In this week’s Gary Null’s Newsletter:
• Vegetarianism, Part 9: The Diet of a Healthy Vegetarian
• Gary Null’s Show Notes
• Recipe for Aduki Bean Salad
Vegetarianism, Part 9: The Diet of a Healthy Vegetarian
“When I was 88 years old, I gave up meat entirely and switched to a plant foods diet following a slight stroke. During the following months, I not only lost 50 pounds, but gained strength in my legs and picked up stamina. Now, at age 93, I’m on the same plant-based diet, and I still don’t eat any meat or dairy products. I either swim, walk, or paddle a canoe daily and I feel the best I’ve felt since my heart problems began.”
—Benjamin Spock, M.D., The famous Dr. Spock pediatrician and author (1903-1998)
We previously discussed many of the health reasons to turn to a vegetarian diet. Now we will take a look at what the diet of a healthy vegetarian looks like and how to actually make this transition.
Making any changes in one’s life requires three basic things: knowing what you want and visualizing the outcome, getting enough education and support to make the change, and then finding joyful ways of engaging in the new pattern that you desire. Before you know it, you will have accomplished your new reality. Life is meant to be a fun and joyful exploration; this can also be said about adopting a vegetarian lifestyle... at any age!
Making the Shift to Vegetarianism
It’s Getting a Little Easier Now...
Our lifestyle study, mentioned under Aging Gracefully in a previous issue, was not a boot camp in the traditional sense, because participants were still living their normal lives, going to work, relaxing, and socializing. Nor was it an environment where hostile authorities forced participants to follow the rules. But it did resemble such a training camp in one way. People who fully participated had to throw much of their old way of living out the window.
Our study is not the only one that supports the benefit of an entire lifestyle reversal. Even the 2015 USDA report recommends a lifestyle overhaul. In fact, some practitioners argue for an even more abrupt immersion in change. Dr. McDougall, whose work we discussed earlier, feels that people can turn around “chronic” diseases of aging, such as high levels of blood-serum lipids, obesity, and hypertension, in two weeks or less. Though mainstream scientists discount Dr. McDougall’s claims about re-growing hair and improving joint and skin conditions through nutritional efforts, our study suggest that his claims have merit.
McDougall was alerted to this direction for his vegetarian program when he was living in Hawaii and noted that seniors who ate a mostly plant-based diet lived longer, healthier lives than their offspring, whose diets were more typically American, bursting with animal protein and fats.
Some researchers, such as doctors W.S. Collens and G.B. Dobkins, continuing a point made earlier, say the green diet is far better health-wise because our bodies aren’t suited for meat. They argue, “While designed to subsist on vegetarian foods, [modern man] has perverted his dietary habits to accept the food of the carnivore... Herein may lie the basis for the high incidence of human atherosclerotic disease.”1
The basis of their claim resides among such facts as our flat teeth are not sharp enough to tear through hide, flesh, or bones. Earlier, I noted the inadequate length of our digestive systems for processing animal flesh, which cannot, like that of omnivores, quickly dispose of the meat they eat before it putrefies. Our long digestive system (which can be up to 30 feet in an adult male) is closer to those found in herbivores, and the enzyme we secrete in our mouth, amylase, (one that carnivores don’t have) breaks down complex plant cells. Further, carnivores have an enzyme (called uricase) that humans don’t have to break down the uric acid in meat. Excess amounts of uric acid are a strain on the human body. As we learned previously, the kidneys, in an attempt to neutralize the toxic effects of meat, can be overstrained, resulting in such unwanted results as the formation of calcium urate crystals, which are responsible for many painful conditions like gout, bursitis, rheumatism, and lower back pain.
