According to the National Institutes of Health, the brain’s job is to help you make sense of the world and help oversee your daily operations and life. Brain health refers to the ability to remember, learn, plan, concentrate and maintain a clear, active mind. It's being able to draw on the strengths of your brain—information management, logic, judgement, perspective and wisdom. Simply, brain health is all about making the most of your brain and helping reduce some risks to it as you age. Learn about the foods that help your brain and some of the toxic substances to avoid that can hurt your brain.

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According to the “bible of healthy eating,” Forks over Knives, there’s excellent scientific evidence that many chronic diseases can be controlled, reduced, or even reversed by moving to a whole-food, plant-based diet. Scientific research highlighted in the landmark book The China Study shows that a plant-based diet can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain types of cancer, and other major illnesses. Many people also report bigger fitness payoffs, more energy, reduced inflammation, and better health outcomes after making the switch.

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“PCRM's Power Plate is a colorful, user-friendly graphic that depicts a plate divided into four new food groups: fruits, grains, legumes, and vegetables. PCRM nutrition experts researched Institute of Medicine and World Health Organization reports and concluded that plant-based foods are the most nutrient-dense and aid in preventing cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases. The Power Plate, unlike the Food Pyramid, has no confusing portion sizes and food hierarchies; it simply asks that people eat a variety of all four food groups each day. People eat from plates, not pyramids," said PCRM nutrition education director Susan Levin, M.S., R.D. "We need easy-to-use dietary guidance tools that teach people how to eat right to fight chronic diseases. Studies show people who eat mostly from the four Power Plate food groups have the lowest risk of obesity, heart disease and diabetes."

An interactive Web site, ThePowerPlate.org, includes more information on disease-fighting, plant-based diets, and special sections for educators and health professionals.

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Nationally recognized experts, including Dr. Benjamin Spock, all agree that “Food preferences and lifestyle habits of physical activity are established early in life. Building a diet with fruits, vegetables, healthful grains, and legumes from a young age will help children prefer those foods throughout their lives. These foods are rich in antioxidants, phytochemicals, and fiber, which help protect against disease and promote a healthful body weight. When a vegetarian diet is established at an early age, not only can it provide nutritional advantages, but it will also promote healthful eating habits beyond adolescence, to the teen years and into adulthood. Vegetarian teens have higher intakes of cancer-fighting antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals through greater consumption of fruits, vegetables, and fiber than their nonvegetarian counterparts.”

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A plant-based diet is a powerful tool for preventing, managing, and even reversing type 2 diabetes.

At the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, we’ve put a plant-based diet to the test with thousands of patients who have type 2 diabetes.

In a 2003 study funded by the NIH, we determined that a plant-based diet controlled blood sugar three times more effectively than a traditional diabetes diet that limited calories and carbohydrates. Within weeks on a plant-based diet, participants saw dramatic health improvements. They lost weight, insulin sensitivity improved, and HbA1c levels dropped. In some cases, you would never know they’d had the disease to begin with.

Studies show that eating a diet high in fatty foods can cause fat particles to build up inside our cells. These fat particles interfere with insulin’s ability to move sugar out from our bloodstream and into our cells. Instead of powering our cells, the glucose remains in our bloodstream, eventually leading to diabetes. A plant-based diet is low in fat, which allows insulin to function properly.

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The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine offers regular podcasts and this is from “The Protein Myth. Where do you get your protein?

If you’re vegan, no doubt you’ve been asked that more than once. Our protein-obsessed culture prides itself on eating mountains of chicken and beef to make sure we’re getting enough of it. But the truth is most of us are already eating way too much protein. And you don’t need meat to get it anyway!

Debunking “the protein myth.” You’ll learn what exactly protein is, what your body does with it, which proteins your body makes and which you need to eat, and the best plant-based sources to get them.

Plus, plant-powered professional wrestling star Austin Aries checks in! The multi-time world champion defied his dairy-rich Wisconsin upbringing by going vegan. After eliminating meat and dairy from his diet, his career took off and the title belts began piling up. Now, the longtime wrestler attributes the vegan diet for helping him perform like he’s still in his 20s.

Aries is also the author of Food Fight: My Plant-Powered Journey from the Bingo Halls to the Big Time.

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