What science says about plant-based diets (Vegan)

[Mermaid]

And like any diet, you have to make sure you're getting everything you need. This can be done. If you don't do it, it's your fault, not a problem with being vegan. I went to "veg fest" in London last year, it was fucking awesome. The whole thing was completely vegan, and they had every kind of food style you could imagine. I'm happy to say it was teeming with people! Happy, healthy people. I hope to go again in the future.

That's incorrect, and the victim-blaming model of health is old and obsolete. I can show you information... in fact I will show you (source is here):







And that's just nutrients. Here's another hard fact:

Dieting is the single most important risk factor for developing an eating disorder. 68% of 15 year old females are on a diet, of these, 8% are severely dieting. Adolescent girls who diet only moderately, are five times more likely to develop an eating disorder than those who don't diet, and those who diet severely are 18 time more likely to develop an eating disorder.

Source:

So as you can see, during the period of bone growth (up to about 30 years of age) about 50% of the Australian population doesn't get enough calcium. A vegan diet only makes this worse, as no plant source is as bioavailable as dairy, and that includes 'soy milk' (from memory you'd need to consume 2-3x the amount in soy drinks compared with dairy to receive the same calcium). Calcium supplements are absolutely horrible to take, and as you see above with iron - many people don't get enough, and you clearly see iron supplementation does not fix it (greater than 10% of the population already on iron supplements!)

Women require more calcium and iron than men.