Nutritionist calls pregnant vegan "deluded" & "irresponsible"

The Dom

This story seems to be popping up in quite a few places online today (1, 2, 3)

A pregnant Australian woman who follows a strict vegan diet and has a blog, began posting photos of her meals on Instagram and News.com.au wrote a story on her and things kind of took off from there. She started getting heavy criticism from nutritionists that she was endangering her child's health.

Six months pregnant woman, 25, branded 'irresponsible' for promoting radical fruit-based diet to her 100,000 Instagram followers

A naturally slender woman, who is 26 weeks pregnant with her first child, has come under fire for promoting an extreme diet which sees her eat predominantly bananas.

Loni Jane Anthony, 25, from Australia, reveals on her blog that she eats up to 20 per day, raw and in smoothies, for breakfast, often lunch and sometimes mixes it up by having salad for dinner.

After opening up about her fruit-based meal plan to news.com.au, commentators deemed the pretty blonde 'irresponsible' and 'narcissistic' - especially as her Instagram account, which boasts almost 100,000 followers, features dozens of 'selfies' showcasing her svelte figure.

Nutritionist Fiona Hunter examined Ms Jane Anthony's diet as she describes it on her site, and has this to say: 'In my opinion, Lori is deluded if she thinks this diet is healthy. It could not only jeopardise her own health but also that of her unborn baby.'

'It’s desperately short in protein which is needed for growth and repair of tissues and several key vitamins and minerals including iron, calcium and zinc.
'Because her diet only provides a small fraction of the calcium she needs – her baby will take calcium from her bones to build his or her bones which will leave Lori a greatly increased risk of osteoporosis later in life.'

One commentator wrote: 'The human body cannot survive on fruit alone, it is incredibly dangerous for your health not to have variety in your diet.
'I applaud anyone who makes a positive change in their lifestyle but fad diets like this one will only work for so long.'

Shona Wilkinson, Head Nutritionist at www.nutricentre.com told Mail Online: 'This isn't a diet I would recommend to a pregnant woman. Protein and fats are important in our diet especially during pregnancy.'

'The amino acids that make up protein are the building blocks of your body's cells – and of your baby's body as well. It's important to get enough protein throughout your pregnancy, but especially during the second and third trimesters, when your baby is growing the fastest.'

'Some fats are particularly important during pregnancy because they support your baby's brain and eye development – both before and after birth. Fats also help the placenta and other tissues grow, and studies show that some fats may help prevent and low birth weight.'

However, Ms Jane Anthony, insists that she has never felt better and has never suffered from eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia.

She said she first got into eating fruit after getting sick and tired of her 'party lifestyle' which saw her binge on junk food and alcohol.

'It wasn’t for weight loss or for a quick fix. I was internally really sick; I was killing myself slowly. If I’d kept living that lifestyle I would have ended up with a disease like cancer or early aging. So giving up that food was really quite simple for me,' she said.

Originally she adopted the low-fat vegan diet created by Dr Douglas M. Graham known as the 80/10/10, which is popular among athletes.

It takes its name from its recommended dietary intake: 80per cent fruits and vegetables, ten per cent protein and ten per cent fat.

Over the past three years Ms Jane Anthony has adapted the plan to suit her tastes - despite many of her friends deeming her 'nuts' for gorging on so many bananas.

Asked by a fan how many bananas she usually eats per day, the full-time designer and photographer for an action-sports brand responded: 'Depends on the day! The other day I had 15, some days I can have 20. Some days five!'

Although they are a good source of potassium and fiber, Med-Health.net states that 'most health experts' recommend no more than two bananas per day. It says that overdosing can cause headaches, sleepiness, nausea and tooth decay.

Miss Jane Anthony, however, appears to be unaffected by these issues.

While many have criticized her for encouraging young girls to adopt an 'unhealthy' approach to food, others have congratulated her.

I sorta recall the actress Alicia Silverstone getting similar negative comments about remaining vegan throughout her pregnancy too, but I'm pretty sure she took B12 and other supplements just to make she wasn't deficient in anything.

To me this all seems a little ott though as pregnant women eat in McDonald's and KFC all the time and you never really hear people saying too much about that and surely there's a lot of crap in that junk which could negatively impact a growing fetus. Yet here's a woman being told she is endangering her child's health (quite damning criticism) and all for having the nerve to follow a plant based diet.

