SAD to GLAD™
Many Americans eat too much fat, protein, and refined carbs and are missing out on fiber and antioxidants. This type of eating impacts the immune system, gut microbiome, mood, and health. In addition, grocery lists have a great impact on our planet health.
According to Forks over Knives, 12% of America's calories come from plant-based foods, but only half of the plant-based calories (6%) come from french fries. Even vegans can be unhealthy if they eat too much processed foods.
So how many calories should come from plant-based foods? That depends if you’re getting adequate amounts of nutrients, like fiber (only found in plants) and antioxidants (your immune system’s fuel) - and if you want to reduce the amount of salt/oil/sugar in your diet.
Ultra-processed foods are associated with a number of chronic health conditions including diabetes, obesity, heart attack, stroke and cancer. These foods have added salt/oil/sugar (SOS) to help preserve shelf life and place a hook on our taste buds.
Each plate is an opportunity to move farther from the standard American diet (SAD) to good lifestyle and diet (GLAD).
Degrees of Processing
Unprocessed: Fresh foods as the are picked from the plant. (e.g. whole fresh vegetables, fruits, intact whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds)
Minimally-processed: Foods that are only slightly changed from their original form (e.g. canned beans, tofu, tempeh, cut or rolled grains, roasted nuts or seeds, nut and seed butters)
Moderately-processed: Foods that have undergone greater processing, but with few added ingredients (e.g. juices, flaked or puffed cereals, whole grain flour products)
Ultra-processed: Food products that have undergone extensive processing, generally including added fat, sugar, salt, additives, and preservatives. This includes lunch meats (salami, hot dogs, restaurant hamburgers), deep fried foods, refined flour products, and soda.
SOS in animal-based processed foods: In the book, Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, Michael Moss shares, “Cheese is the biggest single source of saturated fat, which is converted by the liver into cholesterol. Besides cheese, sources of saturated fat include pizza, red meat, chocolate cake, cookies, frozen dinners, candy, potato chips, corn chips, butter, and mayonnaise (pp. 163, 178, 213, 215–216).
What do you want on your plate today?
A plant-powered* diet is a return to a diverse, whole plant-based diet that is closest to nature. To support plant-predominant eating that promotes planetary health, we’ve built a way to balance your mealtimes via our DayBalancer app. Totaling 100% below, think about how much you eat each week for all 3 diet groups:
Whole plant-based: What % per week do you currently eat plant-based foods such as fruits, veggies, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds?
Ultra-processed: What % per week do you currently eat fried foods, junk foods, deli meats, bacon, hot dogs, and foods that have added sugar, oils, salt?
Animal-based: What % per week do you buy meat, dairy, or eggs that are preserved and shipped to your local grocery store?
If you have a target eating goal that is different from your current diet, DayBalancer can help you declare + achieve your plate goals 🙌
*Acronyms and terms
standard American diet (SAD)
good living and dieting (GLAD)
whole food, plant-based (WFPB)
salt/oil/sugar (SOS)
plant-powered (defined as 80% or more WFPB and reduced SOS)
