Are you worried about gaining weight? Or is your constant craving for meat not allowing you to have a healthy diet? If you’re finding managing your food consumption difficult, this “Flexitarian Diet” plan is perfect for you.
2. Created by dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner, the Flexitarian Diet is the hot new term for healthy dieting and a plant-based diet with the occasional addition of meat.
3. This diet is not only for people who want to reduce their meat consumption, but also for those who wish to reintroduce meat into their diet. That’s why it’s a FLEXITARIAN diet – it’s “flexible” and “vegetarian”.
4. The Flexitarian diet promises a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer, and can add up to 3.6 years onto your life, much longer than your carnivorous counterparts.
5. It’s based on these simple principles:
Eat mostly fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains
Focus on protein from plants
Be flexible and incorporate meat from time to time
Eat the least processed foods
Limit added sugar and sweets.
6. Take one step at a time. Commit to one meat-free day a week at first. When you eat meat, think better quality meat and think smaller portions. Change the way you shop, buy more vegetables and less meat and fish. Finally, choose organic or free range meat.
7. According to a research, the Flexitarian diet has been shown to lower your risk of high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and strokes, and vegetarians tend to have lower BMIs than meat eaters.
8. A study following 45,000 adults over 11 years found that vegetarians had a 32% lower risk of heart disease, compared to non-vegetarians which is likely due to the fact that vegetarian diets are often rich in fiber and antioxidants that may reduce blood pressure and increase good cholesterol.
9. Don’t worry. You can still have a couple of portions of fish and chicken a week, but plants are where the rest of your protein will need to come from. So switch to a low cholesterol food habit and enjoy a healthy living.
> Shatabdi Sarker Poushi
