Importance of B-12

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/20/2000 6:44:15 PM Pacific Daylight Time, vrc

writes:

 

<< Thus, if a truly NATURAL veganism (without supplementation)

were physically impossible for the vast majority of the human population,

it could not (logically) be required >>

 

 

I take a small amount of supplements to ensure I get the nutrients I need

and to deal with a health condition (hypothyroidism.) As a full time law

student, I choose this easier route rather than make the extra time and take

the extra effort to balance my diet.

 

As a vegan, I get told a lot that I wouldn't have to take supplements if I

would just eat animal products. However, it seems to be that very few

Americans eat a diet that DOESN'T require supplementation, vegan or not. I

mean, how many people in the United States actually eat a perfectly balanced

diet supplying all required nutrients? Most people don't even realize that

processed food is low is nutritional value.

 

I'm just blowing off steam really. I hear all the time from non-vegans how

hard it is to eat a balanced diet without animal products while these same

people are shoving McDonald's horsemeat and white flour hamburger buns down

their throats. Really, I had no idea that McDonald's adds special magic

vitamins to their wilted lettuce that makes their carcass burgers nutrionally

balanced. My point is, it takes knowledge and effort for ANYONE to eat a

balanced diet, vegan, vegetarian, macro, ominivore, whoever.

 

-Anna

[Guest guest]

Anna wrote: As a vegan, I get told a lot that I wouldn't have to take

supplements if I

would just eat animal products.

 

Deborah: From the rest of your post, it sounds like you have doubt about that,

and I agree with you. In terms of B12, it looks to me like eating animal

products is NO guarantee of getting what you need. According to 4 separate

studies I have found, it seems that about 30% of people are affected by B12

malabsorption problems. So, for approximately 1/3 of any population, eating

animal products is NOT going to be enough to get them the B12 we all need.

 

The way I see it, vegans who take B12 because they know they aren't eating any

in their diet are the lucky (or smart!) ones in so many ways. By giving up

animal products, B12 becomes a conscious issue. By continuing to eat animal

products, a person can easier have a false sense of security about B12.

 

Deborah