And to celebrate your good fortune as you rehabilitated, your visiting family members could stop by the on-site hospital restaurant and bring you a couple of meals. You could treat your recovering heart muscle and arteries to a Bacon, Egg, & Cheese McGriddle for breakfast; a Big Mac, large fries, and Coke for lunch; and Chicken McNuggets and a chocolate shake for dinner. That’s right — for years, a McDonald’s was renting space inside this medical center.

That was the reality at Atrium Health Navicent until June 2019, when a long campaign by the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) finally bore fruit, convincing the medical center’s leaders not to renew the fast-food chain’s lease.

There are many morals to this story.

The first is that it’s a win worth celebrating. Three cheers to American College of Lifestyle Medicine Trailblazer Award Winner Neal Barnard, MD, and the rest of the PCRM team for their persistence and political savvy. And hats off to the courage of the Atrium Health Navicent board of directors for cutting off a lucrative revenue stream in favor of patient health.

The second moral is to spare a thought for the often economically stressed patients, visitors, and staff who had come to rely on McDonald’s as a tasty, cheap, and convenient source of calories. Where could they eat cheaply and quickly now?

A third moral is, to put it bluntly, what was a McDonald’s doing in a medical center in the first place?

Can you imagine a liquor store housed in an alcohol abuse rehab center? A demolition derby track as part of an auto body shop? A gun shop located on the grounds of a trauma center?

The Irony of Fast Food in a Hospital

If you stop and think about it for even two seconds, you’ll see that these analogies are spot-on. The food served at McDonald’s, beyond a shadow of a doubt, causes the diseases and conditions that the Atrium Health Navicent Heart and Vascular Program is treating.

Yes, it’s comfort food at a tough time. But there’s no comfort in a second heart attack. No comfort in a continual downward spiral of health and vitality. No comfort in more and more time, money, and energy devoted to managing a slow decline into disability and premature death.

If you wanted to be really cynical about it, you could see the two branches of the operation as feeding each other. The hospital provided customers for McDonald’s, and McDonald’s, in turn, provided more customers for the hospital.

Of course, no cardiologist wants to see more heart disease. No hospital is rooting for the rising incidence of angina, myocardial infarction, a-fib, stroke, and congestive heart failure. It wasn’t a conscious conspiracy. The Atrium Health Navicent McDonald’s — and the dozens of other fast-food restaurants that still operate inside medical centers across the country — are symptoms of a profound blind spot in medical practice and education.

The blind spot, so obvious to those of us outside the profession, is that the food we eat is the number one determinant of human health.

Diet Is the Leading Cause of Preventable Death

A 2019 report published in The Lancet affirms that poor diet is responsible for more deaths than any other risk factor. How many deaths? In 2017 alone, unhealthy diets killed around 11 million adults worldwide, through heart disease, several cancers, type 2 diabetes, and other illnesses. The leading risk factors were high salt intake, low whole grain intake, and low fruit intake.

Not that this is cutting-edge knowledge. Humans have known that food affects health long before epidemiological research, or science, or — most probably — language itself. 

The Disappearance of Food as Medicine

Humans didn’t need peer-reviewed studies to sense that food and health were connected — that intuition predates written history. But it took modern science, especially over the past several decades, to move that intuition from folk wisdom to documented mechanism.

My late father, John Robbins, put it simply: “A doctor who doesn’t know about food is like a firefighter who doesn’t know about water.” That was true when he said it. It remains true today. Most doctors still graduate from medical school with little or no training in the foundation of health.

Medical education has long focused on pathology and treatment — what goes wrong with the human body, and the interventions research has produced to address it. Pills, procedures, and protocols. 

What’s been missing, of course, is human health before disease or injury. What keeps us well? What can return us to health? Medical education has largely ignored these questions, and so medical practice has pretended they’re irrelevant to its mission.

Meanwhile, healthcare leadership built a system in which fast food could colonize medical centers and shuttle customers onto a conveyor belt of chronic disease.

A Disconnect Between Symptoms and Cause

The modern disease epidemic has hit us faster than anyone might have imagined. It’s been more than 4 decades since we had the first signs that type 2 diabetes, known then as “adult-onset diabetes,” was affecting youth. Between 2001 and 2017, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes among U.S. adolescents ages 10 to 19 rose from 0.34 to 0.67 cases per 1,000 youth — a 95% increase, according to the CDC-funded SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth study, the largest population-based surveillance project tracking pediatric diabetes in the U.S. Over roughly the same period, the annual rate of new type 2 diagnoses in youth climbed by about 4.8% a year — nearly three times the growth rate of new type 1 diagnoses. By 2017–2018, type 2 diabetes was being newly diagnosed in adolescents at a rate of nearly 18 per 100,000 each year, closing in on the rate for type 1 diabetes at about 22 per 100,000 — a gap that would have seemed unthinkable a generation ago, when type 2 diabetes in children was rarely diagnosed at all.

If there were a vaccine that protected against type 2 diabetes, public health authorities would recommend it for every child in the United States. But because the disease is foodborne, vectored by Big Macs, Whoppers, and Baconators, we’ve acted as if prevention were impossible. That abdication of medical responsibility has sentenced our young people to shortened lives full of avoidable pain and suffering.

We’ve graduated healthcare providers with a gap at the foundation of their education. We’ve built an acute care system to handle the flood of after-effects, and forgotten that we had the means to turn off the faucet. The result, decade after decade, has been epidemic obesity, heart disease, diabetes, depression, and cancer, in a culture that fosters the continuation of our poor habits. And every year that we’ve waited, the costs — measured in lives, dollars, and human suffering — have compounded.

Meanwhile, patients whose lives are on the line are told nothing about nutrition by doctors who, despite all their best intentions, were never taught it.

Leading the Charge for Nutrition in Medical Education

The movement that finally got McDonald’s out of Macon’s Atrium Health Navicent campus is still fighting to remove unhealthy food from health care facilities. A 2024 survey by PCRM found that nearly 70% of U.S. medical school hospitals still host a fast-food restaurant on-site.

At the same time, we’ve opened a new front: pushing to get nutrition taught in medical schools themselves.

Some of this work happens one lecture hall at a time. My dear friend Michael Klaper, MD, spent a long career in clinical practice before concluding that the hardest problem wasn’t what he could do for the patient in front of him. It was what he had never been taught to do in the first place. He now brings that reckoning straight to medical students, traveling to schools across North America and internationally to teach how a patient’s diet can either cause disease or reverse it. His initiative, Moving Medicine Forward, backs those visits with Nutrition Interest Groups on campus, toolkits for student leaders, and a CME-accredited masterclass in plant-based clinical nutrition built in partnership with the Rochester Lifestyle Medicine Institute. His book, Moving Medicine Forward, traces his own path from country GP to advocate for reversing chronic disease through plant-strong nutrition. Neal Barnard has called it vitally important and overdue. I agree, and I’d add that it’s the book I wish every physician graduating this year would read.

One key lever is medical education. Like most academic institutions, medical schools teach to the test. So here’s a question: Out of the thousands of questions on the certification exam for physicians, how many were about nutrition? For years, the answer was: almost none.

And if you’re a medical school recruiting the best students, how much energy will you put into teaching a topic that doesn’t show up on the exam that determines your graduates’ careers? Right again: almost none.

Recognizing this, Food Revolution Network partnered with Bright Line Eating and the American College of Lifestyle Medicine in 2019 to fund the Lifestyle Medicine Question Bank. The campaign set out to raise $250,000 to fund 1,000 multiple-choice questions designed for use on categorical assessment tests and licensing exams — the goal being to motivate medical schools to include lifestyle medicine subjects in their curricula, and to eventually get some of these questions folded into official testing. The campaign hit its funding goal on December 22, 2019, and ACLM faculty now use the resulting question bank to teach and test medical students on lifestyle medicine. That kind of grassroots pressure, alongside years of advocacy from clinicians and researchers, has helped keep nutrition on the table as institutions like the National Board of Medical Examiners have moved to expand nutrition-focused content across all three U.S. medical licensing exams, with nutrition performance now appearing in score reporting.

The underlying principle is straightforward: What gets tested gets taught. If nutrition and lifestyle medicine are meaningfully represented on high-stakes exams, educators will be far more likely to prioritize them in the curriculum. These efforts represent important progress. These are steps on a long path, but at least we appear to be moving in the right direction.

A Turning Point: 40 Hours, Finally

Then, in March of 2026, something shifted, and I was in the room when it happened.

For years, advocates had been reciting the same dismal baseline to anyone who would listen: Only 14% of U.S. residency programs had a required nutrition curriculum. Three-quarters of U.S. medical schools had no required clinical nutrition classes. Medical students reported an average of 1.2 hours of formal nutrition education per year, less than the time most of them spend in a single pharmacology lecture.

In 2025, HHS issued a public call for medical schools to change this, and in March 2026, HHS and the U.S. Department of Education announced that 53 of the nation’s medical schools, across 31 states, had committed to require at least 40 hours of nutrition education — or a 40-hour competency equivalent — beginning in fall 2026. That number has kept growing: by June 2026, 19 more schools signed on, bringing the total to 73, and more may have joined since.

I watched HHS Secretary Kennedy, Education Secretary McMahon, CMS Administrator Dr. Oz, and AMA President Dr. Mukkamala take the stage together to mark the occasion. That lineup represented federal health policy, federal education policy, Medicare and Medicaid, and organized medicine. Whatever you think of any one of them, seeing those voices united around a single message was something I hadn’t seen before: Nutrition belongs at the center of medicine.

AMA President Bobby Mukkamala didn’t cite his own credentials as expertise — he offered them as an admission of a gap. After 25 years in practice, he recently earned board certification in Lifestyle Medicine specifically because he felt his own medical training had left him without enough grounding in how food and daily habits affect disease. As he put it: “For too long, nutrition has been treated as an elective in medical education — a few hours here and there. Considering how important what we eat is for our health, it should be a basic foundational training.“

He’s right. And on that day, at least, the people with the power to act agreed.

Now, more than 30,000 physicians will graduate each year with at least a foundational understanding of nutrition — and that number will only grow as more schools sign on beyond the original cohort.. These are doctors who will spend decades in practice, each one having tens of thousands of conversations with patients about their health.

This is a genuine breakthrough. It’s also, to be clear, a set of voluntary commitments from roughly a third of U.S. medical schools. Getting nutrition into some curricula is not the same as getting it onto licensing exams, into residency training, or into the daily habits of the millions of physicians already in practice. We still need mandatory continuing medical education on nutrition, so that doctors who graduated without this knowledge can fill in the gaps. And we need the remaining two-thirds of medical schools to follow.

But the movement that clinicians, researchers, and advocates have been building for decades, from Michael Greger to Neal Barnard to Senator Cory Booker to thousands of unnamed patients and practitioners, is finally reaching institutional weight. The Question Bank, the 40-hour commitments, the eviction of McDonald’s from hospital lobbies: These are all part of the same story. 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. reminded us that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Sometimes that arc feels very long indeed. 

But one thing is clear: It won’t bend all by itself. We all have a part to play. 

What Comes Next

It’s tempting to read a headline like “53 medical schools commit to 40 hours of nutrition” and feel like the work is done. It isn’t. The children being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes today won’t benefit from a curriculum reform that reaches them in their 40s. The patients in cardiac wards this year deserve doctors who already know what to tell them about food.

The work ahead is to translate institutional commitments into practitioner habits — classroom hours into residency training, residency training into hospital protocols, and hospital protocols into the conversations that doctors actually have with patients. That last mile — the exam room conversation, the discharge instructions, the follow-up call — is where decades of advocacy will either land or fail to land.

This is one of the most consequential public health opportunities of our generation. Hundreds of millions of people stand to live longer, better lives if we get this right. And whether we get it right doesn’t depend only on what medical schools, regulators, and advocacy groups do next. It depends, in large part, on the choices each of us makes — about what we eat, what we ask of our doctors, what we expect from our hospitals, and what we’re willing to push for in the systems that shape all of our lives.

How You Can Take Action

Here are three ways you can add your weight to the movement to put food back at the center of medicine:

• Eat like food matters. The most direct way to shift the food-as-medicine landscape is to live it. Lean into more whole, plant-based foods. There are abundant resources right here on this site to help you make that shift, one meal at a time.
• Bring food into the exam room. Ask your doctor how much nutrition training they received in medical school. Ask what role they think food plays in your specific health concerns. And if they seem interested in going deeper, let them know that lifestyle medicine offers excellent CME credits and even a board certification. These conversations, multiplied across millions of appointments, shape what physicians prioritize and what their hospitals and medical schools take seriously.
• Use your voice. Share articles like this one. Talk with friends, family, and colleagues about why nutrition belongs at the center of medicine. Support the organizations doing this work — including PCRM, ACLM, and Food Revolution Network — and make clear, with your time and your dollars, that this is the kind of healthcare you want.

Each of us has a choice. We can be passive patients or empowered participants in our own health and in the health of our communities. We can be complicit in the status quo, or we can be everyday revolutionaries.

And maybe one day soon, the most common order at the hospital restaurant will be kale salad with sweet potatoes and fresh fruit — with the same goal as the cardiologists down the hall.

Tell us in the comments:

• What is your experience with hospital food?
• Do you think medical education should focus more on nutrition and prevention?

Featured Image: iStock.com/AlessandroPhoto

The post Nutrition Was Missing From Medicine for Decades. That’s Changing. appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

I’m not saying those questions aren’t important, but they all miss the one nutrient critical to a healthy life that almost everyone is deficient in: fiber

Are you getting enough fiber? It depends on what you eat, of course. But in the words of Toy Story’s Magic 8 Ball, “don’t count on it.” Fewer than 10% of U.S. women and 3% of U.S. men get the recommended amount of fiber. In the U.K., more than 9 out of 10 adults fall short.

In places where people still eat relatively traditional diets, like many of the Blue Zones that are home to some of the planet’s longest-lived peoples, eating fiber-rich foods is par for the course. In fact, it may well be that fiber is a major factor in the longevity of Blue Zone residents.

A meta-analysis published in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that people who consumed the most fiber were 16% less likely to die during the following ten years, compared to those who ate the least.

Researchers analyzed 17 studies that included nearly a million participants and found that every 10 grams of fiber consumed per day cut mortality risk by 10%. To put that amount in perspective, one small cherry tomato weighs roughly 10 grams, according to my kitchen scale. 

But why is fiber good for you? How can it benefit your health? How much fiber do you need daily? And how can you ensure you’re getting enough fiber in your diet?

What Is Fiber, Exactly?

