Half of vegans are deprived of vital nutrients risking problems such as muscle waste, suggest scientists.
Experts, who analyzed the diet of nearly 200 long -term vegans in New Zealand, found that around 50% were deficient in two specific amino acids – the constituent elements of proteins – called lysine and leucine.
These essential nutrients – found in abundance in animal proteins such as meat and eggs – are essential to develop and maintain muscles and other body functions such as transforming fat into energy.
In a disturbing way, these shortcomings have occurred despite the majority of participating vegans, three in four, meeting the directives of the contribution of protein of the recommended food plants of the Heads of Health.
Scientists, from Massey University, said that if the vegans were, on paper, eating enough protein, their bodies did not digest enough quantities of lysine and leucine.
Indeed, only a limited fraction of the already lower levels of these amino acids found in plant foods was in fact absorbed by the body with the rest being excreted.
The main author of the Patricia Soh study said that the results showed some of the potential dangers to become vegans.
“Vegan regimes are the most restrictive form of plant-based food, based entirely on plant sources for all nutrients,” she said.
Vegetable diets that prohibit the consumption of animal products and opt instead for fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and seeds, have gained popularity in Great Britain (Stock Image)
“Prolonged deficiencies in these essential nutrients can negatively bodily functions, including the maintenance of muscle mass.”
She added that these dangers would be increased among vulnerable vegans, such as the elderly.
While plant foods, such as beans, peas and nuts and seeds, contain lysine and leucine, this is at levels lower than the equivalent quantity of animal proteins.
Ms. Soh, said that more research was needed about how to stimulate the contribution of lysine and leucine in vegans.
“Legumes, nuts and seeds are precious to support the overall contribution of proteins and increase the quantities of lysine and leucine in a vegan diet,” she said.
However, other experts have said that the limits of studies must be taken in context.
Professor Tom Sanders, a nutrition and dietetics expert at King’s College London, said that certain problems included the fact that no omnivorous group was included in the analysis as a comparison.
He stressed that another limitation was that the study did not consider the role of bacteria in the intestine which can help produce lysine.
In the study, published in PLOS One, the researchers analyzed the food newspapers held by 193 long -term vegans over four days.
They then took the food and the recorded drinks and used models to calculate the amount of amino acids consumed, then how much would be extracted and lost via digestion.
Scientists found 80% of men and 73% of women obtained enough global protein from their diet.
However, when digestion was taken into account of the proportion which had specifically enough lysine and leucine fell to about half.
The authors set a level of 59 mg of leucine and 45 mg per gram of protein consumed on the basis of American and New Zealand food recommendations.
Studies involving food newspapers are confronted with limits because they rely on people who report correctly what they have eaten and in what quantities.
These food newspapers can also represent an instantaneous in time and do not necessarily reflect the regular diet of a participant.
Nutritionists previously warned that becoming vegan could have a range of health consequences.
These include a lack of Vitamin B12, which is found in milk and eggs, which can cause fatigue or fatigue and a negative impact on your mental health.
Vitamin D is another nutrient found mainly in animal products, such as fatty fish, in which those with vegan diets can be deficient.
Vitamin D deficiency can cause bone development problems and cause pain.
A lack of iron, found in red meat and the liver, can also lead to anemia, which makes people feel tired and have heart palpitations.
Iodine, mainly found in seafood, is another nutrient known to be lacking in vegan diets and is important for maintaining a health metabolism.
Plant -based diets may include all these nutrients mentioned, but people must carefully manage what they eat or take supplements, to make sure they get enough.
In 2024, there are approximately 2.5 million vegans in the United Kingdom, or about 3.6% of the population.
