“Veggan” trend
Vegans who eat eggs: is it inconsistent or healthy? Nutrition expert explains
Eggs allowed: Vegans do not eat a completely plant-based diet. They eat chicken eggs.
© Matthias Bein/ / Picture Alliance
Vegans eat a diet completely free of animal products. All? No. “Veggans” make an exception when it comes to eggs. Nutrition expert Dagmar von Cramm explains what this does for the body.
It wasn’t long ago that vegans were something special. Their way of eating was considered abnormal, and vegans themselves were ridiculed as unworldly eco-freaks. These times have changed. Veganism has long since ceased to be a matter for the fringe groups and has instead arrived at the center of society. Whether it’s soy slices or smoked tofu, plant-based substitute products are now just as much a part of the supermarket as they are Meat counter.
This has also changed the way we approach diets. What was once decried as radical is perceived and lived more flexibly. Not only are there more meat eaters and vegetarians, but also flexitarians. Even veganism, which was once so strict, is no longer practiced quite so strictly by everyone. “Veggans,” for example, eat a diet based on an exception.
Watch the video: stern-DISKUTHEK – Will we be eating meat from the laboratory in the future? Cook and farmer versus researcher and vegan.
The problem with B12
Vegans are vegans who eat eggs, which explains the name. A nutritional trend that is making the rounds, especially on social media, under the hashtag #veggan. But why eggs of all things? The star nutrition expert Dagmar von Cramm asked what benefits this would have for the body.
“They are nature’s perfect mix that contains almost all of the essential nutrients: protein, which we can use almost 100 percent of, and vitamins A, E, D and K in the high-fat egg yolk. And iron!” she says. There are also potassium, calcium and phosphorus. And the water-soluble B vitamins, especially B1 and B12. And: “When it comes to cholesterol, eggs are rehabilitated: they do not increase the risk of coronary heart disease, as was previously assumed.”
People who eat a purely vegan diet have one main problem – B12. While other nutrients such as iron in meat or calcium in milk can also be supplied to the body through plant-based foods using a sophisticated mixture, the vitamin is not present in plant-based foods. For this reason, Dagmar von Cramm also believes it makes sense to supplement the vegan diet with eggs for health reasons. “It would be good – to get enough vitamin B12. Otherwise it has to be supplemented,” she explains.
It’s all in the mix
Eggs are also good for an extra portion of protein. According to von Cramm, they work best when combined with plant-based foods. “The mix of both is optimal.” Accordingly, potatoes together with eggs have an extremely high biological value. The biological value defines how much of this protein a person needs to replace the body’s own protein. The higher it is, the better. Good values can also be achieved by combining legumes with grain, “but the mix with animal protein is much better.”
The nutrition expert isn’t really convinced by the supposed trend: “Honestly: no vegan will eat eggs!” In her opinion, veganism is “especially good for pudding vegans who don’t think too much about food, but simply leave out meat, fish and dairy products, like sweet things and therefore eat a lot of cake, chocolate and so on.”
According to Cramm, vegans for whom veganism is not an option should, above all, eat whole foods and only eat a few processed products. She recommends whole grains, including quinoa, amaranth or buckwheat. Nuts and seeds, plenty of soy products, legumes and high-quality oils should also be on the diet.
It is important that people who follow a vegan diet regularly check their blood count to see whether B12, iron and iodine are in balance. “The calcium level in the blood will always be OK because our bones serve as a depot and compensate for deficiencies. But that is exactly where the danger lies,” she explains. “I think dairy products are the most difficult for Central Europeans to replace.”
Egg cooker test: Click here for the egg cooker comparison.