Are the critics right? Is she deluded? Is her diet irresponsible?

Sh1tbag OToole

It doesnt take much to be deluded and irresponsible these days..

Mint Aero

Very irresponsible to impose your own hippy beliefs on another human like that. She should suck it up and eat like a normal person for her childs sake so it isn't born with a pong of hippy and self righteousness.

Davelarson

I wonder how she'll react when she gives birth to a deformed baby due to her idiotic diet?

nc19

Shes a gobshìte but shes a hot gobshìte....

nc19

Shes a gobshìte but shes a hot gobshìte....

Stark

Well the baby won't be short on potassium.

Vegans can have perfectly healthy babies.

A woman eating only fruit and the odd salad, cannot.

Sh1tbag OToole

Davelarson wrote: »

I wonder how she'll react when she gives birth to a deformed baby due to her idiotic diet?

I thought the modern and 'hip' thing to do was to treat unborn foetuses with utter disregard. Dont worry about them and abort if they get in your way or something goes wrong with them. But if its a vegan thats carrying one its a case for moral outrage?

What about women who had kids back 1000's of years ago in places where there was little or no animals around to eat or milk? Were their babies all deformed? Meat consumption is pretty much at an all time high and even 100 years ago there was way, way less of the stuff ate

Frank Black

Sh1tbag OToole wrote: »

What about women who had kids back 1000's of years ago in places where there was little or no animals around to eat or milk? Were their babies all deformed? Meat consumption is pretty much at an all time high and even 100 years ago there was way, way less of the stuff ate

You do realise that infant mortality and live birth rates are much better now than 1000years ago?

pablomakaveli

Sh1tbag OToole wrote: »

I thought the modern and 'hip' thing to do was to treat unborn foetuses with utter disregard. Dont worry about them and abort if they get in your way or something goes wrong with them. But if its a vegan thats carrying one its a case for moral outrage?

It's when people like this woman abuse a foetus and then bring it into the world where it will growing up suffering the consequences of her decision that people have a problem with.

But don't let that stop you from your loaded rant.

Davelarson

Sh1tbag OToole wrote: »

I thought the modern and 'hip' thing to do was to treat unborn foetuses with utter disregard. Dont worry about them and abort if they get in your way or something goes wrong with them. But if its a vegan thats carrying one its a case for moral outrage?

What about women who had kids back 1000's of years ago in places where there was little or no animals around to eat or milk? Were their babies all deformed? Meat consumption is pretty much at an all time high and even 100 years ago there was way, way less of the stuff ate

Well there are people who believe women should be able to get an abortion because the child will be born disabled. Killing disabled people so they won't be a burden? I believe the Nazis had similar ideas...

theblaqueguy

I've plenty of black meat she can eat if she wants to leave her Vegan diet!

Pompey Magnus

Mint Aero wrote: »

Very irresponsible to impose your own hippy beliefs on another human like that.

There are plenty of people who would say she isn't imposing her beliefs on another human.

dodderangler

Davelarson wrote: »

I wonder how she'll react when she gives birth to a deformed baby due to her idiotic diet?

Or a monkey

Wibbs

true-or-false wrote: »

Vegans can have perfectly healthy babies.

A woman eating only fruit and the odd salad, cannot.

This in a big way. Vegans can meet pretty much all the requirements for good health for them and their kids and would be far better off than the millions of oven chips and chinner dinners with a fag on the side babies born every day. However it can be harder to get the right level of nutrients and IME too many Veggie/Vegan types eschew animal products but don't replace them with veggie alternatives. There are a lot of pasta and biccies veggies out there.

