So how different are vegan babies? Really? Well, I think they are brought back to the "normal" weight that existed years ago. Years ago, perhaps the thirty or more, before the dairy counsel pushed money through the government and increased the public consumption 3 fold to what it used to be. Before there was an epidemic of childhood obesity and diabetes. Here's the stats:
My non-vegan babies: 90th percentile in weight and height
My vegan babies: 40th percentile on weight, 90th percentile on height
THAT's a difference!
Showing posts with label vegan consequences. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vegan consequences. Show all posts
Friday, November 19, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Autoimmune diseases
I have two autoimmune diseases. One has been solved by going vegan. The other? It's a lot like Type 1 diabetes. A specialist pronounced the organ dead but I have minimized the side effects by going vegan. I often wonder if a lot of autoimmune diseases could be cured or minimized by going plant-based.
On Tuesday the Wall Street Journal featured an article on celiac disease, also an autoimmune disease. This has increased 20 fold since the 1950s. What else has doubled since the 1950s? Our dairy intake. How about processed foods? I don't know the rate of that consumption but I'll guess it's similar. Then stop to think, what foods are available on WIC? What are grocery ads full of? What foods are cheapest for the poor in our society? And then you wonder why healthcare is such an issue? I digress...
I can't imagine how frustrating it is for someone like, say, Dr. Neal Barnard who has already discussed and proven how Type 1 diabetes occurs. (Bovine milk proteins are passed into the blood stream in some children, whose bodies then make antibodies, then mistake insulin-producing cells for the milk (they are molecularly very similar), thus resulting in diabetes.) And then sit back and watch an increase of Type 1 occur in children because your recommendation hasn't been followed. I know I get terribly frustrated when I find people, loved ones, who would benefit from this and won't even give it a try.
Yet...It is so exciting when someone does come on board and expresses how great they feel! Yes! Another convert! For me, it's so very similar to sharing the Gospel. Until someone "experiments upon the word" they won't know the joy; but when they do, and they feel the joy, even if we mess up sometimes, it feels wonderful to have another brother or sister in Christ.
This week I found out I have another covert through a convert, and from church no less! One more person to share recipes and dinners with!
On Tuesday the Wall Street Journal featured an article on celiac disease, also an autoimmune disease. This has increased 20 fold since the 1950s. What else has doubled since the 1950s? Our dairy intake. How about processed foods? I don't know the rate of that consumption but I'll guess it's similar. Then stop to think, what foods are available on WIC? What are grocery ads full of? What foods are cheapest for the poor in our society? And then you wonder why healthcare is such an issue? I digress...
I can't imagine how frustrating it is for someone like, say, Dr. Neal Barnard who has already discussed and proven how Type 1 diabetes occurs. (Bovine milk proteins are passed into the blood stream in some children, whose bodies then make antibodies, then mistake insulin-producing cells for the milk (they are molecularly very similar), thus resulting in diabetes.) And then sit back and watch an increase of Type 1 occur in children because your recommendation hasn't been followed. I know I get terribly frustrated when I find people, loved ones, who would benefit from this and won't even give it a try.
Yet...It is so exciting when someone does come on board and expresses how great they feel! Yes! Another convert! For me, it's so very similar to sharing the Gospel. Until someone "experiments upon the word" they won't know the joy; but when they do, and they feel the joy, even if we mess up sometimes, it feels wonderful to have another brother or sister in Christ.
This week I found out I have another covert through a convert, and from church no less! One more person to share recipes and dinners with!
Friday, January 22, 2010
"Do you ever wish to have some of the foods you used to eat?"
My husband posed this question to me a little bit ago. I thought about it. Because pregnancy makes my memory incredibly short, I only reflected on the last week or so of instances. "Not really," was my response. Sometimes I'm at a function, like church choir practice, and someone announces a treat they brought. In this case, white chocolate fudge. My first thought is "yum! Too bad I can't have any." But to truely feel better, and show the baker some interest in her food, I'll ask how she made it. Five minutes later I have the perfect counter argument for myself. "So you put a ton of butter and sugar, in different forms, into a pot, boil, then pour it into a pan. Do you know how much cholesterol you are consuming? Talk about a sugar rush!" Now I'm cured.
In regards to my children, I still let them have a taste. They have a right to it. I'm learning to be a "Love and Logic" parent. LL parentss know that children need to make decisions for themselves, younger the better, when the cost to do so is low. They also know that when kids are out of their home and control kids have an even greater opportunity to choose consequences for their actions. Therefore, probably to the disapproval of vegan parents world-wide, I let my kids choose what they want to consume when they aren't at home with my approved options available. My daughter loved the fudge and asked for more (definitely a girl at heart). My son totally rejected it after one lick. Not even the baker was offended saying with a laugh "well, don't force that one if he doesn't want it! That's a good thing!" Whew!
In regards to my children, I still let them have a taste. They have a right to it. I'm learning to be a "Love and Logic" parent. LL parentss know that children need to make decisions for themselves, younger the better, when the cost to do so is low. They also know that when kids are out of their home and control kids have an even greater opportunity to choose consequences for their actions. Therefore, probably to the disapproval of vegan parents world-wide, I let my kids choose what they want to consume when they aren't at home with my approved options available. My daughter loved the fudge and asked for more (definitely a girl at heart). My son totally rejected it after one lick. Not even the baker was offended saying with a laugh "well, don't force that one if he doesn't want it! That's a good thing!" Whew!
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