The Flexitarian Diet is a style of eating that encourages eating mostly plant-based foods while allowing meat and other animal products in moderation.

It’s more flexible than fully vegetarian or vegan diets.

If you’re looking to add more plant foods to your diet but don’t want to completely cut out meat, going flexitarian may be for you.

本文概述了灵活性饮食，其优势，食物吃的食物，以及一周的膳食计划。

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Cameron Whitman/Stocksy United

The Flexitarian Diet was created by dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner to help people reap the benefits of vegetarian eating while still enjoying animal products in moderation.

That’s why the name of this diet is a combination of the words “flexible” and “vegetarian.”

Vegetarians eliminate meat and sometimes other animal foods, whilevegansavoid meat, fish, eggs, dairy, and all other animal-derived food products.

Because flexitarians eat animal products, they’re not consideredvegetarians or vegans.

灵活性饮食没有明确的规则或推荐的卡路里数量和Macronuries。事实上，它更像是生活方式而不是饮食。

它基于以下原则：

  • 大多吃水果，蔬菜，豆类和全谷物。
  • Focus on protein fromplants instead of animals.
  • Be flexible and incorporate meat and animal products from time to time.
  • 吃最少的加工，最自然的食物。
  • 限制added sugar和sweets.

As a result of its flexible nature and focus on what to include rather than what to restrict, the Flexitarian Diet is a popular choice for people looking to eat healthier.

In her book, Jackson Blatner spells out how to start eating flexitarian by incorporating certain amounts of meat per week.

However, following her specific recommendations is not required to start eating in a flexitarian way. Some people following the diet may eat more animal products than others.

Overall, the goal is to eat more nutritious plant foods and less meat.

概括

The Flexitarian Diet is a semi-vegetarian style of eating that encourages eating less meat and more plant-based foods. Because there are no specific rules or suggestions, it is an appealing option for people who are looking to cut back on animal products.

Eating flexitarian may provide several health benefits ( 1 ).

However, since there is no clear definition of this diet, it’s difficult to assess whether and how the researched其他植物饮食的好处apply to the Flexitarian Diet.

尽管如此，素食主义者研究素食饮食仍然有助于突出半素食如何促进健康。

It appears to be important to eat mostly fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and other minimally processed whole foods in order to reap the health benefits of plant-based eating.

Decreasing meat consumption while continuing to eat many refined foods with lots of added sugar and salt will not lead to the same benefits ( 2 ).

心脏病

Diets rich in fiber and healthy fats are good for heart health ( 3 ).

A study including more than 48,188 participants found that fish eaters and vegetarians had lower rates ofischemic heart disease比肉食者，虽然素食者的速度较高hemorrhagic和total stroke( 4 ).

Fish eaters and vegetarians had 13% and 22% lower rates of ischemic heart disease than meat eaters, respectively ( 4 ).

This is likely because vegetarian diets are oftenrich in fiber和antioxidants that may reduce blood pressure and increase good cholesterol.

A 2020 review of 15 studies found that a vegetarian diet significantly lowered systolic and diastolic blood pressure as compared to anomnivorous diet( 5 ).

Furthermore, a 2020 study on vegetarian, pescatarian, and flexitarian diets that included 10,797 participants found that those who adhered to any diet excluding/reducing meat intake had lower body mass index, total cholesterol, and blood pressure than those who ate meat ( 1 ).

然而，灵活性饮食意味着主要是植物为基础，最有可能与完全素食类似的益处。

Weight management

Flexitarian eating may also help you manage your weight.

This is partially because flexitarians often limit high calorie,highly processed foods并且吃更多的植物食品，这些食物在卡路里自然较低。

Several studies have shown that people who follow a plant-based diet may lose more weight than those who do not ( 6 , 7 ).

A review of studies in more than 1,100 people total found that those who ate a vegetarian diet for 18 weeks lost 4.5 pounds (2 kg) more than those who did not ( 6 ).

This and other studies also show that those who follow vegan diets tend to lose more weight than vegetarians and omnivores ( 6 , 7 ).

Because the Flexitarian Diet is closer to a vegetarian diet than a vegan one, it may help with weight loss, but possibly not as much as a vegan diet would.

However, weight loss is not the primary goal of the Flexitarian Diet. It’s more focused on adding more nutrient-dense foods to your diet, such as fruits, legumes, and vegetables.

