I eat a predominantly (but not strict) vegetarian diet and recently I've been worried about being deficient in various vitamins - namely vitamin D and iron. Looking at my diet, although I do quite well on vegetables and fruit, I don't eat loads of the stuff that contains iron (wholemeal bread, beans, nuts, breakfast cereal etc) and I know my Hb is low end of normal. I'm not anaemic, but I'd like a bit more oxygen carrying capacity without resorting to EPO! I also work and don't get out in the sun as much as I'd like so I want to see if Vit D supplementation improves my winter mood.
So I know I may be opening up a can of worms here but I can't easily find a good answer online. I don't want advice from militant crazy vegans, and I don't want advice from quack sites called ProHealthNewsOnline or similar so I'm looking to STW for advice.
What do you people take and why?
Really, without testing you're none the wiser. But you know that don't you!!
Mushrooms for vitamin D. A vitamin D supplement is probably wise through the months when your part of the earth is tilted away from the sun.
I take an iron supplement ( multivitamin) each day. I think it has vit D also.
Iron is in egg yolk as well.
Been an active veggie for years and that’s all I’ve needed. Also make sure the food in your plate has a variety of colours. One or two colours means you may not be getting all the healthy nutrients and vitamins you need.
If you know which foods contain what you need but don't eat them, take a Berocca or the much cheaper supermarket equivalent every day. They have an overabundance of just about all the necessary vits and minerals.
If you have a varied diet though, you should be ok...
Not Vit D or iron though AFAIK, so not great advice for someone worried about those 😃They have an overabundance of just about all the necessary vits and minerals.
You're bettoer off sorting your diet than taking supplements - eg. green leafy veg for iron - however...
I've been vegan for two years, and veggie for a year before that. I recently started taking a vegan multivitamin vitamin B12 as that's the only thing lacking from a healthy vegan diet - ironically, you'll probably be fine for B12 if you eat a lot of processed foods.
Iron should be fine if you eat some legumes and leafy greens like spinach.
Can't say I worry too much about vitamin D.
Really, without testing you’re none the wiser. But you know that don’t you!!
Good point. I have been vegetarian for 36 years and never taken a supplement. I have always ensured I eat a good mix of fruit, veg, beans, eggs etc,. which is a better way of doing it than taking tablets.
I’ve been a vegetarian since I was a teenager with no obvious signs of ill health but Mrs Stern has tried to become a vegetarian in the last few years and started feeling run down. She had a blood test and it revealed she has a vitamin D deficiency. Her doctor advised either start eating meat again or start taking vitamin supplements.
I eat a predominantly (but not strict) vegetarian diet
What do you people take and why?
I eat beef a couple of times a week because, like you, I'm not a vegetarian and it has iron and other nutrients that are important.
it's maybe worth noting that the body's absorption of the form of iron in spinach can be poor unless you eat something containing vit C at the same time.Iron should be fine if you eat some legumes and leafy greens like spinach.
I seem to recall a VERY vocal poster here decrying the need for supplements at every opportunity until he was tested and found himself to be Vit D deficient. 🤔 IMO it can't hurt to take a supplement, if only in the winter when sunlight exposure is very low.Can’t say I worry too much about vitamin D.
IMO it can’t hurt to take a supplement
Too much vitamin D is very bad for your health. I learned that from reading about polar explorers who ate their dogs and didn't realize that the livers have massive concentration of vitamin D. They got vitamin D poisoning, which can be serious, including kidney failure.
Actually, I remembered the story wrong, I read it when I was about 10 years old. They may have suffered vitamin A poisoning, but vitamin D poisoning is also nasty. If you have a deficiency, taking supplements is good, but the idea that you should just take masses of vitamins just in case is not such a great idea.
No worries, they were sold out of dog livers last time I was in Holland & Barrett anyway so ended up just getting some tablets that contained a measured and safe amount.
Absorption, this is so important.
This thread is brilliant. One poster says eat meat once or twice a week another warns of overdosing on vitamins if you eat your dog. I love the madness of asking folk on a forum for dietary advice.
Veggie since 1990. Take a supplement so that I don't have to minutely analyse the food I eat to make sure I'm getting all the vits I need although with the exception of B12 & D in the winter I doubt that it is strictly necessary.
I also work and don’t get out in the sun as much as I’d like so I want to see if Vit D supplementation improves my winter mood.
Up here we don't get strong enough sunlight all winter no matter how long you spend outdoors naked. You can however store it, but a supplement wouldn't hurt IMO. It's also in some foods.
As CG says, absorption is key - just cos you eat it, doesn't mean you're using it. My wife was on 200mg iron tablets for a fair while from the docs with little effect, until she started taking one of those mega dose vitamin C tablets at the same time, and her iron levels improved rapidly.
This thread is brilliant. One poster says eat meat once or twice a week another warns of overdosing on vitamins if you eat your dog.
But if you *do* eat your dog, what breed is best for avoiding Vitamin A poisoning? Asking for a friend.
I take iron supplements, it helps me run faster.
It's not as simple as just eating green veg. Some people can easily absorb iron, some can't. Much of it is genetics. As well as other foods inhibiting absorption, eg tannins in tea.
Also if doing lots of running, that can cause more iron loss.
Really, without testing you’re none the wiser.
But really, this is the answer.
My personal experience: I've been veggie for about 15 years and don't take supplements. I reckon if you're feeling OK and eat a decent range of foods you'll probably be 'reet. I think in your position I'd be trying to change my diet first and foremost, although that's probably just my personal bias.
