One of the easiest ways to start improving your overall health is to eat plant-based. From your gut to your heart to your brain, almost every part of your body benefits when you add more fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes to your plate.
Keep in mind that following a plant-based diet does not mean that you have to be vegetarian or vegan if you love foods like Greek yogurt, cheese, or fish.
A plant-based eating pattern may or may not include animal products, but the frequency of consumption of animal products and the portion sizes of animal products are smaller than the conventional diet. By including more whole plant foods, you will get more vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber.
Incorporating a plant-based lifestyle really helps people increase variety in their diet. People get more adventurous with vegetables and legumes they have never tried or never had a second chance, and they begin to add more flavor, spices, and even a greater variety of cuisine to their regular eating pattern.
And don't worry about the amount of protein consumed. Standard servings of protein, whether from animal sources or not, tend to be much larger than what the body needs for optimal function, and many people do not recognize the protein available in grains, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. they add up in meals and snacks.
10 benefits of a plant-based diet
It's good for your gut
Plant-based diets tend to better support gut health and the microbiome, which science continues to tell us affects many areas of health, from immune system function to metabolism to mood.
This is due in large part to fiber and antioxidants , compounds that protect cells from damage found in plants. Because vegetables are the only source of fiber and fermentable carbohydrates known as prebiotics , and they offer tens of thousands of phytochemical antioxidants, bacteria in the lower digestive tract are best supported when diets are rich in whole plant foods.
Your digestive system is home to around 100 trillion bacteria (both good and bad!), And while they all have unique microbiota, certain collections of bacteria are known to be found in healthy people.
Science suggests that certain healthy gut bacteria are linked to reduced susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis and offer a possible treatment or prevent inflammation that contributes to fatty plaque build-up in the arteries.
Supports your immune system
Eighty percent of our immune system is in our gastrointestinal tract, and it is good for the immune system to have a healthy microbiome. The best way to do this is to feed the good bacteria. Much of the fiber found in plant foods like bananas and artichokes serves as prebiotics, which are food for probiotics.
Plant foods are also packed with nutrients that can help strengthen your immune system. Just a few of the many helpful vitamins and minerals found abundantly in fruits and vegetables include:
- Vitamin C : A daily dose of 200 milligrams of vitamin C appeared to shorten the duration of cold symptoms by 8 percent in adults and 14 percent in children, which equates to about one less day of illness, according to one January 2013 review in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
- Vitamin E – Found in high-fat plant foods like peanuts, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, and almonds, vitamin E is part of nearly 200 biochemical reactions in your body and acts as an antioxidant to help the body fight infection .
- Zinc : This mineral has antiviral properties and is found in plant foods such as beans, nuts, and whole grains. It has well-established effects on the immune system and even has the potential to be a supportive treatment in people with COVID-19, according to an August 2020 review in Maturitas.
- Vitamin A – Known to be an infection fighter, you can get vitamin A from both animal sources and plant carotenoids. Aim for colorful plant foods like carrots, sweet potatoes, zucchini, squash, cantaloupe, and dark green leafy vegetables.
Helps reduce inflammation
You've probably seen powders and potions that tout antioxidants and anti-inflammatory benefits, but it's best to get your antioxidants through a plant-based diet.
When we get our nutrients from whole foods, they tend to be more bioavailable than supplements. Also, when we eat whole foods, we generally don't worry about toxicity.
Antioxidants are important because they can prevent or delay some types of cell damage. Although diets rich in vegetables and fruits (excellent sources of antioxidants) have been found to be healthy, research has not shown that antioxidant supplements are beneficial in preventing disease.
Your body naturally forms free radicals, highly unstable molecules that can cause oxidative stress, a process that leads to cell damage, when you exercise, digest food, smoke, or expose yourself to sunlight or air pollution. This oxidative stress is believed to play a role in a variety of diseases including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and even eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and cataracts.
Helps maintain a healthy weight
Science shows that fruits and vegetables can help you lose weight.
Eating more vegetables and fruits promotes long-term weight stability or weight loss in women, according to a June 2020 review in Nutrients. This may be because the fiber in fruits and vegetables helps you feel full faster since vegetables and fruits are low in fat and calories .
The review included a prospective study that found that the top five fruits for weight loss were blueberries, apples, pears, prunes, strawberries, and avocados. Meanwhile, the top five non-legume veggies for weight loss were broccoli, bell peppers, summer squash, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts.
