SoulVeggie

Video: "The Price of Nothing" & the "$200 Hamburger"

Intriguing 4 min. clip with author Raj Patel about taking into account the actual cost of a $4 American Hamburger.  Raises a lot of important issues and it's an eye-opener. More about his work and related issues upcoming.

New Study: "How Diet [and added fat] Affects Cancer"

"Diet affects cancer both directly and indirectly. Nutrients directly impact the mechanisms by which cancer cells grow and spread. They indirectly help control the cancer by changing the surrounding biochemical conditions that either encourage or discourage the progression of malignant disease. The bottom line is that what you eat can spell the difference between conquering your disease and having it rage out of control.

Here are some examples of findings from recent studies that support the importance of diet in fighting cancer:

    * Diets high in fat and refined carbohydrates make you more likely to become overweight, which in turn increases your risk of tumor recurrences. (8) Obese men are at significantly greater risk of developing more aggressive prostate cancer. (9)

    * Dietary fats can impair the body's anti-cancer defenses by depressing the activity of natural killer (NK) cells, while a low-fat diet markedly increases NK activity. (10,11,12) Natural killer cells play a key role in preventing metastasis.

    * Obese breast cancer patients are two to four times more likely to experience a recurrence than women of normal weight. (13)

For every additional 10 percentage points of calories derived from fat in the diet of newly diagnosed breast cancer patients -- by going from 25 percent to 35 percent of calories from fat -- the risk of recurrence approximately doubles. (14) An increase of 10 percentage points is alarmingly easy: just add four ounces of beef, four ounces of mozzarella cheese (about the size of three nine-volt batteries) [or a HALF CUP OF DAIYA VEGAN CHEESE... same fat grams amount], a cup of ice cream, or four pats of butter [OR EARTH BALANCE... same fat grams amount] to your daily intake and you're there.

You don't need the added fat, oil is not a real food, and the sooner vegans understand that so many faux vegan cheeses and "margarines" are very fatty, and not good for you, the better.

The above excerpts from the well-documented article here.  Go low-fat vegan.  The evidence that this is the healthiest diet keeps mounting.  Learn how to re-calibrate your taste buds and stop with the added non-food oils and faux cheeses.  You had the determination and discipline to give up meat and dairy, now give up the fat.

New Veg Stats: "How Many of Us Are There?"

"More people have gone meatless in the last 15 years, according to the Vegetarian Research Group. It's estimated that more than 3 percent of Americans today are vegetarians (up from 1 percent 15 years ago), which translates to about 7.3 million people.

About half a percent, or a million people, according to Vegetarian Times, consider themselves vegans, which is a subset of vegetarians who not only exclude meat from their diets, but also exclude milk, cheese and other dairy products, eggs and all other animal products..."

...and if we eat low-fat, live longer, and procreate more, those numbers will continue to grow!  The above excerpt is from the short article here.

Article: "The [Sleazy] Hard Sell on Salt"

 "With salt under attack for its ill effects on the nation’s health, the food giant Cargill kicked off a campaign last November to spread its own message.   “Salt is a pretty amazing compound,” Alton Brown, a Food Network star, gushes in a Cargill video called Salt 101. “So make sure you have plenty of salt in your kitchen at all times.”  The campaign by Cargill, which both produces and uses salt, promotes salt as “life enhancing” and suggests sprinkling it on foods as varied as chocolate cookies, fresh fruit, ice cream and even coffee. “You might be surprised,” Mr. Brown says, “by what foods are enhanced by its briny kiss.”  [Yeah, the "kiss of death"]

By all appearances, this is a moment of reckoning for salt. High blood pressure is rising among adults and children. Government health experts estimate that deep cuts in salt consumption could save 150,000 lives a year... [that's a low ball estimate... check out my earlier post here for referenced statistics]  the industry is working overtly and behind the scenes to fend off these attacks, using a shifting set of tactics that have defeated similar efforts for 30 years, records and interviews show. Industry insiders call the strategy “delay and divert” and say companies have a powerful incentive to fight back: they crave salt as a low-cost way to create tastes and textures. Doing without it risks losing customers, and replacing it with more expensive ingredients risks losing profits...  [and clearly profits are more important than healthy people...]

