Thirty plants this week, think you could do it? It might sound a lot, but it’s easier than you think. Fruit, veg, nuts, seeds, even coffee all count as plants. Legendary chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall joins us to share tips on eating more plants. Hugh’s new book ‘How to Eat 30 Plants a Week’ explores the wild world of legumes, grains, herbs and beyond. He explains that getting your thirty plants each week can be simple, fun and delicious. Joining Hugh is Tim Spector - professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and ZOE’s scientific co-founder. Tim explains why our gut microbiome loves plants, highlighting the importance of polyphenols, healthy fats and fiber. You’ll finish this episode inspired, empowered and likely... hungry. 🥑 Make smarter food choices. Become a member at zoe.com for 10% off with code PODCAST 🌱 Try our new plant based wholefood supplement - Daily 30 *Naturally high in copper which contributes to normal energy yielding metabolism and the normal function of the immune system Follow ZOE on Instagram. Timecodes 00:00 Thirty plants every week? 01:57 Quickfire questions 05:04 What happens when we digest plants? 08:43 Why are plants so different? 11:28 Why eating the rainbow is important 18:42 Why 30 plants? 22:13 How much fiber should you eat a day? 25:53 The science that proves the power of plants 32:00 How to get more plants in your diet 34:45 How to get more plants on-the-go 38:36 Plant-based cooking made simple 46:45 Are dried and frozen plants just as nutritious? 47:51 How does cooking affect plants 48:56 What to do with your leftovers 49:44 Do mushrooms count as plants? 51:06 How important is organic food? 55:40 Hugh’s showstopper dish 57:16 Surprise taste-test from Hugh’s garden Books Hugh’s book How To Eat 30 Plants a Week Tim’s book Food For Life Free resources from ZOE: Live Healthier: Top 10 Tips From ZOE Science & Nutrition Gut Guide - for a healthier microbiome in weeks MenoScale Calculator - learn about your symptoms Mentioned in today's episode American Gut: an Open Platform for Citizen Science Microbiome Research (2018), published in mSystems from American Society of Microbiology Could you eat 30 plant-based foods a week? (2021), published by World Cancer Research Fund Adults Meeting Fruit and Vegetable Intake Recommendations — United States (2019), published by Centers for Disease Control & Prevention Why 5 A Day? (2022), published by NHS Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption to reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases (2023), published by WHO Fruit and vegetable consumption and incident breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies (2021) published by British Journal of Cancer Consumption of Plant Seeds and Cardiovascular Health: Epidemiological and Clinical Trial Evidence (2013), published by Circulation Have feedback or a topic you'd like us to cover? Let us know here. Episode transcripts are available here.

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.