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If you've wanted to become a vegetarian, or just adopt a few vegetarian-friendly habits, but didn't know how to proceed, you'll love this diet. Fuhrman guides you slowly into eating a diet rich in plant-based, nutrient-dense foods like fruits and vegetables, and low in animal products. In fact, if you want to eliminate all animal products, this diet allows you to do that.
However, even if you're not interested in becoming a vegetarian, but want to drop weight and improve your health, you could start and end with phase one. Each of the four phases of the diet offers nutritional tidbits that could work into anybody's diet.
In phase one, some of the goals include eating at least three fresh fruits with breakfast, eating salad before dinner, eating only one helping of animal products a day and eliminating white flour and refined sugar.
In phase two, your goals change slightly, as you'll now be eating a bowl of vegetable-bean soup or casserole and one pound each of fruits and vegetables daily while further decreasing animal products. By the time you reach phase three, you'll either have removed or greatly reduced red meat and cheese and will be eating one serving or less of animal products daily. You'll also eliminate white sugar.
Phase four is where it all comes together, as you'll be eating large amounts of vegetables and fruits. You'll also cut back on whole grains, fish and animal products.
Can plant-based meals really fill you up, though? Yes, for these are fiber-rich, nutrient-dense foods and you'll be eating enough calories -- between 1,800 and 1,900 a day -- to provide the energy you need. You'll also have detailed meal plans and recipes to guide you. Fuhrman even includes recommendations for exercise.
Is the diet healthy?
Extremely, especially with the emphasis on fruits and vegetables. It offers a vegetarian-style eating plan, which research has found can boost health. In fact, the American Dietetic Association recently revamped its position on vegetarian diets and says those that are appropriately planned are "healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases."
What do the experts say?
The focus on plant-based, nutrient-rich foods earns praise from Dawn Jackson Blatner, R.D., L.D.N., American Dietetic Association media spokesperson and author of The Flexitarian Diet (McGraw-Hill, 2009). "It's a message all Americans should pay attention to," Blatner says. She also likes that unlike Eat to Live, Eat for Health offers a four-step progression for adopting a vegetarian diet, boosting plant-based foods while decreasing animal products. "This can be a tough switch for people, which is why it's best to do it in baby steps," she says, adding that she also likes how simple the recipes are. However, she doesn't agree with Fuhrman's idea that snacking can lead to weight gain, saying that healthy snacks can get people to the next meal without a binge. And while there are bits and pieces all of us could benefit from, this diet isn't for everybody. "You have to detach socially and emotionally from food and consider food as a fuel source," Blatner says, adding that avoiding animal products is tough and won't appeal to every one.
Who should consider the diet?
This diet works best for people who are serious about adopting a vegetarian lifestyle.
Bottom line
This diet emphasizes extremely healthy foods, and by offering a gradual progression to vegetarian eating, it makes the conversion to this lifestyle easier.
Foods
Plant-based foods make up the backbone of this four-phase diet. In each phase, you'll gradually increase fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts, while decreasing animal protein and other foods Fuhrman considers unhealthy.
In the end, the breakdown of your diet will look like this:
• 30 to 70 percent of your calories from vegetables (half cooked and half raw)
• 25 to 50 percent of your calories from fruit
• 10 to 30 percent of your calories from beans and legumes
• 5 to 20 percent of your calories from whole grains, raw nuts and seeds
• No more than two servings weekly of eggs, fish and fat-free dairy
• No more than one serving weekly of poultry or oils
• Rare indulgences in beef, sweets, cheese, whole milk, processed food and hydrogenated oil
However, even if you're not interested in becoming a vegetarian, but want to drop weight and improve your health, you could start and end with phase one. Each of the four phases of the diet offers nutritional tidbits that could work into anybody's diet.
In phase one, some of the goals include eating at least three fresh fruits with breakfast, eating salad before dinner, eating only one helping of animal products a day and eliminating white flour and refined sugar.
In phase two, your goals change slightly, as you'll now be eating a bowl of vegetable-bean soup or casserole and one pound each of fruits and vegetables daily while further decreasing animal products. By the time you reach phase three, you'll either have removed or greatly reduced red meat and cheese and will be eating one serving or less of animal products daily. You'll also eliminate white sugar.
Phase four is where it all comes together, as you'll be eating large amounts of vegetables and fruits. You'll also cut back on whole grains, fish and animal products.
Can plant-based meals really fill you up, though? Yes, for these are fiber-rich, nutrient-dense foods and you'll be eating enough calories -- between 1,800 and 1,900 a day -- to provide the energy you need. You'll also have detailed meal plans and recipes to guide you. Fuhrman even includes recommendations for exercise.
Is the diet healthy?
Extremely, especially with the emphasis on fruits and vegetables. It offers a vegetarian-style eating plan, which research has found can boost health. In fact, the American Dietetic Association recently revamped its position on vegetarian diets and says those that are appropriately planned are "healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases."
What do the experts say?
The focus on plant-based, nutrient-rich foods earns praise from Dawn Jackson Blatner, R.D., L.D.N., American Dietetic Association media spokesperson and author of The Flexitarian Diet (McGraw-Hill, 2009). "It's a message all Americans should pay attention to," Blatner says. She also likes that unlike Eat to Live, Eat for Health offers a four-step progression for adopting a vegetarian diet, boosting plant-based foods while decreasing animal products. "This can be a tough switch for people, which is why it's best to do it in baby steps," she says, adding that she also likes how simple the recipes are. However, she doesn't agree with Fuhrman's idea that snacking can lead to weight gain, saying that healthy snacks can get people to the next meal without a binge. And while there are bits and pieces all of us could benefit from, this diet isn't for everybody. "You have to detach socially and emotionally from food and consider food as a fuel source," Blatner says, adding that avoiding animal products is tough and won't appeal to every one.
Who should consider the diet?
This diet works best for people who are serious about adopting a vegetarian lifestyle.
Bottom line
This diet emphasizes extremely healthy foods, and by offering a gradual progression to vegetarian eating, it makes the conversion to this lifestyle easier.
Foods
Plant-based foods make up the backbone of this four-phase diet. In each phase, you'll gradually increase fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts, while decreasing animal protein and other foods Fuhrman considers unhealthy.
In the end, the breakdown of your diet will look like this:
• 30 to 70 percent of your calories from vegetables (half cooked and half raw)
• 25 to 50 percent of your calories from fruit
• 10 to 30 percent of your calories from beans and legumes
• 5 to 20 percent of your calories from whole grains, raw nuts and seeds
• No more than two servings weekly of eggs, fish and fat-free dairy
• No more than one serving weekly of poultry or oils
• Rare indulgences in beef, sweets, cheese, whole milk, processed food and hydrogenated oil
