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This article outlines everything you need to know about a Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) Diet
A whole food, plant based diet is a diet that focuses on eating whole, unprocessed foods that are plants.
This means that the main aspect of the diet consists of vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, and nuts and seeds.
There are some styles of eating WFBP that do include meat, dairy, eggs or fish. However these foods are consumed infrequently.
What Is A Whole Foods Plant Based Diet?
A whole food plant based diet is based on the following principles:
Whole foods- unrefined, or minimally processed foods.
Plant based : Food that comes either solely or as a majority from plants and is free from or uses animal foods such as meat, milk, eggs, or honey minimally.
A whole food plant based diet aims to consume a wide variety of whole plant foods from different food groups including:
roots/starchy vegetables – sweet potatoes, carrots, potatoes
vegetables – broccolli, cauliflower, kale, pumpkin, green beans
fresh fruit – e.g. berries, apricots, peaches, apples, citrus fruits
whole grains- e.g. rolled oats or steel cut oats, buckwheat, quinoa, red, black or brown rice
nuts – e.g. almonds, walnuts,
seeds – flaxseeds, chia seeds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds
healthy fats – olives, olive oil, avocado, nuts
herbs and spices.
What Is The Difference Between A Whole Food Plant-Based Diet And A Vegan Diet?
There is overlap between whole food plant based (WFPB) and vegan diets but there are also some key differences.
A vegan diet can include highly processed imitation meats, cheeses, burgers, added sugars, artificial sweeteners and processed foods. Although these foods are free from animal products, they are not always healthy.
A whole food plant based diet rejects these products in favor of whole or minimally refined ingredients close to nature foods.
With a whole food plant-based diet, you can enjoy the benefits of a plant-dominant diet while still consuming smaller amounts of animal products.
Is A Whole Food Plant Based Diet Healthy?
A whole-food, plant-based diet is linked with many major health benefits. An increasing body of evidence supports plant based eating play an important role in disease prevention. Plant-based diets help to reduce the environmental impact of food consumption.
Whole foods are low in processed ingredients and this type of diet contains an abundance of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, healthy fats, plant based protein and fiber. Below is a brief list of just some of the benefits of consuming a WFPB diet from a recent review in 2020:
Lower blood pressure
Lower cholesterol
Improved blood sugar control
Improved insulin sensitivity
Reduced inflammation/inflammatory markers
Reduced risk of heart disease
Reduced risk of diabetes
Reduced risk of cancer
Reduced risk of asthma
Better mental health
Reduced deterioration in renal function in kidney disease
Plant-Based Diet And Diabetes
Diabetes is a global epidemic with 422 million people affected. The number of people with diabetes has quadrupled since 1980. 86 million adults aged 20-79 years have pre-diabetes. Diabetes was the seventh leading cause of death in 2016.
A plant based diet is an effective nutritional intervention for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes. Observational studies have consistently shown that vegetarians and vegans have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
The Adventist Health Study is one of the largest prospective cohort studies of Seventh-day Adventists. Loma Linda University in California has been following 96,000 Adventists since 1976 and has found some interesting results about the effect of diet on health.
Adventists who consume a vegetarian diet have been shown to have a significantly lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In one study, vegetarians had a 58% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes and vegans had an 87% lower risk.
A large systematic review and meta-analysis published in journal of American medical association 2019 found that greater adherence to plant based dietary patterns was inversely associated with type 2 diabetes.
One review article in 2017 came to this conclusion that the WFPB diet was beneficial for type 2 diabetes because it:
reduces insulin resistance,
promotes a healthy body weight,
increases in fiber and phytonutrients,
increases intake of complex carbohydrates
Improves food-microbiome interactions,
decreases in saturated fat,
reduces advanced glycation end products,
reduces nitrosamines and heme iron
A plant-based diet is an effective nutritional intervention for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes.
Plant-Based Diet And Heart Disease
Heart disease is the leading cause of death globally. In the US, 1 in 4 deaths are due to heart disease. In 2010, there were 17.3 million deaths from cardiovascular disease globally.
