Media Reality Check: Nutrients and Veganism

May 22, 2012 by

On nearly every single one of my major media appearances, the network has felt it necessary to consult “the other side”—a doctor, a psychologist, or a nutritionist (personally, I think veganism is inherently the other side). Not one of these talking heads has been a vegan representative—as if none exist to consult. In each instance, these folks have reinforced the public with the same exact biased messages that continue to justify the standard American diet:

“It’s hard to get protein, B12, calcium, and fat on a vegan diet.”
“Vegans have to be extra careful…”
“Vegan diets are dangerous…we absolutely need the nutrients we get from animal foods.”
“Meat-free diets can cause deficiencies…”
“Kids may become malnourished.”

So, we know where conventional medicine stands, and frankly, they’re about twenty years behind doctors doing plant-based-diet research. Their facts are so distorted and empty, it’s actually shocking. But like I’ve said before, the majority of opposition can be explained by fear, ignorance, and industry collusion. So let’s clear up some of these concerns with a few reality-check points:

Seek experienced advice: You wouldn’t take swimming lessons from someone who never learned to swim. Don’t take advice from any doctor or nutritionist who is not a successful vegan themselves. Current conventional medicine is not based on healthy people who have found solutions, but rather sick populations with unnecessary chronic disease caused by normalized unhealthy habits. Most doctors simply don’t stay current on the most advanced vegan research and protocols. Their work is more geared towards alleviating symptoms, not healing the root cause. Seek out the best medical and nutritional advice in the field from the likes of Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Dr. Gabriel Cousens, David Wolfe, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn and Dr. T. Colin Campbell, Dr. Neal Barnard, Dr. Jameth Sheridan, and Dr. Michael Greger. Also, books by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, Victoria Moran, and Brendan Brazier.

The SAD food pyramid vs. the plant-based pyramid: The nutritionists and conventional doctors (many have as little as six hours of nutritional training) that oppose or caution against veganism seem to base their advice on the standard American diet (SAD) food pyramid. To be clear: with veganism, we are not talking about the standard American food pyramid minus meat and dairy (this leaves nothing upon nothing). A plant-based pyramid has an entirely different arrangement of food groups that provides for all of our human needs for macronutrients (carbs, protein, and fat) and micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and antioxidants). By exploring a plant-based pyramid and vegan nutrient recommendations, everyone will reap the benefits of finding micronutrients the American public is generally  deficient in.

The ANDI Chart: The Aggregate Nutrient Density Index rates the micronutrient quality of foods on a scale from 1-1000, taking into consideration vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and antioxidants. Kale and mustard greens: 1000. All animal products fall in the 30s or below. If you are eating a variety of whole foods, you are most likely already getting all the macronutrients you need (carbs, protein, fats). It’s time for everyone to focus the bulk of their diets on foods that provide micronutrients the average person is not getting. Conventional doctors and nutritionists need a reality check on who “needs to be careful.”

Chronic disease: Studies continue to show the link between chronic disease and consuming animal products. Let’s look at the trajectory for kids in this country:
•50% or more of Americans adults are on pharmaceutical medication.
•20% of children ages 2-19 are obese.
•30% of girls are getting their periods by age 8.
•The Center for Disease Control lists cancer and heart disease as the two leading causes of death.
These maladies are all exacerbated, if not caused, by eating meat and dairy. The standard American diet has been given its chance and it has proven to be a disaster. One hundred years ago, people only became ill in the last few months of their lives. Today, the average person will experience at least a decade of disease and unnecessary suffering. For many, transitioning to a plant-based diet at a young age will be a life-saving choice.

Protein: The average American gets too much protein (remember, extra is stored as fat). Many people don’t know that proteins are simply chains of amino acids, and that plant proteins contain all essential amino acids. The vegan pyramid provides a healthy amount of protein with a lower biological value than animal products, which prevents IGF reactions (insulin-like growth factors that trigger cancer and tumor growth). According to the USDA, children need about .4 grams of protein per healthy pound of body weight. For kids ages 4-6, that only amounts to about 15-20 g. protein per day! One piece of sprouted whole grain toast (4 g. protein) with a couple tablespoons of almond butter (6 g. protein) and you’re half, or more than half-way, done by breakfast. Protein is not hard to find in a plant-based diet.

