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contents THE FUN SIDE OF VEGETARIAN LIVING 09 BO KNOWS
Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan
This holiday raw vegan rice pilaf will delight your friends and family. pg. 51
11
BIZARRO CARTOON
12
RAWMAN & GREEN-GIRL
15
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
20
WHO’S HOT?
VegWorld’s 10 Sexiest Veggie Celebrities 2012
Is there evidence that a vegan diet makes you more sexy? pg. 68
FAMILY & LIFESTYLE 25 BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN YOUR CHILDREN
by Karen Ranzi, MA
27
9 COMMANDMENTS OF ECO-SEX: GETTING IT ON THE GREEN WAY FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON by Stefanie Iris-Weiss
33
NOURISH YOUR SKIN AS YOU NOURISH YOUR BODY by Sitarani Palomar
You can inspire your children to develop healthy eating habits early on. Find out how. pg. 25
contents NUTRITION AND THRIVING THE PALEO DIET: IS IT OUR “NATURAL” 37
DIET OR AN UNHEALTHY RELIC? by Dr. John McDougall
DO MAMMOGRAMS CAUSE MORE 42 HARM THAN GOOD? by Dr. Thomas Lodi
THE SEVEN KEYS TO 47 LIFELONG SEXUAL VITALITY
by Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement
RECIPES FOR FOODIES RAW FOOD FOR COOKED FOOD LOVERS 52
by Cherie Soria
MAPLE-ROASTED BRUSSELS 54 SPROUTS WITH TOASTED HAZELNUTS by Chloe Coscarelli
THE VEG EDGE 55
with Chloe Coscarelli
HARVEST-STUFFED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS
56
by Chloe Coscarelli
VEGAN FOR THE HOLIDAYS 58
by Zel Allen
ORDINARY PEOPLE/ EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS 62 PUT AN END TO EMOTIONAL OVEREATING
AND DIETING
SPOTLIGHT ON COMPASSION 71 A WELL-FED WORLD: MAKING A DIFFERENCE FOR ANIMALS AND PEOPLE
OFF THE BOOKSHELF 77 ANIMALS AS SAINTS - ANIMALS AS TEACHERS: INSPIRING COMPASSION by Kim Sheridan
FEATURE 68 WHY ARE VEGANS SO SEXY? REGULARS 05 CREDITS
VegWorld Staff & Contributing Writers
06
EDITOR’S NOTE
75
REVIEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack Vegworld’s Pick of the month - GatherGreen
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 Content Manager: Allie Margis Staff Editor: Jesse Hulstrand
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Zel Allen
Dr. Thomas Lodi, MD
Dr. Neal Barnard
Dr. John McDougall
Dr. Brian Clement
Dan Piraro
Chloe Coscarelli
Karen Ranzi
Ron Gilmore
Bo Rinaldi
Beryl Greensea
Dr. Jameth Sheridan
Stefanie Iris-Weiss
Kim Sheridan Cherie Soria
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EDITOR’s NOTE
A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack
T
he holiday season is here and we are excited to provide you with our veggiefriendly gift guide. We hope you find some great options for those you love this holiday season.
Y
ou may ask, why is our holiday issue so focused on the sexy message? As you snuggle in for a snowy holiday season under the mistletoe, we wanted to highlight a little known benefit of a plantbased diet: sex appeal. We hope this issue will inspire you to “get your sexy on” and provide you with reasons why a vegan diet will make you undeniably more sexy and more sexual.
W
e find it interesting that, as our magazine gains popularity and climbs the “What’s Hot” list in the Apple Newsstand, so does a competing magazine focused on the Paleo Diet. So this month we debunk the myths associated with this latest fad diet and provide accurate information on its origins and impacts. This way we can all be better informed (and hopefully attract the attention of those considering or already eagerly following the Paleo Diet).
O W
ur magazine continues to be an evolving labor of love. We welcome your feedback and of course would love to connect with you on Facebook. Follow the links on this page or email us direct with your thoughts. We answer every email and consider every thought. e hope you find the time to relax, meditate, exercise and enjoy being with those you love during the holiday season. We have some big plans for the new year and are gearing up to launch a global juice fast! If you purchase a copy of my book “The Complete idiot’s Guide to Juice Fasting,” be sure to save your receipt. You will be provided with free access to the fast. Want to be notified about when we are launching the January juice fast? Visit www.juiceguru.com and sign up free. I’ll personally send you all the information you’ll need to know, including some big surprises during the global fast.
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EDITOR’s NOTE
A Message from the Editor of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack
Y
ours for a happy, healthy, compassionate and loving holiday season,
Editor of VegWorld Magazine
VegWorld Magazine
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The Fun Side
Of Vegetarian Living
Bo Knows: Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan Bizarro Cartoon Rawman & Green-Girl 2012 Holiday Gift Guide Who’s Hot? World’s 10 Sexiest Veggie Celebrities 2012
Bo Knows - Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan | Bo Rinaldi
Bo Knows
Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan The Vegan Myth by BO RINALDI I am turning 65 in February, and I have never felt happier, healthier or more vital in my life. So, I decided that it is time to answer a few of the myths you may have heard from those who have not quite figured out how powerful a plant-based lifestyle is to fuel ourselves and our future. Here are my top three: MYTH #1: SOME BLOOD TYPES NEED MEAT This is an area that truly needs to have the slate wiped clean. The “eating for your blood type” theory was posed by layman, Peter D’Amo, who used his own personal study of human history to come to his own conclusions. He was not a scientist or even a nutritionist. Rather, his concept was based upon his own speculation and misinterpretation of scientific studies.
temptations beyond a fence of rules, and that every food you like happens to be on the wrong side. But really, veganism is incredibly simple. Meat eaters on the other hand have lots of rules and taboos. No pork for some, no cows for others, no horse, dog, or cat in America, while they’re eaten in many other countries. And then there are all the dangers of bacterial contamination when handling, preparing, cooking, and storing meat and all the rules that come along with that. There are rules from your doctor on portion control and rules about steaming rather
It’s true that your blood type does have some influence over the types of lectins (a special group of sugar-binding proteins that either help or harm your body) your body can and cannot process efficiently. But there is no scientific information that backs up the claim that some blood types—such as Type O—need to eat meat. Take it from a type O who went vegetarian at the age of 10! MYTH #2: VEGANS HAVE TOO MANY RULES ABOUT WHAT THEY CAN EAT When you first make the switch from a standard American diet to a vegan diet, it can seem like you’re giving up a lot. It may feel like there are endless restrictions and VegWorld Magazine
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Bo Knows - Rants and Insights from a Life-Long Vegan | Bo Rinaldi than frying. There are rules about some meat or fish being okay for your health, while others must be avoided. Plus, you can’t eat meat raw or even slightly undercooked, depending on the type of meat, without the looming possibility of life-threatening illness. Vegans have only one rule: Don’t eat anything that comes from an animal! MYTH #3: BEING A VEGAN WILL RUIN YOUR SOCIAL LIFE “My friends will all think I’m crazy.” “My family won’t understand.” “How can I go out to restaurants or bars?” “Will I have to bring my own food to social events?” These are usually among the fears many have about how making a major lifestyle change – like going vegan – will change their social status. It may seem like you’re going to need to sacrifice things you love in order to maintain your values. But depending on your priorities and your direction in life, this doesn’t have to be the case for you. If you feel strongly about your decision, you need to educate yourself about veganism as much as possible so that you have answers to the questions that are sure to come your way. You’ll also need to keep in mind that the best way to educate others is to let them come to you with questions, rather than volunteering information they may not be ready or willing to receive. And, of course, the best way to educate those you love is to serve as
Serve as a model of radiant health and friends will accept (and maybe even follow) your vegan ways.
a role model of radiant vegan health. Going vegan changes people. It makes them stronger in their personal values and morals. It helps build character. You’ll soon have to find new ways to relate to the people around you as you go through your personal transformation. And you need to keep your priorities in sight, which is a true celebration of LIFE. And what a better gift can we give this Holiday Season than the Gift of Life. This article was excerpted from Bo’s new eBook “The Vegan Myth” now available at www.cookinghealthylessons.com.
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 five Complete Idiot’s Guides. Bo has been a vegan since 1960 and has managed, partnered or owned many companies in the organic movement.
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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.
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Rawman & Green-Girl
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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE VEGAN SOMMELIER
With wines starting as low as $13, this vegan cruetly-free wine is a perfect gift for that special someone in your life! Order your vegan wine by clicking here.
NO WHEY!
No whey! From sea salted carmels to peppermint bark this vegan bakery will deliver all of your holiday needs! Order yours by clicking here.
BUNGALOW 360
Bungalow 360 offers wallets, purses, totes, and much more! Gifts starting as low as $5 makes holiday shopping fun and easy! Not only are these products cute, they help save animal lives. The company is not only cruelty-free but donates solar power and other resources to keep no kill shelters in business. Order your accessories here.
TOMS SHOES
Available in mens, womens and children sizes, TOMS Shoes will give a pair to a child in need for every pair purchased. Its One for One method makes its Vegan line that much more appealing! Order Tom’s Shoes by visiting this website.
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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE THE VITAMIX
The Vitamix is an essential in every veggie kitchen! It makes a perfect present for the vegeterians and non-vegeterians in your life! Get your Vitamix by clicking here!
PURE FIBER
These eco-friendly bath robes made of bamboo are a great gift idea! Pick one up here!
GREENFIRE SOY CANDLES
Eco-friendly soy candles will brighten anyone’s night! Order your soy candle by visiting the website here.
aLTERNATIVE OUTFITTERS
This faux jacket would make any animal-lover glow! Available in Red, Black, and White for just $69.99. Order this beautiful jacket here. HempStar wallets are free from all toxins found in other materials and fabrics. Hemp is the Earth’s #1 natural renewable resource! Click here to pick up one of these wallets now.
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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 100% ORGANIC VEGAN RAW CHOCOLATE
100% Organic vegan raw chocolates from Love Street Living Foods! We love these delicious treats and so will your loved ones for the holiday season! Stock up on your holiday raw vegan chocolate by clicking here.
VEGWORLD MAGAZINE Gift Certificate
VegWorld Magazine is the perfect holiday gift for your loved ones. Gift a full year subscription to give them front-row access to the leaders in veggie living. Order your gift certificate here. Your loved ones wi
The perfect VEGan HeadBand!
Chic, stylish and hot. Your loved ones will look beautiful while staying warm this holiday season. Order your headband for your loved ones by clicking here now.
VegWorld Magazine
keep warm while looking great!
These trendy vegan scarves make winter bearable and fashionable! Check out the full selection of these cruelty-free scarves by clicking here.
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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
Mens Slouchy Hats!
The men in your life will look sexy while keeping warm in these hand-knit beauties. Click here to order one of these sweet looking hats now.
Skin Care that’s cruelty-free and organic!
Share the joy of nourishing your skin and body with Ecco Bella’s line of cruelty-free cosmetics. Order an Ecco Bella gift certificate here!
These journals are hand painted and sewn!
Make a unique choice this holiday season with these beautiful earthy journals. Perfect to keep a diary of the incredilbe year ahead. Pick up one of these unique journals by clicking here.
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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE STOCKING STUFFERS LIP BALM
Crazy Rumors Lip Balm gift sets are the perfect stocking stuffers starting at $3.49. Click here to order your lip balm now.
HERBAN COWBOY COIN PURSE
This cute coin purse fits perfectly in a stocking! For only $3.99 you can’t go wrong! Order your coin purse by clicking here.
INDIE CANDY
Need something sweet for that stocking? Indie Candy makes all natural vegan holiday treats! Order your vegan holiday treats by clicking here.
