Plant-Based Proteins for Your Health

Protein is a popular nutrient these days and many people are looking for ways to add it to their diet.  Plant-based proteins are a great way to add protein to the diet without adding cholesterol and minimal saturated fat.  Adopting a plant-based meal plan rather than a meat-based plan can provide many health benefits including, help to maintain a healthy weight, prevent and reverse heart disease, offer cancer protection, and prevent and manage diabetes. 

A meal plan based on plants includes vegetables, beans and legumes, fruits, whole grains, nuts, nut butters and seeds.  Although greater health benefits are obtained from following a plant-based diet for all of your meals, incorporating plant-based proteins for snacks  or for just one meal per week can also provide many health benefits.

Plant-based proteins are also gaining popularity because they provide a low-cost source of protein.   For example, peanuts and peanut butter provide 1 gram of protein for about $.02 per gram, while most meat-based protein is usually more than  $.04 per gram of protein.  Foods that come from plants are also easy to store – many do not require refrigeration!

The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendation is a minimum of  1.2  grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for a healthy individual.  Someone who weighs 154 lb (70 kg), would need at least  84 grams of protein per day (70 x 1.2).    For reference, two tablespoons of peanut butter,  ½ cup of cooked black beans, pinto beans or chickpeas or  4 tablespoons of shelled sunflower seeds would contain about 7 grams of protein each. 

Some  ideas for substituting plant proteins for animal protein in your meals include using black beans or lentils to replace the  meat in a batch of chili or soup,  making a  peanut butter and raisin  sandwich instead of a meat sandwich, using edamame to replace  meat in your stir-fry,  adding sunflower seeds and pepitas to your salad instead of meat or cheese, adding ¼ cup of chopped nuts with your cereal instead of eating an egg for breakfast, or using tofu or lentils to replace the meat in your tacos. 

The VA provides many resources and recipes for eating a plant-based diet including an online cookbook titled Practical Plant-Based Cooking and a 7-day meal plan  available at Plant- Based Menu.   The American Diabetes Association also offers excellent resources and recipes on their website.