29/05/2026
There's a statement circulating online that says there is no medical condition for which a vegan diet is contraindicated.
I actually got into a debate about this - because I have one.
Systemic Nickel Allergy Syndrome (SNAS) is a condition where the immune system reacts to dietary nickel. The problem? The foods vegans rely on most for protein - beans, lentils, soy, nuts, and wholegrains - are among the highest nickel-containing foods in the diet.
For someone with SNAS, even small amounts of these foods can push nickel intake well beyond the threshold that triggers a reaction.
The workaround suggested to me was to just eat low-nickel plant foods like white rice and cauliflower. But to hit an adequate protein target from those sources alone would require eating literal kilos of food per day - which the gut simply can't handle.
This isn't an argument against plant-based eating for everyone. For many people, a well-planned vegan diet is a genuinely healthy choice. But nutrition is not one-size-fits-all, and individual medical conditions matter.
This is why as compassionate and evidence-based practitioners we need to assess the individual in front of us, not prescribe an ideology.
