Need to control blood sugar? Carbs might help

I've noticed other outlets reporting on PCRM's study demonstrating more effective weight loss and control over diabetes than the ADA guidelines, first reported by The Washington Times and The Washington Post, but it has made its way (with added information along the way) to The Los Angeles Times, so I figured it was worth noting.

From a health standpoint, veganism got another decent boost today.

Tags: health | nutrition | diabetes | weight loss

Jurek wins again!

The Washington Post: Marathon Melt

Badwater: An insanely hot day, a vegan runner, an ultramarathon... and Scott Jurek wins it again. Of course, the Washington Post doesn't mention that Jurek is vegan, which is a good and a bad thing, I suppose. Sure, let's normalize veganism, but it seems like the story would pick up, as others have, on Jurek's out-of-the-ordinary dietary regimen, which he credits with his ability to win the 135-mile race.

Tags: vegan | athletics

Vegan diet may reverse diabetes symptoms

And the news spreads to bigger outlets...

MSNBC.com

Tags: diabetes | vegan | health

Vegan Diet May Treat Diabetes

As I suspected, the low-fat vegan diet study was more effective than the ADA's study in other areas as well:

The results showed that both diets improved diabetes management and reduced unhealthy cholesterol levels, but some improvements were greater with the low-fat vegan diet.

For example:

• 43% of those on the vegan diet reduced their need to take drugs to manage their diabetes compared with 26% of the ADA diet group.


• Weight loss averaged more than 14 pounds in the vegan diet group vs. less than 7 pounds in the other group.


• LDL “bad” cholesterol dropped by an average of 21% in the vegan group compared with 11% in the ADA diet group who did not change their cholesterol drug use.


• Measures of blood sugar control also improved more significantly among those who followed the low-fat vegan diet than among those who followed the ADA diet and who did not change their diabetes drug use.

If there's any sense in this world, the results will hopefully challenge the establishment to spend more research dollars on larger and longer studies with the low-fat vegan diet in order to quiet the naysayers permanently.

Tags: diet | health | diabetes

Vegetarian dining in Birmingham, AL

Well, bummer. I have too many tabs open in Apple's Safari browser, and it's been crashing on me a lot these past couple of days. I have a lot of catching up to do lately. Fortunately I installed a little app that recovers all the pages I was looking at. Unfortunately, it cannot retrieve the text of a post in progress!

So, because I was just about done with the post, and I am simply not up to rewriting it, I will just bring your attention to two positive veg stories in today's The Birmingham News, one on veg cooking (with a fun play on a meat marketing slogan) that focuses primarily on a mainstream-accessible veg cookbook from Betty Crocker, and one on veg dining, which includes a list of veg friendly restaurants in the area. Cool beans!

Tags: cooking | recipes | dining out

'Good' Carbs To the Rescue

Another major paper, The Washington Times, expounds upon new research that demonstrates the benefits of a plant-based diet. It does include a caution from the vice president of health care and education for the ADA that the most recent study, from the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine (which pursues animal-friendly medical research and advocates a plant-based diet), is relatively small at 99 subjects (split between the ADA diet and a low-fat vegan diet), and that further research needs to be done to see how this can be expanded to a larger population on an ongoing basis.

The study did find that a vegan diet is more effective than the ADA's standard dietary advice in lowering weight, though both had an effect on cholesterol and blood sugar. I imagine when the study is published Thursday in the journal Diabetes Care, we'll find that PCRM's vegan diet was even more effective in those two areas, though the 4 month trial doesn't really give subjects enough time to see the long-term effects of those diets.

In the long-run, I've noticed amazing effects on my own cholesterol. It was kind of exciting seeing my doctor's expression when he looked at my results: an LDL/HDL ratio of 1.24 (HDL/"good": 57 mg/dl, LDL/"bad": 78 mg/dl), with a total cholesterol of 138. Triglycerides were a mere 53 mg/dl.

For the sake of reference, the current American College of Cardiology (ACC) recommendations call for:

HDL cholesterol > 45: men (> 55: women)
LDL cholesterol < 90
Total cholesterol < 150
Triglycerides < 150

Like many people who have adopted an entirely plant-based diet, some of the study's subjects found the adjustment challenging, but ultimately well worth it:

Learning to go vegan takes effort, time and some sacrifice, however. Vance Warren, 36, a retired District police officer, learned this while participating in the study.

"I know the difference between a Morton's steak and a tofu steak," says Warren, who lost more than 70 pounds during the study and reduced the medication he must take to control his blood sugar. "It's like the difference between a Mercedes and a Toyota. The hardest thing for me was giving up the chicken wings . . . but I really don't miss them now."

For many, including myself, eliminating cheese from the table was the hardest, but I agree that I don't miss it now, either. These days it's all I can do to bring myself to eat an order of onion rings and barbecue sauce when I'm feeling particularly inclined toward greasy food.