B12: Conventional nutrition will tell you that vitamin B12 can only be found in animal-products. This is factually skewed and distorted. B12 is neither an animal-based nor plant-based micronutrient, but bacteria-based. If we were all eating foods pulled straight from the ground, we would be getting sufficient amounts of B12 in the grooves of our veggies, for example. If people are getting B12 at all from meat, it is because the animal ate grass and stored B12 in her gut—B12 is not inherent to the flesh. But most animals are not grass-fed these days. B12 is crucial for everyone, but the reality is that 50-90% of meat-eaters are deficient in optimum levels of B12, too! NO ONE EVER MENTIONS THAT! I eat lots of nutritional yeast and spirulina and my levels are in the normal range after 9 years of veganism, but because everyone seems to absorb B12 differently, the only accurate test is an MMA blood or urine test. If your levels are low, add B12-fortified foods into your diet along with a sublingual B12 (kids love them, they’re tiny and sweet). The methylcobalamin type is the most absorbable. Everyone can benefit by exploring the vegan pyramid because our research may shed light on nutrients everyone needs.

Fat: Fats and essential fatty acids are crucial, especially for children—but we want good fats that do not carry along the negative side effects that animal products do. Our brains live in 80% fatty tissue, so including raw organic fats in our repertoires is vital for all kinds of biological functions (some experts posit that our prehistoric advances in brain size may have been due to the fat content in the meat we hunted, not the protein). We also now know that vegans who eat nuts and seeds live longer than those who don’t. Choose excellent sources of raw, organic fats: olive oil and olives, seeds, nuts, nut and seed butters, algae oil (long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids), flax oil, hemp oil, walnut oil, coconut and coconut oil (healthy saturated fat), and avocados, for example. Note: new studies show that eating saturated fats together with Omega-3 fats doubles the absorbency of the Omegas, for example coconut oil and algae oil together.

Calcium: Animal products are a relatively poor source of calcium compared to leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, kale, and bok choy. Meat and dairy have an acidic PH, causing calcium to be leeched out of our bones into our bloodstream in order to alkalize our system. Studies (i, ii, iii) are now showing that the countries with the highest intake of dairy products also have the highest rates of osteoporosis. Even more important than the amount of calcium in a food is the amount we absorb (we absorb 60% of calcium from broccoli—VERY high). Calcium from plants is more bioavailable to our bodies and comes without harmful side effects like IGF (insuline-like growth factors) that trigger growth of tumors, cancer, and cell mutations. We know for a fact that toxins bioaccumulate up the food chain, so if one is eating meat or dairy, even from organic cows, you are ingesting an exponentially higher amount of toxins including PCBs, dioxins, and even radioactive particles. There is nowhere in the world that is untouched by these toxins, they are being found in the fatty tissue of polar bears. Calcium absorbency also depends on magnesium (which meat and dairy have very little of compared to plants). Fifty to 75% of the general public is also magnesium deficient. The best sources for maintaining a healthy balance come from a plant-based diet (and lucky for us, raw chocolate is one of the highest sources of magnesium on Earth!). Remember that the cow gets her calcium from eating grass.

Vitamin D: Fifty to 90% of Americans are deficient in D—this isn’t just a vegan problem. A 2007 study showed that even 50% of  young, healthy Hawaiian-island surfers lacked sufficient D due to immediate showering post-session. Supplemental D3 comes from lanolin, aka “wool grease,” a waxy substance secreted by sheep’s glands, the collection of which is a gross and abusive industry. Supplemental D2 is plant-based based, but it is unclear whether it provides absorbable amounts to sufficiently increase D serum. Mushrooms are now known to produce D3 and there are comapanies at work to provide mushroom-based D3. Source of Life brand claims to have such a product, but I have not verified its ingredients. With exposure to sunlight, our skin produces D on its own in a matter of minutes or  hours (depending on location and skin color), but it takes several hours for our bodies to absorb those oils—so spend some time in the early or late sun and don’t wash off!