Fiber provides structure to plant cell walls, functioning kind of like a skeleton. When you eat plants, your body does a great job of extracting macro and micronutrients, but it doesn’t manufacture the digestive enzymes needed to break down fiber. So that fiber passes through your digestive system intact.

That might sound like an argument for fiber being unnecessary, or even a problem. But wait — there’s more to the story. A lot more.

There are two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Each performs a different job in your body. 

Soluble fiber dissolves into a gel in your digestive tract with the addition of water. It slows down digestion, which helps with blood sugar balance and cholesterol levels, as well as nutrient absorption. Good amounts of soluble fiber are found in foods like whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds, as well as some fruits and vegetables. 

Insoluble fiber adds bulk to your stools and acts like a broom, cleaning out your digestive tract. It promotes healthy bowel movements and also helps with insulin sensitivity. You can find good amounts of insoluble fiber in whole grains, vegetables, and wheat bran.

Both soluble and insoluble fiber are found naturally, to varying degrees, in all unrefined plant foods. Meat, dairy products, fish, eggs, added sugars, and oils, however, don’t contain any fiber. And processed foods made with refined flour generally contain very little, if any, because natural fiber is lost or removed in their manufacture.

Prebiotics and Resistant Starch

Soluble fiber does more than regulate the traffic in your digestive tract. While your body doesn’t have the digestive enzymes that can break it down into useful compounds, it “knows a guy.” Specifically, your gut is host to a veritable universe of bacteria, collectively known as your microbiome.

Like any universe, your microbiome includes many different characters; some helpful, some neutral, and some downright dangerous. Beneficial bacteria, known as probiotics, have the tools to metabolize fiber for energy. In that process, they also produce a wide range of compounds that are crucial to your health that you can’t make without them.

Prebiotics fall under the umbrella of soluble fiber and also serve as food for those beneficial “probiotic” gut bacteria. Prebiotic-rich foods include things like jicama, allium vegetables, legumes, and leafy greens.

Resistant starch is a type of indigestible, fermentable carbohydrate that also serves as a prebiotic. Whole grains, potatoes cooled after cooking (hello, potato salad!), and green bananas are all good sources of resistant starch. This type of starch improves insulin sensitivity and promotes the production of short-chain fatty acids in the gut, which keep your gut and immune system healthy. These fatty acids also circulate throughout your body, communicating with your cells and tissues to help regulate inflammation and promote healing.

Benefits of Fiber

The evidence for the health benefits of fiber is overwhelming. Let’s explore some of it here.

Fiber and Gut Health 

Does fiber help you poop? Yes, it does! And being able to do so daily is more important than you might think. Constipation is not only uncomfortable, but it may also increase your risk for chronic diseases like cancer, hormonal imbalances, and even cardiovascular disease.

By speeding things along, fiber helps eliminate toxins from your digestive tract. The longer those toxins hang around, the more likely they are to be reabsorbed into your body through your intestines and wreak havoc on your health.

Fiber also benefits your digestive system by improving the composition of your microbiome. As we saw, certain fiber-filled foods are also prebiotics that feed your population of good gut bacteria. Increasing your fiber intake can alter your microbiota in as little as two weeks, enabling those beneficial bacteria to crowd out any “bad guys“ that could be causing gastrointestinal and other health issues.

Does Fiber Help You Lose Weight?

Consuming more fiber can indeed support weight loss. A 2019 study, the POUNDS Lost Study, asked overweight and obese participants to follow a reduced-calorie diet that provided at least 20 grams of fiber per day.

That number is worth putting in context. It’s well below the 25–40 grams per day recommended by the U.S. Institute of Medicine (the range depending on age and sex), but it’s significantly more than most Americans currently eat. So even that modest target represented a meaningful dietary shift for most participants.

Fewer than half of the participants consistently hit the 20-gram mark — those who did lost about 3 more pounds than those who fell short. One likely reason is that adequate fiber helped them more easily stick to their calorie targets.

So why does fiber help with weight management? A big part of the answer is satiety. Soluble fiber absorbs water in the gut and forms a gel-like substance that slows the absorption of sugars into the bloodstream and activates stretch receptors in your stomach. This is the physical signal that tells your brain you’ve eaten enough.

Fiber-rich whole foods reinforce this effect in another way. Compared to animal products and processed foods, whole plant foods tend to be higher in water and lower in fat, which means they deliver fewer calories per bite. You end up eating a satisfying volume of food while taking in fewer calories overall — and your stretch receptors do the rest, sending the message to your brain that it’s time to stop.

Fiber and Cancer Prevention

Fiber is an essential part of your waste removal system, constantly eliminating carcinogens before they become a problem. For instance, fiber works to prevent colorectal cancer by improving intestinal transit time — literally sweeping away carcinogens.

In a study at the National Cancer Institute called the Polyp Prevention Trial (PPT), published in the Journal of Nutrition, participants were put on a low-fat, high-fiber diet high in fruits and vegetables. Researchers focused on the recurrence of colorectal adenomas (polyps), viewing them as precursors or early warning signs of cancers that might take years or decades to show up clinically. 

After adjusting for variables, it was found that the one food that made a difference in whether or not participants had a recurrence of adenomas was the amount of beans they consumed. The researchers note that for most study participants, beans were their primary source of dietary fiber. 

Fiber’s anticancer benefits don’t stop at colorectal cancer. It also reduces the risk of cancers of the breast, prostate, mouth, and throat. A meta-analysis published in the BMJ found that every 10 grams of fiber consumed daily is associated with a 10% reduced risk of colorectal cancer, and a separate meta-analysis in the Annals of Oncology found the same 10-gram increase linked to a 5% reduction in breast cancer risk.

But perhaps the most striking finding comes from a long-term study published in Pediatrics that followed over 90,000 women for 20 years. It found that what you eat as a teenager and young adult may shape your breast cancer risk for the rest of your life. Women who consumed the most fiber during adolescence and early adulthood — around 20 grams or more per day — had a 24% lower risk of developing breast cancer before menopause. Every additional 10 grams of daily fiber in early adulthood was associated with a 13% further reduction in risk. And the women with the highest overall fiber intake reduced their lifetime breast cancer risk by 16%.

In other words, this isn’t just advice for adults trying to course-correct. If you have daughters, nieces, or young women in your life, or you are a young woman yourself, this is worth sharing and taking to heart.

Is Fiber Good for Your Heart?

Many cardiologists recommend eating oatmeal for breakfast. Their #1 reason? Oatmeal is a rich source of soluble fiber, and studies have found that it has a positive impact on cholesterol.

In fact, a review and meta-analysis of 22 different studies found that the more fiber people ate, the lower their risk of both cardiovascular disease and coronary artery disease. 

One possible way dietary fiber achieves these effects might be its ability to reduce systemic inflammation markers associated with cardiovascular disease and other diseases. Its impact on inflammation is important for heart health because inflammation may be a risk factor for high blood pressure.

Fiber and Blood Sugar

Fiber helps regulate blood sugar. This is one of the reasons that many dietitians and other lifestyle medicine practitioners recommend that people with type 2 diabetes consume beans and other legumes. These high-fiber powerhouses help slow glucose absorption while regulating blood sugar over time.

In a study published in Nutrition Journal, researchers compared the glycemic response of traditional bean-and-rice meals with rice alone.

Seventeen men and women with diabetes were given either plain white rice, white rice with black beans, white rice with pinto beans, or white rice with red kidney beans. Then, researchers measured their blood glucose at 90, 120, and 150 minutes.

When they ate beans with their rice, the participants exhibited better blood sugar control. This makes sense, considering that beans and other legumes are good sources of resistant starch, which can improve insulin sensitivity and prime the body to move glucose from the blood into cells, where it can be stored or used.

So, whether you have type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, or just want to have a steadier blood sugar balance and improved insulin sensitivity, a high-fiber, plant-powered diet that includes beans may help you feel your best.

How Much Fiber Do You Need?

Dietary guidelines for fiber vary, but most countries and professional health agencies recommend intakes between 25 and 35 grams per day for adults. Although the U.S. updated its daily fiber reference value in 2016 from 25 to 28 grams per day for a 2,000-calorie diet — based on the long-standing standard of 14 grams per 1,000 calories — most adults are still getting only about half that amount daily.

While 28 grams of fiber would obviously be a step in the right direction, some experts believe we should aim much higher. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine’s (PCRM) fiber recommendation, for example, is 40 grams per day. 

Even that goal falls short of the 100-gram-a-day average that some researchers believe our ancestors may have been eating. They weren’t tracking their fiber intake on an app or hunting it down at a health food store. It was simply the tax they paid for eating wild plants. In those days, undomesticated fruits, veggies, and tubers were much tougher and woodier than the tender, sugary versions we find in modern supermarkets. 

And in the absence of fancy kitchen gadgets, our progenitors often consumed the skin, seeds, and stems of these plants. Long story short: To get enough calories from plants, they had to eat massive volumes, which naturally brought a tidal wave of fiber into their digestive tract.

I don’t necessarily recommend eating twigs and banana peels to achieve those 100 grams a day. But if you’re eating the way most people do in the industrialized world, you could probably do with more fiber in your diet. 

What Are the Best High Fiber Foods?

Now that you know the health benefits of getting enough fiber, what are some of the best fiber-rich foods you should be eating?  

Given that fiber is best found in its natural state and fiber is found only in plant foods, fill your plate with fiber-rich foods, such as:

• Vegetables
• Fruits
• Beans and other legumes
• Whole grains
• Nuts and seeds

You can buy fiber supplements, which are probably better than nothing if your diet is largely devoid of fiber. That said, in most cases, they’re likely to be of limited value compared to whole plant foods, since they’re missing the beneficial vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals also found in those foods.

This infographic, which is by no means comprehensive, can help you start your quest to find high-fiber foods.

How to Get Enough Fiber in Your Diet 

Here are some easy ways to add more fiber to your diet:

• Choose whole grains instead of white bread and white flour products
• Choose beans over beef (or any other animal product)
• Double your veggie sides: Pile vegetables on your plate before you add anything else
• Start your day with oatmeal and berries instead of eggs, bacon, or commercial breakfast cereals 
• Snack on fiber-rich foods, such as pears, sliced apples with peanut butter, or veggies and hummus
• Skip or reduce your consumption of meat, dairy, and processed foods like cookies, crackers, chips, and sodas

Specific foods vary in fiber content, but to gauge how much fiber to eat, it can be helpful to estimate the number of grams of fiber in different food groups.

The PCRM offers this information in a handy chart.

To understand how much fiber you’re getting, here’s what you can do: Write down everything you eat and drink for one day and jot down your fiber score according to this chart.  

You’ll notice that if your diet is made primarily from whole plant foods and includes plenty of beans, whole grains, fruit, and vegetables, you’re probably getting a good amount of fiber.

However, if you’re eating meat, dairy, and processed foods — like white bread, cookies, crackers, chips, and soda — it can be challenging to achieve the goal of 40 grams, or even 28 grams, of fiber per day.

How to Understand What Your Fiber Score Means

Less than 20 grams of fiber per day

Your score is pretty typical for most modern industrialized nations, but it’s not doing your health any favors.

With less than 20 grams of fiber per day, you may be hungry often and have trouble with constipation and other digestive issues. At this level, the risk for certain chronic diseases, including heart disease and some forms of cancer, is also increased.

But the good news is, it’s easy to change all this by incorporating more fiber-rich foods into your diet!

20–39 grams of fiber per day

You’re getting more than many people eating the standard American diet, but you may still have room for improvement.

Focus on crowding out foods that contain little to no fiber by adding more fiber superstars to your meals — like beans and lentils. By doing so, you’ll probably find that you feel more satisfied and that maintaining a healthy weight becomes easier. Plus, you’ll further reduce your risk of chronic diseases and early mortality.

40+ grams of fiber per day

Your diet is loaded with fiber-rich whole plant foods. You’re in the tiny fraction of the population that is actually getting PCRM’s recommended amount of fiber. Way to go!

A Fiber-Rich Meal Plan

What does high-fiber eating look like?

If most people eat less than the recommended amount of fiber per day, you may be thinking, “How am I going to eat 40 or more grams of fiber (or even 28 grams) per day?” 

It’s easier than you think. Here’s what a typical day might look like:

Breakfast: Buckwheat Chia Pancakes: 13 grams from the buckwheat + 2 grams from the chia + 1 gram from the mashed banana = 16 grams 

Lunch: Avocado Salad: 4 ½ grams from the avocado + 4 grams from the black beans + 2 grams from the arugula, tomato, onion and cilantro = 10.5 grams 

Snack: Moroccan Baked Chickpeas: = 7 grams 

Dinner: Vegan Mince Lettuce Tacos: 6 grams from the lentils + 3 grams from the veggies, including romaine lettuce shells = 9 grams

Total Fiber: 42.5 (Ding ding ding, we have a winner!)

Take Action for Your Health: Fiber Challenge

Now that you know why fiber is so good for you and how to get enough fiber in your diet, team up with a friend or family member and challenge yourself and each other to reach 40 grams of fiber per day consistently. 

If you’re new to eating a lot of fiber, be sure to add it to your diet slowly, because increasing your fiber intake too quickly can cause bloating and gas or other negative side effects. It’s also important to drink plenty of water while increasing your consumption of fiber-rich foods. When you increase gradually and allow your body to become used to the increase in fiber, you probably won’t experience any discomfort.

Fiber may be the least glamorous nutrient in the conversation about healthy eating. No one (except maybe yours truly!) is writing breathless headlines about their high-fiber diet. But the evidence is hard to argue with. Better digestion, lower cancer risk, a healthier heart, steadier blood sugar, and a longer life. All from eating more plants. Take the 40-gram challenge, add it gradually, drink plenty of water, and see how you feel. The results might surprise you.

Tell us in the comments:

• Do you get enough fiber?
• What’s one simple change can you make today to start incorporating more fiber into your diet?
• What benefits have you noticed from adding more fiber to your diet?

Featured Image: iStock.com/apomares

Read Next:

• Are Starches Good or Bad?
• 5 Common Mistakes Plant-Based Eaters Make and How to Avoid Them
• Plant-Based Protein: The Best Sources & How Much You Actually Need

The post Why Is Fiber Good For You? (And How To Get Enough Fiber!) appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

They’ve had mixed success, as shown in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, released by the USDA in early January 2025. US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy, Jr., presented the guidelines to the press by proclaiming, “We are ending the war on saturated fats.”

