Vegan substitutes - make sense?

Hello,

today I want to talk about vegan replacement products, which are now available in every supermarket and seem to make life easier for many vegans. But what exactly is in these products, how sensible is it to rely on such highly processed foods, and what health benefits do soy nuggets, almond cheese, cashew cream, seitan sausage and co. have for us?

Those who are new to veganism may at first be relieved and excited that they do not have to give up anything, because there is now a plant-based alternative for every animal product. As far as that goes, these foods are highly processed, industrially manufactured foods, mostly with very long ingredient lists, most of whose ingredients we cannot even pronounce. These replacement products usually contain a lot of calories, are often very high in fat, extremely salty, and provide very few nutrients. Furthermore, they are very bad for the environment due to the packaging waste and processing.

Humans need far less fat than people think. 10% of total calories is recommended. By consuming these ready-made products, it is very likely that you will significantly exceed this value, which in turn leads to health problems and a higher body fat percentage (see also the post on HCLF diet).

In addition to fat, such ready-made products are also very often added refined sugar. Refined sugar is an isolated, industrially manufactured product that does not benefit the body in any way; it is empty calories. Consuming industrial sugar only damages our natural perception of sweetness, and the insulin level rises, but quickly drops again, which signals hunger to the body.

Salt is another problem in these convenience products. Salt makes us hungry and thirsty and increases our appetite for sweets and, above all, for more! So if you eat soy nuggets with fries, the probability that you will soon feel hungry or crave food again is very high. On the other hand, if you fill yourself up with a large portion of fruit and vegetables, you will be full for a long time and your body will get many more nutrients than with the nugget option.

So if you mainly eat vegetables and fruit and add small amounts of healthy fats, such as avocado, olives, nuts, and seeds, you will benefit from it in the long term. And believe me, once you have eaten like this for a few weeks, you will never want anything else again. If you ever had a craving for this vegan junk food, it will surely be gone after 3-4 weeks at the latest, and you will feel better.

Conclusion:

• Vegan convenience products contain a lot of fat, sugar, salt, and few to no nutrients.
• Due to the packaging, they are not environmentally friendly.
• Mostly high in calories, without providing nutrients to the body (empty calories).
• If you want to eat healthy, I advise you to avoid these vegan replacement products. There are so many delicious recipes made from fresh, unprocessed foods that these ready-made products become completely unnecessary.

Here is a simple example of a day without ready-made products and without giving up anything, but with lots of flavor!

Breakfast: 1 kg melon, pineapple, or papaya. Add 1-2 Mejool dates, 1-2 cups of herbal tea.

Lunch or dinner: Fruit appetizer, then a large plate with, for example, lamb's lettuce, baby spinach, celery, cucumber, zucchini, carrots, 1 raw corn cob. Add a dressing made from pureed carrots or zucchini with tahini and lemon. Avocado, herbs, and seeds as a topping.

Snack: Blueberries, raspberries, dried cranberries with some raw, homemade coconut yogurt and cinnamon, plus 2-3 Mejool dates or dried figs stuffed with nut butter (peanut, cashew, macadamia, almond, pistachio). 2-3 homemade cookies, energy balls, or power bars. Our Cocoanel snacks are ideal for a quick, healthy solution!

In addition, drink 2-3 liters of filtered water and/or herbal teas throughout the day.

Try it out and feel free to share your experiences with me.