Eating for Health & Your Best Life!

Adopt a whole food plant-based eating pattern to reduce animal products and chronic disease risk, while building sustainable habits and using empowering evidence-based guidance.

Discover how inflammation drives chronic disease and aging, and how plant-based eating provides antioxidant, anti-inflammatory protection to lower inflammation and disease risk.

Define whole food plant-based eating and emphasize adding more whole plant foods daily. Avoid processed foods and learn to choose whole grains, fruits with fiber, and soy options.

Discover how processed foods and processed meats raise cancer and heart disease risks, learn the NOVA classification, and master label reading to choose unprocessed or minimally processed foods.

Adopt a whole food plant-based plan for personal and planetary health, with epigenetic benefits, reduced obesity, and lower environmental impact, while supporting local farms.

Discover how plant foods evolved through farming to boost sugar while reducing fiber and nutrients, and learn practical tips for selecting in-season, colorful produce for maximum flavor and nutrition.

Choose minimally processed greens, avoid pre-cut bags when possible, and prefer red leaf lettuce and kale for phytonutrients, then wash, dry, and store in a perforated bag.

Choose colorful root vegetables like purple potatoes, beets, and carrots; greens on top signal freshness and antioxidant content. Store thin-skinned potatoes in the fridge and thick-skinned ones at room temperature.

Learn to select and store stalk, flowering, and fruit vegetables, including broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and more. Use freshness cues and practical storage tips to keep produce at peak.

Explore the onion family’s healthful alliums—onions, shallots, garlic, chives, and green onions—by choosing color-rich varieties, inspecting firmness and skin, and storing to maximize freshness and nutrients.

Discover how to select and store fresh herbs to maximize antioxidants and nutrients, grow your own herbs, and use or grind dried seeds like flax to boost flavor and nutrition.

Learn how to buy and store small fruits like berries and grapes, focusing on aroma, weight, firmness, organic options, and proper washing to maximize flavor, nutrition, and freshness.

Discover how to select, store, and ripen medium to large fruits—from apples and citrus to mangoes and melons—using ethylene tricks, seasonality, and proper refrigeration.

Explore soy foods such as edamame, tofu, miso, tempeh, and soy milk and learn how phytoestrogens may lower breast cancer risk and recurrence, inflammation, and diabetes and heart disease.

Explore how beans and legumes boost health, lower inflammation and heart disease risk, and support the gut microbiome. Learn practical ways to include lentils, chickpeas, and black beans in meals.

Learn how flax seeds, turmeric, and chia seeds reduce inflammation and support heart and metabolic health, with practical tips to grind, store, and incorporate them into smoothies, meals, and desserts.

Learn to choose healthy plant fats from whole foods, including avocados, nuts, and olive oils, avoid coconut and palm oils, and use oils with a high smoke point for cooking.

Try new plant foods with an open mind, discover healthful whole-food options, and enjoy meat replacements for their own merit as delicious meals you can cook.

Learn to reduce arsenic in rice by rinsing, soaking, and cooking with excess water, then freeze in portioned sheets for quick, healthy meals with lentils and beans.

Learn to make health smoothies with a recipe featuring greens, berries, apple, turmeric, flax, and optional tofu, plus tips on meal prep for 3-4 days and supporting gut microbiome health.

Learn to build power bowls and big salads using on-hand ingredients like black beans, greens, rice, tofu, and avocado, topped with herbs and vinaigrette.

Explore plant-based protein swaps for animal proteins, including baked and pan-fried tofu, marinated and crispy, jackfruit for pulled pork, and portabella mushroom burger, with storage tips and quick prep ideas.

Learn quick, healthful breakfast ideas, from oats-based muesli and overnight oats to avocado toast and tofu scramble, with customizable nuts, seeds, dried fruit, flax, and plant milks.

Explore plant-based sauces and dressings that flavor meals, from creamy cashew cream to whipped hummus, chimichurri, and orange vinaigrette.

Stay hydrated with five 12-ounce glasses of water daily and enjoy green, white, black, or oolong tea for antioxidants and heart and brain health.

Learn to satisfy dessert cravings with whole foods by preparing simple, healthy treats like pecan pie bites, tofu chocolate mousse, and chia seed pudding.

Explore more plant foods and try new plant-based recipes to boost health. Discover local growers, farmer's market options, and subscribe to the Physician's Garden newsletter for ongoing tips.

Create a low-fat cheese sauce from potatoes and carrots, blend in nutritional yeast and vinegar, and bake a parmesan substitute from cashews, peanuts, and olives to dry for flavor.