VegWorld 3

ISSUE 3 / OCTOBER 2012

Got Ethics

?

Learn th e Hid Truth ab den out Calcium

Mother Nature vs. Mad Science:

Get the facts on GMOs Avoid a Sugar

Frightfest this Halloween

Learn from the Pros

More Recipe Videos!

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contents THE FUN SIDE OF VEGETARIAN LIVING

VEGAN HOT SHEET

09

Hip and Happening Vegan Stuff

FAMILY AND LIFESTYLE

VEGAN 101

11

16

BO KNOWS

12

by Rae Sikora

BIZARRO CARTOON

14

Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan

TEACH OUR CHILDREN COMPASSION, NOT VIOLENCE

20

7 TIPS TO AVOID A HEALTH SCARE THIS HALLOWEEN

by Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

22

WHICH “NATURAL” FOOD COMPANIES ARE FIGHTING THE EFFORT TO LABEL GMOS?

by John Robbins

REGULARS

06

EDITOR’S NOTE

05

CREDITS

80

REVIEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack

VegWorld Staff & Contributing Writers

Vegworld’s Pick of the month - Happy

contents NUTRITION AND THRIVING

WHEN FRIENDS ASK: 27 WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR CALCIUM?

by Dr. John McDougall

AN APPLE A DAY 34 MELTS THE POUNDS AWAY!

by Kathy Freston

FEATURE

56 RECIPES FOR FOODIES

SPORK RECIPES

HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET An Activist’s Tool Kit

39

by Spork Foods

SPOTLIGHT ON COMPASSION

DELICIOUS FOOD SAMPLER 43

67

PAWS

THE SEXY VEGAN 48

71

THE ANIMAL POWER OF VIDEO

75

DON’T BELIEVE THE GHOSTS!

by Karma Chow Featuring Melissa Costello

by Brian L. Patton

ORDINARY PEOPLE/ EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS

A JOURNEY OF PERSEVERANCE AND FAITH 53

by Marilyn Peterson

by Dr. Jonathan Balcombe

by Dr. Will Tuttle

OFF THE BOOKSHELF

86

ANIMALS AS SAINTS - ANIMALS AS TEACHERS: INSPIRING COMPASSION

by Kim Sheridan

VegWorld Credits

Credits VegWorld Staff Editor-In-Chief: Steve Prussack Associate Editor: Julie Varon Graphic Design: Veronique Zayas Magazine Layout: Lise-Mari Coetzee Contributing Photographer: Elan Sun Star Media: Raw Edge Productions

Contributing Writers Dr. Jonathan Balcombe

Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

Melissa Costello

Marilyn Peterson

Jenny Engel Kathy Freston Heather Goldberg Dr. Thomas Lodi, MD Dr. John McDougall Brian L. Patton

VegWorld Magazine

John Robbins Joanne Rose Dr. Jameth Sheridan Kim Sheridan Rae Sikora

Dan Piraro

Jeffrey Smith

Bo Rinaldi

Dr. Will Tuttle

Issue 003 - Oct 2012 |

5

VegWorld Editor’s Note

Editor's Note

A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack

I

remember first hearing about genetically modified organisms (GMO) over 12 years ago at a Wild Oats supermarket in northern New Jersey. I was handed a pamphlet warning of the dangers GMOs pose to life on this planet- in particular of their devastating effects on the life cycle of the monarch butterfly. As I researched further, I learned that GMOs were being used in a variety of vegan products without being labeled. As a strict vegan, I found it disturbing to know that my tomatoes might have been injected with fish DNA. How could we eat a vegan diet if animal products are being injected into the fruits and vegetables we eat? Without labeling, we really have no idea what we are eating.

Since that time, GMOs have continued to be sneakily integrated into our food supply. Countries all over the world have been outraged, demanding that GMOs be banned and, of course, labeled. Unfortunately, the United States has been slow to speak out against GMOs. That is now changing. I wanted to dedicate this issue to help spread awareness about GMOs and bring attention to the election next month in California.

Proposition 37, a Mandatory Labeling of Genetically Engineered Food Initiative, is on the November 6, 2012 ballot in California.

If Proposition 37 is approved by voters, it will: • Require labeling on raw or processed food offered for sale to consumers if the food is made from plants or animals with genetic material changed in specified ways.

• Prohibit labeling or advertising such food as “natural.”

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Issue 003 - Oct 2012 |

6

VegWorld Editor’s Note

Editor's Note

A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack • Exempt from this requirement foods that are “certified organic; unintentionally produced with genetically engineered material; made from animals fed or injected with genetically engineered material but not genetically engineered themselves; processed with or containing only small amounts of genetically engineered ingredients; administered for treatment of medical conditions; sold for immediate consumption such as in a restaurant; or alcoholic beverages.”

Given its long list of exemptions, Proposition 37 is far from a perfect or complete solution to the GMO problem. But, if approved, it will represent a tremendous step forward in lifting the veil and forcing Monsanto and other corporations to tell us what is in our food.

I hope this issue of VegWorld Magazine will enlighten you and open your eyes to the truth about our food supply.

Editor of VegWorld Magazine

VegWorld Magazine

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7

The Fun Side

Of Vegetarian Living Vegan Hot Sheet Vegan 101 Bo Knows: Can Rutabaga Raviolis Lead To Nirvana?

Bizarro Cartoon

Vegan Hot Sheet hip and happening vegan stuff Celebrities CELEBRITY CORNER Veganism continues to take the world by storm.

We continue tracking vegan celebrities who are influencing countless people towards the benefit of a plant-based diet.

nd Brad Pitt decades a r fo n a ri vegeta ago. as been a a few years m is n a g Brad Pitt h e v switch to made the

VEGAN SUBWAY: SANDWICH CHAIN OFFERS THREE NEW VEGAN-FRIENDLY SUBS!

Alanis Morissette Singer Alanis Morissette went vegan in 2008 and lost over 20 pounds.

The musician had packed on the pounds by eating unhealthy foods and has been quoted as saying that eating vegan makes her a happier and healthier person.

Animal advocacy organization “Compassion Over Killing” recently convinced Subway locations in Canada to sell a “Totally Vegged” vegan patty.

Now, that effort has extended to select DC, Maryland and Virginia locations.

The chain recently rolled out three new all-vegan sandwiches: Sweet Riblet, Malibu Greek and Italian Black Bean, giving the vegan Subway consumers of the world some protein on their subs.

Russell Brand Actor Russell Brand has been a vegetarian since age 14, but after watching the documentary “Forks Over Knives” in January he decided to make the transition to veganism.

He recently tweeted, “I’m now vegan, goodbye eggs, hello Ellen.”

Celebrities

BEE FREE HONEE Vegans rejoice! Cruelty-free Bee Free Honee is a unique sweetener with the perfect hint of tartness.

Bee Free Honee is actually “apple honey”, made from apples rather than bees! Using only three allnatural ingredients (apple, beet sugar and lemon juice), there’s nothing remotely artificial, and it contains absolutely no added colors and no corn syrup.

Carrie Underwood

This country superstar decided to become a vegetarian for the health benefits, but recently went “95% vegan”. She was recently quoted as saying “I’ve been a vegetarian for seven years, but after seeing a friend who looked amazing and had recently gone vegan, I thought, ‘What’s holding me back?’ Now I’m 95 percent vegan.”

THE VEGG

More great news for vegans! A brand new incredible, edible egg-free product has just hit the market, making vegan eating even easier and tastier than ever before. The Vegg is a versatile egg yolk replacer that can be used (instead of egg yolks) in a wide range of recipes, and you can even use it straight as a liquid “yolk” for dipping.

SUNBIOTICS NUTS Sunbiotics probiotic enhanced nuts are a delicious and healthy gourmet snack with the extra benefits of probiotics, for improved digestion. Made from organic, raw and sprouted almonds enhanced with healthy probiotics, the nuts come in four varieties: Original, Truffle, Cheesy and Chocolate. The Cheesy flavor (made with nutritional yeast and sea salt) tastes like the old-time comfort food “Cheez-Its.”

Jenny McCarthy Jenny McCarthy announced in 2009 that she had made the switch from a vegetarian to a vegan lifestyle.

The star made the announcement on a special episode of The Rachel Ray Show.

ABOUT JOANNE Joanne Rose is the founder and CEO of Vegan Vision Productions, a digital media production company inspiring lives on screen through comedy. The company was established in 2008.

The first project for Vegan Vision Productions is Vegan 101, the world’s first vegan comedy series on the web which launched online in mid 2009. Created, written and starring Rose, a vegan since 1994, the show consists of exaggerated parodies of veganism from all walks of life in various situations through stand alone sketches to combine humor and vegan knowledge.

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Can Rutabaga Raviolis Lead To Nirvana? Bo Rinaldi

Bo Knows

Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan Can Rutabaga Raviolis Lead To Nirvana?

by BO RINALDI Dear Reader, I have a true confession to make. It is just plain weird that being a vegan suddenly has celebrity, fame or something noteworthy attached to it. When folks now ask, “Isn’t it weird that you eat just plants?” we can say (with a straight face), “Isn’t it weird that you actually eat animals?” It wasn’t that long ago that being a vegan automatically made you a freak. Back then, it went beyond “Where do you get your protein?” or “So all you eat is side dishes?” It was, “What’s wrong with you?” and “How do you expect to have any friends?”

These days, in places like Portland people actually have tattoos of vegetables to go with their Celtic symbols. We wear it proud, and incredibly, we are no longer being ridiculed.

Well, not that much anyway. Many ad campaigns today contain some implied or overt ridicule, such as “We Love Vegetarians, More Meat for Us,” or “We Love Vegetarians, They Taste Better.” I guess that’s human nature.

We call a plant-based diet the intuitive diet, the Edenic diet, the idiot-free diet. Some call it vegan. I call it our only way out. The funny thing is people now accept it, and it is becoming a major force of commerce. That’s because, if we know how to do anything, it’s to turn something into a commodity. I recently heard that McDonald’s is going vegan

VegWorld Magazine

Being a vegan now has celebrity, fame or something noteworthy attached to it.

in some places around the globe. Now that would be funny. I suppose we have already reached peak beef and everyone might end up eating just side dishes after all!

Keep in mind, the gains we’ve made getting veganism into the mainstream haven’t come without setbacks. In fact, the billions of dollars formerly spent by big corporations on advertising are now being spent funding studies to try to discredit an organic, plantbased diet.

But I am a strong believer that the truth shall set you free. And my advice to those “researchers” is to save their money, or maybe give it to us, because the only way out of this maze we are in as a culture is to “grow our

Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 12

Can Rutabaga Raviolis Lead To Nirvana? Bo Rinaldi lar meals as more and more people adopt a plant-based diet and share the wonders of these foods with ingenious, fun, colorful and healthy meals. These kinds of meals save 90% on environmental impact and still are cost-effective, especially when you consider how much you just might save on medical bills.

To escape the problems of our culture we must “grow our way out” and get back to basics in the kitchen.

way out.” We can do this by supporting our local organic farmers and going back to the kitchen as a family and making fun dishes like rutabaga raviolis and zucchini pasta.

In the ’60s we fed people for a dollar (or less) a meal and ate like royalty, sharing the love. Folks wondered if we were part of a religious sect, and of course we all said yes.

In the 21st century we can go back to dol-

And besides, not only is this fun, easy and intuitive, but the more we hear of celebrities, athletes and world leaders going vegan, the more we can wonder, what’s next? Maybe a vegan world? Now that would be a place where I would like to live. For now, I call that world “Portland.” Just remember to have fun, feed your friends, go organic and spread the love. Maybe with a little more rutabaga ravioli, we can make this a vegan world.

“To become vegetarian is to step into the stream which leads to nirvana.” - Buddha Love you all.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bo Rinaldi is an entrepreneur, chef and co-owner of the acclaimed Blossoming Lotus restaurant in Portland. A proponent of the fantastic benefits of the vegan lifestyle, Bo is the co-owner of VeganFusion.com, blogs frequently at BoRinaldi.com, and is the co-author of many top-selling books, including Vegan Fusion and four Complete Idiot’s Guides. Bo has been a vegan since 1960 and has managed, partnered or owned many companies in the organic movement. Bo was one of the founders of the organic food movement in the California Sixties, got involved in the PC Revolution as the VP Marketing for ComputerLand, was the EVP for the largest boutique Software Consulting firm in Silicon Valley, and has always been in the right place at the right time! A social entrepreneur, Bo sits on the Boards of many companies and has specialized in internet marketing since 1991. To serve with passion and heart, to be generous of body, mind and spirit, and to live in the true wealth of simplicity embodies the basic truths of Bo’s life.

Find out about Bo and Mark Reinfeld’s incredible vegan cooking program “Cooking Healthy Lessons Here

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Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 13

Bizarro Cartoon Dan Piraro

Dan Piraro is a painter, illustrator and cartoonist best known for his award-winning syndicated cartoon panel Bizarro. Piraro’s cartoons have been reprinted in 15 book collections between 1986 and the present.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 14

Family

and Lifestyle Teach our Children Compassion, not Violence 7 Tips to Avoid A Health Scare This Halloween Which “Natural” Food Companies Are Fighting The Efforts To Label GMOs?

