There are powerful reasons why veganism rocks, and not just because it’s healthy. It’s kind to the animals, kind to Earth, and spiritually, wholesomely grounding. It’s a high-fiber, gut-healthy, nutrient-dense plan that aligns with the currents of nature, and if you think you’re not hardwired, think again.
So is veganism healthy? Unsurprisingly, that’s one of the first things I hear, and especially when it comes to the pros and cons of a plant-based diet.
Well let me start by saying I’m not one of those one-size-fits-all diet plan fans. We’re all different with unique biological needs. However what I will say after 40 years of personal experience and biohacking my own machinery, is that there are clear reasons why a vegan diet rocks. And one of those reasons is that it’s an optimal jam.
And even though a lot of my experiences are personal, and, well, anecdotal, I did spend a number of years running a state-licensed health care facility catering to the medical and dietary needs of a diverse group of people—folks with a wide range of issues including type-2 diabetes, autoimmune diseases, terminal cancers, and more.
A situation which not only afforded me the opportunity to monitor and assess the daily ins and outs of physical, spiritual, and emotional needs, but to also witness firsthand the impacts of diets on people’s outcomes.
I could easily go on and on describing the many cases in which people’s medical conditions greatly improved or reversed entirely due to dietary changes—such as removing meat, dairy, sugars, inorganics, toxic drinks, and processed foods—but I’ll save that for another time.
Bottom line is I was responsible for the ADLs (activities of daily living) of others with strict dietary guidelines, e.g., three solid meals a day with snacks on an 80-hour-per-week 24/7 program, which, unsurprisingly, had its moments. And opportunities to observe.
Things like watching a wheelchair-bound invalid chuck the device and get moving after losing 70 pounds on a healthy diet, only to return in worse shape than ever before—later going on to die—after reverting back to meat, dairy, and processed foods.
And watching my own elderly mother normalize her blood pressure and weight after taking BP meds for over 20 years and carrying a 55-pound spare tire around her gut.
And again, it was all diet.
The stories go on.
I won’t even broach the topic of losing my own father to an entirely preventable, reversible, and unnecessary case of type-2 diabetes precipitated by his own penchant for meat, candies, sodas, and processed foods, but like most Americans, he was too stubborn to change.
So in this short take—abbreviated because the topic is immense—I’ll cover just a few of the reasons why I think veganism rocks.
And that’s without going into all the spiritual, ethical, and moral dilemmas involved.
Veganism: An Optimal Jam
When it comes to veganism, one of the most interesting aspects of deciphering the optimal diet for ourselves and other humans is when we look at it through the lens of other species.
Research has shown we share between 93-99% of our DNA sequences with primates (think apes, monkeys). We’re also in a family called Hominidae, which makes us hominids like gorillas and chimps.
And while we all know that humans eat both meat and plants—the mammalian classification of omnivore—in truth, we’re primarily herbivores. Designed for a plant-based diet.
But before I jump forward, please note the following, in case you forgot or don’t know.
In the standard mammalian classification system, species are aligned with diet:
Veganism and Mammalian Classification: Carnivores
Carnivores are animals whose diets are composed primarily of flesh. Examples are lions, tigers, sharks, wolves, and more.
Tigers are natural carnivores with diets consisting of deer, pigs, buffalo, antelope, etc. (They’re listed as endangered with Malayan and Sumatran species ‘critically’ so due in part to illegal poaching.)
Veganism And Mammalian Classification: Herbivores
Herbivores are animals that eat just plants. Examples include deer, cows, horses, and more.
Deer are classified as herbivores and eat a wide variety of plant foods, such as crops, green foliage, berries, grasses, acorns, nuts, and other forms of vegetation.
Vegan Diet & Mammalian Classification: Omnivores
Omnivores are animals that eat both plants and meat. Examples include most bears, raccoons, dogs, birds, humans, and more.
What gets a little tricky though, and perhaps misleading, is the human designation as omnivore.
Are biological facts implied?
Here, Dr. Milton Mills, M.D., explains:
Humans are most often described as ‘omnivores.’ This classification is based on the ‘observation’ that humans generally eat a wide variety of plant and animal foods. However, culture, custom and training are confounding variables when looking at human dietary practices. Thus, ‘observation’ is not the best technique to use when trying to identify the most ‘natural’ diet for humans. While most humans are clearly ‘behavioral’ omnivores, the question still remains as to whether humans are anatomically suited for a diet that includes animal as well as plant foods.
