Why veganism isn’t always healthy

By Pol Allingham via SWNS

More than half of vegans eat an unhealthy diet stuffed with processed meat alternatives, candy and snacks, claims a new study from Austria.

The popularity of processed plant-based alternatives undermines the public perception that veganism is always a healthy lifestyle.

But researchers from the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, (MUV) found that vegans exercise more than the average person.

Experts distinguished between “convenience” and “health-conscious” vegan diets.

Convenience vegans comprised 53 percent of the cohort and ate more processed fish and meat alternatives, vegan savory snacks, sauces, cakes and other sweets, convenience foods, fruit juices and refined grains.

Meanwhile, the health-conscious 47 percent consume more fresh vegetables, fruit, potatoes, wholemeal products, vegetable oils and fats, and protein and milk alternatives.

Scientists have already coined the term “pudding vegetarianism," for those who replace meat with a mass of sweets and confectionery.

Unlike vegetarians, vegans don’t eat meat or animal-based by-products. According to Vegan Society UK, they make up 1.21 percent of the population.

The study in the journal Nutrients aimed to highlight what veganism looks like today, in the ultra-processed meat and dairy market boom.

The team looked at 516 people with an average age of 28 who had been vegan for at least three months when the study began.

Every year vegan meat and milk alternatives turnover 1.7 billion euros, or 1.5 billion sterling, in Europe

Study director Professor Maria Wakolbinger said: “Being vegan is not per se synonymous with being 'healthy.’ The negative effects of industrially processed foods on health have now been clearly proven in studies."

"For people who primarily consume convenience foods, a 29 percent higher risk of overall mortality, up to 51 percent higher risk of overweight or obesity, 29 percent higher risk of cardiovascular diseases and 74 percent higher risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus have been scientifically proven."

First author Dr. Sandra Haider, MUV, reiterated that a split between healthy and unhealthy vegans exists.

She said: "The physical activity level of vegans is higher overall than that of the average population in Austria.

“However, as our study illustrated, the health-conscious group is significantly more active than those who belong to the convenience food pattern.”