The key visual — an inverted pyramid — appears to make good on that promise by prominently featuring a raw steak, a hunk of cheese, a pan of ground beef, and a carton of whole milk at the top left. 

At the same time, the document text features the exact same guideline as before: “In general, saturated fat consumption should not exceed 10% of total daily calories.” The only wiggle room comes in the form of uncertainty: “More high-quality research is needed to determine which types of dietary fats best support long-term health.”

And nutrition experts have pointed out that if you follow the recommended daily servings supplement, you’re going to be consuming a lot more than 10% of your calories from saturated fat. 

The inconsistencies remind me of the days of billboard ads for cigarettes that featured beautiful and healthy people next to warnings of disease, disability, and premature death. Confusion is a key strategy employed by those peddling harmful products — and the letter introducing the guidelines makes it clear in whose interests they were crafted: “We are realigning our food system to support American farmers, ranchers, and companies who grow and produce real food…”

With so much noise, it’s no wonder many people feel stuck between the warnings and the hype. So let’s slow down, ignore the pundits, proselytizers, and policymakers, and look at what seven decades of science actually show.

Let’s start by understanding what saturated fat is, and how it differs from other kinds of fat (and how various types of saturated fat differ from each other). Next, we’ll explore how saturated fat affects the body, summarizing the strongest and most reliable research regarding health risks and benefits. 

We’ll see that the story is more complex than just “saturated fat is bad” vs “saturated fat is good.” The health effects depend in part on the source (whole food vs ultra-processed) and the context (what it’s served with). That is, your body will respond differently to the saturated fat in lard-fried donut burgers, compared to the saturated fat in a blueberry coconut chia pudding.

We’ll close by tying the research to your diet, showing you where saturated fat is found in food (including some surprising “stealth” sources), and sharing tips on shifting your diet toward healthier fats in a way that supports both your heart and the planet.

You’ll walk away knowing how to keep saturated fat in a healthy range without obsessing, which fats to prioritize instead, and how to put that knowledge into practice through simple and delicious everyday meals (plus three amazing recipes).

Saturated Fat 101: What It Is (and Isn’t)

First, let’s clear up a common point of confusion: Saturated fat isn’t just one thing — it’s a category that includes several types of fatty acids that are “saturated” with hydrogen atoms, meaning they contain no double bonds. This structure typically renders them solid at room temperature, as with coconut oil, lard, and beef tallow. In contrast, unsaturated fats — like those in olive oil, flax, walnuts, and avocados — have one or more double bonds, are usually liquid at room temperature, and have been shown to support healthier cholesterol levels when they replace saturated fats in the diet.

Types of Saturated Fat

Saturated fatty acids come in different lengths, and that makes a big difference in how they behave in the body. Short-chain fatty acids are mainly produced when gut microbes ferment fiber in the colon, though small amounts are found in fermented foods like yogurt and kefir. You get medium- and long-chain saturated fats directly from food. 

Medium-chain fats are digested and absorbed differently from long-chain fats, which has sparked considerable interest, especially in infant and clinical nutrition. They’re even found in breast milk, supporting infants’ rapid growth and brain development. Some research suggests that medium-chain triglycerides (a form of medium-chain fatty acid that can be distilled into MCT oil) may help with weight management, blood sugar regulation, and neurological health, although the evidence is mixed. 

Sadly for coconut oil fans, there’s no good evidence, so far, showing that coconut oil consumption improves heart risk markers compared with unsaturated oils. While purified MCT oil shows some promise in clinical settings, coconut oil itself raises LDL cholesterol similar to other saturated fats and lacks evidence of cardiovascular benefit. 

We do know that high intakes of certain long-chain saturated fats, such as palmitic acid, have been linked to metabolic problems, including gestational diabetes.

What Saturated Fat Does in Your Body

Your body requires fat to be healthy — but not specifically saturated fat. While some fats, particularly omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fats, are essential and must come from food, your body can make all the saturated fatty acids it needs on its own, which is why saturated fat is not considered an essential nutrient.

Fat plays essential roles in building cell membranes, producing hormones and other signaling molecules, and providing a concentrated source of energy. Like all fats, saturated fat contains 9 calories per gram, which is more than double the energy density of carbohydrates and protein.

Saturated fat affects blood lipids, including amounts and ratios of cholesterol. Specifically, it raises LDL (“bad”) cholesterol by decreasing LDL receptor activity in the liver. Some saturated fats also raise HDL (“good”) cholesterol, but the increase in LDL is more strongly tied to increased cardiovascular disease risk than HDL is tied to risk reduction. 

And excess intake of saturated fat, particularly from ultra-processed foods, can contribute to insulin resistance and increase chronic inflammation. 

Digestion & Absorption: Why Saturated Fat Doesn’t Act the Same in Every Food

We’ve already seen that chain length matters. Here’s why: short- and medium-chain saturated fats are absorbed more directly and oxidized faster; long-chain fats need bile salts and micelles (tiny, spherical structures that ferry fatty substances from your digestive tract into the absorptive cells lining your small intestines).

The composition of the meal containing the saturated fat also affects how the fat is metabolized by the body. Fiber-rich foods can reduce fat absorption and blunt lipid spikes; refined carbs alongside saturated fat may worsen lipid/insulin responses. 

How you prepare the food — or how it was prepared before it got to your kitchen — also makes a difference. Ultra-processing can increase how rapidly your body digests and absorbs saturated fat. And reusing oil, or cranking up the heat for deep-frying, breaks down saturated fats and creates nasty byproducts like trans fats and inflammatory compounds. These altered molecules make saturated fats even harder on your heart by driving up LDL cholesterol and speeding up the buildup of plaque in your arteries.

There are also individual factors that influence how saturated fat affects your body. These include your unique gut microbiome, ability to produce bile, genetics (especially the genes that determine how your body deals with dietary lipids), and your overall metabolic health.

Is Saturated Fat Harmful? The Science in Plain English

The nuanced answer is: Yes for most people in most contexts, but the degree of harm depends on the type, source, and what replaces it in your diet.

Some saturated fats in whole foods don’t appear to harm cardiometabolic health. For example, some observational studies suggest fermented dairy (mainly yogurt) may have neutral or slightly beneficial associations compared with other high-saturated-fat foods, though the mechanisms remain unclear and may relate to other components like probiotics or the food matrix rather than the saturated fat itself.

And certain types, like the medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) found in coconut oil, are metabolized differently than the long-chain saturated fats common in animal and ultra-processed foods. Purified MCT oil may even have some benefits for weight, brain, and metabolic health, but the evidence for coconut oil itself is mixed — and it’s not generally considered beneficial. So while not all saturated fat is equally harmful, most people benefit from cutting back, especially on the kinds found in processed and animal-based foods.

A growing body of leading medical and public health organizations now tells us that saturated fat should be limited in the diet and replaced with unsaturated fats (especially polyunsaturated fats) to reduce cardiovascular risk. The Health Organizations’ Recommendations on Saturated Fat (2025) compiles current guidance from a veritable “who’s who” of authoritative health organizations, including the American Heart Association (AHA), World Health Organization (WHO), American College of Cardiology, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, American Diabetes Association, American Cancer Society, and American Medical Association, among others.

What’s the evidence upon which these various organizations based their recommendations? It’s a broad range of randomized trials, observational studies, and official policy statements, all pointing toward similar conclusions. 

Bottom line, the consensus is that reducing saturated fat and replacing it with unsaturated fats is associated with lower LDL cholesterol and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. 

What do they mean by “reducing”? To what level, exactly? Many organizations, including the WHO and AHA, recommend saturated fat intake remain below 10% of total calories, with even lower limits (around 6%) for greater cardiovascular benefit.

For example, on a 2,000-calorie diet, no more than about 6–10% of calories should come from saturated fat. That equals roughly 120–200 calories per day, or about 13–22 grams of saturated fat, since fat provides 9 calories per gram. The alignment across cardiology, oncology, pediatrics, and global health communities underscores a shared message: keep saturated fat intake low and prioritize nutrient-dense, plant-based sources of unsaturated fat for improved health outcomes.

Can you find studies that come to other conclusions? Absolutely. As we’ve already seen, the type of saturated fat matters. And so does what it comes with and what it replaces. But the overwhelming preponderance of data, from thousands of studies published over many decades, is clear. People who eat less saturated fat, and especially if they replace it with polyunsaturated fats, tend to have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. They also tend to live longer and be healthier. 

For more on the health impact of seed oils and a comparison to beef tallow, see our article here.

Where Saturated Fat Shows Up in the Diet

To understand how to keep saturated fat in a healthy range, we need to know where it is most commonly found. In many modern diets, the highest contributors are animal sources, including red and processed meats, poultry skin, butter, cheese, whole-fat milk, cream, and ice cream. 

As we’ve seen, not all saturated fat is animal-derived; notable plant-based exceptions include coconut and coconut oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil, cocoa butter, and the vegan butters, cheeses, and pastries made with these tropical fats. 

Finally, and perhaps most concerningly, processed and packaged foods — like pizza, burgers, cookies, chips, fast foods, and many frozen meals — often contribute heavily to diet-related disease due to a combo of saturated fat and high concentrations of refined starch and/or sugar. 

To round out the picture, be aware of where saturated fat often hides: in seemingly harmless items like coffee drinks, creamy sauces, snack bars, and nondairy creamers that use coconut or palm oils.

Beyond Personal Health: Environmental and Ethical Costs of Animal-Based Saturated Fat

So far, we’ve been looking at the local effects of saturated fat; that is, what happens to the body that consumes it. But since most saturated fat comes from animal agriculture, it makes sense to look at the bigger picture, both from the perspective of planetary health and the ethics of how animals are raised for food. 

Environmental Impacts of Large-Scale Animal Agriculture

Animal agriculture, especially ruminant livestock like cattle, produces significant greenhouse gases, particularly methane, and is a major driver of the food system’s climate impact. Beef and dairy are among the highest-carbon-emitting foods on a per-calorie or per-gram-of-protein basis.

Beef, for example, generates 10 times more emissions than pork or poultry and more than 100 times those of plant-based, protein-rich foods such as lentils or beans. What’s more, grazing animals and feed crops like soy and corn require large areas of land. This contributes to habitat loss and biodiversity decline, including deforestation in some regions. Transitioning to a plant-based diet could reduce agricultural land use by more than 75%, thereby freeing land for reforestation and allowing ecosystems to begin repairing themselves. Such efforts could sequester an estimated 226 billion metric tons of carbon, one-third of the excess emissions since industrialization.

For more on the public and environmental health effects of animal agriculture, see my paper published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, here.

Ethical Impacts of Large-Scale Animal Agriculture

As we’ve seen, much of the saturated fat in modern diets comes from industrially raised animals (both meat and dairy). Common welfare issues include overcrowding, confinement systems, painful procedures, and shortened lifespans. 

An area where ethics and public health overlap in industrial animal agriculture is the use (I’d say irresponsible overuse) of antibiotics for growth promotion and disease prevention. Not only does this allow animals to be raised under stressful, crowded conditions, but it also raises public-health concerns because it accelerates antibiotic resistance that affects humans and animals alike.

Additionally, animal agriculture undermines efforts to share food and other resources equitably across human populations. Cycling calories and protein through animals is less resource-efficient than producing them directly from plants. In a world where so many people go hungry, it’s hard to defend using finite land and water to feed livestock instead of directly nourishing people.

Since the largest dietary sources of saturated fat are animal-based foods, strategies that reduce saturated fat by shifting toward whole-plant fats and proteins can support both cardiometabolic health and planetary and ethical goals.

Practical Ways to Cut Back Without Feeling Deprived

If you want to adhere to the guidelines that recommend keeping your saturated fat intake below 10% of calories (and ideally, under 6%), one simple strategy is to replace those calories with unsaturated fats rather than refined carbs. 

Here are some practical swaps to do just that:

• Use olive, avocado, canola, or safflower oil instead of butter, ghee, coconut, or palm oils.
• Choose beans, lentils, tofu/tempeh, or (if it aligns with your ethics) fish in place of fatty red/processed meats.
• Pick nuts/seeds and nut butters as “fat sources,” not pastries or chips.
• Try plant-based dairy alternatives made from soy, hemp, oats, or almonds, without coconut/palm oil as the main fat.

And here’s a quick list of cooking and meal ideas:

• Achieve creamy textures without using cream by blending white beans, silken tofu, cashews, or cauliflower purée.
• Try a “roast and drizzle” approach: roast veggies with little or no oil, then finish with extra-virgin olive oil and lemon/herbs.
• Batch-create whole-food sauces (tomato-lentil, mushroom-walnut, tahini-lemon).
• Snack on crunchy baked chickpeas or kale chips in place of potato chips.
• Enjoy a plant-powered smoothie bowl made with frozen fruit and plant-based yogurt in place of ice cream.

Recipes

Get ready to dig into these three low-saturated-fat recipes that bring big flavor and satisfying textures to the table. From creamy, comforting spoonfuls to deeply roasted bites with irresistible crunch, each dish delivers richness without relying on heavy fats. These recipes show how thoughtful ingredients and simple techniques can turn lighter choices into exciting, crave-worthy favorites you’ll want to make again and again.

1. Smoky Chipotle Cheese Dip 

Smoky Chipotle Cheese Dip delivers everything you love about a classic queso-style dip with a lighter, more nourishing twist. Naturally sweet vegetables like winter squash, sweet potato, carrots, and onion create a smooth, velvety base that keeps saturated fat low while still feeling rich and creamy. Smoky chipotle, warm spices, and savory depth bring bold, cheesy flavor to every bite, making this dip perfect for sharing, scooping, or adding a flavorful kick to meals.

2. Creamy Asparagus Risotto

Creamy Asparagus Risotto is the kind of dish that turns an ordinary meal into something worth lingering over. Inspired by the richness of traditional risotto, this plant-forward version delivers silky creaminess and deep, savory flavor with just 1.9 grams of saturated fat per serving, far less than the butter- and cheese-heavy classic. Built on whole, nourishing ingredients, it offers a comforting, crave-worthy experience that feels both indulgent and energizing, making every spoonful deeply satisfying.

3. One-Sheet Pan Roasted Veggie Bowl

One-Sheet Roasted Veggie Bowl shows how bold, roasted flavor does not require heavy amounts of oil. Using just one teaspoon of oil for the entire recipe, and even that is optional, this bowl delivers crisp edges, tender centers, and deeply satisfying texture from the natural caramelization of vegetables. Sweet and Savory Pecans add crunch and richness with only a small amount of saturated fat per serving, proving that thoughtful ingredients and simple techniques can create a roasted vegetable bowl that feels hearty, flavorful, and deeply nourishing.