To answer that question, Dr. Mills turned to human anatomy and physiology and compared it to that of mammalians:
From comparing the gastrointestinal tract of humans to that of carnivores, herbivores and omnivores, we must conclude that humankind’s GI tract is designed for a purely plant-food diet. Humankind does not show the mixed structural features one expects and finds in anatomical omnivores such as bears and raccoons. [Hence], human beings have the gastrointestinal tract structure of a ‘committed’ herbivore.
Some parallels and distinctions he notes:
-
Human facial muscles same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human expanded angle jaw type same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human elevated jaw joint same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human jaw motion same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human major jaw muscles same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human mouth opening vs. head size same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human teeth similar to herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human chewing and saliva same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human stomach acidity same as herbivores; different from omnivores.
-
Human stomach capacity most similar to herbivores.
-
Human length of small intestine most similar to herbivores.
-
Human colon, liver and kidneys most similar to herbivores.
-
Human nails like herbivores; unlike omnivores’ sharp claws.
In addition there are a number of scientists and researchers that echo Dr. Mills in their own work—that human beings overwhelmingly resemble herbivores.
In fact according to Murray and Pizzorno, though the human gastrointestinal tract is able to digest animal foods, it more easily processes plant foods, which extends longevity.
Humans have long intestinal tracts like herbivores, our jaws are unlike carnivores, and we have 28 teeth optimized for plants and only four canines for eating meat.
So what about those four canines?
They must be there for a reason, right?
Well evidently we fall closely on a scale between gorillas and orangutans that eat only one and two percent flesh in their total diets, respectively, which is a very, very tiny portion of meat consumed and primarily consists of insects and small creatures like lizards.
And even though we originally evolved as hunter-gatherers—gathering plants and hunting prey—that was a very long time ago and the wild animals were incomparable to what’s on Earth today with the levels of environmental degradation, toxic exposures, endangered and threatened species, PFAs (forever chemicals), and sadly an uptick in wildlife diseases, which, according to the American Medical Veterinary Association (AMVA), include…
-
Campylobacteriosis (Campylobacter jejuni)
-
Hydatid Tapeworms (Echinococcosis)
-
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (tick-borne typhus fever) and other spotted fevers
-
Sarcoptic mange
-
Trichinellosis (trichinosis)
And the list grows internationally.
Which begs the question:
Is it worth it?
Apparently to many folks it is.
However a single case of one of the above diseases can be debilitating, if not fatal, and plenty of us have heard stories about the rampant spread of wildlife disease, not to mention the proliferation of new and novel viral and bacterial species that are flourishing in the current climate due in part to the careless use of medications.
On top of that is the fact that most Americans consume far more than one or two percent of their daily diet in meat and dairy products, with most folks pushing 70%.
And which is typically factory-farmed, denatured foods that are not only devoid of nutrients and the leaner tissues of historical wildlife, but conveyors of all kinds of noxious byproducts.
Such as high levels of pesticide-ridden, artificially-induced saturated fats that far exceed anything close to that of their ancestral predecessors, toxins from decomposing manure and other malfeasant wastes, antibiotics, tranquilizers, arsenic, steroids, medicines, growth hormones, vaccines, parasiticides, and the list goes on.
Not to mention PFAs—forever chemicals—and that’s in addition to the dwindling supply of fish and other aquatic species that are now contaminated with toxic metals, microplastics, medications, and other run-offs in our oceans, lakes, rivers, and streams—the scourge upon nature by her ‘guardians.’
Hence it’s difficult to convincingly draw an equitable equation between the conditions of today’s world and the distant vestiges of historical hunters and gatherers who were living off the land and killing prey to survive, when in these days—clearly—things have changed.
We need to stop killing everything to survive.
And eat more plants.
Veganism & Plant-Based Diet: Fiber Foods
One of the most important arguments for veganism and a plant-based diet is the human body’s need for essential fiber.
