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5 Great Benefits to Get From a Plant Based Diet

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A plant based diet includes a high percentage of food sourced from plants rather than animals. This can mean eating nuts, whole grains, lentils, peas, beans, fruits, and vegetables. But, this style of diet does not need to be strictly vegetarian.

Here are five of the health benefits that come from eating lots of plant foods:

plant based diet

Blood pressure

A plant-based diet offers a perfect source of potassium-rich foods which can help to naturally lower blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables, as well as most seeds, nuts, legumes, and whole grain include a sufficient amount of vitamin B6 and potassium for healthy blood pressure. Animal foods like meat include minimal potassium and can lead to higher cholesterol and blood pressure.

Cholesterol

A significant benefit of adopting a plant-based diet is the ability to lower cholesterol. Plants are cholesterol-free, even the more saturated types like cacao and coconut. For this reason, eating a diet that mostly consists of plant-based foods can offer a simple solution to lowering cholesterol. Great food choices to lower rates of heart disease and cholesterol include seeds, nuts, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

Blood Sugar

A highly effective method to control high blood sugar is to increase the fiber in the diet. A fiber-rich diet is perfect to help with slowing the absorption of sugar in the bloodstream. An added benefit is the ability to control hunger throughout the course of the day. Also, fiber can help with balancing the level of cortisol in the blood stream, which is responsible for the feelings of stress. Many of the animal foods can have a significant hand in increasing the blood sugar level.

Cancer

A plant-based diet that includes low-fat, whole food is one of the most efficient choices for helping to cut the risk of cancer. Certain cancers like breast and colon are at great risk for those that eat a diet mainly consisting of animal foods.

Weight Loss

A diet consisting of plant-based and whole foods, with minimal processed sugars and low in fat, is certain to help with cutting weight. A further benefit comes from a diet that is high in clean and raw whole foods. Weight loss is naturally able to occur when the daily diet includes a higher percentage of vitamins, minerals, and fiber compared to proteins and animal fats. A well-planned plant-based diet has the potential to cut 4-6 pounds within a two-week period. This should also ensure you aren’t left feeling hungry.

Following A Plant Based Diet Is Easy With Home Gardens

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Many people today are turning to a plant-based diet as an alternative to diets too rich in saturated meat products, junk food, and highly processed foods. In some cases, it involves spending more time in the produce section of your local grocery store, looking for fruits and vegetables that are grown organically and spending extra money on them.

You can follow a great plant-based diet in an even better way while growing your fruits and vegetables in your own home garden. If you live in an apartment, you can start a container garden in front of a sunny window. If you have a plot of land to turn into a garden you can go big with a garden filled with healthy fruits and vegetables. You can grow almost anything in a small garden so you have the spring, summer and fall to eat off your own land.

plant-based

Vegetables Easily Grown At Home

Tomatoes lend themselves well to container gardening and can grow like wild in the good earth of your back yard. They grow and ripen all season long so you can pick what you need for sandwiches, salads, snacks, fresh sauces and even for juicing.

You can grow your own peas or beans in a container or in your backyard garden. They are rich in phytonutrients that have their maximum potency if you simply pick what you need and eat them as soon as possible; you have the greatest amount of healthy phytonutrients and antioxidants in the food shortly after picking them.

Peppers, zucchini, carrots, broccoli, and greens like Kale are great options for a home garden and allow you to reach for healthy and super fresh produce all summer long and into the fall.

Your Home Garden

If you decide to have a back yard home garden, you need to decide if you want to grow organic foods or not. Organic gardening is the best possible choice because the food is grown without pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides. This means no harmful chemicals exist with the food you pick and you can even eat them straight out of the garden without having to wash them extensively.

Grow a wide variety of foods that become ripe at different times of the season:

Radishes, for example, take only a few weeks to become edible and, after pulling them up, you have room to grow a row of something else. Most people grow tomatoes and some people grow carrots, lettuce, and potatoes.

Both potatoes and squash need the entire summer to become available for eating so all you need to do is to keep them weed-free and watch them grow. In the early autumn or late summer, you can dig up the potatoes and harvest the squash. These types of produce can be kept at room temperature or in a cool place for many months so you have instant winter eating from vegetables you grew in the summer.

Lettuce and other greens can be grown and harvested all summer long for the best in salads that are high in phytonutrients and antioxidants. All you need to do is harvest some of the leaves, wash them, and enjoy them in a healthy salad with tomatoes, carrots, or radishes you grew yourself. This is the core of a plant-based diet that will give you benefits far beyond a meat-based diet.

Meat-based diets are low in antioxidants and high in saturated fats. You can get the nutrition you need from vegetables and fruits you grow yourself with a known reduction in fatty deposits in your arteries and a lesser chance for heart disease and stroke. There is a reduced risk of certain cancers with a low fat, plant-based diet.

Get Even Better Results With Composting

If you want an especially fruitful garden, consider starting a compost pile or box. All you need to do is put in vegetation and clippings from around your yard, add food scraps and paper, mixing everything with a little bit of soil. Worms thrive in the moist environment of a good compost heap so that you will soon have these things turned into rich soil that will make your organic garden thrive.

Get Started Today

There are millions of guides online for organic vegetable gardening, and many books on the topic. In reality, the best teacher is experience, so learn the initial steps, get the supplies and just do it! Remember to get the kids involved in the garden as well; it is a great learning experience, and a great opportunity to spend quality time together.