Reflection: Plants-based Diet Video

Throughout the semester we watched a handful of videos that dealt with public health issues and topics in America. One that particularly interested our group was the video that centered around the importance of having a plants-based diet. This video caught our attention because it advocated a specific kind of healthy diet. It didn't push for the audience to eat healthier by eating less red and fried meats. No, they instead pushed for a sole vegetarian diet.

Another thing about this “plants-based diet” video that our group especially liked was their good approach in trying to raise awareness about the positive effects of adopting such a diet. They didn't try to guilt trip people into being vegetarians by showing them clips of tortured and neglected farm animals. Instead, it opted in giving logical and scientific reasons to switch over to a plants-based diet. A nutritionist that was featured in this video talked about how this diet has helped people fight and even overcome some of their health issues because with a plants-based diet people are getting the necessary and proper nutrients to keep their bodies running on good fuel. Plants don't come factory-made and they don't come packed with fats so they are a healthier and much smarter alternative to nearly all other foods.

This plants-based diet information can have an impact on us both physically and socially. Putting this method of eating fruits and vegetables into our lives will have a positive effect on our bodies because fruits and vegetables provide natural vitamins and nutrients. From the video we learned that plants give us a quicker and more satisfied feeling than other foods such as meats and snacks so just eating plants should help us be more wary about the amount of food we eat. It should also help combat overeating and obesity. It was also shown in the video, that people who have long been living by this diet have experienced much slower aging and have in turn looked younger than their years tell. This is a huge plus for having such a healthy diet! Having a plants-based diet can affect your social life because eating meats and junk foods are commonplace for the majority of people. It shouldn't stop anyone from eating out with friends and family at restaurants though. The public nowadays has become aware of a need for vegetarian dishes and so salads are now widely available.

This topic of choosing a healthy diet is important to public health because everyone eats. There's no way going around it otherwise you die. It's important for families, friends, and communities to eat a plants-based diet because of all the positive effects it has on our bodies. Plants and vegetables keep one healthy and it's always detrimental for a nation's people to be and stay healthy because that in turn affects everyone around us. Take this country for example. There are a growing number of people that are becoming overweight and obese and that's affecting where their money goes. Their health issues take a lot of time from doctors about issues that could have easily been avoided if a plants-based diet had been in place. It's important to raise awareness about living well and how to achieve that status.

The only questions that my group has is whether or not the government will issue an type of campaign about this vegetarian-styled diet? Why haven't they already?How will this potentially affect the meat industry if this diet becomes a fad? How will this diet affect kids and will it be safe for them to be on this plants-based diet?

Elizabeth Halsey Perrin

Whitney Kenny

Kelly Shahgholami

Cindy Herrera