In fact according to research, we need at least 25 grams of both soluble and insoluble fiber a day to not only support our health, but help curb disease:
“Observational studies and clinical trials conducted over nearly 40 years reveal the health benefits of eating at least 25g to 29g or more of dietary fibre a day, according to a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses published in The Lancet. The results suggest a 15-30% decrease in all-cause and cardiovascular related mortality when comparing people who eat the highest amount of fibre to those who eat the least. Eating fibre-rich foods also reduced incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer by 16-24%.”
The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics concurs:
“It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that the public should consume adequate amounts of dietary fiber from a variety of plant foods. Populations that consume more dietary fiber have less chronic disease. Higher intakes of dietary fiber reduce the risk of developing several chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers, and have been associated with lower body weights . . . Dietary messages to increase consumption of whole grains, legumes, vegetables, fruits, and nuts should be broadly supported by food and nutrition practitioners.”
And according to this report,
“Low-fiber intake in Western societies is purported to be a driver in the depletion of the human gastrointestinal microbiota and subsequent increases in chronic non-communicable diseases, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and colon cancer.”
Yet even though countless studies across nearly half a century have clearly shown the benefits of a high-fiber, plant-based diet for reducing the risk of a multitude of diseases and advancing human health and longevity, most Americans are still not getting enough fiber in their diets.
As Dr. Michael Greger explains:
“Unfortunately, about 97 percent of Americans eat fiber-deficient diets. It is naturally concentrated in only one place: whole plant foods. Processed foods have less, and animal-derived foods have none at all. Animals have bones to hold them up, but plants—and only plants—have fiber.”
Repeat: Plants, and only plants, have fiber.
So there you have it.
Another of the many legitimate, science-backed reasons why a high-fiber, plant-based diet rocks—and in more ways than one.
Veganism also . . .
- Improves cholesterol.
- Fights insulin resistance.
- Reduces high blood pressure.
- Helps prevent disease.
- Helps you lose weight.
- Supports bone health.
- Supports heart health.
- Fights free radicals.
- Increases longevity.
- Reduces inflammation.
- Curbs oxidative stress.
- Cleanses and detoxifies.
- Facilitates digestion.
- Nourishes the biome.
- Relieves allergies and asthma.
- Supports the pancreas.
It’s also well worth noting that vegans as a dietary group have the healthiest BMIs (body mass indexes) in North America, offsetting obesity-related disease.
According to this report:
“The largest study ever to compare the obesity rates of those eating plant-based diets was published in North America. Meat eaters topped the charts with an average body mass index (BMI) of 28.8—close to being obese. Flexitarians (people who ate meat more on a weekly basis rather than daily) did better at a BMI of 27.3, but were still overweight. With a BMI of 26.3, pesco-vegetarians (people who avoid all meat except fish) did better still. Even U.S. vegetarians tend to be marginally overweight, coming in at 25.7. The only dietary group found to be of ideal weight were those eating strictly plant-based (the “vegans”), whose BMI averaged 23.6.”
Going Vegan
So in light of the fact that most folks can only consume a particular number of calories a day without becoming obese and further endangering their health, and that most folks consume the bulk of their diet in fast processed foods and meat, that leaves little room for the vitally important, nutritious plants our bodies need to thrive.
Much less the nuts and bolts for maintaining health.
And nowhere near the dietary fiber we can only get from plants.
Which, in and of itself underscores an important point: Veganism helps flip the 97-percent fiber-deficiency trajectory on its head, not only reversing the trend toward healthier eating, but reducing health care costs and chronic disease by over 40%.
And beyond that, processed foods and saturated animal products derange the taste buds. It’s unsurprising so many Americans are averse to healthy foods when those foods no longer taste good in their mouths.
In fact the more you eat fatty, sugary, artificially enhanced ‘naturally flavored’ foods, the more you crave them. And the less you want real food—natural, organic, plant-based food that supports health.
And that’s how we wind up where we are today with a sick population of fiber-deficient, nutrient-deficient, medication-dependent individuals who are addicted to processed foods and can’t break out.
The solution?
Crush the cycle.
Go all in.
Adopt a lifestyle that includes an organic vegan diet that’s nutrient-dense, fiber-rich, and optimized.
Keep Reading
Plant-based Vegan Lunch Recipes
Healthy Plant-Based Appetizers
The medical and health topics covered on the Plate of Grass website and blog have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to prevent or cure any disease. This article and its content is presented ‘as is’ for informational purposes only.
