Archive for the ‘Health’ Category
Saturday, March 3rd, 2012
These three excellent books will myth-proof your mind against dangerous industry tactics
Protecting Yourself Made Easy
The corporate takeover of health is here. You can see the results in soaring health care costs, millions felled by preventable illness, and acceptance of chronic disease as a way of life.
This post is the hundredth blog on my site. Myth-busting remains my specialty and whole foods, plant-based diets my passion. I’m celebrating by sharing with you three books that taught me how to spot corporate disinformation as easily as a keen-nosed dog can find smelly garbage. These models of myth-busting inspired me in writing The Perfect Formula Diet and still keep me going:
- The Cigarette Century: The Rise, Fall, and Deadly Persistence of the Product That Defined America; Allan M. Brandt, Ph.D.
- Appetite For Profit: How the Food Industry Undermines Our Health and How to Fight Back; Michele Simon
- Overdosed America: The Broken Promise of American Medicine; Dr. John Abramson
Here are insights from each book.
THE CIGARETTE CENTURY
While pretty much everyone these days admits cigarettes are unhealthy, what you might not know is the sordid history of the tobacco industry. These corporations pioneered underhanded methods to deliberately (more…)
Tags: Allan Brandt, Appetite for Profit, cigarettes, Dr. John Abramson, drug industry, food industry, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, Michele Simon, Overdosed America, The Cigarette Century, tobacco industry, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 21st, 2012
Debby before she delves into the journal articles of the day
The Trick Is To Keep Learning As Health Grows In Stages
Debby, The Healthy Librarian, was only 30 when she watched her parents’ dreams of idyllic retirement years turn into a health nightmare. Her dad suffered a massive stroke. “My parents were going to retire, travel, enjoy grandkids. Instead, the stroke changed everything. My dad could not talk, read, or understand language, and in spite of continual health declines, additional strokes, and seizures, he survived for 16 years after his initial stroke. My mom’s whole life became his care,” Debby told me.
After Debby lost her dad, her mom suffered a series of “mini-strokes.” The damage accumulated. Her final years were marred by vascular dementia, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Debby, as caregiver for both her parents, was both heartbroken and transformed by their tragedies. She delved into medical research to find out how to keep from following in her parents’ health footsteps.
I was delighted to meet Debby, a fellow medical article fan, at a Wellness Forum conference. She has been generous in sharing the highlights of her research analysis (not to mention lots of yummy recipes) at her blog happyhealthylonglife. She is also generous in sharing (more…)
Tags: aging, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Dr. T. Colin Campbell, eldercare, getting healthy, The China Study, The Healthy Librarian, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 4 Comments »
Sunday, February 5th, 2012
Getting older does not have to mean slowing down.
Six Ways Whole Foods Fuel Long and Active Years
An enjoyable retirement is a great American dream. People save up financially for decades, often planning to spend retirement traveling, with family, and fulfilling long-postponed goals.
The sad fact is that many have their retirement kidnapped by poor health. Americans with Medicare see an average of seven different physicians in a year. Even at age 55, more than half of people have more than one chronic health condition. These medical problems vacuum up money needed for more fun and meaningful activities. The pain and disability of illness are potent barriers to desired activities and quality of life. Yet much of this suffering can be avoided and even reversed.
Whole plant foods are healthy life span enhancers that work together as a powerful team. Here are six reasons why.
• Protective phytochemicals
• Perfectly packaged nutrition (more…)
Tags: aging, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, getting healthy, longevity, phytochemicals, Plant-based nutrition, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | No Comments »
Sunday, November 20th, 2011
Mushrooms, as an ingredient in a lightly cooked vegetable soup, make for a super soup to stay warm and healthy on a cold day
Why Mushrooms Tune-Up Your Immune System to Stop Colds and Flu
Is there really a way, through diet, to treat and stop a cold or the flu? While chicken soup is routinely believed to be good for a cold, my post “What Kind of Soup Is Best for Colds” shows that lightly cooked vegetable soup is your most potent ally. That post tells why such soup is healing and how best to spice and eat it. The soup is best for a cold day even if you aren’t sick and just (more…)
Tags: beta-glucan, cardiovascular disease, getting healthy, gingivitis, Janice Stanger, lose weight, mushrooms, Plant-based nutrition, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 2 Comments »
Sunday, October 16th, 2011
Deborah and her husband Gerry enjoy some impressive banana squash they harvested
Deborah Pageau Hit Rock Bottom On Health and Found a Simple Way Out
In spreading the message that fish contains worm larvae, I posted my blog on this topic on VegSource. Deborah Pageau replied from Canada with her story of witnessing live worm larvae wriggling in a fried fish on a Friday “fish and chip”night.
I immediately wanted to know more and share Deborah’s experience. Here she generously shares how she, her husband, and her daughter eliminated a range of health problems by eating a whole foods, plant-based diet. Yes, whole – vegan junk foods are rarely (more…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, Deborah Pageau, depression, family, fish, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, reverse chronic disease, weight loss, whole foods plant-based diet, worm larvai
Posted in Health | No Comments »
Sunday, October 2nd, 2011
This beautiful fish enjoys her ocean home, just as nature intended
Ten Reasons Seafood Is Not Safe or Appetizing
Government, media, and even health professionals flood you with advice to load up your diet with fish and fish oil. The alleged health benefits of eating fish center on a two nutrients: omega-3 fatty acids and protein.