Get the perfect stocking stuffer for him this Christmas from Herban Cowboy. They have a wonderful line of men’s beauty products that will leave him feeling smoother and stronger! Pick up some Herban Cowboy products by clicking here.
BUDDHA BRACELETS
Esty offers thousands of fun vegan gift ideas! One of our favorites are these Buddha Bracelets! Order your own Buddha Bracelets for loved ones this holiday season by clicking here.
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Who’s Hot? VegWorld’s 10 Sexiest Veggie Celebrities 2012
H
ere’s a new tradition at VegWorld Magazine. We name the hottest and sexiest veggie celebrities of the year. Was your favorite veg-celebrity honored? If not, drop us a line and let us know your opinion.
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Our winner, Actor Brad Pitt is vegan and there are rumors that his fiance Angelina Jolie’s meat-eating habits have started to upset him. Often rated the world’s sexiest man, Brad’s a natural choice for sexiest in the veggie world. VegWorld Magazine
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Actress Natalie Portman, who is an advocate for animal rights, has been a vegetarian since childhood. She became a vegan in 2009 after reading Jonathan Safran Foer’s “Eating Animals.” In 2007, she launched her own brand of vegan footwear. Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 20
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Actress Jessica Chastain follows a vegan lifestyle and admits it helps her lose weight quickly for television and film roles. While on set of The Help, Chastain’s character had to eat fried chicken. Luckily for the actress, the powers that be were able to mask a vegan meal as fried chicken.
After actress Anne Hathaway found out she was going to be the next actress to slip on the skin-tight catsuit for The Dark Knight Rises, she abandoned her vegetarian diet for a vegan one. Hathaway said her body became so dependent on healthy eating that when she tried to cheat and have a few slices of pizza she felt ill. After filming was over she decided to give veganism a try for good. VegWorld Magazine
Actor/ Musician Jared Leto has been vegan for many years, and even inspired his entire band “30 Seconds to Mars” to go vegan. “I’m a vegan. I respect the environment and I do my best to spread the importance of such an issue.”
Former NBA Superstar John Salley has been putting in major work off the court promoting the vegan lifestyle. He has been featured on many shows touting the benefits of veganism. He also promotes himself as a wellness advocate on his website with links to many veg resources and has partnered with ” The Vegan Vine”- a vegan wine company. Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 21
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Actress Alyssa Milano went veggie after a conversation with a friend following the tragedy of 9-11. Alyssa maintained her vegetarian diet during her recent pregnancy. According to Alyssa, her pregnancy cravings didn’t stray too far from broccoli and pizza.
Singer Carrie Underwood has subscribed to a vegetarian lifestyle for seven years, due to the increased health benefits of a meat-free diet. The ‘Good Girl’ singer has revealed that she is taking things a step further and is about “95 percent vegan” at this point. “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.” VegWorld Magazine
Owain Yeoman, one of the stars on the television drama, The Mentalist, is showing off his veggie-powered body in a new ad campaign for PETA. “As someone who felt they were a confirmed meat-eater, I guess ultimately if I can do it, then anyone can. It’s a really easy and humane choice to make.”
Actor Tobey Maguire is such a devoted vegan that he’s rumored to have banned all leather from his house, and even went so far as to send back a luxury Mercedes he was given to use while on location in Australia because the car had leather seats (Tobey put in a request to have vinyl upholstery instead). Tobey is a proponent of healthy vegetarian options for school lunches. Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 22
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FAMILY
AND LIFESTYLE
Be the Change you Wish to See in your Children 9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season Nourish your Skin as you Nourish your Body
Be the Change You Wish to See in Your Children | Karen Ranzi, MA
BE THE CHANGE
W
You Wish to See in Your Children
by Karen Ranzi, MA
e’ve all heard the old adage, “you are what you eat.” But did you know that your children also are what you eat? At least, that’s what the scientific studies show.
Believe it or not, a child’s food preferences begin in the womb. In 2007, the journal Pediatrics reported that, when a mother eats plentiful amounts of fruits and vegetables while pregnant, her “baby will like them” too. The study on which this report was based was designed to test the influence of early sensory experiences on the development of healthy eating patterns. Flavors from the mother’s diet are transmitted through amniotic fluid and mother’s milk. A baby learns the tastes of specific foods when mom consumes those foods on a regular basis. A mother’s food preferences continue to influence her children’s eating habits well into adolescence. The journal Public Health Nursing reported in 2010 that “what and how mothers eat is the most direct influence on what children eat. Diets low in fruit and vegetables even at young ages pose increased risks for chronic diseases later in life.” Indeed, I’ve observed this pattern in my work with families for twenty years. When parents enjoy a lifestyle that includes unprocessed, unadulterated, nutrientdense plant food, their children tend to follow along joyfully,
VegWorld Magazine
“
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
- Aristotle
”
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often becoming health and wellness leaders themselves, instead of followers of unhealthy lifestyles. When children are young is the best time for parents to inspire healthy eating patterns. Children look to parents as the center of their universe and believe the loving message of lifetime health provided by delicious fruits and vegetables. But parents cannot take the hands-off approach of “do as I say, not as I do.” If parents set a good example of healthful eating, their actions will speak infinitely louder than words. And parents need to present a united front: If one parent is still eating unnatural What a mom eats influences and unhealthy foods, that parent will influence the children. her child’s choices from the
womb through adolescence.
Once we’ve established this early base of nutritional learning, we as parents can feel comfortable with the knowledge we have imparted to our children. As children grow up, they need to take responsibility for their own decisions.
Children, who have been raised healthfully, with abundant fruits and vegetables, will learn to listen to their feelings regarding foods that digest easiest and make them feel good. Because of perceived peer pressure, many children choose at some point to experiment with refined sugars and processed foods. After years of healthful eating, these children will have the vitality to feel the immediate uncomfortable effects. To really bring this lesson home, you can choose to discuss these effects with your child in a loving and gentle manner; this will help him or her to better understand the direct link between the toxic food choice and not feeling good. Although we can clearly see the importance of good nutrition, we want our children to come to a place where they “own” this knowledge and are able to make health supportive food choices on their own. Ultimately, parents need to let go and respect their children’s choices, within reason. If you were models of good health and imparted nutritional information to your young children, your further input will no longer be needed.
“
There are no ‘incurable’ diseases. If you are willing to take responsibility for yourself and your life, you can heal yourself of anything.
- Dr. Richard Schulze
VegWorld Magazine
”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Karen Ranzi is the author of “Creating Healthy Children: Through Attachment Parenting and Raw Foods,” available at Barnes & Noble, and Whole Foods Markets. Find out more about Karen at www.superhealthychildren.com.
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9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss
9 COMMANDMENTS
OF ECO-SEX: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season by Stefanie Iris-Weiss
What are your plans outside of food, family, and friends this upcoming holiday season? If you answered, “getting more action,” you’re not only honest, you’ve come to the right place. Perhaps you’re green, single, and hoping to hook up with someone on the same page. Whether you’re looking to spice up your current relationship or start something new and steamy, here’s how to start doing it (and doing it well). Eco-sex starts with your relationship to your own body. In order to seduce, and allow yourself to be seduced, it always helps to begin with feeling beautiful. What’s the fastest way to get there? Embrace healthy self-care habits, instead of slathering a poisonous brew of conventional, chemical-laden products on your skin, your biggest organ. The vast majority of personal care items for sale at your local pharmacy are just plain bad for you. What’s the point of getting gussied up when you’re simultaneously killing yourself with toxins that cause cancer and disrupt your hormones? And many of these products are tested on animals in an unnecessarily cruel manner. Join the eco-sexual revolution and do it the only way you should -- the green and compassionate way. VegWorld Magazine
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9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss
Commandment 1:
big night. See Commandment 8 below for more on this.)
If you’re new to greening your routine, you can easily get caught up in greenwashing schemes. Avoid all that by going to only trusted brands. If you’re unsure about anything already in your stash, you can check it out using the Environmental Working Group’s truly awesome cosmetic safety database.
Commandment 2:
Your Skin – Go Deeper and Deeper
People complain about the expense of green personal care products, and it’s a legitimate concern. Until supply and demand dictate that everything we buy is clean, green, cruelty-free, non-toxic, and fair trade, the big companies will keep pushing the poison on us. But even if your budget is tight, you can be a lean, green, sexy machine. Start with the allin-one theory of beauty -- find products that do more than one thing. So many fall prey to using every product in a conventional line: cleanser, toner, moisturizer, eye cream, décolleté cream, and then onto makeup primer, foundation, and on and on. You’re spending oodles of money and time. The conventional beauty industry is built around hooking you and getting you to buy more, more and more -- and then making you think that you can’t live without it. Here’s a way to cut out all the waste. One of my most adored essentials is argan oil, a vitamin-rich oil cold-pressed by Berber women in Morocco. Because only a few drops do the job beautifully, a bottle will last a long time. And better yet, it can be used as facial moisturizer, under-eye moisturizer, body oil, and hair oil. My god -- you can even use it as a salad dressing. Pure grade coconut oil is another brilliant multi-use oil. You can use it to moisturize the body and face (for dry skin), as a makeup remover, hair oil, and yes, in your smoothie and to stir-fry your veggies. (You can even use it as lube once you get to the VegWorld Magazine
Get that Morning After-Glow (the Night Before)
Make your date prep into a long, sexy ritual leading up to the big night.
The secret to glowing, healthy skin is that you can spend almost nothing to get it. One of the major complaints about “green” products is their prohibitive expense. You can do it yourself for the least cost. Try this sexy Brown Sugar Body Scrub, generously contributed by Janice Cox, co-author of “EcoBeauty.” You probably only need to visit your cupboard to gather the ingredients: 1 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup almond oil 1/2 teaspoon vitamin E oil 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional) In a bowl, stir together all the ingredients until well blended. Spoon the mixture into a clean jar with a tight-fitting lid. To use, while standing Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 28
9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss in the tub or shower, massage 1 or 2 tablespoons of the scrub onto your skin to gently exfoliate and moisturize. Rinse well and follow with a rich natural oil or moisturizer.
Commandment 3:
Green and Absolutely, Smashingly Gorgeous - Use the Best in Eco-cosmetics
Now that your skin is glowing, it’s time to add a little shimmer and glimmer (and to cover up flaws.) I’m a long-time devotee of RMS Beauty, one of the purest makeup lines available, made from organic coconut oil. RMS has many vegan cosmetic options, and the company doesn’t test on animals. Many other brands, including Ecco Bella, have vegan, organic, and cruelty-free cosmetic options. Be sure to do your homework before putting anything on your face.
Conventional perfumes (the kind you get at the department stores) are one of the worst toxic offenders. If you want to get your scent on, try do-it-yourself blends or phthalate-free brands.
Commandment 4:
Your Poison™ is Literally Poison - Ditch the Conventional Perfume for Sweeter, Sexier Scents
It’s true that love and lust are often born subconsciously (in the nose). If you’re going to absorb only one green tip, learn to avoid anything that lists the deadly term “fragrance” on the label. Eighty to ninety percent of synthetic perfumes are derived from petroleum, and the vast majority is full of volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) that wreak havoc with your mucous membranes. That’s the same stuff in house paint; the kind that makes you feel faint when you forget to open the windows, and many of which are toxic. Lovely eco- and body-friendly alternative brands exist. I adore Acorelle Natural Beauty (a French company), Strange Invisible Perfumes, Red Flower, and A Perfume Organic.
When it comes to makeup, it’s worth it to spend a little bit more to get chemical- and cruelty-free, pure products.
