What is a vegan plant-based diet?

Serving up some simple truths about veganism

Over the last decade or so, healthy eating trends have become a hot topic of conversation across the internet and social media. It’s no surprise then that the vegan movement has gained quite a large following in that time.

However, it seems that some people still aren’t quite sure what veganism is, and how veganism differs from vegetarianism. Many also assume that an all-or-nothing approach is needed in order to see the benefits of a vegan plant-based diet. But we now know that this just isn’t the case.

So, with so much vegan info floating around out there about plant-based diets, we wanted to break it down and serve up some simple truths about veganism.

What is a vegan diet?

At its core, a vegan diet is quite simple.

Like vegetarians, vegans do not consume meat products. However, vegans also eliminate all animal products from their diet too. This means that on top of no meat, there’s also no milk, cheese, eggs, honey or anything of that nature in their diet.

Instead, vegans rely solely on a plant-based diet, consisting mainly of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, rice, pasta, and the like.

This can often feel like a bit of a barrier to entry when it comes to trying veganism, as some people believe that they will have to give up a lot of their favourite foods in order to follow a vegan diet.

While this may have been the case in the past, more vegan alternatives to popular foods are now hitting the shelves every day, and eating vegan is much more accessible than it has ever been to even the pickiest of eaters.

From meat substitutes to simple alternatives for butter, like Nuttelex or coconut butter, the options available to vegans nowadays are quite vast, healthy and tasty too! That’s in addition to all of the scrumptious vegan recipes that are available online.

More restaurants have also begun to adapt their menus over recent years as well to include plant-based meal options for their vegan customers.

So, should you go vegan?

There are many reasons why a person may choose to go vegan, including for their own health, because they dislike meat products or for the welfare of animals and the planet.

In terms of the health benefits of a vegan diet, research has made links to increased weight loss, decreased risk of developing diabetes, cancer, or heart disease, as well as reduced inflammation.

While these factors are attributed to vegan and plant-based diets, it’s important to note that you do not have to “go full vegan” to enjoy many of these benefits to varying degrees. In fact, simply reducing your meat intake and choosing to eat a more plant-based diet can still reward you with many of the same vegan health advantages, above.

Other alternatives such as the flexitarian diet are also available, where you still eat lean meats, but not every day, and only in moderate amounts. There’s also the pescatarian diet, similar to vegetarian, however you can still eat fish.

The fact of the matter is that by choosing any type of diet that reduces your meat intake, you will begin to see health benefits like the ones listed above. From there, it’s up to you how far you’d like to take your meat and animal product-free pledge!

At the end of the day, whether you choose to embrace veganism, or simply want to ease yourself into it, there are a large number of exciting food groups, recipes and delicious vegan meals for you to sink your teeth into.

Have you tasted Raw Passion?

At Raw Passion, we create a range of vegan-friendly desserts that are both delicious and good for you, so you don’t have to feel guilty about enjoying a scrumptious treat!

If you’re a chocolate lover, we recommend our decadent Vegan Chocolate Brownies.

We also serve up a delightful list of heavenly slices – check out our 16 Assorted Vegan Slices Pack to try four different flavours at once.