So you’re thinking about starting a plant-based diet? Perhaps you’ve heard about the health benefits, are concerned about the environment, or you just want to eat a little less meat. Whatever your reasons, you’re not alone. For the past few years, plant-based products have beenflooding (and flying off of)supermarket shelves. At the same time, dairy sales areon the declineand a 2020 Gallup poll found that about one out of every four Americans iseating less meat.
Complete Plant-Based Diet Grocery List
But What Exactly Is a Plant-Based Diet?
Is it a vegan diet? Vegetarian? A quasi-plant-sometimes-meat diet? There’s someconfusion around the term “plant-based"because as Sharon Palmer, M.S.F.S., RDN,The Plant-Powered Dietitian, explains, there’s no official definition. To some, it means eating a 100% vegan diet. To others, a plant-based diet means eating mostly plants, while occasionally enjoying meat, fish, eggs and dairy. The basic tenets, however—eating more whole plant foods like whole grains, fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds, and reducing intake of animal products—are the same.
Pictured recipe:Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl
Foods to Fill Up on and Foods to Eat Less Of
The biggest question still remains to be answered: What do I eat on a plant-based diet? Palmer shares her recommendations for what to eat on a daily basis:
27 Easy Plant-Based Recipes for Beginners
One thing you’ll notice is that the recommended foods to fill up on are predominantly whole and minimally processed, which leads us to what you should aim to eatlessof on a plant-based diet.
Because eating more plants and less meat is “in” right now, food companies have started giving consumers more options when it comes to plant-based products. But just because a product is vegan doesn’t mean it’s healthy. The quality of the food you’re eating matters, no matter what type of eating pattern you follow. A 2021Journal of Nutritionstudy found that the more people avoided meat, the more ultra-processed foods they ate. The authors concluded that not all vegetarian diets automatically have health benefits and that highly processed foods can affect the nutritional quality of the diet.
What a Plant-Based Diet Looks Like: 1-Day Sample Menu
Breakfast
Chocolate-Banana Protein Smoothie(You can sub a non-dairy milk of choice.)
Morning Snack
1 small apple
1 tablespoon almond butter
Lunch
Roasted Veggie & Tofu Brown Rice Bowl
Afternoon Snack
2 tablespoons hummus
1 cup chopped raw veggies
Dinner
One-Pot Tomato Basil Pasta
Small side salad
Evening Snack
No-Bake Vegan Date Brownies
Pros and Cons of a Plant-Based Diet
Here are some pros and cons to consider as you think about starting a plant-based diet.
Pro: There Are Many Health Benefits
A well-planned plant-based diet does a body good. “It’s well documented that plant-based diets are linked with lower risks of chronic diseases like heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s and more,” Palmer says. Case in point: A 2019 study published in theJournal of the American Medical Associationreviewed the diets of more than 300,000 people and found that the more closely they followed a plant-based diet, the lower their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, regardless of how much they weighed. Another 2019 study published inJAMAfound a link between eating plant-based proteins (like beans and tofu) and overall longevity.
The Health Benefits of Eating a Plant-Based Diet
Pro: It May Help You Lose Weight
Eating more plants also affects your waistline. In a 2019Epidemiologystudy, a more plant-based diet (and therefore, eating less animal-based foods) was associated with a smaller waist circumference and lower body fat percentage. But the good news here is that you don’t have to give up meat, dairy and eggs altogether to reap the benefits. While researchers found the more you scale back, the better for your weight and waistline, it doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing scenario.
Pro: It’s Better for Mother Earth
Animal agriculture takes on a toll on ourenvironment and natural resources(to be fair, all agriculture takes a toll). Producing meat demands alot of watertoo. A 2-ounce serving of pasta requires 36 gallons of water while a 4-ounce hamburger requires 616 gallons.
Pro: It’s Easy to Maintain
Compared to most other diets, eating a plant-based diet is fairly easy to maintain. There’s no calorie tracking or specific meal plans to follow. It offers a lot of flexibility because there aren’t any hard and fast rules either—you can reduce your meat intake, eliminate animal products altogether, or find a happy balance in between. You do what works for you.
Con: You May Need to Supplement
What’s the saying—failing to plan is planning to fail? These words of wisdom apply here. Depending on where you fall on the plant-based spectrum, you may be at risk of certain nutritional deficiencies. “If you don’t plan well and you don’t eat a balanced diet, you can be missing out on important nutrients, such as vitamin B12, calcium, iron, zinc and protein—all of which are part of healthy, whole plant foods,” Palmer explains. (Vegans are at a greater risk because their diets are the most restrictive.) Other nutrients to take into consideration are vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids.
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!Tell us why!OtherSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Tell us why!OtherSubmit
Tell us why!