VegWorld Magazine
Here’s a sexy tip from Persephenie, the Los Angeles-based natural perfumer: men go wild for a mashup of rose, vanilla and geranium, while women swoon for cedarwood, vetiver, and vanilla. Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 29
9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss
Commandment 6:
Feed Your Lust - Raw & Vegan Aphrodisiacs
Even if you’re just exploring eco-sexuality because you’re after the hot vegan guy you met at your friend’s party, you may end up sticking to the diet once you reap some of the amazing health benefits. Eating less meat and dairy not only makes you more attractive, it also increases your stamina. A plant-based diet keeps you slim, improves the texture of your skin, and powerfully increases your energy. If you’re cooking up a feast for a prospective lover, include some of these yummy, stimulating aphrodisiacs for an extra incentive:
You’ll find a selection of sexy lingerie like this from the company Under the Root, on sale at etsy.com
Commandment 5:
Dress You Up in My Love – Wear Slinky, Sexy Eco-Underthings
No, darling, you don’t have to wear a hempsack in the sack. Ridiculously alluring bras, panties, garters and boxer briefs for men can be found in all manner of eco-friendly materials like bamboo and organic cotton. Check out Urban Fox, an edgy, women-owned, absolutely stunning lingerie line made in the U.S. Under the Root, out of Chicago, makes crazy/sexy underwear from reclaimed and vintage materials.
For men: Basil, bay leaf, hemp seeds, grapes, pineapple, pumpkin, cinnamon, vanilla, watermelon, peach, squash, ginseng, goji berries, chilies, cayenne, mango, mustard, lavender, and figs. For women: Almond, artichoke, avocado, chocolate, ginger, papaya, saffron, soy, licorice, truffles, and cardamom.
Avocados are rich in vitamins A and E. The Mayans and Aztecs ate them for sexual potency.
Warning: Shortly after acquiring these delightful items, prepare to have them peeled off of you.
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9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss
Commandment 7:
Protect Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself (and the planet) Greener Birth Control Options
Ready to get it on? Don’t risk adding another 9,441 metric tons of carbon dioxide to our already hot and bothered planet unless you’re REALLY ready for parenthood -- and by that I mean green parenthood. Birth control is complicated, and different rules apply if you’re in a long-term, monogamous relationship or if you’re sleeping with multiple partners. Birth control pills, for all they’ve done to liberate women since the early sixties, are still not the best choice. Lucky for you, Sir Richard’s Condom Company takes all the stress out of the situation, so you can get straight to the fun part. The first ever “buy one, give one” brand of condoms, these prophylactics are made from latex (a renewable resource) and boxed in stylish, recyclable boxes. For each condom purchased in the U.S., one is donated to a developing country. And since they come in extra large, ultra thin, classic ribbed and something called “pleasure dots,”
Sliquid Organics makes glycerin and paraben-free organic lubricant.
you’ll have plenty of ways to do good.
Commandment 8:
Get Your Organic Lube On
As I say in “Eco-Sex,” there’s a lot more to your K-Y than meets the eye. Lubes are notoriously filled with awful chemicals, including parabens and other substances that you might not consider dangerous. Glycerin is a common ingredient in conventional lubes, despite the fact that it can cause yeast infections and make you more susceptible to STDs. Lucky for you and your partner, there are loads of new toxin-free lubes on the market. Try Yes Yes Yes, Sliquid Organics, and Hathor Aphrodisia. You can also go “do it yourself” and use coconut oil as a lube or massage oil, but be careful not to use it with latex condoms -- it will degrade them.
Sir Richard’s Condoms: they cost $874 less than a Bugaboo Stroller. Need more incentive to wrap it up?
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9 Commandments of Eco-Sex: Getting it on the Green Way for the Holiday Season | Stefanie Iris-Weiss body. Remember the BPA in baby bottles controversy? Even though it’s not PG, it’s just as important to make sure your sex toys are toxic-free. For high quality, long lasting, beautifully-designed sex toys that belong on top of your night table, not inside the drawer, Jimmyjane is my go-to brand. Their toys are made from body-safe silicone, and their environmental policies meet my high standards.
Jimmyjane’s gorgeous Little Chroma Vibrators are more than just nice to look at at.
Commandment 9:
Games People Play – Get Sex Toys that Provide Endless, Non-toxic Pleasure
What you don’t know about your sex toys can hurt you. If you’ve got an old vibrator in your night table drawer, it’s highly likely that it’s made from toxic materials that should never come into contact with your body -- especially the warm, moist areas of your
If you’re ready to replace your old toys, shop at only trusted online and brick-and-mortar shops. My favorite sustainability-friendly sex shop is the luxury-laden Coco de Mer (in London, New York City, and LA). I also adore Smitten Kitten in Minneapolis, Babeland, Red Tent Sisters in Toronto, and Good Vibrations in San Francisco. And don’t forget to recycle your old toy instead of sending it to a landfill where it will languish forever. Just follow these basic nine commandments and enjoy a life full of good (and good for you) eco-sex. Enjoy!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stefanie Iris Weiss, MA, is the author of nine books, including her latest title–Eco-Sex: Go Green Between the Sheets and Make Your Love Life Sustainable (Crown Publishing/Ten Speed Press, 2010). Based in NYC, she writes about feminism, sexuality, reproductive rights, sustainability, dating and relationships, and more. Stefanie is a regular contributor to British Elle, and has written for Nerve.com, The Daily Green, Marie Claire, Zink Magazine, and Teen Vogue, to name a few. Her new sex & sustainability column, Above the Sheets, debuted in ABOVE Magazine last fall. Get a copy of Stefanie’s Eco-Sex book by clicking the link here and visit her website here.
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Nourish Your Skin as You Nourish Your Body | Sitarani Palomar
Nourish Your Skin as You Nourish Your Body by Sitarani Palomar
A holistic lifestyle is about nourishing yourself in a natural way. Of course that includes what you eat and how good those foods are for you, but the concept of “holism” is about entirety, and there are many choices that contribute to overall wellness. Our outer beings want to reflect our inner beauty and mirror the beauty of the natural world around us. Beauty, in that sense, is actually created from the inside out as well as from the outside in. And just as you cannot eat poor food and expect to look healthy on the outside, you cannot put poor products on your body and expect to feel good on the inside. That is why a holistic approach to skincare is as much a topic as a holistic diet. Your skin is your largest organ, but many of us treat our skin like armor, taking for granted that it’s tissue that needs to be healthy in order for our bodies to be healthy. We can give our skin the same kind of loving attention we give our diets, though, by getting to know the ingredients in our products just as we’ve gotten to know the ingredients in our food. Often, in the world of skincare and even in organic or ecobranded skincare, there are ingredients in the products that I specifically avoid in my diet. Hydrogenated oils, for example, are liquid oils that have had hydrogen atoms forced onto the molecule in order to fully saturate the fat so that it is solid at room temperature. Companies use hydrogenated oils as a stabilizer in skincare and cosmetics for a longer shelf life and improved texture. Through the process of hydrogenation, these oils are exposed to high pressure and high temperature, causing oxidation. Once oxidized, they are more likely to break down as free radicals which have been associated with premature aging, damaging of body tissue, and an increased likelihood of disease later in life. Skincare products also often contain Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, an ingredient which gives soaps and shampoos their sudzing effect
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Nourish Your Skin as You Nourish Your Body | Sitarani Palomar and which may disrupt hormones in the body or cause mild to severe skin irritation. Furthermore, most cosmetics on the market contain ingredients made from animals or that have been tested on animals. Ingredients like stearic acid, glycerin, and cetyl alcohol can be made from plant-based ingredients but are frequently taken from animals. Companies with compassionate practices take pride in saying so and will often label themselves as “cruelty-free.�
Take care from the inside out: the best skincare products contain ingredients you would want to eat.
The best skincare and cosmetics contain ingredients you would want to eat. Look for items like extra virgin olive oil, used as a natural moisturizer and in the prevention of UVB damage, organic aloe vera to hydrate, soothe, and heal skin as well as provide a dose of anti-oxidants to fight aging, and coconut which has been used in cultures around the world to treat skin irritations such as eczema and dermatitis. Fruits and vegetables are also powerhouses of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients that are good for the skin, like the vitamin A or retinal in melons which helps fight acne and tighten fine lines and wrinkles, and folate found in leafy greens, asparagus, and avocado which helps promote even skin tone. The same vitality you experience from eating colorful fruits and salads can be harnessed for glowing skin. Renew and revitalize your look by purchasing products that draw on Mother Nature’s intelligent design.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sitarani Palomar is a fashion and beauty expert and a natural chef with a unique approach to personal wellness that integrates holistic nutrition, organic textiles and seasonal skincare, helping people to find their beauty from the inside out as well as from the outside in. Sitarani is a Brand Ambassador for Ecco Bella Natural and Organic Intelligent Beauty.
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NUTRITION
AND THRIVING The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? Do Mammograms Cause More Harm Than Good? The Seven Keys to Lifelong Sexual Vitality
The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? | Dr. John McDougall
The Paleo Diet:
Is It Our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic?
B
by Dr. John McDougall
y now you surely have heard about the “Paleo Diet.” This newest fad diet (which is also referred to as the Paleolithic Diet, the Caveman Diet, the Stone Age Diet and the Hunter-Gatherer Diet) has been promoted all over the Internet and is the subject of myriad new magazines and other publications. As a result, it has become a very popular approach to weight loss and is billed as a way to improve health and longevity. Perhaps you know a friend or family member who has gone down this path, or you yourself have wondered whether this diet is right for you. The nutritional plan of the Paleo Diet is based on the presumption that our ancestors living during the Paleolithic era—a period of time
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from 10,000 to 2.5 million years ago—were nourished primarily by animal foods. According the basic theory behind Paleo dieting, as a result of more than two million years of evolution, we are now genetically adapted to eat what the hunter-gathers ate—mostly animal foods. But is this true? Or is the Paleo Diet yet another incarnation of the low-carbohydrate diet—a diet that has been around for years and is known to be antithetical to good health?
The Paleo Diet: A Recycled Fad in a Shiny New Wrapper
Low-carbohydrate (low-carb) diets have been all the rage for years now. Touted as a Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 37
The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? | Dr. John McDougall way to lose weight fast, different iterations of this low-carb fad have sprouted up everywhere. The Paleo Diet is just the newest version of this same diet. As a matter of scientific fact, however, these diets are not good for the human body. “Low-carbohydrate” necessarily means a diet high in animal foods and low in plant foods, since most plants contain carbohydrates, while the body parts of animals—including red meat, poultry, seafood, fish and eggs—do not. The original Atkins Diet, for example, is the ultimate in low-carb eating. This diet actually works by starving the human body of carbohydrates in order to induce a state of illness, known as ketosis, which can result in weight loss. Unfortunately, people become too sick to eat too much. The June 2, 2012 issue of the British Medical Journal presented the latest updates on the long-term health hazards of low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet. It reported a 62 percent higher incidence in heart disease among women in the highest categories of low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets compared with the lowest. These low-carb diets, from Atkins to Paleo, are simply dangerous.