Having come this far in the book, you won’t likely need to compare herbivore and carnivore physiology to be struck by the numerous health advantage of vegetarianism. Still, there is plenty of writing on this in other publications, like the bestselling book The China Study by T. Collin Campbell, Ph.D. or Food for Life: How the New Four Food Groups Can Save Your Life by Neal Barnard, M.D. if you require more convincing. Moreover, it is important to note that plant-based eating is adopted not only by green eaters, but by individuals arriving at higher levels of consciousness on any number of issues—spiritual, environmental, and social, to name a few.
Medical Professionals Are Catching On
Modern health professionals, who have been diligently and patiently educating their colleagues and the public about the health benefits of vegetarianism, did not just come on the scene. Greek physician Hippocrates, born around 400 BC and known as the father of modern medicine, used a plant-based diet to help people heal from a host of illnesses. He is famous for having said “Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.” There are a number of physicians throughout the centuries since then who recommended green eating. More recently, in the 1700s, a vegetarian diet was prescribed, not unreasonably, for dissolving kidney stones and curing gout. In the 1800s, medical journals described flesh-free diets for treating tumors and cancerous ulcers. Bringing these historical references closer to today, in 1945, celebrated physician Antone Cocchi gained attention by proclaiming the preventive and healing benefits of the vegetarian diet.
However, most doctors, like the average American green eater, become interested in vegetarianism, not after looking at cultural studies of more vegetarian societies or even spiritual viewpoints, but because of its undeniable health aspects. Dr. Philip White, a director of the Department of Foods and Nutrition of the American Medical Association (AMA), brings up this component of the vegetarian outlook in these remarks: “Several studies have shown that vegans have lower serum cholesterol levels than their non-vegan counterparts, undoubtedly due to the substitution of vegetable oils for animal fats... There have also been studies suggesting that a diet high in fiber can bring about a decrease in serum cholesterol.”2 Like many enlightened doctors, White is focused on prevention. In this case, he is forestalling the difficulties associated with high cholesterol and the impact of vegetarianism on the problem.
Dr. Mark Hegsted, former chief nutritionist for the federal government, editor of Nutrition Review, and member of the National Academy of Sciences, also has placed a major focus in his own educational work on stopping disease as opposed to fighting it after it has already cropped up. This is why he finds fault with a meat-heavy diet. “The risks associated with eating this diet are demonstrably large. The question to be asked, therefore, is not why we should change our diet, but why not? What are the risks associated with eating less meat, less fat, less saturated fat, less cholesterol, less sugar, less salt, and more fruits, vegetables, unsaturated fat, and cereal products, especially whole grain cereals? There are none that can be identified and important benefits can be expected.”3 These thoughts are mature reflections on a study Hegsted and his Harvard co-workers published in 1955, in which they defended vegetarianism against detractors who argue such eating leads quickly to ill health. In the study they state that, on the contrary, “It is difficult to obtain a mixed vegetable diet, which will produce an appreciable loss of body protein.” In their eyes, a vegetarian diet is quite healthy or, metaphorically said, “A step in the right direction.”4
More recently, The Nutrition Institute of Mexico echoed these ideas by asserting, “The Western habit of eating meat is not necessarily healthy. It is a false assumption that only a diet based on animal products helps you stay in good health.”5 In a report, this institution went on to say that the traditional diet eaten by many in the developing world, based largely on grains and vegetables, is actually ideal for everyone.
