Can you have a vegan diet with out taking vitamin supplements?

Can you have a vegan diet, and get all the proper nutrients with out taking supplements? As long as your diet's healthy you can, right?Can you have a vegan diet with out taking vitamin supplements?
I'm a lifelong vegan and have yet to take supplements.



The idea that a diet WITHOUT dead flesh and animal byproducts is unhealthy is somewhat absurd to me. xDCan you have a vegan diet with out taking vitamin supplements?
Sure you can (please ignore incorrect answers from those who are clueless. For what it is worth, I am a certified nutritionist, vegan, and mother of a vegan daughter) You can get ALL of the nutrients you need from a plant based diet. Careful research, and balancing your foods will give you everything you need. Seaweed (arama, wakama, hijiki, nori, etc) are very high in B vitamins, including B12, as it nutritional yeast) My 15 year old daughter has been vegan since the age of 6 (her choice, not something I forced on her)-we have a vitamin/mineral profile done every year on our blood, and our levels are always great. Her doctor says he wishes all of his patients ate like we do. No need for costly supplements or vitamins=we get it all from our food, which consists of mostly homegrown fruits, veggies, and whole grains-all organic.
Yes you can!



I only have to take iron during my 3rd trimester of pregnancy (which is very common in non veg too) and I have never had B12 supplements yet my B12 was great during my pregnancy.



I am currently taking magnesium as I was low but that was because I was not consuming nuts which I am now so I will stop that soon.



I am taking selenium for an extra boost as selenium is very low in the soil over here so its hard to obtain through the diet.



Do your research and you can be supplement free :)

(eat tempeh, natto, nutritional yeast and fortified soymilk %26amp; cereal for B12)Can you have a vegan diet with out taking vitamin supplements?
Nope. And humans are not supposed to have vitamin supplements, the human body is designed to extract all the vitamins and minerals it needs directly from food. Most nutrients in vitamin supplements end up getting flushed out of the body before they can be absorbed.

Plus, they don't contain EVERYTHING that a vegan needs that they are missing out on from not eating dairy, eggs, and meat.
Some will swear that you can - but even the vegan society admits that you do need to take B12 supplements or eat B12 fortified foods like B12 fortified Soya milk (B12 does not occur naturally in Soya)



Omega 3's are another contentious issue - some will swear they can get these from plant based sources like flax seed but unfortunately these contain short chain omega 3's which are not as good for you as long chain Omega 3's which can only be derived from animal based sources (predominantly oily fish)



Footnote: Im expanding my answer because there are others on here that that say B12 can be found in seaweed and other plant based sources - this is questionable. See link below. Also note the amount of seaweed you would need to consume to get sufficient quantities of B12 would mean you would also be ingesting large quantities of iodine which is not a good idea.



There are a number of myths about vitamin B12. Some vegan advocates emphasize that humans need only small amounts of B12 and that it can be stored in the body for years. It is true that, at the time they become vegan, some people have enough B12 stored in their liver to prevent overt B12 deficiency for many years. However, people often misinterpret this to mean that you only need to consume a tiny amount of B12 once every few years. Actually, to build up such stores, it takes many years of consuming B12 beyond one's daily needs. Many people do not have large enough stores of B12 to be relied upon even for short periods. This is an easy problem to solve by simply eating B12-fortified foods or taking a supplement.



There are no reliable, unfortified plant sources of vitamin B12 (see B12 in Tempeh, Seaweeds, Organic Produce, and Other Plant Foods for more information); therefore fortified foods and/or supplements are necessary for the optimal health of vegans and even vegetarians in many cases. Luckily, vitamin B12 is made by bacterial fermentation such that no animal foods are necessary to provide it.



There are two types of B12 deficiency: overt and mild.



Overt vitamin B12 deficiency:



B12 protects the nervous system. Without it, permanent damage can result (e.g., blindness, deafness, dementia). Fatigue, and tingling in the hands or feet, can be early signs of deficiency. B12 also keeps the digestive system healthy and an overt deficiency can cause digestive problems.



Mild vitamin B12 deficiency:



By lowering homocysteine levels, B12 reduces the risk of heart disease, stroke, and other diseases. Vegans and near-vegans who do not supplement with vitamin B12 have consistently shown elevated homocysteine levels.



From 1999 to 2003, there were many studies comparing the homocysteine levels of vegans and vegetarians who do not supplement their diet with vitamin B12 to those of non-vegetarians. In every study, the vegans or vegetarians had higher homocysteine levels than the meat-eaters and in the range associated with an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.



In contrast, one study compared vegans who supplemented their diets with vitamin B12 (an average of 5.6 mcg/day) with non-vegetarians. Their homocysteine levels were the same, and well within the healthy range. Details can be read in the section Homocysteine, B12, Vegetarians, and Disease of Vitamin B12: Are You Getting It?



If you have been a typical meat eater for most of your life, your body should have stored enough B12 to prevent overt deficiency for a number of years. However, when B12 intake is zero, old B12 stores cannot be relied on to keep homocysteine levels in check.



The bottom line is it will be down the to the individual, some people can get anyway with not taking any supplements, others can't.



If you are a life long vegan, nutritionist or anyone else who does not agree with this please READ the information provided in the site below.



The other site provides a brief explanation of the problem of relying on plant based sources of omega 3's too.Can you have a vegan diet with out taking vitamin supplements?
No. You need to take vitamins D and B12. Most people do not get enough D from the sun. It can only be found in egg yolks (you would need 6 a day), cod liver oil and oily fish especially herring.

B12 is only found in animal products.
yes, it is possible, but it is good to take supplements, as a vegetarian or a vegan, and even as a meat eater, they are good for you.
No, a vegan would at minimum have to take a B12 supplement or eat B12 fortified foods.
Yes