“If You Repeat a Lie Often Enough, It Becomes the Truth”
“The Paleo Answer” (revised 2011) is the bible for followers of this approach. Written by Loren Cordain, Ph.D., Professor in the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Colorado State University, the book describes the Paleo Diet as “the one and only diet that ideally fits our genetic makeup.” The author claims that every human being on Earth ate this way for the past 2.5 million years, until the dawn of the Agriculture Revolution 10,000 years ago, when grains, legumes, and potatoes were introduced
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The Paleo diet is based on a myth. Ancient huntergatherers survived mostly on plant foods, not meat.
worldwide. According to Dr. Cordain, “ There wasn’t a single person who did not follow the Paleo Diet.” Notably, however, the Paleo Diet and its teachings are based on a glaring historical error: the idea that our ancient ancestors were hunter-gathers with an emphasis on hunting. The bulk of scientific research on this point actually supports the opposite. Primates, including humans, have practiced hunting and gathering for millions of years. I know of no large populations of primates who have been strict vegans. However, with very few exceptions, plants have provided the bulk of the calories for almost all primates. This truth has been unpopular, in part, because of a well-recognized human trait: sexism. Grandparents, women and children did the gathering, while men hunted. Glory always goes to the hunters. When asked about the commonly held idea that ancient people were primarily meat eaters, the highly respected anthropologist
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The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? | Dr. John McDougall Nathanial Dominy, Ph.D., from Dartmouth College responded, “That’s a myth. Huntergatherers … the majority of their calories come from plant foods … Meat is just too unpredictable.” After studying the bones, teeth and genetics of primates for his entire career as a biological anthropologist, Dr. Dominy, states, “Humans might be more appropriately described as ‘starchivors.’” And that’s just the beginning. Recent publications from the major scientific journals contain overwhelming evidence that our ancient ancestors were not primarily meat eaters. For example: • Research published in the journal Nature (on June 27, 2012) reports that almost the entire diet of our very early human ancestors, dating from 2 million years ago, consisted of leaves, fruits, wood and bark—a diet similar to that of modern-day chimpanzees. • Research presented in a 2011 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that even the Neanderthals ate a variety of plant foods; starch grains have been found on the teeth of their skeletons everywhere from the warm eastern Mediterranean to chilly northwestern Europe. It appears they even cooked, and otherwise prepared, plant foods to make them more digestible—44,000 years ago.
Animal-derived foods cause our most common diseases, yet they make up the majority of the Paleo Diet. Many plant foods, which effectively cure diseases, are forbidden to Paleo eaters.
into flour, was a wide-spread practice in Europe as far back as 30,000 years ago, or even earlier. Despite the overwhelming evidence disputing the premise of the Paleo Diet, it continues to get a highly visible platform with too little public debate.
Paleo Nutrition Contradicts the Obvious: Most People Have Lived on Starch-Based Diets
All large populations of trim, healthy people throughout verifiable human history have obtained the bulk of their calories from starch. Examples of societies that once thrived on starches include the Japanese, Chinese and other Asians eating sweet potatoes, buck-
• A 2010 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported that starch grains from wild plants were identified on grinding tools at archaeological sites dating back to the Paleolithic period in Italy, Russia and the Czech Republic. These findings suggest that processing vegetables and starches, and possibly grinding them
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The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? | Dr. John McDougall wheat and/or rice; Incas in South America eating potatoes; Mayans and Aztecs in Central America eating corn; and Egyptians in the Middle East eating wheat. There have been only a few small isolated populations of primitive people, such as the Arctic Eskimos, living at the extremes of the environment, who have eaten otherwise. Therefore, scientific documentation of what people have eaten over the past 13,000 years convincingly supports that starch, not animals, is the traditional diet of people. Men and women following diets based on grains, legumes and starchy vegetables have accomplished most of the great feats in history. The ancient conquerors of Europe and Asia, including the armies of Alexander the Great (356–323 B.C.) and Genghis Khan (A.D. 1162–1227), consumed starch-based diets. Caesar’s legions complained when they had too much meat in their diet and preferred to do their fighting on grains. Primarily six foods—barley, maize (corn), millet, potatoes, rice and wheat—have fueled the caloric engines of human civilization.
Today’s hunter-gatherers who eat manly meat, such as the Inuits (Eskimos), suffer from heart disease and osteoporosis.
The longest-living populations on planet Earth today live on starch-based diets. These include people from Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece; and the Seventh Day Adventists in Loma Linda, California, who live in what are called the “Blue Zones.”
Medical experts in starch-based diet therapy include Walter Kempner, M.D., the founder of the Rice Diet at Duke University; longevity research pioneer Nathan Pritikin; and Roy Swank, M.D., founder of the dietary treatment of multiple sclerosis at Oregon Health & Science University.
The most effective diets ever used to cure people of common-day illnesses, like coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hypercholes-terolemia, arthritis and obesity, minimize animal foods and require that people eat the bulk of their calories from starches, including grains, legumes and potatoes—foods forbidden to Paleo eaters.
The Paleo Diet Is a Nutritional Nightmare
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By nature, the Paleo Diet is based on arteryclogging saturated fats and cholesterol, as well as bone-damaging, acidic proteins from animal foods. (See VegWorld Magazine, Issue 4, November 2012, “When Friends Ask: Why Did You Quit Meat?). Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 40
The Paleo Diet: Is it our “Natural” Diet or an Unhealthy Relic? | Dr. John McDougall Respected researchers find that those modern-day hunter-gatherer populations who base their diets on meat, such as the Inuits (Eskimos), suffer from heart disease and other forms of atherosclerosis, while those modern-day hunter-gathers who base their diets on plant foods are free of these diseases. Osteoporosis is also epidemic among meat- and fish-consuming hunter-gatherers, specifically the Inuits. Eating animal-derived foods causes our most common diseases because, among other reasons, they contain no dietary fiber, are full of disease-causing microbes (including mad cow prions and E. coli and salmonella bacteria), and contain the highest levels of poisonous environmental chemicals found in the food chain. Yet these same foods make up 55 percent of the Paleo Diet.
Widespread Adoption of the Paleo Diet Would Soon Become an Eco-logical Disaster
The 2006 United Nations’ report Livestock’s Long Shadow: Environmental Issues and Options concludes: “Livestock have a substantial impact on the world’s water, land and biodiversity resources and contribute significantly to climate change. Animal agriculture produces 18 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalents), compared with 13.5 percent from all forms of transportation combined.” This report from the World Health Organiza-
tion is a conservative estimate of the destruction caused by the very foods that the Paleo Diet recommends in abundance. Calculations by the World Watch Institute find that over 51 percent of the global warming gases are the result of raising animals for human consumption. A recent report from the U.S. Geological Survey estimates that it takes 4,000 to 18,000 gallons of water to produce the beef used to make one juicy hamburger.
Civilizations Could Not Have Thrived on the Paleo Diet
According to Dr. Cordain, “The Agriculture Revolution changed the world and allowed civilizations—cities, culture, technological and medical achievements, and scientific knowledge—to develop.” In other words, if people had remained on a diet of mostly animal foods (assuming our ancestors actually did), we would still be living in the Stone Age. Fortunately, the Agriculture Revolution, with the efficient production of grains, legumes and potatoes—the very foods forbidden by the Paleo Diet—allowed us to become civilized. Dr. Cordain finishes his 2011 revision of his national best-selling book “The Paleo Answer” by warning, “Without them (starches, like wheat, rice, corn, and potatoes), the world could probably support one-tenth or less of our present population…” Choose 10 close friends and family members. Which nine should die in order for our society to embrace the Paleo Diet?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John A. McDougall , M.D., has authored many best-selling books and is featured in the docu-mentary and book “Forks 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 about Dr. McDougall at www.drmcdougall.com.
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Do Mammograms Cause More Harm Than Good? | Dr. Thomas Lodi
DO MAMMOGRAMS CAUSE
MORE HARM THAN GOOD?
P
ink ribbons, fundraising hikes, runs and walks seem to culturally define breast cancer awareness in America as much as apple pie, turkeys and pilgrims define Thanksgiving. Our breast cancer awareness heritage, though, has very shallow roots going back in time only a couple of decades to 1985. That was the year the Breast Cancer Awareness campaign was created—not just to raise awareness, but notably, to raise research monies for breast cancer. As a result of this relatively new “awareness,” mammograms have become so prevalent that to the average American, they are now synonymous with breast cancer screening. In fact, when a physician orders a breast ultrasound as an initial, harmless screening tool, she receives a call from the radiologist explaining that an ultrasound cannot be performed until the results of a mammogram have been obtained. But are mammograms the right choice for cancer screening?
Mammograms Expose Women to Harmful Radiation, Which Causes Cancer
The truth is, mammograms are not the most effective screening tool; in fact, they cause more harm than good. Mammograms were
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by Dr. Thomas Lodi
deceptively pushed onto an unsuspecting public without any professional oversight or sustained objections by the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in the early 1970s. This happened in spite of the fact that in 1974, Professor Malcolm Pike of the University of Southern California, School of Medicine told the NCI that “giving a woman under age 50 a mammogram on a routine basis is close to unethical.” Indeed, one of the only acknowledged causes of cancer according to the ACS is radiation; also according to the ACS, there is no safe level of exposure. Yet this same organization not only targets 40-year-old women for routine mammography, but even suggests that women as young as 25 years of age begin routine screening under certain circumstances. As the late Irwin D. Bross, director of biostatistics at Roswell Park Memorial Institute for Mammograms are meant to diagnose cancer. Yet they use radiation - one of the only acknowledged causes of cancer for which there is no safe level of exposure.
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Do Mammograms Cause More Harm Than Good? | Dr. Thomas Lodi
Cancer Research, stated in 1978, “Women should have been given the information about the hazards of radiation ... The exposure of a quarter of a million persons to something which could do more harm than good was criminal and it was supported by money from the federal government and the American Cancer Society.” In fact, there has been a dramatic increase (328%) in DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) since mammography became the principal mode of screening, with 200% of this increase allegedly resulting directly from mammograms. As Dr. Charles Simone (former clinical associate of NCI) summarizes, “Mammograms increase the risk for developing breast cancer and raise the risk of spreading or metastasizing an existing growth.” This last statement is obvious to anyone who has seen or experienced a mammogram. Sensitive breast tissue is painfully squashed (traumatized) and then irradiated. What’s more, NCI has released evidence suggesting that mammography will cause 75 cases of breast cancer for every 15 that it diagnoses! This is even more poignant when one considers that a recent Canadian study found the mortality rate from breast cancer in younger women was 52% greater for those who underwent annual mammographic screening. Throughout the 1990s and up to the present time, many authorities have come out and presented these mind-boggling facts to the public at large, including Dr. I. Craig Henderson, director of the Clinical Cancer Center VegWorld Magazine
at the University of California in San Francisco; Dr. Robert McLelland, a radiologist at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine; Burton Goldberg; Terry A. Rondberg, D.C.; Ralph Moss, Ph.D.; and Gary Null, Ph.D. In 1999, the truth about mammograms was published in the Journal of Alternative Medicine. But, unfortunately, this journal is not widely known or publicized.
Mammograms Have Not Proven Accurate, Especially for Younger Women
As if all of that were not enough, mammograms have false-positive rates as high as 20% in premenopausal women. “False positive” means that the person is told that she has cancer when, in fact, she doesn’t. Although mammograms can and do detect some early malignancies, most of these are well-known not to be lethal. What’s more, despite some evidence that early detection may improve survival in postmenopausal women under 69 years of age, no such benefit is demonstrable for younger women. Since it is fairly routine for a woman to obtain a breast ultrasound in order to corroborate the findings of a mammogram, it is more appropriate that this safe diagnostic tool be used instead of one that produces the very
Mammograms are not always accurate and have false-positive rates as high as 20% in premenopausal woman.
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Do Mammograms Cause More Harm Than Good? | Dr. Thomas Lodi disease it is employed to find.
Breast Cancer Awareness Should Focus Instead on the Toxins That Cause the Disease
There is really no mystery regarding the causes of the current epidemic of breast cancer: toxins in our food, water, air, clothing, homes, workplaces, automobiles and public areas. Yet the role that our continually expanding toxic environment (including the routine dumping into our environment of plastics, estrogen mimickers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and the long list of numerous carcinogenic compounds) plays in the development of breast cancer is patently absent from the discussion. Only about 3% of the more than 75,000 chemicals in regular use today have actually been tested for their overall safety and carcinogenicity. Furthermore, it is wellestablished that living close to toxic waste disposal areas can increase the incidence of breast cancer more than sixfold, as does having well-manicured and “pest-free” lawns. Fifty years ago, an American woman’s risk of developing breast cancer was 1 in 20, whereas now that risk is almost 1 in 7. What’s more, women now develop cancer much earlier in life. It is unfathomable that this data does not constitute the main topic of discussion with regard to breast cancer and serve to redirect dollars raised by “cancer awareness” into
You can dramatically lower your cancer risk by making nontoxic choices and lowering your stress through meditation, exercise and plenty of sleep.
truly preventable areas of research.
