Food for thought

As I've mentioned in previous entries, I am a solar cook. I have 4 different types of solar cookers. 3 different types of ovens plus a parabola. The parabola looks like a TV satellite dish, and works on the same principle as a magnifying glass in the sun burning from concentrated light. It is truly amazing. I can boil 2 cups of water in about 15 minutes in the sun using it. I place a dutch oven on the parabola and bake potatoes and other vegetables. Yesterday was December 21, the day of the year when the sun is the lowest in the sky. Now the sun will start to make its way higher in the sky a little more each day. It was a beautiful solar cooking day- no clouds in the sky. It was cold- about 9 degrees above zero when I placed the spuds in the dutch oven on the parabola in the driveway. It took about 1 and 1/2 hours for 2 very large red potatoes to be cooked perfectly. My wife Bev and I had them as part of our lunch. Solar cooked food is cooked by infrared heat from the sun. It ...

I care about your health, your kids' health, and your grandchildren's health. Hence my email address ForPlanetHealth@aol.com. In my twenties I contracted 3 serious diseases because of my unhealthy diet. I had heart disease (high blood pressure, high cholesterol), and painful Crohns Disease, which comes from bacteria in cow's milk. I took pills for 2 years, until I began learning what food and drink is healthy, and what is not. I turned my diet around, the diseases went away, and today, knock on wood, I don't take a pill. (And I certainly don't drink the milk from a cow anymore!) Ever since, I have been on a mission to share info with people to hopefully avoid the pain and expense that I went through. Because of the time of year, I would like to address one thing- processed sugar. Simply put, it promotes disease. The doctors I study compare sugar addiction to cocaine addiction- it is so hard to give up. My wife Bev said that Mika Brezenski from "Morning ...

From my friend "down under": http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathy-freston/vegan-diet-cancer_b_2250052.html

I would like to take a minute to thank the people who read the information on this site. I've gotten positive feedback from healthy eating people all across the globe. Since I've turned to an all plant based diet, I've never felt better. Food and drink has never tasted so good. When I consume wonderful, healthy plant foods, not only do they taste great, it feels good in the mind to know what I'm putting in my body is truly healthy, and affects the earth in a positive way. I see by checking the blog stats that besides the U.S., people from China, the Soviet Union, Germany, India, England, Norway, Spain, Australia, and others have perused this site. To all of you, I wish you a healthy and happy holiday season with your family and friends. Thank-you for reading. *Have you ever heard the sound of handbells? A friend wrote, "I think they make possibly the most spiritual sound on the planet." I hope you get a chance to hear the bells this holiday season. My wi...

This just in: Dr. H. Gilbert Welch of Dartmouth Medical School, along with his co-author, Dr. Archie Bleyer of St. Charles Health System and Oregon Health & Science University, published an article in the New England Journal of Medicine http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23171096 on Thursday, November 22, 2012, showing how mammograms do little to catch deadly breast cancers before they spread, and at the same time, 1.3 million women in the past 30 years have been treated for cancers that never would have threatened their lives. They were over-diagnosed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_H8G41LHf9A This is one more key piece of evidence explaining why women need to avoid looking for breast cancer with mammograms. The Cochrane Collaboration http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2012nl/may/mammography.htm , the highest authority in medical research, made the definitive statement earlier this year by officially recommending that women should stop getting mammograms. They have publis...

Definitely worth checking out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvzDHGLEUyw&feature=watch-now-button&wide=1

I have only recently discovered Gerson Therapy, and plan on studying it. From what I've learned so far, it is my contention that Gerson Therapy has cured a moderate number of cancer patients- cured them. Some of them had been given death sentences by conventional medicine. This may well be the best cure on the planet for some types of cancer, and many other serious diseases. In my opinion, everyone should be made aware of this information. Please watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoUl7F7dWdE&feature=watch-now-button&wide=1

If you want to lessen the antiobiotics and other harmful chemicals you ingest, listen to this 2 and 1/2 minute video: http://nutritionfacts.org/video/lowering-dietary-antibiotic-intake/?utm_source=NutritionFacts.org&utm_campaign=82f4f4be23-RSS_VIDEO_DAILY&utm_medium=email

An excerpt: "One of government’s most important jobs is to protect the community against foreign and domestic threats. The food industry is a domestic threat. Government intervention is needed to stop the abuse of American citizens." Or as stated in the McGovern Report, “It is the responsibility of government at all levels to take the initiative in creating for Americans an appropriate nutritional atmosphere— one conducive to improvement in the health and quality of life of the American people. Unfortunately, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans are written with the health of the agribusinesses in mind, and emphasize the importance of consuming meat, fish, and dairy products." http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2012nl/oct/mcgovern.htm

You should know what's in what you eat and drink. Maybe you think you know? I would bet that you do not. It is estimated that more than 97% of Americans do not know. You should care enough to at least know. Learn what food and drink contain harmful disease promoting ingredients, and learn which promote health. Then when you are much older, you can look back at your life and either 1) be happy you turned to a healthy lifestyle way back when, or ... 2) regret that you didn't. Heart attack? I hope I never experience that pain. Cancer? Don't even want to think about it. I realize it is hard to find out that some of your favorite food and drink you've been eating and drinking all your life, under the assumption that they are healthy for you- that you need them for good health, are in actuality disease promoting, like: Milk, cheese, eggs, all meat, all fish including salmon, and all oils- (yes, even olive oil) have disease promoting quali...

I recently watched an HBO special: because of the unhealthy western diet (junk food/junk drink/food from animals- meat and dairy), children are starting to show signs of the beginnings of heart disease!

This short video just in: http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_breast_self_exam.html A quote from Dr. M: "They do much more harm than good."

"When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at, change." If you want to, you can change the way you look at food and drink. All it takes is an open mind. Again, the first thing you need to do is learn what foods are healthy, and what foods are not. For these answers, study the Welcome entry at http://peopleforplants.blogspot.com/ If you can turn to a healthy lifestyle, you'll feel better, look better, live longer, and you'll be a tremendous influence to those around you, especially children. Sadly, the great majority of people are unable to rid unhealthy animal foods addiction. They shorten their lives by what they eat and drink.

Read http://peopleforplants.blogspot.com/2012_05_01_archive.html

More video advice from the good doctor. Pay special attention to "the 60%": http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_breast_cancer_treatment.html

From author and philanthropist John Robbins: "Americans today spend a smaller percentage of our income on food than any people in the history of the world. And we spend vastly more on disease care than any people have ever done. Meanwhile, we have the highest rate of obesity any nation has ever experienced. These facts are deeply related. The annual health insurance premiums paid by the average American family now exceed the gross yearly income of a full-time minimum-wage worker. Every thirty seconds, someone in the U.S. files for bankruptcy due to the costs of treating a health problem. The chairman of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, says his company spends more money on insurance for its employees than it spends on coffee. In all the heated debate about healthcare reform, there is one basic fact that is rarely discussed – the one thing that could dramatically bring down the costs of healthcare while improving human health. The single most effective step most people can t...

http://www.pritikin.com/your-health/health-benefits/reverse-heart-disease/252-heart-disease-deaths-plunge-75.html Submitted by Peter

Directly from Dr. McDougall's book The Starch Solution , page 156: The sales pitch goes like this: "You must take supplements because of the poor condition of soil these days. The crops you eat were grown in soil that has been drained of its nutrients from years of overfarming. Now the foods that grow in them are also deficient in vitamins and minerals. Supplements will correct this problem by providing these missing nutrients." (From Dr M:) This simply is not true. Plants synthesize vitamins; they are not found in the soil. If a plant is going to bear roots, seeds, flowers, and/or fruits fit for sale, then it is going to have to produce all of the organic chemicals that are necessary for its own survival. We call the plant-derived organic chemicals vital for human nutrition vitamins. Your risk of suffering from mineral deficiency caused by depleted soil is so incredibly small that a single case would make national headlines. That's because you eat foods grown in a...

I was driving along on an interstate yesterday and I saw a big billboard advertising a business that said, "Have a Halo Burger , go towards the light!" was this company's advertising slogan. This is wrong on so many levels. Using religion to sell a burger? Meat is not only unhealthy for people, and unhealthy for the earth, this company is using religion to make money. And how about the living conditions for the animals who were factory farmed raised for these "heavenly" burgers? All foods from animals cause inflammation/have disease promoting qualities. As John McDougall, MD says, "Animal foods are the wrong food for humans."

That is a statement from John McDougall, MD's latest book The Starch Solution : http://peopleforplants.blogspot.com/2012_05_01_archive.html (Scroll down) From page 38: "Every day I witness serious diseases that stem from eating animal foods, including heart attacks, strokes, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, and cancer. All animal foods cause illness when consumed in amounts typically found in the Western diet. Why? Primarily because they are the wrong food for humans."

This is funny!: http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/videos/inspiration/store-wars.html "Search your peelings Cuke..., Don't turn to the dark side of the farm..."

From a listing on the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services website, or more specifically: http://www.healthcare.gov/law/resources/regulations/prevention/taskforce.html From the US Preventive Services Task Force: The Task Force reviewed research studies on the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening test for prostate cancer. It concluded that the expected harms of PSA screening are greater than the potential benefit. The fact sheet explains the Task Force recommendation and what it might mean for you: http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/prostatecancerscreening/prostatecancerfact.pdf In conclusion, the science shows that more men will be harmed by PSA screening than will benefit. The expected harms are greater than the small potential benefit. The USPSTF is an independent panel of non-Federal experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine and is composed of primary care providers (such as internists, pediatricians, family physicians, gynecologists/obstetricians, nur...

Healthy eating is certainly not for everyone. For most it is too difficult to rid unhealthy food addictions. Temporary taste satisfaction is more important than thinking of health for the long term. I grew up eating all kinds of animal foods, plus sugary, salty, oily junk foods as well. These unhealthy addictions are not easy to give up. Babies/children raised on healthy food and drink alone have a great chance for long term health. But that does not mean adults who've been raised on unhealthy food cannot make the switch. Some people like myself are forced to eat healthy because of illness. I have Crohns Disease (which by the way comes from drinking cow's milk/eating dairy products). I took the doctor's pills for 2 years after the initial diagnosis. Then I learned what is healthy and what is not, changed to a healthy diet, and was able to stop taking all pills. If I continue to eat healthy there is no need to take any pills whatsoever for Crohns. (The only "pill" ...

Some prostates are larger than others. From Dr. Greger- more reasons to eat a healthy plant based, starch based diet: http://nutritionfacts.org/video/some-prostates-are-larger-than-others/?utm_source=NutritionFacts.org&utm_campaign=addc451a7b-RSS_VIDEO_DAILY&utm_medium=email

People ask me why I ask for no MSG in my food when I order at Chinese restaurants/other restaurants. Here is the reason in this 24 minute video from the Real Food Channel: http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/videos/dangerous-foods/msg.html

Here are direct quotes from the following video from Dr. John McDougall: "His ideas are what I consider evil." and "Robert Atkins, your diet is killing people." Here is the 54 minute video: http://www.drmcdougall.com/video/diet_wars.htm

Here's a short video re the rich American diet and how it relates to cancer: http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_dietary_treatment_of_cancer.html If you truly want the skivvy, read: http://peopleforplants.blogspot.com/2012_05_01_archive.html

I have talked to many people re the debate on whether or not to get a PSA test or mammogram. First of all, I am certainly no expert on cancer, but I do believe that as a patient I would want to be informed of all risks before I agree to a PSA test, and for women mammograms. I am only a reporter. "Don't shoot the messenger" as the saying goes. On 8/12/12 I posted a report about many health organizations and Dr. John McDougall being against PSA testing: http://greg-foodforthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/american-cancer-society-says-no-to-psa.html And on mammograms: http://greg-foodforthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/women-do-not-get-mammogram.html First of all, I completely trust Mr. McDougall, and wanted to put the entries on my blog as soon as I received the info. He would never subscribe to the information on PSA tests or mammograms unless he felt it was solidly based on science and fact. And it is not just John McDougall and many like-minded doctors advising against PSA an...

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From a fellow blogger: "Let's really think about it. Why does anyone feel compelled to drink cow's milk? Why would anyone find it necessary to nurse on a cow three times a day? Why not an antelope? Would you be appalled if someone served you a glass of antelope milk to drink? Yuck. But maybe you'd gladly take that cow's milk, containing hormones, pesticides, pus, and any assortment of antibiotics, dioxins, bovine cancer cells- all kinds of bad stuff. There have been countless studies that show milk can have debilitating effects on a wide assortment of people. Kids can have unknown allergies to it. It may even be related to autism when the milk proteins (which humans aren't great at digesting) cross over into the bloodstream and mess with the nervous system. And the whole calcium thing. How does every other animal have strong bones? Drinking cow's milk? No. From the foods they eat. A cow gets its calcium from the grass and grains it eats. But most cows ...

From Dr. John McDougall- Sickening Foods: The foods recommended for a high protein diet are mainly meat, eggs, and dairy products, which are high in cholesterol, fat, and animal protein; and deficient in dietary fiber, carbohydrate; and are often highly contaminated with chemicals and microbes; and have serious vitamin and mineral imbalances. "Nutrition and Health in the United States," published under the direction of Surgeon General C. Everett Koop MD in 1988 put to rest all controversy concerning whether or not diet is fundamental in the cause, prevention, and treatment of common diseases. "The Report's main conclusion is that overconsumption of certain dietary components is now a major concern for Americans. While many foods are involved, chief among them is the disproportionate consumption of foods high in fats, often at the expense of foods high in complex carbohydrates and fiber that may be more conducive to health." Similar recommenda...

Yes. They are very, very bad. (5 minute shocking video news report) http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/videos/children-and-nutrition/energy-drinks.html

When asked whether food and beverage consumption or physical activity was more important, the majority of people get the answer wrong. (2 minute video) http://nutritionfacts.org/video/diet-or-exercise-whats-more-important-for-weight-loss/?utm_source=NutritionFacts.org&utm_campaign=1a7910ed4f-RSS_VIDEO_DAILY&utm_medium=email

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7375897927147969009 ...the professor and, Mary Ann!

http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2012nl/aug/armstrong.htm

scientists say, because of water, or more specifically, the lack of it. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/vegetarian-2050-190426669.html

Another short video, right from the good doctor: http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_mammography.html

There are a small number of cancer cells in our bodies, some studies suggest since we were in the womb! The healthier your blood is, the more power it has to destroy cancer cells. The healthier you eat, the healthier your blood is. 2+2=4. Eat healthy = protect yourself from cancer. A starch based, plant based diet low in oil/sugar/salt provides you with the best cancer protection there is. Say no to meat, eggs, and dairy. Here's a short video which explains: http://nutritionfacts.org/video/slowing-the-growth-of-cancer-3/

From Dr. John McDougall: All food from animals cause inflammation. Obviously if you don't eat food from animals there will be none of this type of inflammation. Therefore if one does not eat food from animals they will have the best chance of never getting arthritis. There have been case studies of people who've had arthritis who've changed to a starch based, plant based diet and their arthritis disappears! Benefits for arthritis usually begin to appear within 4 to 7 days of strict adherence to a starch based, plant based diet. This same information may be of help to people with various kinds of autoimmune diseases. Fortunately, the best treatment and often the cure for rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory-types of arthritis is the above mentioned diet followed strictly. You should begin by reading my Hot Topics on arthritis, inflammatory arthritis: http://drmcdougall.com/med_hot_arthritis.html . Also read and watch the associated Star McDougallers found at the botto...

American Cancer Society, American College of Preventive Medicine, American College of Physicians, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, National Cancer Institute (U.S.), British Columbia Office of Technology Assessment, United Kingdom National Health Services, Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Urological Association, Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, World Health Organization, European Union Advisory Committee on Cancer Prevention, European Association of Urology, Cancer Council of Australia, Swedish Council for Technology Assessment in Health Care, National Health Committee, New Zealand. Here's a 2 minute video every man should see: http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_psa_test.html

That is a quote from this 4 minute video on students learning how to garden. It is WONDERFUL! http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/videos/inspiration/the-ultimate-freedom---food-security.html

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/photo/2012-08/15/c_131787135.htm In my opinion zoos are wrong. They're animal prisons. If you were an animal would you rather be free or in a zoo? IMO the only reason to imprison an animal is if it is sick/being rehabilitated- then let them go, if they are able. There is the story of a dolphin from Sea World who drowned itself being in captivity. The Sea World trainer who witnessed this changed his mind set and is now forever against keeping animals against their will. A zoo is just another example of mankind exploiting animals for their own gain. Let's stop exploiting animals. Let's stop eating them. We'd be healthier for it, and so would the earth.

Here's a 3 minute video. Got bovine leukemia virus? In the video Dr. M says, "actually dairy is dirty food." http://drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_milk.html

Here's a two minute video. Listen for Dr. M saying "Meat is terrible, dairy is terrible." http://www.drmcdougall.com/video/mcdougalls_moments_white_rice.html

An excerpt from this funny and cutting edge video: "A plant based diet fights cancer cells 8 times more than a SAD (Standard American Diet)!" Here it is, "Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death": http://nutritionfacts.org/video/uprooting-the-leading-causes-of-death/

http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/page/45.html

http://www.therealfoodchannel.com/videos/inspiration/the-kucinich-surprise.html

Because the food is cooked at a lower temperature (usually 250- 325 degrees depending on the time of day/time of year) it has more flavor and there is less nutrient loss. When you solar cook you are saving energy, saving money, and it is fun. There is a learning curve, but anyone can do it. http://www.sunoven.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Instructions-and-faqs-Booklet-Color.pdf We cook rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, parsnips, squash, sweet corn, carrots, soups, breads, hotdishes, apples, desserts, heat up left-overs and more. http://www.sunoven.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNED7GJLY7I