Whether you eat a vegan diet or a plant-based diet, you constantly hear the plant-based myths that you’ll end up sick. Science has repeatedly proven these myths and criticisms unfounded, yet we still hear them. It seems we have to defend ourselves just because we eat a plant-based diet. You don’t have to stand idly by while someone criticizes you for your healthy dietary choices. Learn how to answer their criticisms with the facts.
This article explains how you can respond to and challenge the following plant-based myths:
Some people are truly interested in the way you eat and want to learn. And some people want to challenge the way you eat by blurting out all of the plant-based myths.
Sometimes it is easier to ignore this, but other times we have to respond with factual answers. It’s almost as if eating a whole food plant-based diet is wrong. I’ve even heard some say that not eating meat is anti-American.
What is all too American today is obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and taking several medications each day. Instead of arguing, learn how to challenge plant-based myths with the facts.
When someone asks you, where do you get your protein, just tell them the same place cows get their protein, from plants.
- The Not Enough Protein Myth
- The Incomplete Protein Myth
- The Animal Protein is Better Myth
- The Not Enough Calcium Myth
- The Carbs Make You Fat Myth
- The Carbs Cause Diabetes Myth
- The Soy Causes Cancer Myth
- The Vitamin Deficiency Myth
Some people are truly interested in the way you eat and want to learn. And some people want to challenge the way you eat by blurting out all of the plant-based myths.
Sometimes it is easier to ignore this, but other times we have to respond with factual answers. It’s almost as if eating a whole food plant-based diet is wrong. I’ve even heard some say that not eating meat is anti-American.
What is all too American today is obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and taking several medications each day. Instead of arguing, learn how to challenge plant-based myths with the facts.
The Not Enough Protein Myth
When someone asks you, where do you get your protein, just tell them the same place cows get their protein, from plants.
There is protein in all plant foods and especially high in beans, legumes, lentils, quinoa, and peas.
Another myth is that we need a lot of protein per day, when in fact, we don’t.
Another myth is that we need a lot of protein per day, when in fact, we don’t.
The average woman needs 46 grams and the average male needs 56 grams of protein per day. The body can only use so much protein at once. And you can easily get that and more eating a plant-based diet.
Cows, chickens, and fish are just the middleman when it comes to getting protein. But along with that animal protein, there is also unhealthy saturated fat, antibiotics, and hormones that are certainly not healthy.
The Incomplete Protein Plant-Based Myths
Another challenge to a plant-based diet that you will often hear is that the plant protein in a plant-based diet is not a complete protein. But there are complete proteins in plant foods.
Quinoa is a complete protein since it contains all nine essential amino acids. Quinoa is also a great source of fiber, phytochemicals, and nutrients, which you won’t find in meat.
Soy is also a complete protein and contrary to old beliefs is very healthy and can prevent cancer. There are many combinations of plant-based foods that make a complete protein like:
- Rice and beans
- Hummus and whole wheat pita
- A peanut butter sandwich is a complete protein
- Ezekiel Bread is a complete protein
It is not necessary to eat all 9 essential amino acids in the same meal. By eating a well rounded plant-based diet, you will get plenty of protein and all of the essential amino acids.
The Animal Protein is Better Myth
Another of the plant-based myths we hear a lot is that animal protein is better than plant-based protein.
Again, not true. If anything, the protein in a plant-based diet is superior to animal proteins. Animal protein comes with a lot of unhealthy baggage.
Animal protein raises the level of IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor-1) in our body and this extra IGF-1 increases the risk of certain cancers. [1]
Animal protein turns into TMAO in our gut, which raises the risk of heart disease. TMAO is formed in the gut when we eat red meat, eggs, fish, and poultry by the bacteria in our gut.
Studies show that people with higher levels of TMAO in their blood may have more than twice the risk of heart attack and stroke when compared to those with lower levels. [2]
When someone says you will become weak because you don’t eat meat, simply ask them to look up plant-based bodybuilders and athletes, which there are many.
The Not Enough Calcium Myth
Another of the infamous plant-based myths we often hear is that we can’t get enough calcium eating a whole food plant-based diet.
The recommended daily allowance (RDA) of calcium is 1,200 mg, which is higher in the United States than in other countries. Most doctors and organizations would like to see this revised down.
In Europe, they have an RDA of 500 to 700 mg. This is much more realistic and in line with what the World Health Organization recommends. [3]
And it is easy to get that amount of calcium in a whole food plant-based diet.
Interestingly, the countries that have the highest dairy consumption also have the highest amount of osteoporosis and bone fractures. [4]
That fact and numerous studies have found that there is no link between high dairy consumption and the prevention of osteoporosis and bone fractures, in teens or adults. In fact, studies have shown more bone fractures with higher milk consumption. [5]
Don't worry about these plant-based myths about calcium. You can be assured that we get more than enough calcium in a whole food plant-based diet, and healthy calcium without all the hormones that come with milk and dairy products.Plant-based foods with calcium include:
- Commercial plain soy yogurt (6 ounces) – 300 mg of calcium
- Cooked collard leafy greens (1 cup) – 268 mg
- Blackstrap molasses (1 tablespoon) – 200 mg
- Cooked navy beans (1 cup) – 130 mg
- Almond butter (2 tablespoons) – 111 mg
- Almonds (1/4 cup) – 94 mg
- Cooked broccoli ( 1 cup) – 62 mg
A bowl of oatmeal and blackstrap molasses will give you 250 mg of calcium first thing in the morning.
The Carbs Make You Fat Myth
Another one of those crazy plant-based myths is that all carbs make you fat, which is not true. There are good carbs and bad carbs, or complex carbs and refined carbs.
