Is All Vegan Food Healthy?

The AHA! Team — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 08:03:40 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – How do healthier plant-based diets compare to unhealthy plant foods and animal foods when it comes to diabetes risk? In my video on flexitarians, I discuss how the benefits of eating a plant-based diet are not all-or-nothing. “Simple advice to increase the consumption of plant-derived foods with compensatory [parallel] reductions in the consumption of foods from animal sources confers a survival advantage”— a live-longer advantage. The researchers call it a “pro-vegetarian” eating pattern, one that’s moving in the direction of vegetarianism, “a more gradual and gentle approach.” The benefits of eating a plant-based diet are not all-or-nothing. If you’re dealing with a serious disease, though, like diabetes, completely “avoiding some problem foods is easier than attempting to moderate their intake. Clinicians would never tell an alcoholic to try to simply cut down on alcohol. Avoiding alcohol entirely is more effective and, in fact, easier for a problem drinker… Paradoxically, asking patients to make a large change may be more effective than making a slow transition. Diet studies show that recommending more significant changes increases the chances that patients can accomplish [them]. It may help to replace the common advice, ‘all things in moderation’ with ‘big changes beget big results.’ Success breeds success. After a few days or weeks of major dietary changes, patients are likely to see improvements in weight and blood glucose [sugar] levels—improvements that reinforce the dietary changes that elicited them. Furthermore, they may enjoy other health benefits of a plant-based diet” that may give them further motivation. As you can see below and at 1:43 in my video Friday Favorites: Is Vegan Food Always Healthy?, those who choose to eat plant-based for their health say it’s mostly for “general wellness or general disease prevention” or to improve their energy levels or immune function, for example. They felt it gives them a sense of control over their health, helps them feel better emotionally, improves their overall health, makes them feel better, and more, as shown below and at 1:48. Most felt it was very important for maintaining their health and well-being. For the minority who used it for a specific health problem, mostly high cholesterol or weight loss, followed by high blood pressure and diabetes, most reported they felt it helped a great deal, as you can see below and at 2:14. Some choose plant-based diets for other reasons, such as animal welfare or global warming, and it looks like “ethical vegans” are more likely to eat sugary and fatty foods, like vegan donuts, compared to those eating plant-based because of religious or health concerns, as you can see below and at 2:26 in my video. The veganest vegan could make an egg- and dairy-free cake, covered with frosting, marshmallow fluff, and chocolate syrup, topped with Oreos, and served with a side of Doritos. Or, they may want fruit for dessert, but in the form of Pop-Tarts and Krispy Kreme pies. Vegan, yes. Healthy, no. “Plant-based diets have been recommended to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, not all plant foods are necessarily beneficial.” In the pro-vegetarian scoring system I mentioned above, you get points for eating potato chips and French fries because they are technically plant-based, as you can see below and at 3:07 in my video, but Harvard researchers wanted to examine the association of not only an overall plant-based diet, but healthy and unhealthy versions. So, they created the same kind of pro-vegetarian scoring system, but it was weighted towards any sort of plant-based foods and against animal foods; then, they created a healthful plant-based diet index, where at least some whole plant foods took precedence and Coca-Cola and other sweetened beverages were no longer considered plants. Lastly, they created an unhealthful plant-based diet index by assigning positive scores to processed plant-based junk and negative scores for healthier plant foods and animal foods. Their findings? As you can see below and at 3:51 in my video, a more plant-based diet, in general, was good for reducing diabetes risk, but eating especially healthy plant-based foods did better, nearly cutting risk in half, while those eating more unhealthy plant foods did worse, as shown in the graph below and at 4:03. Now, is that because they were also eating more animal foods? People often eat burgers with their fries, so the researchers separated the effects of healthy plant foods, less healthy plant foods, and animal foods on diabetes risk. And, they found that healthy plant foods were protectively associated, animal foods were detrimentally associated, and less healthy plant foods were more neutral when it came to diabetes risk. Below and at 4:32 in my video, you can see the graph that shows higher diabetes risk with more and more animal foods, no protection whatsoever with junky plant foods, and lower and lower diabetes risk associated with more and more healthy whole plant foods in the diet. So, they concluded that, yes, “plant-based diets…are associated with substantially lower risk of developing T2D.” However, it may not be enough to just lower the intake of animal foods; consumption of less healthy plant foods may need to decrease, too. As a physician, labels like vegetarian and vegan just tell me what you don’t eat, but there are a lot of unhealthy vegetarian fare like French fries, potato chips, and soda pop. That’s why I prefer the term whole food and plant-based nutrition. That tells me what you do eat—a diet centered around the healthiest foods out there. The video I mentioned is Do Flexitarians Live Longer?. You may also be interested in some of my past popular videos and blogs on plant-based diets. Check related posts below. Key Takeaways Adopting a “pro-vegetarian” eating pattern is associated with a survival advantage and may contribute to a longer, healthier life. That means gradually increasing the consumption of plant-derived foods while reducing animal-based foods. In cases of serious diseases like diabetes, completely avoiding problematic foods may be more effective than attempting moderation. Making significant dietary changes can lead to rapid improvements in weight, blood glucose levels, and overall health, and reinforce positive habits. Individuals choosing a plant-based diet for health reasons often do so for general wellness, disease prevention, improved energy levels, and immune function. The sense of control over health, emotional well-being, and overall health improvements are common motivations. People may choose plant-based diets for various reasons, including health concerns, animal welfare, or environmental reasons. A study suggests that “ethical vegans” might be more inclined to consume sugary and fatty foods compared to those motivated by religious or health concerns. While plant-based diets are recommended to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, not all plant foods offer the same benefits. A diet emphasizing healthy plant-based foods significantly reduces diabetes risk, while an intake of unhealthy plant-based foods may be associated with higher risk. Researchers suggest that reducing animal foods and choosing healthy plant-based options are crucial for diabetes prevention. To read the original article click here.