Bottom Line: What to Do with All This Information

Despite political pressure to muddy the waters, the science remains clear. Saturated fat isn’t a villain nutrient on its own, but high intake — especially from red/processed meats and ultra-processed foods — raises LDL cholesterol and heart risk. Don’t just “cut saturated fat”; replace it with unsaturated fats and whole-plant foods (not donuts and French fries). Small, consistent swaps can add up to a much healthier dietary pattern. 

You don’t need to choose between indulging in limitless saturated fat or fearing it. Instead, focus on the quality of your food and your consumption patterns. Your heart, the animals, and the planet will thank you for it. 

Tell us in the comments:

• What’s one thing you learned from this article that surprised you?
• What’s one swap you’ve made (or could try) to lower your saturated fat intake?
• Have you already made any dietary shifts that reflect your ethical concerns? What were they? 

Read Next:

• Coconut Oil Health Benefits: Is Coconut Good for You?
• Understanding Fat: What Types of Fat Are Good vs Bad for You?

The post Rethinking Saturated Fat: What Does the Evidence Really Say? appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Meet insulin: your body’s growth‑directing hormone. Insulin is a major player in turning your food into the energy that keeps you going. How your cells respond to insulin is key not just to your athletic performance but to your overall health as well.

When your body struggles to let insulin do its job, that’s known as insulin resistance — a condition that impacts nearly a billion people. It’s one of the major driving forces in the development of type 2 diabetes, and it’s also associated with a number of other serious health conditions.

What’s not widely known, even in scientific circles, is that insulin resistance can be reversed.

In this article, we’ll unpack what insulin resistance is, why it matters, and how small, sustainable shifts — especially in your diet — can make a meaningful difference to your long-term health.

What Is Insulin Resistance?

First, let’s talk about insulin itself. It’s a hormone that regulates your blood glucose (sugar) levels. Think of insulin as a key that opens your cells to receive glucose from your bloodstream. That’s important for both sides of the transaction, keeping your blood sugar from getting dangerously high and supplying your cells with the energy they need.

Insulin resistance is a metabolic condition in which your body is less able to respond to insulin. Imagine something blocking up the keyholes so insulin can’t open your cells to receive glucose. Two bad things happen: your cells are deprived of energy, and your blood glucose levels become elevated.

There are a bunch of factors that can contribute to insulin resistance: genetic predisposition, obesity (particularly the accumulation of fat around your internal organs), chronic inflammation, a sedentary lifestyle, and diet.

Signs and Symptoms of Insulin Resistance

Common signs of insulin resistance include fatigue, increased hunger (especially for carbs), belly fat, frequent urination, skin tags, darkened patches of skin (especially around the neck or armpits), and brain fog. High blood pressure and abnormal cholesterol levels may also appear in blood work before other symptoms appear.

But insulin resistance usually starts symptomless. The first time many people find out they have this condition is when they’re diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. That’s one reason regular health check-ups and routine blood tests can be important, especially if you have risk factors like leading a sedentary lifestyle, being overweight, or having an existing chronic health condition.

How Is Insulin Resistance Diagnosed?

Several blood tests can detect early warning signs and can help you take action to prevent later complications. Some of the most common and useful include:

• Fasting blood glucose: This test measures blood sugar levels after an overnight fast. If your levels are high, that may indicate a problem with glucose regulation.
• HbA1c (hemoglobin A1c): This test shows your average blood sugar level over the past two to three months. If fasting blood glucose is a snapshot, HbA1c is more of a time-lapse movie.
• Fasting insulin: This test assesses how much insulin your body is producing. If it’s higher than normal, that could indicate that your pancreas is overproducing it to compensate for insulin resistance.
• HOMA-IR (homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance): This calculation uses fasting glucose and insulin levels to estimate insulin resistance.
• Lipid panel and liver function: These tests offer additional insights, since insulin resistance often coexists with abnormal cholesterol levels and fatty liver disease.

Health Implications of Insulin Resistance

While insulin resistance is commonly associated with type 2 diabetes, it’s also involved in several other disease processes.

1. Type 2 Diabetes

The most well-known outcome of insulin resistance is type 2 diabetes, which is defined as having an A1c of 6.5% or more (while prediabetes is diagnosed at 5.7–6.5%). However, elevated blood sugar is a symptom, not the cause. It’s actually insulin resistance that raises blood sugar levels, because if sugar can’t get into the cells, where it’s needed, it tends to build up in the blood.

When blood sugar is high, the pancreas gets the message that there isn’t enough insulin, so it ramps up production. But it also tells your body, “Hey, stash this extra fuel as fat” — leading, over time, to obesity and, eventually, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. That fat makes your cells even less responsive to insulin, creating a negative feedback loop.

When your cells ignore insulin’s friendly knock on the door, your pancreas raises the volume, sending more insulin to do the same job.

Keep the cycle spinning long enough, and your overworked pancreas may sputter out, losing its ability to produce insulin at all, and leaving you dependent on injected insulin. This process can essentially compound type 2 diabetes (insulin resistance) by also giving you a form of type 1 diabetes (lack of endogenous insulin).

2. Cardiovascular Disease 

Insulin resistance can accelerate plaque buildup in arteries (that is, atherosclerosis), which fuels the development of heart disease and stroke. Too much insulin and high blood sugar also cause oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, damaging blood vessels and the heart.

This all contributes to high blood pressure, elevated triglycerides, low HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and increased LDL (“bad”) cholesterol.

3. Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

Insulin resistance is a central driver of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, a condition in which fat builds up in the liver. While alcohol consumption is a well-known cause of liver disease, NAFLD is named to distinguish this condition from liver damage caused by drinking. In NAFLD, poor insulin sensitivity, not alcohol, is the main culprit behind fat accumulation in the liver.

Over time, NAFLD can progress to NASH (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, if you’d like to cultivate a collection of liver-based acronyms), fibrosis, and even cirrhosis.

NAFLD is closely tied to obesity and metabolic syndrome, both of which often stem from poor insulin sensitivity.

For more on NAFLD and other liver conditions, and how to protect yourself, check out our full article here.

4. Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome

Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions including abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, and high blood sugar.

Insulin resistance can contribute to obesity (especially visceral fat) and metabolic syndrome. And they can, in turn, worsen inflammation and promote insulin resistance. Together, these factors greatly increase the risk of both type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

5. Other Disorders

Insulin resistance can also lead to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), cognitive decline, and sleep disorders.

Can Insulin Resistance Be Reversed?

In many cases, especially when caught early, lifestyle changes can significantly improve or even fully reverse insulin resistance. Your body has an incredible ability to heal and adapt when given the proper support.

There are several lifestyle strategies that you can use here, including diet, exercise, weight management, sleep hygiene, and stress management.

Improving Insulin Resistance Through Diet

For many decades, the mainstream dietary advice to diabetics has been to avoid carbohydrates of all kinds. The thinking goes like this: Diabetes is a disease of high blood sugar. Carbohydrates are made up of simple sugars. Therefore, it makes sense to reduce carbohydrate intake significantly to keep blood sugar low.

And sure enough, many people who check their blood sugar with a finger prick see a spike after eating carbs. It’s an understandable argument. But here’s the catch: As we’ve seen, high blood sugar isn’t the root cause — it’s a symptom. The real issue is that your body isn’t processing those carbohydrates properly. Due to insulin resistance, the glucose from your food gets stuck in your bloodstream instead of making its way into your muscle cells.

Cutting all carbohydrates is like “solving” a blocked toilet by not using it. Wouldn’t it be more effective to plunge the toilet to remove the blockage?

Proponents of a low-carb diet aren’t entirely off-base, however. They’re right that some carbohydrates can fuel insulin resistance; specifically, added sugars and refined carbohydrates that are not accompanied by fiber.

But some carbohydrates can be profoundly beneficial. Eating whole plant-based foods, which tend to be high in fiber, resistant starch, and other healthy carbs, is one way to unblock the insulin receptors in your muscle cells. A diet rich in whole, plant-based carbohydrate-rich foods (like beans, oats, fruits, and veggies) offers fiber-rich, anti-inflammatory benefits that help your body become more insulin sensitive.

A 2018 study explored whether adopting a low-fat, plant-based diet high in carbohydrates and fiber for 16 weeks would help overweight people lose weight and improve how their bodies handled insulin. Those on the plant-based diet lost weight, reduced body fat, and had better insulin sensitivity than those who kept their usual diet.

Although saturated fats and trans fats are linked to increased risk of insulin resistance, healthy fats can reduce inflammation and improve insulin resistance. These good fats, especially the omega-3 fatty acids, can calm inflammation in important areas like the brain (hypothalamus) and fat tissue, helping the body control hunger better and store fat safely, reducing problems linked to insulin resistance.

Monounsaturated fats, such as those found in avocados, almonds, and olive oil, can also fight insulin resistance.

Engage in Regular Physical Activity

When you exercise, you flip a metabolic switch that invites sugar out of the bloodstream and into working muscle. Each contraction summons GLUT‑4 transporters to the surface of your muscle cells, allowing glucose to flow in even when insulin levels are low or baseline insulin signaling is sluggish. And when insulin is present, the two pathways work together for an even bigger payoff.

The magic doesn’t stop when you cool down. Once the contraction‑driven glucose rush subsides, your muscles stay extra receptive to insulin for hours — and in many people, for a full day or longer — after a single workout.

String together these sessions, about 30 minutes of moderate‑intensity movement, three to five times a week, and that post‑exercise “afterglow” can deliver a lasting upgrade in insulin sensitivity and glycemic control.

Prioritize Quality Sleep

Sleep is another huge piece in the insulin sensitivity puzzle. We know that chronic sleep deficiency increases insulin resistance in women, especially postmenopausal women. Biomarkers of inflammation, such as C-reactive protein and serum amyloid A, are associated with poor sleep and glucose intolerance.

Another metabolic marker related to insulin resistance affected by sleep is GLP-1. This compound is having its moment in the sun, thanks to the popularity of weight loss and anti-diabetes drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro that increase the activity of GLP-1 receptors.

Study after study shows us that adequate sleep is necessary for maintaining proper metabolic health. For more on the importance of sleep and the foods, tools, and practices proven to support good sleep, see our article here.

Manage Stress Effectively

Stress can also mess with your insulin sensitivity. When your body goes into fight-or-flight mode, stress hormones flood your bloodstream and tell your liver to dump glucose, making muscle and fat less responsive to insulin. All this is designed to help you run away from a tiger, but it wreaks havoc on your body in the long run.

Chronic exposure to stress ignites inflammation, derails lipid metabolism, injures pancreatic beta cells, and drives insulin resistance through several mechanisms. 

When you manage your stress effectively, you’re also improving your insulin sensitivity. Breathwork, yoga, laughter, or a nature walk dial down cortisol and let insulin signaling rebound.

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Weight gain is generally associated with deterioration in metabolic health. And among people who are overweight, weight loss improves insulin sensitivity.

A 2019 study found that overweight people who are insulin resistant can improve their health by losing even a small amount of weight. The researchers discovered that shrinking belly fat and fat cell size were key to better insulin use and heart health, more than overall weight loss. So, focusing on losing belly fat with a healthy diet can significantly improve insulin sensitivity.

Recipes to Combat Insulin Resistance

Ready for delicious meals that work with your metabolism? Dive into a creamy Green Dream Avocado Smoothie, a crunch‑packed Farmer’s Market Salad with Miso Peanut Dressing, and a cozy Quinoa, Bean, and Vegetable Soup — each crafted to tame post‑meal glucose swings with fiber‑rich greens, plant protein, and anti‑inflammatory flavor. Your taste buds stay happy while your blood sugar remains steady.

1. Green Dream Avocado Smoothie

Think of this glass as a mini spa treatment for your metabolism. Velvety avocado delivers healthy fats that slow digestion, while spinach packs magnesium, a mineral many people with insulin resistance are low on. Hemp seeds add plant protein and omega‑3s to keep cravings in check, and soy milk provides an extra protein boost (shown in studies to improve post‑meal glucose response). The sweetness? It comes mainly from applesauce and a hint of maple (optional), cushioned by all that fiber and fat so you won’t see a glucose roller‑coaster. Blend, sip, and enjoy steady energy that lasts well past breakfast.

2. Farmer’s Market Salad with Miso Peanut Dressing

Picture every color of the produce aisle tossed into one bowl: kale, purple cabbage, sunset‑orange carrots, and juicy bell peppers. That fiber rainbow feeds your gut microbes, producing compounds that enhance insulin sensitivity. Then there’s the dressing — fermented miso plus creamy peanut butter. Fermentation brings probiotic power; peanuts supply arginine, an amino acid linked to better vascular and metabolic health. Chili, lime, and fresh ginger wake up your palate while calming inflammation behind insulin resistance. Top it off with crispy miso‑chickpea‑tofu croutons, and you’ll have crunch, protein, and satisfaction in every bite.

3. Quinoa, Bean, and Vegetable Soup

This isn’t just soup; it’s a one‑pot powerhouse for taming insulin resistance. Quinoa and two kinds of beans join forces to deliver 21 grams of plant protein and a blockbuster dose of soluble fiber — the duo proven to flatten glucose curves. Slow‑simmered veggies release antioxidants that counter oxidative stress, while oregano, garlic, and red‑pepper flakes add anti‑inflammatory flair. Bonus: The resistant starch formed as the soup cools down (even briefly) further improves insulin response when you reheat it. Cozy, filling, and wallet‑friendly, this bowl keeps you warm today and helps your cells listen to insulin tomorrow.

Conclusion

Insulin resistance may begin quietly, but its ripple effects can be far-reaching and devastating. The good news is that insulin resistance is detectable and often reversible. With consistent and positive changes to diet and lifestyle, you can support your body’s natural ability to restore balance.

Read Next:

• Are Canned Foods Healthy? Examining Their Pros and Cons

The post Insulin Resistance Explained: Signs, Causes, and How To Turn It Around appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

What makes autoimmune diseases so tricky is that they manifest when the body’s immune system — the part that’s supposed to protect you — starts attacking healthy cells by mistake. This can present through a wide variety of symptoms, so diagnosis and treatment aren’t always straightforward and can take a while.

Unfortunately, autoimmunity is more common than ever. Worldwide, 5% to 10% of the population may suffer from one or more autoimmune conditions. And in the US, autoimmune diseases are the third most common illness category, after cancer and heart disease. Women are disproportionately affected, with a staggering 78% of cases involving them.

