Research-backed
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Veganism is not an uncommon term. Over the past few years, it has gained much popularity and a lot of people continue to switch towards a vegan diet. They do it for two primary reasons – to improve health and/or for ethical based reasons. What is veganism? It is a diet that eliminates the consumption of animal products. The people who follow such a diet are known as vegans. Studies have shown that people who follow vegan diets have lower cholesterol levels, tend to be thinner, and have lower blood pressure. They also have a low risk of cardiovascular diseases. Another primary reason for people to opt for vegan diets is to improve the environment. Their main concern for eliminating animal products from a diet is to be mindful of the earth’s resources and the ethical issues of animal care (1).
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While there are several health benefits to following a vegan diet, there is still a conflict of understanding on whether or not a plant-based diet can support pregnancy. Studies have shown that vegan diets may not necessarily fulfill the needs of certain micronutrients. Some of these nutrients like vitamins B-12 and D, calcium, and omega-3 fatty acids are vital during pregnancy and if you’re a vegan, you should consume them regularly to avoid deficiency (2). Therefore, the question is, is it safe to follow a vegan diet during pregnancy? Read this article to know more.
Balanced Vegan Diet
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During pregnancy, it is important to take care of your diet as you are not only feeding yourself but your baby too. Everything you consume has a direct impact on your baby and hence it is essential to be sure of what you’re putting into your body. While studies have shown that vegan diets can be safe during pregnancy, they also indicate that it should be a well planned balanced diet. Vegan diets lack certain nutrients that are vital during pregnancy. For example, plant-based diets have been shown to have a risk of deficiencies of iron, proteins, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B-12, iodine, vitamin D, and calcium. These nutrients are crucial for the healthy growth of your baby and a plant-based nutritional diet can fulfill these if they are planned well and consumed with a strong awareness (3).
If there is an imbalance in these nutrients, your baby will likely develop chronic conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and obesity later on in life. There is also a possibility of neurodevelopmental delays. However, if there is a balanced nutrition system in place, it improves the health of pregnant women to a large extent. Studies showed that vegan women who calculated the amount of nutrition that they consumed had higher levels of micro and macronutrients which improved their health (4).
Things To Keep In Mind
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With all this being said, the lack of nutrition and the effects it has on pregnant health should not be ignored. The key is to have strong knowledge about the various nutritional sources of food and combine them effectively to achieve a balanced diet. However, there are a few things to keep in mind while adopting a vegan diet during pregnancy. The lack of micronutrient intake is essentially what results in complications during pregnancy and during postpartum for vegans. Studies showed that if there is inadequate nutrition during pregnancy, it may result in postpartum depression. It was also observed that postpartum depression was common among vegetarians and vegans rather than omnivorous people (5).
At the end of the day, if your vegan diet includes a sufficient intake of protein, iron, calcium, vitamin B-12, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids, it is proven to be safe during pregnancy. We hope this cleared out some of the confusion you had about following a vegan diet during pregnancy. Comment below and let us know if you have switched to veganism.