Teach our Children Compassion, Not Violence By Rae Sikora

Teach our Children

Compassion, Not Violence

by Rae Sikora

I

f you ask most reasonable, caring adults whether they want their children or those in our society to take part in unnecessary violence, invariably they will answer “no.� Unfortunately, well meaning, but uninformed, adults are allowing our children every day to be unwitting participants in violence.

For years I visited classrooms and led compassionate-living programs for students of all ages. The school programs consisted of three basic parts: 1. Connect children to the natural world so they can fall in love with the earth.

2. Give them background on the reality and impacts of many of our daily choices, including those surrounding our food, entertainment, medical testing, clothing and other products.

3. Provide them with empowering, compassionate, alternative choices in all areas of life.

It was common for schools, teachers, and parents to voice concern over the children being exposed to anything graphic or violent in the programs. This was understandable, and my presentations were age-appropriate.

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The Starch Solution By Dr. John McDougall, MD I was also asked countless times, however, not to even mention the words “vegan” or “vegetarian.” For example, one school canceled an Earth Day assembly program for 600 students after reviewing my materials. The principal explained that the decision to cancel wasn’t based on any violent content. Rather, the assembly committee believed I was somehow forcing my values on the children by including the term “vegetarianism” in my presentation. I responded that it would be hard to teach children how to care for the earth without mentioning the impact of our dietary choices, and that every environmental choice, including recycling, could be termed a “value-based” decision. She was not swayed. And, in the end, I came to the sad conclusion that the school was not interested in furthering critical or progressive thinking, but only in teaching currently-accepted values. Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident. Many humane educators, including myself, have been banned from schools and entire school districts because the children would not eat meat after learning about the plight of the animals.

Humane educators have been banned from school districts because children would not eat meat after learning the plight of the animals.

We live in a society that is full of inconsistencies. We celebrate Be Kind to Animals Week and Earth Day in the schools, but the schools serve animals for lunch on these same days. Students are trained from an early age that words and actions do not have to align. We can say one thing and do another. They learn that their values do not have to be reflected in their daily choices. Children are told to be kind. But they learn from an early age that this kindness does not extend to those who are not like us. They learn to ignore the pain and suffering of other cultures and other beings when that is necessary to continue an accepted or desired lifestyle choice. They are taught the golden rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

But the definition of “others” is selectively defined.

So, while most adults would answer “no” to the question of whether they want children to witness or participate in violent acts, they are VegWorld Magazine

Our society is full of contradictions. We show kids violent cartoons, but shield them from the devastating reality of meat production.

Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 17

The Starch Solution By Dr. John McDougall, MD allowing just that every day. Parents make their children unwitting participants in violence against animals at mealtime, when they buy a child those new leather boots, and when they take their children to circuses to see the elephants and tigers perform unnatural acts for their entertainment. The children are “unwitting” participants because, as a society, we have determined that it is too harmful to a child’s well-being to inform them of the violence associated with these desired lifestyle choices.

Yet we as a society have no problem exposing children to violence in other ways.

According to the Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 99% of homes have televisions. More families have televisions than telephones. Over half of all children have a television set in their bedrooms, providing an even greater opportunity for children to view programs without parental Children have a natural supervision. Studies reveal that children tendency toward compassion. watch approximately 28 hours of television a week, which is more time than they spend in school. The typical American child will view more than 200,000 acts of violence, including more than 16,000 murders before the age of 18. Television programs display 812 violent acts an hour; children’s programs, particularly cartoons, display up to 20 violent acts an hour.

It turns out we are quite selective in the violence we will allow children to see and perpetuate. We are willing to let them witness violence if it does not threaten our current daily choices. It seems that, as a society, we are unwilling to expose our children to the reality of the violence involved in producing the food, products and entertainment we want, but we are quite willing to expose them to violence that comes in the form of “entertainment.” Most children have a natural tendency toward compassion. This caring has to be trained out of them to continue the traditions of consuming, abusing, enslaving and killing animals. The most effective way to keep children and adults from VegWorld Magazine

if we really want to protect children from violence, we must open our minds to a new way of thinking.

Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 18

The Starch Solution By Dr. John McDougall, MD questioning what we are doing as humans is to hide the violent and disturbing realities of particular industries.

If we really want to protect our children from taking part in unnecessary violence we have to be willing to open our minds and hearts to a way of life beyond what has been handed down to us. We have to be willing to look at the reality of our choices and question them. We have to be willing to say no to violence in all areas of our lives, even if it is currently accepted as normal. We are the co-creators of the peaceful world in which we would all like to live. We can say no to television. We can say no to any industry that enslaves, abuses and slaughters innocent beings for our own selfish desires. And we can say yes to compassion. Every minute of every day we are presented with choices. For ourselves, for our families, for our human and nonhuman communities, and for the earth, we can make choices that reflect our deepest values of caring and compassion. We can support each other to create a new way.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rae Sikora has been a spokesperson for animals, the environment and human rights for over 30 years. As co-founder of the Institute for Humane Education, Rae created interactive critical thinking tools that are now being used by people around the globe. Rae is co-founder and co-director of Plant Peace Daily and co-founder of Vegfund.

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7 Tips to Avoid a Health Scare This Halloween by Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

7 Tips

to Avoid a Health Scare

This Halloween

by CAROLYN SCOTT-HAMILTON OF THE HEALTHY VOYAGER

O

k, so the whole point of Halloween seems to be candy and other creepy, sugar-laden treats. But too much sugar can result in a scare to your health and that of your kids. Why not avoid this ghostly result by striking a balance with a few healthier options?

If you’re throwing a party or heading to someone else’s ghoulfest, think of making a few whole-food and veggie-based options to break up the frightfest of sugar. You can be just as colorful and have just as much fun using whole grains, fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds, and you’ll be surprised at what a welcomed addition these treats will be to any Halloween haunt!

Here are some tips to spice up your Halloween with just the right amount of health: 1. Create homemade meals and treats whenever possible.

Prepackaged and fast foods are loaded with sugar, chemicals, trans fats, sodium and artificial colors and flavorings, not to mention hidden animal products.

2. When baking, go for natural, unprocessed sugar. This will help you and your kids avoid the crash and burn. To replace white sugar try agave nectar, barley malt, brown rice syrup, molasses, xylitol (great for diabetics), maple syrup or stevia.

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7 Tips to Avoid a Health Scare This Halloween by Carolyn Scott-Hamilton 3. Bake with whole-grain or gluten-free flours. These are much healthier and more easily digestible than highly processed, all-purpose white flour.

4. Get really creative and make up new recipes using these healthier alternatives. Aim for lots of colors and textures, and you’ll never be bored with healthy eating.

5. Eat healthy foods first and save treats for dessert. If you fill up on real food, you will be less likely to overindulge on junk food. For example, have some of your children’s favorite fruits available for them to eat on the way to the party, when they are the hungriest.

6. Drink plenty of water. We often mistake thirst for hunger (especially when eating too much sugar), which causes us to overeat. Also, opting to give your kids water instead of sugarladen sodas and juices can help prevent a catastrophic Halloween sugar overload.

7. Regardless of whether you eat them first or mix them in, make sure you and your kids eat lots of raw fruits and veggies! You will get loads of enzymes that aid in digestion and detoxing and repairing your body.

The healthier you are, the less likely you will crave the sugary garbage. And even if you do slip up, you won’t fall off the monstrous edge. Have a healthy Halloween!!

Avoid the ghostly result of sugar by making better choices on halloween.

ABOUT HEALTHYVOYAGER Carolyn Scott-Hamilton, aka The Healthy Voyager, is the Executive Producer, Creator, Host and Writer of The Healthy Voyager web series, site and overall brand. A holistic nutritionist, plant-based vegan chef, best-selling cookbook author, sought-after speaker, film-making, screen-writing, traveling, singing, dancing, fun-loving, healthy and greenliving wife, VegWorld Magazine

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Which “Natural” Food Companies Are Fighting the Effort to Label GMOs? by John Robbins

Which “Natural” Food Companies

Are Fighting the Effort

to Label GMOs?

BY JOHN ROBBINS

On November 6th, 2012, California voters will have the opportunity to vote on historic Proposition 37, which would mandate the labeling of genetically engineered foods. At a time when it’s hard to get a large percentage of Americans to agree on almost anything, polls show that as many as 90 percent of us want genetically modified organisms (GMOs) labeled. More than 40 other nations, including the entire European Union, already require disclosure. But Monsanto and its allies are dedicated to keeping consumers in the dark and are pouring tens of millions of dollars into a disinformation campaign intended to defeat Prop 37.

You might expect the biotech industry to try to block a measure that would require foods that contain GMOs to say so on their packages. After all, a growing body of scientific research is indicating that GMOs might be far more dangerous than was previously imagined. But Monsanto’s allies in the effort to defeat Prop 37 include some unexpected culprits. It can be shocking to realize that some of the most trusted names in the natural food world are in bed with Monsanto.

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Which “Natural” Food Companies Are Fighting the Effort to Label GMOs? by John Robbins

Naked Juice is owned by PepsiCo, which has donated $1.7 million to Monsanto’s efforts. Honest Tea, Odwalla and Simply Orange are owned

by Coca-Cola, which has donated another million dollars. Alexia and Lightlife are owned by ConAgra, which has put in more than $1 million. You won’t find this mentioned anywhere on the Kashi product packaging, but Kashi, as well as Gardenburger and Morningstar Farms, is owned by Kellogg, which to date has coughed up more than $600,000 to defeat Prop 37.

Kashi has already been in plenty of trouble on the GMO front this year. A few months ago, a number of natural foods stores stopped carrying Kashi cereals when it came to their attention that the soy used in most Kashi products is genetically modified, and that when the USDA tested the grains used there were found to be pesticides that are known carcinogens and hormone disruptors. In an attempt to defend itself, Kashi released a YouTube video that announced, “While it’s likely that some of our foods contain GMOs, the main reason for that is because in North America, well over 80 percent of many crops, including soybeans are grown using GMOs ... Factors outside our control such as pollen drift from nearby crops ... have led to an environment where GMOs are not sufficiently controlled.”

This seemingly reasonable defense — that the only reason GMOs are found in Kashi products is because GMOs are widespread in the environment — might be valid if the problem was only trace GMOs, which lead to a product being less than one percent genetically engineered. But when the Cornucopia Institute tested Kashi’s GoLean cereal, which gets its protein from soy, they found that the soy was 100 percent genetically engineered.

Monsanto’s allies in the effort to keep you in the dark about GMOs include some unexpected culprits.

It can be shocking to realize that some of the most trusted names in the natural food world are in bed with Monsanto.

There are other natural foods heroes whose profits are being used to try to keep us in the dark. Silk soy milk carries the “Non-GMO Project Verified” VegWorld Magazine

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Which “Natural” Food Companies Are Fighting the Effort to Label GMOs? by John Robbins

At present, its not easy to know whether there are GMOs in your food. The most important thing you can do is to help pass Prop 37.

seal on its package. But Silk is owned by Dean Foods, which has donated more than a quarter-million dollars to Monsanto’s efforts to defeat Prop 37. The list of sellouts who masquerade as bastions of organics is disappointingly long. R.W. Knudsen and Santa Cruz Organics are owned by Smucker, which has donated $388,000 to killing Prop 37. Cascadian Farm, Larabar and Muir Glen are owned by General Mills, which has put more than half a million dollars into the effort.

The good news is that even with large agribusiness companies purchasing natural and organic brands and then betraying consumers by funding the attack on GMO labeling, Prop 37 still stands an excellent chance of passing. And not everyone has sold out, not by a long shot. There are still some authentic heroes in the natural food industry. Nature’s Path, Dr. Bronner’s, Nutiva and Lundberg Rice stand out among the companies that are contributing to the effort to pass Prop 37 and ensure your right to know what’s in your food. Organic Valley, Amy’s and Eden Foods are also standing up for your right to know. And the owner of a natural health website, Joseph Mercola, has donated nearly a million dollars to the good fight.

If you want to know more, the Cornucopia Institute has released a shopper’s guide to the companies that are donating on both sides of Prop 37.

At present, it’s not easy to know whether there are GMOs in your food. The Non-GMO Shopping Guide put out by the Institute for Responsible Technology is a great support. But the most important thing you can do is to help pass Proposition 37. If Californians pass Prop 37 in November, it will have enormous implications to the food system throughout North America.

Ignorance, in some cases, may be bliss. But in the case of GMOs, the ignorance of not knowing what is in your food is not bliss; it’s subservience to Monsanto and its allies. And it could mean a lifetime of devastating health problems for you and your children.

