Vegan diets and skin health

When following a vegan diet and therefore opts for eliminate all animal protein and dairy products from the diet, can result in a deficiency of certain nutrients, especially vitamin B-12, zinc and iron, being able to cause skin problems among others when the adequate complementary precautions are not taken.

Vegans should generally take nutritional supplements for your diet or plan, so as not to incur vitamin and mineral deficiencies which can cause various types of health problems, being the leather one of the most affected organs.

-Deficiency of Vitamin B 12

There are few sources of vitamin B-12 that exist in the vegan diet out of the brewer's yeast or fortified cereals, but in the supplements they can find the adequate supply of the vitamin, which is one of the most important for the skin health, since its deficiency can generate up to glossitis or inflammation of the tongue, mouth sores, stomatitis especially, cracks in the corners of the mouth, hyperpigmentation of the skin and vitiligo, a disease that causes the loss of pigmentation in areas of the skin.

-Lack of iron

The iron contained in plants is called iron "we have not"Because it does not absorb, unlike the content in meat or"heme iron”Should pay special attention to a vegan diet, with regard to its assimilation, although the percentage of vegans with anemia is not greater than that of the general population, vegans have lower iron stores and the cutaneous manifestations of iron deficiency affect the nails giving them the shape of a spoon, white vertical lines on nails, as well as cracks in the tongue and mouth similar to those seen in the B-12 deficiency.

-Zinc deficiency

Although the Mineral zinc is found naturally in some nuts and legumes, but in red meats and poultry the content is higher and generally a vegan who does not eat a varied diet, cannot obtain the zinc he needs, incurring in this case a mineral deficiency, which has the consequences; skin rashes, hair loss, and delayed wound healing.

Image: MF