vegan type 1 diabetic London

[vinny111]

hello every 1,i have just turned vegan this past 2 weeks for health reasons and also for animal wellfair,i live in London and i really need help with food products i can buy for vegans,like bread margarine cream for strawberrys etc .Im finding it really hard to fine products where i live can some 1 please help me,im also type 1 diabetic this was another reason why i wanted to be healthy

[coerdelion]

Hi Vinny

I have a client who is vegan and Diabetic type 1, so it is possible. Will ask next time I see the client and get back to you.

Fx

[longvines]

For bread try specialist bakeries, they are more likely to be able to tell you the exact ingredients. Or if you have the time and money to invest, try making your own. If you use a breadmaker it is dead easy once you have the hang of it.

"Pure" margerine is suitable for vegans and sold in most larger supermarkets I think. Try your local health food shop, they will probably stock all kinds of vegan products; failing that Holland & Barrett have branches all over and carry loads of vegan stuff.

[ava]

Hi Vinny

It is commendable that you are adopting a vegan diet to help your health. A diet high in fresh vegetables, wholegrains, legumes, fermented soy products (tofu, miso, tempeh), sea vegetables, nuts and seeds - will go a long way to helping you manage your diabetes.

Do try and get some professional advice on devising a healthy vegan diet suitable for diabetic management. Seeing a registered nutritionist would be a sensible thing to do in your situation.

You asked about specific vegan alternatives for:

1. bread - Greggs wholemeal loaves are vegan. Don't buy the white loaves, as they are made with milk, as is their bran loaf (and bran scones), and their multigrain loaves (multigrain is just white bread with grains in it). Greggs are pretty good with dietary enquiries. You can email them and ask which of their products/breads are suitable for vegans.

2. margarine - as longvines says, Pure is vegan (but it contains Palm Oil... <sigh>). Marks and Spencers sells a vegan margarine, and it doesn't contain Palm Oil.

3. cream - there are cream alternatives made by Provamel - but they taste like Yak vomit, in my opinion. You can make a lovely heavenly cream alternative yourself - from cashews and apple juice. Just blend the cashews into the apple juice until it is completely smooth. I normally soak the cashews in water overnight, as it makes it easier.

You will, of course, know about the different milk alternatives: oat milk, rice milk, almond milk, soy milk. You can make almond milk yourself - cheaply. All you do is soak your almonds overnight, and remove the skins. Then blend them with loads of water. Add a teensy amount of salt (something like an 1/8 teaspoon or less) - it improves the taste - and makes the milk last a little longer. Once you have blended the almonds into the water pour the solution through a clean tea towel. I then add one or two drops of vanilla essence. Almonds are high in calcium.

Let us know how you are going.

Ava x