...Salt also works in tandem with fat and sugar to achieve flavors that grip the consumer and do not let go — an allure the industry has recognized for decades. “Once a preference is acquired,” a top scientist at Frito-Lay wrote in a 1979 internal memorandum, “most people do not change it, but simply obey it.”  [Essentially acknowledging it's addictive]

...Salt started out more than 5,000 years ago as a simple preservative. But salt and dozens of compounds containing sodium — the element in salt linked to hypertension — have become omnipresent in processed foods from one end of the grocery store to the other.

...The food industry releases some 10,000 new products a year, the Department of Agriculture has reported, and processed foods, along with restaurant meals, now account for roughly 80 percent of the salt in the American diet. The rest comes from the kitchen salt shaker or occurs naturally in food. In promoting cooking with salt, Cargill and its star chef, Mr. Brown, said they recognized the health concerns and recommended “smarter salting...”"  [How about intelligent non-salting?]

The above are selected snippets from this article.  It's depressing when one realizes that, just like with the successes of the dairy, meat, sugar, and fat industries have had in convincing people and regulators that they're doing nothing wrong, the salt industry will probably stave off or delay most serious efforts to reduce sodium consumption for many years.  Indeed, if so many vegans still consume much more sodium (Tamari, soy sauce, Bragg's), added non-food fat as olive oil (ridiculous amounts), and sweetner (with abandon), than even the American Heart Association recommends, how can we expect the "average" American not to do the same?

In my experience it takes (1) believing in the facts,  (2) a determination that you will reduce your addictions to fat, sugar and salt to facilitate a healthier life, and (3) staying with it long enough to enable your taste receptors, as Dr. Esselstyn puts it, be re-calibrated.  It can be done, you just have to want to.

For some it's easy, for some it's not, for all it's advised.  Them's the facts.  Added sugar, fat, and salt, are the unholy (and highly addictive) trio.  Reduce consumption of them, and you increase your chances for a longer, healthier, and happier life.

"The Myth of Agave as a "Healthy" Sugar Substitute"

This article is well researched, footnoted, long, detailed, and makes many excellent points about agave and your health.  I've been reluctant to use it, not only from the cost, but I got rid of my craving for "sweet" a long time ago.  Then there's my natural skepticism over anything so hyped.  Still, many people use agave thinking it's a "health food" when, in fact, it apparently isn't.

Below are some quick edits from the much longer article (and a highly recommended read) here.

"...Many people interested in staying healthy have switched to agave as a safer "natural" sweetener. They want to avoid well documented dangerous sweeteners like HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) but are unaware that most agave is actually WORSE than HFCS.  This expose will offend many hard core natural health advocates because they have been convinced of the agave hype by companies that are promoting it... My only purpose for sharing this information is to help people understand the truth about health. In case you haven't noticed, we have an epidemic of obesity in the US and it wasn't until recently that my eyes opened up to the primary cause - - fructose.

... Most agave syrup has a higher fructose content than any commercial sweetener -- ranging from 55 to 97 percent, depending on the brand, which is FAR HIGHER than high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which averages 55 percent. This makes agave actually WORSE than HFCS.

... In addition to insulin resistance, your risk of liver damage increases, along with triglycerides and a whole host of other health problems, as discussed in this CBC News video about the newly discovered dangers of high fructose corn syrup. The study discussed in this news report is about HFCS, however, it's well worth remembering that agave contains MORE fructose than HFCS, and in all likelihood, it's the FRUCTOSE that is causing these severe liver problems.

... though processing methods can differ among manufacturers, most commercially available agave is converted into fructose-rich syrup using genetically modified enzymes and a chemically intensive process involving caustic acids, clarifiers, and filtration chemicals...

...In case you doubt the influence of marketing in setting trends and consumer buying habits, look at these statistics... New agave products more than tripled in number between 2003 and 2007, from 56 to 176. Agave syrup is now appearing in products such as energy bars, cereals and organic ice creams.  Revenues for the category "other liquid sweeteners," which includes agave, rose to more than $10.3 million in 2007, which was a 50 percent jump from 2006.

...It's important for you and your family's health to remember that agave syrup is neither healthy nor natural.  As reported by Dr. Ingrid Kohlstadt, a fellow of the American College of Nutrition and an associate faculty member at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health:

"Agave is almost all fructose, a highly processed sugar with great marketing..."

"Which Veggie Burgers Were Made With a Neurotoxin?"

