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Angel Leung

@angelonplants

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Evidence-based nutrition for busy professionals 🔍
Making healthy eating delicious 😋
Certified in Plant-Based Nutrition 🌱

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You don’t have to tell your co-workers that you ate dessert for breakfast 🤫

☀️ On a busy morning before work, it’s ready in 5 minutes with one bowl and zero cooking required.

🍌 Just real ingredients: oats, banana, cocoa, and nuts. Dessert vibes, but whole-food fiber.

🛒 Ingredients:

- 1 very ripe banana
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder
- 1 tsp almond or peanut butter
- Optional: 1 tsp instant coffee (regular or decaf), ¼ tsp vanilla extract, pecan or walnut pieces

📋 How to make it:

1. Add the banana, oats, soy milk, vanilla, cocoa, and coffee to a bowl.
2. Mash the banana and mix all the ingredients well.
3. Microwave for 60-sec and take the bowl out to stir. Then microwave again for 60-sec, until set at the edges and fudgy in the middle.
4. Top with nut butter and nuts.

📌 Save this for the next weekday morning that you don't have time to cook!

And send it to your friend who’s always craving chocolate 😋 by @angelonplants

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9

a day ago

You know how kids hate vegetables? I did too! Why would I eat broccoli over chips and cookies?

It wasn’t until I learned what greens actually do for our bodies that I started to appreciate them. I never thought I’d enjoy the bitterness of arugula.

Here’s what changed my mind:

🥗 Arugula is the #1 source of dietary nitrates, by weight.
💪 Our bodies convert nitrates into nitric oxide, which relaxes blood vessels and improves blood flow to our muscles during workouts.
😋 Knowing that gave me a reason to keep eating it. And repeated exposure is how we gradually learn to enjoy healthy foods.

Now I crave the bitterness and buy arugula by the pound!

If you read nutrition labels, care about clean eating, and want real fuel for the gym, the greens on your plate deserve as much attention as your protein.

For more research-backed plant nutrition for busy, health-conscious people, follow along!

📚 Sources:
European Food Safety Authority. EFSA J. 2008;689:1–79 by @angelonplants

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9 days ago

Truthfully, it’s not easy for me to talk openly about this failure.

More to this story soon.

📖 The main book that got me obsessed with entrepreneurship: Unscripted by MJ DeMarco. by @angelonplants

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5 months ago

You might be trying to maximize the wrong nutrient 😅

With protein bars, protein powders, and even protein water filling grocery shelves, it’s easy to think we all need more protein. But most Americans already get enough. Fiber is the nutrient most of us are missing!

🫘 Where to find it: Only in plants! Mainly in beans, lentils, and whole grains

☺️ To stay full until dinner: add beans or lentils to your work lunch.

🍽️ Fiber-rich foods like legumes and whole grains don’t just help at the meal you eat them. As your gut bacteria ferment the fiber, they can help steady your blood sugar and fullness at your next meal.

🐢 New to beans and lentils? Go slow and add them over a couple of weeks. Your gut bacteria need time to adjust (that’s the bloating people blame on beans).

Have a favorite fiber-rich meal or snack? Let me know what it is! 😄 by @angelonplants

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a day ago

The best pre-workout I’ve found isn’t a powder - it’s a vegetable!

How much do you take? In the studies, about ½ cup of beet juice. 3 small beets or 1 cup of cooked spinach works too.

In another study, runners who ate about 1½ cups of baked beets 75 minutes before a 5K ran faster in the last stretch, and said it felt easier.

If you’ve got a desk job and squeeze workouts in around a 9 to 5, try this during lunch. Fiber and protein from your meal help slow the sugar absorption and keep your blood sugar steadier.

Missed Part 1? It’s the arugula one. If you’re not a beet fan, an arugula salad at lunch works too.

📚 Sources:
Bailey et al., J Appl Physiol, 2009
Wylie et al., J Appl Physiol, 2013
Murphy et al., J Acad Nutr Diet, 2012
Lidder & Webb, Br J Clin Pharmacol, 2013
How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Greger

Follow for more plant-based hacks for busy workdays! 🌱 by @angelonplants

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2 days ago

Sit at a desk for 8 hours? Try making your drinks before the work day starts!

5 minutes in the morning = 3 good-for-you drinks ready to go. No need to scramble to make a drink during your lunch break!

🫖 Green tea: studies show it can help lower LDL cholesterol and blood pressure

☕ Coffee: not the villain! Over 20 studies following 10M+ people linked ~3 cups a day to a 13% lower risk of death from any cause, decaf included. The catch is what goes in it: sugary coffee drinks can pack more sugar than soda. I skip the sugar and cream (saturated fat raises LDL) and use unsweetened soy milk instead. My favorite is Nescafé Gold - either Blonde or Decaf depending on whether I need the caffeine boost.

🍵 Matcha: you’re drinking the whole tea leaf, so you get even more of green tea’s goodness, plus calm, focused energy without the jitters

🥛 Unsweetened soy milk: considered the most nutritionally complete swap for dairy. Large studies link soy to lower breast and prostate cancer risk, and clinical studies show soy doesn’t affect men’s testosterone. Soy isn’t something to fear!

📚 Sources:
Onakpoya et al., Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 2014; Liu et al., Br J Nutr 2014
Li et al., J Hum Nutr Diet 2019; Poole et al., BMJ 2017
Vanga & Raghavan, J Food Sci Technol 2018
Nechuta et al., Am J Clin Nutr 2012
Applegate et al., Nutrients 2018
Reed et al., Reprod Toxicol 2021
Found via Dr. Michael Greger’s How Not to Die & How Not to Age

Do you drink tea or coffee? If not, what’s in your work-day cup? 😊 by @angelonplants

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3 days ago

I buy 4 tubs of miso every grocery run, even though I watch my sodium 🧂

If you read labels, meal prep, and keep an eye on your blood pressure, this swap is for you!

