10 powerful plant-based insights and menu ideas for healthcare dining from top dietitians

The hospital setting can provide a teachable moment when it comes to eating more plants, according to guidance from the American College of Cardiology. And the American Medical Association issued a resolution recommending plant-based meal options and the elimination of processed meat in hospitals. Why the focus on eating “mostly plants?”

That idea, made mainstream by Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food, has been holding true in the years since its publication in several ways, backed up by scientific studies and dietitians alike. In the healthcare setting, the case for plant-based hospital menu items is gaining momentum as an accepted, proven way to healthier patients and more sustainable practices for the planet.

Top dietitians recently offered their best ideas in the Today’s Dietitian webinar Putting Plant-Based Menus into Practice in Healthcare Settings, moderated by Sharon Palmer, MSFS, RDN, aka The Plant-Powered Dietitian. Here are a few of the panelists, their advice, menu ideas from The Humane Society Forward Food and a couple of examples of plant-based menu items at Adventist Health Howard Memorial in Willits, Calif., where Anna Herby, RD, CDE, is keeping the kitchen focused on plants.

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Related:Cool Food Pledge Day kicks off plant-based menu upgrades at Hackensack Meridian Health

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