It’s going to be a battle. Let’s win this one for ourselves, for the earth and for all future generations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR John Robbins is co-founder of the Food Revolution Network, which provides information and inspiration to help you heal your body, and your world... with food. He is author of many best-sellers including “The Food Revolution”; “ No Happy Cows: Dispatches From the Frontlines of the Food Revolution”; and “Diet For a New America.”

To learn more about his work, visit JohnRobbins.info VegWorld Magazine

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Nutrition

And Thriving When Friends Ask: Where Do You Get Your Calcium?

An Apple a Day Melts the Pounds Away!

Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall

When Friends Ask:

Where Do You Get Your Calcium?

by DR. JOHN MCDOUGALL

W

hen you begin eating a plantbased diet, one of the first questions friends and family inevitably ask is, “Where do you get your calcium?” Don’t assume your loved ones are trying to prove your diet is deficient or justify their love of Ben and Jerry’s and French brie cheese. Know that they ask because they care about your well-being, and use this opportunity as a teachable moment to expand their knowledge about good nutrition. In fact, maybe you yourself have wondered whether you are calcium deficient, having grown up in a culture indoctrinated to believe that calcium comes only from cow’s milk. Here are the facts about calcium and how we as humans should get it.

Misinformation Is Promoted for Profits The first step toward learning the truth about calcium is to realize the source of our curVegWorld Magazine

rent beliefs. Whether you realize it or not, we have all grown up educated about “proper” nutrition by the food industry. And the leader in “diet schooling” is the dairy industry. In my youth, growing up in the Midwest, I learned about the importance of “milk for building strong bones” from Elsie the Cow. Lani Moo took over my education in the early ’70s on never outgrowing my need for milk. In the mid ’80s we settled in Northern California where Clo the Cow provided dairy-

ry t s u d n i y air The U.S. d r $200 million e spends ov to spread the annually ut a nonexistmyth abo ic — calciumm e d i p e t n e y. deficienc Issue 003 - Oct 2012 | 27

Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall

Elephants, with the largest skeletal structure on the planet, don’t need dairy for calcium. It’s a myth that we do, with our much smaller bones.

friendly advice from billboards lining Highway 101. I later learned that these cows were the innocuous public faces of an enormous marketing machine. What was the goal of this aggressive campaign? Create a nonexistent epidemic — dietary calcium deficiency — and sell billions of dollars in dairy products to an eager market.

Dairy products are uniquely rich in calcium.

So, as you might expect, marketers have long exploited this feature to sell cow’s milk to customers. To do this they had to first create a fear — sold to millions of people — that without these products people will develop fragile bones. In the U.S., the dairy industry is a $50-billion-a-year business. It raises and spends over $200 million annually to spread the myth that dairy foods are not only good for you but essential to keep you and your bones healthy. Undoubtedly, you VegWorld Magazine

have heard the story that “to meet calcium recommendations, increased consumption of calcium-rich foods such as milk and other dairy foods often is necessary.” And most of us were taught (although we did not realize that it was by the dairy industry) that “few Americans consume sufficient calcium, thereby increasing their risk for major chronic diseases such as osteoporosis.” This fearmongering works: Today, the average person consumes more than 593 pounds of dairy products annually, compared to 522 pounds in 1983. To dispel the years of “education” we have received, we need to look deeper into the truth.

Calcium Is a Mineral Naturally Occurring in the Ground, Not in Cows In seeking the truth, the first question we should ask ourselves is, does it even make

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Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall

Studies show that people can have healthy teeth and bones with very little calcium. Our bodies naturally maintain the proper balance, regardless of the choices we make at the fastfood window. sense that another animal’s milk is the best (or, in fact, a necessary) source of calcium for humans? To answer this, we need only look at where calcium is naturally occurring.

Soil is the source of all calcium. Animals don’t make it themselves. Plants absorb this basic element through their roots and then incorporate it into their various tissues — roots, stems, leaves, flowers and fruits.

Animals then eat the plant parts to obtain calcium and all other essential minerals.

Plants are loaded with minerals sufficient to grow the skeletons of the largest animals that walk the earth, like the elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, horse and cow. None of these animals consume the milk of other animals, or even that of their own mothers after infancy. Since the massive bones of

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these animals can be formed from the raw materials of plants, you can assume there is sufficient calcium in vegetable foods to grow the relatively small bones of humans. Current observations and human history prove this; most people who have ever walked this earth have grown their normal-sized adult skeletons without the aid of milk (other than mother’s milk during the first two years of life) and without concentrated calcium pill supplements.

Our Bodies Regulate Calcium on their Own Calcium balance is maintained by the actions of three organ systems — gastrointestinal tract, bone and kidney. These three systems are precise and efficient at regulating the amount of calcium in our bodies. If our diet is relatively low in calcium, then the cells of the intestinal tract will act more vigorously and absorb a higher percentage of the calcium from our food. At the same time, the kidneys will act to conserve the body’s calcium.

On the other hand, if we follow the messages of the calcium industries and begin consuming glasses of milk or handfuls of supplements, then the intestinal cells will act with their innate intelligence to block out the entrance of most of this concentrated calcium, and the kidneys will simultaneously eliminate any excess. If this were not the case, then the influx of excess calcium would by necessity be deposited in the soft tissues of the body — heart, kidneys, muscles, skin — and we would become sick and could die. Clearly, the body has many integrated mechanisms to assure that the proper balance of essential minerals is maintained,

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Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall regardless of the choices we may make at the fast-food window.

Human Calcium Needs Are Surprisingly Low A recent study of Inuit (Eskimo) children found their diet, consisting largely of meat (which has almost no calcium), provided only about 120 mg of calcium daily. Because of their physiologic adaptations, however, these children were found to be healthy. As long ago as 1978, the Postgraduate Medical Journal reported: “Many official bodies give advice on desirable intakes of calcium, but no clear evidence of a calcium-deficiency disease in otherwise normal people has ever been given. In Western countries the usual calcium intake is of the order of 800-1000 mg/day; in many developing countries figures of 300-500 mg/day are found. There is no evidence that people with such a low intake have any problems with bones or teeth. It seems likely that normal people can adapt to have a normal calcium balance on calcium intakes as low as 150-200 mg/day and that this adaptation is sufficient even in pregnancy and lactation. Inappropriate concern about calcium intake may divert attention and resources from more important nutritional problems.”

And that is exactly what the talented marketing people in the dairy industry have done with the help of friendly government officials in the USDA. They have placed the spotlight on a false need for excess calcium, which is easily obtained in sufficient amounts from almost any diet, while glossing over life-threatening components of dairy overconsumption, including fat, cholesterol and contamination.

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No One Has Ever Suffered from a Calcium Deficiency on a Natural Diet In the past I have said, “Calcium deficiency is unknown in human beings.” In other words, there is no disease that has ever been reported as due to too little calcium in a person’s diet. This statement is based on a comprehensive review of the scientific literature covering the various diets (with and without dairy foods) that people consume worldwide.

The scientific literature shows that extra calcium during childhood — from dairy or otherwise — does not build strong bones.

If you look hard enough, however, exceptions to this generalization can be found — and exploited.

Rare cases of a calcium-deficiency condition called “nutritional rickets” have been reported. Rickets is a condition of weakening of the bones of children, leading to fractures and deformity. Inadequate vitamin D due to insufficient exposure to sunlight is the recognized cause of almost all cases of rickets. However, at the extremes of low calcium intake, caused by consuming unusual and inappropriate diets, rickets can occur even with adequate sunshine exposure.

For example, one case was described in a 16-month-old girl who, because of an allergy

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Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall to formula, was raised on a mixture of applesauce and oatmeal, with no milk until after the age of 1. (She, of course, should have been on breast milk). It was felt that the high phytate content of the oatmeal impaired absorption of the calcium in her food, causing her disease. So, how have these rare cases of nutritional rickets from consuming bizarre diets changed my claim that “disease due to calcium deficiency is unknown in humans”?

I must now add to the end of the sentence this qualification: “on natural diets.”

Contrary to the dairy industry’s marketing campaign, reviews of the scientific literature have concluded extra dietary calcium during childhood does not build strong bones.

A review published in the March 2005 issue of the Journal of Pediatrics focused on the benefits of dairy products on bone health and concluded, “Scant evidence supports nutrition guidelines focused specifically on increasing milk or other dairy product intake

for promoting child and adolescent bone mineralization.”

As a result of its own research, the dairy industry is well aware that the protein in milk actually damages bones.

A somewhat recent meta-analysis published in the October 2006 issue of the British Medical Journal found, “The small effect of calcium supplementation on bone mineral density in the upper limb is unlikely to reduce the risk of fracture, either in childhood or later life, to a degree of major public health importance.” The authors state, “Our results do not support the premise that any type of supplementation is more effective than another.” Their findings mean that dairy

This incontestable evidence shows the more calcium a population consumes the greater their risk of hip fractures.

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Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall products are of no real-life bone-strengthening benefit. Even studies that used intakes of 1,400 mg of calcium per day showed no benefit.

An editorial accompanying this meta-analysis pointed out, “Populations that consume the most cow’s milk and other dairy products have among the highest rates of osteoporosis and hip fracture in later life.” So, the natural question raised by this finding is, does consuming dairy products actually hurt your bones?

Dairy Industry–Funded Research Shows Little Benefit, or Even Harm, to Adults The National Dairy Council says, “Consuming an adequate intake of calcium reduces the risk of osteoporosis.” But is this true?

A recent review published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition of the research on the effects of dairy products on bone health concluded otherwise. This review focused on 21 studies. Of these studies, 57 percent showed no significant benefit from dairy and 14 percent were unfavorable. Not mentioned is the fact that most of these studies were funded by the dairy industry.

Yet with all its influence on the research, the industry could not make a solid case for dairy benefiting the bones. In fact, its studies indicated that milk consumption could damage human bones.

The review included seven randomized, controlled trials (a research design scientists consider most valuable) — six of these were identified in the papers as being funded by the dairy industry. Only one of these studies (which was funded by the National Dairy Council) looked at the effects of fluid milk on postmenopausal women. The findings showed subjects who received the extra milk

(three eight-ounce glasses of skimmed milk daily) for a year lost more bone than those who didn’t drink the extra milk. The authors, Recker and Heaney, wrote, “The protein content of the milk supplement may have a negative effect on calcium balance, possibly through an increase in kidney losses of calcium or through a direct effect on bone resorption … This may have been due to the average 30-percent increase in protein intake during milk supplementation.” Because of research like this, largely funded through its own generosity, the dairy industry is well aware that milk does not build strong bones and that the protein in the milk actually damages the bones.

The worldwide observation that billions of people grow normal adult skeletons without consuming cow’s milk or calcium supplements should be enough to reassure everyone of the adequacy of a plant-based diet, and forever erase from people’s minds the question, “Where do you get your calcium on a vegan diet?” This would be the case were it not for the billions of dollars that are at stake.

Even in the face of solid scientific evidence to the contrary, due largely to the annual $200 million advertising campaign of the dairy industry, mothers, doctors and government officials have bought the dairy industry’s propaganda about calcium. Misleading marketing might be forgiven if the only consequences were wasted money and efforts; but the costs deepen. The result of selling dairy foods to correct a problem that does not exist — calcium deficiency — is that consumers buy foods that actually make them sick.

© 2012 John McDougall for VegWorld Magazine

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Where Do You Get Your Calcium? by Dr. John McDougall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR John A. McDougall, MD, has authored many bestselling books and is featured in the documentary and book Fork over Knives. He serves as associate professor at Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Vallejo, CA, and teaches medical students at his clinic in Santa Rosa.

Find out more and subscribe to Dr. McDougall’s mailing list at www.drmcdougall.com

The animal rights organization Mercy for Animals answers back to the milk industry.

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An Apple a Day Melts the Pounds Away! by Kathy Freston

An Apple a Day

Melts the Pounds Away!

by KATHY FRESTON

Here’s the secret to weight loss: It’s all about “crowding out,” not cutting out. Crowding out is a term used in nutritional circles to describe how to eat in a healthy way so that you never even have the chance to feel hungry. You literally crowd out the junk you think you want to eat by choosing to eat key foods throughout the day so that you’re always satisfied. Isn’t that preferable to depriving yourself of foods and white-knuckling it all the way?

When you gradually add in nutrient-dense, fiber-rich foods, you simply stop feeling

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Women who e apple a day” at “an have lower ror more several canc isks of according to ers, research rev a major iew.

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An Apple a Day Melts the Pounds Away! by Kathy Freston cravings. You run out of space in your belly for the old junk. Instead of craving, you feel full, fulfilled and content.

Here’s how it works: All you have to do to get started is to add healthier choices to whatever you’re already eating. Before you dig into whatever it is you really want to eat, have something with some natural fiber in it — ideally, an apple — because in all the medical literature, the one dietary component most associated with weight loss is fiber. The reason fiber helps us control our weight is that it fills the belly, yet yields few calories since fiber is, for the most part, not something that we can digest. It also slows down the digestion of food, so you get a slow and steady source of glucose without the roller-coaster ride of blood sugar crazies and the cravings that follow.

