By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Suppose that you visit your obstetrician and learn that you need to begin taking a prenatal vitamin/mineral supplement. You’d like to find a vegan prenatal and want to make sure it has the nutrients that you need. You could spend hours finding products online or in stores or you could make a quick stop at the Office of Dietary Supplement’s Supplement Label Database. This database includes current and historical label information from more than 150,000 products marketed in the United States. It allows you to search by key word, so you can look for products that have “vegan” on the label. Filters allow you to limit your search to products currently on the market and to specify the type of supplement you are looking for (e.g. multivitamin, fiber, fatty acid, vitamin, mineral). You can limit your search to products targeted at infants, toddlers, or pregnancy and you can specify the form of the supplement (bar, powder, gummies, tablet, etc.).

When I searched for a vegan prenatal multivitamin/mineral supplement that is currently on the market, I found nine products. I was able to view the label information for each of these products and could see what the ingredients were. The database provided a link to the manufacturer’s website for each product. It helped me to have the information I would need to decide which product best met my needs.

The Dietary Supplement Label Database could also be useful if you are looking for a vegan multivitamin/mineral supplement for a toddler, or for a vegan source of omega-3 fatty acids, or any time you have a question about a dietary supplement.

To read more about supplements see:

Do I need to take a daily multi-vitamin and mineral?

Should I take a daily multi-vitamin supplement?

Supplements for vegan children

Do vegetarians have to take vitamin B12 supplements?

Calcium supplement

Thank you to more generous donors, in 2023 The Vegetarian Resource Group will be awarding $30,000 in college scholarships! Deadline is FEBRUARY 20, 2023.

We will accept applications postmarked on or before FEBRUARY 20, 2023. Early submission is encouraged.

Applicants will be judged on having shown compassion, courage, and a strong commitment to promoting a peaceful world through a vegetarian (vegan) diet/lifestyle. Payment will be made to the student’s college (U.S. based only). Winners of the scholarships give permission to release their names to the media. Applications and essays become property of The Vegetarian Resource Group. We may ask finalists for more information. Scholarship winners are contacted by e-mail or telephone. Please look at your e-mail.

If you would like to donate to additional scholarships or internships, go to www.vrg.org/donate

Applications

Please click here to download a PDF of the application. However, applicants are not required to use an application form. A neatly typed document containing the information below will also be accepted as a valid application.

Please send application and attachments to [email protected] (Scholarship application and your name in subject line) or mail to The Vegetarian Resource Group, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203.

If emailing, please put your essay in a separate attachment with your first name and last initial. A PDF or Word document is preferred, but if you send a Google document, make sure permission is given so readers can access it. For more information call (410) 366-8343 or email [email protected].

Are you still looking for a Valentine’s Day gift? If so, you might want to prepare a vegan meal for your family, friends, co-worker, etc. to show your admiration. Nothing beats comfort food, and we have published many articles on this topic throughout the years in Vegan Journal. Delicious vegan recipes can be found in the articles below. Enjoy!

Baby Boomer Cooking (Nov 2010)

Comfort Foods (Feb 2019)

Comforting Casseroles (Feb 2007)

Modern Vegan Comfort Food (Feb 2016)

Vegan Comfort Foods (Jan 1998)

Vegan Versions of Familiar Favorites (Jan 2000)

Subscribe to Vegan Journal in the USA only by visiting https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

If you or someone you know is looking for vegan nutrition information to use during pregnancy and once your child is born, here’s a terrific handout: https://www.vrg.org/nutrition/vegan_pregnancy_brochure.pdf

You’ll find a sample vegan menu to follow during pregnancy, as well as a feeding schedule for vegan infants, toddlers, and young children.

Chef Nancy Berkoff shares tips on different ways to incorporate eggplant into vegan dishes. See: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2021issue4/2021_issue4_cooking_tips.php

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

According to the comprehensive book, Plant-based Sports Nutrition, doing resistance exercise and eating protein both signal our body to build more muscle. Thus, athletes and others who want to increase muscle mass are encouraged to do strength training and meet protein needs. Eating more protein than is needed does not lead to larger muscles.

Protein derived from animals is often touted as being better than plant-derived protein for muscle building. If you walk down the supplements aisle of a grocery store, you’ll see container after container of protein supplements with dairy- (casein or whey) and egg-derived protein. Plant-derived protein is believed by some to be less effective than animal-derived protein because of its amino acid content and lower digestibility.

A recent study calls into question the need for animal-derived protein to build muscle. In this study, dairy milk and a mixture of plant proteins were equally effective in promoting muscle protein synthesis in healthy young men. The researchers randomly assigned 24 healthy, recreationally active young men to either a group who were given 30 grams of dairy protein or to a group who were given a blend containing 15 grams of wheat protein, 7.5 grams of corn protein, and 7.5 grams of pea protein. Over the next 5 hours, muscle biopsies were done in order to assess the rate of protein synthesis. The two groups’ rate of muscle protein synthesis was not significantly different over the 5 hour period. If anything, the rate of muscle protein synthesis increased somewhat more after the men consumed the plant-derived protein than after the animal-derived protein, but this difference did not reach statistical significance.

The researchers conclude, “Balanced plant-derived protein blends can have anabolic [muscle building] properties that do not differ from high-quality animal-derived proteins.”

Reference

Pinckaers PJM, Kouw IWK, Gorissen SHM, et al. The muscle protein synthetic response to the ingestion of a plant-derived protein blend does not differ from an equivalent amount of milk protein in healthy, young males  J Nutr. 2022;152:2734-2743.

To read more about protein for vegans see:

Protein in the Vegan Diet

Protein

To read more about vegan diets for athletes see our website section on athletes.

The Vegetarian Resource Group has an extensive section on their website in Spanish. Feel free to share this information: https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/information_in_Spanish.htm

Sample topics included are:

Recetas Veganas – Vegan Recipes

La Dieta Vegana – Vegan Diet and Nutrition

Chef Nancy Berkoff shares tips on how to incorporate nuts into vegan dishes. See: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2021issue1/2021_issue1_cooking_tips.php

photo from Bar Bombón

Nothing beats eating out for breakfast and/or brunch! Here’s a couple of delicious options in Philadelphia, PA:

Bar Bombón (Saturday and Sunday brunch): breakfast taco, strawberries & cream French toast, pancakes, and more! https://barbombon.com/#menu

Batter & Crumbs: Enjoy vegan baked goods and beverages. https://www.batterandcrumbs.com/

Luhv Vegan Deli: Breakfast bagel sandwiches including Luhv lox, bacon, egg, & cheese, and sausage, egg, & cheese. https://deli.luhvfood.com/

Monster Vegan (Sunday brunch): Try chicken and waffles, cinnamon French toast, corned beef hash, and more. https://www.themonstervegan.com/

Primary Plant Based (Sunday brunch): Dining options include grilled corn bread, French toast, breakfast sandwiches, and baked goods. https://www.primaryplantbased.com/

Live elsewhere? Visit The Vegetarian Resource Group’s Guide to Veggie Restaurants in the USA and Canada: https://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

Vegan Journal is published by The Vegetarian Resource Group. Enjoy in-depth original research, product and book reviews, scientific updates on veggie nutrition, delicious vegan recipes with gorgeous photos, plus so much more. Both long-term vegans and those new to a vegan life-style will enjoy this magazine.

To subscribe in the USA only, see: https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php