The good/bad points of my diet so far?

[Kitiara]

Sorry if this has probably been answered already in previous threads.

So I've recently became vegan. So far cutting out meat and dairy is the easy part. The part I am concerned with is the way I am eating so far. I understand that it can be a bit more difficult to ease into a 'proper' vegan diet but would any of you be able to guide me on the good/bad points of my diet so far?

I have been mainly eating:

• Wholemeal bread with or without Pure sunflower spread (plus omega 3+6)
• Lentil/vegetable soups also alot of beans/tomato's
• Pasta with tomato based sauce
• Potato's/Vegetables
• Tofu sausages/burgers
• Cheesly
• Soya milk in tea (but I've been mainly drinking black coffee as I dont really see the point in replacing milk apart from the +calcium/vitamins
• Fruit, mainly apples and banana's
• Now and again a few biscuits/dark chocolate (when I've had cravings)

I'm just uncertain whether what I am eating is worth continuing down the same lines or if I should cut out some things and focus on the others.

Any help would be much appreciated

[RedWellies]

You sound like you are doing OK so far! Maybe add in some nuts? Brazil and almonds are good. And some seeds? (Sunflower and pumpkin.) Make sure you eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables. Drink water too. Be aware that if you are buying the soups, burgers etc, they may have a high salt content. Home made would be better for you if you have the time.

There is a great wallchart available from the Vegan Society which shows all the vitamins, minerals, fats, etc and lists some good sources for each. (think it's called The Vegan Nutrition Wallchart.)

[Purple Monkey]

Hi there, that sounds exactly like my diet so you can't be going far wrong. As long as I get a mix of bread, rice, tofu, vegetables & fruit I feel great. I also take vegan multivitamins just in case I'm missing stuff. Do you know chocolate bourbons are vegan, theyre my fav treat!

[Kitiara]

Thankyou both

I'' check out that wall chart RedWellies, sounds like a god way to find out what I need. im a naughty Vegan as Im a bit reluctant to eat nuts cause I dont like the taste of them hehe but Ill try and incorporate them into my mussili maybe hehe.

Mmmm Bourbon biscuits...*drool* If I eat one I'll eat the whole packet lol

[herbwormwood]

Eat fresh fruit and veg as much as you like. Also as you are in UK like me you need some iodine. This can be obtained from sea vegetables or Kelp supplements. Eat some nuts and seeds on a regular basis. Other than that it looks fine. Maybe a little too much salt... there is a fair bit of salt in processed vegan food and bread. But probably not enough to worry abut if you are not restricting salt for health reasons.

[Kitiara]

Indeed I'm in the UK so I'll go and fetch some kelp tablets tomorrow Thankyou for the advice, I didnt know about the iodine difficiency