ISSUE 1 / AUGUST 2012
The McDougall Diet For
Pregnancy
How To Avoid:
6 Stumbling Blocks Towards Vegetarian Nutrition
10 Great Reasons to
Become a Vegetarian Exclusive Interview:
New York Times Bestselling Author,
Rory Freedman
Why Is Vegan Becoming
MAINSTREAM?
The McDougall Diet for Pregnancy By Dr. John McDougall, MD convincingly supports my claim that the ideal diet for pregnant women is based on starches (rice, corn, potatoes, beans, etc.) with the addition of green and yellow vegetables and fruits.
Obesity Leads to Cesarean Births In modern societies following the Western diet, one-third or more of all women give birth unnaturally. Something major must be wrong. Many explanations have been proposed for the high rates of Cesarean sections seen these days. However, one answer is obvious: In addition to the expanding epidemic of obesity among adults caused by the rich Western diet, this same food causes babies to grow too large to fit through their mothers’ birth canals. Full-term infants weighing eight to twelve pounds cannot easily fit through their mothers’ birth canals, which are designed for five- to seven-pound babies. The larger the mother, the larger the baby, and the higher the risk of emergency Cesarean birth and injury to mother and infant. In anticipation of larger babies, elective Cesarean sections are also on the rise and have resulted in many infants being delivered before term. The average time a fetus spends in the womb has fallen by seven days in the United States since 1992. Early birth adversely affects lung and brain development and increases the risk of infections and death of newborns.
Preeclampsia Is Serious Sickness of Pregnancy Preeclampsia is a set of conditions that include hypertension with generalized damage to the blood vessels, kidneys, and liver. It occurs in as many as 10 percent of pregnancies, usually in the second or third trimester. This condition results from the rich Western diet and is less common in women following a diet higher in fiber and potassium. Both of these nutrients are abundant in a plant food-based diet. “The Farm” is a community of young people in Summertown, Tennessee. Members follow a vegan diet (no animal-derived foods) and the outcomes of pregnancy have been reported to be excellent. The maternity care records of 775 vegan mothers found no symptoms of preeclampsia, and only one case that met the clinical criteria. In 1987 a research article about the Farm experience proposed that preeclampsia is due to the unrestrained consumption of “fast foods” (foods having high levels of saturated fat) and rapid weight gain of the mothers-to-be. A vegan diet was proposed as the solution.
Morning Sickness Protects Babies from Meat Approximately two-thirds of women experience nausea or vomiting during early pregnancy. This “morning sickness” actually serves an important function: to cause
The McDougall Diet for Pregnancy By Dr. John McDougall, MD pregnant women to physically expel and subsequently avoid foods that cause harm to mother and infant. Women who develop morning sickness have less risk of miscarriages and a better chance for survival of their infants. Research shows that aversions in pregnant women (and those that cause morning sickness) are greatest to meats, fish, poultry, and eggs. Not surprisingly, these same foods have the highest levels of chemical contamination. Why? Because an animal’s fatty tissues attract and concentrate chemicals—a process known as “bioaccumulation.” This is why, in an analysis of 27 traditional societies, no morning sickness was observed in those societies that have plants (primarily corn), rather than meat, as the dietary staple. Consuming organic foods is another critical step to having a cleaner body.
Plant Foods Repair Genetic Damage The human body has detoxification systems that have evolved over 300 million years to protect animals from natural toxins. These same systems will also rid the body of synthetic pollutants. Much attention has been given to the ability of plant-derived folate (a water-soluble B vitamin) to synthesize and repair our genetic materials (DNA), especially during times of rapid cell division and growth, such as occurs during pregnancy. Accordingly, in the 1960s, research linked folate deficiency in a woman’s diet to severe birth defects, especially those of the nervous system (for example, spina bifida). Decreased folate metabolism in mothers has also been associated with increased risk of having an infant with Down syndrome. It is now well-known that a diet high in plant-based folate will significantly lower the risk of these and other birth defects. Eating a diet high in plant foods is also essential for making good male sperm. Men with high folate intake have been found to have lower overall frequencies of several types of “aneuploid sperm.” Aneuploidy is a condition where one or a few chromosomes are above or below the normal chromosome number, and is associated with birth defects, such as Down syndrome. The bottom line is that a plateful of meat and dairy—devoid of starches, vegetables
The Steps to Becoming a Veganist By Kathy Freston The Amazon rain forest is being cut down to grow soybeans to feed chickens; it’s chicken and pig farms that are poisoning the Atlantic Ocean, and vastly more energy is required if we eat the chickens who are fed grain rather than eating that grain directly.
Third: If You Can’t Give Up One Particular Animal Product, Give Up All the Other Ones
One friend told me that he just loves burgers too much to give them up; I suggested that he give up all animal products except burgers. Some of my friends can’t give up ice cream or cream in their coffee or whatever, so give up everything but that. That’s a huge step forward, and I suspect that after eating mostly vegetarian for a while, you’ll decide that those burgers or that ice cream aren’t so tasty anymore. And you’ll probably find that you enjoy the faux meats and dairyfree options just as much.