Diabetes

2型糖尿病是全球健康流行病。吃A.健康的饮食, especially a predominantly plant-based one, may help prevent and manage this disease.

这是最有可能的,因为植物性饮食的援助weight loss and include many foods that are high in fiber and low in unhealthy fats and added sugar ( 6 , 7 ).

A study with more than 200,000 participants found that a diet that emphasized plant foods and was low in animal foods was associated with about a 20% reduced risk of diabetes(8).

Additionally, a plant-based diet that emphasized healthy plant foods was linked with a larger decrease (34%) in diabetes risk, while a plant-based diet high in less healthy plant foods was associated with a 16% increased diabetes risk (8).

The healthy plant food diet included foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and vegetable oils, and the less healthy plant food diet included foods like fruit juices, sweetened beverages, refined grains, and sweets (8).

额外的研究发现，在2型糖尿病的人中，HBA1C的减少（3个月平均血糖读数）的人在植物的饮食中的饮食中更大，而不是传统饮食的人（ 9 ).

Cancer

营养模式高，营养植物食品如水果，蔬菜和豆类和低加工食品中的低，与某些癌症的风险较低有关。

Research suggests that vegetarian diets are associated with a lower overall incidence of all cancers, but especially colorectal cancers ( 10 , 11 ).

A 7-year study on cases of colorectal cancers in 78,000 people found that semi-vegetarians were 8% less likely than non-vegetarians to get this type of cancer ( 11 ).

因此，通过饮食灵活性方式更加素食食品可能会降低您的癌症风险。

概括

灵活性饮食可能有助于管理体重并降低心脏病，癌症和2型糖尿病的风险。但是，因为大多数研究分析了素食和素食饮食，很难知道灵活性饮食是否具有相似的益处。

The Flexitarian Diet may benefit your health和the environment.

Reducing meat consumption can help preserve natural resources by decreasing greenhouse gas emissions and land and water use.

A review of the research on the sustainability of plant-based diets found that switching from the average Western diet to flexitarian eating, in which meat is partially replaced by plant foods, could decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 7% ( 12 ).

Eating more plant foods will also drive the demand to devote more land to growing fruits and vegetables for humans instead of feed for livestock.

Cultivating plants requires far fewer resources than raising animals to eat.

In fact, greenhouse gas emissions resulting from vegan and ovo-lacto-vegetarian diets are about 50% and about 35% lower, respectively, than those from most current omnivore diets, with corresponding reductions in the use of natural resources ( 13 , 14 ).

概括

Eating flexitarian and swapping meat for plant protein is good for the planet. Plant-based diets use fewer fossil fuels and less land and water.

When flexitarian and other plant-based diets are planned well, they can be very healthy.

However, some people may be at risk of nutrient deficiencies when they cut back on meat and other animal products, depending on the nutritional content of their other food choices.

Possible nutrient deficiencies to be aware of on the Flexitarian Diet include ( 15 ):

A review of the research on vitamin B12 deficiency found that vegetarians may be at risk for deficiency, with 62% of pregnant vegetarians and up to 90% of older adult vegetarians having a deficiency ( 16 ).

维生素B12仅在动物产品中自然发生。尽管如此，B12强化食品也可以是健康饮食的一部分。您也可以与医疗保健专业人员或注册营养师发言，他们可以帮助您决定是否是B12supplementis necessary.

Flexitarians may also have lower stores of zinc and iron because these minerals are best absorbed from animal foods. While it’s possible to get enough of these nutrients from plant foods alone, flexitarians need to plan their diets carefully to accomplish this ( 17 ).

Most nuts, seeds, whole grains, and legumes contain both iron and zinc. Adding a source of vitamin C is a good way toincrease iron absorptionfrom plant-based foods ( 18 ).

Some flexitarians may limit dairy and need to eat plant-based sources of calcium to get adequate amounts of this nutrient. Plant foods rich in calcium include bok choy, kale, chard, and sesame seeds.

Finally, flexitarians, vegetarians, and vegans should be mindful of getting enough omega-3 fatty acids, which are usually found in fatty fish. Individuals following those diets should consider supplementing with algal oil or fish oil to ensure they maintain optimal EPA/DHA levels ( 19 ).

Keep in mind that eating flexitarian gives you flexibility to consume varying amounts of meat and animal products. If the diet is planned well and includes a variety of whole foods, nutritional deficiencies may not be a concern.

