Jamie Oliver reveals simple diet swap that is essential to healthy life: ‘A win-win-win’

Beans, beans, the magical fruit. The more you eat, the more you … live a healthy, eco-friendly life?

Many of Britain’s top celebrity chefs, including Jamie Oliver, have joined in a campaign encouraging people to eat more beans. As The Guardian reported, the “Bang in Some Beans” campaign aims to double legume consumption across the United Kingdom by 2028.

Oliver, known for his numerous restaurants and cookbooks, and for hosting the television series The Naked Chef, pointed out numerous reasons for people to include more beans in their diets.

“Not only are they delicious and affordable, they’re plant-based powerhouses that are packed with fiber, are a brilliant source of protein, and live happily in your store cupboard for ages,” he said in a release, per The Guardian. “If there’s anything we would be eating more of, it’s beans.”

Switching to a plant-based diet provides numerous health benefits, such as a reduced risk of heart disease and prostate cancer. Many people who resist making that switch claim they need meat to get enough protein in their diets, but beans provide a simple, protein-packed alternative, along with a number of other health benefits.

The Cleveland Clinic points out that a half-cup of cooked beans has, on average, seven grams of protein, or the same as an ounce of meat. When combined with peas, nuts, seeds, and other plant-based proteins, it’s easy to match the amount of protein most people eat by consuming animals.

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That same half-cup of beans could provide one-quarter of the daily amount of fiber recommended by nutritionists — an important stat, considering only 5% or so of Americans meet that recommended total daily, and meat contains no fiber.

Beans are also a key source of potassium, copper, folic acid, and more. It’s no wonder UCLA Health calls them “nature’s perfect food.”

To top it off, beans are actually great for nature, as they can improve soil health while being grown. Meat production and consumption, on the other hand, is responsible for 329 million tons of carbon pollution in the United States alone, a recent study found, nearly the same amount as at-home dirty fuel combustion.

An Oxford University study found that, if the U.K.’s biggest meat-eaters switched to low-meat diets, the reduction in carbon pollution would be equivalent to eight million cars being removed from roads.

“Beans are a win-win-win for our health, the environment, and our wallets at a time when food prices continue to rise,” Rebecca Tobi, head of food business transformation at the Food Foundation, said of the U.K.’s new bean campaign, per The Guardian.

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