If you are here then yes, yes it is. And I'm back! So what's been up with me? Not too much. You know...work, working out, life. What I really want to blog about is...FOOD.
I believe America has a horrible relationship with food. We are ignorant and complacent to what we put in our mouths. We are okay with feeding children happy meals (aka crap) instead of good, wholesome foods (because let's face it, Johnny is picky and won't eat THAT and we don't want Johnny to starve so we'll take him to the drive through). We are okay with obesity. We have come to believe that Big is Beautiful and girl, let's celebrate it! Now, let me make this clear: Anorexia, bulimia, eating disorders are not beautiful either. But Big is NOT Beautiful. You may be a wonderful, loving, beautiful person...but being overweight and unhealthy are not things to celebrate. Eating fruits, veggies, grains, legumes, drinking water, exercising...being healthy...THAT is beautiful, that is something to celebrate, encourage, and promote.
So, how am I trying to live better in my life? Make positive changes in my body?
There are SOOOOOO many misconceptions about veganism.
1.) Foods restrictions: So what can you eat if you don't eat meat...or dairy...? Is that really ALL people eat? Meat and dairy? What about vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, legumes? There are so many MORE foods that I eat than those I don't.
2.) Bland food: Don't you miss cheese? Don't you miss bbq or bacon or anything that tastes yummy? Honestly...yes! I LOOOOOVE me some cheese. I miss it. But you know what? The food I eat is still yummy. It's called herbs. It's called learning to love natural flavors over chemically added flavors. I don't feel like I'm missing out on taste. Neither does my husband. Veganism is a relatively large movement...there are chefs devoted to making great tasting vegan food. It's out there...you just have to be willing to experiment and cook.
3.) Proteins. Ugh. No. I'm not writing about this and where I get it (tofu, quinoa, spinach, mushrooms, legumes...just a few examples). Instead, here are some cool websites regarding protein and vegans: Protein in the Vegan Diet and Where Do Vegans Get Protein? What I will say...you don't need nearly as much protein as the media will have you believe (and gee, I wonder who is backing those statistics??). You only need .36 grams of protein per pound of body weight. That means I only need 46 grams of protein a day.
"The average man in the US eats 175% more protein than the recommended daily allowance and the average woman eats 144% more."
{Surgeon General's Report on Nutrition and Health, 1988}
"Osteoporosis is caused by a number of things, one of the most important being too much dietary protein."
{Science 1986;233, 4763}
"Even when eating 1,400 mg of calcium daily, one can lose up to 4% of his or her bone mass each year while consuming a high-protein diet."
{American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1979;32,4}
"Increasing one's protein intake by 100% may cause calcium loss to double."
{Journal of Nutrition, 1981; 111, 3}
4.) Calcium. If you don't drink milk, where do you get calcium? Easy. Calcium-fortified soy milk and juice, calcium-set tofu, soybeans and soynuts, bok choy, broccoli, collards, Chinese cabbage, kale, mustard greens, okra, grains, beans (other than soybeans), fruits, and vegetables...
5.) Dairy, what's wrong with dairy? What's wrong with lactose based foods? Interesting. Did you know that when our body digests lactose, it is actually forming acids in our bodies that eat away at our bones? Want to know how the process works? Acid and Alkaline Substance in the Diet.
"Consumption of dairy products, particularly at age 20 years, were associated with an increased risk of hip fractures... metabolism of dietary protein causes increased urinary excretion of calcium."
{American Journal of Epidemiology 1994;139}
I have been vegan for close to 2 weeks...and I LOVE it. My body feels fantastic. It really makes me think about the food that I'm eating, how it is processed in my body, how I use it for fuel. It makes me take into account my husband's health too. And you know what? It makes me think about how my loved ones can benefit from adopting a *more* vegan lifestyle.
Do I want you to become a vegan too? Heck yeah, I do! Do I expect you to become a vegan? No. Will I still love you? Absolutely. What I really want people to consider is cutting back on the amount of meat you eat. Cut back on all that dairy. Cut back on all those chemicals and sugars. Maybe try out meatless Mondays...try incorporating 1 or 2 days a week with no meat. Try some ALMOND milk on your cereal or in your coffee (I LOVE this stuff, especially the vanilla one!). Maybe indulge in dessert once a week instead of every night. Find out what all that meat and all that dairy is doing to your body. Find out how it is processed. Find out how it is processed in your body.
Some of my favorite documentaries on this are:
1.) Food Inc.
2.) Forks Over Knives
3.) Killer at Large: Why Obesity is America's Greatest Threat
Seriously. Check these out. They are not just informative but entertaining too. When I say seriously I mean seriously.
No comments:
Post a Comment