"... [a] recent investigation by the Cornucopia Institute... found that most non-organic veggie burgers currently on the market are made with the chemical hexane, an EPA-registered air pollutant and neurotoxin.  In order to meet the demands of health-conscious consumers, manufacturers of soy-based fake meat like to make their products have as little fat as possible. The cheapest way to do this is by submerging soybeans in a bath of hexane to separate the oil from the protein. Says Cornucopia Institute senior researcher Charlotte Vallaeys, "If a non-organic product contains a soy protein isolate, soy protein concentrate, or texturized vegetable protein, you can be pretty sure it was made using soy beans that were made with hexane."

If you've heard about hexane before, it was likely in the context of gasoline—the air pollutant is also a byproduct of gas refining. But in 2007, grain processors were responsible for two-thirds of our national hexane emissions. Hexane is hazardous in the factory, too: Workers who have been exposed to it have developed both skin and nervous system disorders. Troubling, then, that the FDA does not monitor or regulate hexane residue in foods. More worrisome still: According to the report, "Nearly every major ingredient in conventional soy-based infant formula is hexane extracted."  The Cornucopia Institute found that a number of popular veggie burgers were made with hexane. ... [full list available here]... :

Amy's Kitchen
Boca Burger, conventional
Franklin Farms
Garden Burger
It’s All Good Lightlife
Morningstar Farms
President’s Choice
Taste Above
Trader Joe's
Yves Veggie Cuisine

Hexane-free products:

Boca Burgers "Made with organic soy"
Helen's Kitchen
Morningstar "Made with organic"
Superburgers by Turtle Island
Tofurky
Wildwood..."

Original article here.  It's difficult to know how serious this actually is from a health standpoint (potentially), but it is something I hope is researched.  I believe this kind of issue (the hexane) exists with other products.  Non-homemade peeled tomatoes are often peeled in the factory using lye or hot steam (be nice to know which... cheaper ones probably use lye).  Anyway, the study also rates soy products with a variety of social, informational, and other criteria, and provides an Executive Summary and other parts as PDFs.

Two Articles: Final Results of Jamie Oliver's "Food Revolution"

A friend sent me a very well-researched and thoughtful article about what happened when Jamie left West Virginia and the series, "Food Revolution," was over.  The article also linked to another fascinating article that also went into great detail about what really occurred in Britain.  I'm not going to be a spoiler for those intrigued by the faux drama and the series.  Below are links to both articles mentioned.  However, I thought this fascinating observation in the second article (which doesn't give anything away), a fine example of the contradictions in what Jamie does on TV in WV, then promotes via his empire, and his laudable goal to "change the way we eat:"

"The current issue of his magazine Jamie (Feb./Mar. 2010) recommends several school lunch recipes the magazine bills as “wholesome meals to take to school.” The magazine’s suggested meal for Thursday is a tuna Waldorf pita with hot vanilla milk, an oaty biscuit, and a banana. According to the nutrition information provided in Jamie, this youngster’s lunch contains an astonishing 1,183 calories, 55 grams of fat (20 of them saturated), and 65 grams of sugar. That’s 73 calories, 12 grams of fat (11.5 saturated), and 3 grams of sugar more than the same student would get from eating both a McDonald’s hamburger Happy Meal (hamburger, fries, Sprite) and a Chicken McNuggets Happy Meal (McNuggets, fries, Sprite)."

The Feds recommend 60 grams of fat max, per day, for a full grown man, and his "wholesome meal" contains 55 grams of fat.  The American Heart Association recommends no more than 16 grams of saturated fat per day for an adult (2,000 calorie diet).  Jamie exceeds that in one meal, and this is for a child.  The amount of sugar recommended by the AMA for an adult male is around 42 grams, and he exceeds that here, too.  Summation:  his one take-to-school lunch recipe set contains the daily fat, more than daily saturated fat, and more than daily sugar than the American Heart Association recommends per day for an adult.  A friend pointed out that maybe it's the only meal for the day for a poor child.

I don't think that's the pertinent issue.  I feel confident in assuming that eating that much fat, saturated fat, and sugar, in one sitting for a child, is accomplishing little nutritionally and probably isn't contributed to overall health.  It's also contributing to taste addiction to fat and sugar.

Jamie may talk a good talk, but he needs to also, imho, "walk" his talk, and maybe take a class on "nutrition."

Here's the two links (SPOILER ALERT!!):  Article 01, Article 02.

And a special thanks to S., who may disagree with me on many dietary issues, but was thoughtful enough to send me some very interesting research.  Friends CAN disagree!

Latest "Mad Cowboy Newsletter" Is Available Online

Intro & T.O.C. and direct link to the latest issue:
 ----
"Howdy!  Welcome to the 69th issue of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter.

