A plant-based diet focuses on food that comes from plants. The vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in plants keep your body healthy and in balance that supports your immune system. The basic principle of the plant-based diet emphasizes including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes to your meals. That also means limiting or avoiding animal products and processed items. The plant-based diet also promotes purchasing and consuming locally sourced, organic food whenever possible.
The plant-based diet is linked to many health benefits. Read further to know how a plant-based diet helps your body.
- Plant foods and juices reduce inflammation in your body
- Keeps your heart healthy and minimises the risk of heart diseases
- Reduces the risk of certain types of cancer
- Helps prevent Type 2 Diabetes
- Helps maintain a healthy weight
- High in fiber that lowers cholesterol and stabilizes blood sugar
- Intake of plant-based diet keeps your brain strong
- Switching to a plant-based diet helps protect the environment.
Here is a list of healthy, edible plants that are easy to grow indoors:
Carrots
Carrots are a great source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. They supply high doses of carotenoids which are named after them.
Lettuce
These crunchy fresh leaves come in a wide range of textures and flavours. Primarily used for salad, lettuce is a wide category of plants including spinach, arugula, microgreens, head lettuces, and leaf lettuces.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are widely used in food recipes and salads. These fleshy veggies have a great amount of Vitamin C and potassium. Tomatoes are packed with the antioxidant lycopene, a carotenoid that improves vascular health.
Lemons
The lemon tree is an aromatic plant that is quite easy to grow indoors. It offers plenty of Vitamin C which helps the body absorb iron and synthesize collagen. Lemon is an important nutrient that boosts the immune system.
Mint
Mint is the name for a dozen plant species including peppermint and spearmint. Apart from its refreshing flavour, mint is an alternative treatment for irritable bowel syndrome. Mint contains a good amount of essential nutrients. You can easily add it to your diet, for example in salads, desserts, smoothies, and juices.
Spinach
Spinach is well-known for its nutritional qualities that restore energy and improve the quality of the blood. It is an excellent source of iron, vitamins, magnesium, manganese, and folate as well. Spinach is also a great source of Vitamin K that helps maintain bone health.
Basil
Basil is a common cooking herb. It an excellent source of vitamins, manganese, iron, calcium, and magnesium. Basil is full of polyphenolic flavonoids that protect the body’s structure from cell-damaging free radicals. The extraction of basil oil prepares an essential oil that treats wounds, cuts, and skin infections.
Eating or drinking plants is a good choice that keeps you healthy- physically and mentally.