In the words of the great Chuck D of Public Enemy, don’t believe the hype. Reality checked.

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Posted in Foodology, Health, Politics | 3 Comments »

Animals in Entertainment

May 16, 2012 by

Image: Reuters/Ognen Teofilovski

A few years ago I went to the Los Angeles Zoo for the last time. As I stood amidst a rowdy crowd of laughing frat boys, parents with cameras, and children tapping at the pane of glass that separated us from a troop of chimpanzees,  I felt a profound shame. I was fixated on the graying shoulders of one elderly chimp who sat alone in a corner near to us, his massive hands laying still on the concrete.  He had the muscly forearm of a strong old man, so eerily familiar, it was dizzying. I was staring at life-sentenced prisoner who had lived, aged, and would die in this enclosure…for what?

Image: Suzi Eszterhas/Getty Images

The zoo and marine life park industries know the discomfort their visitors are apt to feel.  In the face of growing eco-consciousness, their public relations committees have responded with concerted efforts to market themselves in the same unified way across the board—as centers of civic pride and educational enrichment. At every turn, they assure us of their benevolent mission of conservation, sensitizing children to animals, and protecting endangered species so that we ignore what’s obvious before our very eyes.

The reality is that zoos and marine life parks are the opposite of what they purport themselves to be—and industry insiders all know it. They are not in the business of education or conservation, but rather entertainment, and they only further desensitize us to the use and abuse of animals.

Even the best zoos and marine life parks have track records of abuse, unnecessary death, and the illegal trafficking of animals. The majority fail to engage in effective programs for conservation or the protection of endangered species. With limited access to a broad gene pool, the infrequent success of breeding endangered animals tends only to produce weak specimens. In the rare case when an animal is successfully bred, their survival in the wild is unlikely—especially because animals born in captivity are hardly ever released into natural habitats, but more often used to propagate the industry.

A vast number of zoo and marine life park animals suffer stress-related diseases, abnormal maternity, self-mutilation, and aggression. Tilikum, the infamous orca who landed at Sea World San Diego after being stolen out of the waters of Iceland in the 1980s, has been responsible for the deaths of three people,  yet Sea World continues to “rehabilitate” and keep him at work for profit. A vast number of zoo elephants are fed a daily diet of painkillers and anti-inflammatory medications to hide ailments caused by inactivity and confinement in artificial enclosures. The list goes on.

Image: www.idablog.org

Animals in entertainment also exhibit stereotypies—repetitive movements associated with schizophrenia, trauma, and autism. If you’ve been to the zoo, you may have noticed it. Swaying, rocking, tics, and marching in place—common to captive animals—are signs of suffering, trauma, and poor conditions. In many cases, stereotypies are caused by the abnormal growth of brain cells called dendrites in the seeking systems of the animals’ brains, a consequence of solitary confinement and lack of stimulation. These signs signify that these captive animals live in consistently frustrated states. The worst rescue cases don’t exhibit stereotypies whatsoever, but stand still and unresponsive, having biologically “given up” on exerting their instincts. Because dendrite growth is like a scar on the brain, recovery is rare.

What do we really learn from the captive animals we observe on display at zoos and marine life parks? They are but representations of the idea of their wild counterparts, whose movements, eating and hunting habits, and familial behaviors remain unseen.  The placards we read tell us about the lives of those free and wild animals, not those before our eyes, whose individual stories the park directors hide.

Zoos and marine life parks may elicit a feeling of wonder from our children, but they do not encourage an authentic or lasting reverence for the lives of animals. If they were effective, people would run straight from the zoo to join animal protections organizations. Instead, most families head to the park’s café for hot dogs. In fact, under the San Francisco Bay Aquarium website’s “Conservation” tab you’ll find a seafood restaurant advertisement masked as a call to sustainable action. Why not list the bay area’s many veg restaurants instead? That would truly be “voting with your fork!” At San Francisco’s Steinhart Aquarium, you can admire the octopi downstairs and then dine finely on them upstairs at the Moss Room.