Plant-based diets have consistently been shown to be protective against heart disease. In the Seventh-day Adventists study, mentioned above, vegetarians had a 40% lower risk of ischemic heart disease and a 32% lower risk of all-cause mortality.
A large meta-analysis of cross sectional and prospective cohort studies found that vegetarians had a 25% lower risk of all-cause mortality and a 20% lower risk of dying from ischemic heart disease.
A plant-based diet is an effective nutritional intervention for the prevention and treatment of heart disease. This is thought to be brought about by:
reducing weight
improving cholesterol status
reducing fasting blood sugar.
Plant-Based Diet and Cancer
Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally. In 2018, there were 18.1 million new cancer cases and 9.6 million cancer deaths worldwide.
Plant-based diets have been shown to be protective against cancer. The Adventist Health Study, vegans had a 16% lower risk of all cancers and a 34% lower risk of female – specific cancers.
A large prospective cohort study of over 61,000 British adults found that vegetarians had a 12% lower risk of all-cause mortality and a 19% lower risk of dying from cancer.
A large systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2017 found that greater adherence to vegetarian diets were was associated with a 8% lower risk of cancer, but vegan diets were associated with a 15 % reduction of cancer compared to standard animal product containing diets.
A whole food plant based diet is an effective nutritional intervention for the prevention and treatment of cancer. This is thought to be brought about by:
reducing weight
increasing fiber intake
increasing intake of antioxidants
reducing inflammation promoting foods
improving gut microbiome.
Plant Based Diet For Weight Loss
Obesity is a major public health problem as it increases risk of many chronic diseases including heart disease, diabetes and cancers. It is estimated that 650 million adults worldwide are obese. In the US, 38% of adults are obese.
A plant-based diet is an effective nutritional intervention for the prevention and treatment of obesity. This is thought to be due to:
lower calorie density
higher fiber content
lower fat content
higher dietary content of prebiotics and colonic foods that promote a diversified gut microbiome.
Some of these benefits were demonstrate in a recent randomized control study published in Nature in 2017 – the BROAD study.
The study modified the diets of obese and overweight patients and at least one of type 2 Diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure or high cholesterol. The patients were randomized to a whole food plant diet. The researchers measured weight and relevant biomarkers at baseline, 6 and 12 months. The researchers concluded that the BROAD study;
“led to significant improvements in BMI, cholesterol and other risk factors. To the best of our knowledge, this research has achieved greater weight loss at 6 and 12 months than any other trial that does not limit energy intake or mandate regular exercise.”
One of the researchers, Dr Luke Wilson explained that the first noticeable effects of this diet was loss of weight and increased energy levels, which led to positive unintended consequences such as going to the gym regularly and activities that did in the past that they could not do while being over weight. Understandably this led to a positive feedback loop of losing weight and increased activity.
WFPB Diet and Kidney Disease
There is increasing evidence that a WFPB diet offers benefits that slow the progression of CKD, decreases cardiovascular disease, decrease diabetes and obesity, and reduces inflammation and cholesterol, which in turn can ultimately delays progression of kidney failure.
Is A Whole Food Plant Based Diet Good For The Microbiome?
It is becoming increasingly clear that the microbiome is key to good health. There are 10 times more microbial cells than human cells in our body and these microbes play a crucial role in our metabolism, immunity and nutrition.
Many chronic diseases as associated by gut dysbiosis- reduced healthy gut bacteria, increased disease promoting bacteria and reduced overall diversity of healthful bacteria.
The composition of the gut microbiome is modulated by diet . A plant-based diet has been shown to increase the diversity of the gut microbiome and this is thought to be a good thing as greater diversity is associated with better health.
A whole food plant based diet is high in plant fibers, many of which act as prebiotics, foods which selectively feed beneficial bacteria in our gut. An example of a prebiotic in plant foods are fructooligosaccharides (FOS) which is found in:
Onions
Jerusalem artichoke
Garlic
Chicory
Yucon.
