VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 to Lose Weight and Restore Your Health . . . for Good

by Mark Bittman

What about the essential amino acids that you can get only from meat? Turns out this well-known “fact” isn’t true: If you’re eating a well-balanced diet of any sort—including a vegan diet—you’ll get all the essential amino acids you need. Nor do you need to cover all the bases during any given meal; eating a variety of foods throughout the day will do the trick. And there are benefits to substituting plant for animal protein. This is especially true of the protein found in beans; their high levels of fiber can lower cholesterol and blood pressure and reduce the risk of diabetes, and even treat the disease where it already exists. But although there’s always been anecdotal evidence that vegans and even vegetarians tend to be leaner than meat-eaters, recently a reputable study tracked people over time and found that subjects gained weight—typically about 30 pounds—when their diets went from plant-based to meat-based; their health deteriorated as well. It’s always difficult to prove causation, but even after controlling for other factors, vegans and dairy-and-egg–eating vegetarians had 50 percent less Type 2 diabetes.