Around the same time as the Mexican report was published, back in the 1980s, the AMA countered such pro-green eating assertions with the blunt statement, “A strictly vegetarian diet may lead to deformities and even death.”6 Alex Hershaft, president of the Vegetarian Information Service, didn’t take this jibe lying down. The comment, to his mind, simply reflected the level of consciousness of the institution issuing it, so he said: “The AMA has experienced a loss of credibility.” Even more unfortunate, as he reflected on the situation, was that many who still believed in the AMA would shun green eating on its flawed advice. These are his poignant words:
The biggest losers are those who... deferred their turn to vegetarianism and a healthier, more ethical life, because they believe in the competence and honesty of AMA news releases. Each year, nearly 500,000 people in this country die of heart disease, 200,000 of stroke and over 80,000 of cancer of the colon and breast... an overwhelming fraction of these deaths are linked to the consumption of animal fat and meat, cholesterol, salt and sugar. Any individual or organization that deters the American people from embracing a meatless diet... must bear the responsibility for some of these deaths.7
Taking a broader view, the Vegetarian Times said at the time, “The handling of this story by the press and the AMA shows that we still have a long way to go in clearing up the misinformation and confusion that exists when it comes to vegetarianism.”8
I don’t bring up this argument to hark back to ancient history. Rather, I am trying to make clear that in the US some of the same stones are being cast at vegetarianism today as were being hurled 30 years ago. But there is a difference. Today, with more scientific evidence demonstrating the adequacy—even the superiority—of the vegetarian diet, and now the US Department of Agriculture acknowledging the diet as superior for both health and the sustainability of our species, the attacks on vegetarianism are becoming easier to repel.
The 18th-century French economist and politician Brillat-Savarin said, “The destiny of a people depends on the nature of its diet.” I say, a country can change its direction if it changes its diet. I’ve been, perhaps idealistically, steadfastly harkening for several decades now that if the more affluent part of the world’s population shifted toward vegetarian eating and settled on a new value set—a more modest, less consumption-obsessed existence where creative service to humanity and the sustainability of the planet were the priority—there would most certainly be more to go around. Hence, we would see a significant drop-off in the violence and wars so characteristic of our “modern” world, most often stemming from fights over possessions and the oppression of others. This, of course, flies in the face of what humans most want, which is a cooperative, loving, creative experience on the human plane. The vegetarian diet most certainly supports this... and more.
What a Healthy Vegetarian Diet Looks Like: The Basics
Eating a healthy vegetarian diet isn’t difficult. You have to be sure of two things: 1) You’re eating a full variety of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts, and seeds and 2) You’re getting the essential nutrients you were used to getting from animal flesh, including vitamin B12, iron, Omega-3s, and protein.
I will take up the discussion of protein in the a future issue because it is a discussion unto itself, in particular because there are far too many false ideas related to protein still circulating today and questions about the value of plant-based protein.
In this and following issues, you will find the essentials related to a healthy vegetarian diet, as well as a discussion on important nutrients and lifestyle points that one must pay attention to when deciding to become vegetarian.
Let’s start with a basic healthy composition of the healthy vegetarian diet. In the course of a day, you will want follow this general idea: start your diet with those foods that are going to give you protein (see a future issue to calculate your ideal amount of protein), high quality fats (essential fatty acids), quality fibers, antioxidants, and phytonutrients, in this order. So each day, I make sure that I include beans (see Appendix C for protein content of key vegetarian foods, including beans), since they are a quality source of protein and fiber, as well as some antioxidants and phytonutrients. Beans are highly versatile, and it is ideal to have many varieties on hand in your pantry. We will speak more about this a little later in the chapter.
Once you have your beans, then you have your grains, which must be whole and unrefined. You will want to have at least nine different grains on hand for use in soups, salads and stir-fries. See the list later in this chapter for ideas. Grains offer complementing amino acids to beans plus fiber. You will want to make sure that you have these each day. By the way, the nice thing about beans and grains is that they can all be made in one day and frozen to be used later in the week.
In addition, you will want to make sure that you have some powders, like hemp, split-pea powder, rice powder, and non-GMO soy powder. You can add powders to your smoothie in the morning to get anywhere from 20-30 grams of complete protein, which is the equivalent of two cans of beans. You are getting one-third to a half of your total protein for the day in a single scoop in the morning, so, powders are essential.
