SAD to GLAD™
Many Americans are on-the-go, being offered quick/easy/cheap empty calories at cafeterias, drive-throughs, and check-out counters. The result of a reactive busy life is trading necessary nutrition with too much fat, protein, and refined carbs. Americans are being fed processed foods which miss out on fiber (gut health), antioxidants (immune health) and healthy carbs (energy).
Each plate is an opportunity to pivot from the Standard American Diet (SAD) to a Good Lifestyle And Diet (GLAD). Ultra-processed foods are associated with a number of chronic health conditions including diabetes, obesity, heart attack, stroke and cancer.
Degrees of Processing
Unprocessed: Fresh foods as the are picked from the plant. (e.g. whole fresh vegetables, fruits, intact whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds)
Minimally-processed: Foods that are only slightly changed from their original form (e.g. canned beans, tofu, tempeh, cut or rolled grains, roasted nuts or seeds, nut and seed butters)
Moderately-processed: Foods that have undergone greater processing, but with few added ingredients (e.g. juices, flaked or puffed cereals, whole grain flour products)
Ultra-processed: Food products that have undergone extensive processing, generally including added fat, sugar, salt, additives, and preservatives. This includes lunch meats (salami, hot dogs, restaurant hamburgers), deep fried foods
How much do you think the % of America's calories come from plant-based foods?
According to Forks over Knives, 12% of America's calories come from plant-based foods, but only half of the plant-based calories (6%) come from french fries. Even vegans can be unhealthy if they eat too much processed foods.
So how many calories should come from plant-based foods? That depends if you’re getting adequate amounts of nutrients, like fiber (only found in plants) and antioxidants (your immune system’s fuel) - and if you want to reduce the amount of salt/oil/sugar in your diet.
SOS in animal-based processed foods: In the book, Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, Michael Moss shares, “Cheese is the biggest single source of saturated fat, which is converted by the liver into cholesterol. Besides cheese, sources of saturated fat include pizza, red meat, chocolate cake, cookies, frozen dinners, candy, potato chips, corn chips, butter, and mayonnaise (pp. 163, 178, 213, 215–216).
The way we consume food not only impacts our health and mood, it has great impact on our planet health. By taking the 7 day SAD to GLAD challenge, we'll help you learn how to easily calculate your preferred meal levels, according to your health and planetary targets. These foods have added salt/oil/sugar (SOS) to help preserve shelf life and place a hook on our taste buds.
What do you want on your plate today?
A plant-powered diet is a return to a diet closer to nature. We advocate plant-predominant eating while also supporting planetary health. Totaling 100% below, think about how much you eat each week for all 3 diet groups:
Whole plant-based: What % per week do you currently eat plant-based foods such as fruits, veggies, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds?
Ultra-processed: What % per week do you currently eat fried foods, junk foods, deli meats, bacon, hot dogs, and foods that have added sugar, oils, salt?
Animal-based: What % per week do you buy meat, dairy, or eggs that are preserved and shipped to your local grocery store?
If you have a target eating goal that is different from your current diet, let us help you declare + achieve your plate goals. Join the SAD TO GLAD challenge!
Our plant-forward meal plan is backed by evidence-based research highlighted by nutritional experts such as Dan Buettner’s Blue Zones, Dr Greger’s NutritionFacts.org, Dr Katz, and Colin Campbell's NutritionStudies.org.
When considering the environmental impact of dietary choices, a plant-based diet generates half the amount of carbon dioxide, consumes 13 times less water, and requires 18 times less land compared to an animal-based diet (source)
Acronyms
standard American diet (SAD)
good living and dieting (GLAD)
whole food, plant-based (WFPB)
salt/oil/sugar (SOS)
plant-powered (defined as 80% or more WFPB and reduced SOS)
ultra-processed (see definitions above)