Sh1tbag OToole wrote: »

What about women who had kids back 1000's of years ago in places where there was little or no animals around to eat or milk? Were their babies all deformed? Meat consumption is pretty much at an all time high and even 100 years ago there was way, way less of the stuff ate

I'd agree meat is at an all time high, but animal protein - save for areas of true famine - was a large part of most cultures diet thousands of years ago. Fish/shellfish, eggs, milk and milk products were very common, even when big game or domestic animals were scarce. Though yea I defo agree with you on the amounts SoT. Take chicken. It was rarely enough consumed back in the day. Why? Well who would be so daft as to eat a chicken when said chicken left alive eating the dirt and worms and insects and crap you threw away was providing you with daily eggs? If and when chicken was eaten it was when said chicken was old and well past egg laying. I recall reading of a 14th century farmer dude who gave names to all his chickens and treasured them for the daily bounty they provided. To him chowing down on Anne his prize laying bird would be tantamount to murder. Dead right too. The Maasai measure their wealth in cattle, but rarely eat them, rather they take blood from them and add it to their milk. Sustainable shít right there and if you ever meet one of the old stylee non tourist folks they're damn healthy people on it.

Pixie84

A vegan diet is one of the healthiest around...look into this before criticizing. A hell of a lot of people have an extremely unhealthy diet even when pregnant yet no one bats an eyelid. Strange how vegans are seen as hippy nut jobs because they care about what they're consuming.

That being said...this lady isn't varying it as much as she should

Davelarson

Pixie84 wrote: »

A vegan diet is one of the healthiest around...look into this before criticizing. A hell of a lot of people have an extremely unhealthy diet even when pregnant yet no one bats an eyelid. Strange how vegans are seen as hippy nut jobs because they care about what they're consuming.

That being said...this lady isn't varying it as much as she should

Its healthy as long you're getting your vitamin supplements.

Pixie84

Davelarson wrote: »

Its healthy as long you're getting your vitamin supplements.

Well vitamin B12 is the only one vegans might have problems with...everything else you can fit into your diet easily

stimpson

A nutritionist is a makey uppey title mainly used by quacks like Gillian mc Keith. A dietitian is a qualified health professional who has been educated to degree standard or better.

My missus has given birth to 2 very healthy babies and shock horror, she doesn't eat meat. Nobody in the maternity hospital batted an eyelid over it as she was obviously healthy and not deficient in any way. If you want to accuse anyone of abuse, look at the skangers outside the Rotunda smoking and drinking cans.

Davelarson

Pixie84 wrote: »

Well vitamin B12 is the only one vegans might have problems with...everything else you can fit into your diet easily

Exactly. Its fine as long as you're getting your B12 shots.

johnny-grunge

Sh1tbag OToole wrote: »

I thought the modern and 'hip' thing to do was to treat unborn foetuses with utter disregard. Dont worry about them and abort if they get in your way or something goes wrong with them. But if its a vegan thats carrying one its a case for moral outrage?

What about women who had kids back 1000's of years ago in places where there was little or no animals around to eat or milk? Were their babies all deformed? Meat consumption is pretty much at an all time high and even 100 years ago there was way, way less of the stuff ate

I'm sure they had access to fat and protein in some form or another, nuts, eggs, fish etc. Besides, people believed some crazy **** back in the day with regards to health. We know a hell of a lot more now, i.e. a diet based predominately on bananas is not adequate.

Pompey Magnus wrote: »

There are plenty of people who would say she isn't imposing her beliefs on another human.

If she intends to have the child, he/she is going to have to live with whatever shortcomings her ****ty diet leaves it with.

rawn

Nothing wrong with maintaining a vegan diet while pregnant as long as you ensure you are consuming enough nutrients. Meat is the richest source of protein but not the only source. I'd be worried about the massive intake of potassium and fruit sugars, as well as the lack of fat. She's deluded. She is just as deluded as pregnant women who live on fast food.

In my (unpopular) opinion, when you're pregnant, your own taste buds are irrelevant. For just 9 months, ignore your likes/dislikes and just ensure you are taking in enough nutrients to sustain yourself and develop you're baby. C'mon like.

Legs.Eleven

She's not getting half the stuff she needs in that diet but vegans can be very healthy if they're very careful what they eat.



One thing I'll comment on though as an aside: anyone can call themselves a nutritionist and you don't need any type of qualification to do so. My friend is a dietician and has spent years studying this, so knows what she's talking about. She absolutely loses the plot when so-called nutritionists are passed off as expert opinion, which is very common nowadays (Gillian McKeith, for example).


