A Plant Based Diet: The Importance, and How To Get Started

Eating a plant based diet works beautifully to increase micronutrients and alkaline foods in your diet. 

Micronutrients, are the vitamins and minerals in our food and are the materials used to create the cells of the body and are crucial to hormone production.  (Read more about the importance of micronutrients here). Though all foods contain micronutrients, the foods that are plant based are the ones that are alkaline in nature and fight inflammation.  Some of the most powerful foods rich in micronutrients include vegetables such as spinach and kale, plus tomatoes, onions, carrots and other brightly coloured vegetables.

Did you know that we become more acidic as we age?  In 1931 Otto Warburg won the Nobel Prize for his research finding that cancer cells can’t survive in an alkaline environment.  If you bathe yourself in alkaline-rich foods, you increase oxygenation. Your cells will dance with gratitude and protect your health.

Here are suggestions for adding more plant based, alkaline foods to your diet:

• Spinach and kale are leafy greens that can be added to salads, smoothies, or sautéed and enjoyed as a side dish.
• Wheat grass makes a great addition to morning juices.
• Broccoli  is a wonderful as a side dish to any meal, and is quite delicious when enjoyed raw.
• Cucumber slices and peppers will make a fantastic salad topper, or snack when paired with a healthy fat like hummous.
• Fresh watermelon and cantaloupe are an alkalizing, hydrating summer treat.
• Both sweet potato and pumpkin can be enjoyed roasted, or enjoyed as a soup in the cooler months.

Do you follow a mainly plant based diet? How do you ensure you’re eating and benefiting from a wide variety of micronutrient packed fruits and vegetables? Go for the 80/20 rule and try to make 80% of your diet plant based.  Let me know if you have questions and remember, Health is contagious, pass it on by sharing below.