Whole Foods, Plant Based Diet

I have been eating a whole foods, plant based diet since 2013. This diet is advocated by doctors like Joel Fuhrman, John McDougall, Caldwell Esselstyn, and Dr. Neal Barnard. These are the current 4 big heavy hitters in plant based nutrition. I still eat small quantities of either fish or chicken, use as a meal condiment, but absolutely no dairy.

 

John McDougall has a wonderful forum for anyone interested is starting this WOE (way of eating).

 

Does anyone else here eat a WFPB diet? If yes, how long have you been doing it and have you experienced any positive health benefits from the diet?

I have been plant based since 2014.  I follow Mcdougalls starch solution.  I've read many books on the subject.  It works for me.

Do you post in the McD forum? I do but not regularly...perhaps, only once a month but I do watch a lot of the videos online.

I'm mostly WFPB, but I've decided to keep some animal protein in my diet -- mostly fish. I don't eat red meat or dairy, and I've minimized the eggs and chicken. I've read quite a bit about this diet and have watched numerous videos, and in general, I think it's great. You just have to be careful about things like vitamin B12, iodine, iron and calcium, depending on your individual needs.

I'm mostly WFPB, but I've decided to keep some animal protein in my diet -- mostly fish. I don't eat red meat or dairy, and I've minimized the eggs and chicken. I've read quite a bit about this diet and have watched numerous videos, and in general, I think it's great. You just have to be careful about things like vitamin B12, iodine, iron and calcium, depending on your individual needs.

Ditto! I agree 100%. I am like you...just a little chicken and fish.

I like the diet a lot! I was thinking of going full-fledged WFPB, but after my last blood test and then a fracture in my foot, I realized it might not be the best thing for me to do. A few key factors dropped, so I added back my iron supplement, a bit more protein and some calcium and magnesium supplements. I'll get another blood test soon and see how I'm doing.

 

Everything okay with your blood work, AntiBenzo7? Are you buying organic food? I just can't. Too $$$! I wish I could, though.

 

 

No organic for me either, LOL! Bloodwork is perfect. Total cholesterol is around 125.

Great! I've never had issues with cholesterol or any of that, because I've actually been eating this way for quite awhile. The big issues for me are keeping my hemoglobin, hematrocrit and red blood cell levels high enough. 

 

By the way, there was a registered dietitian on CBC Radio awhile ago talking about the plant-based diet, and I decided to get her book out of the library. I'm just about done reading it. Very good!

 

https://lesliebeck.com/books/the-plant-based-power-diet 

Up until withdrawl this was my diet - I based it on the Dr Whal diet (plant based + some grass fed meat - organic chicken and grass fed steak once during menturation + wild fis ) but added in brown rice and occasionally goats yogurt and cheese.

 

I was doing really well on it and then withdrawal sentmy eating haywire - my brain literally go confused about what was edible and it still is. I am trying very hard to get back to eating fully that way again.

The true WFPB diet -- at least, here in N. America -- is vegan, but I find it a bit too strict for my needs. I'll never go back to dairy or red meat, but unless one is able to do a lot of cooking and planning, it's hard to do the vegan thing 100%. Years ago, I went totally vegan, and I was able to do it for a few years, but because I was so active, I had to eat a lot of food to keep the weight on.

I know.

 

I was watching this recently

 

He clains you can reverse artritis on a pure plant based diet.

 

I was vegetarian before I got ill but kept having cravings for fish and then chicken so added a small amount.

 

The problem I have is that I have constant insatiable hunger since withdrawal and no feelingof fullness so I think cuting all animal protein at this point would be a problem with my trying to keep the weight off which I need to so because of spinal degeneration.

I think everyone has to figure out for him- or herself what works best. It's such an individual thing.

Do you post in the McD forum? I do but not regularly...perhaps, only once a month but I do watch a lot of the videos online.

[/q

Antibenzo,

I do check in to Dr McDougalls forum occasionally.  I read all the success stories too.  I would like to go to his 10 day live in program but it's quite expensive.  It's on my bucket list though, so maybe someday.

I lived on a fully plant based diet for 4 years until about 6 months ago.

 

I did it out of kindness towards animal suffering. And it was only later that I was pleasantly surprised to hear that vegetarians have better health outcomes.

 

Unfortunately, my fatigue definitely worsened the longer I was on a plant based diet. I checked all deficiencies and took a lot of supplements, but I just felt weaker and weaker. I found I had iron deficiency. Before vegetarianism I had also never had a tooth filling. But during it, I had lots and lots. I'm sure this was due to the carbs.

 

Eventually, I realised that vegetarian diet is not necessarily optimum for all. We all have differences in our ability to absorb nutrients, and this is down to genetics, our upbringing, etc.

 

It was hard to switch because my motive had been kindness. But I realised I had to balance this with kindness towards myself. Staying plant based represented a risk that it could be causing my issues with fatigue.

 

Also, the vegetarians I know who introduced some meat into their diet all felt better for it. I felt better too. Some issues like my hair loss and teeth decay also seem to have halted when I switched to more meat and lower carbs.

 

In withdrawal, I think the worst thing to do is risk any kind of deficiency - so I'm choosing to eat everything - well rounded and in excess.

 

A book I liked on this topic was Matt stone - diet recovery 2

Great post, MrEggplant! Thanks for telling us about your experience.

 

I think what you said makes a lot of sense. It reflects the idea that we each need to figure out what works for our bodies, and that can change. When I was younger, I followed a vegan diet for quite a few years, but it was hard to keep my weight up. I was very active and needed lots of energy. That's a lot of rice and beans!

 

I ended up adding some animal food, and it worked well for me. The whole foods plant-based diet is definitely doable, but it's true that not everyone will feel good on it. I'm happy to use that as my base, but to add some omega-3 eggs, fish and a bit of chicken here and there. I just had a blood test today, so once I see my results, I'll have a better sense of how things are working out for me now.

I've been vegetarian for about 10 years now. I'm finding myself less and less tolerant of dairy now. Every time I have cheese my symptoms seem to rev up. So i'm cutting down to just eggs, which don't seem to negatively impact on me.

 

I'm super paranoid about being deficient even though I make sure I'm getting everything I need. I've had bloods done along with other vitals and everything comes back great, which makes the fact that I feel like shit all the more frustrating (withdrawal eh).

 

I have wondered about adding meat into my diet to help get over this but I haven't found any compelling evidence to suggest that it would make a difference (and I assume my stomach might disagree with it after so long without), I guess as many say there is no quick fix.

No, there's definitely no quick fix, gooner. But if your blood work looks good, that's a good thing! As long as you're getting the nutrition you need, that's what's most important. Dairy isn't necessary -- especially if it's making you feel bad. Why not experiment and see if you feel better/different by changing things a bit? If you cut out dairy, you can add another source of protein and fat. If you want a creamy texture, there are dairy alternatives, e.g. soy and nut milks, soy cheese, etc.

 

I could never eat dairy or red meat again, but fish and eggs seem to be okay. I can only have chicken once in awhile, and the rest is vegan (beans, tofu, lentils, split peas, nuts and seeds, grains, veggies). I'll get my blood test results soon, and hopefully, that will tell me if I'm on the right track nutritionally.