Its all bad- just stick to water and spinach!

Eating can be such a daunting and overwhelming part of life.  For such an fundamental part of life, it frustrates me that is has to be so complicated.  Every month a new article comes out declaring a certain food is bad for me.  Great- another food to avoid or feel guilty about.

corn: A GMO food that I should avoid for safety issues, ecological & economic concerns, & enviromental hazards.  For health reasons corn should be off the plate to abstain from its bad carbs, sugar and starchy content.

wheat: Eliminating wheat from our diet is a recommendation to prevent fat storage, the “wheat belly,” wheat addictions, and a great deal of health issues such as diabetes.  The numerous modifications in the grain has changed it to such a large extent that our bodies are unable to handle it.  The high gluten content is the most common and well-known problem.  Wheat also spikes blood sugar, rocketing insulin levels, effecting the body just as negatively as refined white sugar.  The elevated insulin levels cause the blood sugar to spike and drop, spike and drop, thus eliciting hunger.  The more wheat in a diet, the more food one will consume due to increased hunger.  That does not sound awesome.

potatoes: Some say pototoes are made purely of starch and sugar, with creates a heavy glycemic load to the digestive system.  It is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream and the body has to work harder and produce more insulin.  As soon as the starch is broken down it becomes sugar- a refined carb.  These refined carbs increase abdominal fate, promote weight gain, and promote diabetes.

nuts: Nuts have the scary hidden fat content that most people forget and thus over consume nuts.  Nuts also contain the toxin phytic acid, which decreases iron absorption.

dairy: With cow’s milk being the most consumed of dairy products, it certainly is surrounded with research on its negative health effects.   I can only begin to name a few of the many problems with milk.  Contrary to popular belief, milk does not increase bone density due to calcium, as the body barely absorbs the calcium.  In fact, cow’s milk increases calcium loss from the bones via the urine, which can in turn lead to a calcium defecit. The animal protein ingestion causes a heavy acid load in the blood, which releases calcium from the blood attempting to neutralize the acid.  Cow’s milk contains a numerous amount of active hormones, allergens, fat, cholesterol, and lactate sugar.  One of the many active hormones is Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 which promotes cancer growth.  Cow’s milk is also associated with cognitive impairments.  The list for cow’s milk goes on and on and on.  And then there are other dairy products- yogurt, cheese, ice-cream,etc.  Cheese has a ridiculously high amount of saturated fat and hormones.

meat: Again- there are many arguments against and for meat.  Several health conditions such as cancer, high blood pressure, appendicitis, obesity  constipation, diabetes, heart disease, and high cholesterol are more likely to occur in meat eaters than in vegetarians.  Meat is also a low nutrient dense food packed full of calories.  The amount of nutrients received from meat in comparison to calories is an unbalanced ratio.  Meat is often packed full of hormones from industry farming that negatively modifies our hormonal balance.  Meat has a high risk of bacterial contamination.  Some studies have even shown that men who had high consumption of red meat and saturated fats in their diet had low sperm counts- low enough to impact having a baby. People who ingest all types of meat (chicken, red meat, fish) are twice as likely to develop dementia.

olive oil:  I was sad to read about this one.  I LOVE olive oil.  Many boast of the Mediterranean Diet being on of the healthiest, which is not false as this diet is based largely around fresh fruits and vegetables.  Unfortunately, any refined oil- including olive oil, is rich in calories and low in nutrients.  Food cooked in oil absorbs much more oil than we would like to believe.  When breaking down the nutrient value olive oil is one of the most fattening and calorie dense foods available.

Despite my humour in the title- there are a lot of foods left to consume that are very tasty.  Beans, leafy greens, onions, green vegetables, raw nuts and seeds, whole grains, fresh fruits, squash, sweet potatoes….its all extremly tasty and packed full of phytochemicals, antioxidants, folate, vitamin E, and fiber.  Some days it just can seem a little daunting- but when in doubt- you can always turn to a vegetable:)

restaurant fever

Open your eyes to a new world of flavour, spices, and romance with food!  The cookbooks rave about the thrills of becoming vegan; the journey actualizes a new universe of eating.  The advertisements hold to be true: eating vegan is indeed  inspiring and quite a bit of fun, that is until one walks into a restaurant.

I am a stick in the mud!  Eating out is a combination of boring and frustrating.  Repetitive so-called salads of lettuce paired with a few sliced of cucumbers tallies up to a disheartened patron.   Going vegan has ostracized me socially from big events to restaurant evenings.  Options are limited and friends tire of my limitations.

I love eating vegan- Its too bad the restaurant industry isn’t aligned with my feelings.

Cycle tour- vegan style

I’m currently experiencing my first disappointment with eating vegan. I’m in a cafe after riding 160km on my bicycle and off to ride another 100km this morning through the park. There is nothing on the menu I can eat! I managed to find a vegan bar in the goodies basket. The grocery stores do not open for quite awhile…. Thus I’m glad to be hauling extra oranges and apples in my paniers. But- those breakfast egg sandwiches sure do look good!

Labels

I’ve always struggled with labels.  At some point I made the choice to avoid eating meat.  After reading Michael Pollan’s book, “The Omnivores Dilemma” (amazing read btw) I did not feel right about consuming industry meat.  Animals are treated unethically for the product  of most meat sold in stores.  Beyond the treatment of animals, the environmental repercussions are alarming  as well as the health impacts of hormone packed meat that we are consuming.  My steadfast code to live by was to not purchase unethically raised meat.  I could however buy “ethical” meat and free-range eggs from time to time.  I also surmised that upon the situation of eating as a guest in someone else’s home, that I would consume the meat served to me.  It seemed as though my main reasons for avoiding meat would seem invalid in someone else’s home- they have already purchased the meat, and by me refusing to eat it doesn’t help out the already dead cow and impacted lands to raise it.  In addition, its inconvenient for family and friends to try and cook for my eating desires.

