The 'Best Hospital in the World' Endorses a Plant-Based Diet

The Mayo Clinic has been ranked number one worldwide for six consecutive years

Photo credits: Miiruuku and Jonathunder

In a world overflowing with dietary advice and often conflicting information, many people still harbor concerns about adopting a plant-based diet. Whether it’s apprehension about nutritional adequacy or misconceptions about flavor, these worries can act as significant barriers to exploring this lifestyle. However, as credible sources like dietetic organizations and health ministries weigh in on the benefits of plant-based diets, it becomes increasingly clear that these worries are unfounded.

One leading authority, the Mayo Clinic—ranked as the best hospital in the world—has not only promoted the health benefits of plant-based eating but has also addressed common myths that often deter individuals from making the switch.

Through a variety of formats, the clinic provides helpful tips to get started and maintain a plant-based diet, emphasizing that with the right preparation, plant-based foods can be anything but bland. In their video “Busting Plant-Based Diet Myths,” they highlight that plant-based foods can taste delicious when cooked correctly and debunk the widespread misconception that it’s difficult to get enough protein on a plant-based diet.

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Spotlight on health benefits

The Mayo Clinic highlights the numerous advantages of balanced plant-based diets, which include reducing heart disease, lowering blood pressure, improving gut health, managing weight, and boosting the immune system. Their research indicates that those following a vegan diet—eliminating all animal products—often experience the lowest rates of cancer compared to other dietary patterns. The bio-chemical reasons for this are explained in an article titled “Plant power: Using diet to lower cancer risk”, published by the Mayo Clinic Health System.

“In research studies, vegans, people who don't eat any animal products, including fish, dairy or eggs, appeared to have the lowest rates of cancer of any diet.”

— Grace Fjeldberg
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (R.D.N.), Mayo Clinic Health System

The Mayo Clinic’s plant-based recipes

The Mayo Clinic has published a selection of delicious and nutritious plant-based recipes designed to make meatless meals easy and enjoyable. Their online collection features a diverse array of dishes, such as thai peanut tofu stir-fry, Moroccan vegetable tray bake, sesame-crusted tofu, broccoli with garlic and lemon, and ginger-marinated grilled portobello mushrooms — along with plant-based appetizers, desserts, salads, soups, and side dishes. The clinic also shares practical tips on incorporating affordable ingredients like frozen fruits and vegetables, making it easier to embrace a plant-based lifestyle without sacrificing flavor or variety.

“A whole-food diet rich in diverse fruits and vegetables is powerful medicine.”

— Mayo Clinic
Statement provided by the doctors, nurses and specialists for cancer care at Mayo Clinic

Of course, not every plant-based diet is automatically healthy. For example, eating nothing but potato chips is technically plant-based but obviously won’t be healthy in the long run. Eating a well-balanced diet of fruits and vegetables is key. For optimal health, Mayo Clinic experts recommend a whole-food, plant-based (WFPB) diet. As they state, “The only diet on earth that’s ever been shown to do three things, both prevent treat and reverse diseases like diabetes, coronary heart disease, and even early stage prostate cancer, is that of a whole-food, plant-based diet.”

→ For information on critical nutrients on a plant-based diet, see here.

On every channel

The Mayo Clinic has been promoting plant-based eating on various platforms, including Facebook, TikTok, Spotify, Instagram, and YouTube.

In an episode of the Mayo Clinic’s podcast “On Nutrition,” Dr. Dawn Mussallem, who herself survived cancer, heart failure and a heart transplant, highlights how a plant-based diet has helped both herself and her patients. Today, she works as internal medicine physician and cancer survivorship specialist at Mayo Clinic, advocating a vegan lifestyle for optimal health.

“91 percent of women are fiber deficient, 95 percent of men are fiber deficient, and everyone’s worried about protein. No one is protein deficient. Now, I’m not saying you don’t need protein, but I’m saying you need to equally focus on fiber. It’s critical. You get that fiber from plant foods. You don’t get it from animal products.”

Dr. Dawn Mussallem
Internal medicine physician and cancer survivorship specialist at Mayo Clinic

Benefits beyond personal health

The Mayo Clinic emphasizes that a plant-based diet benefits not only personal health but also helps protect the environment and supports public health. That is because animal agriculture significantly contributes to the following problems:

• Antibiotic resistance
  The majority — 66 percent— of antibiotics are given to farmed animals, making the industry an ideal breeding ground for resistant bacteria. In the long run, this will render many types of surgeries impossible, and severe diseases untreatable. According to predictions, by 2050, 10 million people will die each year from resistant bacteria — more than the current deaths from all types of cancer combined.

• Risk of future pandemics
  The vast majority of farmed animals are kept under conditions that promote the emergence and mutation of infectious diseases. Crowded into tight spaces, they are subjected to high stress levels, insufficient sunlight, open wounds, and poor ventilation. These environments are not just inhumane; they are ideal breeding grounds for the next pandemic. 99 percent of farmed animals in the U.S. are factory farmed, but similar conditions can also be found on many certified organic farms.

• Climate change and environmental destruction

  The United Nations has identified climate change as the “single biggest health threat facing humanity.” In addition to contributing to climate change, the production of animal products heavily contributes to rainforest destruction, soil degradation, biodiversity loss, water and air pollution, and food scarcity — imposing severe costs on human health and well-being.

“By embracing plant-based menus, hospitals can improve patient and public health, and directly mitigate the chronic and public health risks they continually combat.”

— Billy Nicholles

The Mayo Clinic is not alone

The Mayo Clinic isn’t the only major health authority endorsing a plant-based diet for optimal wellness. Numerous expert organizations, including the world’s largest body of nutrition and dietetics practitioners, have officially confirmed that a well-balanced plant-based diet is healthful and nutritionally adequate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes.

The evidence on the benefits and nutritional adequacy is so conclusive that plant-based diets have been recommended by leading authoritative bodies, including the World Health Organization, the United Nations, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Institute for Cancer Research.

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