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
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’
Are Eggs as Healthy As You Think? Here’s What the Experts Say
Americans love their eggs. The average individual eats an estimated 279 eggs a year, according to The Washington Post, but are eggs healthy? Eggs are high in protein, choline, zinc, but also high in cholesterol.
There are conflicting studies on eggs, so you may be wondering, are eggs good for you? Scientific ev
...
5 Health Benefits of Miso Soup: Improves Gut Health and Fights Inflammation
If the only time you've ever eaten miso soup is at a Japanese restaurant, it may be time to reconsider that approach and add miso to your weekly or even daily menu. If you're trying to eat healthier and incorporate more plant-based recipes into your diet, know that miso soup has been linked to health benefits such as improving gut health, as well as fighting inflammation...
The Health Benefits of Purple Potatoes: Why You Should Add Them to Your Diet
Blackberries, eggplant, and acai berries are all known to be a vibrant purple, but potatoes? If you’ve grown up eating white or yellow potatoes your whole life, purple potatoes might seem weird – until you start adding them to your diet. Not only does t
...
What is Vegan Collagen? What You Need to Know and How to Boost It Naturally
Collagen is one of the hottest beauty trends these days, its claims to fame being healthier hair, nails, skin, bones, and joints. And although collagen is typically sourced from animal products, vegan collagen boosters are starting to roll out...
Your Guide to Vitamin B12: Do You Need to Take It On a Plant-Based Diet?
Vegan diets often get criticized for being short in certain nutrients, like protein and iron, but both are easily attained through eating protein-rich foods like tofu, lentils, and all kinds of beans. The next on the list that gets singled out is vitamin B12...