VM'S ANNUAL GREAT AMERICAN MEATOUT COMING UP IN MARCH! 

Be sure to mark your new 2006 calendar for:

Sunday ~ March 19, 2006
Noon - 5:00 pm

Gerry Kulick Community Center
1201 Livernois
Ferndale

Join us for a day of exploring a plant-based diet with fabulous speakers, vendors, restaurant samplings, food demos, great prizes and videos. This a wonderful opportunity to expose a loved one or friend to the many benefits of plant-based foods!

Looking back at VM's Thanksgiving Day Vegan Potluck 

Ever wonder what vegan whipped cream tastes like, or vegan pumpkin pie? If so, you could have had your choice of two kinds of each at the Thanksgiving Day Vegan Potluck on Nov 24th. That's what happens when 70 people participate in and contribute to a potluck. The choices were seemingly endless . . . a twenty foot table with a huge variety of vegan foods, not to mention an entire table of raw food choices and another table of vegan desserts. Needless to say, it was a feast. 

If you want to join us next year, mark your calendar for noon next Thanksgiving. Can't wait that long? Come to one of the monthly potlucks at Unity of Livonia -- fourth Sunday of the month at 1:00 pm. New to the group? Don't worry! You're only a stranger once! Visit here for details about the next potluck. Click here for the complete article.

No doubt you've heard lots of good things about soy foods. According to a health claim sanctioned by the FDA, they can help to fight heart disease. They may also make your bones stronger. And the biggest news about soy foods over the past decade has been that they contain cancer-fighting compounds. But... articles began to pop up on the internet saying that the pro-soy stories are nothing more than hype and that the real scoop on soy is not nearly as positive. In fact, the stories say, eating soy could endanger your health... Based on the bulk of the evidence, soy appears to be perfectly safe for nearly all healthy individuals when it is consumed in reasonable amounts. We would say that a reasonable amount of soy is two to three servings per day. Women who have had estrogen-positive breast cancer may want to be somewhat more restrictive in their soy intake. However, if they are already eating and enjoying soy foods, there is not enough evidence of any harmful effects to suggest that they need to avoid all soy. Click here for the complete article.

The once-fashionable Atkins diet, the high-fat low-carbohydrate method of losing weight, helps empty the heart's "fuel tank" by reducing the energy it stores, scientists said yesterday. Click here for the complete article.

A new study finds that eating mostly meat, refined starches, and sodium may increase the likelihood of developing chronic respiratory symptoms, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Researchers found that individuals whose diets are rich in meat, refined starches and sodium are 1.43 times more likely to report new onset of persistent coughs with phlegm than those who consume a diet high in fruit and soy. Click here for the complete article.

Volume eaters (people with binge eating disorder) possess strong personalities, are very hard-working, demanding, driven, are not prone to take advice, and are used to being in control of everything around them. Unfortunately, even though they are strong individuals, they are out of control of their eating behavior-and most of them are well aware of their problem... Exercise is hard for people to fit into their lives and I have found this especially true for driven people who are binge-eaters. Exercise burns calories and resets the appetite-something these people need desperately... Those who fail on the McDougall Program are encouraged to take a long vacation in Durham, North Carolina for a diet of rice and fruit (The Rice Diet)- which should serve as strong motivation to make the McDougall Program work. Click here for the complete article.

Adults over 50 may have problems absorbing it, new research shows. Most Americans don't worry about vitamin B-12. Health experts once thought that only strict vegetarians were likely to have a shortage. As long as basic blood counts didn't show any anemia, even these people were considered safe. Now research shows that vitamin B-12 may be a concern for many more people. Click here for the complete article.

The goal of the Vegan Health Study is to develop understanding and guidelines to help those who choose to nourish themselves on plant-based diets to do so with the least risk and optimal benefit to their health. The Vegan Health Study online questionnaire allows the Institute to receive comprehensive nutritional profiles from participants electronically. Click here for the complete article.