Although they're obviously right in this case, I'd always take what they say with a pinch of salt.

wp_rathead

she eats 15-20 bananas a day?!?!?! :eek:

Zillah

She isn't a vegan, she's a banana lunatic.

rawn

I'm currently studying Nutrition. It's a FETAC level 5, nothing major. But after I complete it, I can call myself a nutritionist and people will listen to me and obey me. Fact. There's a girl in my course who purees all her food and eats it like baby food because she insists it's healthier, better for digestion and more beneficial. She does this for all her meals and guarantee when she is a "nutritionist" when we finish up in May, she will tell people this is the way they should eat. And they'll listen to her because she's a "nutritionist".

The Dom

true-or-false wrote: »

A woman eating only fruit and the odd salad, cannot.

Well, I don't think you can say "cannot" as people have done it.

Raw vegans for example only eat fruit, nuts and salad and many of them have documented their pregnancies and produced very healthy children.

The following woman had two children as a raw vegan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV-NRtsfiA0

Here's one of her children now:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfeU2fagB20

dirtyden

She looks perfectly healthy. I would imagine she will have a perfectly healthy baby.

Sounds like she could do with a little more balance in her diet (that is taking the sensationalist news article as fact) but id imagine many people could do with a little more balance in their diets.

Stark

There's got to be a serious element of BS in those videos. I wouldn't believe stories that a healthy child is surviving only on fruit for a second.

The Big Smoke

She's bananas.

Forest Demon

Humans do not need animal or dairy products to be healthy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7e_Ye6Yu6I

clairefontaine

Veganism should be e mental illness.

Eeden

I'm starting to understand the concept of "confinement" - I used to think it was a weird Victorian concept about disgust (maybe it was) but now I think it might be a good idea. At least it stops people judging everything you do!

I remember back in the mists of time, a neighbour of mine said she'd invite me over for a coffee - then qualified it by saying that she would have coffee, but of course, she wouldn't give me coffee as I was pregnant at the time. She never asked me if I was avoiding caffeine.

rawn

clairefontaine wrote: »

Veganism should be e mental illness.

Torturing and abusing animals and consuming their flesh without a guilty conscience should be a mental illness.

Irish Guitarist

Her baby will be born with yellow skin that peels off.

johnny-grunge

Forest Demon wrote: »

Humans do not need animal or dairy products to be healthy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7e_Ye6Yu6I

We're omnivores. That video might aswell be comparing us to diesel engines.

SeaDaily

Forest Demon wrote: »

Humans do not need animal or dairy products to be healthy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7e_Ye6Yu6I

What in God's name is this nonsense? It's just some random lad spewing made up sh1te for 10 minutes. Why did you post this?

Seachmall

A naturally slender woman, who is 26 weeks pregnant with her first child, has come under fire for promoting an extreme diet which sees her eat predominantly bananas.

"Naturally slender" the same way people who eat too much are "naturally bulky"?

clairefontaine

rawn wrote: »

Torturing and abusing animals and consuming their flesh without a guilty conscience should be a mental illness.

Yes it is.

How about the vegan who put their cat on a vegetarian diet?

Craaaazyyyy.....

Zillah

rawn wrote: »

Torturing and abusing animals and consuming their flesh without a guilty conscience should be a mental illness.

I wish I had a way to make people take a step back and see with fresh eyes the fact that we kill other animals to take their flesh away from them and put it in our mouths.

Irish Guitarist

She wouldn't get the same criticism if she had an abortion because it's "her body" but apparently she's an evil bitch because she eats some fruit while pregnant.

I don't think it's a great diet but babies have survived worse things.

Eeden

I wish I had a way to make people take a step back and see with fresh eyes the fact that we are animals also, and that we are omnivores, and that given the chance, other animals would kill us to take our flesh and put it in their mouths.

Seachmall

Irish Guitarist wrote: »

She wouldn't get the same criticism if she had an abortion because it's "her body" but apparently she's an evil bitch because she eats some fruit while pregnant.

She essentially eats only fruit. If she was aborting the baby then nobody would be too bothered about her diet, it's that she is carrying it to term while depriving it of needed vitamins and minerals that's the issue.

If she were intentionally depriving it of those nutrients for the sake of it then everyone would be agreed that it was, at best, irresponsible of her but when she's doing it as a side to her vegan diet it divides people.