Young Women: Skip the Mammogram and Instead Avoid Toxic Substances
Toxins are the predominant ingredients of most consumer products, outweighing the active ingredients. You can dramatically diminish your own personal risk of contracting breast or any other cancer by simply eating and drinking nontoxic foods in their original and whole form and carefully selecting the environment in which you live—from clothing to paint on the walls to carpets to automobiles to cosmetics and hygiene products. You would also do well to avoid or resolve toxic relationships, learn to sleep appropriately for our species, learn how to mitigate the effects of stress through meditation, laugh with friends and, of course, engage in regular enjoyable exercise.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Thomas Lodi, MD, a master’s level clinical psychologist, received his medical degree in 1985 from the University of Hawaii. He completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons and worked for ten years as an internist, urgent care physician, and intensivist (ICU/ CCU). After several years of additional training in alternative modalities, he narrowed his focus to integrative oncology. Find out about Dr. Thomas Lodi’s Healing from Cancer program at www.healingfromcancer.net
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The Seven Keys to Lifelong Sexual Vitality | Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement
THE SEVEN KEYS
to Lifelong Sexual Vitality By Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement
D
id you know that having a sexual relationship with someone you love can make you healthy, as well as happy? It’s true.
But all too often, we see the gift of healthy sex misrepresented in the media. Sexuality has become an icon for marketers, who have perverted it in endless ways. And when we view acts of intimacy and love through a twisted lens, we suppress our own desires and needs. This in turn can erupt in psychological and physical ways. Reclaim your sexuality (and your health and happiness along with it). Here are the seven keys to sexual vitality.
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The Seven Keys to Lifelong Sexual Vitality | Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement
KEY ONE: Let sex by thy medicine.
People in committed relationships who maintain sexual intimacy have a three times greater chance of achieving their health recovery goals. This is how powerful a driving force sex can be in perpetuating life. So, if you want to be healthy in body and mind, step one is to realize how integral relationships and healthy sex are to that goal. Turn off that phone, facebook account and computer; start interacting with others; change your attitude about sexuality; and let sex be thy medicine!
KEY TWO: Think “sexy.”
“Sex is first and foremost a psychological issue,” affirms Dr. Barratt, President of the American Association of Sex Educators. When you develop a sane and sound vision of sexuality, your inhibitions and restrictions will morph into acceptance and sharing.
Click here for a copy of this book.
Our values and approach to sex have a lot to do with sexual vitality. For example, somehow we, as parents, think our children are not going to develop sex hormones. Thus we do not help guide them as their sexual desires blossom. On the other end of the spectrum, we think after people mature, they no longer have any desire for romance. Both of these examples, along with many other myths and fabrications, contribute to the mass confusion that creates cultural awkwardness about intimacy. As a young child, you were not sexual, but certainly inquisitive until your hormones rallied and sexuality rose. If at that time you were discouraged from expressing yourself, it created the beginnings of an unhappy and unfulfilled life. You need to open your mind to the joys of sex, dispel your current misunderstandings and open a world of possibilities.
KEY THREE: Express your sexuality.
Most of us find it difficult to fantasize and share our fantasies with our partner. Yet study after study reveals that this is healthy and helpful in keeping sexual intimacy fresh and alive. There is nothing wrong with being honest. And keep in mind that even just the vision that turns you on may fulfill your deepest desires without you having to actually experiment. Research shows that many men and women who cheat are not doing so for the sex alone. Ninety-two percent of husbands who have affairs state they had an emotional disconnect with their wife. Similar findings surface when wives who cheat are asked why they have left the security of marriage and taken a leap into the unknown. Expressing your sexuality with your partner maintains that vital emotional connection and VegWorld Magazine
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The Seven Keys to Lifelong Sexual Vitality | Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement keeps your relationship fresh and new for the long haul.
KEY FOUR: Protect your sexuality.
Want to keep a strong libido? Limit your use of that lipstick you carry around in your purse. Keeping free of toxic substances is a critical step in achieving sexual health. This includes limiting your use of synthetic chemicals in every form, including junk foods, municipal water, medicines, cosmetics, personal care products and other consumer items. Each of these items imposes a burden on your body that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, after thousands of tests, say will negatively alter your health. The core reason that these burdens affect your sexuality is that they are hormone disruptive. Overwhelming evidence shows that this means lowered sperm counts in men and egg counts in women. Another contributor to loss of sexual interest is lack of participation. As far back as the mid-20th century, anatomical biologists exposed the disheartening fact that the less sexual activity you have, the less ability you have to have sex. It is almost like the body shuts itself off waiting for you to turn it on again. So, remember to “use it or lose it.”
KEY FIVE: Nourish your sexuality.
Even infertility can be conquered. But most couples who are infertile resort to fertility medicine, which has a long list of side effects. Simple, natural suggestions to increase sperm and egg counts and healthy conception range from ginseng for men to cauliflower for women. Researchers at Texas A&M University recently showed that water
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Toxic substances found in junk foods, personal care items and medications are known to lower sperm counts in men and egg counts in women.
melon was as effective as Viagra in assisting libido. And it actually worked for both genders!
KEY SIX: Channel sexual energy in your mind.
One of the foremost problems with the average five minutes of intercourse that couples share is premature ejaculation. Of equal concern is the fact that the majority of women are not completely aroused resulting in a lack of climax for them. Without fail, by practicing the technique of channeling your sexual energy in your mind, you will not only strengthen your resolve, but biologically improve your body’s abilities. This may sound mystical, but it is more practical than you may think. For example, picture arriving home after a hard day at work to a candlelit abode with rose petals leading you to your room and your sensual mate.
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The Seven Keys to Lifelong Sexual Vitality | Drs. Brian and Anna Maria Clement Rituals like these can create psychological and physical heightening of desire. It actually seems to transcend the physical, raising intercourse to a sacred place. With focus and control, you can also prolong and expand the pleasure and purity of intercourse in this way.
KEY SEVEN: Prolong your sexuality.
In our work, we have met couples married for 60 years or more who are still making love. When speaking to them, a certain theme always seems to present itself: One’s state of mind and continual sexual indulgence will forge a long sex life. There are many common myths about aging and sexuality. One of the most absurd is that women do not share the same sexual desire
as men. Considering that women’s bodies do not sexually peak until their 30s and 40s, it is clear that they would be likely to have sexual desire into their 70s, 80s and 90s. A man sexually peaks before he is 20. One of the other enduring myths is that you cannot be sexy when you get older. How many actors and actresses do you still find sexy who are well beyond 60? How you carry yourself and perceive your own sexual vitality is more important than the number of wrinkles you have. Until we address and resolve our personal issues surrounding intimacy, we will never gain the level of health that we deserve. Once we do, a world of happiness and health is ours for the taking. Here’s to your sexual vitality!
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
In their roles as co-directors of the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida, Drs. Brian Clement and Anna Maria Gahns-Clement are internationally recognized as leading experts in the fields of health, natural healing and anti-aging. Both have dedicated their entire professional careers to supporting Hippocrates’ historic mission, “Let Food Be Thy Medicine and Medicine Be Thy Food,” by imparting knowledge on how to improve health by trading nutrient-deficient “dead” foods for a diet rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and plant-based proteins. Together, the couple has raised four children according to this philosophy, all of whom have led happy, healthy and disease-free lives since infancy. Visit www.hippocrateshealthinstitute.com to find out more.
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RECIPES
FOR FOODIES Raw Food for Cooked Food Lovers Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Hazelnuts The Veg Edge Harvest-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms Vegan for the Holidays
Raw Food for Cooked Food Lovers | Cherie Soria
RAW FOOD FOR COOKED FOOD LOVERS by Cherie Soria
Did you know that wild rice is actually a grass seed? It’s high in protein and zinc and other minerals and unlike other forms of rice, doesn’t require cooking to enjoy. Grey wild rice blooms very nicely just by soaking it in a warm environment. We use the Excalibur dehydrator to soak it overnight and make it soft and chewy; then just add your other ingredients and warm it up in the Excalibur until your guests are ready to eat. You can find several recipes using wild rice bloomed in this way in my books “Raw Food Revolution Diet” and “Raw Food for Dummies,” but this one is hands down, our favorite for the holidays. VegWorld Magazine
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Raw Food for Cooked Food Lovers | Cherie Soria
Holiday Wild Rice Pilaf Makes 8 cups (Serves 12)
Equipment needed: Excalibur Dehydrator
Ingredients
Directions
• 1½ stalks diced celery
2. Put the bloomed rice in a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Toss well, mixing all ingredients together thoroughly.
• 4 ounces grey wild rice, warm soak 24 hours* • 1 sliced green onion • 1½ shredded carrots • ¼ cup chopped soaked and dehydrated pecans • 3 tablespoons minced parsley • 3 thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms • 1½ teaspoons poultry seasoning • 3 tablespoons rough chopped dried cranberries • 1 tablespoon onion powder • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder • ¼ cup olive oil
1. Drain the rice and towel blot.
3. Put the rice mixture in a 9-inch by 11-inch Pyrex baking dish, or a sealed gallon jar and place it in a warm dehydrator or an hour to enliven the flavors and bring the temperature to warm.
4. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. *Note: Rinse rice and place in 1/2-gallon jar. Cover with 6 cups of filtered water and place in a 105 degree dehydrator for 18-24 hours. Drain rice, rinse, and drain again thoroughly. Grey wild rice* is available online at Living Light Marketplace www.RawFoodChef.com/store
• 1½ teaspoons lemon juice • 1½ tablespoons tamari • 1½ teaspoons dark miso • ¼ teaspoon orange zest
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Raw food revolutionary, Cherie Soria, is the founder and director of Living Light Culinary Institute, and has been teaching the art of gourmet raw foods to individuals, chefs, and instructors for more than 20 years and vegetarian culinary arts for 40 years. Cherie is also the author of four books, including “Raw Food Revolution Diet” and “Raw Food for Dummies.” Find out more at www.rawfoodchef.com.
VegWorld Magazine
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Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Hazelnuts | Chloe Coscarelli
Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Hazelnuts by Chloe Coscarelli
Forget all of your notions about what Brussels sprouts used to taste like. These little gems are roasted at a high heat to bring out the natural sugars and caramelize the edges. The Brussels sprouts can be roasted a day in advance and kept refrigerated. Reheat before serving.
Ingredients (Serves 6)
• 1 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts • ¼ cup olive oil • ¾ teaspoon sea salt • ¼ teaspoon black pepper • 2 tablespoons maple syrup • ½ cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts, toasted (see tip below)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. To prepare the Brussels sprouts, remove any yellow or brown outer leaves, cut off the stems, and cut in half. In a large bowl toss the Brussels sprouts, oil, salt, and pepper together. Once all of the Brussels sprouts are coated in oil, arrange them in a 9- x 13-inch pan. Roast for 15 minutes. Stir the Brussels sprouts around with a spatula or large spoon to even out the browning; continue to roast for another 30 minutes. Stir the Brussels sprouts again, and drizzle maple syrup over the top. Roast the Brussels sprouts for about 15 minutes more, or until they are fork tender (about 45 minutes total roasting time). Toss the roasted Brussels sprouts with the hazelnuts and serve. Chloe’s Tip on Toasting Hazelnuts: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the hazelnuts in one layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned and fragrant. Keep checking on them, because nuts can burn quickly. VegWorld Magazine
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The Veg Edge with Chloe Coscarelli
THE VEG EDGE with Chloe Coscarelli
VegWorld Magazine
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Harvest-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms | Chloe Coscarelli
HARVEST-STUFFED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS Serves 6
This hearty holiday entree is made of savory lentil cashew stuffing baked in juicy Portobello mushrooms and infused with aromatic herbs. The lentil stuffing can be made up to three days in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator. The mushrooms can be stuffed and assembled on a baking sheet the day before. Bake and finish the stuffed mushrooms right before serving.
