A vegan diet can be healthy – if done right. Sophie Gayer (25), a BDA Registered Dietitian from Lincoln, explains what you have to pay attention to when you go vegan and what makes a healthy and balanced vegan diet.

The Green Journalist: Is a vegan diet healthy?

Sophie Gayer: That depends. It is quite tricky to get a balanced, healthy vegan diet because you are cutting out a lot of food groups. It can be healthy, but it is hard work for you to get there.

How can you balance your diet?

A balanced diet is mixed of carbohydrates, protein, fruits and vegetables and healthy fats. With a vegan diet, you are taking out a lot of the protein because a lot of it comes from animal sources. It’s really important to replace it with things like beans, lentils, tofu, the vegan Quorn and pulses. Soya products can also be quite high in protein.

Which advantages and disadvantages do you see in a vegan diet?

One of the advantages is that you get a lot of fibre, fruits and vegetables and it is normally very low fat compared to the typical Western diet.

But again, a vegan diet is very low on protein and you have to be very careful with some vitamins and minerals like iron and vitamin B12 because your body does not absorb them as well as from animal sources.

Iron and B12 can be found in fortified breakfast cereals and B12 is often added to plant-based dairy alternatives. Deficiencies in these can cause anaemia. Speak to your doctor if you feel tired and weak or if you are concerned that you’re not meeting your requirements.

What do you recommend people before they go vegan?

Do your research. The Vegan Society is really good. They have got loads of information. Just make sure that you are not cutting out everything, but you are replacing it with things. If you cut out dairy, you should replace it with soya or nut, rice or oat milk and make sure you are getting a varied diet.

People should also think about why they want to go vegan, is it environmental or for animal welfare? Vegan diets are associated with disordered eating and it’s always important to ensure that you are going vegan for the right reasons.

Vegan diets are lower in energy so you might also want to increase your portion sizes or add in extra snacks throughout the day to prevent weight loss.