Dr Greger's Optimum Nutrition Recommendations mention Vitamin B12, DHA/EPA, Vitamin D, Calcium, Iron, Iodine and Selenium. No mention of Zinc. My inference is that when we construct food plates according to Dr Greger's Daily Dozen, we don't have to worry about zinc! How may we confirm this? By entering our daily meals in Cronometer (free app & website). I did this exercise in 2019 and I was satisfied that my food plates have plenty of zinc.
Phytates: Many publications mention that phytates in foods like whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds reduce mineral absorption, specifically zinc and iron absorption. However, Dr Greger's article on zinc says:
Onion and Garlic: Dr Greger has a blog post explaining that onion and garlic are known to enhance absorption of minerals like zinc and iron. See How to Enhance Mineral Absorption (2012). So if we include oinon and garlic (both from the allium family) in lunch and dinner, we are likely to enhance zinc absorption!
(3 mins) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "The whole grain phytonutrient phytic acid (phytate) partially inhibits mineral absorption, but has a wide range of health-promoting properties, such as anticancer activity. By concurrently eating mineral absorption enhancers, such as garlic and onions, one can get the best of both worlds by improving the bioavailability of iron and zinc in plant foods."
Associated blog post: How to Enhance Mineral Absorption (2012).
(1 min) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "Vegetarians may be at risk for zinc deficiency."
Dr Des Harrington has high quality videos at his YouTube channel. He references this research paper in his video on Zinc (7 mins, 2019):
Vegan diets: practical advice for athletes and exercisers by David Rogerson, J Int Soc Sprots Nutr 2017; 14: 36.
Excerpts from this paper:
At the same time, the paper says,
Dr Des Harrington points out that on one hand, some researchers believe that our body adjusts zinc absorption in response to lower rates of zinc, so there's nothing to worry about. At the same time, other researchers and health organizations suggest that vegetarians (who don't eat meat) may have to boost their zinc intake by 50% more. As of 2021, we don't know enough about zinc to have agreement on this matter.
Zinc supplements: Dr Harrington's advice is summarized below:
Good sources of zinc: Legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds. In particular, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, chia seeds, and oats. Nutritional yeast is another zinc source with the advantage that it has no phytates.
How to boost zinc absorption?
Tips:
Zinc Deficiency by Laura Caufield and Robert Black, Chapter 5 in Comparative Quantification of Health Risks, WHO (2004) — PDF file.
The vast majority of this video focuses on the prevalence of zinc deficiency in differernt population groups, and its debilitating effects on health. So if we'd like to know what all zinc deficiency can trigger, this is the video to watch!
I follow both Dr Michael Greger's Daily Dozen and Dr Esselstyn's Food Guidelines. In addition, I'm mindful of Dr Greger's Optimum Nutrition Recommendations which don't mention zinc at all!
My understanding is that when we construct meal plans by following the guidelines above, we get enough zinc in our food plates. I have confirmed this by entering my daily meals in in Cronometer (free app & website).
Even though Dr Greger says that phytates are not a concern when we follow his Daily Dozen, I do soak and sprout whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds overnight. This is helpful for many reasons, not just phytate reduction. Please see Sprouting for details.