Our body, especially our muscles and brain needs carbohydrates to function properly. When we eat carbs, they are broken down and turned into glucose or blood sugar. The pancreas then releases the hormone, insulin.
Insulin stimulates insulin receptors on cells to open up and let the glucose in. The brain uses as much as 50% of this glucose. We also have stored glucose in our body called glycogen, which is stored in the muscles, liver, and cells.
The most long-lived populations on the planet all eat a high carbohydrate /low-fat diet. And they are not overweight.
Complex carbs cannot make you fat; they are just too low in calories.
- A medium baked potato (without skin) has only 122 calories. But you add butter, and the calories jump to 325 calories. The potato has virtually no fat, while the butter is all fat.
- Broccoli can’t make you fat. One cup of chopped broccoli has 55 calories, add some butter and it jumps to 260 calories.
- A salad can’t make you fat. Two cups of chopped romaine lettuce have 16 calories. Add some ranch dressing, and the calories climb to 202 calories.
The Carbs Cause Diabetes Myth
This plant-based myth is similar to the carbs make you fat myth. Fat causes type 2 diabetes, not complex carbohydrates.
Eating too much fat causes insulin resistance. The circulating fat in the bloodstream causes the insulin receptors in the cells to block the insulin from entering.
The Soy Causes Cancer Myth
One of the scarier plant-based myths that we hear is that soy causes cancer. Actually, the opposite is true; soy can prevent cancer in both men and women.
This plant-based myth started years ago when scientists exposed rodents to high doses of a compound found in soy - isoflavones - and found an increase in breast cancer.
It was later found that rodents process soy isoflavones differently than humans do. More recent studies have discovered that soy can actually prevent certain cancers from occurring and also lower the risk of recurrence.
Japan has traditionally had a low rate of breast cancer, yet the Japanese have always eaten plenty of soy foods like edamame and miso. Only recently has the breast cancer rate in Japan been climbing as their diet changes to a more western diet full of dairy and meat.
One of the best ways to challenge plant-based myths and criticisms is to show studies. A few studies concerning soy and cancer include:
- A 2008 study found that women who had one cup of soy milk or one-half cup of tofu each day, have a 30 percent less risk of developing breast cancer, compared with women who have little or no soy products in their diets. [6]
- The Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study over a four-year period found that women who regularly had soy products like soy milk, edamame or tofu, had a 32 percent lower risk of cancer recurrence and a 29 percent decreased risk of death, compared with women who consumed little or no soy. [7]
- A study of 1,954 female breast cancer survivors who were followed for more than 6 years found that consuming soy isoflavones may reduce the risk of cancer recurrence in women receiving tamoxifen therapy. “Among postmenopausal women treated with tamoxifen, there was an approximately 60% reduction in breast cancer recurrence comparing the highest to the lowest daidzein (soy isoflavones) intakes” [8]
When it comes to challenging the plant-based myths, sometimes it is best to just let the studies talk for you.
“Among women with breast cancer, soy food consumption was significantly associated with decreased risk of death and recurrence. – JAMA”
The Vitamin Deficiency Myth
And yet another one of those popular plant-based myths and vegan myth is that we will end up completely deficient in vitamins.
It is well-known that if you eat a strict vegan diet or plant-based diet, you should take a vitamin B12 supplement. But this is not a valid plant-based criticism since many meat eaters and omnivores are also deficient in vitamin B12 and other vitamins.
Many people can also be deficient in vitamin D, whether they're plant based eating or not. Getting out in the sun from April through October for 10 minutes each day, will give everyone plenty of vitamin D. You can have your doctor check your levels. If you’re low in vitamin D, you can take a supplement.
Vitamin deficiency is far more common among omnivores than it is among those that eat a plant-based diet. Plant based food have most of the nutrients you need, more than animal food.
It is well-known that if you eat a strict vegan diet or plant-based diet, you should take a vitamin B12 supplement. But this is not a valid plant-based criticism since many meat eaters and omnivores are also deficient in vitamin B12 and other vitamins.
Many people can also be deficient in vitamin D, whether they're plant based eating or not. Getting out in the sun from April through October for 10 minutes each day, will give everyone plenty of vitamin D. You can have your doctor check your levels. If you’re low in vitamin D, you can take a supplement.
Vitamin deficiency is far more common among omnivores than it is among those that eat a plant-based diet. Plant based food have most of the nutrients you need, more than animal food.
Plant-Based Myths Conclusion
Don’t let anyone make you feel foolish because you eat a whole food plant-based diet or a vegan diet. You already know this way of eating is recommended by some of the smartest doctors and medical organizations in the country.
Don’t let plant-based myths or criticisms deter you from making healthy lifestyle choices and eating a plant-based diet or a vegan diet.
You’re in good company eating this way, and if people want to believe these crazy plant-based myths, let them. But when they come at you with these myths, you now have the facts to hopefully teach them the truth. -based diets are proven to be far healthier than the with a lot of processed food.
About The Author
Sam Montana is a certified Food Over Medicine instructor from the Wellness Health Forum Center and certified in optimal nutrition from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
© 2019 Sam Montana/Healthy Food and Life
Resources: [1] UC Davis Integrative Medicine
[2] Harvard Medical School: Red meat, TMAO, and your heart
[3] Harvard Medical School: How Much Calcium Do You Really Need?
[4] Science Norway: Milk is a poor preventer of osteoporosis
[5] Nutrition Facts: Why Is Milk Consumption Associated with More Bone Fractures?
[6] PubMed: Epidemiology of soy exposures and breast cancer risk
[7] Jama: Soy Food Intake and Breast Cancer Survival
[8] Pubmed: Soy isoflavones and risk of cancer recurrence in a cohort of breast cancer survivors: the Life After Cancer Epidemiology study.Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine - Soy Studies
