9781422269855

WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

Nutrient-dense: An adjective used to describe foods that have a lot of nutrition but a relatively low number of calories. Also “nutrient-rich.” Plant-based diet: A way of eating that is based on nutrient dense whole plants while minimizing the eating of animal products and highly processed foods. Randomized controlled study: A study of an intervention, treatment, or policy in which participants are divided up by chance into two groups: a group that will receive the intervention, and a control group that does not. This allows researchers to compare doing something with doing nothing, and it reduces the risk that the outcome is simply due to chance. Ultra-processed foods: Food products that are designed in a lab to be very tasty and last a long time. To accomplish this, food scientists must usually strip most of the nutrition and add sugar, fat, and/or nonfood ingredients.

6