This according to Jason Kessler, contributing writer to Bon Appetite.
In a recent article he brings up the point that people often eat vegan (or vegetarian) because they assume it’s healthier. While veggies are good, I do agree with Kessler that vegan does NOT equal healthy. You can find junk food to fit any diet! I’ve had many a super-sugary (and tasty) vegan chocolate cake!
Society falls into this belief trap so often. Somehow “vegan” or “organic” or “all-natural” became synonymous with “healthy.”
Oreos are vegan. They are not healthy (but they are tasty).
The truth is that fried is fried and sugar is sugar, whether it’s vegan or not. And the sodium? Look at it the next time you pick up that vegan frozen meal at Whole Foods. It’s just as bad as the rest of the freezer section.
This Vegan Fried Ruben won the Best Taste at Texas State Veggie Fair in 2010
We all indulge, no matter what our diet. Yes, a plant-based diet can be more healthy. But so can a carnivore’s fare. The key is moderation.
My bottom line:
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Now for a fun vegan story.
I was in Chicago on business last week and was pleased to find an unusual offering on the breakfast menu at the Hyatt in Schaumburg:
The room service menu included a VEGAN tofu and veggie breakfast hash!
You guys know I’m not 100% vegan, but I do strive for a plant-based diet. Of course I had to order this! I was pleased to find that is was light and fresh, and served with a side of hot salsa. It was a great way to start the day before an 8 hour presentation.
Thank you, Hyatt for offering a delicious vegan breakfast option!
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Don’t forget to enter to win 1 of 2 BENGAY Zero Degrees prize bags: http://wp.me/p16jDn-1hS
Does it bother you that “vegan,” “organic,” etc. is so often thought of as being automatically healthy?
Have you ever been pleasantly surprised by a hotel or restaurant offering dishes for specific diets? This Hyatt also offered gluten-free options!
wow…thats awesome the Hyatt had that!!! GO HYATT!
xoxo from Trinidad
Yummy breakfast!!
I think people have the misconception that if you are vegan or vegetarian – that you eat ONLY healthy things because that is all that is available. So not true… particularly you are getting any of the pre-packaged frozen meals. Vegan or not.. there is a TON of sodium in those babies!
Great post, Laura and I couldn’t agree more! It drives me nuts when people say that an X diet is healthier than a Y diet..it really is what you make of it. You could be vegan yet eating off a diet full of French fries and soy burgers. Yes that’s vegan but what about the other aspects such as high cholesterol and processed foods?
That breakfast looks delicious- the more salsa the better! Love that the world is embracing more vegan options. I’m not one by any means but it’s nice to see that slowly, those who are vegan are being offered equal amounts of variety. I was appalled by one restaurant in London as their only veggie option was a cheese platter…I kid not!
So true – it shocks me how many restaurants FRY their veggie burgers. Ick.
Go Hyatt!
It bothers me too. Organic cookies are still cookies!
Tasty cookies, but still cookies.
I’m vegan and of COURSE you have to make efforts to eat healthy. But what really irks me is when an omnivore is chowing down on something horribly unhealthy like a Big Mac and telling ME that I need to be careful with my diet. Yes, and you my obese Big Mac eating friend obviously are in perfect health. SIGH. No matter what you eat (or do not eat) you should be paying attention to vitamins/minerals/nutrients.
But, I just wanted to say how cool it is that the Hyatt labelled something vegan – very cool!
Right?! My co-work was giving me shit today while scarfing a down a Pop-Tart.
I eat 90% organic all the time, 80 days a year as a vegan, and every Wednesday and Friday as a vegetarian (because of my religion) and I always tell people nu matter what the food label says: Organic, Vegan, 100% Natural, check the ingredients, it will take you only 10 seconds but it is worth it!
Interesting… I’ve never heard of 80 vegan days but I like the idea. Can you imagine the positive impact that would have if we did that world-wide?
I agree with you 100%, I’m a vegetarian, but not because I think it’s healthier or anything. It was just a life choice I decided to make! It bothers me when people tell me they’re vegetarian and then they eat fried cheese sticks every chance they get :\ Not healthy! You should come to Ann Arbor – they thrive on plant-based things! One of the diners here is famed for their hippie hash. It’s best with it’s made with tempeh 🙂
My friend just finishes MBA school up there! She said it’s an amazing environment.
I really want some hippie hash right now. 😉
I completely agree with you. And I’m happy to say I know a vegan (who does it for ethical reasons, not dietary) who admits he doesn’t have the all-around most healthy diet in the land. I really admire those who DO eat vegan, but admit there’s healthy and not-so-healthy ways to do it.
I love that your friend even admits that. There are ways to be unhealthy in any diet – the trick is being educated and deciding that’s best for YOU.
Amen! I remember on the Biggest Loser one of the contestants saying something was healthy solely because it was organic. “Healthy” would be a relative term, for sure.
And I know plenty of overweight vegans!
You’re right- eat like you give a damn. And eat what you want- just not too much. 🙂
Your use of a Biggest Loser reference makes me love you even more. 😉
That breakfast looks AMAZING! The idea that vegan or organic means healthy is one of my biggest pet peeves – and I have a LOT. Love your “bottom line”. 🙂
Haha -I need to do a pet peeve post. I think I have a lot too. 🙂
I was (and still am) so impressed that they had a scramble on their menu!! And YES, vegan does not necessarily equal healthy. It’s very easy to eat crap no matter what your food lifestyle – it takes intention to make good eating decisions and to stop eating when you’re full.
I love the word “intention.” 🙂
So true! Same with organic. I think the average American often misconstrues organic with healthy. Organic potato chips, organic cookies… still junk! Just pesticide free junk 😉
Ha – I demand that my chip be pesticide-free. 🙂
That Hyatt breakfast looks so good. I might have to make a hash or scramble sometime this week for breakfast. PS I’m totally glad you pointed this out. I have to be honest- for the longest time I assumed something (even cake) would be healthier because it was vegan but you are right- it can be like diet food and compensate for missing flavor with added sugar, salt, etc. I need to email you about getting together!
I’m glad you were honest! So many of us have made the same mistake.
it drives me crazy when people are eating cookies and make a comment about how they’re not a bad choice because they’re “natural” or “gluten free” or ‘organic”, etc. THEY’RE COOKIES! i definitely support indulging in delicious foods – it’s one of my favorite things to do – but stop kidding yourself and realize that a cookie is a cookie. sure there are some better versions out there, but it’s still a dessert.
You mean gluten-free doesn’t mean “eat all you want”?! Dammit. LOL!
Yes it does bother me! But only because I wish that it was TRUE! I could eat all the veggie chips I wanted!
LOL! Same here.
Gosh, so true! I remember once I posted on my FB that I was enjoying some chocolate chip organic oatmeal and my friend commented “that’s an oxymoron” because she thought organic = healthy and chocolate = not healthy. Neither were true. And it was the best oatmeal ever (I added strawberries and peanut butter).
At the end of the day if you are eating too much, you are eating too much and that’s not healthy! It doesn’t matter if it’s vegan or not 🙂
Oh wow – definitely not an oxymoron. And I definitely want to try one of those cookies!
It does bother me when people associate my vegetarian diet with weight loss. It drives me crazy! Vegetarians can still eat cookies, ice cream, and other goodies. I just prefer to do so in moderation. Great post, Laura!
Same here! I eat a plant-based diet because I feel good when I eat greens!
thank you for this! i try to tell my clients the same. Organic, vegan, etc. Same ingredients, more natural, but still… can be unhealthy. READ LABELS!
Exactly! Don’t eat too much sugar or ingredients you can’t identify.
YAY CHICAGO! I’m a (healthy) vegan living in that fine city, and I tell you, we have so many vegan restaurant options that I’m often overwhelmed with choices and I never have to go hungry. Schaumburg isn’t exactly a titan of progress, but I’m glad the suburbs are taking note!
Ohhh… I really want to get up there and eat my way through CHI one day. Silly work always takes over my trips!
it always bothers me when people assume organic or vegan equals healthy..that is so not the case. sometimes it is..obviously..but sometimes its not. btw, how weird that oreos are vegan? i would have just assumed they werent i guess?
Know what else is vegan? Pillsbury icing.
I totally agree that just because someone follows a vegan or vegetarian diet means they’re healthy. Potato chips are vegan and vegetarian, and it’s pretty easy to get fat from eating those!
Annnnd… now I’m craving chips. 😉
I had to explain so many times to my mother and mother-in-law that tofu had as many calories in it as fish or chicken – that it’s only soy instead of meat. I’m with you – I love eating vegan because I like veggies and yes, I like the taste of tofu and seitan and I do find that I feel better physically. But it can be really unhealthy if you spend time making muffins and cookies.
