6 REASONS TO FOLLOW A PLANT-BASED DIET

6 REASONS TO FOLLOW A PLANT-BASED DIET

Freeze Dried Vegetables carla zaplana eats clean vegan

Including more vegetables and reducing the consumption of meat in our dishes is becoming fashionable. This happens thanks to the recognized people who are adapting this lifestyle and thanks to the documentaries that uncover truths and are shared virally on the networks. It is with this effort that activists and health professionals try to publicize the benefits of a vegetable-based diet and the impact that this has on our health and that of the planet.

My teacher and great promoter of this feeding style, Dr. T Collin Campbell , co-author of the most important epidemiological study to date, “The China Study”, calls it “ Whole Foods Plant Based Nutrition “, which would be “Nutrition based on whole plant foods, or” plant-based nutrition “. Personally, I also like to use the term “Plant Food” or “Plant Based Food” more because it does not have a negative or radical connotation or restrictive or limiting, but a “plant-based” diet that evokes abundance.

WHAT IS PLANT-BASED FEEDING?

It is a style of food abundant in vegetables and fruits, whole grains such as legumes , nuts and seeds, in instead of food of animal origin and processed foods. And under this concept is where my ComeLimpio philosophy is born.

In this article I intend to collect some of the main points that motivate me personally to follow and spread in my networks the PRO’s of a plant-based diet. When you read them, you may be motivated and you will be more convinced to make some changes to your plate.

1. IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH STATUS

Over the past 5 years, scientific articles have been published that show the benefits of increasing the consumption of plant-based foods, articles that indicate that following a more plant-based diet helps prevent and even reverse some of the diseases that they cause more incidences of deaths in the western world, being in many situations more effective than medication or surgical interventions.

This type of plant-based diet is the only one that has been shown to reverse the number 1 cause of deaths - heart attacks. Doctors such as Dean Ornish and Caldwell Esselstyn proved with their studies that they follow a low-saturated vegetable diet, rich in complex carbohydrates and basically vegetable-based protein, and changing some lifestyle habits (moving the body at least 30 min / day ) cardiovascular diseases can be reversed.

A vegetable-based diet also helps prevent certain types of cancer , reduces the incidence of heart disease and diabetes , cholesterolemia, hypertension, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcers and vaginal infections. Do we continue?

A plant-centered diet has a positive effect on the prevention of accumulation of abdominal fat, the appearance of acne, aging, allergies, asthma, body odor, cellulite, eczema, metabolic syndrome and body weight control.

With just increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables we increase the chances of extending our life expectancy, but a life with a higher quality of health. On the contrary, the consumption of meat and other foods of animal origin, such as dairy products, have shown that possibly due to its high content of saturated fats, arachidonic acid and Hemo iron, life is shortened.

The consumption of meat, fish, dairy and eggs also increases exposure to antibiotics, mercury and other heavy metals and xenoestrogens in fish and carcinogenic substances in meat that are formed when cooked at high temperatures.

Contrary to popular belief, most vegans get enough protein in their diet, consume more nutrients than the average of omnivores , and usually maintain a more adequate weight. There are only two vitamins that we cannot find in plant foods, these are vitamin D, which we get from exposure to the sun, and vitamin B12, produced by microbacteria that live on the earth, and from which one should be supplemented.

In my blog you will find many plant-based recipes as well as food guides based 100% on products of plant origin. See Fermented Probiotic Foods

2. MAINTAIN YOUR PROPER WEIGHT

The evil of many is the accumulation of weight that one adds up over the years. As my colleague Dr. Mauricio González says, from the age of 22, the only thing that can grow is a belly or a tumor. So to prevent the birth of both follow a vegetable diet will be our ally.

The reality is that if we consume many vegetables in our dishes the caloric intake of these will decrease, since on average, a cup of vegetables gives us between 10-50 kcal. And if above, we are replacing with these ingredients other fatty, sweet and processed foods you will undoubtedly be reducing the calories consumed at the end of the day and you will even feel fuller, since you will consume more fiber.

What do you think of this comparison?

Calorie consumption comparison

3. EAT HEALTHY AND ECONOMICAL

Many people believe that eating healthy or plant-based foods is expensive and they turn to processed food or junk, “fast food” because they believe it is the most economical. Certainly, this is not reality.

Visiting a fast-food restaurant such as Burger King and / or Mc Donalds to buy hamburgers, fries and sodas will not be cheaper than buying 1 package of lentils , 1 package of rice, 1 onion and a bag of frozen spinach with what you can prepare a delicious and complete stew for the whole family.

