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Vegan Nutrition
Vegans can and do eat almost every type of food they ate before becoming vegan. Far from deprivation, a vegan diet opens new worlds of eating pleasure. Food and its enjoyment become central. Besides a bounty of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, breads, and pastas, delicious plant-based substitutes exist for nearly every animal product—with no animals harmed in the process. As on any diet, it's important to ensure adequate intake of vital nutrients like Vitamins B12 and D as well as Omega-3 fatty acids.

Vegan Philosophy
A vegan (VEE-gun) does not eat, wear, or use animal products of any kind, including meat, egg, dairy, fish, seafood, honey, leather, fur, silk, or wool.

A balanced vegan diet is healthful, nutritionally adequate, and appropriate for all stages of life, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, and athletics. (American Dietetic Association, Volume 109, Issue 7, Pages 1266-1282 July 2009)

A vegan also rejects the common notions that animals exist for human entertainment, labor, sport, or medical testing. Science is discovering that all food animals, including fish, feel pain, possess intelligence, use some equivalent of language, and have rich social interactions. Animals want to live their own lives, not be food on a plate, a pawn in a circus or zoo, or an experiment in a lab.

Click on the displayed links to learn how a vegan lifestyle can maximize your health and enhance your ability to learn and thrive. These sites are a small sample of the vegan resources available. Search the web for dozens more.

Vegan Info
www.pcrm.org
www.veganoutreach.org
www.vegsource.com

Vegan Nutrition
http://nutritionfacts.org
www.veganhealth.org

Vegan Recipes
www.ivu.org
www.vegweb.com

Restaurants/Stores
www.happycow.net

Online Shopping
www.veganessentials.com

Protein Facts
The meat, egg, and dairy industries and their government counterparts have been so successful with their protein propaganda that the #1 question vegans get is: "Where do you get your protein?" The truth is, we need much less protein than we've been told (human breast milk is just 1% protein!). And we can get all we need from plants. In the first place, how does protein get into "high protein" animal products...what do cows, pigs, and chickens eat? Plants! Secondly, animal protein when consumed is inflammatory & carcinogenic.

MaxVegan (MV) Recipes
More PA, Less SOS! (PA = Phytochemicals Antioxidants; SOS = Salt Oil Sugar)
Cooking offers an exciting challenge to new vegans, who often become the family chefs. Foods like soda & fries may be vegan, but they're not healthy. MaxVegan Recipes maximize health by boosting nutrients and minimizing junk. From sauces & dressings to main dishes & desserts, dozens of No-SOS recipes are presented in a unique visual format that reduces the intimidation of long ingredient lists and wordy instructions.

VeganDiego!
HEALthy eaters living in or visiting San Diego County can download this calendar of 100% vegan eateries, along with a directory of vegan-promoting businesses, professionals, organizations, social groups, and coupons to their computers and smartphones. To be notified of updates, like & follow www.facebook.com/vegandiego.

VeganDiegoBlog
Vegan issues. Online activism. Sample topics:
* Do Vegan Options Promote Veganism?
* Unhealthy Vegan Food?
* Vegan Dogs & Cats? Of Course!
* The "Best" Way To Promote Veganism!

V-Cards!
In areas without vegan restaurants, eating cruelty-free can be tough, especially in foreign countries. V-Cards list vegan food restrictions in over 100 languages. Hand a card to your waiter or chef to ensure your meal is completely free of animal products. If possible, order "take out" to avoid having to be around omnivores hurting (eating) animals in your presence. Or to avoid the inevitable cross-contamination of food in non-vegan eateries, use V-Cards to cobble together your own plant-based meals in local grocery stores.

HappyCow: Global Vegan Dining
The amazing HappyCow website/app rates vegan and veg-friendly eateries and stores worldwide. Although vegan items are now more common in mainstream establishments, it's all about profits not ethics. If available, vegans should always patronize 100% vegan establishments. Non-vegan eateries are sanitized extensions of the slaughterhouse. If no one ordered animal products, none would be harmed. You can't have one without the other. Ironically, egg & dairy operations are worse for animals than meat production, so even vegetarian eateries are part of the problem.

Rounding of America
Many new vegans effortlessly lose weight, because plants are generally low in calories and loaded with cleansing fiber that increases regularity. But when vegans "thin" to their ideal weight, people may assume something is wrong. The problem is, Americans have gotten so "round" that what was once a healthy look now seems deficient. If others express concern about your new, lean look, and you are eating a colorful variety of whole plant foods and nutrients and have a good BMI, show them this handout.