Karen Asp is the contributing health editor for TheBeet.com. A vegan for over 10 years (and vegetarian for almost 20) whose vegan journey began after making a pact with a cow while hiking in Austria, she’s an award-winning journalist and author (Anti-Aging Hacks is her latest book) who specializes in fitness, health, nutrition, travel and animals. Karen writes the monthly pet feature for Better Homes & Gardens and is a contributing writer for VegNews and regular contributor to numerous other leading publications, including Martha Stewart Living, Eating Well, Forks Over Knives, Clean Eating, Real Simple, Sentient Media, Oxygen, USA Today’s magazines, Midwest Living, O, Reader’s Digest and Woman’s Day. A frequent podcast and web show guest who loves educating people about healthy living and veganism, she’s also a fitness trainer who’s certified in plant-based nutrition, athlete with Nordic walking world records, PETA vegan mentor and soon, a Vegan Lifestyle Coach & Educator. Visit her at karenasp.com or on Twitter and Instagram at @karenaspwriter.
Karen Asp
Do Nuts Make You Gain Weight? Here’s What to Know, From an RD
Don’t knock nuts. While they have a bad rap for being high in calories, these nutritional powerhouses could be a dieter’s best friend – as long as you don’t overdo it. Nuts often get lumped into the “bad” food category, especially for those worried about weight gain. Given that nuts are high in fat an...
What Are Polyphenols? The Health Benefits, According to Experts
When was the last time you thought about how many polyphenols you ate in a day? Probably never. That’s because polyphenols aren’t a food group. Nor are they essential nutrients. But they are powerful compounds that naturally occur in fruits, vegetables, and legumes. “They’re not require...
What to Eat to Gain Weight the Healthy Way
When it comes to weight, most people want to lose it, not gain it. Yet there are many individuals who struggle to put weight on and keep up a strong, healthy physique. “Diet culture is so rampant in our society that we often fail to recognize that many people may have wellness goals unrelated to weight loss,” says Jennifer Mimkha, R.D, a plant-based dietitian
...
Can Taking a Probiotic Help You Lose Weight? What An Expert Says
Probiotics have never been hotter, thanks in large part to the pandemic. In May of 2020, Americans increased their use of probiotic supplements by 66 percent compared to six months earlier, according to one survey, for both digestive and immune health. Pro...
Is Milk Bad For You? 8 Reasons to Stay Away From Dairy
If you’re like most Americans, you’ve grown up thinking you need to consume dairy to stay healthy. You subscribe to the idea that milk does a body good because that’s what dietary guidelines tell you. Plus, you need milk and other dairy products to build strong bones, right? But now more peo...
What’s Hiding In Your Vitamin Supplement? The Ingredients to Avoid
You think twice about the food you’re eating – does it have animal products? is there carrageenan in it? How much added sugar is in it? – but when was the last time you scrutinized what's in your supplements? A whopping 86 percent of Americans take vitamins or supplements, according to a survey by the American Osteopathic Association. If you’re plant-...
Here’s What Happens to Your Body When Switching to a Plant-Based Diet
Whenever you adopt a new healthy habit, you want immediate results. The trouble is, change generally happens slowly – with one exception: When you switch to a plant-based diet for optimal health and wellbeing, your body starts seeing results almost instantly. Every time you eat ...
Your Ultimate Guide to Vegan Alcohol: How to Find Vegan Beer, Wine & Spirits
If you've decided to eat vegan and avoid animal products, you may be surprised to learn that not all alcohol – including beer, wine, and spirits – is vegan. The main ingredients may be hops, barley, malt, yeast (for beer) or potatoes, sugar or grain (for alcohol), or grapes and yeast (for wine), but that doesn’t mean animal products aren't used in the processing, filtering and "fining" o
What is Nutritional Yeast? The Health Benefits and How to Use It
Love Parmesan, but are trying to ditch dairy? You’ll probably also dig nutritional yeast, or nooch, as some fans like to call it. While there’s nothing cheesy in it, nutritional yeast is often described as having a rich cheese-like flavor, one reason you’ll see it used on everything from pasta to popcorn. While it's a great su...
Are Plant-Based Diets Healthy? A Scientific Guide to Eating Vegan
Plant-based diets are on the rise, as new studies emerge every week about the health benefits of following a vegan or vegetarian diet. Whether you want to try a plant-based diet for sustainability, ethical treatment of animals or the sake of lowering your risk of disease, the science supports the fact that staying away from meat and dairy is one of the best things you can do for your health.
Here’