But here’s the good news: there’s growing evidence that what you eat can make a real difference in preventing, managing, and possibly even reversing autoimmune diseases. The right foods can help calm inflammation, ease symptoms, and even support your body’s healing process. So, what kinds of foods and diets are best for autoimmune diseases?

Before we answer that, let’s look at what autoimmune diseases are and what they have in common.

What Is an Autoimmune Disease?

There are over 80 different autoimmune diseases, so there is no singular definition of an autoimmune condition. However, they all share the commonality that the immune system starts misidentifying healthy tissue, cells, and other bodily components as potentially dangerous foreign invaders. In autoimmune disease, the body mistakenly attacks itself to seemingly protect itself from harm. This internal battle can lead to a cascade of symptoms that may vary from person to person.

The autoimmune process can attack different organs and systems, from the pancreas to the thyroid to the skin. The progression and intensity can also vary: for some, symptoms may be minor and come on gradually over months or even years. Others may have an acute “attack” with severe and debilitating symptoms that gradually go away or even progress.

Of the many possible symptoms of various autoimmune disorders, some of the most common are:

• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Low-grade or recurrent fevers
• Muscle aches
• Joint pain or swelling
• Skin problems (rash, blisters, etc.)
• Gastrointestinal issues
• Shortness of breath

Almost any part of the body can be affected by autoimmunity. Types of autoimmune disorders include:

• Thyroid disorders: Grave’s disease or Hashimoto’s disease
• Neurological disorders: Multiple sclerosis or Guillain-Barré syndrome
• Systemic disorders that may attack multiple areas of the body: Lupus, scleroderma, or rheumatoid arthritis
• Gastrointestinal disorders: Inflammatory bowel disease or celiac disease
• Organ-specific disorders: Type 1 diabetes (pancreas) or autoimmune hepatitis (liver)

Your immune system is essential for good health, protecting against harmful pathogens. But when its delicate balance is disrupted, it can become a source of harm, wreaking havoc on your health. So why does this happen?

What Causes Autoimmune Diseases?

While there’s no definitive answer as to what causes autoimmune diseases, many scientists suspect the following three things play a role:

• Genetics
• Infections
• Environmental factors include food allergies and sensitivities, exposure to toxins in our air, food, and water, the balance of intestinal bacteria, and the food we eat.

In recent history, Westernized countries have seen significantly higher rates of these diseases, strongly indicating that autoimmune diseases are not just a product of genetics or bad luck. Instead, they may be strongly influenced by our choices and environment. Researchers believe that even if a predisposing gene is present, environmental factors or infections may be the trigger that “turns on” the gene and that these triggers cause inflammation within the body.

How Excessive Inflammation Is Linked to Autoimmune Diseases

Fundamentally, autoimmune diseases are an inflammation issue. According to the Journal of Immunology Research, “increasing evidence shows that the abnormal inflammatory response is closely associated with many chronic diseases, especially in autoimmune diseases…”

Inflammation isn’t inherently a bad thing. It’s a normal and very important part of the healing process; when you cut your finger and experience some redness, heat, and swelling, those symptoms are your immune system doing damage control and initiating the healing process.

By contrast, the disease can manifest when your immune system has an abnormal response to inflammation, or you’re dealing with chronic inflammation (as opposed to the acute inflammation caused by a one-time injury like a cut finger). In fact, inflammatory diseases, which also include type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, cancer, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease — in addition to autoimmune disorders — may be responsible for up to 50% of deaths worldwide.

Excessive inflammation may stem from several sources (just see the causes of autoimmune disease above), but many researchers believe what Hippocrates told us 2,400 years ago—that all disease starts in the gut. Therefore, gut health is crucial for healing and preventing the development of autoimmune conditions.

A 2017 study published in Frontiers of Immunology found that a “leaky gut” — when the intestinal epithelial lining loses integrity and allows the passage of bacteria and toxins into the blood — can “trigger the initiation and development of autoimmune disease.”

So, what’s the best way to take care of your gut? Food is one of the most powerful tools for promoting good gut bacteria while also fighting excessive inflammation and autoimmunity.

​​What Diets May Help With Autoimmune Disease?

1. Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet

One of the most well-known diets for autoimmune disorders is the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP). This temporary, Paleo-style elimination diet is designed to reduce inflammation and alleviate symptoms in individuals with autoimmune diseases. In theory, it involves removing foods that may trigger immune responses and, by extension, inflammation and gradually reintroducing them to identify specific food sensitivities.

The AIP diet avoids common allergens, such as dairy, wheat, eggs, nuts, and nightshade vegetables. Processed foods and alcoholic beverages are also strictly avoided due to their inflammatory nature.

Because this is a type of Paleo diet, it typically includes meat, seafood, and bone broth. However, the primary focus is on fresh vegetables and fermented foods.

Research on the AIP diet’s effectiveness is emerging. A 2017 study involving individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) found that after following the AIP diet, 73% achieved clinical remission, indicating reduced inflammation and symptom relief.

Another study in 2019 focused on women with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune thyroid disorder. Participants reported significant improvements in quality of life and reductions in inflammation markers after a 10-week AIP diet and lifestyle intervention.

While these studies are promising, more extensive research is needed to fully understand the AIP diet’s impact on various autoimmune conditions. It’s also important to highlight that because this is an elimination diet, it could be wise to gradually and carefully reintroduce otherwise healthy foods once symptoms have been reversed. We also don’t know if folks on the AIP would fare better with a more plant-based version of the protocol. There may be other dietary patterns that are even more effective in the long term.

2. Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean diet is a primarily plant-based eating pattern traditionally followed in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea (such as Greece, Italy, and parts of Spain). It emphasizes consuming fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and healthy fats, particularly olive oil. While moderate intake of fish and poultry is sometimes encouraged, red meat and processed foods are limited.

Many health researchers and experts consider the Mediterranean diet to be one of the healthiest diet patterns. Two of the five blue zone communities (where people live the longest, healthiest lives) follow their own versions of a Mediterranean diet. (For trivia buffs, the Mediterranean blue zones are Ikaria, Greece, and Sardinia, Italy.)

This plant-forward diet is rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, which benefit individuals with or without autoimmune diseases. However, its benefits are compounded if you have an autoimmune condition.

A 2021 study on women with systemic lupus erythematosus found that higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with lower disease activity and less damage to organs and tissues.

Another systematic review indicated that a predominantly plant-based Mediterranean diet’s anti-inflammatory properties might benefit individuals with autoimmune thyroid diseases by modulating immune responses and reducing oxidative stress.

Additionally, research has shown that a higher quality Mediterranean diet (measured by the aMED or alternate Mediterranean score) is associated with a longer time between relapses in women with multiple sclerosis, suggesting a potential role in managing autoimmunity.

For more on this way of eating, check out our article How to Create Vegan Mediterranean Recipes for Well-Being and Longevity.

3. Whole Food, Plant-Based Diet

While every autoimmune disease is different, we’ve seen that they share a common mechanism. They also share something else in common: the power of plants to help alleviate symptoms and heal the body.

Whole food, plant-based diets emphasize minimally processed foods derived from plants, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. They exclude or minimize animal products such as meat, dairy, and eggs.

A 2024 case series published in Frontiers in Nutrition examined three women with lupus and Sjögren’s syndrome (a type of autoimmune disease that primarily attacks the body’s moisture glands, such as those that produce sweat and tears) who adopted a whole-foods, plant-based diet. Participants focused predominantly on raw foods, especially leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, and omega-3-rich foods. All three women reported significant improvements, with nearly all symptoms resolving within four weeks. Notably, two patients remained symptom-free for over six years without an ongoing need for medication.

A 2019 review also examined the potential benefits of plant-based diets for individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The authors found that adopting a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes, may reduce systemic inflammation and alleviate RA symptoms. The anti-inflammatory effects were attributed to the high levels of fiber, antioxidants, and phytochemicals in plant-based foods.

A 2020 systematic review and meta-analysis compared​​ the differences between plant-based and omnivorous diets, looking at inflammatory biomarkers. The study found that individuals adhering to vegan and vegetarian diets had significantly lower levels of C-reactive protein, a key marker of inflammation, than those consuming omnivorous diets.

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine also published a white paper on the benefits of plant-based nutrition for autoimmune diseases. The paper, recommended as a resource for lifestyle medicine practitioners, highlights key points that show plant-based diets, especially those that are raw or gluten-free, decrease inflammation by changing the gut microbiome.

What’s more, a 2023 study found that a largely plant-based diet (which also included some yogurt and eggs) plus a drug, infliximab, used to treat autoimmune diseases was able to put 96% of the study participants in remission from Crohn’s. Even more significantly, over half of them remained symptom-free 10 years later. The researchers commented that the diet seemed to help patients tolerate and benefit from the infliximab, so the two treatments acted synergistically.

Good Foods for Autoimmune Diseases

As we’ve seen, certain foods are better than others at supporting an appropriate immune response. Some of the best foods for fighting excess inflammation are plant-based.

A few of the top foods to incorporate into an autoimmune disease-fighting diet include:

Cruciferous Vegetables

Vegetables like arugula, kale, and Swiss chard are rich in vitamins A, C, and K, as well as folate and fiber. Their high antioxidant content helps reduce inflammation, which benefits autoimmune conditions.

As noted above, a 2024 study in Frontiers in Nutrition suggests that plant-based diets, abundant in leafy greens and cruciferous veggies, may alleviate symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis by decreasing systemic inflammation. One nutrient responsible for their anti-inflammatory superpowers is sulforaphane, a potent antioxidant. Sulforaphane interferes with inflammasome activation (part of the innate immune system), effectively reducing the inflammatory response.

Fermented Foods

Foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, and yogurt are rich in probiotics, which can promote a healthy gut microbiome. A balanced gut is crucial for immune regulation and may reduce autoimmune flare-ups.

One systematic review of various fermented foods argued ​​that they should be considered functional foods, as they are all excellent sources of natural anti-inflammatory compounds.

Mushrooms

Fungi have also demonstrated tremendous anti-inflammatory potential.

One study published in Mediators of Inflammation found that mushrooms can promote anticancer activity, suppress autoimmune diseases, and aid in allergy relief.

Onions

These flavorful veggies have long been touted for their beneficial anti-inflammatory effects. Onions and other alliums contain quercetin, an antioxidant that has been shown to inhibit inflammation-causing leukotrienes, prostaglandins, and histamines in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Blueberries

Berries have a number of powerful antioxidants and phenolic compounds that help fight inflammation.

A 2020 study published in The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal investigated the effects of pterostilbene (PSB), a compound found in blueberries, on colonic inflammation due to inflammatory bowel disease. The researchers found that PSB reduced colonic inflammation by suppressing the activation of dendritic cells, which are immune cells that play a key role in initiating inflammatory responses. Additionally, PSB promotes the development of regulatory T cells, which help maintain immune tolerance and prevent autoimmune reactions.

Spices

Certain spices are particularly beneficial for minimizing inflammation and boosting your body’s healthy immune response. Turmeric, in particular, is a powerful anti-inflammatory.

A study published in Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology noted that curcumin (the primary active ingredient in turmeric) has been shown to help with multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and inflammatory bowel disease.

Ginger may also help reduce inflammation and disease activity in individuals with autoimmune disorders by inhibiting the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps. These webs of white blood cells are associated with increased inflammation and clotting in autoimmune conditions.

Worst Foods for Autoimmune Disease

Now that we know what foods to include in an anti-autoimmune diet, what about foods to avoid? People battling autoimmune disorders may want to consider reducing their intake of the following foods/ingredients:

Gluten

The main protein in wheat, spelt, rye, and barley, as well as a key ingredient in many starchy comfort foods, gluten can be particularly challenging for those with autoimmune diseases.

For anyone with celiac disease, where the ingestion of gluten initiates an immune response in the small intestine, avoiding gluten is essential. However, many people struggling with other types of autoimmune diseases may also be gluten-sensitive.

For some people, gluten may contribute to leaky gut-related challenges. According to research published in Best Practice & Research: Clinical Gastroenterology, it may exacerbate conditions like multiple sclerosis, asthma, and RA by increasing inflammation in the gut.

For more on gluten, check out our article, Gluten-Free: Is it for Everyone?

Refined Sugar

The standard American diet tends to be high in sugar, and those with autoimmune conditions are particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of this sweet substance.

A 2015 study published in Frontiers of Immunology found that sugar intake increased the likelihood of developing type 1 diabetes in children who were at genetic risk.

A 2022 study published in Cell Metabolism investigated the impact of dietary sugar on autoimmune diseases. The researchers found that high sugar intake exacerbated autoimmune responses by promoting the differentiation of pro-inflammatory T helper 17 (Th17) cells.

Refined sugar is found in processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, and baked goods. To avoid unnecessary inflammation and disease risk, it’s best to limit or eliminate these foods.

Animal Products

Many animal-based proteins, such as those found in meat, milk, and eggs, can trigger an inflammatory response in the body, exacerbating autoimmune conditions. Meat also contains harmful compounds such as IGF-1 and AGEs and can form TMAO, a toxic compound produced in your gut linked to multiple inflammatory conditions.

A 2022 case-control study published in Nutrition Journal examined the association between animal flesh foods and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The study found that the more processed meats people ate, the higher their odds of having RA.

Research has also identified a potential link between cow’s milk and the development of autoimmune diseases. A review article discussed the association between type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis, suggesting that certain proteins in cow’s milk may trigger autoimmune responses in genetically susceptible individuals.

With so many whole-food plant proteins available, such as beans, lentils, tofu, and tempeh, there are many nutritional and culinary alternatives to animal products.

Autoimmune Diet Recipes

Are you ready to fuel your body with some serious plant-based power? These three recipes are loaded with the ultimate healing foods for autoimmune conditions, turning everyday meals into wellness-packed delights. Think vibrant veggies, soothing herbs, and gut-loving goodness — all wrapped up in dishes that taste as amazing as they’ll make you feel. Whether you’re craving something fresh, cozy, or downright satisfying, these recipes prove that healthy eating can be fun and delicious!f

1. The Unsweet Smoothie

The Unsweet Smoothie is a nutrient-packed option that can especially benefit those with autoimmune conditions. Its anti-inflammatory ingredients, such as pickled beets, kale, and blueberries, help calm inflammation and promote overall health. Flax and hemp seeds provide omega-3s, while plant-based yogurt aids gut health, a vital factor in managing autoimmune symptoms. Naturally low in sugar and rich in fiber, this smoothie is both satisfying and gentle on digestion. It’s a refreshing way to nourish your body and support your well-being!