Next are nuts and seeds, which contain some protein, but more importantly, healthy fats. Consume nuts in two primary forms: first, you should never have the dry roasted, salted variety; instead, consume raw nuts, or raw, sprouted organic nut butters, which are ideal because they are already ground, making them easier to digest. Almond, pistachio, walnut, cashew and macadamia are ideal and provide critical essential fatty acids. Remember seeds and raw, sprouted organic seed butters, too: sunflower, pumpkin, and sesame, as well as sunflower butter, pumpkin seed butter, and sesame butter, more commonly called tahini. Tahini butter is made by pulverizing sesame seeds, which are so small that they don’t open up during digestion, and end up passing through the body in their undigested form. So, you have a much greater chance of benefitting from the oils and lignans, phytonutrients that provide a host of benefits to the body including helping to regulate hormone levels, improve prostate health, and reduce the stress hormone cortisol9 when you consume tahini. We will talk more about the benefits of nuts in the nut section a little later in the chapter. A closing note: always store nuts and seeds in a refrigerator, ideally in a freezer, and nut and seed butters in the refrigerator so they last longer.
You also want to get some essential oils into the diet; namely, extra virgin organic olive oil but also organic coconut oil, flaxseed oil, hemp oil, avocado oil, and sesame oil. I generally use oil on salads and add a tablespoon of coconut, flax, or hemp oil into smoothies. Oils provide crucial essential fatty acids that benefit your heart and your brain and are useful for repairing arteries and improving energy.
Next are vegetables: enjoy 9-11 servings a day, including juices. One good serving a day of squash—hubbard squash, winter squash, acorn squash, spaghetti squash—would be good, in addition to root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, rutabaga, kohlrabi, and leafy greens. In terms of leafy greens, go heavy on your sprouts. Sunflower sprouts are terrific; they’re my number one favorite, but garlic, onion, daikon, other spicy sprouts, and mung bean sprouts are also great. Aim for five or six different types of sprouts. Enjoy a variety of mixed greens and micro greens twice a day. Lastly, have one serving every day of sea vegetables; see our list below. Sea vegetables provide key minerals, including iodine for thyroid metabolism.
As far as fruits, I recommend 10-11 servings a day, including juices. The lower sugar, lower glycemic fruits like grapefruits, pears, apples, and berries are best. Five servings of fruits a day means you’re getting quality fiber, as well as polyphenols, phytonutrients, all of your flavonoids, and antioxidants. Fruits contain all of these superstars of healing and disease prevention. To assist you in obtaining these healing properties, I prescribe fresh berries or a berry smoothie daily. The berries I recommend are blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, black raspberries, strawberries, cherries, pomegranates, blackcurrants, and red currants. You can get them frozen and thaw them out as needed. In addition to smoothies, consider adding them to your breakfast cereals, salads, salad dressings or mixed with unsweetened coconut flakes. I suggest at least two servings of berries a day. The berries are crucial; you can never get too many berries in my opinion. Also, watery fruits like watermelon, and other melons are great for juicing.
Always have lemons on hand. You will want to start your day with the juice of two lemons in 16 ounces of coconut water; it’s a terrific way to flush out toxins, and alkalize the body. Also, figs and dates, as well as dried fruits like papaya, mango, and pineapple can be used sparingly. They are great as a snack. Juices make great snacks, too: try two apples with some celery and lemon—a phenomenal concoction.
You’ll want organic apple cider vinegar and balsamic vinegar on hand, and for cooking—even light temperature cooking—you’ll want macadamia nut oil, mustard seed oil, and coconut oil. And always use herbs in your cooking and in your salads; see our list on in a future issue of the most important culinary herbs and their nutritional profiles. Lastly, as far as vegetarian milks, I keep rice milk, coconut milk, almond milk, and cashew milk in the refrigerator, where they last about six months. Always check the expiration dates when you pull things from the refrigerator, as well as off the shelves at health food stores. Sometimes an expired product is missed by staff.
A Day in the Life...