Fourth: Examine Your Diet, and Substitute
Take a look at the meals that you and your family already enjoy, and you’ll probably notice that many of them can be made without any meat or with mock meats (which are great transition foods) instead of animal flesh. For example,
instead of spaghetti and meat sauce, make spaghetti and marinara sauce, or instead of beef burritos, try tasty bean burritos. Replace ground beef with the vegetarian variety made by Boca or Morningstar Farms, which can be found in just about any grocery store. Or try Morningstar Farms’ faux chicken strips and steak strips and Boca’s Chik’n Patties. If you need help putting together a shopping list, check out the product reviews at VegCooking.com before you head out to the store. Mock meats, nondairy cheeses and milks, and other vegetarian foods are sold in most major supermarkets these days, and health food stores offer even more. Silk soy milk is probably one of the most recognizable vegan products on the market--you can even order it in your latte at Starbucks. And if you like to bake, look for egg replacer, a powdered mix that can be used instead of eggs in cakes and other baked goods, at the local health food store (or just use applesauce). But don’t forget to eat your vegetables-as well as plenty of whole grains, fresh fruits, and legumes--before filling up on cake and coffee! After a few meatless meals, you’ll likely realize that you don’t miss meat and are ready to go meatless for good. But
The Steps to Becoming a Veganist By Kathy Freston don’t beat yourself up if you slip up every now and again. Before long, eating vegetarian will come as naturally as breathing. I know that some readers who are already vegetarian may take issue with the idea of relying on faux meats (I can predict all the raw food comments, the macrobiotic comments, and so on), but mock meats and soy milk are superb transition foods. Certainly going with real foods, as Michael Pollan calls them-things that your grandmother would recognize--is a great idea, but don’t worry about it if you find that mock meats make the switch easier for you. Animals are going to be happier either way.
Fifth: Eating Out
If you’re eating out, there are countless restaurants that cater to vegetarians and vegans. VegCooking.com features regional vegetarian restaurants, restaurant chains that offer vegetarian options, and links to other Web sites that list vegetarian-friendly eateries. Ethnic restaurants, especially Thai, Indian, Ethiopian, Chinese, and Mexican restaurants, are always a good choice, as
they offer a variety of vegetarian and vegan options. If you’re still looking for a burger and fries, many restaurants, including Johnny Rockets, Denny’s, and Ruby Tuesday’s, serve veggie burgers. Just don’t drive yourself--and your dining companions--crazy worrying that your veggie burger was prepared on the same surface as the hamburgers. It might be a bit aesthetically troublesome, but it won’t harm animals (or the planet) if your food is cooked on the same grill as meat. Unless you absolutely can’t stomach it, let it pass.
Conclusion
When you consider your choices--heart disease, colon cancer, plus-size pants, melting ice caps, gale force storms, and animal suffering vs. good health, energy, a trim physique, a livable planet, compassion, and tasty, diverse foods--it’s clear that going vegetarian is an excellent choice as we move toward living a more conscious life. Thank you to all readers for your compassion, and I look forward to meeting you on the journey toward more conscious eating.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Kathy Freston is a New York Times best-selling author with a concentration on healthy living and conscious eating. Her books include Veganist: Lose Weight, Get Healthy, Change the World, Quantum Wellness: A Practical and Spiritual Guide to Health and Happiness, The Quantum Wellness Cleanse: The 21 Day Essential Guide to Healing Your Body, Mind, and Spirit, The One: Discovering the Secrets of Soul Mate Love and Expect a Miracle: 7 Spiritual Steps to Finding the Right Relationship. Her newest book is, THE LEAN: A Revolutionary (and Simple!) 30-Day Plan for Healthy, Lasting Weight Loss (Weinstein Books).
E R TU A FE on their health and their public support
of veganism is helping to change many lives. There are even several celebrities who have embraced a raw vegan diet! Robin Williams, Nathalie Portman, Uma Thurman, Jason Mraz and Woody Harrelson have all been heard talking about their raw diets and the amazing health they’ve since come to know as normal. The thing is—it is normal. There’s a good reason that most of us know someone who is vegan or who’s at least dabbled with vegetarianism. While the media has a lot to do with this sudden acceptance of veganism, the real-life results speak for themselves. Despite the debate over whether humans thrive on a diet without meat, the facts are overwhelmingly in support of a wellplanned vegan diet filled with fresh fruits, greens, and vegetables. These are the foods that are provided to us by the earth to meet our nutritional needs. What could be simpler or more intuitive than that? Dozens of films have been produced
WHY IS VEGAN BECOMING MAINSTREAM?
over the past few years to help usher in a growing awareness of the problems with the standard American diet, as well as the healing power of vegan and raw vegan diets. The most well known is “Supersize Me”, in which Morgan Spurlock decides to make himself the guinea pig in an experiment that clearly demonstrates the damage done by eating fast food. While being followed around by a team of doctors, Morgan commits to eating nothing but McDonalds food for an entire month. During this time he gains about 24 pounds, experiences dangerously elevated cholesterol levels, and watches his health go down the drain. His doctors urge him to stop, but he finishes out the whole month-long commitment. It took him another 14 months on a strict vegan diet to undo the damage done in that month. Then there’s “Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead”, which follows Joe Cross through his journey from obesity and depression to radiant health with the help of juice fasting and a raw vegan diet. We watch
E R TU A FE Joe lose weight and transform his health
WHY IS VEGAN BECOMING MAINSTREAM?
along with that of everyone around him. “Forks Over Knives” explores the perplexing dichotomy between our advances in medicine and the fact that more people than ever are suffering from chronic and degenerative diseases and terminal illnesses. It all points to a logical conclusion. Let’s see if you can guess what that conclusion is.
our graves, it’s the graves of the future.” It’s a heavy statement. But when three random people are challenged to go vegan for six weeks, their journey through fisheries, slaughterhouses, and the discovery of the toll meat eating takes on our environment and health takes these individuals passed the point of no return. After all, how can we go back after we’ve been shown the truth.
“Get Vegucated” (see story on pg. 69) begs us to consider the fact that “We are digging more graves with our forks than with anything else and it’s not just
Now I challenge you to ask yourself: Does my refrigerator look like a garden or a morgue? You are what you eat. Are you eating for life?