If your diet only includes a small handful of plant foods, you're only feeding a small handful of microbes. But when you expand your plant variety: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices, you start feeding a much wider community.

By far, the most common question when thinking about plant-based foods is: “What about protein?” Most of us think of it as the “muscle builder,” but it does so much more. Protein is involved in making chemical messengers (like hormones), repairing tissues, and keeping vital organs - your heart, liver, kidneys and even your nervous system - running smoothly.