Exploring the Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet
A plant-based diet is high in fiber, vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. It can also help you stay at a healthy weight and protect against cancer, heart disease, diabetes and hypertension.
The diet focuses on whole foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts and seeds. It can exclude all animal products (known as a vegan diet), or include them in moderation.
Reduces Risk of Cancer
A plant-based diet provides a variety of nutrients and phytochemicals that boost your immune system to help fight cancer. This includes vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains and nuts and seeds.
Studies have linked a plant-based eating pattern with lower rates of breast, colorectal, prostate and lung cancers. A plant-based diet also makes it easier to manage your weight and prevent obesity.
Reduces Risk of Heart Disease
A plant-based diet can prevent, halt and in some cases even reverse heart disease. It also optimizes blood pressure, lipid profiles and glycemic control, reducing the need for medications.
Eat primarily nutrient-dense, whole plant foods including fruits, vegetables, brown rice, quinoa and beans. These foods are rich in vitamins and minerals as well as phytochemicals that support a healthy immune system.
Reduces Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
A healthy plant-based diet is high in fiber, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and healthy fats. It includes whole foods like fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes and nuts. People who choose not to eat meat are called vegetarians and those that eat fish or seafood are called pescatarians.
This diet may help reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes by increasing secretion of incretin hormones that improve pancreatic beta cell function, insulin release and insulin sensitivity.
Reduces Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease
Eating a plant-based diet may help reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It reduces the buildup of beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. It also reduces inflammation, insulin resistance and oxidative stress.
A plant-based diet can include a vegan diet, vegetarian diet, pesco-vegetarian diet or omnivorous diet. Try a gradual approach, like going meatless for lunch one day a week, to give your taste buds and digestive system time to adjust.
Reduces Risk of Dementia
Plant-based diets are gaining popularity, and they’re associated with lower risks for many diseases. They’re also thought to reduce the risk of dementia, according to a study.
The hPDI includes fruits, vegetables, tubers like sweet potatoes and cassava (aka yuca), whole grains, beans, and lentils. It excludes meat, fish, dairy, and poultry. It’s a healthy, whole-foods approach to eating that is plant-based.
Reduces Risk of Osteoporosis
A plant-based diet is rich in calcium, a key nutrient for bone health. It also includes protein from tofu, tempeh and whole grains, and healthy fats from avocado, olive oil, nuts and seeds. A well-planned plant-based diet can easily meet a person’s calorie, protein, calcium and vitamin B12 needs.
Getting started is easy by choosing meatless meals based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes. This will naturally reduce calories, helping people stay at a healthy weight.
Reduces Risk of Hypertension
A plant-based diet is a great tool for physicians and patients to use in combating chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure. It consists of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts.
It can include a strict vegetarian or vegan diet, or one that simply eliminates meat and fish, but includes healthy fats like olive oil and avocado.
Reduces Risk of Diabetes
Those who consume healthful plant-centered diets are at lower risk for developing diabetes than those who avoid them. These types of diets are characterized by an emphasis on fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains with little or no sugar and highly processed foods.
A plant-based diet can be achieved by eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and nuts, seeds, whole grains and legumes. Make sure to include iron-rich foods and high-vitamin C fruits and vegetables, like berries and citrus.
Reduces Risk of Osteoporosis
A plant-based diet can be a great way to promote bone health. However, it is important to work with a registered dietitian to make sure that you are consuming enough calcium, vitamin B12 and protein.
A plant-based diet can also help you maintain a healthy weight, which can reduce the risk of certain cancers, including breast, ovarian and colon cancers. This is especially important for people with a family history of these cancers.
Reduces Risk of Cancer
A plant-based diet means eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans. The nutrient-rich foods in this diet provide vitamins and minerals, help manage weight, reduce chronic diseases, including cancer.
Research shows that vegans (people who do not eat meat, fish or dairy) have the lowest risk of cancer, followed by vegetarians and pesco-vegetarians. Start with two-thirds of your plate filled with plants, then add in healthy proteins like lean poultry, tofu, fish and eggs.
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