Photo: San Francisco Bay Aquarium

Photo from the Moss Room.

Nearly every option on Sea World’s dining menus is animal-based.

Don’t we have “bigger fish to fry than zoos and sea life parks?” some people will ask. I say turning our attention to the use and abuse of animals reveals a great number of issues we need to face—and they are all connected. To patronize live animal displays reinforces the anthropocentrism our society tends toward. This self-involved outlook is the root cause of the environmental, ecological, economical, and health crises we find ourselves in.  It teaches us that our technology, education, material objects, and daily desires are more important than the very ground we walk upon, more important than the wellbeing of all living things across the world. The same mindset that allows us to abuse animals and irreversibly violate nature drives our desire to eat what we please without consequence, buy homes we can’t afford, and dangerously fracture the earth for temporary supplies of petroleum.  These are distractions from true solutions and change. It may seem invisible at first, but this kind of corruptive education begins in youth—at the zoo, at the marine life park.

We don’t have to miss out on anything. We can explore new ways of instilling a reverence in children for nature and the true lives of animals, ways that have an authentic impact on our hearts and minds. This kind of education lasts a lifetime.

Find a local animal sanctuary to visit or volunteer at a shelter near you.

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The Protein Myth

May 10, 2012 by

There are so many myths that meat-eating-vegan-haters have constructed over the years about why a plant-based diet is bad for you—it’s just straight up laughable.  But the greatest myth of all is the all too familiar question “Where do you get your protein?” The question is so ingrained into the consciousness of the American public, I can remember asking it myself when I was young.  The best part is that most people who ask that question don’t even know what protein is.

As meat loving Americans, we are obsessed with protein. Back in the days, athletes used to eat steaks before competitions because they thought it would improve their performance.  Shiiiit, I used to eat raw eggs after working out because, like Rocky, I thought I needed it to build muscle.  There is this idea that without animal protein, you will not only perform poorly, you may just wither away and die.  Well I’ve been vegan for sixteen years…and I’m thriving.

As Americans we usually get too much protein, not too little (remember that extra protein is stored in the body as fat).

So what is a protein? In layman’s terms,  proteins are made of chains of amino acids, which are found in all foods, not just meat and dairy. Of all the different amino acids, only eight are essential, meaning we need to consume them in food because our bodies do not produce them. As all plant proteins contain the full array of essential amino acids—albeit in different amounts—plant-based foods become entirely sufficient suppliers of protein when you go vegan.

Here are some amazing sources of vegan protein: dark leafy greens like kale, chard, mustard, and even Romaine lettuce; hemp seeds or rice protein powder, nuts, beans, seeds, and superfoods like spirulina and chlorella.  Typically, one needs about 0.4 grams of protein per day for every pound of healthy body weight. Some people need more protein, some less, but in any case, plant-based foods can certainly and easily fulfill anyone’s dietary needs.  If you start your day with a hemp powder smoothie, have a bowl of lentil soup for lunch, and a big salad topped with spirulina and pumpkin seeds and a side of quinoa, you’re good. On some days you might consume more, on some days, less—the key is adding new foods to your weekly repertoire. Let’s not forget where Popeye the Sailor Man got his knock-out power—spinach!!!

If you don’t think that you can get diesel from a plant-based diet, think again. Just ask Iron Mike Tyson—vegan.  Olympic medalist Carl Lewis—vegan. Mixed martial arts fighters Jake Shields, Nick Diaz, Jon Fitch…the list of vegan superheroes goes on and on until the break of dawn…myth dispelled.

The protein-deficiency myth has pushed been by the meat and dairy industries to instill fear of veganism, sell crap, and make us doubt that nature has not done enough to nourish us with greens, fruits, nuts, seeds and vegetables.  Seriously?  Let’s not forget that the largest most powerful animals on the planet are herbivores. Gorillas, giraffes, hippos, horses and rhinos—WHAT!  I personally feel strong as an ox—oh snap! Oxen are vegan, too!

