Plant Based Diets in the Prevention and Management of Chronic Diseases: An updated Review

Increasing prevalence of long-term health conditions such as obesity, type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), cancer, hypertension highlights the critical need for effective therapeutic nutrition initiatives at global level. This narrative review assesses the role of plant-based diets in prevention and treatment of various illnesses. Moreover, the study also focuses on the effectiveness of nutrition rich bioactive components present in plants such as; polyphenols, flavonoids, carotenoids, and alkaloids with each posing various health benefits depending upon their usage and uptake in the body. This nutritive initiative holds special attention to lower and middle class countries, targeting overburden of chronic diseases with therapeutic plant based diets. Results show hat plant based diets can reduce blood pressure, lower postprandial glucose levels, control the ratio of HDL to LDL in blood serum and reduce body weight and prevent oxidative stress. Hence, consumption of plant based antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and nutrient dense phenomenon can improve overall metabolic status and lower risk of chronic diseases. The generalizability and casual inference of available evidence hindered due to observational study design, variations in dietary classifications and a lack of data from non-western culture. Despite these confounding factors, such diets not only support general health objectives but also provide affordable, effective and sustainable approach to target chronic illness. Significant health benefits can be achieved by using multidisciplinary approach to initiate natural plant based solutions via national health programs and public health interventions. Longitudinal studies and clinical trials in context to the plant based dietary approach should be the primary focus for future researches, to strengthen the pool of updated knowledge and practices.