Ingredients
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing • 1 onion, finely chopped • 1 cup cashews • 4 cloves garlic, minced • 1 cup cooked brown rice (or grain of choice) • 1 can lentils, rinsed and drained • ¼ cup breadcrumbs • ½ cup vegetable broth • 1 teaspoon dried basil • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus extra for garnish • 6 Portobello mushrooms, stems and gills removed • 1 tomato, sliced into thin rounds • Sea salt • Freshly ground black pepper
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Directions
In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium/high heat and add the onions and cashews. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until the onions are soft and lightly browned. Add garlic and let cook a few more minutes until fragrant. In a large bowl combine the onion mixture, brown rice, lentils, breadcrumbs, vegetable broth, basil, and thyme. Mix together and season to taste with salt and pepper. Brush both sides of the mushroom caps lightly with olive oil and place top-side-down on a lightly oiled sheet pan. Stuff mushrooms with about ½ cup of the lentil stuffing, and then press one tomato slice on top of the stuffing. Bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until the stuffing is browned and the mushrooms are cooked through. Garnish with extra fresh thyme leaves and let the feast begin!
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Harvest-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms | Chloe Coscarelli
A lifelong vegetarian and vegan for more than eight years, Chloe aims to bring delicious, meat-free dishes to the mainstream. Her decadent desserts and savory entrees prove that vegan cooking offers healthy choices without sacrificing flavor.
VegWorld Magazine
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Vegan for the Holidays | Zel Allen
VEGAN FOR THE HOLIDAYS
JOLLY GREEN CHRISTMAS TREE Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Here’s a holiday appetizer that puts yuletide spirit on a plate and unveils your hidden talent as a sculptor. This tasty dip can be mildly spiced, or crank it up to muy picante with extra jalapeño “chiles” and a pinch of cayenne. Serve traditionally with tortilla chips, or with delicious crisp cut veggies for a healthy holiday.
Ingredients
Dip • 1 pound frozen peas, thawed • 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves • 2 tablespoons organic sugar • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice • 1/2 to 1 jalapeño chile, seeded and coarsely chopped • 1 teaspoon salt • 3/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder • Pinch cayenne (optional)
Directions
1. Put the dip ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth and creamy, stopping occasionally to scrape down the work bowl. 2. Spoon the mixture onto a large platter and use the back of a spoon to form the mixture into the shape of a large Christmas tree. Decorate the tree with the bell pepper, carrot and optional green onion. Place the star anise at the top or arrange the cloves into a radiating star. Serve with baked tortilla chips, bean chips, toasted pita wedges or your favorite crackers.
Ornaments • 1/4 red bell pepper, finely diced • 1/2 carrot, finely diced • 1 green onion, white part only, sliced (optional) • 1 whole star anise, or 6 whole cloves
VegWorld Magazine
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Vegan for the Holidays | Zel Allen
SHIITAKE TORNADOES IN CASHEW CREAM SAUCE This sumptuous yuletide dish makes a showy presentation on the holiday table. It’s a winning entrée for those with an inquisitive palate because its deliciously complex flavors present a fun challenge to guess the hidden ingredients. Yield: Makes 12 balls; 8 to 12 servings
Ingredients
Tornadoes • 8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps cut into quarters • 1 onion, chopped • 1 tablespoon tamari • 1 1/2 teaspoons dried tarragon • 3/4 cup water • 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
• 3 cups cooked short-grain brown rice • 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats • 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely ground • 1/4 teaspoon salt • Freshly ground pepper • 1 cup black or regular sesame seeds • 12 long sprigs fresh rosemary, for garnish • 6 cherry tomatoes, cut in half, for garnish
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 17 1/2- x 12 1/2-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. 2. Combine the mushrooms, onion, tamari and tarragon in a large, deep skillet. Add water and cook, stirring over medium-high heat for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the mushrooms are cooked and the onion is softened and transparent. Add 1 or more tablespoons of water as needed to prevent burning. 3. Transfer the mushroom mixture to a food processor and add the olives. Process until smooth and creamy, stopping occasionally to scrape down the work bowl. Spoon the mixture into a large bowl. 4. Add the rice, oats, walnuts, salt and pepper and mix well. Pour the black sesame seeds into a deep, medium bowl. 5. Using your hands, form the mushroom mixture into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Roll each one in the sesame seeds to coat well. Place the coated balls on the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes. VegWorld Magazine
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Vegan for the Holidays | Zel Allen
Ingredients
Cashew Cream Sauce • 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth • 1/4 cup unsalted tomato paste • 1 to 2 tablespoons tamari • 2 cloves garlic, crushed • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme • 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram • Pinch cayenne • 1/2 cup cashews, finely ground • 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice • Salt • Freshly ground pepper
Directions
1. Combine the vegetable broth, tomato paste, tamari, garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, marjoram and cayenne in a 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Decrease the heat to medium and simmer 1 to 2 minutes. 2. Add the cashews, and whisk and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened. The sauce will continue to thicken upon standing. Before serving, stir in the lemon juice, salt and pepper. 3. To serve, spoon the sauce into a large, deep platter and arrange the tornadoes over the sauce. To garnish, poke a rosemary sprig into each tomato half, and push them into the tops of the tornadoes, so they stand upright. Note: If not serving immediately, refrigerate the tornadoes and sauce separately. Warm the tornadoes in a preheated oven at 350 F for 12 to 15 minutes before serving. Heat the sauce in a saucepan over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Zel Allen is the author of Vegan for the Holidays, a cookbook that’s bound to make the holidays from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day just a little tastier. Zel wanted to create a cookbook that was not only for vegans but also for non-vegetarians who want to serve lavish seasonal dishes that just may stand in for the traditional Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas ham. Pick up Zel’s “Vegan For The Holidays” book on Amazon by clicking here.
VegWorld Magazine
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ORDINARY PEOPLE
EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon
Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon
Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon
W
hether we realize it or not, too many of us suffer from chronic overeating. With obesity rates skyrocketing, people often turn to the quickest fix they can find to shed their excess pounds. “Fad” diets come and go, causing people to yo-yo up and down with extremely unhealthy consequences. So, what can an ordinary person do to overcome these obstacles and achieve extraordinary results?
Mind-Body-Spirit Guide for Putting an End to Overeating and Dieting.”
Our VegWorld Magazine interview this month is with Julie Simon. Julie is a licensed psychotherapist and life coach with more than 20 years of experience helping overeaters stop dieting, heal their relationship with themselves and their bodies, lose excess weight and keep it off. She is the author of the new book “The Emotional Eater’s Repair Manual: A Practical
JULIE: We all do a little bit of emotional eating. The truth is, we all enjoy eating, and we will eat when we’re not hungry or overeat on occasion just because the food is incredibly tasty or because it enhances our personal or social experiences. This becomes problematic when we turn to food so often that our health is at risk or we’re overweight.
Fad diets appeal to many as a “quick fix” to lose weight. But until you take a deeper look into your relationship with food, you will never lose the weight for good.
Julie sat down with VegWorld Magazine to share with us the keys to identifying—and overcoming—emotional eating. VEGWORLD (VW): So let’s start with the idea of eating emotionally. Is this something we all do?
You might consider yourself an emotional eater if, for example, any of the following apply: if you use food as a tranquilizer to dull emotions that are difficult to cope with like anxiety, anger, sadness, frustration or loneliness; if you use food to silence negative, critical, self-defeating thoughts; if you turn to food for soothing, comfort, pleasure and even excitement. You might eat to distract yourself from unpleasant feeling states such as boredom, apathy or overwhelm or when you’re generally upset or stressed out. You might even eat as a way to procrastinate. All of those would define you as an emotional eater. VW: Isn’t it true that you can be a vegetarian,
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Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon a vegan or even a raw vegan, and still be an emotional eater? JULIE: Exactly. You can be a raw foodist, for example, and be grinding up cashew cream butter every night. And, after all, potato chips are vegan, not to mention the overwhelming varieties of vegan cookies, ice cream and other treats now available. Being an emotional eater is not necessarily about eating large amounts though. It’s more about your relationship with food. If you’re turning to food to relieve your stress or for comfort, whether you’re a vegan or a raw foodist, you can consider yourself an emotional eater. You may not even be overweight, but still overconsuming comfort foods. VW: Where does this initially come from? When we’re babies, we’re often fed comfort foods when we cry. Is that where it first starts? JULIE: We certainly are initially soothed by sucking on our mother’s breast and by being fed and comforted with food when we’re young. But the truth is, what most emotional eaters have in common is that their early family experiences were undernourishing at best, and at worst they were chaotic or traumatic. So that’s usually what underlies emotional eating. For a variety of reasons, many emotional eaters grow up in environments where their emotional and physical needs are not adequately met. Their caregivers might not have had their basic needs met, and they may not be capable of meeting their children’s needs. Emotional eating often begins in childhood, when emotional needs go unmet. Unlike our neglectful environment, food is soothing. It’s readily available. It’s predictable.
VegWorld Magazine
You may be an emotional eater if you turn to food for comfort, pleasure, or even excitement.
Even well-intentioned, loving caregivers can be self-absorbed or needy and regularly distracted by their internal struggles. There might be physical or mental illness in the home. So when our emotional needs go unmet, we’re forced to spend much of our precious childhood years trying to cope with unpleasant emotional states—insecurity and low selfesteem—and our emotions and needs are neglected. Soon we lose touch with these really important emotional signals. And it’s kind of easy to see how we start to use food for comfort, pleasure and calming. Unlike our neglectful or chaotic family environment and our inner environment, food is soothing. It’s readily available. It’s predictable. We can easily become overfocused on food and eating. Our development, like a train, goes off track and gets derailed or arrested. Rather than acquiring really healthy self-care skills, we end up with skill deficits, which unfortunately can have lifelong consequences. VW: What have you found to be the main causes of weight gain? JULIE: What we know today is that the most common cause of weight gain is overeating, Issue 005 - Dec 2012 | 63
Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon driven by emotional and spiritual hunger and physiological imbalance. One of the reasons I wrote my book was because, as you know, there’s an obesity epidemic in this country. Two-thirds of adults are overweight or obese today in the United States. That’s a pretty high number. Americans spend over $65 billion a year on weight-loss products, more than 100 million Americans are regular dieters and most diet and weight-loss programs just focus exclusively on reduced-calorie eating plans and exercise regimens. They don’t address the emotional and spiritual hunger and physiological imbalance that actually cause weight gain. In fact, many diet programs and books encourage people to eat foods that cause body and brain chemistry imbalances, like foods that contain sugar, dairy, flour and meat. VW: Is part of your recommendation to move toward a plant-based diet?
When your body chemistry is more balanced, more alkaline, it’s easier to focus on resolving emotional issues. Slowly adding whole plant-based foods to your diet helps to put you in balance.
cal event? Or are we grabbing it because we’re unhappy and feeling empty inside? I like to start people by slowly adding plant foods to their diet, and it works. VW: If a reader identifies herself as an emotional eater, what is the first step she can take to overcoming it?
