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What is a plant-based diet?

A plant-based diet means your meals are mostly plants, such as:

• Whole grains
• Vegetables
• Fruits
• Beans
• Nuts
• Seeds

The term ¡®plant-based diet¡¯ can describe many different diets. For example, vegetarian and vegan diets are both plant-based diets. But eating a plant-based diet doesn¡¯t have to mean giving up meat and other animal products like dairy and eggs. It simply means that plants make up the majority of your diet.

This kind of plant-based diet matches MD Anderson¡¯s recommendation to eat a diet that is rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and seeds. At mealtime, this might look like filling two-thirds of your plate with these plant-based foods. The remaining one-third can be a lean protein like chicken or fish, or a plant protein like tofu.

Don¡¯t like labels when it comes to diet? Murray is right there with you. At the end of the day, she stresses that how you fuel your body is more important than what you call your diet.

¡°Just make sure that you're consuming as many plant foods as possible; that's really what the focus should be about,¡± she says.

Health benefits of a plant-based diet

Choosing plants helps your body¡¯s systems work the best they can. Here are five examples of how.

1. It supports your immune system

Plants have essential nutrients that you cannot get from other foods. The vitamins and minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants in plants help keep your cells healthy and your body in balance so that your immune system can function at its best.

¡°Plants give your body what it needs to help fight off infection,¡± Murray says. ¡°A plant-based diet strengthens your immune system to protect you against germs and microorganisms.¡±

Your immune system protects your body from diseases, including cancer. A healthy immune system recognizes and attacks mutations in cells before they can progress to disease.

2. Plant foods reduce inflammation

Plants¡¯ essential nutrients work to resolve inflammation in your body. The same tiny phytochemicals and antioxidants that boost your immune system also go around your body neutralizing toxins from pollution, processed foods, bacteria, viruses and more.

¡°Antioxidants in plants grab all these so-called free radicals that can throw your body off balance,¡± Murray says. ¡°To reduce inflammation, it¡¯s important to eat plant-based foods and to listen to your body¡¯s signals for how foods work for you.¡±

Prolonged inflammation can damage your body¡¯s cells and tissues and has been linked to cancer and other inflammatory diseases like arthritis. A plant-based diet may protect you because it removes some of the triggers to these diseases.

If you've ever felt sluggish or sleepy after eating a heavy meal, inflammation may be to blame. Another perk of a plant-based diet¡¯s anti-inflammatory properties? Saying goodbye to that post-meal slump.

¡°I think people get used to the symptoms of inflammation when they eat a typical meal,¡± Murray says. ¡°But when you eat plant-based foods, you actually feel energized after you eat.¡±

3. A plant-based diet can help you maintain a healthy weight

Staying at a healthy weight is one of the most important things you can do to reduce your risk for cancer. This is because excess weight causes inflammation and hormonal imbalance. If you are overweight or obese, your risk is higher for more than 10 types of cancer.

Filling up on plant-based options instead of more processed food can mean eating fewer calories. And consuming fewer calories than your body uses leads to weight loss, Murray explains.

¡°When you're eating healthier food, it¡¯s helping your body function the way it was designed to. It¡¯s able to reduce calories, give you the fiber to help move some of those things out, and also fills you up with mineral-dense food so you're able to eat less of the processed stuff, the things that aren¡¯t so good for you,¡± she says.

4. Plants are high in fiber

Fiber is present in all unprocessed plant foods. It is what makes up the structure of the plant.

Eating a plant-based diet improves the health of your gut, so you are better able to absorb the nutrients from food that support your immune system and reduce inflammation.

Fiber is very filling. It can lower cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar and support good bowel management. It is also important for reducing your cancer risk, especially for colorectal cancer.

5. A plant-based diet reduces your risk for some diseases

Eating a healthy diet can help reduce your cancer risk.

Additionally, a plant-based diet has been shown to reduce your risk for:

• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Diabetes

How to start eating more plants

Making changes to how you eat can feel overwhelming. To avoid biting off more than you can chew, Murray shares these easy ways to start eating more plant-based options.

Add healthy foods to your diet

Eating more plant foods doesn¡¯t mean cutting out your favorite options. Instead, think about how you can add healthy options alongside the foods you already enjoy.

Don¡¯t want to part with your favorite after-dinner snack? Challenge yourself to eat half an apple before reaching for chips or ice cream. This allows you to get the nutrients from the apple and may mean you end up eating fewer chips or scoops of ice cream.

Can¡¯t stomach the thought of eating veggies without ranch? Instead of drowning your veggies in sauce, try dipping them instead. This allows you to control the amount of sauce you use so that you ultimately consume fewer calories.

Remember: plant-based doesn't always mean healthy

Just because a product is plant-based doesn¡¯t automatically mean it¡¯s healthy. Here are some tips for selecting healthy options.

Cut back on ultra-processed foods

Ultra-processed foods contain additives that change their appearance, flavor or shelf-life. These options often contain fewer nutrients and more empty calories, sugar, salt and fat than whole foods.

Examples of ultra-processed foods include chips, candy, and store-bought baked goods and desserts.

If you¡¯ve ever felt like it was impossible to stop eating these types of foods, there¡¯s a good reason for that.

¡°You eat more because your body is searching for the nutrients in these ultra-processed foods that are high in calories and very low in nutrients,¡± Murray explains. ¡°If you're not paying attention to how much of these foods you're eating, you'll consume a lot of calories and additives, very few nutrients and could still feel hungry.¡±

To avoid consuming too much ultra-processed food, she suggests reading nutrition labels and eating one serving rather than multiple.

Watch for added sugar

Men should eat less than 36 grams of added sugar per day, while women should eat less than 25 grams.

Limit sodium

People ages 14 and older should consume less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day, according to the .

Choose whole grain options

Options like brown rice, whole wheat bread and 100% whole wheat pasta are good sources of fiber.

Consider how an item is prepared

Not all food preparation methods are equally healthy. For example, deep frying items in oil increases their fat content, while some canned options have added sugar and sodium.

Increase servings slowly

One challenge of eating healthy is knowing how much to eat. Ideally, Murray suggests eating a cup of plant-based food at each meal. It can help to compare your serving to the size of your fist, which is generally about a cup.

Adding more plant-based foods to your diet can sometimes cause gas or other gastrointestinal issues due to the increase in fiber. If that¡¯s the case for you, focus on adding one additional serving of plant-based food per day every week. You can also try cooking your vegetables to make the fiber easier to digest.

Choose what works best for you

Eating a plant-based diet doesn¡¯t have to mean choosing only organic options or dedicating hours to meal prepping.

Instead, choose the options that work best for you. This might mean choosing dried, canned, frozen or pre-cut produce.

Remember: the best plant-based options are the ones you actually eat.

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