2. The Ultimate Immune-Supporting Soup

The Ultimate Immune-Supporting Soup is a flavorful, nutrient-packed bowl of comfort perfect for supporting wellness, especially for those with autoimmune conditions. Packed with anti-inflammatory ingredients like turmeric, garlic, and ginger, along with nutrient-rich kale and protein-packed chickpeas, it’s both soothing and satisfying. Creamy coconut milk and bold spices like smoked paprika and cumin create a rich, aromatic base, while a touch of cayenne adds optional warmth. This soup is as healing as it is delicious, offering a simple, wholesome way to nourish your body and soul.

3. Wild Rice, Mushroom, and Baby Broccoli Salad

Wild Rice, Mushroom, and Baby Broccoli Salad is more than just a tasty dish — it’s a bowl of nourishment designed to help support your body. Packed with two superstar ingredients — mushrooms and baby broccoli — this salad is perfect for anyone looking to use food to alleviate symptoms of autoimmune conditions. Tossed with a creamy tahini dressing that’s just the right mix of tangy and naturally sweet and topped with crunchy hemp seeds and fresh herbs, every bite is as satisfying as it is healing. Whether you’re focusing on gut health or just craving a wholesome, feel-good meal, this salad has got you covered!

Empower Yourself To Heal Through Food

While autoimmune diseases can be notoriously frustrating to address, the good news is that food can be a powerful tool for fighting illness and helping the body heal.

By sticking to a healthy diet based on whole plant foods and avoiding some key triggers, you can greatly improve your well-being. You can also boost and balance your immune system so that it can be your reliable friend and protector for years and decades to come.

Tell us in the comments:

• Have you or anyone you love ever faced an autoimmune disease?
• Have you found anything that helped?

Featured Image: iStock.com/AntonioGuillem

Read Next:

• 7 Reasons Why Meat Causes Inflammation — Which Promotes Aging and Disease
• How Diet and Good Gut Health Can Help Manage Pain & Inflammation in Rheumatoid Arthritis

The post Diet and Autoimmune Diseases: What To Eat and Not Eat for Inflammation appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

I’m not talking about sugars naturally found in fruits and vegetables. I’m talking about added sugars — mainly plain ol’ white sugar (which is just refined cane or beet sugar) and its troublesome twin, high-fructose corn syrup.

There’s really nothing beneficial about added sugar — besides the temporary pleasure of your taste buds. But most of us eat way more of it than we should.

The American Heart Association recommends no more than six teaspoons (around 25 grams) of added sugar per day for women and nine per day (around 36 grams) for men. But the average American consumes 94 grams every day or over 74 pounds per year.

So, what about sugar alternatives?

Sugar substitutes attract consumers because they’re labeled as being naturally derived, calorie-free, or simply because they’re not sugar.

But then, what are different types of alternative sweeteners made of? What are the pros and cons of each? And are certain ones better for you than others?

Breaking It Down: Types of Sugar

First, it helps to understand what sugar is and the different types of sugar you may come across. For the chemistry buffs, here’s a quick bit of context: Sugars are also known as simple carbohydrates. This means they’re digested quickly, releasing sugars rapidly into your bloodstream.

The main types of added sugars you’ll come across are divided into two categories: monosaccharides and disaccharides.

Monosaccharides include:

• Glucose is the most rapidly metabolized by the body and can send your blood sugar levels skyrocketing. It has a glycemic index (GI) score of 100, the highest possible number.
• Fructose has no impact on insulin production or blood glucose levels, and it has a relatively low glycemic index score. But it must be metabolized by the liver and is associated with elevated levels of triglycerides, metabolic syndrome, and weight gain.

Disaccharides include:

• Sucrose is mostly sold as crystallized table sugar that’s either derived from sugar beets or sugarcane. It consists of 50% glucose and 50% fructose. Sucrose dissolves easily in water and at high temperatures, causing it to caramelize.

• Maltose is also known as malt sugar and is a combination of glucose molecules derived from starches. While it is found in some sugar substitutes, it’s also a product of starch breakdown in the body. While maltose is less sweet than other types of sugar, it still affects blood sugar levels due to the glucose.

The Problem with Sugar for Your Health

Added sugars like the ones above are found in many processed foods — including some that are advertised as healthy, such as cereals, granola bars, crackers, and juices. But as you probably know by now, heavily processed foods are not doing any favors for your health. And added refined sugar is not a health food.

• Consuming excessive sugar is associated with an increased risk of obesity and heart disease.
• Added sugar heightens the risk of type 2 diabetes due to increased inflammation and weight gain.
• Studies indicate that there may be a direct link between added sugar and cancer. Excess sugar consumption has been seen to increase the risk of colon and breast cancer, along with esophageal and many other types of cancer.
• Sugar also increases the risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFD), a disorder that’s part of metabolic syndrome, which can increase the risk of obesity, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes. Even drinking one sugar-sweetened beverage per day can increase your risk of NAFLD.

Yet, despite its health effects, refined sugar is rampant in our food system. And it can be easy to miss on ingredient labels when there are at least 61 different names for sugar —  ranging from cane juice to anhydrous dextrose.

Refined sugar isn’t necessary to include in your diet. It doesn’t contain vitamins, minerals, healthy fats, or protein, nor does it have any additional nutritional benefit to the body.

It would do your health no harm (and probably a lot of good, actually) if you never consumed a gram of refined sugar.

So Why Do We Eat Sugar?

Well, for one, it tastes good.

Most of us prefer sweet foods over bitter ones because, in the course of evolution, the human brain learned that sweet things provide a healthy source of rapid energy. When our ancestors scavenged for berries, sour meant “not yet ripe,” and bitter often meant “poisonous.”

But sweet not only tasted pleasurable, it also provided a burst of glucose that led our brains to increase the output of dopamine — a neurotransmitter that makes us feel good. As a result, our brains learned to prefer foods with this taste profile in order to activate our dopamine receptors.

Excess refined sugar hacks our brain’s reward system. And repeated activation of this pathway allows a sort of tolerance to develop. Not only does our need for dopamine increase, but it affects leptin levels as well. Leptin is a hormone that tells us when we’re full. But with higher dopamine levels, leptin release is suppressed, causing us to overeat.

Instead of sugar being a rare treat as it once was to our ancestors, our modern food system has stuck sugar in practically everything. Many people are driven, even subconsciously, by a desire or craving for sugar, as a side effect of the brain’s desire to feel good with repeated behaviors.

Because of these effects, some researchers have even determined that sugar is actually addictive and affects the brain in a similar way as drug or alcohol addictions.

The Pros and Cons of 19 Sugar Alternatives

So if table sugars are addictive and associated with harmful health effects, what about all the other sweeteners and sugar substitutes? Are these sweet foods better or worse for you?

The Worst Sugar Substitutes

#1 — High-Fructose Corn Syrup

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is derived from corn starch and used in many processed foods, like baked goods, candy, soda, juices, and commercial bread. Despite its name, the most common form of HFCS consists of either 42% or 55% fructose and the rest glucose — a similar combination as table sugar.

Pros: It’s cheap in the US (thanks to government subsidies) and more shelf-stable than sucrose when added to foods.

Cons: Even though we know the percentage of fructose to glucose in HFCS, it’s impossible to know exactly how much of each is found in the HFCS that ends up in food and beverages.

Also, most of the corn used to make HFCS is genetically modified.

There’s also a consensus among researchers that the consumption of HFCS contributes to a number of health issues. When compared to sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup was found to cause an increased CRP level, a biomarker for inflammation. Associations have also been made between HFCS and metabolic syndrome, obesity, and insulin resistance leading to type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

#2 — Brown Rice Syrup

Made by heating brown rice and breaking down the starches with enzymes, this sugar substitute is often considered a “healthier” alternative to high-fructose corn syrup. But is it? Many organic and natural foods may contain brown rice syrup, including toddler formula, snacks, and granola bars. It’s also used frequently in Chinese cooking.

Pros: Brown rice syrup contains glucose, not fructose. The advantage of this is that glucose appears to have a less damaging effect on your liver than fructose.

Cons: Because it’s essentially glucose, rice syrup has a very high glycemic index of 98 — higher than any other type of sugar (table sugar is 60–70). Brown rice syrup is also prone to arsenic contamination.

#3 — Agave Nectar

Agave nectar is often touted as a natural, healthy sugar alternative derived from the agave plant. Interestingly, tequila is made by fermenting the blue agave plant. Agave is sometimes offered as an alternative sweetener at coffee shops like Starbucks.

Pros: Agave has a very low glycemic index score, meaning it doesn’t spike blood sugar nearly as much as table sugar. It also has prebiotic potential in the form of fructans, as well as bioactive compounds like flavonoids and some micronutrients — although amounts vary.

Cons: Agave has a low GI score because it can contain nearly 90% fructose, which, as we’ve discussed, could lead to weight gain, NAFLD, and elevated blood triglyceride levels. It’s also 1.5 times sweeter tasting than table sugar and contains more calories and total grams of sugar.

#4 — No-Calorie or Artificial Sweeteners

You’re probably familiar with these sweeteners as the pink, blue, or yellow packets you find on restaurant tables. You’ll also find these types of sugar in diet drinks, zero-calorie sodas, and sugar-free or “light” foods.

These sugar substitutes are considered no-calorie sweeteners because they are not metabolized and turned into energy in the body — hence they have no caloric value.

No-calorie sweeteners are synthetic, made in a lab, and are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter tasting than table sugar. Six artificial sweeteners have FDA approval for use as food (and beverage) additives: saccharin, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, neotame, sucralose, and advantame. Popular artificial sweetener brands you may have seen include Equal, Nutrasweet, Splenda, and Sweet’N Low.

Pros: Because they’re sugar-free, these sweeteners don’t raise blood glucose levels and are considered suitable for people with diabetes.

Cons: There is strong evidence that artificial sweeteners may lead to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. In a 2014 study conducted by researchers at the University of Iowa, 60,000 women were tracked over 10 years. The researchers found that women who drank two or more diet drinks per day had a 30% higher risk of a cardiovascular disease event, and were 50% more likely to die from the disease.

And, as counterintuitive as it may seem, studies tell us that people who drink diet sodas are actually more likely to gain weight. In one study, participants who started out at a normal weight and drank 21 diet sodas per week were twice as likely to be overweight or obese eight years later as their non-diet-soda-drinking peers. Some researchers believe this is because the no-calorie sweeteners in diet sodas trick the brain into expecting a “sugar hit.” When the sugar doesn’t come, the brain is stimulated to crave food, thus contributing to overeating and weight gain.

The “Less Worse” Sweeteners

#5 — Erythritol

Erythritol is a no-calorie sweetener and sugar alcohol used in chewing gum, beverages, desserts, and other foods. Some erythritol is created naturally in the body. But commercial production happens by fermenting yeast or other fungi.

Pros: Similar to artificial no-calorie sweeteners, erythritol won’t spike your blood sugar after eating. Erythritol is about 60–80% of the sweetness of pure sugar. It’s also generally free of the gastrointestinal effects of other sugar alcohols. And, similarly to xylitol, it may be beneficial for dental health.

Cons: Studies on health benefits and effects are still lacking. However, in 2023, research emerged linking erythritol and cardiovascular disease risk. Studies showed that the use of the sweetener was associated with major cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke and may increase the risk of thrombosis (blood clots) in the heart.

Erythritol production is also a complicated and energy-intensive process.

#6 — Xylitol

Xylitol is a sugar alcohol often used as a low-calorie sweetener for gums, mints, candy, and even some toothpaste. It’s similar in sweetness to sucrose.

Pros: Xylitol has a very low GI (around 7, compared to 60–70 of table sugar). It can prevent tooth decay, reduce infections, and potentially benefit gut health. Other health benefits may include immunity, blood sugar control, and osteoporosis prevention.

Cons: Like erythritol, xylitol has also been linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and even death when consumed in high amounts.

Additionally, sugar alcohols pull water into your intestine and, when consumed in excess, can act as a laxative, causing diarrhea, bloating, and gas. Also, some xylitol is made from sugarcane or corn, the latter of which could be genetically modified. To be safe, look for non-GMO or organic labeling, or xylitol that’s made from birch.

Important: Xylitol is toxic to dogs, with potentially serious, even life-threatening, results. Dogs that ingest even small amounts of xylitol (often from gum, candy, and toothpaste) are at risk of developing hypoglycemia and acute liver failure. Per the FDA, “If you think your dog has eaten xylitol, take him to your vet or an emergency animal hospital immediately;” see symptoms of xylitol poisoning in dogs from the FDA here. Read this article from PetMD.com for more info. (Xylitol does not appear to be toxic in cats.)

#7 — Brown Sugar

Brown sugar is just white cane sugar with some molasses remaining in it or added back after processing (white sugar has had all of its molasses removed through the refining process). Yep, it’s that simple!

And the difference between light and dark brown sugar? The amount of molasses they contain. Molasses is also what makes brown sugar softer and moister than conventional table sugar. Turbinado sugar and evaporated cane juice are essentially less processed versions of brown sugar.

Pros: Because of the molasses, brown sugar offers more nutrients than white sugar, including small amounts of calcium, potassium, and magnesium.

Cons: The nutrients in brown sugar aren’t enough to write home about. One ounce contains 0.2 mg of iron, whereas the RDA of iron for the average person is at least 8 mg per day. It also has almost all the negatives associated with white table sugar.

#8 — Barley Malt

Barley malt is an unrefined sweetener that’s made from sprouted barley. It has a similar flavor to molasses and usually comes in syrup or extract form. It’s primarily made of maltose, with some glucose and sucrose and a small amount of fructose.

Pros: Barley malt isn’t as sweet as many other sweeteners. It’s about 30–50% the sweetness of white sugar. It also contains a small number of antioxidants, protein, and potassium.

Cons: Since it’s high in maltose, barley malt can contribute to rapid blood sugar spikes. Also, barley contains gluten, making barley malt inappropriate for people with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity. Because it’s less sweet, more may be used to achieve a level of sweetness equivalent to regular sugar. However, barley malt contains more calories than white sugar — about 60 per tablespoon.

#9 — Maple Syrup

Best known as a pancake topper, maple syrup is a thick, dark sweetener made by boiling down maple tree sap. When the sap comes out of the tree it’s only about 1–4% sugar. But after it’s boiled down into a syrup, it’s about 33% water and 67% sugar.

Pros: Maple syrup contains over 20 antioxidants and nutrients such as zinc, manganese, calcium, and potassium. A handful of studies have also suggested potential breast and colon cancer-fighting properties in maple syrup polyphenols. Maple syrup also has a slightly lower GI score than table sugar.