I believe that the strongest way of getting your breakfast is a smoothie. Here’s an example of what I put in my smoothies: a teaspoon of coconut oil, a teaspoon of hemp oil, a teaspoon of flaxseed oil, a tablespoon of organic walnut butter, 30 grams of vegetable protein from mixed sources, a scoop of vegetable powder, a scoop of berry powder, some fresh pomegranates, and rice milk.
If I’m hungry prior to lunch, I will have a small snack. If you have bread, make it Ezekiel sprouted bread or another brand of sprouted grain bread. Nut butters on bread or organic corn or brown rice cakes are delicious. You can also make yourself a little dipping dish with herbs and some extra virgin olive oil and a little lemon juice—delicious dipping. On this note, have no more than one slice of bread a day.
Make sure you also have plenty of living food snacks: all health food stores carry a raw food section. Here, you can get sprouted seeds, kale “chips,” dehydrated crackers, raw food snack bars, and even raw chocolate. On the note of chocolate, you want to avoid chocolate made from cow’s milk. One 2 ounce piece of raw cacao or vegan chocolate a day is great for your brain, your heart, and your circulation. In addition, stock up on a rotating mix of fresh raw vegetables that you can cut up and store in air-tight containers as crudité, as well as hummus, Baba ghanoush, or a fresh nut or seed pate for dipping. It will make a world of difference in your success on this program if you have ready, healthful snacks on hand.
Be sure to catch our upcoming issues in which we will cover:
Vegetables
Fruits
Grains
Beans and Legumes
Nuts and Seeds, and
Superstars of The Vegetarian Diet (Cruciferous Vegetables are just one example)
Footnotes
1 WS Collens and GB Dobkin, “Phylogenetic Aspects of the Cause of Human Atherosclerotic Disease,” Circulation, 32 (1965):7.
2 Philip L White and Nancy Selvey, Let’s Talk About Foods (Acton, Mass.: Publishing Sciences Group, 1974).
3 Alex Hershaft and Lori Sonken, “Mark Hegsted: A Closeup of the Federal Government’s Chief Nutritionist,” Vegetarian Times, 41 (May 1983).
4 DM Hegsted, et al., “Lysine and Methionine Supplementation of AllVegetable Diets for Human Adults,” Journal of Nutrition, 56 (1955):555-576.
5 “Meatless Diet Urged by Mexican Government,” Vegetarian Times (June 1982): 7.
6 “AMA Attacks Vegetarian Diet,” Vegetarian Times (May/June 1979):810.
7 Ibid.
8 FR Ellis, “The Nutritional Status of Vegans and Vegetarians,” Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 26 (1967):205211.
9 Lignans for Life, “Lignans health benefits,” (Products Development, LLC.), Accessed March 16, 2015 from http://www.lignans.net/health-benefits.html.
Gary Null’s Show Notes
Supplementing with alpha-lipoic acid associated with improvements in cholesterol
Tabriz University of Medical Sciences (Iran), February 14 2022.
Findings from a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research indicated that supplementing with alpha-lipoic acid was associated with improvements in total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and triglycerides. Researchers at Tabriz university of Medical Sciences in Iran selected 12 randomized, placebo-controlled trials that evaluated the association between supplementing with alpha-lipoic acid and lipid levels among a total of 548 participants. Analysis of all 12 studies (which included data concerning triglycerides) found a significant reduction in triglycerides in association with alpha-lipoic acid. Dose-response analysis found a nonlinear relationship of LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels with alpha-lipoic acid dosage that was dependent upon the duration of treatment.
Positive attitudes about aging reduce risk of dementia in older adults
Yale University, February 7, 2022
Research has shown that older persons who have acquired positive beliefs about old age from their surrounding culture are less likely to develop dementia. This protective effect was found for all participants, as well as among those carrying a gene that puts them at higher risk of developing dementia, a new study led by the Yale School of Public Health has found. Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study reports that older persons with positive age beliefs who carry one of the strongest risk factors for developing dementia—the ε4 variant of the APOE gene —were nearly 50% less likely to develop the disease than their peers who held negative age beliefs.
