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Scientists are recommending more plant-based protein sources – beans, peas, and lentils – in the upcoming 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
The guidelines, which provide national nutrition recommendations, will be updated this year.
A big contributor to the update is the Scientific Report from the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, which was submitted to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Dec. 10, 2024.
The scientific report proposes to remove beans, peas, and lentils from the “vegetable” category, leave them solely in the “protein” category, and list them as prioritized proteins.
“The protein section has pretty much always said lean meat, then chicken, fish, eggs, beans, peas, and lentils. And we said, no, it really should be beans, peas, and lentils first,” said Dr. Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist at Stanford University and a member of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, according to verywellhealth.
FDA was seeking public comments on the scientific report through Feb. 10, 2025.
Salud America! created a model public comment to prioritize the consumption of plant-based proteins, including beans, peas, and lentils, in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
February 2025 Update: 10,293 people, including 103 Salud America! members, submitted comments on the scientific report that will help form the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. View the comments.
Submit This Model Comment on Prioritizing Plant-Based Protein Sources
Greetings,
In relation to the scientific recommendations for updating the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, I believe it’s crucial that Latinos and all people have access and opportunity to improve their nutrition and dietary patterns for the betterment of the health of themselves and their families.
With this in mind, I support the recommendation to prioritize plant-based protein sources.
There are several health benefits to plant-based diets, including supporting immune systems, reducing inflammation, helping maintain weight, boosting fiber, and more (https://bit.ly/2z0UJDE).
Animal-based products tend to be the opposite. They are higher in calories, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, and low in complex carbohydrates. These products can also contribute to chronic diseases (https://bit.ly/426bit9), such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes, which can have a heavy impact on people of different backgrounds.
Plant-based options, such as beans, peas, and lentils, also benefit food systems and agricultural systems. With more than 60% of the Latino community living in states that are among the most affected by severe heat, air pollution, and flooding (https://on.nrdc.org/4fRSuRB), it can ultimately help reduce greenhouse gas emissions (https://bit.ly/426bit9).
Higher consumption of plant-based protein sources can also reduce the risk of food-borne illnesses that meat-bases sources could cause. (https://bit.ly/426bit9).
Emphasizing plant-based proteins in dietary patterns can help ensure that all families are able to have healthy, sustainable dietary patterns for optimal health outcomes.
Why Are Plant-Based Options Beneficial?
According to the scientific report, evidence indicates that cardiovascular disease risk can decrease when reducing butter, processed and unprocessed red meat, and dairy when replaced or substituted with a wide range of plant-based food sources.
“The general lack of cardiovascular disease benefit observed for substitution or replacement within animal-based saturated fat foods, despite potential differences in saturated fat content, further highlights the importance of evaluating dietary exposures at the food level,” the scientific report states.
Sustainable, plant-rich diets are beneficial not only to human nutrition. They’re also critical to disease prevention, food system security, and even greenhouse gas reductions, according to FoodTank.
“If two-thirds of those meals made changes consistent with the scientific report like replacing beef tacos with bean tacos, total greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by 65 percent—the equivalent of taking 4.2 million gas-powered cars off the road for one year,” FoodTank states.
How Do Plant-Based Recommendations Fit into the Lens of Health Equity?
The scientific report emphasizes plant-based proteins as part of a community health improvement framework.
“[This] means striving for the highest possible standard of health for all people and giving special attention to the needs of those at greatest risk of poor health,” according to the scientific report.
The scientific report acknowledges that non-medical drivers of health (NMDoh) challenge many people in achieving their best health possible.
“These limitations point to the … importance of standardized, consistent measuring and reporting on factors that characterize the populations being studied (including the needs of those populations),” according to the report.
What’s Next for the Dietary Guidelines
The guidelines are updated every five years.
HHS considers the scientific report, federal agencies, and public comments as they shape the guidelines, which are used in a variety of ways.
“These guidelines are used to shape nutrition advice, policies, and federal nutrition programs such as SNAP and school lunch programs,” according to verywellhealth. “They also influence food packaging, including which products can be labeled as ‘healthy.’”
That is why your comment is important.
Commenting on proposed regulations and rules lets federal officials know about the potential impact of their decisions. Participating in the rulemaking process also allows you or your organization to shape federal programs and rules, according to Unidos US.
“But the new iteration of the dietary guidelines hasn’t been written yet, and there’s still a chance to make the changes needed to support a healthy, resilient food system,” according to FoodTank. “It’s critical that we all speak up to protect our health and food security.”
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Healthy FoodBy The Numbers
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