Healthy Vegan Diets - A Brief Look

By Ben Pate

Eating a vegan diet requires a great deal of commitment and planning on the part of the person who has decided they will no longer eat any foods that contain animal products of any kind. In addition to foods that are obviously animal based, there are many foods and products that contain animal products that a vegan will also not use. These include gelatin, lanolin, rennet, beeswax, honey, whey, and many others.

People become vegan for many reasons. Some people feel strongly about animal rights and make their decision based on moral and ethical convictions. Other people become vegan for health, spiritual, or religious reasons. When deciding to make the commitment to become vegan, it is important to do the research and planning that is needed to maintain a healthy lifestyle while drastically changing your eating habits.

Planning a vegan diet will require you do some study on nutrition. Most vegans take supplements to make sure they are getting the calcium, iodine, B12, and vitamin D that are required in the diet. You will also want to make sure you know which types of foods will provide you with the nutritional requirements needed to maintain a healthy diet.

Many of the foods that are eliminated when changing to a vegan diet will help you to achieve some significant health results. Most people experience lower blood cholesterol, blood pressure, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes. This is due to the elimination of "bad" foods, as well as the loss of weight that will occur when a person stops eating refined and processed foods such as sugar.

There are many chronic conditions caused by the types of food that are eaten and the weight issues that unhealthy foods often cause. A vegan raw food diet makes it easy to maintain an appropriate weight. When this diet is made a part of a regular diet program, an individual can lose weight and inches with minimal effort.

Many people worry about getting the kinds of nutrients they need when they eliminate all animal products from their diet. Sources of protein that do not include meat, poultry, or fish are often a great concern. An individual will find there are many types of protein available that are not animal based. Many recipes include lentils, peanut butter, and legumes, which are great sources of protein.

When a person is cooking for vegans it is important to use the appropriate substitutions for recipes. When a recipe calls for eggs, a common substitution is applesauce. An individual will find they can get the texture of meat in recipes by using textured tofu. Substituting butter with a dairy free margarine is effective and provides the same taste as regular butter. - 17268

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When a person is on a strict healthy vegan diet, they do not eat honey. If you are hosting a dinner party it will be important to check with your vegan attendees as to what type of vegan raw food diet meals they prefer. Substituting sugar with honey will not be appropriate for a strict vegan.

The Newbie's Guide to Planting High-Class, Mold-free, Organic Wheatgrass

By Gisey James

Wheatgrass juice is catching the interest of health enthusiasts because of the numerous health advantages it boasts of. Also, it is possible for you to grow your own wheatgrass from your own home because it is very easy to take care of. We will list down the steps on growing wheatgrass properly so that you will be able to prevent the destruction of molds.

Buying wheatgrass is not entirely easy if you're considering buying from ordinary stores. If you want to get high-quality wheatgrass, you should get it online or in specialist health food stores and they'll surely know what you'll need. Once you get your fresh bunch of wheatgrass seeds, now's the time for you to get some lessons on growing it.

To kick-start your experience in growing them, start soaking your seeds in water for eight hours tops. As the soaking period approaches, start preparing a 10x20 seed tray with a depth of not more than 2 inches to give your wheatgrass room to grow. After this, you can now start adding damp compost, peat moss, and a highly-recommended organic grower that will speed up your plant's growth.

Now that your seeds have been soaked, you must start to drain, rinse, and repeat. Disperse the seeds in the soil, let them stay close but do not let them remain on top of each other. Don't let your peat moss be too wet because too much moisture cripples and could eventually stop your growing wheatgrass.

Lightly and sparsely water your soil bed to start the response between the moss and the seeds that are already beginning to grow, make sure you give the seeds equal sprinkles of water. Your growing seeds should not be too wet but make sure they are also not too dry. To make sure your grass is growing well, continue to check on these important aspects.

Cover the tray partially with another one on top or either use moist newspaper or bubble wrap to let your plant breathe while protecting it from destructive molds. Covering the tray maintains the needed moisture while the grass is undergoing growth. They should usually take not more three days before it becomes inches tall.

As your growing grass gets taller, it is time for you now to uncover it and let it receive massive amounts of indirect sunlight to speed up its growth. Indirect sunlight is preferred against direct sunlight because the latter dries the soil's moisture quickly, therefore stopping the growth. The sunlight will cause the sprouts to grow chlorophyll, making it look healthier and greener than the yellow, dull look when it first appeared.

It is recommended that you harvest the growing wheatgrass once it is around 7 inches in height because this is their so-called peak when it comes to nutritional content. When you harvest, trim just a centimeter or two from the surface of the soil with a simple knife or even scissors and rinse the crop very well before you start juicing it to ensure you of a happy, healthy wheatgrass experience. Once you've done these things, feel free to enjoy the refreshing and rejuvenating goodness a glass of wheatgrass juice gives. - 17268

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Know how growing wheatgrass can change your life now. Click here and learn why many are now choosing growing wheatgrass over pills and other medicines.