Iron, zinc, iodine, omega-3 and calcium without animal products

Iron: quantity is easy, absorption is the lever

Plant foods supply plenty of iron — lentils, tofu, pumpkin seeds, oats, dried apricots — but as non-haem iron, whose uptake is regulated by the body and modified by the meal around it. Vitamin C, citric acid and fermentation raise it; phytate, calcium supplements, tea and coffee lower it. Practically: put lemon, pepper or tomato with beans, and drink tea between meals rather than with them.

• Soaking, sprouting and sourdough fermentation cut phytate substantially.
• Cast-iron cookware measurably increases iron in acidic dishes.
• Menstruating people have higher needs; check ferritin rather than guessing.

Zinc: same rules, smaller margin

Whole grains, legumes, seeds, tofu and cashews carry zinc alongside phytate. Standard preparation methods — soaking beans overnight, leavened bread, tempeh over plain soybeans — improve availability. Reference intakes for plant-based diets are sometimes set 25–50% higher, an amount covered by an extra daily serving of legumes and seeds.

Iodine: the genuinely overlooked one

Plant foods are low in iodine unless grown on iodine-rich soil, and most plant milks are unfortified. Iodised salt is the global public-health solution and works here too; a 150 µg supplement is an alternative. Seaweed is unreliable in the opposite direction — kelp can deliver thousands of micrograms and cause thyroid dysfunction.

Omega-3: skip the conversion problem

ALA from flax, chia and walnuts converts to EPA and DHA at low and variable rates. Microalgae oil provides EPA and DHA directly — the same organisms fish get theirs from — with no mercury, PCBs or bycatch. A daily 250 mg combined dose is the common target.

Calcium and vitamin D

Fortified plant milks match dairy per glass; calcium-set tofu, tahini, kale, bok choy and fortified juices fill the rest. Spinach is high in calcium but locked behind oxalate, so it does not count. Vitamin D is a latitude problem rather than a diet problem — most people above 35° latitude benefit from 800–2,000 IU in winter, in vegan D3 (lichen) or D2 form.