Why I am a Vegan

[Pablísimo]

 
I always thought Vegemite was a natural vegan source of B12, but I just discovered that it is not.  Are there any natural vegan sources of B12 without supplementation?
 

Marmite has b12. Also, nutritional yeast has b12. B12 is synthesized through bacteria in the soil, so eating unwashed veggies freshly harvested will get you b12 too.

There is some debate about this on the internet and you can find articles pro and con.  However, my personal opinion is this is an extremely dangerous myth.  Having personally had B12 deficiency symptoms while eating plenty of yeast, and having done a huge amount of research on this topic including reading peer-reviewed papers and consulting with nutritionists, I personally do not believe it's possible to obtain adequate B12 on a vegan diet without supplementation.  My understanding is that the "B12" in nutritional yeast, seaweed, and Vegemite/Marmite is a B12 analogue...meaning that it will show up positively on B12 blood tests but not actually perform the vital, needed bodily functions.  There is even some evidence that eating large amounts of these foods increases your need for B12 due to this analogue phenomenon.  I am not infallible and could certainly be wrong, of course, but in this case I strongly recommend that anyone who is a long-term vegan take a B12 supplement, preferably in sublingual methylcobalamin form.

One study that comes to mind involved vegans from India who did not take B12 when they migrated to the UK.  They had no need for this in India, but starting have B12 deficiency symptoms after some time in the UK.  It was hypothesized that the vegetables were not adequately washed in India and the comparatively sterile vegetables in the UK thus didn't have B12.  Additional experimentation with a control group, B12 tests for produce in both countries, and longer-term observation of this population eventually revealed that the problem wasn't the external washing.  It was actually that the Indian vegans had been obtaining their B12 from very small insects that were infesting the produce and these insects (and their dead bodies) were not present in the UK produce.  Of course, you can twist any study to mean various things, and no doubt if you search you can find counter-arguments, but I personally found these findings quite logical and convincing.

Please understand that I only offer these thoughts in a compassionate spirit.  I want to see people thrive as vegans in the LONG-TERM.  Vegan myths such as eating dirty vegetables or yeast for B12 (and many others, such as calcium needs being lower for vegans), only hurt the cause in the long term.  Unfortunately, one of the first signs of inadequate B12 is mental and emotional instability, and I cannot help but wonder if some of the more outlandish advocacy that one hears on Youtube and message forums stems from simple nutritional causes, most of which are very easily corrected.  This reminds me of some advice I often give new vegans who ask me:  Be very careful about heeding nutritional advice from vegans who have been vegan for less than 4 years, as it takes some time for certain problems to manifest.

Given the enormous and rabid opposition to veganism among the general public, the instinct to argue the diet is perfect and minimize or ignore its pitfalls is totally understandable.  I believe that is where ideas like this originate.  In the push to do something about the wholesale slaughter and torture of millions of sentient beings, the tendency to exaggerate the ease or naturalness of the diet is understandable.  However, we do neither ourselves nor the animals any favors by glossing over nutritional issues.  Mental gymnastics, false plant/animal equivalency, bizarre spiritual backflips and other weird justifications aside, vegans have already won the moral argument, but we are a long, long way from winning the good health argument.  In my view, coming to grips with the pitfalls and devising positive, vegan, solutions to them as a community is a far better path.  I can think of no better advocacy than demonstrating how a person can live a healthy, vital, compassionate and happy life as a vegan.  In this case, it just means taking a supplement that is cheap, safe, and easy...and ironically, a huge percentage of the meat-eating population, particularly those over 50, should be taking it anyway.  Even with supplementation, eating vegan can be far, far more natural and healthy than the average meat-based diet in modern society, and is usually a far more compassionate choice  To me, that is well worth the inconvenience of a supplmenet..

I am sorry to go on in such a long post.  This topic is just near and dear to my heart.

tldr:
My advice to all vegans is just take a sublingual methylcobalamin B12 supplement.  It's good for your brain and body!   


love to all