Other prebiotics in plant foods include β-glucooligomers found in oats and raffinose found in beets and legume. Prebiotic-like foods include resistant starches found in some plant foods like:
Uncooked plantain,
Uncooked green bananas (as a banana ripens the starch changes to a regular starch)
Beans, peas, and lentils (white beans and lentils are the highest in resistant starch)
Whole grains including oats and barley
Cooked and cooled rice
Cooked and cooled potatoes.
Studies have shown poor fiber intake among Western populations, less than 10% of people consume adequate levels of whole fruit and dietary fiber, and the typical fiber intake is about half of the recommended levels.
The more diverse plant foods people consume, the greater the consumption of prebiotic foods.
Diverse plant food consumption increases microbiome diversity and increases beneficial bacteria that promote health by producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), including acetate, propionate, and butyrate and reduces bacteria that promote inflammation and are associated with the chronic conditions discussed above.
Consuming a plant based diet that avoids processed grains, highly processed foods and animal foods promotes a gut microbiome that supports the immune system and reduces chronic diseases.
Is A Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) Diet Is Good For The Planet?
Our planet earth only has finite resources, and the way we are currently living is not sustainable.
The world population is projected to increase from 7.9 billion in 2022 to 9.8 billion by 2050.
The demand for food will increase by 50% while the demand for water will increase by 30%. We need to produce more food with less water and land.
The current way we are producing food is unsustainable. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that the livestock sector is responsible for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, while others put this number as high as 51%. Approximately one half of the world’s habitable land is used for food production, the majority of which is used to raise livestock for dairy products and meat.
In order to get cattle, pork and poultry to market there are essentially two methods. First, it is commonly called grass-fed, where animals graze on land where crops would normally be found.
Examples of this are soy, cereals and corn. By eating plant based products the energy and resources needed to produced meat and dairy products would be vastly reduced. For grain fed animals, land has to be diverted to grow grains, not for human consumption but for animal consumption.
Some research suggest that everyone shifted to a WFPB diet would reduced global land use for farming by 75%. Under a hypothetical scenario in which the entire would adopted a WFPB diet some have argued that an estimated total agricultural land use would shrink from 4.1 billion hectares to 1 billion hectares.
In other words, the land mass of North America and Brazil combined would not be needed. Surprisingly, land use reductions would be possible even without a fully vegan diet. Cutting out beef, mutton and dairy makes the biggest difference to agriculture land land use as it would free up the land for pastures.
There are some quick facts to consider when considering switching to a WFPB diet:
Less than half of the world cereals are fed directly to humans
Less cropland are needed for the WFPB diet
Reduces greenhouse gas emissions
Reduces deforestation
Cuts down on water use
Helps to preserve biodiversity
What foods should I eat on a Whole-Foods, Plant-Based Diet
A whole-foods, plant-based diet consists of fruits, root vegetables, leafy vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. These foods are low in saturated fat and cholesterol, and are high in fiber.
The whole-foods, plant-based diet emphasizes whole, minimally processed foods.
The WFPB diet is more flexible than vegan or vegetarian diets and can include animal products in small amounts.
While one person following a WFPB diet may eat no animal products, another may eat small amounts of eggs, poultry, seafood, meat or dairy.
Fill your plate with plenty of plant foods in a variety of texture, flavors and colors including –
Root vegetables/starchy vegetables – full of nutrients and complex carbohydrates for long lasting energy: sweet potatoes, carrots, potatoes, parsnips, beetroot
vegetables – broccoli, spinach, collard greens, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, pumpkin, green beans
fresh fruit – a sweet treat full of antioxidants: berries, apricots, peaches, apples, citrus fruits
whole grains – complex carbohydrates for energy: rolled oats or steel cut oats, buckwheat, quinoa, red, black or brown rice
nuts – great for snacks and texture in meals: almonds, walnuts, brazil, hazelnut, pistachio, pecan
seeds – snacks and add to salads- flaxseeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, sesame, sunflower and pumpkin seeds
healthy fats containing poly and monounsaturated fats- olives, olive oil, avocado, walnuts, peanuts, seeds
Prebiotic containing foods to diversify your microbiome – onions, garlic, chicory, Jerusalem artichoke,
Resistant starches to feed your microbiome – cooked, cooled rice salads, potatoes
Herbs – amazing for adding flavor: parsley, cilantro, rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano
Spices anti-inflammatory natural foods: ginger, cinnamon, cumin, chili, turmeric
B12 supplement – if you avoid animal foods completely you must use a B12 supplement.