After that long ramble- it should be coherent how I did not know what “label” to give myself.  I’ve confused others when eating a nice elk sausage hunted by a friend and evoked questions- “I thought you were a vegetarian!?!” From that I have moved onto calling myself a “plant based eater.”  It supports the idea of avoiding anything from meat sources.

I recently stumbled upon a well explained perspective on the whole matter from Neal Barnard.  He suggested the used of adjectives instead of nouns.  He goes on to always refer to the “vegan diet” rather than referring to people as “vegans”.  He advocates this is, “a good practice anytime we are speaking of choices and beliefs.”  He explains how a person who switches from one style of diet to another is still the same person, “the only thing different is what is on his plate.”  He suggests that noun-based labels solicit images and prejudice and put that person in a box.  Just as the word hippy implies a smelly, environmental, seed eating, pot smoking individual – the word vegan creates all sorts of ideologies on how we might perceive their lifestyle,political views, environmental concerns, and consumer practices.

Something to ponder.

New favourite vegan munchies and food

1.  Kale and hummus sandwhich

http://www.veganmuscleandfitness.com/worlds-tastiest-sandwich-snack/

2. Strawberries and bananas sprinkled with hemp hearts

3. Soy butter or pumpkin seed butter spread on rice crackers

4. Hummus! hummus! hummus! on anything and everything.

5. Orange juice smoothie with green tea (mix concentrated orange juice/ oranges with soy milk and green tea)~L

~Looking forward to trying a whole bunch more and sharing:)

Phytochemicals?

Calories, vitamins, minerals, nutrients- these words are common knowledge to any person, but phytochemicals, however; raise a few brows from time to time.  In fact, word processors underline it as a spelling error.

In short phytochemicals are properties found in plants (fruits, vegetables, beans, & grains) that have disease fighting and preventive agents.  Dr. Furhman explains quite extensively in his book how these phytochemicals are key to the prevention and the treatment of many health conditions such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease,  and high blood pressure.  Phytochemicals can stimulate enzymes that break down carcinogens and also prevent cancerous cells from multiplying.

A diet rich in vegetables and fruits guarantee a diet rich in phytochemicals.  There is no research (that I am aware of) that indicates these phytochemicals can be gained in pill format with even close to the same success.

Go plants go!

vegan challenge- day 3 & 4

Day three came and went without too much thought to the process.  I am now on day four and am finding snacking at work to be a danger.  I err on the side of caution with the idea of vegetarian and vegan- the reason being is I feel a lot of people miss the point.  Most should adapt the title “starchetarian” instead.  They give up meat, but then fill their bodies with bleached wheat and potatoes.  How can you be a vegetarian when your diet lacks in vegetables?

One of the reasons I’m trying the challenge is I want to expand upon and increase my intake of plants.  Vegetables are packed full of nutrients and phytochemicals, while most meat lacks these two basic nutritional components.  Thus I do not want to fall into the trap of pretending to be healthy with fancy labels for myself while stuffing my body with other harmful foods.  Eating “whole wheat” can increase my blood sugar just as much as a candy bar- I fail to see how that is any better than eating meat.  And potatoes- well, I wish they were healthier, but potatoes should be on the “eat infrequently” list of food.

Whilst my hand hasn’t been reaching for bagels, bread, crackers,and french fries- I still ate too many rice crackers today. Yes, I know they aren’t bad for me, but I am taking this challenge to eat WHOLE UNPROCESSED FOODS!

It’s all a part of the journey:)

vegan challenge- day 1 & 2

Day #1

I didn’t even notice that I was on a vegan diet.  I ate so much fruit it was delightful!  However….maybe I ate too much fruit and not enough greens.

Day # 2

I am loving the salads!  But I found that I am eating more quantities, which is not a big deal, however, I dont have time to eat that much food!  My lunch break is not very long already.  So I spread some soy butter on a rice cakes and scarfed it down on my way to teach my next class.  I want eating to be an enjoyable experience, not a stuff your face as you go kinda treat.

I was craving…… not sure what.  Last night I went to the grocery store in search of something…… I wasn’t sure what it was yet.  I have done a lot of cleanses in the past, thus I didn’t expect to experience any cravings.  I guess your body quickly adapts to the junk we feed it.  Regardless, I was shocked at how little vegan options were available in a regular grocery store.  Most things have eggs or refined sugars (which I avoid as much as possible.)  Despite the lack of variety, I still ended up coming home with several grocery bags of food!  yikes!

21 Day Vegan Challenge- Introduction

I am already a plant-based eater/ casual vegetarian for a few reasons……. thus it seemed natural to give veganism an effort.   Plant based food has a much bigger nutrient level than meat products.    Also, the treatment of animals has changed significantly as the industry has changed.  The animals are treated poorly and are shoved full of so many hormones that is hazardous to the health of both the animals and the humans that eat them.

My idea is to take “the challenge” instead of committing to a full conversion; this way I can make some adaptations to my current lifestyle and integrate better choices.   I strive towards healthy eating, which sometimes my efforts are lost to cravings, social gatherings, and simply a lack of time.  One small change and step at a time lead to a much greater success than overwhelming myself.

I hope you enjoy being a part of my journey.