In this edition of the Newsletter we're pleased to provide two great recipes from the new cookbook by Tamasin Noye, "American Vegan Kitchen."  It's a real winner.  Reading down farther you'll note that Mad Cow Disease has "returned" to Canada, issues with hormones in pigs, and information about the various food recalls that keep showing up.  There's also some articles on how reducing salt can drastically reduce health expenditures and save lives, current stats on obesity (hint:  we're not winning), how the FDA came down on several "natural food" producing companies, and detailed reasons for no GM food and why you should have a vegetable garden.

Moving on, among other articles, there's encouragment in noting that "The Cove" won an Academy award, and it's makers were instrumental in shutting down a restaurant in Santa Monica serving whale sushi.  Momentum is growing to give Dolphin's "non-person" legal rights, and outside of our Vegan Media Theater (with many offerings this issue, including a funny SNL parody and a conversation between Bill Moyers and Jane Goodall), you can see the First Lady's Garden as it is now in Spring via video. 

Finally, on a sad note, we end with some closing thoughts from Howard Zinn, who died recently.  He was an inspiration to many, and will be missed.

... as always, a tip of the hat to our new subscribers:  y'all can browse past issues at the Mad Cowboy Newsletter Archives (and see the "Quick Bytes" section, omitted from this edition of the Newsletter) at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Mad_Cowboy/

Best wishes to everyone for a Great Spring and hopes that your own garden's grow well and plentiful this season!

Mark, MC editor/webmaster
***********************************************
TABLE OF CONTENTS:

00: Quote(s) of Note
01: The Vegan Mind-Bender Contest Winner/Challenge!
02: Recipes from "American Vegan Kitchen" by Tamasin Noye
03: Mad Cow Info Round-Up
04: Less Salt-Save Lives, Fat Plateau? Mktg. to Kids, Bad Labels
05: Whales Win 2X, Dolphin Legal Rights, Dirty Shrimp Secrets
06: Vegan Digital Media Theater
07: Reasons for no GM food, World Water, Michelle's Garden & Yours
08: Howard's Schedule
09: Closing Thoughts

Study: "Vegetables, Fruits, Soy Help Prevent Breast Cancer"

"Consumption of soy, fruits, and vegetables helps reduce the risk of developing breast cancer, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.  Postmenopausal women who consumed plenty of soy, fruits, and vegetables had a 30 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer, compared with those who consumed relatively little of these foods. The research was based on 34,028 women in the Singapore Chinese Health Study. The longer the women had consumed these healthful foods, the less chance they had of developing breast cancer.

Butler LM, Wu AH, Wang R, Koh WP, Yuan JM, Yu MC. A vegetable-fruit-soy dietary pattern protects against breast cancer among postmenopausal Singapore Chinese women. Am J Clin Nutr. Published ahead of print February 24, 2010. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.28572."

FROM:  PCRM

Serious Salt: Heart Attacks & Strokes

"What will it take to get Americans – and the food industrial complex – to get serious about taking some of the salt out of our diets?... In January, another study published in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that excising 1,200 mg of sodium from our daily diets [1/2 teaspoon] would prevent up to 120,000 cases of cardiovascular disease, 66,000 strokes, 99,000 heart attacks and reduce annual deaths from any cause by as much as 92,000. That study found that the cost savings would add up to as much as $24 billion and save as many as 392,000 years of life.

...researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System... used a computer model to estimate would what happen if consumers and food-makers here copied a British salt-reduction campaign. Their conclusions: Americans between the ages of 40 and 85 would cut their salt intake by 9.5% [roughly, 1/2 teaspoon], preventing strokes in 513,885 people and heart attacks in 480,358 others. Total savings to the healthcare system would top $32 billion, according to their study published Monday in Annals of Internal Medicine....

You can read the study here, or check out the summary for patients here.  For those who are finally motivated to cut some of the salt out of their diets – or at least give it a try – check out this list of helpful hints from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute..."

[Full article here.  This post dedicated to all those who sent me e-mail saying I was overreacting on the issue of sodium in vegan products and recipes in one of my blog posts (here).  Y'see, it's not just a meat, dairy, and egg issue, it's also the fat, sugar, and salt, in our diets that can still come from vegan sources.  All three are implicated in heart disease, Type II Diabetes, and obesity, (among other disorders), and exercise isn't the solution.]