One of the challenges people have when transitioning to a Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) diet is finding enough time to plan and prepare tasty WFPB meals. Your WFPB diet should be dominated by fruits, veggies, whole grains and legumes (beans, peas and lentils). You may include small amounts of nuts, seeds, avocados and olives unless you are following Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn’s low-fat “Plant Perfect” diet to reverse heart disease.
Although it is ideal to include only whole plant foods in your diet, this can become difficult and boring for most folks. Luckily, a healthy WFPB diet can include some minimally processed foods that can add convenience and flavor without adversely affecting your health. Such foods include but are not limited to:
- Cereals
- Some canned foods
- Whole Grain Pastas
- Brown and Wild Rice
- Plant Milks
- Breads, Tortillas, Wraps etc.
- Applesauce
- Nut Butters (within reason)
When purchasing these or other processed foods, it’s always a good idea to read labels for added salt, fat and sugar. For those of you who have a Whole Food Market in your area, its line of Engine 2 – Plant Strong products can save you time on label reading. The Engine 2 products adhere to these healthy guidelines:
- Zero animal products
- No added oils – ever!
- 100% whole gains
- Minimal added sugar – if at all
- Less than 25% total calories from fat
- ~1:1 Ratio of milligrams of sodium to calories (Exception: condiments)
Click Here to learn more about the Engine 2 product line.
E Excerpt from Laurie Endicott Thomas’s amazing book Thin Diabetes – Fat Diabetes by clicking here!
Dom– this is great news about the Engine 2 product line. Thanks for sharing this information. There is a Whole Food Market going up in the Colonie Center — can we assume that they will carry the Engine 2 line?
Yes. I expect that all of the Engine 2 products will be available.
Dom — this is not specifically related to the topic, but with regard to nutritional yeast —
1) is there any special type and/or brand I should be looking for? I have been generally purchasing it in bulk from a local food coop;
2) can you consume too much nutritional yeast? I find myself putting in any many foods throughout the day.
Not all brands of Nutritional Yeast contain B-12, but that’s Ok if you are supplementing with B-12. According to Dr. Joel Fuhrman, some nutritional yeasts contain synthetic folic acid which he advises against. If your Nutritional Yeast is fortified with B-12 and other B vitamins, you probably do not want to overdo it. There could be a chance of developing nutrient imbalances. I use Red Star Nutritional yeast which contains vitamin B-12. I’m not sure if it is fortified with any other nutrients. Braggs Premium Nutritional Yeast contains a non-synthetic form of B-12 and doesn’t appear to be fortified with any synthetic vitamins. I am a bit cautious with nutritional yeast. I use it in certain recipes, but rarely add it to anything. Jo Stepniak (third link below) recommends a limit of two Tablespoons per day. I have been unable to find any evidence to back up this specific suggested maximum amount. I wish I could give you a more definitive answer, but we still have a lot to learn in many areas.
You may want to consider using flavored balsamic vinegars to liven up some of your foods.
Jeff Novick
http://www.vegsource.com/talk/novick/messages/725.html
Dr, Michael Greger
http://nutritionfacts.org/video/preserving-immune-function-in-athletes-with-nutritional-yeast/
Jo Stepaniak M.S. Ed
http://www.vegsource.com/jo/qa/qanyeast.htm
Braggs Premium Nutritional Yeast
http://www.bragg.com/products/yeastFAQ.html