There are so many deficiency worries when it comes to the vegan diet, I can only think that most people just take for granted that the mainstream information they’ve been fed their whole lives is accurate. Proof? The other common questions are always the same: “Where do you get your calcium?” “Where do you get your iron?”  “Where do you get your Omega 3s?” And of course the only one that’s actually justifiable: “Where do you get your rockstar clear skin?”

Damn, I feel good…but that’s just how you feel when you’re vegan!!!

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Mock Tuna Salad Wraps

April 12, 2012 by

Like tuna, but totally free of suffering, mercury, and radiation.

In our household, we don’t eat much soy, but this tempeh recipe is an exception.

•Finely chop and steam a block of tempeh for about 10 minutes. Let cool. (We used LightLife Organic Three Grain Tempeh, available at Whole Foods if not your local health food store.)
•In a big bowl, combine tempeh with Vegenaise, chopped celery, and slivers of red onion, parsley optional. Add sea salt and black pepper to taste.
•Toast up your favorite tortilla (ours is Food For Life’s Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Tortillas. We rotate and flip them on our stove over an open flame until toasty).
•Fill tortilla with the tempeh salad, top with greens, and wrap.

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Fear, Ignorance, and Collusion: The Real Reasons Why Experts Dis’ Veganism

April 5, 2012 by

Available April 24, 2012


BY RUBY ROTH

“Propaganda.”  “Brainwashing.”  “Child abuse!”

I’d never have guessed my children’s book would provoke such claims. That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals, though well received, also caused some controversy, garnering attacks from the likes of animal agriculture trade magazines and even Farm Bureau CEOs. Though veganism is swiftly gaining momentum, it still provokes knee-jerk reactions—for me, each case of opposition a study of the invisible forces that shape our thinking about food, health, and animals. My upcoming children’s book, Vegan Is Love, was recently reviewed by Nicole German, a registered dietician on Diet Blog whose occupation and critique perfectly exemplify the real reasons why “experts” often dis’ veganism: fear, ignorance, and industry collusion.

FEAR
“The main problem I have with this book,” German writes, “is that children are impressionable, and this is too sensitive of a topic to have a child read this book.”

We tend to shelter children from the “adult” world because we fear shattering the fragility we imagine they inherently possess. We follow this concept of childhood because we inherited it from the Victorian age—not because it is universally accepted. Throughout history and the world, various cultures consider their children to have capabilities beyond what we acknowledge here in the West. In some cultures kids are contributing members of the community by the time they’re four—watching siblings, pounding grain, helping collect firewood. Kids are more competent and sturdy than we think. Surprised parents have repeatedly told me that their child reacted with curiosity—not fear—when they learned about factory farming in my books. During readings, I’ve never once seen a child overwhelmed—only adults. Kids learn when we teach them.

I do, though, agree that kids are impressionable, which is exactly why they need information at an early age that will help them make educated choices. In my experience, when kids understand options, they choose wisely.

With constant media and technological stimulation, kids are being “impressed” upon by biased messaging up to hundreds of times a day—by whom? Follow the money. Seventy-five percent of government subsidies go to meat and dairy while less than half a percent goes to fruits and vegetables. The Milk Mustache campaign, driven by the National Milk Processor Board (administered by the USDA) spent $190 million in 1998.  Colluding industry-led campaigns like these cause massive increases in demand, in this case, billions of pounds of fluid milk. These profit-seeking systems are the ones we should be concerned about influencing our kids—not a picture book about choices. If we don’t intercept the all-pervasive, concerted efforts between Big Ag, Big Pharma, and federal nutrition programs, today’s youth will inevitably join in the animal cruelty and the dysfunctional cycle of disease and medication we are experiencing in this country at an all-time high. The most important message to teach kids is that we don’t have to fear anything we have the power to change.

IGNORANCE
“[This book] could easily scare a young child into eating vegan, and without proper guidance that child could become malnourished.” writes German.

