<P> From 2017 reviews, a plant - based diet reduced total and LDL cholesterol, with further evidence that shifting plant protein consumption to more than 50% of total protein intake may lower the risk of cardiovascular diseases, although further clinical research was recommended . A diet high in fruits and vegetables may decrease the risk of high blood pressure, stroke, and colorectal cancer . A vegetarian diet may also help with weight loss . </P> <P> Although herbivory (reliance on diet entirely of plants) was long thought to be a Mesozoic phenomenon, evidence of it is found as soon as the fossils which could show it . Within less than 20 million years after the first land plants evolved, plants were being consumed by arthropods . Herbivory among four - limbed terrestrial vertebrates, the tetrapods developed in the Late Carboniferous (307 - 299 million years ago). Early tetrapods were large amphibious piscivores . While amphibians continued to feed on fish and insects, some reptiles began exploring two new food types: the tetrapods (carnivory) and plants (herbivory). </P> <P> Carnivory was a natural transition from insectivory for medium and large tetrapods, requiring minimal adaptation . In contrast, a complex set of adaptations was necessary for feeding on highly fibrous plant materials . </P> <P> Quite often, mainly herbivorous creatures will eat small quantities of animal - based food when it becomes available . Although this is trivial most of the time, omnivorous or herbivorous birds, such as sparrows, often will feed their chicks insects while food is most needed for growth . </P>

What is meant by a whole food plant based diet