In addition, as the saying goes, prevention is better than cure , and in the United States, where I live, going to the doctor is for the privileged. In countries where to remove your appendix they charge you $ 10,000, you better invest in buying organic and quality food, than going through surgery, paying the hospital bill, that of the rehabilitation therapist, being low and sooner or later start Invest in preventive medicine (healthy food) to avoid another scare in your health.

The only thing you save by consuming these junk food restaurants is time, cooking time. But believe me that once you get into the kitchen, you can prepare twice as many servings, freeze them, and you have them for other days of the week. It’s just about being practical and sometimes a little creative, playing with different spices, seasonal vegetables and varying cereal or legumes.

Lentils, beans and peas are some of the most economical and high nutritional value foods you can find in the supermarket. When we talk about fruits and vegetables, we should always go for the options that are in season, and even buy extra when they are on sale and freeze them for when it is not their time. So I do with blueberries and other fruits of the forest, to have a good reserve of local production in winter.

4. SUSTAINABILITY AND HEALTH OF THE PLANET

It takes 15 kilos of cereals to get 1 kilo of beef, and 5 kilos to get 1 kilo of chicken meat. Most of the grains that are cultivated worldwide are destined to the raising of cattle, so we would be talking about a massive reduction of water and energy consumption if these cereals were for human consumption.

Did you know that half of the water used in the United States is for livestock activity? 1,750 liters of water are needed to produce a 120gr veal burger . In the case of milk we are not talking about prettier numbers ... 3,800 liters of water are needed to produce 4 liters of cow’s milk. A clearly unsustainable system!

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An article published in 2009 in the Scientific American announced that the amount of veal that an American citizen consumed on average at the end of the year produced the same amount of gas emissions as driving a car over 2,900km.

We usually blame the emissions of cars, airplanes and factory fumes for being responsible for the greenhouse effect, but we never talk about the great weight of livestock on this fact. According to the FAO , livestock is responsible for 18% of the emissions of these gases , which is more than the sum of emissions by all means of transport together.

Statistics say that if all Americans stopped eating a serving of chicken a week we would save the same amount of CO2 emissions as if we eliminated 500,000 cars from the road. In fact, following a vegetable-based diet can reduce the carbon footprint of each individual by up to 50%.

According to the International Livestock Research Institute, livestock activity occupies 46% of the land that exists on the Planet. This activity is guilty of the deforestation of 91% of the Amazon rainforest , one of the main lungs of our planet, an oxygen emitter that helps us cleanse our atmosphere.

Another fact that I suggest you pay attention to and do the calculation yourself ... 6,000 square meters of land can produce 170 kilos of meat or 16,800 kilos of plant foods.

5. ANIMAL CRUELTY

We all look away or change the channel when we see images of slaughterhouses or tortured animals. I am the first to avoid it. But it is important to be aware of reality.

I will only refer to one case; gestation cages for sows in mass production farms. Once inseminated, they are put in cages as large as the size of their body.

As the pig grows, the space becomes more tight, they begin to develop sores on their skin due to chafing with the walls of the cage. They urinate and defecate through the grooves of the cage, creating an atmosphere loaded with ammonia, a precursor to lung diseases. Once the sow gives birth, it is separated from its offspring and returns to its cage until it is time to go to the slaughterhouse.

These are some of the praxis used to save money and increase meat production. But at what cost? Pigs are animals even smarter than the dogs we have at home, with the only difference that we have never considered having a pig as a pet.

Just thinking about the animal abuse that many of these creatures suffer, I am clear that I do not want to be part of this suffering.

6. HUNGER IN THE WORLD

Currently the world produces enough food to feed 10 billion people. The United States alone could feed 800 million people with cereals grown to feed livestock. Hunger is not a problem of scarcity , it is a problem of allocation and distribution.

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AM I VEGAN, VEGETARIAN OR IS MY DIET PLANT BASED ?

I don’t like labels and I don’t think I could fit under the strict definition of vegan as I consume bee pollen regularly, and I sometimes use honey in my breakfasts. Another critical moment is when I travel, and sometimes I consume some egg. This happens mainly when I am visiting   and my family or friends prepare a potato omelette. In that situation, the act of eating a piece is an “accept and receive your show of love” with which they have prepared the food. That moment nourishes us all, but at another level.

Therefore, I define my diet as “Plant-based” , based on ingredients of plant origin. A nutrition focused on the consumption of plants, fruits, grains, nuts and seeds, all of them minimally processed. From my point of view and to conclude, following a “plant-based” diet is the most powerful and positively impactful choice one can make as a conscious and compassionate consumer.

An option that will help you prevent and even reverse diseases, reduce your carbon footprints, and conserve the planet for animals and your future generations.