My wife has been a veggie for 30 years and eats very healthily. After she had the kids she's tended towards low iron levels and now takes a Vit D + iron supplement a day.
If she stops taking them then I can tell after about a week as she is lethargic and worn out all the time.
This from Dr Myhill may be useful:
https://www.drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Minerals_and_vitamins_delivered_through_the_skin
This thread is brilliant. One poster says eat meat once or twice a week another warns of overdosing on vitamins if you eat your dog.
And a third points out that it's dog's livers that are the problem, not dogs as such. If you want to barbeque the other bits, you'll be fine. Husky livers are particularly bad, apparently.
Veggie for 30 plus years now, I can't say I notice much if I don't supplement, but I take Wellman daily (ish) tabs to cover off iron and Vit D as a safety belt. 3 for 2 in Tesco so not exactly expensive if you are at all worried. I do feel a little brighter when I am consistently taking them, but to be honest I feel much better if I'm getting enough sleep 😀
You're not going to overdose on a daily multi vit and a good vegetarian diet.
like you, I’m not a vegetarian
OK, I'll rise to that. I don't call myself a vegetarian because I don't particularly want to restrict myself to what I must or must not eat. I used to be a strict vegetarian on animal welfare grounds although these days I don't feel so strongly about that. But I do feel strongly about the environmental impact of meat production. So I don't eat much meat. If I go out for food (once a month if I'm lucky) I might have something with meat in it. But everything I cook at home is vegetarian.
If it helps, you can consider my diet non-binary 😉
I don’t eat much meat.
= not vegetarian
Agree. What's your point?
So I know I may be opening up a can of worms here
I'm not sure they are particularly rich in iron.
Vegan since early 90s and just take B12 (cyanocobalamin) - although I only started taking it about 7 years ago. Used to get blood tests at work every year and they were always fine. Worth being on the safe side. My lad is vegan and takes a multivit every day.
I always used to believe that a decent dietary means that you don't need supplements until I was tested and found to be seriously vit d deficient. Looking into it more everyone in the UK should be supplementing certainly over winter. Don't go for huge doses and it is not an issue
You only store a few weeks worth
I feel much better for doing so
Check NICE guidelines
NICE guidelines:
https://cks.nice.org.uk/vitamin-d-deficiency-in-adults-treatment-and-prevention#!topicSummary
Dr Myhill's thoughts:
fwiw the extra D3 I've been taking, due to suspected deficiency from lack of sunlight etc, has made a massive difference and am now taking my Winter dose of 5,000 iu along with vitamin K2. I take these with fatty food for best absorption. This is at my own risk obviously.
imo, and ianad, the NICE guidelines tend to be conservative due probably to wanting to save money. It's not expensive for private testing with a finger prick kit.
What’s your point?
Vegetarians don't eat meat.
5000 units of vit d is enough to make you toxic
My b12 is low so i get an injection to bump it up. My stomach lining cannot process b12 so regardless of how much b12 rich food I eat most of it passes through. The b12 shot is straight in the bloodstream.
Blood tests revealed it, good idea to mix up the fruit and veg colours. Also, I make and freeze a big stock every 10 days or so, from bones and veg, simmer for ages. This is the basis of most of my recipes, or i just drink it as a soup.
worth a read
A vegan diet does not provide retinol, B12, D3, heme iron or omega-3 in the forms needed by the body. A vegan diet is likely deficient in calcium, iodine, iron and zinc.
The health information on the Veganuary.com campaign site did state the importance of vital nutrients. It rarely clarified the form of the nutrient required by the body (the animal form) and the fact that conversion from plant to animal forms of nutrients is poor, if possible, at all.
This thread is brilliant. One poster says eat meat once or twice a week another warns of overdosing on vitamins if you eat your dog. I love the madness of asking folk on a forum for dietary advice.
Brilliant!!
5000 units of vit d is enough to make you toxic
Source for this?
tj - I'm at risk of deficiency according to NICE but also know that I've been pretty well deficient for quite some time. The dosage I've been taking for a good few months, a type of loading dose really, has now had an impact with improved health. Any excess vit D will end up in urine. Am definitely not toxic, am quite used to monitoring when experimenting.
trickydisco - raybanwomble will love your link!! He will pour scorn, as sure as night follows day.
Synthetic vitamins can help make a healthy profit for the people that make and sell them.
https://www.b12-vitamin.com/cyanocobalamin/
https://www.worldhealth.net/news/cautions-synthetic-vitamin-d3/
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/1ae0/608396d55120efcb6923c3d1dfa970f64bbb.pdf
Healthy humans need more than just vitamins
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/diagnosis-diet/201709/the-vegan-brain
Humans make vitamin D3, and testosterone, from cholesterol.
Meat contains most if not all of the nutrients that humans need
https://meatrx.com/library/carnivore-diet-faq/
Absorption, this is so important.
Yes, this.
It's no good eating iron enhanced cornflakes or porridge when the calcium in the milk blocks the uptake of the iron. You could of course use a plant based "milk" but we've opened two cans of worms already.
As I understand it, not only does non-heme iron need vitamin c to help absorption, some things actively prevent or inhibit absorption - like calcium and polyphenols. I'm vegan and I'm quite careful about looking at what my vitamin supplements contain because of this.
That MeatRx link needs a NSFW warning!