In terms of sustainability, maple trees can produce sap for over 100 years if tended to well. Collecting maple sap is a traditional practice among many Indigenous tribes in North America. And many Indigenous-owned maple syrup companies are emerging in Canada using both traditional and contemporary techniques.

Cons: Maple syrup is still high in sugar, mostly made up of sucrose, and supplies 50 grams of sugar in just ¼ cup.

#10 — Coconut Sugar

Not surprisingly, coconut sugar comes from the coconut palm tree. It’s sometimes called palm sugar and looks similar to brown sugar, though it feels a little bit drier and has smaller granules. It’s also similar to Indian jaggery, although that type of sugar can also be made from sugarcane.

Pros: Coconut sugar doesn’t go through as much processing as other more refined granular sugars, so it does retain many nutrients. It contains a fiber called inulin, which may help stabilize blood sugar and is necessary for short-chain fatty acid production.

Palm trees also don’t need to be cut down to produce this sugar. They can produce sap for 20 years without using a lot of natural resources.

Cons: Coconut sugar still contains a lot of sugar. Its nutritional profile consists of around 70–80% sucrose.

#11 — Stevia

Stevia is derived from the leaves of the Stevia rebaudiana bush, native to South America. Stevia leaves have been used by Indigenous peoples in Paraguay and Brazil to sweeten beverages, include in medicines, or chew on like gum. These days, commercial stevia is processed into a white powder or can be found in liquid drops. It’s frequently added to some sodas and sports drinks.

Pros: Farmers in South America have been producing stevia sustainably for decades. Researchers in the European Union have found stevia has only about 5–10% of the environmental impact of sugar beets or cane sugar. Some stevia brands are also Non-GMO Project Verified or organic.

Stevia may also have disease-preventing potential. A 2017 study in the Journal of Medicinal Food suggests that it could prevent metabolic syndrome and related conditions. It may also help lower high blood pressure.

Cons: Stevia can alter your microbiome and impact microbial balance, potentially in unfavorable ways. More research on this topic is needed, but recent studies indicate cause for possible concern.

In addition, stevia can possibly lower blood pressure too much. And it may interact with certain medications. It’s also 200 times sweeter tasting than sugar. Although it is a zero-calorie sweetener, it may still cause a delayed spike in blood sugar and contribute to weight gain.

There are also a number of GMO stevia products in the works in addition to Cargill’s preexisting Eversweet.

Better Sugar Alternatives

#12 — Honey

Honey is a fascinating substance, made by hardworking honeybees. The bees make honey from the nectar they get as they fly from flower to flower. Honey is used to sweeten and flavor many packaged foods. And it’s also popular for home use in things like tea or baking.

Pros: Honey contains flavonoid antioxidants. It also offers some copper, manganese, and B vitamins. Honey also has antimicrobial properties, which is why it’s often recommended as a home remedy for coughs and colds. Some people believe locally sourced raw honey can alleviate certain allergy symptoms, too, though the research is mixed.

Cons: Honey is still high in sugar content, and its antioxidant and nutritional values depend on the type of flowers the bees use as their nectar source. There are also debated ethical concerns around eating honey, especially when it comes from industrialized bee farms — for instance, concerns around what bees are fed, how the queen is treated, and the role of these farms in colony collapse disorder.

Honey should never be given to children under one year old due to its potential for harboring bacteria that cause botulism.

Why Sourcing Matters: Finding purely organic, mass-produced honey is nearly impossible. But many small-scale local beekeepers contribute to pollination and a healthier ecosystem.

Raw honey typically undergoes minimal processing, mainly straining, ensuring that it preserves most of its naturally occurring nutrients and antioxidants. On the other hand, conventional honey is often subjected to various processing steps that can eliminate valuable nutrients such as pollen and decrease its antioxidant content.

#13 — Molasses, Treacle, and Golden Syrup

Ever tried to pour molasses out of its bottle? Dark, thick, and slow-moving, molasses is made by boiling down sugarcane. After the sucrose is crystallized, the remaining liquid is preserved as a syrup. Molasses and treacle are sometimes used interchangeably and are both by-products of the sugar industry. But molasses is obtained by a longer boiling time. Similarly, golden syrup is obtained by an even shorter boiling time than either molasses or treacle, but is also inverted with the use of citric acid. These types of sugarcane syrups are used to flavor things like commercial bread, gingerbread cookies, desserts, candy, sauces, and marinades.

Pros: Molasses, particularly blackstrap, contains antioxidants and several nutrients, including iron, magnesium, potassium, and calcium. It’s sometimes suggested as a treatment for iron deficiency anemia.

Cons: Molasses, treacle, and golden syrup are all still relatively high in sugar. They also have fewer consumer uses due to their distinct taste — which is great for gingerbread cookies and certain confectionaries, but not for a wide range of foods and beverages.

#14 — Allulose

Allulose is a relatively new sweetener that’s a derivative of fructose and occurs naturally in different types of fruit. However, it’s known as a “rare sugar” because it occurs much less frequently than other types of sugar in nature. As a sugar alternative, it’s artificially created from fructose.

Pros: Allulose’s main claim to fame is that it does not act like sugar in the body. It leaves the body very quickly, without impact on blood sugar, and is very low in calories. It’s also not fermented in the gut, so it doesn’t cause digestive upset like many no-calorie sweeteners do. Unlike many other types of sugar or sugar alternatives, allulose also doesn’t cause cavities.

Additionally, you can bake with it like sugar, adding about 50% more to get to the same level of sweetness, and the taste is quite similar.

Cons: Some allulose in the US is produced from corn, which may be genetically modified. And although it’s approved by the FDA and is on the GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) list, it’s still considered a novel food and is not allowed in either Canada or the EU. Because it’s so new and hasn’t been studied much, it might turn out to have some problems we don’t know about yet.

#15 — Yacon Syrup

Yacon syrup comes from the yacon plant, native to the Andes. It resembles the sweet potato in its whole form. The manufacturing process for yacon syrup is similar to that of maple syrup. Sugars are extracted from the plant’s roots, filtered, and evaporated into a sweet syrup.

Pros: Yacon syrup may be beneficial for lowering blood sugar and has a potential application as a laxative. It contains the prebiotic fiber inulin, which is good for gut health. It also has one of the lowest amounts of calories of caloric sweeteners, with just 20 calories per tablespoon.

Cons: Regular use can change your bowel habits, which may or may not be something you want. People with FODMAP sensitivity may not tolerate yacon syrup because of its fructan content. Yacon syrup is also a less common sweetener with fewer tried-and-true applications at home. And it’s more pricey than most other conventional sweeteners.

#16 — Monk Fruit

Monk fruit is one of the more natural sweeteners. It’s a fruit-derived sweetener that’s been used for hundreds of years in Chinese medicine. Monk fruit in whole form is an odd-looking, small, green gourd that grows in Southeast Asia. It’s said to have been first used medicinally by Buddhist monks in the 13th century, hence the name. It’s often dried and used to make teas, but monk fruit extract is also used to make a sweetener.

Pros: The mogrosides (a type of glycoside) in monk fruit extract are not absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, monk fruit is a zero-calorie sweetener. However, its effects on blood sugar have yet to be tested.

Monk fruit sweeteners come in various forms, such as granules, liquid, and powder, making it a versatile sweetener option. They’re also generally recognized as safe by the USDA, including for people who are pregnant or breastfeeding, as well as children for children. Additionally, the mogrosides in monk fruit have antioxidant effects, helping to prevent disease-causing oxidative stress in your body. One study even suggests that the sweetener might have anti-inflammatory properties. 

Cons: Monk fruit is mainly grown in China, meaning it’s often exported and likely contributes to extra food miles. This can also make it relatively expensive to buy, depending on the type of monk fruit product.

Monk fruit sweeteners haven’t been in countries like the United States very long (and therefore, they haven’t been studied enough yet to know their full impact). Some monk fruit sweeteners are also combined with erythritol, which can change their nutrient composition and taste. On its own, monk fruit is around 150 to 200 times sweeter than table sugar. And subjectively, some people find monk fruit sweeteners to have a strange and slightly fruity aftertaste (but you may love it!).

Best Sugar Substitute Recommendations: Whole-Food Sweeteners

#17 — Lucuma Powder

Made from a fruit indigenous to the Andes, lucuma powder is a low-calorie and low-sugar sweetener that’s been used for thousands of years. Its flavor is said to resemble sweet potatoes, but is fruitier and with maple or butterscotch undertones. You can use it to replace sugar in recipes on a 2:1 basis (2 parts lucuma for every 1 part sugar).

Pros: Because the fruit’s flesh is dry and starchy, not pulpy, it’s easily made into a whole-food sweetener. It contains insoluble fiber and may contain up to 40% dry weight in fiber. Some brands of lucuma powder may also contain a small amount of vitamin C, potassium, and carotenoids.

Cons: Although there’s some research on lucuma fruits, the powder is not well studied. It also tends to be more expensive than other sweeteners on this list.

Note: For a link to organic lucuma powder at a reasonable price, click here.

#18 — Mesquite

Mesquite is a powdered sweetener and flour substitute made from the pods of the mesquite tree. It’s primarily made up of sucrose and fructose and was used by Indigenous tribes in the Americas before sugar was introduced. It delivers a sweet, nutty, caramel-like flavor.

Pros: It’s a highly regarded whole-food sweetener because it retains the fiber content of the pods and also delivers protein, minerals, and antioxidants. Because of its fiber and protein, it’s lower on the glycemic index and may actually be anti-inflammatory rather than pro-inflammatory like refined sugars.

Cons: Mesquite is still very sweet and contributes calories to your diet, so it should be used in moderation. It also has a texture closer to flour and doesn’t melt like sugar, which may increase your need for liquids in a recipe. It’s also more expensive than many popular sweeteners.

Note: For a link to organic mesquite powder at a reasonable price, click here.

#19 — Date Sugar

Date sugar is simply made by grinding whole dates into a powder. It looks like brown sugar but has a butterscotch flavor similar to golden syrup.

Pros: Date sugar is a whole-food sweetener, made from fruit. Dates are highly nutritious — rich in fiber, antioxidants, B vitamins, and minerals, including potassium, manganese, and copper. Dates have a number of health applications, including supporting pregnancy, heart health, and blood sugar management.

Date trees are also pretty eco-friendly because they’re zero-waste. Date palms have many applications beyond providing food. They’re also naturally suited to hot climates and may be important for food system resilience which is important in the context of climate change.

Cons: Date sugar doesn’t melt well, so it does have some limitations in terms of where you can use it. But it works well in baked goods, similar to brown sugar. Date sugar is also another more expensive option among sweeteners.

Note: For a link to organic date sugar at a reasonable price, click here.

Date paste is far less processed than date sugar, easy to make at home, and can be used in recipes where date sugar doesn’t work. You can also buy whole pitted dates and blend them into the wet ingredients for baking and other applications. This Super Simple Homemade Date Paste recipe is one of our most popular recipes.

And the Best Sweeteners of All Are… Fresh Fruit!

Whole fruits, either mashed or pureed, are the best sweetener option.

And fruit has the distinct advantage of actually being good for you.

Many people find that they can satisfy a sweet craving with naturally sweet frozen grapes or berries, mandarin oranges, or a mango or banana.

And fruit comes with fiber and many other beneficial nutrients. Mashed bananas or applesauce can also replace sugar in some baked goods.

A Spoonful of Sugar

In a society that’s made added sugars a primary source of calories, we can see how sugar is harming the health of billions.

And for some people, especially those who are more susceptible to addictive foods and are high on what neuroscientist Susan Peirce Thompson, PhD, calls the “susceptibility scale,” the taste of sweet foods other than whole fruits — even stevia and dried fruits — can trigger addictive tendencies. You can learn more about Susan’s brilliant work here.

For many of us, a modest amount of the right kind of sweeteners can add a dash of delight to our culinary lives. And sometimes, a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down.

Learn what the latest scientific research says about how to prevent and reverse type 2 diabetes — using food and free lifestyle tips.

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Tell us in the comments below:

• Do you use added sugars? Why or why not?
• If you use sweeteners or sugar substitutes, what’s your favorite?
• Are there any sweeteners you never eat?

Featured Image: iStock.com/eskymaks

Read Next:

• How to Avoid Temptation & Slay the Sugary Beast
• 7 Sugar-Free and Dairy Free Chocolate Desserts

The post Exploring the Healthiest Sugar Alternatives: A Guide to Sweeteners appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

You might be thinking there must be some pretty bad genes in play there. But thanks to the geopolitical factors that created the US-Mexico border, the real story is very different.

After US surveyors drew their maps following the Mexican-American War of 1849, part of that same US-based Pima tribe ended up in the highlands of Mexico. Genetically, the two groups are extremely similar, which is what you’d expect since they’ve been separated only for a couple of centuries. But here’s the kicker — the Mexican Pima experience just one-fifth the incidence of diabetes of their American counterparts.

If it’s not the genes, then what is it? According to researchers, the answer lies in the two communities’ very different lifestyles. And topping the list of lifestyle factors were physical activity and diet. The Mexican Pima, similar to their non-Pima neighbors, got a lot more exercise and ate a much less processed diet — far lower in fat and higher in fiber — than the Pima in Arizona.

Whether you are trying to avoid developing type 2 diabetes, or you’ve already got it and are trying to manage it effectively, living more like the Mexican Pima and less like the American Pima is a useful strategy.

In this article, we’ll explore what to eat for type 2 diabetes, including nine foods that are exceptionally powerful in helping maintain healthy blood sugar levels.

The Diabetes Epidemic

Type 2 diabetes is defined by excess glucose in the blood, and is typically diagnosed when a person’s A1c (a 3-month average blood sugar level) is 6.5% or higher, or when their fasting blood plasma glucose reaches 126 mg/dl or higher.

Rates of type 2 diabetes have been steadily rising for several decades.  In the US, a study by the University of Georgia found type 2 diabetes diagnoses increased by almost 20%  from 2012–2022. It wasn’t one particular cohort that was affected — similar trends emerged from all categories examined, although non-Hispanic Black Americans had a higher incidence than other racial identities.

Globally, an estimated 462 million people are affected by type 2 diabetes, making up more than 6% of the world’s population. And many more people worldwide suffer from prediabetes, which indicates an impaired glucose tolerance (and is diagnosed when A1c is between 5.7% and 6.4% or fasting plasma glucose is between 100 and 125 mg/dl). The incidence of prediabetes was estimated at an additional 7.3% of the world adult population in 2017, equivalent to over 350 million people.