Typical of doctors and nutritionists educated through conventional programs, German’s paternalistic, cautionary advice is based on remedial knowledge of veganism. Yes, everyone needs protein (some more, some less). But this warning perpetuates the most common myth about veganism—that it leads to deficiencies. Even without science, this is an issue long disqualified by the nations of people who have thrived on plant-based diets throughout history—the Essenes, many Buddhists, Hindus, Rastafari, Seventh Day Adventists, and Jainists among others. With all the supporting evidence—from scientific research to factory farm exposés—we should really be warning people that going from a plant-based diet to an omnivorous one is the path that more likely to lead to disease—and positively, to violent consent. Studies continue to show the link between animal products and chronic disease (which, on a side note, one might interpret as the physical or even spiritual manifestation of consuming ill, abused, and terrified animals).

The highest quality proteins—the most absorbable and least toxin-accumulative—come from plant-sources like spirulina and chlorella, for example, which contain approximately 60-70 percent protein with 40 percent absorbability. The protein in red meat, fish, and chicken is less than 20 percent absorbable, especially because amino acids like tryptophan are heat sensitive, destroyed during cooking. It takes a lot of animal flesh to supply sufficient amounts of protein, meanwhile, we’re building a toxic load not worth its weight in nutrients. When 80+ percent of cows on American farms have bovine leukemia, isn’t it in our best interest to regularly eat almonds for calcium instead of pus-filled milk? There may be nutrients in milk from a cow untainted by environmental toxins, but that’s not what’s for sale—anywhere. It doesn’t exist.

German also writes, “The worldly problems presented in this book …are meant for the government, businesses, and large groups of adults to conquer.”  The problems presented in my book are caused by government, big business, and large groups of consenting adults. They will not be the ones to fix them. As Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

In U.S. history, social and legislative change has always been achieved from the bottom of the ladder up, not the top down. Most of the rights we experience as part of daily existence—from the 40-hour work week to equal opportunity housing—are due to the activism of regular citizens, specifically the working class, people of color, and women, who led until government and big business were forced to follow.

We can’t afford to wait for the next generation to grow up before teaching them to live consciously. Sugarcoating or avoiding truths only hinders what children are actually capable of, psychologically, spiritually, and physically. And hindering their capabilities delays the potential we have to green our society, improve our health, and do best for all living things.

INDUSTRY COLLUSION
Unless one works behind the scenes or actively seeks out the truth, it is unlikely one would know the degree of collusion between government and big pharma, agriculture, and food corporations in getting us to abide by their guidelines and consume the products. When the level of their organization and calculation becomes clear, the reality is dizzying.The revolving door between “watchdog” institutions like the FDA, the USDA, the Department of Health and Monsanto, large processed food corporations, and pharmaceuticals ensures the alignment of public services and education with industry interests.The very Dietetics program at the University of Georgia where German received her degree is accredited by the American Dietetic Association, which regularly receives sponsorship from corporate giants like Monsanto, the National Dairy Council, Aramark, Coca-Cola, and PepsiCo. [1, 2, 3]From elementary school to graduate programs, everything from school events and lectures to vending machines and curriculums are known to be organized for potential gain by colluding industries. Medical students are routinely influenced and educated by pharmaceutical-sponsored events and learn to deal with disease by prescribing medication, not advising changes in diet. What they prescribe will often depend simply on whichever brand got a hold on their school first.

In Western medicine, there is little connection between food and health—and these corporate alliances aim to keep it that way. In 2002, Pharmacia merged with Monsanto to become one of the top-tier companies in both agriculture and pharmaceuticals. They want us to think we can eat whatever we want without consequence. When we become ill, we go to doctors who prescribe their medications. It’s win-win.

So, veganism, relatively new to the mainstream, is bound to remain extra-curricular. Neither moral nor ethical imperatives, nor environmental toxins, may ever be addressed as part of nutritional science, nor taken into consideration in the nutritional profiles of different foods. Neither will the cognitive and emotional lives of animals.