JULIE: Yes. I advocate that people slowly add more plant foods to their eating plan. I certainly advocate for a whole-foods, plantbased eating plan. But emotional eaters are so used to being told what to eat and what not to eat, I don’t want to trigger rebellion. So, I help people understand that, when we regularly consume modern drug-like processed foods loaded with sugar, salt and fat, and animal-based foods, it’s difficult to determine whether our overeating is driven by emotional or physical imbalance.
JULIE: We have these phenomenal bodies—these phenomenal mind, body and spirit machines, if you will—that give us a multitude of signals every single day to help us stay in balance. So the first thing we want to do is we want to learn to identify those signals. Let’s say you’re an emotional eater and you notice that you’re always grabbing food mindlessly or occasionally you’re binge eating. What you’re going to want to do is pull away from the food; take a little break from the food. I always ask people to do a little bit of writing because it’s easier to focus on what you’re doing if you sit down and write it, rather than try to think it out in your head.
On a whole-food, plant-based eating plan, our body chemistry becomes more balanced. When our body chemistry is more balanced, more alkaline, it’s easier to focus on building self-care skills and resolving emotional issues. When our body’s out of balance, it’s very hard to know what’s causing us to grab food. Are we grabbing food because we’re struggling with food addiction, which is more of a physi-
In the book, I describe a three-step technique, which I call inner conversation. The goal of the technique is to achieve something I call “self-connection,” because the obesity epidemic is really an epidemic of disconnection. We’re very disconnected from our own mind, body and spirit signals. We’re also disconnected from passion and purpose and all kinds of things.
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Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon
The first step to end emotional eating starts with self-connection. Ask yourself: why am I grabbing this unhealthy snack? Answer with just three words: I feel angry; I feel hurt; I feel lonely; I feel empty.
So, the very first step starts with you. It starts with self-connection. When you want to turn to food when you’re not hungry, or you just want to grab unhealthy comfort food, even when you are hungry, stop for a moment, take out a piece of paper and get in touch with your signals. The very first signal we’re going to get in touch with is our emotions. What am I feeling right now? I’m not hungry, but I want to go get something to eat. Am I feeling sad? Am I feeling angry? It’s just three words: I feel bad; I feel angry; I feel hurt; I feel lonely; I feel empty. Step two is to ask, what do I need? People often have difficulty with both of these steps. They’re very out of touch with what they’re feeling, and often they’re very out of touch with what they need. So maybe what I need is stimulation. Maybe what I need is connection. Maybe what I need is hope. Let’s get in touch with what I need. The third step is to access an inner nourishing voice. This step is really critical because most emotional eaters—remember, I said they come from somewhat nonnourishing VegWorld Magazine
backgrounds—do not have a very nourishing inner voice. Often their inner voice is very critical, judgmental, harsh and negative. So, at the same time that we’re identifying our emotions and needs, we want to practice building a voice inside that’s nourishing. It takes practice, and sometimes you don’t feel you even have that voice inside of you. If that’s the case, you need to think about who in your life is nurturing. Or maybe there’s a television program, a sitcom, that has a nurturing mother or father on it, and you can practice that voice. Once you find a model, have the voice say something like, “I can really understand feeling sad about this today. I know that you’re needing some comfort, and I’m here to give that to you.” Most of us go through our lives looking outside of ourselves for comfort. We want to get it from our partner; we want to get it from our friends; we still try to get it from our parents; and we want to get it from our food. But our true comfort comes from inside. Sometimes it just has to be developed. Sometimes it has to be awakened, but it’s inside.
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Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon VW: What can we do about loved ones who are emotional eaters? How can we help? JULIE: I think what emotional eaters most need is compassion, understanding, support and encouragement. We all know that telling people to just eat less and exercise more is a recipe for disaster. Most emotional eaters are simply unable to practice lifestyle changes without their emotional, physical and spiritual disconnect sabotaging their best intentions. It’s not about dieting. That’s one of the critical messages I always want to be getting across: You can end your emotional eating without going on another diet. We know for sure diets don’t work. Ninety-eight percent ( 98%) of dieters regain their weight in five years and 95 percent within two years. When people come and work with me, for example, they find out that they’re not going to have to count calories or weigh and measure food. That’s the good news.
be? JULIE: The one piece of advice would be to never give up. You can put an end to emotional eating and to your preoccupation with food. You can eliminate the idea of dieting from your life forever. You can definitely experience a more rich and satisfying life. Just never give up. Keep at it. Keep working on it. I was an emotional eater. I basically came from a family of overeaters and emotional eaters. I was raised in a somewhat dysfunctional, chaotic and traumatic family environment. Believe me, if I can overcome my emotional eating,
What your loved one most needs is therapy with a specialist in emotional eating. There’s a lot of affordable help out there. The best thing you can do is to just support an emotional eater with love and care. So, if you have emotional eaters in your life, I would suggest being patient with them, and letting them know you care about them and that you believe in them. VW: If you can offer just one piece of encouragement or advice to an emotional eater, what would that
VegWorld Magazine
Click Here to Order Your Copy of “The Emotional Eater’s Repair Manual”
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Put an End to Emotional Overeating and Dieting: An Exclusive Interview with Author Julie Simon anybody can do it.
ABOUT JULIE SIMON
Julie M. Simon, MA, MBA, LMFT, is a licensed psychotherapist and life coach with more than twenty years of experience helping overeaters stop dieting, heal their relationships with themselves and their bodies, lose excess weight, and keep it off. Her professional experience with and personal journey through childhood trauma, weight challenges, and body, brain, and spiritual imbalances led to the creation of the twelve-week program, which she has been running for twenty years. For more information and inspiration, you can visit her online at www.overeatingrecovery.com.
VegWorld Magazine
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E R TU A FE
Why are Vegans So Sexy?
WHY ARE VEGANS SO SEXY?
A
t the top of VegWorld Magazine’s list of “sexiest vegans” this issue is actor and heartthrob, Brad Pitt (see pg. 20). Brad Pitt is classically handsome, no doubt about that. But is that all that makes him irresistibly alluring?
Sexy people look good; but there’s much more to being truly captivating to the opposite sex. The most attractive people — the ones we are inexplicably (and undeniably) drawn to — are those that seem to have an unending youthful energy, a quiet confidence, and a level of comfort with their bodies that we mere mortals seem to lack. So where does this magnetism come from? After all, sex appeal is something that almost all of us are after. Loving sexual relationships can make you not only happier, but live longer (see pg. 47). And, let’s be honest, being considered sexy can boost anyone’s self-confidence. Unfortunately, the key to being truly sexy can be elusive and hard to figure out. Entire industries in the health and beauty market capitalize on our desire to be sexy and confusion about how to attain that goal. An unending number of products, from makeup to diet pills to unnatural perfumes, are marketed to prey on our wish to be instantly more attractive to the opposite sex. And we gladly shell out remarkable amounts of money for this self-improvement and to increase our powers of seduction. But the answer to “getting your sexy on” is much easier and affordable than you might think. In fact, it can be summed up in five simple words: “You are what you eat.” VegWorld Magazine
Here’s a “sexy” VegWorld tip for men: Eat celery. You’ll benefit from its naturally occurring plant steroid, which increases male pheromone production and thus increases your attractiveness! Test it out for yourself and then see what the rest of the plant kingdom has to offer.
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Radiant health is at the foundation of being sexy. And you can up your level of sex appeal as simply as switching to a whole-food, vegan diet. If you’re not living a healthy lifestyle and eating a diet that encourages cellular regeneration and longevity, then no amount of makeup or hair extensions will topple the factors that can cripple your status of sexual attraction. People notice vegans. We’re attracted to The answer to “getting your sexy on” can be summed up in five them without knowing why. That’s why we simple words: “you are what you eat.” think the likes of Anne Hathaway, Brad Pitt, Natalie Portman, Kristin Bell, Alyssa Milano, and a growing list of other vegan celebrities are some of the sexiest people—vegan or otherwise. Ask around and you’ll find that vegans everywhere report remarkably similar experiences when it comes to the way they feel and look, as well as how others respond to them. The reasons are simple. Vegans stay thin, muscular, and in overall good shape without much effort. They have almost infinite sources of energy, which keeps them active and adds fuel to the fiery passion they have for life. They exude confidence and often seem to easily flow through life’s bumpy path. Vegans who juice fast or eat mostly raw fruits and vegetables often have pleasant smelling breath, even in the morning, and have clear, glowing skin. And anyone who’s had a vegan lover can tell you that they’re far more adept in the bedroom too! They’re more virile, more responsive, and don’t suffer from a loss of potency in their middle years the way too many meat-eaters do. (See “When Friends Ask: Why Did You Quit Meat,” VegWorld Magazine, Issue 4, November 2012). But there is more at work here than the magical gift vegans have to make us swoon. A vegan’s body simply functions better. Eating plenty of organic fruits and veggies helps to keep the body well hydrated and ensures the blood is alkaline and clear of excess cholesterol, chemicals, and other toxins. A vegan’s digestion is more efficient because plants are easier to digest and their fiber cleanses the digestive tract. Because of this, everything else works better too. Vegans have much stronger nervous systems and don’t suffer from endocrine disorders that disrupt hormone production. There is also a growing body of evidence suggesting that meat-eating may interfere with production of our bodies’ natural attractors, known as pheromones. So, even on a more subtle level, people may naturally be more sexually attracted to vegans. If you’d like to be on your way to a sexy body, there’s little you need to do. You’ll clear up your skin, tone your body, and restore your confidence and swagger just by switching to a vegan diet. And, if increasing your attractiveness is high on your list of immediate priorities, you can speed up this process by doing a raw food cleanse or a juice fast (See Feature article, Issue 4, November 2012) to help clear out the stagnant waste that’s blocking your perfect health. Then you’ll be on your way to a radiant desirable body and a long lived and loving sex life! VegWorld Magazine
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SPOTLIGHT
ON COMPASSION A Well-Fed World: Making a Difference for Animals and People
A Well-Fed World: Making a Difference For Animals and People
a well-fed world:
Making A Difference for animals and people An Interview with Dawn Moncrief
1. What is the mission of your organization? A Well-Fed World is a hunger relief and animal protection organization. We chip away at two of the world’s most immense, unnecessary and unconscionable causes of suffering: The suffering of animals used for food and the suffering of people for lack of food. We do this primarily through our support of vegan food and farming projects for people in need, animal care organizations, and advocacy projects at all levels. 2. Please share the story of how you decided to start this organization. I had been vegetarian since I was a teenager for humane reasons, but like most people I thought that meat was needed in low-income countries. During that time I was introduced to the concept of veganism. As I researched the issues, the environmental destruction caused by the consumption and production of animal-based foods was glaring.