What Causes Type 2 Diabetes?

While you have a better chance of developing type 2 diabetes if a parent or sibling also has it, your genes are not the main predictor, as we saw with the Pima. Even if you have genes that predispose you to diabetes, it’s your diet and lifestyle that tend to turn those genes on or off. Type 2 diabetes is therefore defined as a lifestyle disease, primarily caused by underactivity and being overweight or obese.

Since type 2 diabetes often (but not always) corresponds with being overweight or obese, two of the most powerful factors that determine your risk are energy intake and expenditure — how many calories you consume, and how many you burn. Which means that diet plays a major part in the development and maintenance of the disease (as well as its precursor, prediabetes).

The thing that determines how well your body transports glucose from your blood into the tissues where it’s needed (like your muscles, liver, and fat cells) is called insulin tolerance. Insulin is the hormone that acts like a key, opening your cells to let in glucose. If your tissues become resistant to insulin’s “key,” and stay shut even in the presence of high levels of blood glucose, that’s known as insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance can develop due to a number of factors, including being overweight, underactive, or eating a diet rich in sugars and fats. That is to say, the standard American diet — high in processed foods, refined sugar, and animal products — contributes to the incidence of type 2 diabetes. Which begs the question: If the way many people are eating is causing or progressing the disease, how do you know what to eat for type 2 diabetes? What diet is best? And what are the specific foods that are best for helping tackle type 2 diabetes?

Is Eating Low-Carb for Diabetes Healthy?

Since diabetes is defined as excessive blood sugar, wouldn’t it make sense to prevent or deal with the condition by eating a low-carb diet? After all, carbohydrates turn into sugar in your body, which is how they’re used for energy. You might think, therefore, that sugar causes type 2 diabetes by triggering spikes in blood sugar.

That was the standard mainstream approach for many years. But we’ve discovered that there’s a lot more to the story than just eliminating carbs and sugar. First of all, not all carbohydrates act the same way in the body. And not all carbohydrates cause type 2 diabetes or make it worse.

Fiber is a type of carbohydrate, but it actually helps slow the absorption of glucose while also regulating blood sugar over time. And there’s a big difference between simple carbs from white sugar and white flour and the complex carbohydrates in many whole, plant-based foods. Complex carbohydrates are generally better for you, often not spiking blood sugar thanks to fiber, water, and other buffering nutrients.

But here’s the crux of what we now understand about type 2 diabetes — high blood sugar is a symptom, not the cause. Which means that just eating sugar can’t be the sole root of the disease. It’s eating sugar in the presence of insulin resistance that creates the condition of type 2 diabetes.

Many things can lead to insulin resistance, including chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, and alterations in circulating lipids or fats. And animal foods can cause and exacerbate all three of these processes.

That’s why low-carb diets aren’t the answer. If you’re eating low-carb, you’re eating high-something else — either fat or protein. And if you’re consuming the standard American diet, either substitution generally means a diet high in animal products — which can cause insulin resistance.

What About the Keto Diet for Type 2 Diabetes?

That’s why keto diets, which may help in the short term with blood glucose levels and weight loss, are not sustainable. Because it’s so difficult to maintain such a severely reduced calorie consumption, keto offers a temporary Band-Aid rather than a true reversal of type 2 diabetes.

And keto tends to be high in saturated fat, which turns out to be one of the main drivers of insulin resistance. Saturated fat, which we predominantly get from eating animal products and tropical oils such as palm oil, can increase fat accumulation in cells and promote the formation of inflammatory compounds, both of which contribute to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

Find out more on the pros and cons of a keto diet, here.

The Best Diet for Type 2 Diabetes

So if low-carb and keto diets fall short, what is the best diet for preventing or managing type 2 diabetes? Here are some characteristics of such a diet:

• unrefined carbohydrates (vs refined carbohydrates),
• monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (vs saturated and trans fats),
• and plant protein (vs animal protein).

These dietary factors all play a major role in preventing and managing type 2 diabetes. And plant-based diets have all three of these characteristics.

Plant-based diets are the most effective for preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. According to studies, the more calories you get from whole plant foods, such as legumes, veggies, fruits, nuts and seeds, and whole grains, and the fewer animal products, the lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Plant-based diets maximize dietary components that are protective against chronic disease, in general, and type 2 diabetes, in particular. These components include fiber, phytochemicals and antioxidants, and magnesium, all of which are found predominantly, if not exclusively, in plant-based foods. 

Plant-based diets also minimize harmful dietary components that are found in meat and are linked to inflammation and insulin resistance, including TMAO, saturated fat, heme iron, nitrosamines, and AGEs.

A Science-Backed Diet for Diabetes

It’s not just theory, either: “Observational studies and randomized controlled trials support the benefits of plant-based nutrition for diabetes.” Three prospective cohort studies that followed over 200,000 US health professionals for up to several decades found that “plant-based diets, especially when rich in high-quality plant foods, are associated with substantially lower risk” of type 2 diabetes. Another study of almost 40,000 participants in rural China showed the same result. In the words of the researchers, “a higher score of the overall plant-based diet was associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes.”

In short, the consumption of whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables in conjunction with the elimination of animal products reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. And in people with type 2 diabetes, a low-fat, plant-based diet has been found to improve body weight, glycemic control, cholesterol, and blood pressure, while reducing the risk of heart disease.

Learn what the latest scientific research says about how to prevent and reverse type 2 diabetes — using food and free lifestyle tips.

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Foods to Help Improve Insulin Resistance in Type 2 Diabetes

While a whole foods, plant-based diet is the most effective way of eating to prevent and manage type 2 diabetes, there are particular foods that have been shown to be especially effective in normalizing blood sugar. Here are nine of the foods that do the best job of decreasing insulin resistance, with two yummy recipes for each so you can add them to your diet right away.

1. Cinnamon

A 2019 meta-analysis of 16 randomized clinical trials found that cinnamon helps lower fasting blood glucose, although it doesn’t seem to impact the longer-term marker of blood sugar, A1c. The dosages were all over the place, from a single gram per day to as much as 14.4 grams per day, so it’s hard to say what an ideal dose might be. A 2020 study fed the experimental group 3 half-gram servings of cinnamon (which included cinnamon extract and Indonesian cinnamon) per day for 12 weeks and found that compared to controls, the cinnamon group had lower fasting plasma glucose. They also performed better on glucose tolerance tests.

Cinnamon appears to work via several mechanisms, including mimicking insulin and making it easier for your body to transport glucose from your blood to your muscle cells by slowing down the rate at which food leaves your stomach.

For more on cinnamon and other healthy spices, see our article on healthy spices.

Try these two cinnamon recipes for diabetes:

• Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Smoothie
• Gingerbread Granola

2. Beans

We know that people who eat beans regularly are less likely to develop prediabetes than bean avoiders. A 2012 study out of Iran found that those who ate three or more servings of legumes per week had one-quarter the risk of metabolic syndrome (a condition closely linked to diabetes and prediabetes) than those who ate the fewest servings. Another study compared bean eating to caloric restriction. It found that when overweight and obese adults added five cups of lentils, chickpeas, split peas, or navy beans per week to their diet for eight weeks, they reduced their risk factors of metabolic syndrome as much as cutting 500 calories per day.

A 2018 prospective study out of Spain also looked at over 3,000 people’s diet and health statuses and found an inverse relationship between legume consumption and type 2 diabetes. That is, the more beans eaten, the lower the risk of diabetes.

What’s in beans that makes them so great for blood sugar control? There are so many beneficial compounds, it’s hard to know where to start. There’s the plant-based protein and soluble fiber, both of which are filling and prevent sugar spikes. There are polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, as well as phytochemicals that are antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. And even some of the so-called “antinutrients” in beans may actually be nutritional heroes rather than villains, interfering with the metabolism of glucose.

Try these two bean recipes for type 2 diabetes prevention and management: 

• Chickpea and Potato Samosa Burgers
• 5-Minute Smoky Black Bean Dip

3. Apple Cider Vinegar

A 2019 study found that 20 ml (two-thirds of an ounce, or about four teaspoons) of apple cider vinegar (ACV) per day for eight weeks significantly lowered fasting blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes.

Apple cider vinegar appears to work on both ends of the blood glucose puzzle: It can delay gastric emptying, which can prevent glucose spikes into the bloodstream. It also helps muscle cells utilize glucose, getting those sugars out of the bloodstream faster.

For more on apple cider and other types of vinegar, see our vinegar article.

Apple cider vinegar recipes to try for blood sugar control:

• Toasted Seed Slaw
• Magical Applesauce Dressing

4. Low-Oxalate Leafy Greens

Some foods fight type 2 diabetes by focusing on a related issue, kidney health. Since your kidneys filter blood and remove waste products and excess fluid, when they aren’t working well, your blood glucose can rise to dangerous levels. And in a vicious cycle, diabetes can tax your kidneys to the point where they lose their ability to do their job — a condition known as chronic kidney disease.

Leafy greens, especially those low in oxalates (which can contribute to kidney stones), are great kidney boosters. These include kale, collards, arugula, lettuce, and many others.

A 2016 meta-analysis of 23 studies found that leafy greens are one of the categories of plant-based food most highly correlated with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.

See our article on leafy greens for more info on how to source, store, wash, and prepare them.

Try these two leafy green recipes for diabetes prevention: 

• Vibrant Bulgur, Kale, and Chickpea Salad
• Sweet Potato Kale Bites

5. Berries

Berries, including cranberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, can decrease insulin resistance. And a 2016 meta-analysis found that eating blueberries reduced the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 25%. Strawberries may also reduce oxidative and inflammatory stresses that can occur after eating.

Berries are rich in antioxidants called polyphenols, which come in different colors and account for the variety and intensity of the colors of the berries themselves. The red and purple hues come from anthocyanins, which are among the healthiest compounds you can get from plants.

Try these two diabetes-friendly berries recipes for breakfast or a snack: 

• Strawberries and Cream Smoothie Bowl
• Berry “Scuffins”

6. Grapefruit

Grapefruit also appears on most lists of foods that combat type 2 diabetes. A 2021 review of large-scale prospective studies found that regular consumption of grapefruit reduced the risk of type 2 by about 10%.

One of the key components of grapefruit responsible for this effect may be the flavonoid naringenin — the average grapefruit contains about 100 mg of it. One study found that obese adults who ate three grapefruit halves a day for two to three months weighed less and had a smaller waist circumference than a control group.

Grapefruit recipes to try for blood sugar control:

• Summer Citrus Salad
• Minty Grapefruit Tea

7. Quinoa

Quinoa appears to earn its reputation as a superfood when it comes to preventing diabetes. A 2022 study out of Spain found that replacing other complex carbohydrates with quinoa reduced sugar spikes in older patients with prediabetes. Interestingly, participants were allowed into the study only if their existing diet was already pretty good and included grains, tubers, and/or legumes. The quinoa group had a better glycemic response to their meals, suggesting that quinoa could be effective in slowing the progression from prediabetes to full-blown diabetes even among relatively healthy eaters.

A 2022 test tube study suggests that it’s the polyphenols in quinoa that delay the digestion of starches. And indeed, when these polyphenols were isolated and fed to mice, the rodents displayed a muted glycemic response. (Our view on the use of animals in medical research is here.)

For more on this pseudocereal, read our in-depth quinoa article, here.

Try these two quinoa recipes for diabetes prevention and control: 

• Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
• Warmly Spiced Quinoa Chickpea Stew

8. Nigella Sativa or Black Seeds

Nigella sativa, also known as black seed (and sometimes black cumin seeds, but not to be confused with Bunium bulbocastanum black cumin seeds), has an impressive track record in combating type 2 diabetes. One 2010 study found that two grams per day of black seed over 12 weeks reduced fasting glucose as well as A1C in diabetic patients who were already taking antidiabetic meds.

A 2019 literature review identified seven studies confirming this finding, as well as observing an increase in serum insulin and a decrease in insulin resistance. And a 2021 article hypothesized the mechanisms by which black seeds might achieve these outcomes. If you get excited by phrases like “reduction of lipid peroxidation via its antioxidant properties,” “agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma in adipose tissue,” and “activation of AMP-activated protein kinase,” then you will definitely want to add this article to your beach reading. For the rest of us, the basic takeaway is, “black seeds do a ton of stuff that appears to keep blood sugar under control.”

For more on cumin and black cumin, see our article here.

The benefits of black seed for diabetes can be experienced with these two delicious recipes:

• Black Seed Hummus
• Enchanting Black Seed Dressing

9. Walnuts

While The Sopranos character Paulie Walnuts was dangerous, violent, and unpredictable, actual walnuts are one of the healthiest foods you can eat. And their ability to regulate blood sugar makes them great additions to your diet if you’re looking to prevent, reverse, or manage type 2 diabetes.

US survey data taken over the course of 15 years found that walnut eaters had about half the risk of type 2 diabetes as non-walnut eaters. And the association was dose-dependent, meaning the more walnuts, the lower the risk. A 2021 study from Spain identified 19 metabolites in walnuts that may contribute to the nuts’ ability to fend off type 2 diabetes, as well as heart disease. They include lipids, purines, acylcarnitines, and amino acids.

To see how you can use walnuts for diabetes, try these two recipes:

• Omega Baked Oatmeal
• Superfood Pesto

The Best Foods for Type 2 Diabetes Are Plant-Based!

Diet is a major contributing factor in the development and progression of type 2 diabetes. Low-carb diets can keep your blood sugar low, but they may have unintended negative consequences. If you replace carbohydrates from disease-preventing foods — like vegetables, fruits, and whole grains — with animal products, you increase your long-term risk for chronic disease, including type 2 diabetes. And low-carb diets may not be sustainable for many people. Instead, you’ll likely be better off if you focus on eating a diet centered on nutrient-dense plant foods. And for extra protection, add generous portions of these nine plant-based foods that have been studied for their ability to help you tackle type 2 diabetes.

Tell us in the comments:

• Which of these diabetes-fighting foods are already part of your diet?

• Which ones aren’t yet?

• What diabetes-friendly recipe will you try next?

Featured Image: iStock.com/spukkato

Read Next:

• Watch How Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams Reversed His Type 2 Diabetes Using A Plant-Based Diet
• 6 Important Resources for Diabetes Prevention or Reversal (and 2 Recipes!)

The post The Best Foods (and Diet) to Help You Tackle Type 2 Diabetes appeared first on Food Revolution Network.