Need advice on vitamins

[karl]

Hey, I'm a new vegan. I have some questions on what vitamins I should take and how much I need. I've been vegan since the 16th..so like 2 weeks now, and I want to make sure that I'm getting enough nutrition.

Basically my day consists of eating some spaghetti before work, then going to work and during my break I order a couple baked potatoes from Wendy's, and when I get home I cook some more spaghetti, saving the leftovers to microwave the next day. Occasionally I might have something else like an apple or a bagel.

I know this isn't as varied as a vegan diet should be, and hopefully this will change, but I need to make sure I don't develop any deficiencies because of my diet. I weigh about 350 pounds, and am also trying to lose weight with this diet, although I convinced myself to do it for ethical reasons as well. I have bought a vitamin b12 supplement with 100 mcg tablets that it says to take once a day along with a meal. As for others, I know that a well-balanced diet SHOULD cover them, but since I work so much I usually have to grab something on the run or want an easy meal.

Anyway, is the one 100 mcg tablet a day going to be enough for me, considering my weight? And is there anything else that I should be taking? I don't currently drink soy milk or any sort of substitutes like that and don't eat any cereal, though this may change when I decide to actually try it. Any quick meal ideas to help me meet m dietary needs would be welcome too, and Ill see how I want to go about it.

[harpy]

Hello - well done for going vegan. Yes I think you do need to vary your diet asap because pills won't really make up for a lack of variety. If you eat a lot of carbohydrates with nothing much else it could have odd effects on your blood sugar - at least it would on mine.

Fresh or dried fruit, raw vegetables such as washed carrots and cucumbers, unsalted nuts and seeds are all things that you can buy virtually anywhere and eat on the run without much/any preparation. Green leafy vegetables like cabbage and broccoli are important from a nutritional point of view, and can be eaten raw or steamed very quickly. Foods that are almost as easy to prepare as spaghetti include beans and tomatoes (both of which you could get out of cans) with rice.

Have a look here for information about nutrition http://www.vegansociety.com/food/nutrition
and also in the FAQ section of this forum.

There are some ideas for rapidly prepared meals here
http://www.vegansociety.com/food/recipes/soundbites/easy.php
and in various sections of the forum.

[fiamma]

Hi karl, welcome to the forum :)

As I see it, you're eating way too many carbs, and practically no protein at all! Good sources are lentils and beans of all sorts, tofu and seitan.

If you have a freezer, make big batches of lentil soup and chilli, freeze them in mono-portions and take them out when you're ready to eat them. You could take either to work in a Thermos too. Hummus is easy to whip up if you have a blender (I have a stick blender and it works great), using chick peas, tahini and lemon juice. Some people add olive oil and garlic, depends on your personal taste.

Try to eat more veggies and fruit too, and add in some nuts and seeds if you can. Take a look around the forum and you'll find lots more info and ideas. All the best :)

[karl]

Thank you for your replies. I will try to vary my diet a bit more. I will need to take B12 though, do you think the 100 mcg per day is an appropriate amount to take?

[Korn]

Hi Karl,

from what you write, it seems that varying your diet a bit more won't do the trick; you need to vary your diet a lot more! :-) With all due respect - the diet you describe sounds like it's almost designed for gaining weight and developing nutrient deficiencies (!) ...

Your B12 needs depends on a lot of things, but unless you expose yourself to a lot of B12 killers, or were B12 deficient before you went vegan, there shouldn't be a need to take 100 mcg/day. If you ate a lot of animal products before going vegan, maybe you even have B12 levels way above the average population...

A good first step towards a more varied diet could be to add a lot of raw food (lettuce, avocado, juices, raw carrots, fruit etc), limit pasta to a few times a month, eat as much fresh food as possible, and add more proteins. Check this list of you want a brief overview of vegan protein sources (http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3696):

http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3696

A little tip: try our search function (http://www.veganforum.com/forums/search.php) - we have many posts about quick meals, nutrition, B12 needs and much more. Good luck!