Plant-Based Diets Resource Center - All Articles
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Plant-Based Diets - All Articles

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Plant-based diets, such as vegetarian, vegan, flexitarian, and pescatarian diets, involve an approach to eating that excludes or reduces animal products to varying degrees. Research has found that plant-based diets can improve longevity and reduce your risk of heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes. A successful plant-based diet involves planning meals, ensuring balanced nutrition (for example, replacing dairy with fortified foods), and stocking the right ingredients. To start a plant-based diet, you can make small changes that lead to a significant switch in mindset around eating animal-sourced products, like picking a single plant-based meal a week or using meat as a garnish rather than the main feature of a meal.

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What motivates you most to choose plant-based foods?

FAQ

What are the benefits of a plant-based diet?

The benefits of a plant-based diet may include lower body weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure; a reduced risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers; and improved brain health and longevity.

Plenty of plant-based protein sources are available, including lentils, chickpeas, hemp seeds, tofu, nuts, quinoa, nutritional yeast, tempeh, black beans, and peanut butter. You can get enough protein without it being the center of the meal.

Vitamin B12 and choline are mainly available in animal sources, but plant-based alternatives like nutritional yeast are available. People who completely cut out animal food sources must also consider iron intake and eat vitamin C–rich foods to support non-heme iron absorption.

With careful planning, a plant-based diet can be safe and healthy for everyone, including babies, children, and pregnant or breastfeeding people. Speak to a dietitian before starting if you have concerns about diet safety.

Lentil soup, tofu stir-fry, bean burritos, and plant-based curries, pastas, and chillis are all flavorful options. Scrambled tofu and cauliflower steak can prop up a range of meals, and lentil or mushroom patties can replace beef burgers.

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Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCES

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Lynn Grieger is a registered dietitian-nutritionist, certified diabetes care and education specialist, certified personal trainer, and certified health and wellness coach. She comp...

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Roxana Ehsani, RDN

Roxana Ehsani, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN

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Roxana Ehsani, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN, is a Washington, DC–based registered dietitian-nutritionist, board-certified specialist in sports dietetics, and media spokesperson, consultant, a...

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Kelly Kennedy, RDN, LDN

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Kelly Kennedy is a licensed dietitian-nutritionist with over 14 years of experience in digital media. She previously managed and oversaw nutrition content, recipe development, meal...

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Alison Ozgur, RDN

Medical Reviewer
Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Alison Ozgur, RDN, is a wellness expert with advanced training in whole-food, plant-based nutrition. She is also an adjunct instructor of nutrition at Jersey College in Teterboro, ...

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Reyna Franco, RDN

Medical Reviewer
Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Reyna Franco, RDN, is a New York City–based dietitian-nutritionist, certified specialist in sports dietetics, and certified personal trainer. She is a diplomate of the American Col...

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Kayli Anderson, RDN

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Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Kayli Anderson has over a decade of experience in nutrition, culinary education, and lifestyle medicine. She believes that eating well should be simple, pleasurable, and sustainabl...

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Resources
  1. What is a plant-based diet and why should you try it? Harvard Health Publishing. March 28, 2024.

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