Most Americans don’t get enough fiber each day to meet their nutritional requirements. It’s recommended that women get at least 25 grams of fiber per day on a 2,000

calorie diet — or to be more precise, 14 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories consumed.

Men should consume 38 grams per day. The average American, however, only gets about 15 grams of fiber daily. Twenty-five grams is considered the low end of our optimal fiber intake, so there’s no reason not to aim higher. We humans actually evolved eating more than 100 grams of fiber a day, largely from wild greens.

So back to that apple: How does an apple measure up in terms of fiber? Eating just one apple a day (skin on) will give you an average of 4.4 grams of fiber, almost one-fifth of your minimum daily need. And apples don’t have just any old fiber; they are a rich source of a particularly powerful kind called pectin.

It’s what’s used as a gelling agent to make jams and jellies, and in our stomach it can delay stomach emptying through a similar mechanism. Researchers at UCLA showed that by swapping in pectin for regular fiber, they could double the time it took subjects’ stomachs to empty, which meant subjects felt full that much longer.

In another study published in the journal Nutrition, scientists found that instructing participants to eat an apple or a pear before meals resulted in significant weight loss.

The participants were told, in effect, to eat more food and to add the fruit on top of their regular diets. What happened was that the fruit crowded out less healthy choices, they ended up eating fewer calories overall, and they started shedding pounds.

Just one apple a day (skin on) packs almost onefifth of your minimum daily need for fiber and is loaded with antioxidants.

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While singing the praises of the humble apple, though, I would be remiss not to mention the extraordinary health benefits associated with eating them. It seems the old adage “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” just may hold truer than we knew.

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An Apple a Day Melts the Pounds Away! by Kathy Freston A major review published in 2008 out of the German Cancer Research Center found that, indeed, compared with those who eat less than an apple a day, those who eat one or more had less risk of oral cancer, cancer of the voice box, and breast, colon, kidney, and ovarian cancer. This makes sense in light of new research from Cornell University showing that apple peels have potent antioxidant and growth-blocking effects on human breast cancer cells examined in a petri dish. This research further revealed that, the higher the apple concentration, the fewer the cancer cells. And apples seem to work best against estrogen-receptor-negative breast cancer, which is much harder to treat than the receptor-positive kind.

How do apples do what they do?

There are three stages of tumor formation.

Carcinogens cause the initial DNA mutations (the initiation stage), and then oxidation, inflammation and hormones cause it to grow (the promotion stage); finally, metastasis occurs, in which the cancer spreads throughout the body. Which steps have apples been found to block? As it turns out, all of them.

Apples not only have anti-mutagenic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, but they may even enhance our immune systems to help clear out any budding tumors before before they get their start.

Apples fill you up and help you shed the pounds.

So if you’re rooting around for something to eat, grab an apple while you’re looking.

Usually, by the time you’re finished eating it, your hunger will have been sidelined; it’s crowding out at its best! Have one in the midmorning, in the afternoon or before a meal. It’s entirely up to you. But before the day’s end, do eat an apple. Not apple juice or applesauce (and certainly not apple pie or an apple muffin!). Just have a good old whole apple. Any kind will do. You might just be pleasantly surprised at how the weight starts coming off and your health begins to soar!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Kathy Freston is a New York Times best-selling author with a concentration on healthy living and conscious eating.

Her newest book is The Lean: A Revolutionary (and Simple!) 30-Day Plan for Healthy, Lasting Weight Loss (Weinstein Books).

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Recipes

For Foodies Spork Recipes Karma Chow The Sexy Vegan

Crispy Brown Rice Cakes with Adzuki Beans and Scallions by Spork Foods

Crispy Brown Rice Cakes with Adzuki Beans and Scallions

Ingredients

2 cups water 1 cup organic short grain brown rice 3 tablespoons tamari 2 tablespoons brown rice vinegar 2 tablespoons organic brown rice syrup (Lundberg brand) 1 teaspoon hot pepper sesame oil 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs, plus 1 cup for coating patties 4-5 scallions finely chopped (about 1/3 cup) 1 (16-ounce) can adzuki (or aduki) beans, rinsed (Eden brand) 2 tablespoons neutral tasting high-heat oil

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Crispy Brown Rice Cakes with Adzuki Beans and Scallions by Spork Foods Directions Bring water to a boil in a large (6-quart) pot and add rice. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook about 35-40 minutes, or according to package.

Let rice cool slightly and place in a large bowl. Add tamari, brown rice vinegar, brown rice syrup and sesame oil. Stir to incorporate all ingredients. Add 1/3 cup bread crumbs, 1â „4 cup scallions and adzuki beans. Stir mixture together well, mashing some adzuki beans into mixture with a wooden spoon until mixture holds together.

Heat a large sautĂŠ pan and add high-heat oil.

Place remaining bread crumbs in a shallow dish and set aside. Form rice mixture into 2-inch patties. Roll patties in bread crumbs, and pat gently to remove excess crumbs.

Cook patties over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes, or until golden. Flip and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.

Serve warm and garnish with remaining scallions.

Note: Panko are Japanese-style bread crumbs, and they are a bit coarser than standard bread crumbs.

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Gluten-Free Strawberry and Cream Muffins by Spork Foods

Gluten-Free Strawberry and Cream Muffins With an Almond Streusel Topping, Yields 1 dozen muffins

Ingredients

2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (Pure Pantry brand) teaspoon ground Ceylon cinnamon 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder teaspoon sea salt 1 cup organic evaporated cane sugar 2 teaspoons egg replacer, dry (Ener-G brand) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup coconut creamer (So Delicious brand) 1 cup unsweetened almond milk 1 cup neutral-tasting oil (safflower) 1 cup fresh strawberries, finely chopped

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Gluten-Free Strawberry and Cream Muffins by Spork Foods

Almond Streusel Topping:

2 tablespoons nonhydrogenated buttery spread 1 cup toasted almonds 3 tablespoons organic powdered sugar (Wholesome Sweeteners brand) 1 teaspoon maple syrup 1 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon ground Ceylon cinnamon 2 tablespoons gluten-free all-purpose flour blend Directions Preheat oven to 350°.

In a medium bowl, whisk gluten-free flour, cinnamon, baking powder, sea salt, sugar and egg replacer until uniform.

Add in vanilla extract, coconut creamer, almond milk and oil. Whisk until uniform.

Fold in strawberries.

Grease a muffin pan with cooking spray, and pour about 1/3 cup batter into each section.

To make streusel, add buttery spread, almonds, powdered sugar, maple syrup, sea salt, cinnamon and flour to a food processor, and pulse until uniform.

Sprinkle each muffin with about 1 tablespoon streusel topping.

Bake for 28-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Serve warm.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Spork Foods is a Los Angeles-based gourmet vegan food company owned and operated by sisters Jenny Engel and Heather Goldberg. They offer live cooking classes in Los Angeles at Spork Foods (www.sporkfoods.com), online vegan cooking classes at www.sporkonline.com, one-on-one in-home healthy pantry makeovers, and recipe development/ trainings for chefs, food companies and colleges.

Their cookbook, Spork-Fed, is currently in stores, with a foreword by fellow fans and sisters Emily and Zooey Deschanel.

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Delicious Food Sampler by Melissa Costello

Karma Chow Featuring Melissa Costello

Delicious Food Sampler

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Delicious Food Sampler by Melissa Costello

Mac & Ch-ch-cheeeeze Gluten-free, vegan, and oh so good. This healthier and lighter version of mac and cheese is a favorite in many kitchens. I love to add veggies to it for even more nutritional bang, like steamed broccoli or green peas.

Ingredients

1/2 pound gluten-free brown rice elbows or shells 1 1/2 cups plain, unsweetened So Delicious Coconut Milk or Almond Milk 1/2 cup nutritional yeast 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or more to taste) 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika Pinch cayenne pepper 1 tablespoon tahini Black pepper, to taste 1 tablespoon brown rice flour 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or Earth Balance (soy-free) Cook the pasta to al dente. Drain and set aside. Blend all of the remaining ingredients together in a blender except for the brown rice flour and olive oil.

In a saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil or Earth Balance and heat through. Stir in the brown rice flour and continue stirring to make a roux (a flour paste). Add the pasta and sauce mixture and cook, stirring until the mixture boils and thickens. If the sauce is too thick, add more coconut milk; if it’s too thin, add a little more rice flour. If you like a more vibrant sauce, add a touch more dry mustard and onion or garlic powder. Top with a dash of smoked paprika and serve immediately!

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Delicious Food Sampler by Melissa Costello

Coconut Yam Soup Ingredients

3 large garnet yams, peeled and cubed 3 large carrots, diced 2 celery stalks, diced 1 yellow onion, diced 1 teaspoon fresh ground ginger 2 teaspoons garam masala 3 garlic cloves, minced 4 cups veggie broth or bouillon (2 cubes with 4 cups water) 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil 1 can coconut milk Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste Cinnamon In a large soup pot over medium heat, sautĂŠ ginger, garlic, celery and onion in coconut oil until translucent and soft. Add garam masala and stir to combine and release the flavor of the spice.

Add carrots, yams and veggie broth. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil; turn down to a simmer and cover.

Simmer for 20-30 minutes or until yams are soft. Remove from heat and add coconut milk.

Season with salt and pepper. Puree using a hand blender, and top with cinnamon before serving.

Variation: Add 1 cup red lentils to soup while cooking, and increase water by 1 cup.

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Delicious Food Sampler by Melissa Costello

Korean-Style Tempeh Tacos with Coleslaw Instead of the traditional Mexican-flavored tacos, these tacos have a Korean flair. I think you will like their savory bite, along with the crispiness of the Dijon slaw. These are really yummy served with a dollop of guacamole on top.

Ingredients 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or sesame oil 1/8-ounce package tempeh, crumbled 3 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce 2 tablespoons tomato paste 2 tablespoons sesame seeds 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 1 tablespoon agave nectar 4–6 organic corn tortillas Coleslaw 1/2 small head red cabbage, finely shredded 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion 1/4 cup sliced almonds Dijon Dressing 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 shallot, finely diced 1 teaspoon agave nectar 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Sea salt and pepper, to taste

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Delicious Food Sampler by Melissa Costello Over medium heat in a large skillet, heat enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan. Place the crumbled tempeh in the pan and cook until brown, stirring frequently. In the meantime, in a small bowl, whisk the Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, sesame seeds, apple cider vinegar and agave nectar. Pour over the tempeh and let it cook about 3 to 4 minutes or until the sauce is absorbed into the tempeh For the slaw and dressing: Put the cabbage, onion and almonds in a medium-size bowl. Whisk or blend the dressing ingredients together and pour over the slaw. Stir well to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

To assemble the tacos: Place a spoonful of the tempeh mixture on the taco shell and top with the Dijon slaw. Add guacamole if desired.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Cookbook author, culinary nutritionist and wellness coach Melissa Costello, founder of Karma Chow, has always had a passion for healthy, delicious food and nutrition. When she became a vegetarian at age 19, she began experimenting with healthier versions of everyday recipes, which led her to her passion for plant-based cooking. She is the creator of the 30-Day Vital Life Cleanse, which teaches people how to change their lifestyle, clean their bodies and shift their relationship to food through food-based cleansing.

As personal chef to celebrity fitness guru Tony Horton, creator of the highly popular workout systems P90X and P90X2, Melissa is constantly finding creative ways to keep Tony and her other high-profile clients happy, fit and healthy through a whole-foods way of life.

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Kickin’ It With Kale by Brian L. Patton

Kickin’ It With kale

by BRIAN L. PATTON

R

ecently, a friend asked me, “How can I make kale yummy?”

It occurred to me that perhaps a lot of people are new to the nutritional powerhouse that is kale. Maybe you only know it as that curly green thing underneath your potato salad, or that garnish next to the veggie burger in your favorite restaurant. It does look quite nice, but it is severely underutilized as a garnish. As kale is loaded with calcium, iron, potassium, vitamins A, C and K, and even some protein, you’d be much better off eating the kale and tossing the potato salad. Here are five simple things you can do to make your kale yummy.

Eat it raw. Eating a salad consist-

ing solely of raw kale is a little tough to take. Kale has pretty intense flavor and a tough texture. But if you want to

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give your salad a nutritional shot in the arm, simply remove the leaves from the stem, chop them up and mix with other lettuces, like romaine, leaf or butter. The added flavor and texture will, ahem, (switch to fancy voice) dance wonderfully across the palate and create a unique mouth-feel. Wow, I watch way too much Top Chef.

Massage it. Massaging is a technique

used with raw kale in order to both tenderize it and remove a good portion of its bitterness. Remove the kale leaves from the stem, cut them into 1-inch-wide ribbons and place them in a large bowl. For one bunch of kale, add 1 teaspoon of kosher or sea salt, the juice of half of a lemon and a touch of olive oil (optional). Then begin to rub it all around the kale. You must continually massage the salt, lemon and oil

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Kickin’ It With Kale by Brian L. Patton into all of the leaves for 2 to 3 minutes.

