, a person or family need not develop new culinary skills in order to enjoy a vegan diet.

The authors have recommendations for entering into a vegan diet. In the opening pages the authors explain their own transition into vegan eating. The last chapter offers an argument for a diet without meat, dairy, or eggs based on the treatment and experience of animals.

The appendixes include vegan resources and a guide to cooking grains, beans, and vegetables that is easy to understand and use.

When I finished reading Vegan for Life I felt like I had been properly introduced and informed about the benefits and challenges of maintaining a vegan diet. Should I pursue this further, I have good information to go forward with.

There is a 2020 edition of this book. I do not know if additional information was added.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have found Ginny Messina's site to be a really helpful resource in learning about vegan nutrition, so when I heard she was co-writing a book with fellow nutritionist Jack Norris, I knew that it would be one I would want to check out. I'm so glad I did!

This book has the same honest, fact-based approach to vegan nutrition that I have come to appreciate from the authors' respective sites. There is a focus on making vegan diets healthy and nutritionally balanced, but they also seek to present veganism as something that is doable. I appreciate that they don't resort to extravagant claims or anecdotal evidence. At the beginning of the book there is a section on the different types of research, and every fact they state is backed up with scientific studies (all of which are cited at the end of the book).

The first third to half of the book covers all of the nutrition needs of humans, and how those can be best met on a plant-based diet. There are chapters on calcium, fats, protein, and more. I will admit that some of this information was confusing to me, but there is a really helpful section called "The Vegan Food Guide," which quickly summarizes and condenses the main things to remember from the more detailed previous chapters. The rest of the book deals with putting it all into practice: raising vegan children, sample menus, tips for transitioning to veganism, veganism for special diets (like food allergies, pregnancy, athletes, etc.), a chapter on soy foods, health benefits of a vegan diet, how to prevent and manage disease, and a final chapter on the reasons for being vegan. So while there is some heavy nutritional stuff, the rest of the book provides tips for practical application for all of that information.

There is a big focus on making vegan seem easy, and I appreciate that. With so many conflicting voices in the health community it is nice to read a book like this that lays things out so simply. That said, I sometimes felt like there was a bit too much focus on convenience products and shortcuts that maybe aren't the healthiest. I understand where they are coming from in trying to make veganism convenient (and it's not like I think packaged food is evil; I enjoy Daiya cheese as much as the next person!), but I've heard a lot of different information about things like isolated soy protein (for example). Another example: there was also no mention of trying to get BPA-free canned goods (many recommendations were made for using canned products). Like I said, I can see where they are coming from in trying to keep things simple, but I can't help wishing that some of those things would have been addressed. Perhaps that would have made the book too long, though?

The authors provide some really great answers to commonly asked questions. For example, in response to the question, “Is a vegan diet natural?” they write:

“We agree that it just doesn’t matter whether a vegan diet is our historical way of eating or not. The fact is, it makes sense now to choose a vegan diet. And whose diet is really natural, anyway? The assumption that there is one natural prehistoric diet, which can be approximated today and would be optimal for modern humans, is dubious at best.” (35)

They also debunk the “Top Ten Myths About Vegan Diets,” which I thought was really interesting. There is a lot of misinformation out there, and this does a good job of making sense of everything. For example, I just came across a site the other day where a popular cookbook author wrote that she doesn't take any supplements and gets everything she needs from food (they counter this kind of thinking more in the book). In some cases, like regarding vitamin B12, that can be a dangerous position to take. B12 in particular is one that the book outlines as being essential to supplement:

“Based on our current knowledge of vitamin B12 requirements and sources, supplementation is not a subject for debate. Vitamin B12 supplements or fortified foods are an essential part of a well-balanced vegan diet at all stages of the life cycle.” (36)

Lest you think that veganism is endlessly fussy, remember that omnivores have to monitor a lot of this stuff, too (including things that vegans don't have to worry about over-consuming--like cholesterol). There are unique needs and challenges in any diet, and this book just specifically addresses those of vegans.

I’m also glad they included the “Why Vegan” chapter. It’s always good to remember why we do all of this, even though it's really sad to read about the horrible abuse that goes on. This excerpt in particular stuck out to me as a reminder of why veganism is such a powerful choice:

“By far the most effective way to end factory farming is to eliminate demand. And the only way to do that is to adopt a vegan lifestyle. While it’s sad to think about the plight of animals on factory farms, it’s empowering to know that we can choose not to contribute to their torture—and that this choice can prevent animal suffering and threaten the very existence of animal agriculture.” (234)

Further on in the chapter they briefly outline some animal rights philosophies. Some of this was new to me and it definitely made me think about where I stand. I’m not sure that I completely agree with the “argument from marginal cases." I do believe that causing another creature to suffer is wrong and brutal in the deepest sense, but I also believe that as humans we have a soul and this makes us different from animals (animals don’t have souls, right?). However, I think the very fact that we are superior creatures to them gives us a greater responsibility to treat them with kindness. They have no voice and are completely helpless. It is an exercise of the best part of our strength as humans when we defend the helpless. In this way, I think caring for animals is really just an extension of my pro-life beliefs. People are first, yes, but all life is sacred. Even that of a nameless, suffering animal.

I think this book is a must read for any vegan--new or old--or anyone thinking about going vegan. It is as transparent about both the joys and challenges of veganism as it is passionate about the underlying convictions for this lifestyle. It provides the information one needs to thrive on a vegan diet and reminds us why, ultimately, being vegan is so completely worth it. Overall, I feel like this book provides a really balanced, sane, and common-sense approach to vegan nutrition. I highly recommend checking it out!

This review was also posted on my blog: http://justaudreyblog.blogspot.com/20...

Edited to add (2014): I'm no longer vegan. I still like lots of vegan food and have nothing against it, but being vegan was not helping me get over my eating disorder (possibly quite the contrary). It's just so much more important to me to be happy and healthy and work toward a FULL recovery!

[Sage · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great comprehensive guide to nutrition for vegans, and read pretty easily. They talk about general nutrition and then go on into specific details for those who might have different nutritional needs like teenagers or people with diabetes, and provide more resources as well. They don’t sugar coat the hard parts of veganism, but still give realistic ways of approaching the lifestyle to overcome difficulties.

I took off a whole star because at the end they talk about the why you should become vegan (and I feel like if someone bought and is reading a vegan nutrition book, they probably already agree with the principles of veganism?) but the talk definitely comes from the negative side of vegans. And I don’t mean preachy because that doesn’t bother me, but it comes from that kind of white colonialist mind-frame. Like at the end they say subsistence hunting is fine for indigenous peoples to survive, but only if survival is the question and they go on to say that tradition shouldn’t be an excuse. I don’t agree with that as that is placing white ideas of how we connect with our animals and food sources and not recognizing that the way we look at our food is not the way that different cultures around the world look at their food. That was a bit of a rant, but I still think it’s important to point out! But overall I still felt I learned a lot about nutrition which was the aim of the book even if I don’t necessarily agree with their “why vegan” part!