Study: Running helps brain stave off effects of chronic stress
Exercise protects vital memory and learning functions Brigham Young University, February 14, 2022
Most people agree that getting a little exercise helps when dealing with stress. A new BYU study discovers exercise — particularly running — while under stress also helps protect your memory. The study, newly published in the journal of Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, finds that running mitigates the negative impacts chronic stress has on the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for learning and memory. “Exercise is a simple and cost-effective way to eliminate the negative impacts on memory of chronic stress,” said study lead author Jeff Edwards, associate professor of physiology and developmental biology at BYU. Inside the hippocampus, memory formation and recall occur optimally when the synapses or connections between neurons are strengthened over time. That process of synaptic strengthening is called long-term potentiation (LTP). Chronic or prolonged stress weakens the synapses, which decreases LTP and ultimately impacts memory. Edwards’ study found that when exercise co-occurs with stress, LTP levels are not decreased, but remain normal.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Why It’s Healthier Than Other Cooking Oils
University of Hertfordshire (UK), February 14, 2022
Numerous studies have shown that consuming olive oil – in particular extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) – can have many different benefits for our health. For example, the Spanish PREDIMED study (the largest randomised control trial ever conducted on the Mediterranean diet) showed that women who ate a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil had a 62% lower risk of breast cancer compared to women who were advised to eat a low-fat diet. Experts who have since examined multiple scientific studies looking at the Mediterranean diet and its effect on chronic diseases conclude that a primary reason the diet protects against breast cancer is because of EVOO. There’s also evidence that EVOO may protect against type 2 diabetes and possibly even Alzheimer’s disease. Alongside its fat, EVOO contains many natural substances, such as polyphenols. Polyphenols occur naturally in plants, and have been linked to many health benefits, such as reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and cognitive disorders.
Find at: https://prn.live/the-gary-null-show-notes-02-15-22/
Recipe for Aduki Bean Salad
Yield: 2 servings Salad
Dressing:
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 clove garlic, pressed
Sea salt to taste
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch cayenne
Salad:
1 cup aduki beans, cooked
1 medium onion, diced
1 tomato, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
½ cup slivered almonds
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
3 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
1 radish, sliced, for garnish
Whisk oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne together in a small bowl.
Place aduki beans, onion, tomato, bell pepper, almonds, tarragon, basil, and parsley in a salad bowl and toss with the dressing.
Garnish with sliced radish.
Aduki beans are very high in B-vitamins and trace minerals such as copper, zinc, manganese, and molybdenum, which is very helpful in liver detoxification.
From: Anti-Arthritis Anti-Inflammation Cookbook: Healing Through Natural Foods. By Gary Null, PhD. Essential Publishing
About Gary Null
An internationally renowned expert in the field of health and nutrition, Gary Null, Ph.D is the author of over 70 best-selling books on healthy living and the director of over 100 critically acclaimed full-feature documentary films on natural health, self-empowerment and the environment. He is the host of ‘The Progressive Commentary Hour” and “The Gary Null Show”, the country’s longest running nationally syndicated health radio talk show which can be heard daily on here on the Progressive Radio Network.
Throughout his career, Gary Null has made hundreds of radio and television broadcasts throughout the country as an environmentalist, consumer advocate, investigative reporter and nutrition educator. More than 28 different Gary Null television specials have appeared on PBS stations throughout the nation, inspiring and motivating millions of viewers. He originated and completed more than one hundred major investigations on health issues resulting in the use of material by 20/20 and 60 Minutes. Dr. Null started this network to provide his followers with a media outlet for health and advocacy. For more of Dr. Null’s Work visit the Gary Null’s Work Section or Blog.GaryNull.com In addition to the Progressive Radio Network, Dr. Null has a full line of all-natural home and healthcare products that can be purchased at his Online Store.
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