After this time has elapsed, you will notice that the kale has wilted a bit, and it will have a much milder flavor.

Now it’s ready to become a salad. Add other veggies, fruits and nuts, and dress simply with a little agave nectar, and lemon juice and olive oil, if needed. Both delicious and energizing, a massaged kale salad always comes with a happy ending.

Blanch It. Blanching is the process

of boiling something for a very short amount of time. You need only bring a pot of water to a boil, add a pinch of salt, and you’re ready to go. Depending on what veggie you’re using, blanching times will vary. To blanch kale, remove the leaves from the stem and roughly chop them. Submerge the kale in the boiling water and remove it after 20 seconds. Immediately cool the leaves by running them under cold water, or plunging them into a bowl of ice water, known as an ice bath. This keeps the kale from overcooking and retains its deep green color. Drain it, and squeeze out as much water as possible. Now tender, with the bitterness removed, your blanched kale is perfect on a pizza, in a lasagna, or as a simple cold side dish with a drizzle of sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce or tamari.

add a whole bunch of extra goodness to soups and stews. Remove the leaves from the stem and cut them into 1-inch-wide ribbons. Personally, I enjoy the texture of the kale, so I add it at the very end of the cooking process to keep it from getting soft and mushy.

Finish cooking your soup or stew, then turn off the heat and stir in the kale.

Let it sit for 4 to 5 minutes. Then let the tongue scalding begin.

Drink It. Whaaaaat?? How the heck

can I drink a bunch of leaves? Put it through your juicer, silly. With lifechanging documentaries like “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead” approaching the mainstream, juicing has become more popular than ever. You, of course, could not eat an entire bunch of kale at once, but by turning it into juice, you can consume the powerful, supercharging nutrients of said bunch all in one shot! Start with a combination of kale (including the stems), carrot, celery and apples; then add other fruits and veggies for variety. Squeezing in a little fresh lemon juice will help your body absorb the iron that kale has to offer, and it will also balance out its bitterness. Super-mega juicing tip: Since it’s not as curly as green kale, lacinato kale (aka dinosaur or black kale) is easier to cram into juicers that have smaller feeding tubes. You’re welcome. So, go ahead and juice that kale! You’ll be sporting a Jack LaLanne spandex onesie in no time.

I hope you give all of these methods a try because I know that you will love at least one of them, if not all of them!

Soup It. Kale is a fantastic way to VegWorld Magazine

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Mashed Taters by Brian L. Patton

Mashed Taters

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Mashed Taters by Brian L. Patton Ingredients 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered 3/4 cup unsweetened nondairy milk 1/4 cup vegan margarine, melted Salt and pepper Directions In a large pot, cover the potatoes with cold water. Turn the heat to high, and boil until the potatoes are very soft, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander, shake them dry and return them to the hot pot. Place the pot back on the stove over low heat for 1 minute (this will help further dry out the potatoes).

In a small saucepan, heat the nondairy milk on low until it’s warm to the touch.

While the potatoes are still hot, pass them through your ricer or food mill into a bowl, or mash them with a potato masher. But I must warn you, overmashing makes a gummy, glutinous potato, so be careful. With a rubber spatula, stir in the margarine. Stir in half of the milk, and then slowly add more until the potatoes reach the desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4 Excerpted with permission from “The Sexy Vegan Cookbook: Extraordinary Food from an Ordinary Dude” ©2012 by Brian Patton. Published with permission of New World Library http://www.newworldlibrary.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Brian Patton is author of “The Sexy Vegan Cookbook” and is executive chef for Vegin’ Out, a vegan food-delivery service in Los Angeles. As the quintessential “regular dude” vegan chef, he started posting instructional cooking videos on YouTube as his witty, ukulele-playing alter-ego, “The Sexy Vegan,” and quickly gained a large following. Visit him online at www.thesexyvegan.com.

Based on the book The Sexy Vegan Cookbook ©2012 by Brian Patton. Published with permission of New World Library VegWorld Magazine

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Ordinary People/

Extraordinary Results A Journey of Perseverance and Faith: The Story of Marilyn Peterson

A Journey of Perseverance and Faith by Marilyn Peterson

A Journey of Perseverance and Faith: The Story of Marilyn Peterson, Author of “Vegan Bite By Bite”

by MARILYN PETERSON “The American dream” is a concept thrown around every four years, when another round of political posturing gains our attention. There are American dreams of many different natures — depending upon the perspective of the dreamer. The dream I look to fulfill with my life’s work is the goal of the betterment of mankind, caring for the environment and being compassionate to our animal companions that share the earth with us. This American dream is also about living a comfortable, happy life.

In order to realize this dream, we need to be healthy.

saw myself with a mission to help ease suffering in the world. However, with no inclination to be a doctor, I was unsure what to make of such a vision. After many years and a great deal of personal strife, I realized that my goal was not to “fix” people once they got sick, but to help people stay healthy, so they never got sick in the first place.

My father, a pharmacist by profession and a teacher of medicine, had several

In my book, “Vegan Bite By Bite,” I outline how to successfully transition to a vegan diet. I know the path to veganism can seem like a daunting one, but it doesn’t have to be if you do it right.

What’s more, the scientifically proven health benefits of a vegan diet easily outweigh whatever challenges someone may face while making the change. By giving up meat and dairy, you will only be deprived of your misery.

My story began at just nine years old.

While standing on a bridge by a hospital where my father was a frequent patient, I had a vision. I gazed at the gray hospital structure, silently witnessing the cries of the suffering patients boxed in the hospital like cattle in cattle cars. I VegWorld Magazine

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Paradise Health in Middle Age by Victoria Moran degenerative conditions, including encephalitis, Parkinson’s disease, arthritis and cancer. His Parkinson’s disease resulted in an addiction to pharmaceutical drugs. As a result, he was abusive and physically violent. My mother was a loving woman, obsessed with the benefits of healthy eating and natural healing, so their views were incompatible. Due to their conflicts, I cried often and couldn’t find peace anywhere. The constant fear of violence from my father led to a habit of overeating to compensate for my negative emotions.

As a teenager, I rebelled against everything my parents had taught me. Angry because of the trauma I had gone through, I resisted when my mother told me a vegetarian diet was the healthiest diet. I was a defiant overeater of junk foods until my mid-30s. My emotional confusion led me to experimentation with alcohol and drugs (this was the ’60s, so both were at the forefront of female liberation, which was popular at the time). My emotional and mental balance fell along with my physical health and brought me face to face with major depression. I became catatonic and suicidal, finally being diagnosed with a severe case of hypoglycemia, which often mimics schizophrenia.

From my lowest depths, I began to emerge as a new person. I had an epiphany. Invited to a friend’s party, I went into the kitchen to get a beverage.

Inside the refrigerator, I saw plasticwrapped packages of meats, animals cut up in their own blood. This shocking image shook me into reality. Perhaps it was the sensitivity gained from my own experiences that forced me to

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relate to the suffering of the slaughtered animals. By the time I closed the refrigerator, I had become a committed vegetarian. It changed all of my thinking and led to the advancement of my life’s work.

I also realized that I had to meet my overeating problem head on. I started to consult natural health doctors in an effort to get back on the road to health and well-being. At the same time I began to examine my own psychology to learn what was eating at me. I came to the realization that I needed to love and honor myself with my life choices. I soon found that transitioning to a plant-based diet was not easy for one who was accustomed to the standard American diet.

Even with my mother’s health-food teachings, which I understood, it still took me nearly five years to master the transition and integrate these changes into my life.

From my lowest depths, I had an epiphany. I saw in the refrigerator plastic-wrapped packages of meats, animals cut up in their own blood. This shocking image shook me into reality.

I found that my body wasn’t craving more and more food, but healthier whole and real foods. When I stopped eating animal foods and ate plant-based foods,

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Paradise Health in Middle Age by Victoria Moran my body was getting the proper nutrition, and I no longer desired junk food.

The empty calories had never satisfied my body’s appetite anyway. They were the wrong foods for me. With all of this learning and newly acquired knowledge under my belt, I began to teach and work with others struggling to make the switch (that was 38 years ago).

I traveled to Los Angeles, with only a credit card and a prayer. For a couple of years I did the food for celebrity parties for Howard Lyman’s presentations about Veganism. I was happy with my new success, as any of us would be, but realized that I wanted to contribute in a greater way to those who could not afford highcost coaching or a personal chef. It was at this point, many years after making my own transition to a plant-based diet, that I decided to write a book with the hope of making that transition easier for others on the same path. “Vegan Bite By Bite” continues to garner grateful reviews from readers, and the book was selected as “Best Books — 2011 Editor’s Pick” by Amazon Kindle. I have found the greatest joy in doing this book was not the fulfillment of accomplishing the task, or any money coming in, but to read the many thankful emails and hear, as well as see, the radiance of people now living healthier lives.

As we start eating more healthy whole foods, our bodies actually start to crave it!

I encourage all of you that have a dream to persevere! Have the faith to continue, knowing that doing what you love is important and that you have a valuable contribution to make. With faith and dedication to your purpose you can realize your dream. My story is not one of rags to riches, but one of perseverance to faith, which is still with me today. How’s that for an American dream?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Marilyn Peterson continues to consult and teach in Los Angeles, CA, where she resides with her husband. Marilyn is the author of “Vegan Bite By Bite,” an in-depth book about how to transition to a plant-based diet.

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E R TU A FE

HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET

HOW TO GET

Genetically Modified Food

OUT OF YOUR DIET

W

An Activist’s Tool Kit

ould you believe it if someone told you that most of the food you eat every day contains hidden ingredients that could be slowly poisoning you? What if you were further told that our government doesn’t think you have a right to know?

In fact, both of these statements are true. Genetically modified (GM) crops such as corn, canola and soy are being used in over 70 percent of the processed foods available in your local grocery store. These GMOs, as they are also known, are engineered by industry to contain viruses or poisons intended to make these crops more “hearty” and lucrative.

But what is the cost to our health? It doesn’t look good, and the full range of impacts have not yet been studied or tested. What’s worse, the government doesn’t require disclosure of even the existence of GMOs in our foods, let alone their effects on us.

Of course, the last thing that the pro-GM food companies want is for consumers to get informed and use their immense power to force change in the marketplace. This has already happened in Europe, where genetically modified ingredients must be disclosed by law. As a result, food companies don’t use geneti-

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET cally modified ingredients. However, in the absence of equivalent labeling requirements in the U.S. or Canada, North American consumers have been left in the dark for over 13 years and are unwittingly taking place in a huge human-feeding experiment.

We asked Jeffrey M. Smith, international best-selling author of “Seeds of Deception” and “Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods,” to give us some information on GMOs, as well as practical steps on how to get GMOs out of our diet and off the face of the Earth. Here’s what he had to say.

GMOs are known to have dangerous side effects

Get informed!

Knowledgeable Europeans used their marketing power to force the labeling of GMOs. As a result, food companies don’t use GMOs in those markets.

GMOs are not naturally occurring; they are created in a laboratory. Genetic material from animals, bacteria, viruses and other sources is forced into the DNA of a natural plant, such as corn, which is then cloned into a new plant. This process leads to substantial collateral damage, including changes in hundreds or thousands of natural corn genes and widespread mutations.

The fabricated corn is never tested for these changes or mutations. Some are known. For example, it is known that an allergy-producing gene, which is normally silent, gets switched on in a Monsanto corn variety. It is also known that proteins change shape during the GMO process, which might be a serious health hazard. Also, a compound called lignin is known to be significantly overproduced in GM corn.

Lignin on its own may not be so bad, but in the process of its production, rotenone, a natural pesticide linked to Parkinson’s disease, is produced as well. Keep in mind that no one has ever tested your corn chips to see if they contain more rotenone.

It’s alive! GMOs are created in a laboratory. This process changes thousands of natural plant genes and leads to widespread mutations.

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Bayer’s Liberty Link corn has added genes that allow the plant to withstand high doses of Roundup or Liberty herbicide. These varieties, therefore, carry more weed-killer residues.

Other GM varieties have inserted genes from

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET

bacteria that produce an insect-killing toxin in toxin in every cell (and in every bite).

Rats fed a lifetime diet of Monsanto’s genetically engineered corn or exposed to the company’s popular Roundup herbicide, in amounts considered “safe” in drinking water and GM crops in the U.S., developed tumors and suffered severe kidney and liver damage, according a study released at the end of September (2012).

In addition, genes inserted into GM crops don’t necessarily stay put. In the only human GMO-feeding experiment conducted to date — performed using Roundup Ready soy — functioning genes were transferred into the DNA of bacteria living inside the intestines of the study’s participants. This means that millions of Americans likely have Roundup Ready bacteria living in their bellies. No one has yet studied whether GM corn genes also transfer to humans. If they do, their insecticide-producing genes could turn your gut flora into living pesticide factories, continuously producing toxins inside your body long after you finish your bowl of chips.