What foods Should I Avoid On A Whole-Food Plant-Based Diet?
Processed food to avoid includes:
Fast food
Desserts and sweetened beverages including drinks with artificial sweeteners
Refined grains: white rice, white bread, refined pasta, etc.
Heavily processed foods: cookies, chips, sugary cereals, etc.
Processed meats: bacon, sausage, etc.
Refined and processed oils such as margarine, vegetable oils, canola oil.
Additionally any animal based foods are minimized. Some people exclude them completely, others consume them a few times per week. These foods include:
dairy products – such as cows milk, goats milk, cheeses, yoghurts, butter
eggs
red meat – beef, lamb, venison
poultry – chicken, turkey
fish and seafood
lard.
Additionally foods such as fruit juices are a processed form of fruit and are much lower in complex carbohydrates than the whole fruit. A healthier choice for beverages includes, water or non-sweetened green tea, herbal or fruit tea.
How to switch to whole plant-based foods?
If you don’t know how to begin transitioning to a healthy diet, start with a food diary for at least a week. This will identify packaged and processed food, animal foods and existing whole plant foods in your diet.
Start by gradually replacing some of the animal based foods in your diet with plant-based foods. Simple substitutions you can make include:
replacing beans, lentils and legumes in your cooking instead of using meat.
replacing dairy milk with a plant substitute such as whole soy-bean milk (without added or artificial sweeteners). For those managing their weight, coconut milk is higher in saturated fats so best avoided. Almond milk and oat milk can also be used but be careful, they often have refined sugars added so read the label.
Utilizing whole grains such as steel-cut oats and buckwheat soaked overnight in soy milk for breakfast
Cooked buckwheat with chopped mushroom, sweet potato and walnut is an excellent plant food alternative to ground beef in chili and bolognaise.
Red or brown rice instead of white rice
Adding nutritional yeast to curries, casseroles to give it a cheesy, nutty, rich flavor.
Get creative with the substitutes you want to use and don’t be afraid to experiment. It takes time to develop new skills when commencing a plant based lifestyle. Start by adding on one plant-based meals per week into your routine and work your way up to all meals.
In addition to beans, lentils and legumes, tofu is an excellent addition to dishes that could use some extra protein or heartiness – pasta, stir-fry’s, curries etc.
Lastly, follow your own instincts and do what works best for you when transitioning to a whole plant-based diet. And more importantly, be gentle with yourself when making the switch.
Whole Food Plant-Based Living is a new way of navigating the world; the rewards are real and the journey is exciting. For a quick recap here are some tips to get you going:
Start a food diary
Incorporate at least one WFPB meal into your meal plan to start with.
Look for simple recipes and upgrade to more adventurous meals.
Bulk-buy beans to help with making the transition easier. This helps with your budget too.
Substitute milk for non-milk substitutes such as whole soy-bean milk
Have fun and reach out to others for what works for them and incorporate it into your own recipe.
Whole Food Plant Based Snacks
However here are a few snack ideas for food on the go.
carrot, celery, capsicum sticks with hummus
whole fruit with nut butters
roasted nuts
roast chickpeas with salt and cumin or paprika
salted popcorn
green smoothies with plant protein powder
falafel
Are Whole Food Plant Based Diets Low In Nutrients?
Vegan diets have been found to be low in vitamin B12, zinc, calcium and selenium compared with standard diets.
However this study does not address the difference between types of vegan patterns of eating – which can include highly processed vegan foods or whole-food plant based which consists of minimally processed nutritious foods from a variety of plants.
Additionally despite vegans have been found to have lower zinc, calcium and selenium status, their long-term health outcomes are better.
WFPB diets are not deficient in iron or protein compared with standard diets.
However anyone following a whole food plant based diet should take a B12 supplement. The recommended dose is either 10 micrograms daily or 2000 micrograms per week.
