To Be Vegan Or Not: The Debate Continues

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Celebrity DJ AM and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker chartered a plan on September 19, 2008. At the last moment, the pilot duo thought that they had blown a tire and tried to abort the flight's take off. However, the remaining runway was not enough to stop the plane safely, and it careened to a fiery crash. Four people died in the accident, including both pilots.

Only AM and Barker survived the mishap.

Barker had suffered 65% burns, mostly second- and third-degree ones, and was admitted to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Georgia. He was vegan at the time. To speed up his recovery, he was fed a high-calorie diet. The doctors told him that it was difficult to take grafts from his skin due to low levels of protein in his body.

Travis Barker told The Guardian later, "I had to have 6,000 calories a day. Obviously, they didn't have a vegan chef for me, so I had to eat whatever. I ended up eating a lot of beef jerky, and extra-large peanut butter smoothies, which had like 3,000 calories each."

A study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition also claimed that milk protein supports muscle-protein synthesis than soy protein, as it has 20 amino acids that we need in larger quantities.

However, Neal Bardnard, the president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, dismisses this take of Barker's doctors as 'old-fashioned thinking'. While he acknowledges the fact that proteins can increase our ability to heal, he believes that the amount of protein that we get from vegetables, legumes and grains is enough for us.

Barnard argues, "Animals like bulls, stallions, elephants, and giraffes are all vegans. Plant-based foods help build their massive bodies and repair them too."

An article published on the site called Health points out that going vegan is not a temporary fad anymore. Celebrities like Bill Clinton, Alicia Silverstone, Jay Z, and Beyoncé have joined the 'no meat, egg or dairy products' club. However, vegans do need to take B12 and iron supplements too.

B12 is found only in animal foods. Deficiency of B12 can lead to weight loss, feeling tired, and even depression.

Similarly, vegan diets contain only non-heme iron form, which is not easily absorbed by our body. Heme iron, which is easy to ingest and absorb, is present only in animal foods. Still, legumes, dark and leafy green vegetables, sunflower seeds and dried raisins are good sources of iron for vegans. Foods (like citrus fruits, red peppers and broccoli) which are rich in Vitamin C can help in absorption of iron.

The debate continues and more research is needed to satisfactorily conclude the matter.