She can still be a vegan without adding risk to her pregnancy.

I don't think it's a great diet but babies have survived worse things.

Babies has survived falls down stairs, that's not an excuse to drop your baby down a stairs.

worded

wprathead wrote: »

she eats 15-20 bananas a day?!?!?! :eek:

My OH went on a banana only diet
She lost no weight, but boy you would want to see her climb

Wibbs

Stark wrote: »

There's got to be a serious element of BS in those videos. I wouldn't believe stories that a healthy child is surviving only on fruit for a second.

Well I would. One of our greatest "killer apps" as humans is the ability to survive even thrive on a variety of food sources. It's what got us to where we are.

Forest Demon wrote: »

Humans do not need animal or dairy products to be healthy

UTTER BS VIDEO[

Jesus, that clip is chock full of shít. And well... bullshít as a topping. So we are bipedal and have opposable thumbs and no tails. Ehhhh…. Neither does damn near any animal, carnivore or not. The opposable thumbs aimed at fruit is beyond stupid. Those thumbs gave us the means to make tools, tools we used to kill/catch/render animal protein. The very first tools we made? Choppers to break open bones to get to the nutritious marrow inside. We can easily outcompete lions et al at catching, killing and eating prey animals. We've caused the extinction of more herbivores than any other animal and forced out "better" carnivores while doing so. When was the last time you saw a wolf on your travels in the countryside?

Intestinal length is also a half truth/BS. Ours are still way longer than herbivores. And we can't begin to process cellulose like most herbivores and unlike our earliest ancestors. Why do you think the appendix is well.. an appendix? Mammary glands? Really? GTFO. How many teats does a cow have? Microbial tolerance? Eh… that's why we cook meat and have done for over a million years(plus it is an external predigestion). Sweating? eh really GTFO. We're hairless and bipedal. Read more. Teeth? Our teeth are actually well evolved to chew on pre processed meat and other food sources. Fat tolerance? Eh it turns out that fat ain't the issue once thought, sugar is and herbivores eat way more sugar than we used to in the "natural state". Natural appetites? Eh… I get damn near a hard on for steak or roasted turkey or boar on a spit and I wouldn't be alone.

That video and similar like it, really boil my piss, as they are preaching to the ignorant and ill informed to push their own brand of bullshít. If someone wants to be a vegetarian or vegan I say more power to them, but don't try to bullshít the rest of us over the why's. It's really bad science and that video is some of the worst "science" I've seen in a while and I have access to the internet so that's not a good thing.

Pixie84

Eeden wrote: »

I wish I had a way to make people take a step back and see with fresh eyes the fact that we are animals also, and that we are omnivores, and that given the chance, other animals would kill us to take our flesh and put it in their mouths.

Animals kill because they need to...humans kill for greed or pleasure.
Most of the meat on your table comes from factory farming which is completely unnatural and barbaric.

Seachmall

Pixie84 wrote: »

Animals kill because they need to...humans kill for greed or pleasure.
Most of the meat on your table comes from factory farming which is completely unnatural and barbaric.

But my god is it tastey!

worded

clairefontaine wrote: »

Yes it is.

How about the vegan who put their cat on a vegetarian diet?

Craaaazyyyy.....

Here you go .... Had a good laugh at this

http://plantgoodness24.ie/categories/65/Vegan_Pet_Food.html

Pixie84

Seachmall wrote: »

But my god is it tastey!

Hmm Yeah but if you actually see where it comes from- the conditions the animal is kept in, the method it's killed as well as the suffering involved in all this it kinda makes you lose your appetite for it. Not to mention the fact that meat isn't particularly good for you...have you heard many professionals recommend a diet high in meat content?

SeaDaily

Pixie84 wrote: »

Hmm Yeah but if you actually see where it comes from- the conditions the animal is kept in, the method it's killed as well as the suffering involved in all this it kinda makes you lose your appetite for it. Not to mention the fact that meat isn't particularly good for you...have you head many professionals recommend a diet high in meat content?

Nope. Im fully aware of how meat comes to be on our tables I just really couldn't care less. It tastes great so why would I give it up? Why make life more difficult by trying to avoid meat? Vegans and the like need to stop trying to enforce their ideas on others. Nobody cares about what they have to say.