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There is no question a Plant-Based Diet has many benefits, but there are many interpretations of what Plant Based actually means. It can refer to vegan, vegetarian, or someone just trying to eat more plants and less meat. People can gain the benefits below by simply focusing on making their plates more plant-based.
1. Decrease Chronic Disease Risk Factors
The most obvious and well-known advantage of eating plant-based is that this can decrease many Chronic Disease risk factors. Did you know that the CDC estimates 6 in 10 Americans currently suffer from at least one chronic disease? By focusing on getting more fruits, veggies, and whole grains on their plate people will decrease their risk for Type 2 Diabetes, Obesity, Heart Disease, Cancer, High Cholesterol, and so many more diseases that are killing Americans at a very rapid rate.
2. Protects Your Brain
Fruits and vegetables are loaded with antioxidants. These antioxidants are useful in our cellular health and can clean up waste from our cells and damaged cells. Healthier cells, in general, mean a healthier body, but especially a healthier brain. By eating at least 5 cups of veggies per day people substantially decrease their risk of cognitive decline and dementia.
3. Increased Fiber Consumption
Fiber is not only what keeps you regular, but it helps to lower cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar, and helps keep your digestive tract healthy. The gut microbiome is made of millions of different bacteria, it is important to feed these bacteria fiber to keep them healthy and in turn keeping your body healthy. Women should get 21-25 grams of fiber and men should be getting about 30-38 grams of fiber each day, which is easy to do if people are eating a plant-based diet.
4. Boots Your Immune System
Plants are all packed with nutrients not found in other foods that we eat. They have vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants that are delivered to cells every time they are eaten. These nutrients all help to keep the immune system strong which keeps us healthy from sicknesses like the common cold and flu.
5. Can Eliminate Many Additives
Our food is packed full of various additives, some that are easy to pronounce, others that are not. Eating a plant-based diet (if done in the true form) can help eliminate a lot of these additives because there are much more whole foods on the plate. Fruits, veggies, and grains are in their simplest forms and are not packed full of excess sodium, sugar, and chemicals all of which can be detrimental to a person’s health.