One of the challenges we have is that some of the doctors, nurses and other providers are thinking in a linear fashion.
They would describe moving toward a plant based diet means moving from USDAs plate toward Mediterranean then toward vegetarians with the ultimate goal of the best diet .... being vegan (no animal products)woud
Our nutrition team does not believe that we should be creating a culture that the vegan diet is the best diet, that restricting all animal products is our ultimate goal. Rather we want to present evidence based eating approaches that match the patient's condition with their dietary intake, along with their preferences and within their budget.
USDA has a DASH, Mediterranean and Vegetarian diet plan in the dietary guidelines but not something called plant based, or whole plant based, or plant centered, or plant forward, or plant predominant. So we are unaware of a standard definition.
1. What phrase do you like to discuss a plant centered eating approach that is NOT vegan (some of our doctors equate plant centered with vegan)
1. Are you aware of any type of graphic that shows our population selecting an evidence based diet that meets their needs (so there are lots of eating approaches thought of as healthy) versus the linear approach leading to veganism as the goal. Or any ideas how you would depict it.
At this time we are trying to think of this only from the health of the individual (not the planet) point of view.
We appreciate any feedback/input.
As a reference, Sodexo, the food operator at our system is using this definition for plant based nutrition: a plant based diet is composed of minimally processed fruits, vegetables, legumes/lentils, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and modest intake of sustainably raised fish, poultry, eggs and dairy and with red meat only sparingly. The healthiest and most sustainable diets also minimize processed and packaged foods.
And several of our physicians use the definition from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine:
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine defines a whole foods, plant-based diet (WFPB) as:
"a dietary pattern centered on minimally processed vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes with nuts and seeds in moderation. It minimizes or excludes meats (including poultry and fish), dairy, eggs, added sugar, and processed oils. It's an evidence-based dietary pattern centered on whole, plant foods eaten as close to their natural state as possible for disease prevention, treatment, and reversal. "
WFPB vs. vegan: A vegan diet it defined only by what it excludes--all animal products. A person can eat a vegan diet and still be very unhealthy. For example, Oreos and potato chips are vegan! WFPB guidelines outline the foods to include for optimal health.
And finally Wikipedia:
Plant-based diet From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (April 22, 2019)
A plant-based diet is a diet consisting mostly or entirely of foods derived from plants, including vegetables, grains, nuts, seeds, legumes and fruits, and with few or no animal products.[1][2][3] Historically, it was explained that "[a] plant-based diet is not necessarily a vegetarian diet", as "[m]any people on plant-based diets continue to use meat products and/or fish but in smaller quantities".[2] The use of the phrase plant-based has changed over time, and examples can be found of the phrase "plant-based diet" being used to refer to vegan diets, which contain no food from animal sources, to vegetarian diets which include eggs and dairy but no meat, and to diets with varying amounts of animal-based foods, such as semi-vegetarian diets which contain small amounts of meat.[2][4] The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics issued a position statement proposing that well-planned plant diets support health and are appropriate throughout life, including pregnancy, lactation, childhood, adulthood, and for athletes.[5] Vegan wellness writer Ellen Jaffe Jones stated in a 2011 interview:
"I taught cooking classes for the national non-profit, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, and during that time, the phrase "plant-based diet" came to be used as a euphemism for vegan eating, or "the 'v' word." It was developed to take the emphasis off the word vegan, because some associated it with being too extreme a position, sometimes based exclusively in animal rights versus a health rationale.[11]"