Tags: plant-based | diet | veganism | Dean Ornish | PCRM

"Meat. It's what's not for dinner": Creamy Curried Veggies

I've decided to start posting about some of my meals here. Maybe you're already vegetarian, but just curious to know what this guy eats, or maybe you're curious about a plant-based diet. Maybe you're already transitioning, but need some inspiration. Heck, maybe you don't even care. Fair enough. It's easy to skip these posts.

But I love food, never more than now, as going vegan has really expanded my horizons. While I do a fair amount of eating out, I also frequently eat at home, so I may well write about both types of meals, as time permits.

---

I'll start this off tonight with Creamy Curried Veggies from p. 106 of How It All Vegan!, a book so popular around here that it usually just sits out in the cookbook holder most of the time. In my household, we're still only cooking for two, but the recipes are just the right size for a hearty meal, with plenty of leftovers (says here that the curry serves 2-4). These are meals you'll definitely want to revisit the next day for lunch.

Now, I never ate curry before adopting a plant-based diet, but have become a big fan since then. This HIAV recipe is not all that spicy, but it has that great curry flavor, and allows for loads of yummy veggies, including potatoes, peas, mushrooms, carrots, cauliflower, and onions. Like most of the entrees in the book, it rewards you with great taste for cooking healthy. The recipe recommends serving over rice, and I'd have to agree. I generally prefer short-grain brown rice. This dinner was so good, I went back for seconds... And they say a plant-based diet is good for weight loss. Don't forget to control your portions.

It's not the fastest recipe to make at 30 minutes plus prep, but it's worth the time, and gives you an opportunity to catch up on dishes while the veggies simmer. Plus, you can easily mix it up on any given night with whatever veggies happen to be in your kitchen on the day! I love recipes that allow for throwing together what you happen to have laying around in order to make an exotic, delicious dish.

Tags: animal free recipes | animal friendly cooking | vegan recipes

---

Want me to try vegan recipes from your cookbook and write about them at the site? Either e-mail me for an address where you can send a copy of the cookbook, or -- if you want to take a shot that we'll love just one of those recipes so much that we'll have to try it and write about it -- simply send the full recipe, as found in the book, along with the name of your book and the page on which the recipe can be found, and we'll give it a look-see.

After 70 Miles, Racer Just Warming Up

Vegan ultramarathon dominator Scott Jurek was profiled a couple of days ago in the New York Times.

Tags: Scott-Jurek | ultramarathon

KFC faces cultural backlash in China

In a move betraying its complete lack of class, KFC promoted a chicken sandwich in China using a long-dead Chinese hero, a vegetarian Taoist monk, sparking a backlash. At least McDonald's has the sense to adapt to a culture's inclinations in places like India.

When in Rome...

Tags: fast-food

Double Rainbow's Soy Cream pints

Is it just me, or have these become next-to-impossible to find?

At first, it was just a supply problem, then the mint chocolate chip came back with a vengeance. Before long, the Whole Foods Market nearest me raised prices a number of times, from below $3 to above it. Then mint chocolate chip disappeared again, followed by other flavors, and now the brand is entirely gone from the shelves of the WFM, with powerhouse Purely Decadent even getting knocked down a few pegs to the lower shelves of the freezer.

I tried calling Double Rainbow, but they never called me back. Double "boo" to you, DR.

A big "What gives?" to both WFM and DR. I miss me some mint chocolate chip Soy Cream!

Tags: Soy Cream | Double Rainbow | Whole Foods Market | Purely Decadent

Stuffed after the salad? Load up to lose weight

MSNBC.com's Nutrition Notes is provided by the American Institute for Cancer Research, which has been pushing the New American Plate program for weight control and better health:

...two extensive reviews of research published last year reconfirm that a plant-based diet also helps people manage their weight. The reason seems to be relatively simple: Vegetables and fruit are low energy-density foods.

That is, vegetables and fruits contain a high percentage of water and fiber per ounce that tend to fill you up. They also have fewer calories per ounce than other foods. Therefore, they tend to satisfy your appetite before you’ve consumed many calories.

“So eating more vegetables and fruits to reduce cancer risk can also help manage your weight. The key to making a plant-based diet work for weight loss is substituting plant foods for foods with higher energy density such as fats,” [AICR's Melanie] Polk said.

Big surprise. Of course, the AICR reaches into the mainstream, recommending a gradual decline in meat and/or dairy consumption, eventually sharing less than 1/3 of one's dinner plate with a high-protein, high-fat animal product. Still, the press release I linked mentions a predominantly plant-based diet -- in conjunction with physical activity and reduced portion sizes -- for maximum health.

