Guiding Your Patients on the Plant-Based Diet: A Focus on Whole, Organic Foods as a Way of Life
BOTH VEGAN AND NON-VEGAN VERSIONS NOW AVAILABLE!
The plant-based diet is one of the hottest diets out there. A new survey indicates that nearly half (48%) of US adults have consumed plant-based milks or plant-based meat alternatives between April 2019 and June 2019. The study found that the United State’s younger generations are even more likely to purchase plant-based products. “Eat more plants” is the 21st century mantra from both health gurus and millennials.
The plant-based diet is a diet that promotes eating mostly foods derived from plants. Although this diet emphasizes plants, it is not entirely vegetarian. Despite the fact that the debate for which diet is best is not resolved, one thing experts can agree on is that the consumption of whole, clean foods instead of processed foods is overall beneficial for both health and wellness.
A plant-based diet can be defined as a way of eating that focuses on whole, clean, natural foods. “Whole”, “clean”, and “natural” are described as foods that have had no chemical processing or genetic modifications involved from the point of creation to delivery to your plate. The idea of a plant-based diet comes from the fact that the earth is covered in plants that provide all living creatures with foods that keep us healthy and help our bodies defend against disease. Those that subscribe to the plant-based diet often do so for the many health benefits that come from eating these nutrient-dense foods.
The plant-based diet consists mostly of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds and oils. The plant-based diet differs from the vegetarian and vegan diets in that it actually permits animal food products like meat, dairy, fish and eggs as described by Harvard Health and the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. While following the plant-based diet, however, your portions of food from animal sources should be much smaller than what the average person consumes.
Plant-based alternatives seem to be at an all time high. The excitement surrounding pea protein and meatless burgers is indicative of this. Brands such as the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Meat Burger are all the rage. The Impossible Burger is now being served at 7,000 restaurants nationwide. And yet, reports still revealed that Americans’ meat consumption was set to hit an all time high in 2018. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the average consumer would eat 222.2 pounds of red meat and poultry by the end of 2018. This prediction surpasses the meat consumption record set in 2004. 222.2 pounds per person is equivalent to about 2.4 burgers per day. So despite the rise of plant-based alternatives, “meat is [still] king,” as some would say. In fact, 90% of Americans do not eat the recommended intake of fruits and veggies.
The goal of the plant-based diet is to change the standard of meat consumption. Instead of meat being the centerpiece of your plate, it becomes a side, if any at all. There’s not 2.4 burgers being consumed by plant-based diet followers each day. Meat consumption on the plant-based diet, instead, is very small with most of required protein coming from plant sources. If one does choose to consume animal foods, these too must have no chemical processing involved.
The plant-based diet is likely to appeal to a larger population as compared to the vegetarian or vegan diets because it includes meat which is a staple food in many societies, especially the western society. For the plant-based diet, the decrease in animal products is just as important as the switch to whole, organic foods. A plate on the plant-based diet might look something like this:
If you’ve been looking to prescribe a plant-based diet to your patients, clients or employees, look no further. ADigital Health, powered by BodySite, has the plant-based diet housed inside of its library of lifestyle guidance and care plans. There’s a standard version as well as a fully vegan version of the plan available for your use. The BodySite remote patient care platform gives you the ability to guide your patients on any diet, protocol or regime. Using the content creation engine, you can edit the program as you see fit or update it with your own personalized touch! Get started with ADigital Health today to start taking advantage of one of the healthiest diets out there. If you currently have a BodySite account, the Plant-Based Diets are already available in your library under Available Plans & Templates.
Here’s a sample BodySite Plant-Based Diet recipe:
If you’re a provider looking to guide your patients, clients or employees on the plant-based diet, sign up for a free trial of ADigital Health at this link and automatically get access to this brand new program to try it out with your end-users!