The past three years have been the most destructive in the Brazilian Amazon's history. In 2004, 26,000 sq. km of rainforest were burned, the second-highest rate on record. This year could be worse, and most of it is driven by cattle ranching... Cattle ranching, if it keeps expanding in the Amazon, threatens two-fifths of the world's remaining rainforest. This is not just the most diverse eco system, but also the biggest reserve of standing carbon. Its clearance could provoke a hydrological disaster in South America, as rainfall is reduced as the trees come down. Next time you see footage of the forest burning, remember that you might have paid for it Click here for the complete article.

"Both marine and freshwater harvests have increased dramatically since the middle of the 20th century, and now show signs of reaching their upper limit. Fishers first depleted larger, more valued, or more easily captured species and then shifted their efforts to remaining species, often lower in the food web." [University of Michigan professor David Allan]. Click here for the complete article.

Illegal fishing fleets are plundering the seas by taking advantage of rules allowing them to adopt "flags of convenience," a report has claimed... Many vessels, particularly those pursuing high value fish such as swordfish and tuna, transfer their catch to other boats to "launder" their illegally caught fish... In addition to threatening the world's fisheries, bycatch - the incidental capture of non-targeted species - from pirate fishing operations, is a serious threat to sea turtles, albatross, sharks and a range of other species. Click here for the complete article.

While calling on other nations to implement conservation measures, the U.S. exempts its fleet from controversial circle hooks and area closures. Click here for the complete article.

. . . the disturbing world of genetic modification, where, for instance, scientists use things like "gene guns" to insert pesticide-resistant genes into tomatoes. That way, huge fields can be sprayed with pesticides without killing the crop. The process has allowed the huge agbiotech corporation Monsanto to corner both the seed and pesticide markets while shutting out small growers and throwing international farming systems out of whack. Click here for the complete article.

The nine million cows living on dairy farms in the United States will spend most of their lives either in a large shed or on a feces-caked mud lot where disease is rampant. A dairy cow will be repeatedly impregnated, her babies will be taken from her, and humans will drink the milk that was intended for them (her babies). When her exhausted body can no longer give milk, she will be sent to slaughter and ground up for hamburgers. Click here for the complete article.

Twenty-five years after Anna Mumford got a job in a slaughterhouse, it's not the smell or the blood that she remembers, it's the fear. She's haunted by the look in the eyes of petrified cows being herded into sheds to be shot in the head. Click here for the complete article.

There are so many reasons to go Vegan. Now you can "vegucate" the masses with this persuasive t-shirt. Whether your specific cause is human rights, animal rights, the environment or peace -- nonviolence unites us all! Why were Gandhi and Chavez Vegetarians? Why are Coretta Scott King, Dextor Scott King and Martin Luther King III Vegan? Whatever your cause -- Non violence is its foundation and its future. NonviolenceRevolution.org developed this shirt with proceeds going to National Endowment for the Animals www.NEAforever.org. Be consistent in your message for compassion in this organic, fair-labor, "American Apparel" t-shirt. "I wear this shirt everywhere I go. It always starts a thoughtful conversation. Nobody argues against compassion." Click here for the complete article.

Epidemiological studies have consistently shown that regular consumption of fruits and vegetables is strongly associated with reduced risk of developing chronic diseases, such as cancer and cardiovascular disease. It is now widely believed that the actions of the antioxidant nutrients alone do not explain the observed health benefits of diets rich in fruits and vegetables, because taken alone, the individual antioxidants studied in clinical trials do not appear to have consistent preventive effects. Click here for the complete article.

. . . two new studies just discovered two ways to make your daily (at least!) green leafy salad even healthier. Those eating a salad including half an avocado absorbed about 10 times more carotenoids than those eating the fat-free scientists experimented with adding different fresh herbs to salads and measuring their resultant total antioxidant content. They found that adding just a single sprig of fresh herbs (the weight of 3 paper clips worth of thyme, sage or marjoram--a kissing cousin of oregano) literally doubles the antioxidant power of a bowl of salad. It's almost like eating two salads for the price of one! Click here for the complete article.

Plant omega-3 fat is found in the seeds and oils of rape, soy, flax, and nuts, particularly walnuts. Research shows that plant-based omega-3s reduce the risk of secondary heart attacks by 70 percent compared to 35 percent for fish and, unlike fish oils, give long-term protection against the disease. Click here for the complete article.

Fish is promoted as health food, a preventative for heart disease, and the only "safe meat" to eat. Here is a case of a little bit of truth being blown way out of proportion. Fish fats (omega-3 fats) will thin the blood and make the formation of a potentially fatal blood clot in your heart artery less likely. The problem is, mercury causes the blood to clot. Click here for the complete article.

Harvard psychiatrist Andrew Stoll (and other researchers since 1999) have studied omega-3s as a treatment for bipolar disorder, depression, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. "IN EVERY CASE, THE DATA HAS BEEN OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE," Stoll says. Click here for the complete article.

At first glance, there seems nothing special about the students at this high school in Appleton, Wisconsin. They appear calm, interact comfortably with one another, and are focused on their schoolwork. And yet, a couple of years ago, there was a police officer patrolling the halls at this school for developmentally challenged students. Many of the students were troublemakers, there was a lot of fighting with teachers and some of the kids carried weapons. What happened? A glance through the halls provides the answer. The vending machines have been replaced by water coolers. The lunchroom took hamburgers and French fries off the menu, making room for fresh vegetables and fruits, whole-grain bread and a salad bar. Is that all? Yes, that's all. [The article cites many other examples and studies relating nutrition and behavior. It concludes: "We need to know more about the composition of the right nutrients. It could be the recipe for peace."] Click here for the complete article.

Since 1985, Dr. Esselstyn has conducted the longest running study which proves that heart disease can be arrested or reversed by a low fat, plant-based diet. Click here for the complete article.

Growing demand for meat has become a driving force behind virtually every major category of environmental damage now threatening the human future. Total meat consumption has increased five-fold in the past half century, putting extreme pressure on Earth's limited resources, including water, land, feed, and fuel. Click here for the complete article.

Global warming could be controlled if we all became vegetarians and stopped eating meat. That's the view of British physicist Alan Calverd who thinks that giving up pork chops, lamb cutlets and chicken burgers would do more for the environment than burning less oil and gas... Calvert calculates that the animals we eat emit 21% of all the carbon dioxide that can be urekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-07/iop-cgw070505.php'>Click here for the

After decades of growth, the reported global wild fish catch peaked in 2000 at 96,000,000 tons, then fell to 90,000,000 tons by 2003, the last year for which worldwide data are available... Over the past 50 years, the number of large predatory fish in the oceans has dropped by a startling 90%. Catches of many popular food fish such as cod, tuna, flounder, and hake have been cut in half despite a tripling in fishing effort. Click here for the complete article.

Factory farms bear little resemblance to the family farms of a century ago. Animals are given drugs and diets designed to make them grow faster or produce more milk or eggs. They are crammed in small spaces and not allowed to practice any of their natural behaviors - such as walking freely, grazing, or -for chickens- preening and taking dust baths. Click here for the complete article.

If you could talk to the animals, would they have anything to say? New research suggests they might. One sheep who got a reward every time she recognized a human face correctly on a video screen scored a perfect 50 out of 50. Hamlet the pig is a computer wiz. He gets a reward every time he uses a joystick designed for a chimp to move a cursor into a blue area on a computer monitor. A Jack Russell terrier couldn't achieve such a task after a year of trying. New research shows that chickens can be taught to run the thermostat of the chicken coop. Cows have been known to form lifelong friendships, and one recent study found that they actually show excitement when they've learned something new. If farm animals are intelligent creatures, should we all be vegetarians? "I stopped eating meat as soon as I began to really think about it," said Jane Goodall. "People actually don't think about it." Click here for the complete article.

It began with apes. In the 1960s and 70s, scientists taught captive chimps to use words and documented wild ones using tools and planning hunting expeditions. Then other smart mammals -- monkeys, elephants and porpoises among them -- also proved to have surprisingly ''human'' mental powers. And in the last few years, the circle has expanded to still other mammals and beyond. Click here for the complete article.

This Article Undergoing Revision

This Article Undergoing Revision