I love that this information was slipped into an article about starter salads helping people lose weight because it left them with less room to fill up on meat and other meal items, including dessert. It's like a primer for flexitarianism on the way to vegetarianism.

Tags: health | nutrition

Denver woman, 101, visits Sapulpa

This one's a cute little piece on a spry 101 year-old woman who -- you guessed it -- is vegetarian.

She also big on church and the bible, so no doubt her faith and social ties at church, as well as her regular walk for groceries, play a part in her continued vibrant health. These are common threads out there for the learning, but so few actually fall into step. Of course, she only became vegetarian at 39 (which, by the way, is stunning, considering that was back in the 40s, when vegetarians were probably much more strange in this country), but it's never too late.

As for the faith thing... I'm not religious myself, but I do believe strongly in developing a vital connection with one's self, with others and everything around us, which is its own sort of spirituality.

Tags: health | age

Gone veggie: Trend to stop eating meat hits Houston

Here's a minor, fluffy -- but cool -- little local story with video from KHOU.com | News for Houston, Texas. It focuses on a specific restaurant, but speaks to the wider trend:

Polls show more Americans are saying, "no" to meat, fish or chicken.

The vegetarian trend is washing over the country.

Lunchtime is a busy time in the Baba Yega restaurant's kitchen.

While chicken lovers can get their fix, the cooks chop up a lot of veggies too.

When waitress Rachel Smith isn't serving customers, she's eating veggie platters.

Smith converted to the lifestyle two years ago, inspired by her brother and sister.

"I have a ton more energy," she said. "It's actually really amazing. It's not just your body -- it's like your soul, everything about you just glows."

Smith is part of a growing trend. Recent polls show nearly 3 percent of Americans consider themselves vegetarian, up 1 percent from a year ago.

Clearly this article was written by a carnist. After all if people really loved chickens, they wouldn't eat them. The story also does not specify from which polls they derived their stats, but I'm more than happy to see the local news tell people in Houston that vegetarianism is a positive, growing trend. Especially because they didn't actually use the word trendy.

Bridging the vegetarian gap

Times Herald-Record

...another really positive and balanced piece on vegetarian diets, especially for parents who may one day soon hear these "frightening" words come out of their teen's mouth: "I've decided to become a vegetarian."

Tags: health | nutrition

The Claim: Your Diet Can Bring on an Acne Outbreak

The New York Times reminds us that dairy is a food with proven links to acne, something many teens will be more than happy to give up:

Those who drank three or more cups of milk a day, the [Harvard] researchers found, were 22 percent more likely to experience severe acne compared with those who drank one serving a week or less.

Skim milk had the greatest effect. Cream cheese and cottage cheese were also associated with outbreaks, while chocolate and greasy foods were not. The researchers attributed the effect to hormones in milk; other studies have had similar findings.

This study was published last year in The Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, and analyzed the habits and diets of nearly 50,000 people, focusing particularly on what the subjects ate while in high school.

This information shouldn't be surprising, since cow's milk is, by nature, meant to turn calves into cows. How can this bovine nourishment be appropriate for humans in any measurable quantity?

Tags: dairy

Sustainable and vegetarian cuisine is on show in Sin City

Grist Magazine | Main Dish

Delights the for the Los Vegan vegan... or visitors:

Most of the city's green-dining establishments are "off-Strip," springing up in neighborhoods that, given Vegas' unprecedented growth in the past few years, are increasingly diverse and ethnically vibrant. Paul Hartgen, president of the Nevada Restaurant Association, says chefs and owners at these smaller locations focus on creating food that's as authentic as possible -- and in the case of many Asian cultures, "authentic" means "vegetarian." Last year, for example, Iris Lee opened Veggie Delight in Vegas' Chinatown, with a menu that features both vegan and vegetarian options from the traditional cuisine of Vietnam, where she was born, and Taiwan, where she was raised. Lee says she wanted to offer something "convenient for vegetarians, because most of the time they couldn't find a place to sit down and eat."

Unless they were in the mood for doughnuts, that is. Since Ronald's Donuts opened nearly 14 years ago, it's been quietly offering vegan varieties of its treats. No sign advertises the option, but even without the hype, word's gotten around: owner Henry Kang says he and his family enjoy a loyal customer base of vegan-oriented locals, as well as tourists from cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, and Salt Lake. As for the doughnuts, they look and taste like the regular variety -- only better. The glazed concoctions are two very airy inches high, with a crispy, sweet crust that starts melting as soon as it hits your fingers.

The article goes on to highlight Go Raw Café, whose two locations in the Vegas valley opened three years ago.

Last time I was in Vegas, I don't believe they were open, though there was one raw foods place that was in the process of moving locations. I certainly don't remember a donut shop, though I did eat at some asian vegetarian-friendly restaurant in a strip mall somewhere well off the Strip.

