Many chronic diseases have been linked to foods developed in the 20th century. But a diet of mostly plant foods, including the Hallelujah Diet, is shown to decrease risk of disease and cancer.
Because processed carbohydrates, added sugars and dairy products didn’t exist or certainly weren’t prevalent, our early ancestors consumed foods that optimized health. And we have much to learn from them.
Created in the 1970s by gastroenterologist Walter Voegtlin, the paleo diet, for example, has been reborn in recent years. The newfound popularity of the paleo diet can be largely attributed to its emphasis on plant-based foods that do not contain added sugars, processed ingredients, chemicals or sodium.
The paleo diet is based on what our early ancestors ate: mostly natural, organic foods including nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruits. Also, because they were unable to digest dairy and dairy has negative health implications, the paleo diet avoids all dairy products, just like the Hallelujah Diet.
However, the paleo diet does include all natural, hormone-free meat and fish. And many nutritionists have criticized animal protein’s role in the diet because of its potential to diminish health. These critics of the paleo diet include nutrition experts at Hallelujah Diet who recommend essential supplements instead of meat and fish to provide the added protein and other nutrients that even the healthiest plant-based diet can’t fully provide.
What’s the Best Way to Get Essential Protein?
The biggest issue that arises when a plant-based diet is considered is the apparent lack of protein. While animal meat is the most abundant source of protein, it also has a direct linkage to causing chronic disease.
Plant-based foods are great sources of protein and they contain ingredients that are known to fight disease and cancers. Remember that early humans ate animal protein that was entirely grass-fed and hormone and chemical free, which is an unrealistic expectation for modern day animal protein.
In a chapter of his book,
The Dark Side of Animal Protein, Dr. Joel Fuhrman uses the China-Oxford-Cornell Project. This project studied 65 different Chinese counties that had vastly different diets ranging from entirely vegetarian to mostly animal based. And this was Fuhrman’s primary source of comparison between consumption of plants and animals.
Fuhrman writes, “…as animal food consumption approached zero, cancer rates fell. Areas of the country with an extremely low consumption of animal food were virtually free of heart attacks and cancer.”
Additionally plant protein is extremely high in cancer fighting nutrients, and has been shown to dramatically reverse the effects of advanced stage degenerative diseases. Fuhrman writes, “…a significantly greater reduction of cancer and all-cause mortality (about 75 percent reduction) was related to being on a vegetarian diet for more that twenty years.”
Specific plant foods that are high in protein:
- Lentils
- Garbanzo beans
- Cannellini beans
- Spinach
- Kale
- Seaweed
Protein can also be obtained through a 100% organic protein supplement like
Hallelujah Diet’s Organic Essential Pure Protein. A completely vegan supplement that is made from dry peas, rice and raw seeds, Organic Essential Protein features prebiotic fibers and an expanded flavor list: Almost Chocolate, Vanilla, Piña Colada and plain. The supplement contains up to 25 grams of protein from carefully selected and tested sources, and is 100% free of animal protein.
Avoid Dairy Products
From a young age, people are taught that dairy is a necessary part of any healthy diet that builds strong bones. That’s because dairy provides calcium benefits (300mg of calcium in one cup of milk). But…
- Dairy is actually harmful to bone health and counteracts its high level of calcium.
- Like all animal protein, dairy acidifies the body pH. The calcium, an acid neutralizer, is wasted because it is forced to balance dairy's high acidic content.
- Bones never receive the necessary amounts of calcium.
Both the paleo and Hallelujah Diet show that the calcium the body requires can be obtained entirely from plant-based food:
- Soy milk
- Almond milk
- Rice milk
You Can Maximize Nutrient Consumption
The body needs healthy fats, carbohydrates and sugar that can be regularly found in all natural, nutritious, organic plant-based foods.
- Fat—Plant-based diet fats are filled with vital nutrients, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and fiber.
- Plant foods like olives, olive oils and avocados are monounsaturated fats that are packed with heart healthy omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.
- Hemp, flax and chia seeds are loaded with essential fatty acids and omega-3 fatty acids.
- Nuts: walnuts and almonds are high in omega-3s and plant protein, and contain virtually all the healthy fat needed for the whole day.
- Carbohydrates—Carbs are all about quality, not quantity. Plant-based carbohydrates from fruits, vegetables and whole grains are packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals that protect against cancer, heart disease and various other chronic diseases.
- Red: strawberries, apples and tomatoes
- Orange: carrots, mango and oranges
- Yellow: bananas, squash and lemons
- Green: string beans, limes and pears
- Blue/Purple: blueberries, plums and beets
- Whole-grain bread, pasta and quinoa
- Sugar
- The optimal diet is devoid of any added sugars that are often found in processed foods.
- Fruits can be a natural, healthy way to cure any sweet tooth.
- Honey is the sugar variety that is found in the diet, and should be added to food sparingly.
Takeaways
- All the body’s protein needs can be found in plant foods like beans, spinach, kale and seaweed. HD’s Organic Essential Pure Protein Powder provides 25 grams of protein and essential vitamins and minerals.
- Like animal protein, animal dairy has many negative bodily effects, and its high level of acid virtually wastes its calcium property. Calcium needs can be fulfilled by soy milk, almond milk and rice milk.
- Fat, carbohydrates and sugars are all bodily necessities, but they are naturally found in olive oils, avocados, fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts and honey. So there is no need to consume processed chemicals.
Ultimately, a plant-based diet is a wonderfully simplistic approach to optimizing the body through nutrient-rich foods—a principle that inspired the Hallelujah Diet’s commitment to providing delicious, nutritious and 100% organic products that are full of essential nutrients.
