It is very easy for a vegan diet to meet the recommendations for protein as long as calorie intake is adequate. Strict protein planning or combining is not necessary. The key is to eat a varied diet.

Almost all foods except for alcohol, sugar, and fats are good sources of protein. Vegan sources include: potatoes, veggie burgers, veggie meats, soy yogurt, seitan ("wheat meat"), whole wheat bread, rice, almonds, peas, chickpeas, peanut butter, tofu, soy milk, lentils, greens, Clif bars, Luna bars...

Vegan diets are free of cholesterol and are generally low in fat. Thus eating a vegan diet makes it easy to conform to recommendations given to reduce the risk of major chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer. High-fat foods, which should be used sparingly, include oils, margarine, nuts, nut butters, seed butters, avocado, and coconut.

Vitamin D is not found in the vegan diet but can be made by humans following exposure to sunlight. At least ten to fifteen minutes of summer sun on hands and face two to three times a week is recommended for adults so that vitamin D production can occur.

Blood calcium levels are only one third attributable to calcium intake. The other two thirds are accounted for by factors effecting calcium absorption, such as impact exercise (ie, jogging), intake of vitamins C and D, which promote calcium absorption, and not having excessive intake of calcium inhibitors, such as phosphorous, iron and protein.

With a varied diet of plant foods, it is virtually impossible to not consume as much calcium as the human body needs, and not consuming animal products also avoids problems with lack of calcium absorption.

A list of some vegan sources of calcium: fortified soy or rice milk, almonds, collard greens, blackstrap molasses, tofu, greens, tahini (ground sesami seed paste found in hummus), calcium fortified orange juice, okra, sesame seeds, turnip greens, soybeans, figs, tempeh, almond butter, broccoli, bok choy, soy yogurt, etc. The recommended intake for calcium for adults 19 through 50 years is 1000 milligrams/day.

Varied vegan diets can easily provide the recommended daily allowance for zinc. Zinc is found in grains, legumes, and nuts.

Dried beans and dark green vegetables are especially good sources of iron, better on a per calorie basis than meat. Iron absorption is increased markedly by eating foods containing vitamin C along with foods containing iron.

Sources of Iron

Soybeans, lentils, blackstrap molasses, kidney beans, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, seitan, Swiss chard, tempeh, black beans, prune juice, beet greens, tahini, peas, figs, bulghur, bok choy, raisins, watermelon, millet, kale....

The requirement for vitamin B12 is very low. Non-animal sources include Red Star nutritional yeast T6635 also known as Vegetarian Support Formula (around 2 teaspoons supplies the adult RDA). It is especially important for pregnant and lactating women, infants, and children to have reliable sources of vitamin B12 in their diets. Numerous foods are fortified with B12, but sometimes companies change what they do. So always read labels carefully or write the companies.

Vitamin B12 is not supplied by a vegan diet because modern agricultural techniques wash away a healthy bacteria that once supplied B12 in fruits and vegetables. It is recommended that vegans suppliment their B12 intake. Multivitamins and B12 suppliments usually contain considerably more B12 than is recommended per day, so it is not necessary to take these everyday.