It is so easy to look for the magic pill. Regardless of the price, so many people want a pill to fix it all. Tired? Take a vitamin. Want to lose weight? Take a supplement. Can’t sleep? There is a gummy for that. Today let’s get to the bottom of this pill bottle … should you be taking supplements as a vegetarian? Is there a magic pill or just empty promises?
Tara’s Tuesday Tips:
Should You Be Taking Supplements as a Vegetarian?
Let me start with this vital piece of information: there are proper situations where supplementation is an absolute necessity. Vitamin deficiencies can be a serious medical condition. Vitamin toxicities can also cause serious complications. More importantly, this conversation absolutely does not apply to pregnant women or children. For the rest of us wondering if we are spending our money and efforts in the right place, let’s figure this out. If you were to ask yourself right now how much money you have spent on supplements that have not helped you, it might be a pretty high number. Is it worth it? Or could we shift that money to buying more fresh, whole foods. What if we were to just shift some of that focus + energy to getting more sunlight + movement?
What is the dictionary definition of supplement?
Something that completes or enhances something else when added to it.
The key words in that dictionary definition are “added to”. If you are regularly relying on supplements to feel as though you can function normally, this is not normal!
Your healthy foundation must be in place first for you to “add” supplements. Then, you can target your vitamin + supplement intake appropriately for what you are trying to achieve. That healthy foundation includes getting adequate fiber, water, sleep, colorful foods, clean-sourced proteins + movement. Once that foundation is in place, then by all means, let’s add to it!
Tara’s Top 5 Tips on Supplements for Vegetarians:
- Less is more with regards to supplementing and vitamins. Targeted, specific supplementation from trusted sources “added” to an already healthy regimen is the only way we should be using supplements.
- Know your numbers! Taking a supplement because you heard it helped your neighbor’s daughter’s best friend feel better might not be a good enough reason for you to start taking that vitamin. Get your bloodwork done regularly + supplement based on your numbers in collaboration with your healthcare provider.
- Not every vegetarian is B-12 + iron deficient! I eat no animal-based foods + I get my B-12 + iron checked regularly + it has NEVER been low! Get yours checked! Vitamin toxicity is real!
- Worrying about a potential vitamin deficiency is not a valid reason for eating meat! No one NEEDS meat. If you want it + you like it that is ok. However, you can get everything you need from plants + supplement where you NEED it. Read this: How To Stop Meat Cravings As A Vegetarian.
- Be careful! Poor quality supplements can contain oils, artificial colors, gelatin, and fillers that often make things worse, cause inflammation or allergic reactions. The FDA does not regulate vitamins + supplements so the safety of what is any bottle is always questionable. This is especially true if you are an athlete, you must be sure anything you take is “NSF Certified”.
What Vitamins Might Vegetarians Be Missing From Our Diets
Just because you don’t eat meat doesn’t necessarily mean you are eating for optimal health. It is easy to overlook some key nutrients no matter what your diet is! This could be intentional or unintentional. In any case, the ONLY way to know what vitamins you aren’t getting enough of is to get regular blood work. Guessing or assuming if should you be taking supplements as a vegetarian is not the answer! Neither is blindly supplementing!!!
Here are the top 5 vitamins that we as vegetarians could easily be deficient in:
Vitamin B-12:
This is one vitamin that plant-based eaters will absolutely not be able to consume if not eating any animal products. So, if you are vegetarian, vegan, or anything in between … get this checked regularly and any time you might experience fatigue or weakness or the feeling that something is just off in your energy or stamina.
Vitamin D:
This unique vitamin is more about how much sunlight you are exposed to and less of what you are eating. That being said, vegetarians still tend to have a high incidence of low vitamin D levels. Eating fortified plant-based milks + cereals can help but being mindful of getting a little bit of sunshine will help even more. Ask your healthcare provider to order a simple vitamin D level with your regular blood test. This will tell you if you need to add a vitamin D supplement or get more time in the sunshine.
Iron:
Even meat eaters can get low iron! This can be a very serious problem for anyone eating any type of diet. If you are feeling dizzy, tired, or sluggish, get your iron checked. What we do in the MVF house is make sure we are getting enough foods with iron including legumes, leafy greens, pumpkin seeds, and steel cut oats. Pair your iron-rich foods with vitamin-C-rich foods for best absorption.
Calcium:
I wrote an entire article on calcium (check it out here: Plant-Based Sources of Calcium). That is how important I think this is! It has been drilled into our brains that we need milk for calcium. I’m here to tell you that you don’t need milk … you need calcium! There are so many plant-based yummy foods that give us lots of calcium. Check out my article for a full list.
Omega-3:
Oh the ongoing debate over supplementing omega-3. Unlike the others on this list, there is no blood test to make sure you are not deficient in omega-3. Most people believe that the only way to get omega-3 is to eat fish. Wrong. Adequate omega-3 intake is great for our brains, hearts, inflammation + longevity, but you don’t need to eat fish to get it! There are fabulous algae supplements that you can get if you don’t think you eat enough walnuts, seaweed products, ground flaxseeds, or leafy green vegetables. There is also LOTS of evidence to suggest that supplementing omega-3 is not as effective as diet, exercise, and smoking cessation in preventing cardiovascular events. Need more on heart health? Start here: Five Minute Tips For A Healthy Heart, How To Eat For Heart Health, How to Lower Your Cholesterol.
Food For Thought
In 2021, Americans spent somewhere around $50 billion on vitamins + supplements. Whoa! If you are still asking yourself if you should be be taking a supplement as a vegetarian … I have a better idea. Stop wasting your money and energy looking for the magic pill. What most of us need is to follow evidence-based practices of eating good foods that come from good places + moving our bodies. Then and only then you can look to tweak your regiment and supplement in other things. Trust me I get it! Swallowing one pill every day is so much easier than doing the hard work! However, I also know that our bodies prefer to get these nutrients from the foods we eat instead of in supplement form. Not to mention, whole foods provide us with fiber + other nutrients that our bodies need that we can’t get in a powdered form of the same thing.
For me and my family, we will continue to be very skeptical of supplements + the influencers that push them. I don’t want us to consume fillers + oils that come along with an unregulated pill so I will look for alternative solutions. We will also get our blood work checked regularly and replace anything we need as recommended by the doctors that care for us. I hope this article has helped you better navigate your choices on supplementation. Now, go get your bloodwork checked!
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All the best,
Tara 💚
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