Dawn Jackson Blatner
(CBS News):
“A vegan lifestyle can be healthy, but it takes more planning than most other types of diets to ensure no deficiencies, especially of protein, iron, zinc, calcium, Vitamin-D, B12 and omega-three fatty acids,” said Blatner, who is also a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
(The Seattle Times):
Dawn Jackson Blatner, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, approves of the vegan-before-6 idea. But like full-time vegans and vegetarians, part-timers need to be aware of getting enough of certain nutrients, she says. Among these are Vitamin B12 (found mostly in meats), protein, iron and zinc (all of which are in beans), calcium and vitamin D (mostly in dairy products, and in fortified soy and almond milks), and omega-3 fats (in fish, flax seed and walnuts).
Blatner also cautions that while Bittman lost weight through his new way of eating, it’s easy for vegans and vegetarians to consume too many calories. “You can do it wrong,” she says. “You could overeat olive oil, nuts and seeds, or over-portion peanut butter, so you’d eat too many calories.”
(WebMD):
Blatner thinks [vegan] dieters would benefit from having nutrition information and a nutrient analysis of recipes and meals, because vegetarian diets can be lacking in protein, iron, zinc, calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, vitamin B12, omega 3 fatty acids, and iodine.