概括

限制ed consumption of meat and other animal products may lead to some nutritional deficiencies, particularly B12, iron, zinc and calcium. Flexitarians may be at risk, depending on their food choices.

Flexitarians emphasize plant proteins and other whole, minimally processed plant foods while limiting animal products.

经常吃的食物包括：

  • 蛋白质：soybeans, tofu, tempeh,legumes， 扁豆
  • Non-starchy vegetables:greens, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, green beans, carrots, cauliflower
  • Starchy vegetables:winter squash, peas, corn, sweet potato
  • Fruits:apples, oranges, berries, grapes, cherries
  • Whole grains:quinoa，teff，荞麦，farro
  • Nuts, seeds, and other healthy fats:almonds, flaxseed, chia seeds,walnuts, cashews, pistachios, peanut butter, avocados, olives, coconut
  • Plant-based milk alternatives:unsweetened almond, coconut, hemp, and soy milk
  • Herbs, spices and seasonings:basil, oregano, mint, thyme, cumin,turmeric, ginger
  • Condiments:reduced-sodium soy sauce,apple cider vinegar, salsa, mustard, nutritional yeast, ketchup without added sugar
  • 饮料：still and sparkling water, tea,coffee

When incorporating animal products, choose the following when possible:

概括

The Flexitarian Diet includes a variety of whole, plant-based foods with an emphasis on plant over animal proteins. When including animal products, consider choosing free-range eggs, wild-caught fish, and grass-fed meat and dairy when possible.

The Flexitarian Diet encourages limiting not only meat and animal products but also highly processed foods, refined grains, and added sugar.

最小化的食物包括：

  • Processed meats:bacon, sausage, bologna
  • Refined carbs:white bread, white rice, bagels, croissants
  • Added sugar and sweets:苏打, doughnuts, cakes, cookies, candy
  • Fast food:薯条，汉堡，鸡块，奶昔
概括

Eating flexitarian does not just mean decreasing your meat consumption. Limiting processed meats, refined carbs, and added sugars are other important aspects of the Flexitarian Diet.

This 1-week meal plan provides some ideas to help you start eating flexitarian.

Monday

  • Breakfast:steel-cut oatswith apples, milled flaxseed, and cinnamon
  • Lunch:salad with greens, shrimp, corn, black beans, and avocado
  • Dinner:lentil soup with whole grain bread and a side salad

Tuesday

  • Breakfast:whole grain toast with牛油果和poached eggs
  • Lunch:burrito bowl with brown rice, beans, and vegetables
  • Dinner:南瓜面条番茄酱和白豆

周三

  • Breakfast:coconut yogurt with bananas and walnuts
  • Lunch:whole grainwrap with hummus, vegetables, and chickpeas
  • Dinner:grilled salmon, baked sweet potato, and green beans

Thursday

  • Breakfast:smoothie made with unsweetenedalmond milk，菠菜，花生酱和冷冻浆果
  • Lunch:羽衣甘蓝凯撒沙拉配扁豆和番茄汤
  • Dinner:烤鸡，奎奴亚藜和烤花椰菜

Friday

  • Breakfast:Greek yogurt withblueberries和pumpkin seeds
  • Lunch:chard wraps with mixed veggies and peanut dipping sauce
  • Dinner:lentil stew and a side salad

Saturday

  • Breakfast:over-easyeggs用炒蔬菜和水果沙拉
  • Lunch:peanut butter sandwich with crushed berries on whole grain bread
  • Dinner:黑豆汉堡用鳄梨和甘薯薯条

星期日

  • Breakfast:tofu scramble with mixed veggies and spices
  • Lunch:quinoa salad with dried cranberries, pecans, andfeta cheese
  • Dinner:stuffed bell peppers with ground turkey and a side salad

Eating the flexitarian way is about limiting your consumption of meat and other animal products while focusing on nutritious plant-based foods. Some people may choose to eat more or fewer animal products than shown in the above meal plan.

概括

This 1-week meal plan provides meal ideas to get you started with flexitarian eating. Depending on your preferences, you may choose to eat more or fewer animal products.

The semi-vegetarian Flexitarian Diet focuses on healthy plant proteins and other whole, minimally processed植物的食物but encourages eating meat and animal products in moderation.

Eating flexitarian may aid weight loss and reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. It may even be good for the planet.

然而，规划灵活性的食物选择很好，以防止营养缺陷并获得最健康的福利。