Overview:
In this lesson, we underscore the fact that humans are not well equipped to sense calories while eating and hence, it becomes easy to consume more energy than needed when eating a western-style diet. The lesson highlights some of the benefits of a plant-based or plant-forward diet which are naturally low in energy and hard to overeat. The lesson acknowledges that plant-forward diets aren’t for everyone but emphasizes the advantage of including more plants in your diet beyond lowering calorie intake.
Topic Summary:
- Human inability to sense calories can lead to high energy intake, even with smaller portions of food especially in western-style diets that are energy dense.
- A diet low in energy, particularly a plant-based or plant-forward diet, can help reduce overall energy intake.
- A plant-based diet mainly includes vegetarian or vegan food while a plant-forward diet incorporates plants as the main component of any meal.
- A plant-based diet provides necessary fiber and micronutrients, though one must be cautious about not including ultra-processed food and ensuring sufficient protein intake.
- Even without fully adopting a plant-based diet, increasing plant intake in one’s diet can have many health benefits.
- A whole food diet that is plant-forward has a significant health benefits, but it’s not for everyone. Whole foods and minimally processed foods are the mainstay of any healthy eating style.