Would you choose genetically modified food if given a choice?

Some animals don’t.

There’s a bowl of corn chips in front of you made from natural corn. Next to it are genetically modified corn chips. Which do you choose?

If you were a pig or cow, we know the answer — the natural corn. In 1998 and 1999, several farmers in northwest Iowa repeatedly let pigs or cows into pens with troughs of GM corn and non-GM corn. The animals would head straight to the closer trough, filled with the genetically modified organisms. They’d sniff, maybe take a nibble, then go over to the trough with the natural corn. After finishing off the last kernel, they’d stop by the GM corn one more time just to check it out, but quickly walk away.

These tomatoes may look the same, but in experiment after experiment animals instinctively know to choose natural foods and leave the GMOs behind.

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET An Iowa farmer who read about the finicky livestock decided to see if squirrels had similar dispositions. He nailed ears of GM corn and non-GM corn onto trees by his house. Sure enough, the squirels ate only the natural stuff, over and over again.

When the farmer stopped replacing the natural corn, the squirrels still refused to touch the GM variety. After ten cold winter days, they got up the courage to nibble a few kernels, but that was all they could handle.

Another curious farmer wanted to repeat this with the squirrels in his area. He bought a bag full of GM corn ears and another of non-GM ears, and left them in his garage to wait for winter. He waited too long. Mice did the experiment for him. They broke into the natural corn bag and finished it. The GM cobs were untouched.

Farmers, gardeners, reporters and scientists have noticed similar behavior on at least four continents. Chickens, elk, deer and raccoons avoided GM corn, while geese, rats and buffalo refused GM soy, tomatoes and cottonseed, respectively.

Why are animals put off by genetically engineered food? No one knows for sure, but let’s get back to the GM corn chips still sitting in front of you.

But aren’t GMOs supposed to feed the world?

If you’re feeling some moral imperative to support GMOs, that’s understandable. The biotech industry has spent hundreds of millions of dollars trying to convince the public that its gene-spliced foods are the answer to the sick and starving. So don’t be embarrassed if you fell for it. Many leading U.S. politicians have likewise been mesmerized by this long-running public-relations ploy.

According to experts, however, GMOs are not the answer to world hunger. The IAASTD (International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development) report, for example, concluded that the current generation of GMOs does not reduce hunger and poverty, does not improve nutrition, and does not facilitate social and environmental sustainability. A comprehensive analysis by the Union of Concerned Scientists concluded that GMOs do not increase yield; in fact, on average they reduce yield. A USDA study showed that farmers’ income doesn’t increase, and in some cases, it decreases when

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Despite industry claims, GMOs are not the answer to widespread hunger. And far from improving the economy, GMOs cost the U.S. government billions of dollars in subsidies.

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET they grow GMOs. And favoring GMOs doesn’t help the overall economy. The federal government has been spending billions of dollars to prop up the prices of the GMO crops that no one else in the world wants.

How to Choose Non-GMO at the Supermarket Are you now ready to choose the bowl of natural chips? If so, you’re not alone. Most Americans, according to a CBS/New York Times poll, would also choose food made without genetically modified organisms if they knew which was which — in other words, if they were labeled. But unlike most other industrialized nations, neither the U.S. nor Canada requires the labeling of GMOs. Therefore, avoiding GM foods in these countries takes some doing. Here are some helpful tips.

Tip #1: Buy Organic The best way to avoid GMOs is to buy organic foods. Organic guidelines don’t allow the use of GMOs. And you also benefit from higher average levels of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, as well as lower pesticide residues, from organic fruits and vegetables.

At-Risk Ingredients: • Corn • Soy • Aspartame • Meat • Fish • Eggs • Dairy • canola Oil • cottonseed oil • sugar beets • papaya • zucchini • yellow squash • aspartame

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Tip #2: Look for “Non-GMO” Labels Some companies voluntarily label products as “nonGMO.” The best label is now the Non-GMO Project Verified seal. This is the new uniform, third party– verified standard for non-GMO claims that is spreading through the industry.

Tip #3: Consult the Non-GMO Shopping Guide For a handy list of non-GMO brands by category, go to www.NonGMOShoppingGuide.com. View it online, download it from the site or order copies.

Tip #4: Avoid At-Risk Ingredients If it’s not labeled organic or non-GMO, and the brand is not listed in the guide, look at the ingredient panel to see if it contains any “at-risk” ingredients. When a crop is considered “at risk,” it means that the majority of this crop grown for use or sale in North America is genetically modified. Here are some common ones: Corn: Avoid corn in any form, including flour, meal, oil, starch, gluten and syrups. Also avoid sweeteners

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET such as fructose, dextrose and glucose.

Soy: Avoid soy flour, oil, lecithin, protein, isolate and isoflavones.

Aspartame: This artificial sweetener, also known as NutraSweet and Equal, is derived from GMOs. Meat, fish, eggs and dairy: FDA scientists have warned that animals fed GMOs might bioaccumulate toxins, which end up in milk, meat or eggs. Their concerns have been ignored, however, and no safety studies have been conducted. Most U.S. livestock, and even farmed fish, are fed GM soy or corn. To avoid GMO-fed animal products, your best bet is to go vegan. But if you are still vegetarian, or know and love meat eaters, be sure that you buy organic, wild-caught or 100-percent-grassfed meats, fish and other animal products. Fortunately, there are no genetically modified fish, fowl or livestock yet approved for human consumption.

Dairy products also carry the risk that the cows were injected with genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rBST or rBGH). The milk from these cows contains insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). IGF-1 is a powerful hormone and a high risk factor for cancer. Consumer concerns about rBGH have forced Wal-Mart, Starbucks,

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET Dannon, Yoplait and most of the major dairies in the U.S. to stop using the hormone.

Success in that arena makes it clear that consumers have the power to banish all GMOs from our marketplace.

Other at-risk GMOs: Oils from canola and cottonseed are genetically modified.

Sugar from GMO sugar beets was introduced in late 2008, but a recent federal court ruling may eventually drive it out of our food supply. For now, if the sugar doesn’t say pure cane, it’s likely blended with beet sugar.

Other than corn, there are only three items in the produce section that may be genetically modified. They are papaya from Hawaii and a small amount of zucchini and yellow squash.

How to Avoid GMOs in Restaurants When eating at restaurants, it is not too hard to identify non-GMO options if your restaurant cooks from scratch. If the restaurant uses processed foods, which is true of fast-food places, it will have hidden GM ingredients.

The most prevalent of these hidden ingredients are the oils used for cooking and salad dressing. Most restaurant cooking oil is made from soy, corn, cottonseed and canola — all GMOs. If a restaurant uses vegetable oil or margarine, it is almost certainly one of these. If the restaurant uses GM oils, ask if they have anything that is cooked without oil, or if olive oil or some other oil can be used. If they have olive oil, be sure it’s not a blend. Many restaurants blend canola and olive.

As for the sweet stuff, the GMO threats include shortening, sugar from beets, high fructose corn syrup and aspartame. Since most processed foods contain GMO derivatives (corn and soy, for example), ask what foods are freshly prepared. But always check if packaged sauces are used.

Other potential sources of GMOs at restaurants include bread, crackers and mayonnaise.

Moving GMOs out of the market The declining profits of rBGH demonstrate the power of informed consumers. As more and more people linked the milk hormone to cancer, marketing executives realized that allowing their suppliers to use the controversial drug was bad for sales.

Because the mainstream media were virtually silent on the health effects, it took years of a concerted consumer-education campaign to start the dominoes falling.

If the hazards of rBGH had made headline news, the tipping point would have been swift.

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET

The experience of GMOs in Europe shows us just how swift markets can move. In late January of 1999, biotech representatives predicted that 95 percent of all commercial seeds would be genetically engineered by 2004. Just a few weeks later, their plans to replace nature crashed. On February 16, 1999, a gag order imposed on a scientist who had conducted GMO safety studies was lifted by order of the U.K. Parliament. Dr. Arpad Pusztai, the top scientist in his field, was fired after 35 years and silenced with threats of legal action when he discovered the extensive damage that a GMO diet can cause.

Within a week of the gag order being lifted, the European press reeled off 159 column feet of articles. Within the month, 750 articles on GMOs were circulating. According to one editor, the coverage divided society into two warring blocks. Within just 10 weeks, the tipping point of consumer rejection was achieved. Genetically modified ingredients had become a marketing liability. At the end of April, Unilever publicly committed to remove GMOs from its European brands. Within the week, so did nearly every other major food company.

These same companies continue to use GMO ingredients in the U.S., where the Pusztai controversy was not reported. Here, only one in four people are even aware that they’ve ever eaten a genetically engineered food.

Engineering a North American tipping point is not far off Several indicators suggest that consumer rejection of GMOs in the U.S. is not far off. The number of shoppers rejecting GMOs needs to be only a tiny amount, perhaps 5 percent of Americans, in order to convince food companies to do a brand-wide GMO clean-out.

But when you look at the numbers, no matter how you slice it, they add up to a coming nonGMO tidal wave.

More than 9 percent of Americans regularly buy organic. And the vast majority of Americans say they would avoid GMOs if these were labeled.

While most people do not conscientiously avoid brands with GM ingredients, it’s usually because they don’t know how.

Moreover, it’s easier for companies to eliminate GMOs from their products than most other ingredient “culprits,” such as fat, carbohydrates, salt

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Rejection of GMOs in the U.S. is not far off.

As few as 5 percent of Americans refusing to buy GMO products could convince companies to do a brand-wide GMO clean-out.

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HOW TO GET GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD OUT OF YOUR DIET and added sugar. To eliminate the latter, companies must scramble to create new low-culprit or culprit-free options. By comparison, companies can usually eliminate GMOs without even changing recipes. Also, traditional ingredient culprits offer some consumer appeal like better taste or texture, but GM foods do not.

Therefore, when the industry gets hit with the anti-GMO tipping point, companies can easily eliminate all GMOs from their brands and proudly proclaim so here as they do in Europe.

It’s time to take charge There are so many people predisposed to reject GMOs, we can achieve a tipping point without ever having to convince those who are resistant. Just by educating the people who want to know why GMOs are unsafe and how to avoid them, we can weed GMOs out of the food supply.

The Campaign for Healthier Eating in America is designed to achieve a tipping point of consumer rejection of GMOs in the U.S. The campaign provides strategies and support materials designed specifically for the most-receptive targeted groups: health- and environmentally conscious shoppers, parents, health care professionals, chefs and food-service professionals, and even religious groups. If you would like to lend a hand and help protect the health of those you care about, visit www.healthiereating.org and view the action items and tools available.

Little did you know that a bowl of chips would turn you into an activist.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR International best-selling author and filmmaker Jeffrey M. Smith is the executive director of the Institute for Responsible Technology (www.healthiereating.org).

His first book, “Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies About the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating,” is the world’s best-selling and #1-rated book on GMOs. His second, “Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods,” documents 65 health risks of the GM foods Americans eat every day. To help you choose healthier, non-GMO brands, use the NonGMO Shopping Guide.

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Spotlight

on Compassion PAWS The Animal Power of Video Don’t Believe The Ghosts!

PAWS

PAWS

S

ince its founding in 1984, The Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) has been at the forefront of efforts to rescue and provide appropriate, humane sanctuary for animals who have been the victims of the exotic and performing animal trades. PAWS investigates reports of abused performing and exotic animals, documents cruelty and assists in investigations and prosecutions by regulatory agencies to alleviate the suffering of captive wildlife.

greatest concerns are the treatment of animals in traveling shows, animal acts, television and movies, captive breeding, the exotic animal trade and inadequate standards of care for all captive wildlife.

At PAWS’ sanctuaries, rescued animals live in peaceful, natural habitats — free from fear, chains and harsh confinement. They are at complete liberty to act out natural behaviors in the comfort of their individually designed enclosures.

PAWS’ animals are not bred, traded, sold, rented or forced to perform in any way.

PAWS is internationally recognized as a leader in animal welfare. Among its

PAWS educates the entertainment industry, public officials and the general

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PAWS public in humane care and treatment of captive wildlife. Through its public awareness campaigns, more and more concerned individuals are becoming aware of the problems inherent in the breeding of wildlife in captivity and the use of animals in entertainment.

Notably, PAWS co- founders, Pat Derby and Ed Stewart, have pioneered a method of elephant handling that uses NO bullhooks, weapons or aversive training techniques. PAWS was the first facility to use this “non dominance” technique successfully, and since 1985, the work of Derby and Stewart has been a model for elephant handlers around the world.

Pat Derby is PAWS‘ President and cofounder. Pat’s advocacy for animals developed more than four decades ago when she began working with captive wildlife in movies and television commercials. While working on television series such as Gunsmoke, Lassie, Daktari and Flipper, she witnessed firsthand the severe neglect and abuse that was prevalent in animal training. Determined to initiate better standards of care and handling for performing animals, Pat chronicled her experiences in a Bookof-the-Month Club autobiography, “The Lady and Her Tiger.”