Don’t be fooled by industry and government hype. Plants are the base of the food chain on planet earth. Plants are nutrient factories, while animals are nutrient consumers. Fish are animals, and as such get all their nutrients from plants or from (more…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, environmental degradation, extinction, fish, fish oil, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, mercury, nutrition facts, omega-3 fatty acids, seafood safety, whole foods plant-based diet, worm larvae
Posted in Health | 13 Comments »
Saturday, August 20th, 2011
Tracy shows off some ingredietns she uses to create amazing whole foods, plant-based recipes
Tracy Childs Teaches How to Cook Health and Great Meals At The Same Time
A commonplace perception is that whole foods, plant-based diets are healthy, but perhaps lacking in taste, variety, and satisfaction. Tracy Childs is working to change that misperception, showing her students that whole foods, plant-based recipes can delight their taste, fill their stomachs, and please their families.
I met Tracy, a fellow San Diegan, a couple of years ago. Since then I have been fortunate to (more…)
Tags: cooking classes, diabetes, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, PCRM, Plant-based nutrition, Recipes, The Cancer Project, Tracy Childs, Veg-Appeal, vegan parent, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011
Mike Vee, dressed in black, in the days when he was eating meat and processed food and struggling with one health problem after another.
Mike Vee Is Transformed From Dead to Vigorous on a Whole Foods, Plant-Based Diet
Mike Vee is an amazing Facebook friend. I always enjoyed his posts, but when I learned he died in the emergency room and then was revived, I had to know more and wanted to share his story. Mike Vee has been working as a clinical dietitian for 25 years and presently provides medical nutritional therapy through a Federally Funded Grant for people living with HIV/AIDS in Trenton NJ. He reduced the number of meds he takes from ten to zero solely with a whole foods, plant-based diet.
What kinds of foods did you grow up eating?
Growing up as third generation Italian-Americans, our home life reflected this. We would have the prerequisite spaghetti and meatballs, veal and chicken parmigiana, escarole and beans, pork chops, flounder, beef stew, hamburgers and hot dogs and TV dinners. Most of the vegetables we ate came from a can and were heated up to a point of ashen green that shouldn’t be allowed on the color wheel in the scheme of things. My mom liked to bake more than she liked to cook and our waistlines often reflected this.
What kinds of foods do you eat now?
If it is in the plant family, I’ll eat it. Suffice to say, on occasion I do tangle with (more…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, making a difference now, Mike Vee, Plant-based nutrition, reverse chronic disease, vegetables, weight loss, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011
This Forks Over Knives Patient Shares Her Journey From Junk Food to Whole Food
With her warm smile, San'Dera Prude invites you to share her story in the film Forks Over Knives
The film Forks Over Knives colorfully illustrates critical nutritional facts about a whole foods, plant-based diet. This eating plan can help you reverse just about any chronic illness, from diabetes to heart disease and even cancer. Yet it’s the patients in the film who bring these facts to life and give the movie its emotional impact and power to change lives. Their stories leave you cheering.
San’Dera Prude’s warm smile, articulate sharing, and heartfelt honesty moved me each of the three times I’ve seen Forks Over Knives. I wanted to find out how she became part of the film and learn more about her current success. San’Dera spoke with me recently and generously shared more about how she achieved and continues her new healthy life. (Note: since Forks Over Knives was made, San’Dera has celebrated her marriage and has her new last name of Prude instead of Nation.)
Before she met Dr. Esselstyn, San’Dera’s diabetes and hypertension were fueled by fast food three times a day. She would grab a fast food breakfast if she was running late in the morning. At work, everyone was (more…)
Tags: diabetes, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Forks Over Knives, getting healthy, hummus, Janice Stanger, Plant-based nutrition, process of change, San'Dera Prude, Sue Cotey, whole foods, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
Sunday, July 24th, 2011
Dustin will be teaching us some much needed lessons in getting healthy without drugs
Dustin Rudolph Shares a Pharmacist’s Take On Whole Foods, Plant-Based Diets
Dustin Rudolph is a pharmacist who prefers plants to pills. His transformation began in February 2009 with a routine visit to his podiatrist, Dr. Sal. He ended up in a discussion on health care reform with this fellow medical professional. He was both confused and intrigued by Dr. Sal’s statement that legislation would really not have a fundamental impact on the nation’s health care practice.
Dustin ended up reading The China Study at Dr. Sal’s suggestion. At first the book’s plant-based diet approach seemed farfetched. Dustin had grown up in rural Montana on a diet heavy with animal foods. He’d also spent six (more…)
Tags: Dustin Rudolph, Janice Stanger, nutrition facts, pharmacist, Plant-based nutrition, reverse chronic disease, The China Study, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
