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whole plants and getting healthy fats from whole foods rather than adding oil (e.g., eating olives instead of olive oil, or peanuts instead of peanut oil). Dr. Fuhrman says the most health-promoting foods are G-BOMBS, which stands for “Greens, Beans, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries, and Seeds.” 4. 100 percent plant-based diet: A 100 percent plant-based diet revolves around only plants and mushrooms, with no animal products at all. Those who eat a 100 percent plant-based diet must pay more attention to what they are eating, to make sure they are getting all the nutrition they need. For example, vitamin B12, protein, iron, and omega-3 fatty acids are more readily available in animal products. Someone who is 100 percent plant-based needs to make sure they eat foods that have these nutrients in them, or take supplements. This eating pattern can be very healthy when done correctly. 5. Fruitarian diet: This experimental plant-based diet consists of only fruit. This is not a nutritionally balanced way to eat, and it can lead to health problems. An early-2000s eight-year population study of over 70,000 participants in Sweden, with no history of diabetes or cancer, found that those with high sugar intake (including fruit) were 1.5 times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer. 6. Other unhealthy plant-based diets: Other unhealthy plant-based ways of eating include diets that consist of large amounts of cooking oil, fried foods, salt, sugar, white bread, white rice, white potatoes, supplements, protein powders, or ultra-processed foods. It would also be very unhealthy not to eat a variety of plants, since different types of plants have different nutrients.

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Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet