Vegan Food Pyramid: What Everyone Needs to Know

The Basics

The vegan food pyramid is not all that different from the standard USDA food pyramid you might be familiar with. Although meat and dairy products are eliminated from this pyramid, there are plenty of foods which provide the same kinds of benefits when eaten on a consistent basis. In fact, a vegan diet can provide a healthy, low fat alternative to the standard American diet. Eating a plant based diet may lower the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity and even cancer. Here is an explanation for this particular food pyramid.

Fruits and Veggies

Individuals should eat at least three to five servings of vegetables, and two to four servings of fruits daily. In reality, you can consume as many fruits and vegetables as you want throughout the day without having to worry about calories or your waistline. Meeting the suggested daily requirements isn’t hard to do, as serving sizes might be smaller than you think.

For example, a medium orange or apple, or one-half cup of cut up fruit is considered one serving. In addition, one-half cup of chopped broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, or other vegetables counts as one serving.

You could easily exceed your daily requirements by having a piece of fruit with breakfast. For dessert, enjoy a big salad with a tempeh, avocado, and sprout sandwich for lunch, and a side of steamed vegetables with dinner. Getting enough fruits and vegetables is important, as it helps keep you full and satisfied throughout the day, while providing you with a full array of essential nutrients. Not to mention, fruits and vegetables are a super source of fiber.

Whole Grains

The great part about this section of the vegan pyramid is there are so many different kinds of grains to choose from. You don’t have to deprive yourself of pasta, bread, or other starchy foods and in fact, they are essential to a healthy vegan lifestyle. Whole wheat pasta, grain breads, brown rice, quinoa, couscous, millet, and spelt are all excellent sources of energy in the form of carbohydrates and even proteins.

The suggested daily intake of these foods is six to eleven servings, which means you can mix and match as many grains as you want throughout the day. Oatmeal or whole wheat toast for breakfast, brown rice or spelt with tempeh and shoyu sauce for lunch, and barley soup with a whole wheat roll and air popped popcorn for dinner/dessert will get you at least six servings a day.

Legumes

The pyramid calls for two to three servings of legumes a day. This category includes all types of beans, lentils, sunflower seeds, almonds, peanut butter, and other similar items. These foods are a great source of essential fats and protein. Choices like almonds and walnuts even provide a source of omega three fatty acids. You can easily meet the daily requirements by having a handful of nuts as a snack, and by sprinkling some seeds on your salad, or having a peanut butter sandwich.

Fortified Dairy Substitutes

It is easy to ensure you get vital nutrients such as calcium and vitamin B12 (check the label to make sure it’s included in the product) when you use fortified dairy substitutes. These foods include soy, almond or hemp milk, and sour cream or yogurt substitutes. There are also several vegan cheese options on the market, but not all of them are fortified, so checking the label is necessary. Easily meet this requirement by having a bowl of cereal for breakfast and yogurt for a snack, or topping your baked potato with vegan sour cream.

Oils, Fats and Sweets

Use olive oil, canola oil, and other added fats sparingly, if at all, when preparing your meals. Limit your consumption of sweets that are full of added sugars. It is acceptable to lightly sauté your fresh vegetables in a little olive oil or to sprinkle some sugar and cinnamon on your toast, but leave the deep fried foods at the fast food restaurants.

Now that you know all about the vegan food pyramid, preparing vegan meals should be easy and fun. Try some new combinations for your family soon.

References

Veganhealth.org “Staying Healthy on Plant Based Diets” retrieved August 9, 2010

Veganpeace.com “Vegan Food Pyramid” retrieved August 9, 2010

Image Credits

Flickr/Public Domain