Happy #mlk day! This is my fav quote which can also apply to your #2021 health goals.
FYI January is also #veganuary 🙂 The benefits of eating a whole foods plant-based diet are numerous, but one of my favorites is that it can contribute to slowing the aging process.
Chile, let me break this down. A diet high in plant foods is high in phytonutrients, which have been proven to turn on anti-cancer, anti-aging, and anti-inflammation genes. In addition, a plant-based diet has been proven to slow the aging process due to high consumption of antioxidants, which are found in fresh fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants fight free radicals in the body, which can wreak havoc and accelerate aging. Â
Free radicals are essentially oxygen molecules that have lost an electron. They bounce around cells and tissues grabbing electrons from otherwise healthy cells causing deterioration and creating more free radicals in the process. One of the proteins in our bodies most vulnerable to free radical damage is collagen, which is what keeps our skin supple and youthful. Lack of high antioxidant foods can lead to accelerated aging, wrinkles, and scarring.Â
Within the levels of the plant-based lifestyle, the raw food diet is the highest in antioxidants and avoids free radicals the most. This helps to explain why there have been so many living examples of youthfulness who adhere to a raw food diet and are well over their sixties. If you need a dose of inspiration, look up Bernando La Pallo, Annette Larkins, Mimi Kirk, Karyn Calebrese, and countless others who have found a vitality that is unparalleled by eating raw foods. I break down different levels of the plant-based diet and ways to increase your plant intake no matter what your diet in my book Got Veg? How to Thrive on a Plant-Based Diet.Â
Speaking of slowing the aging process, my signature course Staying Ageless 30+ is launching again next month! If you are a woman over the age of 30 who wants to stay fly until you’re 99, or close to it, send me a DM on Instagram with your email and we’ll put you on the waitlist so you can be the first to know when doors open! -XO