In 1984 she formed the PAWS with

Thanks to PAWS, performing circus elephants no longer live a life of torture, slavery, and cruelty. They are now able to roam free, as nature intended.

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PAWS

partner Ed Stewart and wrote and launched AB 1620, which mandated humane care for captive wildlife in California. The bill was signed into law in 1985. It was the first in a series of state and federal legislation efforts that PAWS has initiated to better protect captive wildlife.

As a recognized expert on the care of captive wildlife, Pat has testified before Congress and has served on several state committees setting standards for the care and handling of elephants and other exotic species. In 2000, PAWS purchased 2,300 acres of pristine native habitat in San Andreas, California.

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Named ARK 2000, it is a state-of-theart sanctuary for captive wildlife. There are currently six Asian (three bulls) and three African elephants residing in spacious habitats — with natural grasses and trees, rolling hills, and lakes. ARK 2000 also provides safe haven to 26 tigers, six bears and five lions. PAWS is the only sanctuary able to take bull elephants.

PAWS and its co-founders and directors, Pat Derby and Ed Stewart, have been honored by numerous government agencies and national and international nonprofit organizations.

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The Animal Power of Video by Dr. Jonathan Balcombe

The Animal Power of Video

by DR. JONATHAN BALCOMBE

A

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a thousand pictures. One of the rewards of being a passionate animal observer in this day and age is the proliferation of video clips that circulate on YouTube and Facebook. These authentic segments of animal lives provide precious glimpses of their emotions, and they often belie common prejudices about animals and nature.

Recently, four videos stand out as exceptional examples. One — filmed and narrated by Karen Paolillo of Turgwe Hippo Trust — depicts a scene that, on paper, has “doom and gloom” written all over it. The locale is the murky waters of an African riverbank, and the three participants are a mother hippo, her just-born infant and a midsize crocodile.

But the interaction is more nuanced than we might expect, and it shows awareness in both the mother hippo and the croc that might surprise anyone fed on the standard VegWorld Magazine

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The Animal Power of Video by Dr. Jonathan Balcombe American wildlife-film diet of “predator/prey conflict” and a “constant struggle for survival.”

Don’t get me wrong: This croc is out for some meat. But the little hippo is not the target, and most remarkably, mother hippo seems to know it. With the baby staying close by mom’s side, the croc very deliberately moves in toward the mother’s hindquarters, and rather delicately (for a croc) grabs hold of the afterbirth and tugs it, eventually pulling it free.

For me, this video conveys a mutual understanding between a reptile and a mammal; as I watched it (repeatedly), I couldn’t help feeling that they had been in this situation before. I surmise that the hippo begrudgingly accepted the assistance provided by the croc in removing tissue that she herself could not reach and that could attract a larger, more menacing predator.

We live among an astonishing array of consciously aware, emotional life forms right here on this one green planet.

The second video involves another “predator/prey” interaction. Well, sort of; one is a domesticated carnivore and the other a domesticated omnivore. Watch it and see for yourself. It’s a nice illustration that animals are not locked into ecological roles.

The urge to play can be blind to species’ prejudice.

The third and fourth videos continue the theme of showing animals as keenly aware, sentient beings, not predictable avatars for the stereotypes we often give them. We may wonder what the orca is thinking as she swims up to a motorboat and uses her

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The Animal Power of Video by Dr. Jonathan Balcombe blowhole to perform a convincing rendition of motorboat sounds. Is she just entertaining herself, is she trying to impress or amuse the boaters, or is she telling us that she doesn’t appreciate the cacophony of noises with which we’ve burdened her domain?

And what about this Mexican free-tailed bat, one of hundreds of bats rescued and nursed back to health each year by a wonderful operation called Bat World Sanctuary in Texas? Bats are about as mysterious and misunderstood as it gets. Victimized by ignorance and stigmatized by hapless myths, bats have had little chance to show their softer sides. When I look at the video below, I see excitement, enthusiasm and gusto. I see an alert, aware, emotional being. I see a creature with a biography, an individual who treasures life, a mind and a fierce will to live.

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The Animal Power of Video by Dr. Jonathan Balcombe Twenty-two years ago I completed three summers of research in southern Texas, studying Mexican free-tailed bats for my doctoral dissertation in ethology (animal behavior). Unfortunately, I was too caught up in getting data (and the bats I held temporarily captive too determined to get away) for me to notice their personalities. I knew they were aware and had minds (they certainly “minded” my interfering with them, though they rarely bit me). My research demonstrated that a mother bat recognizes her pup by its voice. Each mother bat also recognizes her baby’s distinctive perfume, and she relies on her adept spatial memory to locate the vicinity of her baby inside a huge, pitch-dark cavern that contains up to 10 million babies hollering for their next milk meal. I marvel at this when half the time I can’t even recall where I left the TV remote.

Have you ever gazed thoughtfully up at the vast night sky and wondered, “Are we alone?” Well, wonder no more, because we’re not alone. We live among an astonishing array of consciously aware, emotional life-forms right here on this one green planet.

ABOUT JONATHAN BALCOMBE: SCIENTIST AND AUTHOR Jonathan Balcombe was born in England and raised in New Zealand and Canada. He studied biology in Canada before earning a Ph.D. in ethology (animal behavior) from the University of Tennessee. He is the author of three popular books on animals: “Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good” (2006), “Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals” (2010), and “The Exultant Ark: A Pictorial Tour of Animal Pleasure” (2011). Dr. Balcombe is the Animal Studies Department Chair for Humane Society University. In his spare time he enjoys nature-watching, biking, piano, vegan cooking and trying to understand his two cats. Dr. Balcombe is available as an environmental keynote and event speaker with Macmillan Speakers Bureau.

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Don’t Believe The Ghosts! by Dr. Will Tuttle

Don’t Believe The Ghosts!

by DR. WILL TUTTLE

“After my Parinirvana, in the last kalpa, different kinds of ghosts will be encountered everywhere deceiving people and teaching them that they can eat meat and still attain enlightenment . . . How can a bhikshu [monk], who hopes to become a deliverer of others, himself be living on the flesh of other sentient beings?” - Buddha, Surangama Sutra.

Everywhere we look in our culture, we see the proliferation of industrialized food production. Vast tracts of land are now enslaved to grow genetically engineered corn, soybeans and alfalfa to feed hyperconfined cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys and factory-farmed fish.

Driving this entire enterprise is the indoctrinated behavior of eating the flesh of nonhuman animals. While this is still practiced by the vast majority, it is obvious that the momentum is building for a fundamental change in this behavior. InVegWorld Magazine

creasing numbers of us are abandoning and consciously boycotting this cruel, unhealthy and environmentally devastating practice, and switching to plantbased diets.

As the Buddha, Gandhi, Jesus and many other wise teachers have emphasized, we are called to be the change that we would like to see in the world.

Our outer world is in fact a reflection of our inner world, and by questioning the

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Don’t Believe The Ghosts! by Dr. Will Tuttle official stories propagated by our culture, we become a force for healing and for the positive evolution of our society.

Increasingly large numbers of us are realizing that we have a vital purpose for our lives, and that we have a unique contribution to make during our relatively brief sojourn on this planet. This purpose is intimately connected with being mindful of the effects of our actions on other living beings.

And yet, at every turn, we are bombarded by corporate messages designed to repress this natural and healthy yearning to live consciously and compassionately.

For example, everywhere we see the continuation of outlandish efforts being made by what I refer to in “The World Peace Diet” as the “military-industrialmeat-medical-pharmaceutical-media complex” to convince us all that organically grown foods are no better than chemically treated ones, and that we need genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to “feed our hungry world.”

This is epitomized by the bizarre falsehoods coming through the New York Times’ op-ed columnist on September 7th, 2012. Titling his article “The Organic Fable,” this British fellow wrote completely baseless statements claiming that people who eat organic foods believe “fables” and are elitist. He cited a recent study done by Ingram Olkin and others of Stanford University concluding that organic foods offer no significant health benefits over conventional foods.

This is the same Olkin who was complicit in propagating junk science back in the 1970s to “prove” for the tobacco industry that cigarette smoking is not harmful. Stanford University is notorious for being the recipient of millions of VegWorld Magazine

dollars from Cargill, Monsanto and other corporations frenetically working to stop the labeling of GMO foods in the current California ballot initiative. So this “study’s” results are not surprising. As always we must follow the money and question the official stories of reality, which are virtually always skewed to favor the interests of the wealthy elite that profits from disease and inequity.

Along with this, we must question other official stories — the protein story, the calcium story, the B-12 story, the omega-3 story, the human-superiority story, the vaccination story — and take charge of our lives and our health. When we get in touch with our spiritual intuition, it becomes quite obvious that, instead of being propelled by the indoctrinated programming of our culture, we can trust the deeper wisdom of our own sense of being connected to a benevolent and beautiful universe. We can be propelled by our vision of a positive future and work for that, instead of being driven by the lies of fear, limitation and disease that rain from the mass media and from most of the institutions in our culture. As this happens, we will naturally be drawn toward foods that are 1) plant-based; 2) organically grown; 3) unprocessed or minimally processed; and 4) fresh and whole, with lots of fruits and vegetables.

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Don’t Believe The Ghosts! by Dr. Will Tuttle Remember, it is the animal-agriculture industry that consumes 80 percent of all GMOs. Genetically engineered corn, soy, cottonseed and alfalfa are used as feedstock for imprisoned animals. We eat these GMOs when we eat meat, fish, dairy products and eggs. The other 20 percent of GMOs are in the processed junk foods that are prevalent in our culture. We should support those who are working to build a better world. It is now well understood that organic agriculture yields more per acre than toxic commercial agriculture, and we are also learning

that veganic agriculture (with no animal inputs like blood meal, bone meal and manure) yields at least as much as organic, and in some cases more. The future is bright and beckoning! But this is true only when we reject the violence of commercial agriculture with its GMOs, pesticides and war on the Earth, and embrace a healthy vegan, organic lifestyle based on compassion for all. Your actions DO make a difference.

Please spread the word.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Will Tuttle, Ph.D., composer, pianist, and Zen priest, is author of The World Peace Diet and is cofounder of Karuna Music & Art and the Prayer Circle for Animals.

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Reviews and

Recommendations Vegworld-Pick-Of-The-Month

VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month

VegWorld’s

Pick of the Month 5 Ways to Feel Happy:

Tips from Roko Belic’s Documentary “Happy”

What do a rickshaw driver in Calcutta, a single mother in Denmark, an Okinawa islander, a Namibian Bushman and a Louisiana bayou tour guide have in common? They are all exceptionally happy, according to “Happy,” a documentary film by Academy Award–nominated

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director Roko Belic (“Genghis Blues”) and the production team of “Beyond the Call.”

All around the globe people report a sense of happiness that eludes many Americans. In fact, according to happi-

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VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month ness surveys by organizations such as the World Database of Happiness, the United States consistently ranks lower than many other countries on the happiness scale. Why is life satisfaction so much easier to come by in other places? The “Happy” crew identified the key factors from man-on-the-street interviews and conversations with research scientists. Here’s what they found.

1. A Sense of Friendship and Community Having strong relationships and a large support network are leading happiness factors all over the world — whether it is in the slums of Calcutta, in the desert of South Africa or on the streets of Scandinavia. In Denmark, which consistently ranks first as the happiest nation on earth, most Danes (as high as 97 percent according to msnbc.com) be-

lieve they have someone other than a family member that they can rely upon.

“Happy” introduces a single Danish mother who lives in a multigenerational cohousing community. Both she and her children extol the benefits of this group-living arrangement, which is not unlike having a large extended family.

The mother says she no longer feels the stress of constantly having to juggle responsibilities, such as shopping and cooking every day. Now it’s just a few times a month. She also appreciates having other adults around to keep an eye on her children.

2. Caring and Doing for Others According to scientists interviewed in “Happy,” compassionate thoughts and generous actions actually change the chemistry of the brain, producing do-

Having a strong support network is a leading factor for happiness no matter where you live.

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VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month pamine, a hormone that is believed to trigger happiness. Altruistic deeds also stimulate the left frontal cortex, which researchers have identified as the brain’s happiness center. In addition to feeling good, people report that doing something for others adds meaning to their life. In the film, a former banker explains how happy and fulfilled he now feels volunteering at Mother Teresa’s Home for the Destitute and Dying. He says that even the simple act of offering a cup of water to a dying man brings him a great deal of joy.

4. A Balanced Life, with Plenty of Leisure Time Workaholics definitely don’t rank high on the happiness scale. In fact, in Tokyo, Japan, the focus on production over contentment has led to “karoshi,” or death from overwork. Even young workers in their 20s and 30s die suddenly of a heart attack or stroke. On the island of Okinawa, however, there are more centenarians than anywhere else in the world. Perhaps it’s because the islanders care for each other and have never forsaken their tradition of intergenerational communication and connection.

