Explaining it to people who ask

Anyone who changes how they eat becomes, involuntarily, a spokesperson.

Short honest answers work better than long ones, and knowing where the actual evidence sits helps.

"Where do you get your protein?"

The universal opener.

The short answer: beans, lentils, tofu, nuts, grains. The same places the animals get it.

The honest longer answer: protein requirements are lower than most people assume, plant foods contain plenty, and total intake matters more than source.

What not to do: launch into amino acid profiles at a dinner table.

"Isn't it unhealthy?"

Well-planned plant-based diets are regarded as appropriate for all stages of life by major dietetic associations, and are associated in the research with favourable cardiovascular and metabolic outcomes.

The honest qualification: it requires B12 supplementation, and it can be done badly, as can any diet.

The answer that lands: "It's fine if you do it properly, which mainly means taking a B12 supplement and eating actual food rather than chips."

"Humans are meant to eat meat"

The evolutionary argument, which is more complicated than either side presents.

Humans are omnivores and have eaten a very wide range of diets across environments and history. Our physiology accommodates both.

What we evolved eating also does not determine what is optimal now, given different life expectancy, activity levels and disease patterns.

The short answer: "We can eat lots of things. That's rather the point."

"Plants feel pain too"

Generally not a sincere question.

The response that ends it: plants lack a nervous system and there is no evidence of subjective experience. And, since most crops are grown to feed livestock, eating plants directly involves fewer plants.

Then change the subject.

"What about the environment, isn't soy destroying the rainforest?"

A sincere question with a clear answer.

The large majority of global soy production goes to animal feed. Soy consumed directly by humans is a small fraction of demand.

Life cycle analyses consistently find animal products to have substantially higher environmental impact per unit of protein than plant sources, across greenhouse gas emissions, land use and water.

The qualifications worth being honest about: some plant foods have meaningful impacts, air-freighted produce and almond cultivation in water-stressed regions being commonly cited examples; and grazing on land unsuitable for crops is a genuinely different case from feedlot systems.

The honest position: the direction of the evidence is clear and the details vary by product.

"You must miss cheese"

Usually said sympathetically.

Honest answer: yes, or no, depending on the person. There is no requirement to claim you do not.

"Do you eat fish?"

Asked constantly, and it is a genuine confusion about terminology rather than a challenge.

Answer plainly and without irritation.

"What if you were on a desert island?"

The hypothetical. "Then I'd eat whatever was there."

Most ethical positions are about what you do in ordinary circumstances rather than in emergencies, and saying so briefly generally closes it.

"Aren't you being extreme?"

The framing question, and it is worth answering rather than deflecting.

Eating vegetables and beans is not an extreme act. Most of the world has eaten predominantly plant-based diets for most of history, largely for economic reasons.

The tone that works

Several things, learned the hard way by most people who have done this a while.

Be brief. Long answers invite debate and make you the topic of the meal.

Do not evangelise. Nobody has been persuaded of anything at a dinner table, and the attempt generates resistance.

Do not comment on what other people are eating. The most important rule by a wide margin. Most hostility originates in people feeling judged, whether or not judgement was expressed.

Concede what is true. Yes, some plant-based products are ultra-processed. Yes, it requires supplements. Yes, it can be done badly. Conceding the honest points makes the rest more credible.

Do not claim more than the evidence supports. Plant-based diets are not a cure for anything, do not guarantee health, and are not the only reasonable dietary pattern.

Answer the question that was asked rather than the argument you think is behind it. Frequently there is no argument behind it and the person is just curious.

The one that actually persuades people

Not any of the above.

Cooking someone a good meal.

People change what they eat because they discover food they like, and almost never because they lost an argument.

General information rather than individual advice. Anyone with concerns about their own nutritional status should consult a registered dietitian.