Venus Williams says switching to a vegan diet was a game-changer for her skin and health, but she still loves 'junk' food

Venus Williams has been eating a plant-based diet for a decade, and she told Insider it's transformed her tennis performance, skin, and overall health. After being diagnosed with the autoimmune disease Sjögren's Syndrome, which causes joint pain and fatigue, in 2011, Williams' future in tennis looked shaky. Transitioning to a vegan diet, however, was a game-changer. Not only does a plant-based lifestyle allow Williams to manage her condition without medicine, she said, but it's improved the appearance of her skin, and research supports this. "Plant-based definitely changed my life, it made my skin amazing," Williams told Insider, and she's not the only person to have experienced the complexion-boosting benefits of cutting out dairy and increasing fruit and veg consumption. The diet has been so effective, Williams threw herself into the lifestyle, launching her own vegan company and invested in others. Now, Williams says, other athletes turn to her for advice on how to cut out meat without dampening their athletic performance.

Serena Williams suggested Venus go 'raw vegan'

Williams' diagnosis was the initial motivation to switch up her diet, and it was sister Serena who suggested she go raw vegan — only eating raw, plant-based foods — which she did before transitioning to a more relaxed plant-based approach. "Living with an autoimmune disease, things can get a little tricky and you can be on loads of medicine, and that's not something that I want to do," she said. "So to be able to control as much as I can — what's happening in my body, my inflammation levels — through what I eat is a godsend." Williams, who has just qualified as a wildcard for the Madrid Open, said going plant-based not only changed her performance on the court, but made her skin "amazing" too.