Preventing the Leading Causes of Death in the US

I wanted to share this powerful video on how we can prevent the leading causes of death.  Important stuff, right?  I highly recommend watching all (or at least part) of this video.  To summarize and hopefully encourage you to watch it, Dr. Michael Greger presents scientific facts on how we can prevent 14 of the 15 leading causes of death. In the US, the 15 leading causes of death (in order) are:

1. Heart Disease
2. Cancer
3. Respiratory Disease, (COPD, Emphysema)
4. Stroke
5. Accidents
6. Alzheimer’s Disease
7. Diabetes
8. Kidney Failure
9. Influenza
10. Suicide
11. Blood Infection
12. Liver Disease
13. High Blood Pressure
14. Parkinson’s Disease
15. Pneumonia

And interestingly enough, the medical system, when you look at side effects from prescription drugs, medical mistakes and hospital acquired infections, results in 187,000 deaths per year making it the 3rd leading cause of death in the US!  (Good reason to avoid unnecessary doctor visits).

 ALL of these leading causes of death, with the exception of accidents, can be prevented or combated with a strict vegetarian (i.e.: vegan) diet.

Don’t worry if you are a devoted meat eater.  Small changes in your diet like adding in greens at every meal and cutting out meat a few days a week will still have a positive influence on your health.

But, for me, I have found the vegan route to be the best option.  For example, in one year, my cholesterol has dropped 38 points, and my triglycerides (the measure of fat in the blood) dropped 104 points!  That’s proof enough for me.

Here is the link to the video   http://nutritionfacts.org/video/uprooting-the-leading-causes-of-death/

Vitamins and Minerals on a Vegan Diet

You can get plenty of calcium (as well as other vitamins and minerals) on a vegan diet.

This is a great “cheat sheet” for identifying non meat sources of important vitamins and minerals.  This was provided by No Meat Athlete, one of my favorite blogs for nutritional information. 

Veganville

A little levity to start the week!

 

Weight Lies!

Haha, this is a good one!  Yes, I have been guilt of rounding down when I gave my weight to DMV.  I figured that my license was good for 5 years, and so I’d use the weight that I planned to be in 5 years (always less than I currently was!)

The funny thing is, having gone to a diet that is almost 100% plant-based, eliminating meat, dairy and almost all refined sugar, I have achieved that goal weight.

More on Eating Vegan

In  my previous post I stated that reading, The China Study “changed my life”.  Perhaps you think this is a bit of an exaggeration.  Let me explain…

The book clearly outlines how consuming animal protein (meat and dairy products) leads to higher levels of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune diseases and more.  The research makes it clear that ALL animal protein has this effect.  It is not just an indictment of fatty red meat.   Lean meat, chicken, turkey, fish, milk, cheese, eggs, you name it — all animal protein!

It isn’t just the fat and cholesterol in animal products that is dangerous to us, but rather the proteins themselves.  This is why the study that was done to test the effects of dietary fat on cancer, The Nurses Study, showed that dietary fat had NO relationship to the incidence of breast cancer.  The nurses in the study, while they reduced their fat intake,  all consumed a diet  high in animal protein.

And look at the population around us.  As we are obsessed with exercise and low-fat foods, we are getting bigger and unhealthier day by day!

What sort of diets do not contribute to these killing diseases?  Plant based diets–Vegan diets.  Research has shown that populations that eat a more plant-based diet (Thailand, Japan, the Philippines) have the lowest incidence of cancer than those who eat a more meat based diet (Netherlands, UK, Canada, and the US).

And so, based on this information and a lot more from the China Study, I have totally changed my diet to be near vegan.  I cut out all dairy products, including cream in my coffee and ice cream!  I cut out all red meat, I only have a small portion of organic chicken about twice a month., and I do still occasionally eat fish (about once a week).

Having  made these changes in my diet I have found that I have more energy, my skin is healthier, I haven’t gotten even so much as a cold, my running has improved greatly, and I lost 10 pounds!  So, yes, the information in The China Study  has changed my life!

Neglecting Blog, but Staying on Track

I’m not going to start with, I’ve been neglecting my blog…..

Although I have been neglecting my blog!

However I have been running and eating well and visiting friends!

These were three of my New Year’s Resolutions, and I am very pleased with my progress on them this year. One of my goals was to visit with at least 2 girlfriend each month. As August winds down I am happy to report that this week I spent a wonderful afternoon with two dear friends, Jeannette and Cathy; and today I saw my old friend Wendy (I can say that as she is younger than me!) We spent the day together laughing, talking, having lunch, drinking some tea and talking some more! Did you know that they make English Afternoon Tea? It was very good!

As for running, I ran a 10k last Thursday night in Rye. While it wasn’t a PR as those days are loooong gone, I was very happy with my run. It was my very best 10k time since I’ve been running again. I even finished #10 in my age group–yeah me! One more 5 miler coming up in early September than nothing but training for the Seacoast Half Marathon in November!

And lastly, my goal for the year was to eat healthy and lose those last 5-8 pounds that have been lingering. Well I went from eating well, to eating VERY well. I haven’t been eating processes foods, desserts or added sugars, dairy or meat. I’ve been making a fruit and vegetable juice 5-6 times a week, eating mostly vegan fare, and I feel physically (and mentally) healthy and strong. As a matter of fact, my running has improved greatly on this new meal plan, and I lost those 8 pounds rather easily! I will be posting more in the future on the benefits of a plant based diet, stay tuned…..

Plant Based Diet and Joining a CSA

I have been eating a lot of vegetables lately.  I am following my own advise that I’ve been sharing in this blog and eating mostly a plant-based diet.

My objective is to eat for health, avoiding meat (except the occasional organic free range chicken and/or grass-fed beef), cutting out dairy products, and eliminating processed sugar as much as possible .

It really isn’t so hard when your motivation is avoiding diseases such as cancer,  heart disease, stroke and diabetes.  I have lost 8 pounds since February and even more important — I feel great!

To make sure I’m getting fresh, organic vegetables, I joined a CSA this summer.  CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.  It is a way to share in the harvest of a local farm.  You pay the annual fee up front, giving the farmer needed cash for seeds, fertilizer, etc, and then each week throughout the summer, you get a box of fresh vegetables and fruits.

I’d like to thank Heron Pond Farm for letting me be a part of their community.  This week I got a pound of potatoes, a pound of snap peas, a bunch of beets, a bag of spinach, a head of lettuce, 2 tomatoes and a quart of strawberries — yum!  I eat fresh vegetables all week.

Whatever is left at the end of the week goes into my juicer!

photo by Julie Schneider of Heron Pond Farm

Mexican Stir Fry with Tofu

I made a great vegan dinner tonight:

Mexican Stir Fry with Potato

It’s simple, start with a pan and some olive oil and saute:

• one potato
• 1/2 an onion (see this post for the health benefits of onions)

Once the potato is soft add in:

• 1/2 a red pepper (any color will do)
• 2-3 plum tomatoes (or 1 large tomato)
• tofu about 1/4 of the brick, cut up into small pieces
• corn (1/2 a cup)
• black beans (1/2 a cup)

Season with chili powder, cayenne, and cumin to taste