For The Nerds! 💪
(and everyone who wants to learn more)
Every recommendation in our app is grounded in peer-reviewed science. Here's the evidence — unfiltered.
Built on habits proven to support long-term health. As you may have read on the home page or have gathered by using the app, we have built a health score using 3 rules. These rules are based on the points of consensus between national dietary guidelines applied by countries across the world. The goal is not to be perfect but to be consistent in prioritising plant foods, eating your fruits and vegetables, and diversifying your diet.
Eat 500g of fruits and vegetables per day
A daily intake of at least 400–600 g of fruits and vegetables is widely recommended by global health authorities for reducing the risk of chronic disease. Large cohort studies find that higher fruit and vegetable consumption is correlated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease, several types of cancers, diabetes, and obesity.
Fruits and vegetables are a source of micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals, as well as phytonutrients which are loved by your gut microbiome. Prioritise eating your fruits and veggies to properly nourish your body and all the little critters that support you. Most people, even though clear guidelines exist, do not eat enough fruits and vegetables. In Europe only an estimated 12% of adults eat enough fruits and veggies.
Eat 30 plants per week
Eating a wide range of plant foods increases the diversity of fibers and phytonutrients (phyto=plant, derived from Greek) you consume which are key for nourishing a robust gut microbiome. Although "30 plants per week" itself is not from a single study, there is a consensus that a diverse, plant-rich, fiber-rich diet lowers your risk of many chronic diseases. These include cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, obesity, various types of cancers such as colon cancer, and inflammatory conditions. Higher plant and fiber diets are also associated with lower all-cause mortality.
More plant diversity → more fiber types and phytonutrients → a healthier microbiome → better metabolic, cardiovascular, and immune health.
Eat 3 plants for each colour of the rainbow
We think you get it by now. A diverse diet means a diverse colour palette too. Different colours in plants signify different phytonutrients. This in turns leads to a diverse range of nutrients that feed you and your gut microbiome. Our digestive system and metabolism are complex — one of the easiest ways to apply the knowledge gathered by researchers over the last few decades: eat the rainbow.
We admit the 3 plants per colour is a rule we created ourselves after reading paper after paper uncovering the health benefits of diverse, colourful, plant-based diets. This rule was added to help you diversify your plant intake which also diversifies the types of fibers you're consuming, the phytonutrients, the micronutrients, and it helps to counter overreliance on a single plant.
Much of our agricultural systems are not built sustainably and rely on monocultures and harsh, if not toxic, chemicals. By diversifying our diets, we are also voting with our money for diversified and more sustainable food systems. An added bonus: the discovery of new plant foods and experiencing the seasonality of our foods.
Why do we care about fiber?
Fiber is one of the most powerful yet most underconsumed nutrients worldwide. Higher fiber intake is consistently linked to lower rates of major chronic diseases. Yes, the same ones we have mentioned already on this page: they include cardiovascular disease and various types of cancer. Adequate fiber consumption improves metabolic health, insulin sensitivity, cholesterol levels, gut motility, and reduces inflammation. It also supports a diverse, healthy gut microbiome, influencing appetite regulation, immune function, and long-term metabolic resilience.
That's why the app encourages users to set a personalized daily fiber goal during onboarding. We have 2 tiers: 30g per day or 40g per day for those that are ambitious. The recommended range we found in the literature is between 25g–38g of fiber per day. We're our own being and what works best for each of us is slightly different but most of you stumbling onto our website are not eating enough fiber. It is estimated only 5–10% of adults eat enough fiber. Are you part of the 10%? Download the app to find out (we have a 2 week free trial, no credit card info required).
If you do want to increase your fiber consumption, please do so SLOWLY. Our bodies need time to adjust so aim for only a few grams more each week. Big changes may leave you bloated, farting, and with weird poops. Not to mention the cramps if you do not drink enough water to help digest all this new food.
Why do we care about protein?
Unlike fiber, if you are considering our app, you are likely consuming enough protein for healthy day to day life. Your protein needs increase when you do sports and want to build muscles but not nearly as quickly as many influencers would have you believe. That being said, you do need protein and you should be mindful of consuming adequate amounts. Protein is essential for muscle growth and maintenance and your overall health. You can set your targets in your nutrition profile or simply let our onboarding process set your targets for you.
The more important reason we care about your protein intake is its environmental impact. The source of your protein has huge sustainability implications. Animal protein is responsible for more than 50% of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. Land-use requirements for animal products are orders of magnitude larger than for plant-based proteins. And still, the animal products we overconsume are only responsible for 37% of global dietary protein.
Your own health also suffers when you overconsume animal products. Diets high in red meat are associated with adverse long-term health outcomes (e.g. higher cholesterol and cardiovascular disease risk). Diets high in fat are, obviously, more likely to lead to obesity and other health issues in the long run.
This is why we track your plant protein sources versus your animal-based protein sources and a sustainability score. These metrics, alongside smart suggestions and our food database, can help you find a balance between your protein needs, the environmental impact of your diet, your health, and the time you have in a day to spend in the kitchen (because we do not all have the same 24 hours in a day).
ADDED BONUS: plant proteins, like beans, tofu, and seitan, can help save the world AND your wallet.
Micronutrients currently included
Why did we start with these 10?
Getting all the nutrients you need from your diet can be a challenge when you do not know which nutrients you need, how much, and which foods contain them. To make things a little easier, we started with these 10 micronutrients because they are the most common nutrient deficiencies. (More to come!)
If you undereat or are simply not someone who feels hungry often, you may not be eating enough to get all 10 in sufficient amounts. Over a long period of time, this may lead to health complications. If you overeat a specific type of food or overconsume calorie dense yet nutrient poor foods, you may not have a balanced nutrient intake. Which over time can also lead to health complications.
Your micronutrient map will always show you the 5 micronutrients you are getting the least of compared to your daily recommended values. You'll receive recommendations of which food items to eat next to bring up your micronutrient intake.
What are micronutrients? What about phytonutrients?
Deeper dives into micronutrients and phytonutrients are coming soon. Stay tuned!
What is the Sustainability Score?
We want and need to keep building and improving, we can only do this with your help.
Why is this score important?
Every meal you log contributes to a global picture of nutrition and its environmental impact.
We are not perfect because we are human and The Lively Three was built by humans for humans. We are using publicly available resources such as the Australian Food Database, The Norwegian Mett…, papers published in Open Access, government guidelines, etc. As you can imagine, these sources are not aligned or standardised. Nor are they complete. Nor do we have access to fully transparent supply chains of where our food comes from, how it is grown, and then how it is processed, packaged, and distributed so that it ends up on our plate.
Even with those constraints, tracking your environmental impact, and then changing your habits, makes a big impact. Especially, when multiplied over your lifetime and over the lifetime of thousands of people.
To do better, and summarise more, we need time and we need you. By becoming a subscriber to The Lively Three App, you are helping to finance this huge endeavour and you are proving to the world that people care about their health and that of the planet. With that we can garner more support for the movement.
Citizen science at scale
The more people join, the more complete our sustainability data becomes — for everyone. Your participation directly improves the accuracy and depth of the environmental insights we can offer back to you and the community.
Ready to put the science to work?
Everything you just read is baked into every recommendation the app makes for you. Start your free 2-week trial — no credit card required.