Yay for vegan options at restaurants! I get excited too, even if i don’t always choose them.
So true! I notice a big difference in how I feel when I focus on a plant-based diet.
Do you see many vegan options in France?
I wish everyone realized this!
You have such a great point…and sadly so many people think that simply because something is labeled “vegan” that means it’s extremely healthy. I think most of the time vegan and especially organic foods are healthier, but there can definitely be non-vegan foods out there that are much healthier versions of a vegan one….This whole idea is an important message to send!
I think they are healthier in that the ingredients are cleaner; however, a cookie is still a cookie. I think the moral should be not to deprive yourself, but when you do indulge keep it clean if possible and try to exercise moderation.
I love when hotels/restaurants cater to special diets 😀 THAT makes me happy, but I get frustrated when people see a certain word (examples – gluten free/vegan/vegetarian/natural) and assume it is a better option 🙂
I totally, 100% agree with you – people try to find absolutes, but there isn’t a unequivocally healthy diet that is just defined by restriction. It’s about what you choose to eat, not what you don’t. I am way healthier now that I am eating meat, and it’s because of my forced gluten-free vegetarian diet and my mental attitude toward what I could eat. Setting absolutes, on either side, is just wrong!
Cheers to that! Diets are so personal, but I am a firm believer that you should educate yourself on what really is “healthy” no matter what your food preferences/needs are.
It does bother me that one assumes something is automatically healthy if it’s vegan, organic, etc… I think so many people are clueless about the subject of nutrition. Which I think is an important subject! I stayed at a Weston last month and was pleasantly surprised by the breakfast options!
Agreed!
I need to check out the Westin. I hope this is a growing trend!
I guess I’d say, “vegan is not NECESSARILY healthy!” Meaning that it sure can be, but I agree with you entirely that it’s not synonymous with healthy. All ways of eating involve nuance. Good post 🙂
You’re right… I probably could have softened that. 🙂
I agree completely! So many people think that too. I agree that moderation is the key no matter if you eat meat or you don’t. It is all about making healthy choices and having some self control. Nice post!
Cheers to that!
Just a quick note to say, I agree! Vegan can be as healthy or unhealthy as you want it to be. What an amazing breakfast find!
When I read the title I thought for sure you must have a brain injury, and then I read on. I do indeed agree with you are reading the complete post.
It is dangerous to automatically make an assumption about food based on its label (i.e. vegan, low fat, carb free, etc).
Adapting our way of eating to more whole foods would improve our health greatly.
A thought provoking post indeed. Thank you Laura!
Hahaha – no brain injury here. Just the knee. 🙂
Thanks, Rachel!
I agree with you my friend – before blogging, I thought vegan meant sitting eating a banana and celery sticks all day long (maybe a raw vegan ;))
But after extensive blog stalkiing… I mean visiting… I think it is definitely obvious that vegans have just as much fun in the kitchen 😀
BTW> did not know Oreos were vegan!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
LOL! I think I had the same idea in my head too. Now I know first thing that it’s anything BUT that. 🙂
Hahha! You’re right. I’ve seen people think they should eat vegan because its healthy! Thanks for putting this info together. I’m going just send it to them as a FYI!
Ha – let me know how they like it. It’s so easy to think all there is to eating well is to be vegan.
Someones not going to win any friends by pointing out this obvious downside to being a vegan or this or that. Really nice to see someone put these facts into print. I like.
As the saying goes “We didn’t get to the top of the food chain to eat grass!” we should embrace our priveleged position.
Dave.
Haha! I didn’t get much negative, actually. I think people realize that you can figure out how to be unhealthy on any diet. 🙂
Yes Vegan foods are not good for health… Those are mostly Junk foods, they will produce more calories.
Great post! (Obviously I’m a little behind on blog reading.)
Yes, this does sometimes drive me crazy, and, while I think eating vegan does generally lead to healthier choices, it is definitley not the case automatically. Was that vegan chocolate chip cookie containting 500+ calories any better for me than having a tub of yogurt? Definitely not.
In other news…glad you finally had a hotel kitchen that didn’t look confused when you mumbled the word vegan AND gave you something more than just steamed veggies. [Not that there is anything wrong with those…]
Thanks Sarah! I do think that people with certain dietary requirements/preferences tend to eat more health because they pay more attention to what they eat; however, that’s not always the case. I see more people with “regular” diets pick up vegan/organic/etc items simply because they think they must be healthy. Those cookies are never going to be a health food. LOL! 🙂