Sounds like the situation is improving for Las Vegans.

Tags: dining

Firefighters in Texas adopt vegan menu

I love these guys at Firehouse 2 in Austin, TX. I've read about them a lot, but it was good to finally see some video on them. James Rae in particular seems like a great advocate for vegan health. He has that kind of down-to-earth everyman quality that's so relatable.

Visit the 49abcnews.com site to watch a Quicktime video of the broadcast.

Tags: health

Viva Las Vegans

SFGATE.com | ASIAN POP

This is a great, very positive carnist's review of a vegan restaurant in Hawaii that hopes to be a template for a new way of doing business... and, of course, a new way of eating. But, rather than pushing their views on you, the proprietors hope to do their magic on you "at the cellular level":

"We're not asking you to 'convert.' We're not preaching to you. It's really great food -- enjoy it! And maybe if you enjoy it enough, you'll make the decision to go vegan on your own."

The article itself is fairly long, but it's a rewarding read, ultimately, if only to see a great philosophy driving a new business model with an optimistic dream of spreading their "model that empowers the individual while respecting the community and that seeks sustainability as well as growth."

Tags: restaurants | diningout

Animal-free alternatives can substitute easily for gelatin

Mmm, gelatin... *vomit*

This PalmBeachPost.com story describes agar, a common substitute for that disgusting product, and how to use it. Yay, no hides, bones or skin of cows or pigs!

Tags: gelatin | agar

EFFIE AWARDS: "Pork is Good" campaign wins the bronze in Hispanic category

EFFIE Awards honor advertising campaigns that demonstrate effectiveness, hence the name. Sad that the National Pork Board's targeted “El cerdo es bueno” (Pork is Good) campaign "against" Hispanic women ages 18-49 took the bronze.

To learn more about the marketing campaign and its results, you can read The San Jose Group's "Brief of Effectiveness" PDF by following this link. This is the highly targeted spending of ad dollars that vegetarian activists ought to be fighting.

Tags: advertising

Northwest to offer more food choices in first-class

USATODAY.com

Article demonstrates the power of speaking up... and voting with your dollars:

Dan Mord, Northwest's director of food-service product design, said the airline's most frequent fliers wanted more than a restoration of the old food choices.

"We've heard loud and clear that a lot of our passengers prefer a healthy, vegetarian-type option," Mord said.

Of course, you have to be first class to get these options, but it shows once again that businesses will accommodate the requests of their most loyal customers, and the rest can take a hike. While it may be distasteful to some to play into the capitalist machine, it's clearly a tool that can be used to affect animal-friendly change. We're the customers.

Meat alternatives made more interesting

Here's another veg-friendly article, this one from a registered dietitian writing for The Record. Interestingly, it seems to be one of the few articles I've seen written for that surprisingly controversial class of eaters known as flexitarians, what with lines like this:

You don't have to be a vegetarian to eat like one.

Could well be that this is aimed at carnists, which -- if it has any impact -- could steer some people toward eating less meat. Hard to be disappointed with an article that has that effect. The writer even keeps in mind the vegan option, by considering dairy and eggs a separate deal altogether:

Think balanced meal, not just rabbit food. Vegetarian diets should include a variety of whole grains, fruit, vegetables, legumes and nuts. Add low-fat dairy and eggs, if you choose.

Leave it to a dietitian to subtly point out that one can eat a balanced meal without meat, eggs, or dairy.

Tags: dining out

"I Don't Eat Meat"

Parents

I keep seeing positive write-ups on vegetarianism in response to concerned parents.

If your preteen suddenly goes vegetarian, chill out. It may actually be good for her.

I hate to get too carried away in considering this a watershed, but if parenting journals are telling their readers that vegetarianism can be healthy, I think we're turning a real corner. Parental disproval has long been an obstacle for young vegetarians, but if the people who read these magazines take their advice to heart, it won't be long before a new generation of vegetarians grows up having been supported in their choices by their parents and more peers than any previous generation.

Tags: health

Grandma doesn't know best

Charlotte Observer: Vegetarian diet can satisfy a child's nutritional needs

I'm alarmed that the answer to the letter did not also include a rebuke for a grandma attempting to be a hip teenager with her use of the word "like" in this context:

I'm like, "Where's the meat?" I'm worried sick about it.

Fortunately, it does take her to task for meddling in her kid's decision not to feed their daughter meat, and provides a great quote from Jo Stepaniak:

"Vegetarianism is not only a safe option but health-supporting choice that can give her granddaughter a strong advantage for living a long, happy, and disease-free life," Stepaniak says. "The reason the parents aren't listening to her is that they may very well have a good knowledge of nutrition, and certainly meat is not a requirement for anyone, especially not a 15-month-old baby."

Tags: health | vegetarian children