And so, conventional nutrition degree programs produce advisors like German, who suggest that you can’t get full unless you include animal protein in a meal. Her idea of a healthy choice salad dressing contains 30+ processed ingredients including 6+ kinds of milk products fortified with vitamin A (protocol for replacing nutrients lost in processing). But look, no added sugar! It’s healthy. Calorie-counting, trans-fats, and Trader Joe’s-informed “health” (TJ’s private label foods come from companies like PepsiCo, Frito-Lay, Danone, and Tasty Bite, by the way), are all fine distractions from understanding true health and the consequences of animal agriculture.

I am not attacking German personally, but the system that produces views like hers. Like most, she trusted that system. But at this point, “experts” like German should either find new occupations or take their knowledge up about 600 notches, because what they’re really doing is harm—in German’s case, the extent of which is masked by her inclusion of small bits on truly healthful, cruelty-free foods.

It may seem maniacal to have built a grand case against such a small critique, but this is truly what comes to my mind when I know that on flipside of a pebble hides a mountain. It is the underbelly of things I’ve always been interested in. It’s why I write children’s books. I want the next generation to be exposed to alternative thinking, educational experiences that will allow them to compete with “expert” opinions about health, animals, and the environment as they grow into adulthood. I believe in the capabilities of children. They need but little guidance in learning to love deeply, think critically, and act responsibly. No corporation or industry can interrupt this kind of education.

See www.WeDontEatAnimals.com for more info.

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Holy Shiitake! Quick Soup Recipe

March 5, 2012 by


One of our go-to dinner recipes—a staple in our regular repertoire because the bouillon cubes make it fast (and because mushrooms do a body good).

All the ingredients are coarsely chopped and cooked through and flavored in the sautéeing stage. Then once you add water, you only need to wait to bring the soup to a boil for a few more minutes, top each bowl with a little garnish, and voila, family dinner. Even better the next day after the flavors have really melded.

Into a small amount of boiling water (about 1/4″ in a large soup pot), I throw the following:
•1 yellow or white onion chopped in long, lazy slices.
•2 vegan bouillon cubes (we like Rapunzel brand “with sea salt and herbs”).
•Sautée for a couple minutes then add:
•10-15 chopped Shiitake mushrooms (stems and all, briskly rinsed in water) and any other optional ingredients (broccoli, ginger, garlic, sliced carrots, etc.).



•Stir for another couple minutes until mushrooms are cooked through.
• Then add at least a pitcher full of water (enough to make your soup a soup). Bring to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer for another 5-10 minutes to let the flavors meld (and any optional veggies soften).
•After the heat is off, top with chopped green onions, bok choy, scallions, or chives.
•Each bowl receives a dollop of olive oil, a dash of shoyu or Braggs, and a sprinkle of black sesame seeds before the soup is ladled in.

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Green Gold: Avocados

March 2, 2012 by


One of the most valuable discoveries ever: our neighbor has an avocado tree—and they’re the best we’ve ever had. And the neighbor doesn’t even eat them! We’ve stuck green gold.

Our family eats a lot of avocados—even before they were free (in any case, we believe good food = good investment). And avos are one of the fatty fruit foods that we especially recommend as a staple to newbie vegans to satisfy that “heavy, full” feeling that some people seek when they are transitioning. We say eat as many avocados a day as you want! However, the question always arises, “But aren’t avocados fattening?” A couple short answers:

A) Plant food contains no cholesterol.  Only animal fat causes harmful side effects. Raw plant fats will not make you gain excessive fat. In fact, your organs recognize plant fat differently than animal fat, using them properly instead of attacking them as toxins.

B) Fatty fruits like avocado, olives, and coconut contain lipase, an enzyme that helps burn body fat. We don’t carry much lipase in our own fat cells, so introducing it into our systems through raw plants helps metabolize cooked/animal fats stored all over our bodies.

C) New vegans who think they’re craving protein are generally missing high quality fats, which contain more calories and thus prolonged energy.