VegWorld Magazine
Part of this stems from the massive inefficiencies of converting plant calories and plant protein into animal-based foods. Poor countries were exporting food to be used as animal feed while their own people were starving. Ethiopia during the ‘80’s famine was exporting food to be used as feed to produce meat for high income countries. This is still common practice. Basically, wealthy countries outbid poor countries for their own food. So, why wasn’t anyone in the development community giving this attention? In 1999, the “Livestock to 2020 Report” was published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). It explicitly warned of the dangers of increasing global meat consumption, stating that the increases have been unprecedented in their speed because low income populations consume more animal-based products as their economies improve. So, that’s when I decided my work would be to bring attention to the benefits of reducIssue 005 - Dec 2012 | 71
A Well-Fed World: Making a Difference For Animals and People ing global meat consumption. I used this as a basis for my second master’s degree in Women’s Studies with a focus on economic development. My thesis demonstrated the ways in which high levels of meat consumption undermine global hunger efforts and hurt the poorest of the poor, especially women and children. A Well-Fed World is able to work full-time on these issues and those of animal cruelty from a relatively mainstream position. As a program-based advocacy organization, we are able to directly support vegan feeding and farming programs that provide food to people in need (both immediate and long-term). We are able to support farm animal sanctuaries and animal protection projects, as well as a wide variety of advocacy and educational campaigns. Last but not least, we are able to work topdown to change structures by bringing attention to the benefits of reducing animal consumption, sometimes at the highest levels of
decision-making, such as United Nations forums, World Bank seminars, food policy think tanks, and within other social justice groups. Among other things, we have been official NGO delegates to a UN Conference on Climate Change and a founding partner in the Pan African Animal Welfare Alliance (PAAWA). 3. Can you share some statistical and/or scientific data that supports your method of curing world hunger as being more effective than other non-vegan methods? At the global level, there’s no dispute that much more food can be raised when consuming plants directly instead of cycling them through animals first. Common statistics are cereal-fed, factory-farmed animals consume - 16:1 ratio (plant to animal calories ratio) for beef, 7:1 for pork, 2:1 for poultry. That’s just food inefficiencies and doesn’t include loss of animals due to extreme conditions in raising and transport or the losses such as the male chicks of egg-laying hens being killed at birth since they have no financial benefit. Other estimates are that plant-based diets could feed nine billion people. A vegan world is not a cure all, but it will have much more food to distribute and with much less environmental pollution, greenhouse gases, oil use, water use, deforestation, desertification, and slew of other considerations that help or hinder hunger solutions.
A well fed world empowers and helps enable local communities to feed themselves sustainably through a vegan diet.
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On a local level, it’s not as clear-cut. In calorie-deficient and resource-limited areas, animals can sometimes increase food security. But the problems stemming from reliance on animal-centered solutions far exceed the need for it and draw attention away from plant-based solutions that can provide longterm benefits. Animals are not always assets. They need food, water, medical care, etc.
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A Well-Fed World: Making a Difference For Animals and People Farm animals are also the victims of hunger and hunger-related deaths. 4. What is the PB&J Campaign? The PB&J Campaign was created as a way to protect the environment. The aim is to reduce the amount of animal products people eat by replacing some meat-centered meals with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or some variation. It started as an online campaign, then grew into a grassroots effort with community outreach events on National PB&J Day (April 2nd) and year-round. It’s a U.S.-focused campaign designed to decrease the massive overconsumption of animal products in an easy and exceptionally accessible way. Americans are very fond of PB&J’s and it is easily implemented. If others eat several PB&Js a week, the impact is greater than that of going meat-free one day a week. This is just to give a range of the possibilities. We very much support Meatless Mondays and similar initiatives.
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Because of our strong focus on feeding people in need, we are also expanding its reach by donating free jars of peanut butter to food banks, distributing them in low-income neighborhoods. 5. Are there opportunities for volunteers to do any hands on work providing nourishment to needy people through AWFW? We have self-starting opportunities for volunteers to work in their own communities. So, it’s mostly individuals and groups that are already active and looking for support and/or to expand their issues to include hunger. Depending on the type and extensiveness of their activities, we provide materials, advice, equipment and funding. For more information on A Well-Fed World, visit www.awellfedworld.org.
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REVIEWS
AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Vegworld Pick Of The Month
VegWorld’s Pick Of The Month
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Pick of the Month Shop Responsibly (and Affordably) This Holiday Season Ecologically- and socially-sustainable shopping isn’t the first thing most people think about when they make purchases. But it is essential to the future of our planet. The problem is, even those who are devoted to a green and compassionate lifestyle encounter significant obstacles to “going green.” Many are challenged by trust, convenience and, above all, cost. At the same time, green merchants tend to be relatively small and lack the budget, expertise and time to aim marketing programs at those consumers who believe in their vision and values. GatherGreen is an integral part of the green solution. The company, which began two years ago in Los Angeles, California, offers a virtual forum for consumers and local, green merchants to meet and exchange products in a reliable and discounted manner. GatherGreen’s mandate is to introduce sustainable merchants and conscious consumers through a group-buying website. It is the “GroupOn” of compassionate and green living.
GatherGreen is the “GroupOn” of compassionate and green living.
GatherGreen is now expanding its successful vision nationwide. In addition, it is expanding its sustainable commerce model into the physical world. Its new mobile store—the evolution of the Food Truck—has taken L.A. by storm. The store, which fits on a bicycle, can hold up to two 50 gallon containers of product and unpack into a series of display tables. Our society can’t just keep doing things the way it’s been done for the last 100 years—the easy way, burning fossil fuels and selling junk. To survive, we must find sustainable models that align convenience and price with the natural limits on our eco-systems. Being green may not always be easy, but it is our future. Find out more about GatherGreen at www.gathergreen.com.
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OFF THE
BOOKSHELF Animals as Saints - Animals as Teachers: Inspiring Compassion
Animals as Saints | Kim Sheridan
Animals as Saints Animals as Teachers: Inspiring Compassion Part 3 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
NE OF MY FAVORITE BUMPER STICKERS says, “Ignorance is the most dangerous thing in society.” One of the dangers of ignorance is the fact that it prevents good people from demanding change where change is needed, simply because they do not know that anything is wrong. Another danger of ignorance is the vulnerability that enables us to be swayed by impressive-sounding belief systems, whether they actually hold truth or not. There is an underlying belief system in our culture that seems to imply that a problem isn’t a problem unless it affects us personally. In reality, part of the problem in our world is that we are often looking to solve problems only within our own lives—or our own race or our own species. There is also a danger in belief systems that reflect the idea that everything external that upsets us does so only because it brings up something else within us—our own past hurts and traumas—rather than because we care about someone else’s suffering and simply want to do something about it. There are those who claim that animals “sacrifice themselves” for us and are “okay” with it, and that their purpose here on Earth is to serve us. This is a convenient explanation that enables us to overlook some uncomfortable realities in our world. Unfortunately, this explanation is sometimes touted by those who honestly believe they are in touch with the animals themselves, presenting this idea as a higher spiritual truth. As a result, it is all too easily swallowed by those who want to believe that all is well in the world. When those of our own species are harmed or killed, it’s much more difficult for us to believe that it’s because they’ve chosen to
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Animals as Saints | Kim Sheridan sacrifice themselves or that they are okay with it. We’re less likely to make such convenient claims and more likely to jump to the aid of our fellow humans and to punish the perpetrators. Herein lies a clue that such claims are based in speciesism and not in higher spirituality. I feel it’s important that we question belief systems that condone the suffering of animals on the grounds of “spirituality.” Some spiritual philosophies dictate that there is truly no “right or wrong”—that we must learn to accept everything without judgment, without differentiation. In my opinion, this is dangerous thinking. This is the type of thinking that has led many people astray throughout history, as it breeds complacency and creates a space for cruelty and oppression to thrive unchallenged. Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. — ELIE WIESEL The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. — EDMUND BURKE Many people have asked me about animals who suffer and die the most horrific deaths at the hands of humans. They ask me why such things happen. People sometimes use karma as an excuse, implying that the animals somehow deserve it for some past wrongdoing. In my opinion, this, too, is dangerous thinking and often nothing more than an excuse for complacency. Throughout most of my life, I’ve studied various spiritual philosophies and teachings
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Animals as Saints | Kim Sheridan in-depth and am well versed in such belief systems. I do believe in karma in that we do reap that which we sow. In other words, if we do good, good will come back to us in the end; and if we do harm, that is something we will also have to answer to eventually, in one way or another. However, in my understanding, just because something bad happens to us, it doesn’t necessarily mean we’re paying off a debt from a prior transgression. What I’ve come to understand is that some people and animals come here to Earth not to work out bad karma—or even to learn a lesson—but simply to teach others. And if they suffer in the process, it’s not because they did something wrong. Sometimes, it’s because they are here to express innocence in a world that hasn’t yet fully embraced compassion. Sometimes, it’s because they are here to initiate change in a world that doesn’t always take kindly to that which upsets the status quo. Few, if any, would contend that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified because of some wrongdoing in his own past. Few, if any, would contend that those who die for any good cause do so because they did something wrong. One of my heroes is Martin Luther King, Jr., and few, if any, would contend that he was killed because he had “bad karma.” Quite the contrary, he was a very compassionate and enlightened soul who came here, stood up, spoke out, and demanded change because he saw injustice and sought to make things right. He died for a cause, and God bless him for it. When people turn their backs on the suffering of animals and explain it away with so-called spiritual talk about how it’s the animals’ destiny or karma and we should just accept it, I simply remind them that people once said that about slavery—and then there
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were those who took a stand and did something about it. The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. — DANTE In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. — THE REVEREND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. Those who promote any cause in our world are often accused of having an “agenda,” as if that label somehow makes their cause less valid. Someone once told me that everyone has an agenda. Perhaps that’s true. In my opinion, you can tell a lot about a person based on their agenda. Is it an agenda of selfishness, or an agenda of service? To me, that makes all the difference. All truly good causes seem to elicit controversy when they run counter to the accepted societal norm, but they are good nonetheless. We must never forget this. Those who fight for the rights of the oppressed are often called self-righteous, “holier than thou,” or preachy. More often then not, they are none of the above; rather, they are humbly but boldly listening to their hearts and choosing a path far more difficult than that of conformity. It’s not about comfort, profit, or reputation—in fact, it’s often about giving up those very things for the sake of a higher cause. In my opinion, there is no greater cause than that which stems purely from love and compassion for one’s fellow beings. Not from a perspective of, “What’s in it for me?” but
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Animals as Saints | Kim Sheridan rather, “How can I help others? How can I make a difference in the world around me?” My philosophy is simple: Care deeply, feel strongly, and act accordingly. My religion is kindness. — THE DALAI LAMA
MANY PROPHECIES SPEAK OF A TIME in our future here on Earth when we will have at last attained peace—a time when the lion will literally lie down with the lamb, and there will be no more killing. I am hearing more and more reports of biologically carnivorous animals who are mysteriously refusing to eat meat (even “organic” meat)—and are thriving regardless—and I can’t help but wonder if this is a sign that a more peaceful future is in sight for all of us. Perhaps these animals are here to assist us in our own spiritual evolution—here to teach us a better way. I do know many people whose beloved dogs and cats consume a vegetarian or vegan diet, and contrary to what one might think, these animals are living unusually long, healthy lives. In fact, as of this writing, to my knowledge, the oldest living dog in the world is a 27-year-old border collie who thrives on a vegan diet. (Please note: When making any dietary change, it’s important to make sure all nutritional requirements are being properly met. For more information on vegan diets for animals, visit www.VeganPets.com.)
ing a lamb named Becky, with whom she did, indeed, lie down peacefully. (Her story is told in the book Little Tyke, by Georges Westbeau, as well as online at www.CompassionCircle.org.) Little Tyke chose nonviolence as a way of life, even though it was supposed to go against her biology to do so—and she thrived. I wonder what it will take for humanity to likewise choose nonviolence as a way of life. I wonder what our excuse is, or if we even have one, for creating so much violence in our world. Animals such as Little Tyke have so much to teach us, if we only listen. Likewise, our own companion animals have so much to teach us. They bring us joy, they bring us unconditional love, and they teach us how very precious and sacred life is. There’s something about fur that creates an external and internal warmth and softness. (And even if they don’t have fur, they are soft and warm in their own special way.) We are lucky to touch them … and we are luckier when they touch us. Everything I have learned on my journey with the animals has shown me that they truly are our spiritual brothers and sisters, and it is high time we start treating them as such. We are on this journey together. –KS
Perhaps one of the first cases of an animal refusing to eat meat took place in the 1940’s. Little Tyke, a lioness, absolutely refused to eat flesh, despite her human caretakers’ best attempts at getting her to do so. She was an exceptionally gentle being who lived harmoniously among many animal friends, includ-
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Animals as Saints | Kim Sheridan
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. 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.
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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.
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