It’s hard enough sticking to a diabetic meal plan, so you may not think it’s possible to be a vegan too! But many people are successful at maintaining this lifestyle.

What Is a Vegan?

There are so many different names for the diets being thrown around these days. However, veganism is pretty easy to remember. They only eat plants! If it grows from the ground, they will eat it.

Essentially, vegans don’t eat meat, eggs, or dairy products.

“What do they eat?” you may ask. Well, a vegan diet can include some of the following items:

• black beans
• tofu
• soy milk
• nuts
• seeds
• vegan cheese
• margarine

They will also eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Naturally, a diabetic diet also promotes meals containing plenty of veggies and complex carbs and protein such as those found in beans.

The Drawbacks of a Vegan Diet

Planning a completely vegan lifestyle does take extra effort that may be hard for diabetics who already put in time managing their disease. It’s difficult to find satisfying foods to eat out at restaurants. Plus, many meals will be homemade, especially if you are on a budget.

It should also be noted that vegans can have a hard time getting enough Vitamin B12. This is found almost exclusively in meat and animal products. So, you’ll want to make a point of eating cereals and soy products that are fortified with B12 or else take a supplement.

Benefits of a Vegan Diet

If you do make the change, there are some pretty big potential benefits. First of all, a plant-based diet is much lower in calories, which helps you lose weight.

Multiple studies have also found a connection between this diet and the prevention of type 2 diabetes. A rather large group of people, 100,000 Seventh-day Adventist Church members, were followed in a long-term study. They were chosen because their religion promotes a vegetarian diet. It was found that those who didn’t eat meat had a lower rate of type 2 diabetes than those who did.

It also appears that just avoiding red meat helps too. Ongoing studies by the Harvard School of Public Health found that people who ate an extra half serving of red meat a day were 50% more likely to get diabetes. Conversely, they found that people who ate half a serving less than average daily were 15% less likely to get the disease.

So, it is possible to be a vegan and maintain a diabetic diet. The initial effort may involve learning a lot about what you need to eat. Ultimately, it can offer a chance for better weight control and less risk of actually developing diabetes.