Best Books About Plant Based Diets
There is a lot of information available about plant-based diets. Here are a few that cover some of the research on the benefits of WFPB diets.
The China Study by Dr Colin Campbell
How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease, by Michael Gregor
The Starch solution by john McDougal and Mary McDougal
Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition by Dr Colin Campbell and Dr Howard Jacobson
Eat for Life by Dr. Joel Fuhrman
Forks over knives: The Plant Based way to Health ed by Gene Stone
Example of a Whole Food Plant-Based Meal Plan
Give whole foods a try!
Your move to a whole-foods, diet doesn’t have to be challenging.
Take a look at our one-week menu to help set you up for success.
To save time, do batch cooking, for example soak enough oats and buckwheat overnight to cover 2 breakfasts at a time. Or cook enough of your evening meal for leftovers to double as your lunch. We do this when we cook a batch of beans every week - it provides me with at least 2 super yummy and healthy lunch burritos.
This sample meal plan does include a small number of animal products, but the extent to which you include animal foods in your diet is up to you.
Monday
Breakfast: Steel-cut oats, buckwheat and flax seeds soaked overnight in whole soybean milk topped with stewed apple, cinnamon, and walnuts (or what ever fruit you have handy).
Lunch: Large salad topped with fresh vegetables, chickpeas, avocado, pumpkin seeds and goat cheese.
Dinner: Chickpea falafel with salad, tzatziki (can be made from coconut/vegan yogurt if fully plant-based)
Tuesday
Breakfast: Full-fat plain yogurt topped with your choice of chopped nuts sliced strawberries, unsweetened coconut and pumpkin seeds.
Lunch: Baked potatoes topped with meatless chili.
Dinner: Butternut squash, zuchinni and chickpea curry in coconut milk/cream.
Wednesday
Breakfast: Green smoothie made with whole soybean milk, baby spinach, berries, peanut butter, and ground flaxseeds.
Lunch: Large green salad with your favourite sources of protein - chickpeas, tofu, nuts, seeds, boiled eggs.
Dinner: Grilled fish with roasted sweet potatoes, carrot, parsnip and broccoli.
Thursday
Breakfast: Overnight soaked chia seed pudding topped with raspberries, sunflower seeds,
Lunch: Quinoa, roast veggie and feta salad. (swap out feta for tofu if fully plant-based)
Dinner: Zucchini or lentil noodles tossed in pesto with chicken meatballs (or a plant-based meatballs made from chickpeas, capers, lemon juice, lemon zest and parsley).
Friday
Breakfast: Tofu and vegetable frittata with roasted portobello mushrooms.
Lunch: Teriyaki tofu and vegetable wrap.
Dinner: Black bean burritos, with Mexican rice, avocado, and jelapeños.
Saturday
Breakfast: Blackberry, kale, ground sunflower seed and almond butter smoothie.
Lunch: Vegetable, avocado and brown/red/black rice sushi with a seaweed salad.
Dinner: Lasagna the filling made from passata with a combination of lentils, buckwheat, diced sweet potato, mushroom and walnuts, layered with cheese sauce (if fully plant-based then nutritional yeast and cashew sauce) and a large green salad.
Sunday
Breakfast: Vegetable omelet.
Lunch: Roasted vegetables, sauerkraut and tahini quinoa bowl topped with sunflower seeds and pepitas.
Dinner: Black bean burgers served on wholemeal buns with a large green salad with sliced avocado.
Overall, plant based eating with a plant-based diet has vast benefits for overall health and wellbeing. It promotes a healthy lifestyle, reduces chronic disease, promotes weight reduction, blood sugar management and reduces chronic inflammation. Try transitioning to a whole plant foods diet today and enjoy the benefits.
As a menopause doctor, Dr Deb Brunt @ Ōtepoti Integrative Health would love to support you through the perimenopause and menopausal stages of life, supporting all aspects of your health and wellbeing.
Dr Deb Brunt is a menopause doctor in Dunedin, New Zealand and also provides menopause health coaching internationally to support optimal health habits for aging well so you can live your best life.
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