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Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipe

AHA Publisher — Tue, 16 Nov 2021 08:00:56 +0000

Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN – It may sound impossible, but vegan mac and cheese recipes are on the rise as more and more people follow a vegan diet. You may wonder how and why anyone would mess with a true classic. I admit, macaroni and cheese is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. Cheese and pasta: What’s not to love? Unfortunately, the cheese and pasta. If you’re vegan, cheese is off the menu. If you’re lactose intolerant, all that cheese can really upset your stomach. And those heavy carbs? Well, all that gluten doesn’t sit well with many people. Enter my vegan mac and cheese recipe. Mac and cheese … without the cheese? Yup, you read that right. You can absolutely enjoy mac and cheese without the cheese! Key Ingredients We get creative with the ingredients in this vegan mac and cheese recipe. Using butternut squash, coconut cream and nutritional yeast achieves that creamy, silky texture with no dairy. Plus, you get an infusion of butternut squash’s healthy benefits. Did you know that butternut squash nutrition is packed with vitamin A and vitamin C, boosting the immune system? This bright vegetable is also loaded with antioxidants and known to reduce inflammation. Adding spices also gives this vegan mac and cheese a ton of flavor. This is no blue box macaroni and cheese. I especially love adding turmeric to this recipe because of its anti-inflammatory power. We also use gluten-free pasta, making this vegan butternut squash mac and cheese an excellent choice for those avoiding gluten. How to Make Vegan Mac and Cheese You’re going to love how simple it is to make this vegan mac and cheese recipe. Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place the squash face down. Bake it for 40 minutes or until tender. Baking the squash makes it a lot easier to whip into a “sauce.” At the same time, start boiling the pasta. When the squash is ready, scoop the inside of the squash into a high-powered blender or food processor. Next, add the rest of the ingredients, except for the pasta, to the blender. Blend it all on high until the vegan mac and cheese sauce is well-combined. Add more spices as necessary. How gorgeous is that “cheese” sauce? Next, stir together the gluten-free pasta and butternut squash sauce in a large mixing bowl, making sure the noodles are well-coated. Spoon the vegan mac and cheese into bowls, and top with green onions and freshly cracked black pepper. Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipe Mac and cheese … without the cheese? You can absolutely enjoy vegan mac and cheese! Get creative (and healthier) with the ingredients. INGREDIENTS 1 butternut squash, sliced in ½ lengthwise and seeds discarded ½ white onion, chopped ¼ cup coconut cream 1 teaspoon mustard 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon turmeric 1 teaspoon onion powder 1 teaspoon garlic powder ½ cup nutritional yeast 8 cups gluten-free pasta noodles of choice, cooked INSTRUCTIONS Preheat oven to 400 F. On a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper, place the squash face down. Bake for 40 minutes, or until for tender. Boil and cook the pasta. Scoop the inside of the squash into a high-powdered blender or food processor. Add the remaining ingredients (except the pasta) and blend on high until well-combined, adding more herbs and spices as needed. In a large mixing bowl gently stir together the pasta and sauce. Serve topped with green onions. NOTES Experiment with different spices and amounts to get just the right flavor for your tastes. You can use any pasta of your choice, whether it be gluten-free or not. Eat this vegan mac and cheese as a main dish or side — your choice! To read the original article click here.

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Is All Vegan Food Healthy?

Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipe