Do Vegan Studies really mean you should avoid meat?
I recently had an article shared with me by one of my patients about vegan living, and a book that supports veganism as the healthiest choice. The idea of being free of animal products has been around a long time, and over the years the research that I have seen has always supported a life of meat products, being a healthier life.
In addition, I have (for many years) taken the Biblical perspective on health. Which is basically, “If they ate it in the Bible, then it must be good.” Meat, cheese, milk, all seem to be approved according to Biblical standards. The evidence that I seek points in the direction of animal products being a good part of life. Here are some excerpts from the ARTICLE which is an ABC News article.
Children’s Book Encourages Vegan Lifestyle
Mikaela Conley
April 19, 2012
The cover of Ruby Roth’s children’s book, ” Vegan is Love,” is adorned with whimsical animals, but the book takes on controversial issues surrounding veganism, food manufacturing and distribution, along with how our dietary decisions affect our world. Roth said the book is meant to introduce kids to a lifestyle of “compassion and action.”
…Roth. 29, is a mother of two and raises her children on a vegan diet. Roth became a vegan in 2003, when her husband challenged her to a “health experiment.” She said her health and energy “thrived so quickly” that she never went back to a non-vegan lifestyle.
Studies continue to link animal products with chronic disease, including diabetes, obesity and asthma, but these issues “are practically non-existent in the worldwide vegan population,” she said.
…Nevertheless, Keith Ayoob, associate professor of pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, said children should be exposed to plants and animal foods at an early age so they can understand the healthy variety that is available to them.
“Any time you limit the variety of healthy foods, you chance limiting the nutrients they get, ” said Ayoob. “Over time, that can catch up with them.”
Dr. David Katz, director of the Yale Prevention Center, said a vegan diet is “fine” for kids: “As long as any nutrient shortfalls are addressed, a vegan diet is certainly apt to be better for most kids than than the typical American diet they have now.”
A vegan diet not only excludes meat, fish and poultry, but does not use other animal products and byproducts, including eggs, dairy, honey, leather, silk and wool. The nutritional elements are centered around fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, seeds and nuts… – This article actually does a perfect job of opening up the door to discuss why a Vegan diet is not the best choice, but to also point out why it is a better choice than the typical American diet. Here is the one BIG point, are you ready for it? Here:
Pro-Vegan research has never taken into account the quality of Animal Based Nutrition, it only compares Veganism to a Cultural diet.
Yep, that is the whole answer. But lets look further at some of the points above. Follow the italicized lines above. First one says that animal diets are linked to diabetes, obesity and asthma, which is false. Perhaps a study here and there, but when compared to the thousands of studies that link diabetes, obesity and asthma to excessive grain intake and sugars (completely vegan foods), then you really shouldn’t throw those conditions in this list. Asthma can be associated with milk intake, but this is the traditional milk, and cheese, not the stuff that we promote… not the stuff that inhabited the earth 2000 years ago.
I have seen that most people living a vegan lifestyle, our missing very important nutrients, including healthy fats and proteins. If living a vegan lifestyle, it takes very specific effort to insure that you are getting everything that you need. Without watching the diet very closely, deficiencies can slowly develop causing disease. What is key here, is that if you go from cultural living to vegan, you will feel better in the short run, but over time you can pick up more issues slowly.
The next bold line in the article is true. If you are watching for nutrient deficiencies, it is WAY healthier to eat a diet completely devoid of the typical grain fed beef, arsenic supplemented chicken, and genetically modified grains that rule the market. So Vegan OVER Culture… healthy animal products OVER vegan.
Legumes and whole grains. Both sound great, however both are loaded with lectins. Small inflammatory proteins that can damage the intestine. I believe that anybody has the potential to eat lectin rich foods with no issue, but that is if they are in moderation, and your gut is a fully healed gut in the first place. Which means nobody who has come from straight cultural living should be eating legumes and grains. You should heal your gut first.
Bottom line. Most of you should go vegan over what you are doing now. It is that much better than eating conventional meat products. BUT, you can go one step further by making the move to healthy meat products.
Be well, Be blessed, and be shocked… its good for making you move!
Dr. E