From pad thai to creamy white truffle
pesto pasta, the list of delicious vegan meals is endless and per dietary
specialists, the number of health benefits of eating a plant-based diet are
almost as great.
“Weight loss is definitely the number one
health benefit, but going vegan also helps to boost immunity which decreases
the chance of illness,” said Sheila Gallagher, a dietary specialist at Southern
Maryland Regional Hospital. “It also just helps you lead a more holistic
lifestyle with many overall health benefits including weight loss and helping
with diabetic issues.”
Older, overweight individuals with
chronic illnesses can benefit the most from switching to a plant-based diet,
Gallagher said. Although the vegan lifestyle might help those types of
individuals the most, everyone can greatly benefit from eating more vegetables
and slowly transitioning to veganism.
“I used to have chronic migraines and
high blood pressure issues before I became vegan about a year ago,” said Eva
Mireles, chef at Present Moment Café, a vegan-friendly restaurant in St.
Augustine, Florida. “Now my blood pressure is back to where it should be and I
rarely get migraines. When I do get them, there’s different things that are
vegan friendly that I can eat that help to make them more bearable.”
Mireles began working as a chef at
Present Moment about a year ago in November 2016 and she truly is the perfect
picture of a die-hard vegan. With a tattoo on her forearm of the word “vegan”
and shirts that promote healthy eating, Mireles spoke about the main reasons
why she started her vegan lifestyle and her desire to help the environment and
the animals.
“By going vegan, we’re not contributing
to unnecessary farming and mass production of animals and animal bi-products,” Mireles
said. “There’s tons of documentaries that really go in depth about the effect
our diets have on the environment. ‘Forks over Knives’ and ‘What the Health’
are both really good examples that are on Netflix.”
Veganism has been a trend across social
media for the past few years with different popular YouTubers creating videos
titled “What I Eat in a Day: Vegan Diet.” This jump in popularity has helped
boost local St. Augustine vegan restaurants’ business as well.
“Going vegan is absolutely trending now,
especially with younger people,” said Tabitha Mays, another employee at Present
Moment. “We’re seeing a lot more of an interest in this vegan lifestyle.
Doctors from around town are actually referring people with heart and
cholesterol issues to us so they can start eating better.”
Unfortunately, there isn’t a large
selection of fully-vegan restaurants in St. Augustine, but more chain
restaurants and local eateries are slowly starting to incorporate
vegan-friendly options into their menus.
“Planet Sarbez has a really great vegan
grilled cheese that a lot of people don’t know about. The Floridian, Manatee
Café and Back 40 all have pretty good vegan options too,” Mireles said. “Larger
businesses like Tijuana Flats also have different things on their menu that you
can customize to make more vegan-friendly.”
As is with any other change in diet,
people struggle with transitioning into veganism, focusing on the all the foods
that they can’t have while not thinking about all the delicious new meals that
they can incorporate into their daily lives.
“It takes more focus and time to eat
vegan. It really is a step-by-step transition,” Mays said. “You really just
have to be more creative.”
Present Moment Café offers a variety of creative
dishes, including a DLT, which is a vegan play on the classic BLT sandwich,
served with smoked dulse, a type of seaweed, in place of bacon.
“People are so afraid to eat healthy food
because they think it’s going to be bland,” Mireles said. “Vegan food is a lot
of fun and you feel so good after eating it.”
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