It is ingrained in the culture and evident in the long, healthy lives of Okinawa’s population. Similarly, in the Kingdom of

3. A Personal Involvement with Nature Many people report that time spent outdoors is a very joyful experience and, like compassionate outreach, helps them connect with something larger than themselves. In the film, Captain Blanchard, a tour guide in the Louisiana bayou, delights in knowing that no two days will ever be the same. “This is a paradise to me,” he grins. “You don’t know what you are going to see.” As the crew follows Blanchard in his boat, a crocodile slides his head out of the water, and an egret gets ready to dine.

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Balance and leisure time are necessary for a happy and healthy life.

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VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month Bhutan, the government focuses not on a gross national product (GNP) index, but on gross national happiness. This phrase was coined in 1972 to signal a commitment to building an economy that would serve Bhutan’s unique culture based on its Buddhist spiritual values. The concept serves as a unifying vision for the economic and development plans of the country.

5. Engaging in Activities That One Finds Enjoyable Just by the simple act of doing what you like to do, you can ramp up your happiness meter by putting yourself in what is known as a state of “flow.” According to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, author of “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience,” “Flow is the state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter. The experience itself is so enjoyable they will do it, even at great cost, for the sheer sake of it.” In “Happy,” a cook dances as he works and a surfer delights in his sport.

Find time to engage in your favorite activities on a daily basis.

As the documentary demonstrates, owning things is a minor factor in creating a satisfying and happy life. “Happy” reveals that once your basic human needs are met, such as food, shelter and health care, it’s your DNA and your sense of balance and community that have the greatest impact on your happiness.

“If each of us spent time cultivating happiness, the world would be a better place.”

VegWorld Magazine has partnered with Spiritual Cinema Circle to bring you previews of some of our favorite conscious films on a regular basis.

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VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month

Spiritual Cinema Circle’s October film, “Happy,” takes viewers around the world — to India, Bhutan, Denmark, Okinawa and beyond — on a quest to find the happiest people in the world. Academy Award–nominated director Roko Belic beautifully documents his worldwide mission to pinpoint the driving force behind true happiness. Find out more about Spiritual Cinema Circle by visiting the link below.

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off the

bookshelf Animals as Saints - Animals as Teachers: Inspiring Compassion

Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan The following is a new feature in VegWorld magazine. We will periodically provide you with complete chapters from some of our favorite veg-related books. These chapters are unedited and provided in their original state of publication.

Animals as Saints Animals as Teachers: Inspiring Compassion Part 1 of 3

Excerpted from Chapter 20 of Animals And The Afterlife:True Stories of Our Best Friends’ Journey Beyond Death

by KIM SHERIDAN

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O

Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan

ver the years [while researching Animals and the Afterlife], as I spoke with countless people about their own departed companion animals, I noticed a very common theme. As they spoke of these animals, it was almost as if they were speaking of an angel or a saint. These animals hadn’t just brought them love and companionship; these animals had acted as spiritual teachers, bringing incredible amounts of insight and inspiration.

Kathleen DeMetz, an attorney in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, had the following to say about her beloved dog, Sammy:

I always felt that there was something more about him, that in many ways he was much more than a dog. There was a wiseness about him, and a gentleness. I felt that he was almost some kind of an advanced spirit … there was something about him. I always called him my angel dog—my guardian angel. He had the sweetest disposition. When I looked in his eyes, I almost saw the face of God because he was totally good. ...

I’ve only ever gone to a meditation class once in my life. It was very interesting because when I went into the meditation, it involved him. In the meditation, I was walking in the woods with Sammy and I came to a clearing; there was an ancient circle of wisdom. Sammy stopped, and I went on to the circle of wisdom. There were all these people in white robes and they said, “You have to learn to love as

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Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan he loves. He has total unconditional love. Your purpose is to learn to love as he does. He does not care what anyone looks like, if you are rich or poor, your race, your nationality, your wealth, your education; he just loves totally and completely, and that is how you are to learn to love, as Sammy loves.” Then, in the meditation, I walked back to him and we walked out. ...

So many people say animals don’t have souls, and I say God is such a wonderful God there is no way that could be true. At least my dogs have a wonderful life, but look at all those animals that have a horrible life—look at all those animals in the factory farms. There is no way God would let those animals live a life of total misery and then just have them rot in the ground. A good God is not going to do that.

Time and again, I heard similar comments by people from all walks of life. They had looked upon their beloved companions as spiritual guides or teachers. Many people had been so touched by an animal that they changed their thinking, their life direction, even their diet, and all were better for it.

Another wonderful example of this is an exceptional man named Eddie Lama whose whole perspective changed as a result of the love of a cat. He now devotes himself to the welfare of animals and has made a tremendous difference in the world. Among other things, he founded Oasis: A Sanctuary for People and Animals.

His moving story is told in the award-winning documentary The Witness, by Tribe of Heart Productions (www.TribeOfHeart.org). I highly recommend this eye-opening film.

I, too, am leading a completely different life than I would otherwise be leading if not for the love of animals. I, too, changed my diet as a result of their love and inspiration. I decided at a young age that I wanted to become a vegetarian when I grew up. And that I did. My only regret is that I didn’t do it sooner. In college, I became a vegan, and I’ve never looked back.

For me, it was a decision based solely on the desire not to cause suffering to my fellow beings. I later learned that this decision also had a powerful beneficial impact on our environment and world hunger, issues that are also very important to me (for more information on this, I highly recommend the book Diet for a New America by John Robbins, and the video documentary with the same title). An added and unexpected bonus was that my health benefited dramatically when I changed my diet. I was a relatively sickly child and young adult, but because of a decision that was solely inspired by the animals themselves, my health improved tremendously. I am ever grateful to them.

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Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan When I later changed majors, studied nutrition, and went on to become a practicing naturopath and health researcher, I discovered the solid scientific explanations as to why my health had improved so dramatically due to changing my diet. [My husband] Jameth had originally made the decision to adopt a vegan diet exclusively for its health benefits. However, once he learned of the ethical reasons for such a diet, these reasons became even more important to him as well.

When people came to Jameth and me for nutritional guidance during the many years that we practiced together as naturopaths, we—and they—were always amazed at the dramatic healings that took place due to this simple change in diet, regardless of blood type, body type, or any other factor (when done healthfully, of course).

Because of my own blood type and body type, I am not “supposed to” be able to thrive on such a diet according to the popular fad theory of the day, but nothing could be further from the truth. My personal blood work and long-term research— and that of countless others—put such theories to rest long ago.

Over time, I’ve observed as conflicting theories and trends have come and gone (often due to the common resistance that so often flares up when humans and industries feel threatened by change), but the actual data—and more importantly, the results themselves—have remained steadfast; and more and more people are changing their diets similarly. As grateful as we all are for the improved health that accompanies this dietary decision, I think the animals are the most grateful of all.

One farmer says to me, “You cannot live on vegetable food solely, for it furnishes nothing to make bones with,” and … all the while he walks behind his oxen, which, with vegetable-made bones, jerk him and his lumbering plow along in spite of every obstacle.

— Henry David Thoreau Nuclear power, starvation, cruelty— we must make a statement against these things.

Vegetarianism is my statement. And I think it’s a strong one.

— Isaac Bashevis Singer, Nobel Prize Winner and Holocaust Historian When non-vegetarians say that “human problems come first,” I cannot help wondering what exactly it is that they are doing for human beings that compels them to continue to support the wasteful, ruthless exploitation of farmed animals.

— Dr. Peter Singer (Princeton Bioethicist), Animal Liberation

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Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan

I feel fortunate to have known and loved many different types of animals as a child.

In fact, cows and chickens were my friends long before I realized they were my food.

Spending my summers on thousands of pristine acres of wilderness at The Ranch [my grandparents’ ranch] gave me an opportunity early on to commune with a wide assortment of incredible beings; it gave me the opportunity to get to know the animals who, unbeknownst to me at the time, were destined for my plate.

Something that always struck me as odd was the fact that the cows at The Ranch, with whom I spent a lot of time, always had a distinct air of caution and fear. They were my friends and clearly trusted me, but I always noticed their lack of trust toward—and fear of—the adults on The Ranch. When I communed with them, I always felt an impending sense of doom. It was almost as if they were awaiting some horrible fate, every day wondering if this would be the day their peaceful life would end—the day it would all change.

At the time, it struck me as odd. They were living on this beautiful ranch and grazing on the natural grasses of the land, surrounded by thousands of acres of wilderness, taken care of by these wonderful people known as Grandmother and Granddaddy, and protected by a saintly border collie named Duffy. It was an unusually large ranch, and an incredibly magical place; these were unusually lucky cows. They had

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Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan it so good, and as far as I could tell, this was where they would remain for the rest of their lives. Yet, every day they lived with a feeling of despair and hopelessness. I felt it in their presence, and it made absolutely no sense to me. I felt sad for them, and I did my best to reassure and comfort them.

I was so confused at their seemingly inappropriate demeanor, given their lot in life, that I spent long hours just trying to understand. I tried to ask them what was wrong—why did they feel this way, when they had such a wonderful life. I got the sense that they knew something I didn’t, something so terrible that they didn’t even want to think about it—yet they couldn’t get it out of their minds. Something in such stark contrast to their current idyllic lifestyle that it was unimaginable. And every day for them began with the thought, Is this the day? Please don’t let this be the day.

The day for what? I wondered to myself. Why are they so afraid? What do they dread?

That answer came the day I found out that some of my friends had been sent off to the slaughterhouse. Well, that was the first part of the answer, anyway. I didn’t get the full answer until years later, when I learned what a slaughterhouse was really like. When I learned of the poking, prodding, crowding, pain, and deprivation of their long, terrifying journey to that ultimate fate. When I learned of the assembly line of horrors (or rather, disassembly line) that awaited them, assuming they survived the torturous journey.

I felt horrible when I realized that my friends had been sent there. That I hadn’t done something to help them. My realization that “meat” was actually the flesh of my friends was a turning point in my life. That was the understanding that led me to become a vegetarian. To take “Thou shalt not kill” quite literally.

I find it interesting that the terms “free-range” or “organic” or “grass-fed” are terms often used to assure us that “no, there was no suffering involved in the production of this product.” If only that were true. Not only do these terms conjure up images that are often quite different from the reality behind the scenes, but ironically, it was the fate of animals who actually did live the epitome of a free-range, organic, grass-fed lifestyle that originally led me to give up meat. I learned from the animals themselves that no amount of grass or land could take away their fear and doom and dread of the undignified death that awaited them at the end of the line.

The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as now they look upon the murder of men.

— Leonardo da Vinci

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Animals as Saints by Kim Sheridan Those of us who choose to walk the path of compassion do not walk alone. I believe that the spirits of those animals who have been unnecessarily tortured and killed, in the name of socalled nutrition, walk with us. We have been deeply touched by their suffering, and we have taken action accordingly. So their suffering was not in vain after all. –KS Stay tuned for part 2 of “Animals as Saints—Animals as Teachers: Inspiring Compassion” coming next month to VegWorld Magazine

“The time wil l come when m en such as I wil l look upon the murder of an imals as now they look upon the mur der of men.”

- Leonardo d a Vinci

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Kim Sheridan is an award-winning author, filmmaker, and naturopath.

She is a popular guest on radio and television, and her expertise includes animals, health, and the environment. She is also the founder of Compassion Circle, with a mission to expand the circle of compassion to all beings. Kim has been listed in Who’s Who in Executives and Professionals, 2,000 Notable American Women, and Great Minds of the 21st Century.

She lives in Southern California with her husband and their beloved animal family. Her goal is to make the world a better place, and to teach compassion and respect for the Earth and all living beings. For more information on Animals and the Afterlife by Kim Sheridan, please visit www.AnimalsAndTheAfterlife.com For more information on other projects

by Kim Sheridan, please visit www.KimSheridan.com VegWorld Magazine

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Do animals have souls? What happens when they die?

And where do they stand in the larger scheme of things?

This book offers amazing comfort & insight!

Animals and the Afterlife True Stories of Our Best Friends’ Journey Beyond Death

By Kim Sheridan Animals and the Afterlife is a beautiful comfort for those grieving the loss of a beloved animal. It also carries a powerful message of compassion and a convincing validation of the rights of animals. The author’s strong vegan conviction has converted many a reader to a more compassionate lifestyle over the years.

Author Kim Sheridan faced the death of many a beloved animal, and along with the pain came the same questions. Then mysterious things began to happen which led her on an incredible journey to uncover the truth. This book details her journey and her amazing research.

This powerful 400+ page book (and forthcoming film) might just change your perception of death or lead you on an incredible journey of your own!

Animals and the Afterlife makes a heartfelt gift, a captivating read, and a necessary addition to everyone’s lending library.

www.AnimalsAndTheAfterlife.com

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