🍜 Why I use miso instead of salt:

• Umami! It adds savory depth, so dressings, soups, and sauces taste richer, not just saltier.

• Salt is linked to stomach cancer, but a meta-analysis found no significant link with miso soup [1]

• The salt in miso may nudge blood pressure up, while soy protein may help bring it down. In a randomized trial, soy protein lowered blood pressure [2]

📊 The most surprising study: researchers followed Japanese adults with normal blood pressure for 4 years. Those eating 2+ bowls of miso soup a day (roughly an extra ½ tsp of salt) had about 5x lower risk of developing high blood pressure than those eating 1 bowl or less [3]

🍲 Note: Miso is a flavor upgrade but still contains sodium (so it’s not a free pass).

🛒 What I look for on the label: Low-sodium, short ingredient list, no added alcohol

💡 Whisk it into warm (not boiling) water first. High heat can kill the live cultures and dull its flavor.

📚 Sources:

[1] D’Elia et al., Clin Nutr 2012

[2] He et al., Ann Intern Med 2005

[3] Kanda et al., Asia Pac J Public Health 1999

Research summary adapted from How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Greger by @angelonplants

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6 days ago

The one food that’s high protein, high fiber, AND can lower LDL costs about $1 👀

When I looked into the research, one food kept showing up: beans 🫘

💪 Protein + fiber in one: a cup of cooked beans has about 15 g of protein AND about 15 g of fiber. About 95% of Americans don’t meet the recommended intake of fiber, which matters for gut health and helps keep us full.

🩸 Better bloodwork: in a meta-analysis of randomized trials, eating about one serving of beans or lentils a day lowered LDL cholesterol by roughly 5%.

⏳ Longevity: across studies in Sweden, Greece, Japan, and Australia, legumes were the only food group consistently linked to living longer. Every extra 2 tbsp a day was linked to an 8% lower risk of death. A 2022 modeling study also estimated that eating more legumes could add more years of life than any other single food change.

🥄 Easy ways to sneak them in: toss them into your work lunch, blend them into soup, or swap half the meat in your meal prep. Canned counts! Just rinse them to cut the sodium.

Healthy doesn’t have to be complicated. Sometimes it’s a $1 can 😉

Follow for research-backed ways to eat more plants 🌱

🥗 featured: Three-Bean Salad with Spicy Tomato Dressing from The How Not to Age Cookbook by Dr. Michael Greger

📚 Sources:
- Quagliani D, Felt-Gunderson P. Am J Lifestyle Med. 2017;11(1):80–85
- Ha V et al. CMAJ. 2014;186(8):E252–62
- Darmadi-Blackberry I et al. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2004;13(2):217–20
- Fadnes LT et al. PLoS Med. 2022;19(2):e1003889 by @angelonplants

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7 days ago

What do tomatoes have to do with depression? 🍅

If you meal prep, track your protein, and read every label, you already care about what food does for your body. Here’s what it might do for your mood 👇

🧠 One theory: free radicals (unstable molecules that damage cells) may contribute to depression. Brain imaging shows some emotion centers shrink in people with depression. Antioxidants help neutralize free radicals, and people who eat more fruits and veggies tend to have lower rates of depression.

📊 The evidence:

• In ~1,000 older adults, daily tomato eaters had about half the odds of depression compared with those eating them weekly or less.

• A nationwide US study found people with higher blood levels of carotenoids (antioxidant pigments in colorful produce) had fewer depression symptoms, and more was better.

❤️ Lycopene, the red pigment in tomatoes, is the strongest antioxidant in the carotenoid family. It’s fat-soluble, so pair it with avocado, tahini, or walnuts. Blending helps release it too 💡

🔬 Honest caveat: these studies show links, not proof. Antioxidants from supplements weren’t linked to the same benefit, so whole foods for the win 🌱

(Food supports mental health but doesn’t replace professional care 💚)

📚 Sources: Pandya 2013 (Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry); Michel 2012 (Curr Pharm Des); McMartin 2013 (Prev Med); Beydoun 2013 (Br J Nutr); Niu 2013 (J Affect Disord); Payne 2012 (J Acad Nutr Diet); Di Mascio 1989 (Arch Biochem Biophys). Research summary adapted from How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Greger by @angelonplants

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8 days ago

Want to eat more apples? Here's a hack: a 16-slice apple slicer makes it way easier 😋

The research on apples is fascinating!

A meta-analysis of population studies found that people who ate more apples had a 15% lower risk of premature death (and the "high" group averaged only about a quarter of an apple a day). In one study, women eating around half an apple a day had a 35% lower risk of dying early compared to those eating almost none.

Daily apple eaters have also been linked to 24% lower odds of breast cancer, even after accounting for their intake of other fruits and vegetables.

🍎 Pro tip: eat the peel too! The peel has 2–6x the antioxidant power of the flesh (depending on the variety).

📚 Sources:
Gayer et al., Curr Dev Nutr 2019
Hodgson et al., Br J Nutr 2016
Gallus et al., Ann Oncol 2005
Wolfe et al., J Agric Food Chem 2003 by @angelonplants

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10 days ago

Why risk UV damage when we can glow from the inside out? 💁🏻‍♀️✨

📚 References:
http://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22412966/
http://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/handle/10023/7430 by @angelonplants

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12 days ago

So I'm not entirely sure what my goal for posting is yet, but I just know that what the evidence shows is so powerful that I have to share even if it feels uncomfortable for me to challenge the status quo.

But if me sharing my knowledge and perspective can help just one person, this will have all been worth it!

📚 How Not to Die by Michael Greger, MD - truly opened my eyes to the power of food as medicine by @angelonplants

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14 days ago