A low-carb VEGAN diet would be more than challenging.

Wolfgang Lutz (Life without Bread), a German MD in his 90s, dedicated his medical career to low-carb nutrition. He thinks you can get the benefits of low-carb nutrition by not exceeding 5-6 bread units, or 60-72 gm total net carbs (the amount recommended for diabetics before injectable insulin, pre-WWII). I'm writing "net" because Lutz does not much care about carbs in leafy green veggies, tree nuts, cream, cheeses and so on.

But note that Dr. Lutz's main interest in low-carb nutrition was not weight loss... in that respect, quite different from Eades or Atkins. Like the Polish MD, Jan Kwasniewski, Lutz stresses organ meats and egg yolks as essential sources of needed nutrients. In other words... he believes that humans achieve their best (optimal) health on an animal-based diet.

You might want to Google "vegan" and "low carb" because I seem to recall at least one guy doing this and blogging on the subject. He did eat fish. As a vegan, you would need to rely heavily on tofu or fermented soy products... and there have been health concerns expressed about soy on this board (don't use it myself and cannot comment).

I would urge you to eat fatty fish, at least... and I understand the ethics involved in choosing vegetarianism. Have you thought about seeking out suppliers who humanely raise and slaughter their animals while avoiding hormones, antibiotics and the like?

As for carbs consumed... here's my basic plan, adapted from Barry Groves:

Ad libitum (without limit): meat, poultry, fish (if processed or cured, I count carbs listed on package) -- eggs & high-fat dairy products (counting just a few carbs for these) -- and nonstarchy veggies (don't bother to count these at all... even onions, garlic, tomatoes and avocado... only juices get counted)

Nuts and PB -- I eat daily and count the carbs.

With all the meat and dairy, there is no need for beans or whole grains -- but if I want garbanzo beans or an occasional slice of bread... then I count the carbs. More likely I will eat a bit of potato with plenty of butter or oil.

The carbs that I count are limited to 25 - 35 grams (net of fiber) daily. Sugar alcohols are strictly counted (only consumed in low carb ice cream -- won't touch those bars). But note all the uncounted carbs: unlimited veggies plus eggs plus spices & herbs and hard cheeses, etc.

Since I cannot be bothered to count these minimal impact carbs... though strict low-carbers will do so... I just estimate them at 20-30 grams daily.

So that puts my daily carb count anywhere from 45 gm net carb to maybe 65... even 70 if I go over on the counted carbs -- that's hardly exact but it works as a way of eating I can do for life. And it's in line with Lutz and Kwasniewski, the European docs whose advice I follow.

Please don't faint... but Dr. Kwasniewski abhors vegetables ("animal fodder") and his recommended menus contain no whole grains... he wants food eaten to be absorbed completely. High-fiber (whole) grains and vegetables whisk food through the digestive tract, resulting in excretion of nutrients. (Dr. K. has been roundly censured by the Polish medical establishment for giving such heretical dietary counsel.)

Sorry, Tam -- this helps not at all with the vegan aspect -- but it does give some idea of a "semi-low-carb" eating plan. Everything is relative, I guess... Barry Groves does not consider 60 grams daily to be SEMI low-carb. And neither do I -- not compared with the carb fest (300 grams) consumed by most Americans every day. To each their own.

Good luck with your plans! Keep us posted.

Oh, yeah... dark chocolate is included most days in my counts. And since I adore Cadbury's Roasted Almond Milk Chocolate -- I am wondering how long one tiny little square (2 gms net) will last if one takes itsy bitsy little nibbles rather than inhaling it (my usual way of consuming food).