What's more, switching to a plant-based low-fat diet is linked to increasing the body's metabolism to the point of reducing excess body fat, according to a November 2020 study in JAMA Network Open.
Experts recommend eating more fruits and vegetables as a healthy way to lose or maintain weight. The water and fiber in fruits and vegetables add bulk, so you can eat the same amount of food for fewer calories (while still feeling full!).
Lower risk of osteoporosis
More research is needed, but some theoretical findings suggest that eating a plant-based diet long-term is associated with lower rates of osteoporosis, according to an August 2020 review in Current Opinion in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity.
There is also no evidence that a plant-based diet, when carefully followed to maintain adequate levels of calcium and vitamin D, has negative effects on bone health.
It is linked to a lower risk of kidney disease
Although there were once concerns about protein and amino acid deficiencies with plant-based proteins in people with chronic kidney disease, they were discredited years ago.
A March 2019 article published in the Journal of Renal Nutrition concluded that not only can you eat a plant-based protein diet if you have chronic kidney disease, it may even improve your condition.
It is linked to a reduced risk of cancer
Eating lots of plant-based foods has been linked to lower rates of cancer, probably because plants produce protective phytochemicals that are anti-inflammatory; In addition, they help you eat more fiber.
Diets rich in soluble and insoluble fiber were associated with a lower risk of developing breast cancer before menopause compared to diets low in fiber, according to a March 2016 study published in Pediatrics.
Benefits your brain
Researchers have found that the Mediterranean diet for neurodegenerative retardation is linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer's disease by up to 53 percent in those who adhere to the diet rigorously and by 35 percent in those who follow it. moderately, according to a February 2015 study in Alzheimer's & Dementia.
Plant-based diets are linked to better brain health, especially as we age. It can also influence brain function, although the exact mechanisms are still unclear and more research is needed, according to a September 2019 review in Translational Psychiatry.
The Mediterranean diet is one of the diets based on popular plants and also has links with reducing depression, anxiety and stress despite the inclusion of fish and very small amounts of meat and poultry.
You will have more energy
Plant-based foods are beneficial to your digestive system in a number of ways, so it can help you feel more energetic and full throughout the day.
An increase in nutritious carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, as well as a decrease in saturated fat and heavy animal protein, can make people feel lighter, more energetic, and in a better mood .
Carbohydrates are the most efficient and preferred source of energy for muscles and the central nervous system. Switching to a more plant-based diet increases the usable energy intake that our bodies thrive on.
We also think that antioxidants are beneficial for long-term health, but in the short term, they work synergistically with each other and with our macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals to support our metabolism, reduce inflammation, and play a role in immune function. This in turn can improve energy levels and mental clarity.
Plant-based diets help improve blood thickness and get more oxygen to the muscles and improve athletic performance , according to a January 2019 review published in Nutrients. They also improve arterial flexibility and diameter to lead to better blood flow while a Fat flour can affect arterial function for several hours.
Keeps your heart healthy
Eating a plant-based diet helps you replace unhealthy saturated and trans fats with vegetable fats that contain heart-protective polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.
And while limiting animal-based foods can lower cholesterol levels, eating more fiber, particularly soluble fiber, actually helps bind with cholesterol in our gut and remove it from our body.
This type of diet is linked to a lower risk of diabetes, and diabetes and heart disease often go hand in hand. If you have diabetes, you are twice as likely to have a stroke or heart disease as someone without diabetes (and at a younger age). You are also more likely to have heart disease the longer you have diabetes.
One thing that surprises many people is that plant-based diets are very effective in preventing or reversing insulin resistance .
Science looks at the link between the conditions involved in heart health and a plant-based eating plan:
- Blood pressure : A plant-based and whole-grain diet that limits refined grains, sugary drinks, and meat is linked to lower levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure, according to a July 2020 study in the BMJ.
- Diabetes : People who adhered more strictly to plant-based diets were found to have a lower risk of type 2 diabetes than those who adhered less strictly in a meta-analysis from July 2019.
- Cholesterol : A study published in November 2020 in Heart found that obese people (mostly men) who followed a "green" Mediterranean diet, with plant-based foods replacing meat and fish, had lower cholesterol levels and they lost up to 6 kilos more than those who eat meat in the diet. They also had lower blood pressure.
