Comment Now to Prioritize Plant-Based Proteins in 2025 Dietary Guidelines

by

Take Action
Colorful vegan bowl with quinoa, sweet potato, avocado, hummus and variety of veggies
Share On Social!

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.

You can comment now on the scientific report.

Also, you can submit a model comment created by Salud America! to prioritize the consumption of plant-based proteins, including beans, peas, and lentils, in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.  

This comment period is open until February 10, 2025.

Comment NOW!

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, and high in fiber among others (https://bit.ly/2z0UJDE).

Animal-based products tend to be the opposite, being 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, that disproportionately impact Latinos and other groups.

With plant-based options such as beans, peas, and lentils, are also beneficial for food systems, at they support agricultural systems and 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 foodborne illnesses that meat-bases sources could cause. (https://bit.ly/426bit9).

Emphasizing plant-based proteins in dietary patterns can help ensure that Latinos and all families are able to have healthy, sustainable dietary patterns for optimal health outcomes.

Comment NOW!

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.

Family preparing food.

“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, but several other aspects including disease prevention, health equity, food system security, and even reduce greenhouse gas footprint, 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.

Comment NOW!

How Do Plant-Based Recommendations Fit into the Lens of Health Equity?

The scientific report emphasizes plant-based proteins as part of a health equity framework.

“Pursuing health equity 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, based on social conditions,” according to the scientific report.

The scientific report acknowledges that there are economic, social, and environmental disadvantages that serve as barriers to achieving health equity.

“These limitations point to the need for research that is more inclusive of diverse population groups and 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.

Comment NOW!

How Do These Changes Impact Latinos?

Consuming less meat and choosing more plant-based options can decrease the risk of many health issues that Latinos often face at a higher rate, such as:

“It also doesn’t have to contradict our Latino heritage. It’s a misconception that Latin food has to be so meat-heavy. In fact, Latin food is naturally rich in a lot of great plant-based options like beans, nuts, and seeds,” said registered dietitian, Krista Linares.

By making these healthy changes and considering these recommendations, Latinos and all families can live healthier lives.

Go here to find the full Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.

Comment NOW!

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.”

Comment NOW!

Explore More:

Healthy Food

By The Numbers By The Numbers

1

Supermarket

for every Latino neighborhood, compared to 3 for every non-Latino neighborhood

Share your thoughts