We hope you’ll look at “good” fats in a whole new light. They’re hugely beneficial—from providing essential fatty acids and antioxidants to slowing the release of sugars into the bloodstream, to aiding bone formation and remineralization. They even help our cells in defense against pollution. So eat it up…we’re off to raid our neighbor’s yard (and on that note, you might want to check out Fallen Fruit, neighborhood maps of fruit trees growing on public land…AKA free.)

—
Source: Sunfood Diet Success System by D. Wolfe.

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Posted in Foodology, Health, On the go, Sides | 4 Comments »

“Milky” Lavender Tea

February 15, 2012 by



Fresh lavender buds plucked from our front yard and steeped in boiling water and Rice Dream rice milk, sweetened with agave…a seriously aromatic and dreamy to start your morning.

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Score! Wild Mustard Greens in the ‘Hood

February 14, 2012 by


We were on a walk in the hills of our Los Angeles neighborhood and spotted a patch of wild mustard greens…score. When they really go off we often see groups of elderly Seventh Day Adventist (vegan) Korean women gathering bagfuls. Our little one couldn’t help but taste them despite the spice…the thrill of eating velvety yellow flowers right off the earth in an unexpected situation was too much to resist. We brought home a handful of these mustardy little buds to sprinkle on our kale salad, along with some hemp seeds. I bet you, too, have more edible fruit trees and plants in your hood than you think.

Posted in Salads | 1 Comment »

How Processed Food is Changing the Shape of the Human Head

February 6, 2012 by

Leonardo Da Vinci

After an enlightening conversation with a myofunctional therapist about her work, I’ve been doing some fascinating reading—Daniel Lieberman’s Evolution of the Human Head. And according to human history, we living today have gone soft. Somewhere down the line, between 250,000 and 1.5 million years ago, we decided it was more efficient to cook our food—less chews per bite, less force per chew.

Cut to today: we’ve gone too far. The average person’s food is mostly cooked, blended, boiled, baked, ground, or mechanically processed in some way before it’s eaten; all meat and dairy animals have been bred to have soft, chewable muscle tissue (on the extreme end, think veal—kept chained and still until young slaughter); fluffy “foods” like Twinkies and Wonderbread require little chewing at all. Plus, we hurry through meals—at least relative to primates who spend half the day eating—and thus chewing.

We don’t eat like we used to. Wild animal meat is tough and elasticy, hard to break through without the teeth of a true carnivore, which we do not have. Even chimps, who eat colobus monkeys from time to time, can spend up to 11 hours chewing a few kilograms of meat, with a measly return of about 300 k/cal per hour. Wild meat—what we’d be eating if we were carnivores out in nature, is nothing like the meat people eat today (no one ever mentions this when they argue that eating meat is natural to humans).

So what has been the result of going soft? The act of chewing— using force and strain (“mechanical loading”), create osteoblasts (“bone blasts”) that trigger stem cell growth in the jaw and bone tissue—just like weight-bearing activity helps builds bone mass. Eating soft food, even in one person’s lifetime, contributes to narrower jaws and dental arches, crowded, smaller teeth, over and underbites. Our processed diets are actually changing the shape of the human head!!! Today, orthodontic devices like retainers, expanders, and braces are nearly a right of passage rather than an exception. And dentists routinely remove wisdom teeth due to impaction even just the probability of impaction. Only about 2% of of preindustrial populations had tooth impactions vs. 24% of modern humans. We actually don’t chew enough to accommodate the teeth we grow! That means our change in diet is rapidly exceeding our evolution! Which makes other consequences so obvious—for example, it seems our bodies are rejecting today’s average diet and chemical overload. Cancer has now become the #1 killer in America, surpassing heart disease.

Lieberman, D.

My conclusions: Obviously, lay off processed foods. You’ll ACTUALLY be helping the future of the human race. And whether you’re a raw foodist or cooked vegan, chew some tough food! Especially kids who are growing! Use your teeth to crush food that takes some effort—seeds, nuts, carrots, celery; shear and tear down the cellulose in those leafy greens, grind that laver seaweed! And skip meat. We never had the teeth for it, and what you get today is nowhere near what our hunter-gatherer ancestors would have been eating anyway.

Happy chewing!

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