For half a month, Avans has been challenging students and employees to eat plant-based more often. The university is participating in the Veggie Challenge. Punt asked Tessa Stevens from ProVeg how you can do that in a healthy way.
The Veggie Challenge is an initiative of the Dutch ProVeg foundation. “Our goal is not necessarily to make the entire world vegetarian,” says Stevens. “The idea of the challenge is to inspire people to eat plant-based more often.”
There are several reasons to eat a plant-based diet, or at least to eat less meat. Meat production is bad for the environment. It causes many emissions, deforestation and pollution, among other things. This also applies to dairy. In addition, the Nutrition Center recommends eating less than five hundred grams of meat per week. Processed meat and red meat in particular are linked to cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Wheel of five
Eating a healthy plant-based diet is not difficult, but there are some points to consider. The Nutrition Center’s Wheel of Five indicates which types of food you should consume and in what quantities for a healthy diet. The center recommends eating plenty of fruit and vegetables (fresh, not canned). You should also consume whole grain products (such as whole wheat bread and brown rice), unsaturated fats (such as olive oil and low-fat margarine) and drinks without sugar (such as water) every day. Meat and dairy are mentioned in the disc of five, with which the center indicates that eating meat is not necessary.
Nutrients
Yet animal products contain nutrients that are important for the human body. Vitamin B12 is even only in those products. If you don’t eat meat, you should make sure you still consume dairy. If you do not consume dairy, the Nutrition Center recommends taking vitamin B12 tablets. “These do not have to be expensive supplements,” says Stevens. “You can just get them at Kruidvat.” The vitamin is necessary for the production of blood cells, a deficiency can lead to anemia and extreme fatigue.
Other important substances in meat are proteins, iron and vitamin B1. To get enough of it without consuming animal products, you can eat nuts, kernels, legumes, soy products and whole grain products. “If you eat a varied diet, it should not be a problem to get these substances,” Stevens indicates.
Meat substitutes
You can choose to eat meat substitutes instead of real meat. However, they are not always healthy. They can be very processed. Processed food is generally less healthy than unprocessed food and, like red meat, has been linked to health problems. The healthiest meat substitutes are tofu, tempeh and seitan. They look less like meat than substitutes such as veggie burgers and sausages, but they are healthy and little processed. They contain a lot of proteins and iron and few unsaturated fats.
According to research by ProVeg, there are now more meat substitutes that meet the requirements of the nutrition center (amounts of fat, salt, sugar, protein, B12, iron and fiber) than real meat products. About 26 percent of meat substitutes meet the requirements, compared to eleven percent of real meat.
Tips
“Don’t make it too difficult for yourself,” Stevens gives as a tip. “You can make changes in small steps. For example, drink soy milk instead of cow’s milk for breakfast.”
Students who do not have much to spend can use bonusvegan.nl. Every week, this website provides an overview of the vegetarian products on offer at supermarkets.
