Humans are omnivores and we function best when eating plants and animals. But vegans and vegetarians are risking it all by not eating animal products.

Often times when you ask a vegan or vegetarian why they don’t eat meat products, they will most likely say, “because it’s healthier.” But that is certainly not the case.

Being vegan or vegetarian is actually not so healthy because when a person doesn’t consume animal proteins, it takes a toll on your body on a cellular level because of the huge loss of vitamins, iron, zinc, potassium, calcium, and omega 3 fats.

With the loss of those important proteins, it puts vegans at a much higher risk of having lower blood pressure and lower serum cholesterol which makes vegans have certain various nutritional deficiencies.

One of the biggest vitamin deficiencies for a vegan is B12. And with the loss of B12, it puts vegans at high chance of having early dementia, lack of coordination, forgetfulness, nerve dysfunction, memory loss, disorientation, difficulty with concentration, and difficulty with one’s balance when walking,tiredness, weakness, constipation, loss of appetite, weight loss, and megaloblastic anemia. Also nerve problems, such as numbness and tingling in the hands and feet can occur.

Along with the internal problems of the lack of B12, a medical university in Austria said, “…the vegetarian diet, as characterized by a low consumption of saturated fat and cholesterol, due to a higher intake of fruits, vegetables and whole-grain products, appeared to carry elevated risks of cancer, allergies and mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.”

To add more reasons as to why veganism is unhealthy, an article published by Time Magazine said, “Compared to the average American diet, a vegan diet looks very healthy, especially in the short term,” says Loren Cordain, professor emeritus of health and human sciences at Colorado State University. “But in the long-term, there aren’t any clear mortality benefits, and in fact [vegan diets] may be less healthy than diets than include meat.”

But no matter what excuse vegans or vegetarians have as to why they don’t consume meat products, it’s hard to successfully win an argument against scientists and their research.