Meatless Monday- Limit Cancer Risks

How many of you have tried a high protein diet?  How many have tried to eat more protein than carbs in efforts to look hot in a bikini (or board shorts) ?  I got on the high protein band wagon, and I am not going to lie, I saw results. 

But I can't help wonder if my carnivorous ways contributed to my cancer.

I am most definitely not trying to scare you into not eating animals.  I don't want you to feel that if you eat meat you are going to get cancer.  I just want to summarize some of the fascinating readings I have done on this topic.  

In the 60s researchers made a groundbreaking revelation.  They observed the fact that ladies living in North America and Europe commonly got breast cancer, whereas it was a rarity for women living in Japan.  Additionally, the ladies that did get cancer in Japan were much more likely to survive than their American and European counterparts. 

Since then, things started to morph.  Fast food and meat consumption began to be part of the Asian lifestyle.  McD's headed in for the kill and defused worldwide.  As a result, cancer rates rose in Japan.  By the 70's, Japanese ladies who ate meat every day had eight times the risk of getting breast cancer compared to those who continued traditional rice-based diet, according to Neal D.  Barnard. 

Strange coincidence?  T.  Colin Campbell's book, The China Study, touched on this comparison as well.  People who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease ... People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest and tended to avoid chronic disease.

Now I know this may be too hot to handle.  I would rather not read it because I have been known to eat a dog now and then (a hot dog silly), but this article from the Huffington Post is interesting and touches on the link of hot dogs (and other highly processed meats) and cancer.  According to Neal Barnard,

"The more hot dogs people eat, the higher their risk of colorectal cancer.  And it's not just hot dogs.  Any sort of processed meat--bacon, sausage, ham, deli slices--is in this group.  And here are the numbers: Every 50 grams of processed meat you eat on a daily basis (that's about one hot dog) increases your risk of colorectal cancer by 21 percent.  And just as there is no safe level of smoking, no amount of hot dogs, bacon, sausage, ham or other processed meats comes out clean in scientific studies." 

According to the Cancer Project,

A number of hypotheses have been advanced to explain the connection between meat consumption and cancer risk.  First, meat is devoid of fiber and other nutrients that have a protective effect.  Meat also contains animal protein, saturated fat, and, in some cases, carcinogenic compounds such as heterocyclic amines (HCA) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) formed during the processing or cooking of meat.  HCAs, formed as meat is cooked at high temperatures,  and PAHs, formed during the burning of organic substances, are believed to increase cancer risk.  In addition,  the high fat content of meat and other animal products increases hormone production, thus increasing the risk of hormone-related cancers such as breast and prostate cancer. 

You can read more about the Cancer Project here. 

I could go on and on about similar findings but I don't want to be a complete bore.  Bottom line is that veggies and fruits help reduce the risk of cancer, while meat, animal products, and other fatty foods are frequently found to increase the risk of cancer.

After my diagnosis, I gave up meat and dairy because of these findings.  I felt great.  However, as I increased my workouts and I needed my endurance, I turned back to some animal protein.  I just don't rely on animals for every meal in the day.       

Why not try cutting back on animal proteins that might harm our health and start focusing on foods that help it.  You will  not only be a hero to the animals, but the planet will love you too. 

Recommended Reading:

Crazy Sexy Diet, by Kris Carr

Life Over Cancer, by Keith I. Block, M.D.

Eating Animals, by Jonathan Safran Foer

The China Study, by  T. Colin Campbell

Meatless Monday Recipe- Gazpacho

Gazpacho is perfect for a warm summer day.  Since we have a few left before the leaves start turning why not make it one of your MM meals?  I adore it because, basically my son could make it.  Serve it with a hearty slice of multi grain bread and you got yourself a meal.  Winning.

Recipe Curtisey of Simply Recipes

6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

1 purple onion, finely chopped

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped

1 sweet red bell pepper seeded, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4  cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup  olive oil

2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons sugar

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

6 or more drops  of Tabasco sauce to taste

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

4 cups tomato juice

Directions

Combine all ingredients.  Blend slightly, to desired consistency.  Place in non-metal, non-reactive storage container, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, allowing flavors to blend.

I made mine in the morning and it tasted pretty amazing for dinner.  Next time, I think I will blend it less though.

You stay classy Meatless Monday!

Farm Fresh to You on Earth Day

Already this morning has rocked and it is only 7:30.  I woke up with baby M cuddling with me, looking oh so peaceful soundly asleep.  Batman E walked into the room right after and was stoked to see me in my Super Woman shirt.   "Haaaa, good morning Super Lady Mommy!"  Who does not want to wake up like that?

I proceeded to the front door where I knew what was in store for me.  My Farm Fresh to You delivery!!!!! 

Farm Fresh to You is an organic fruit and vegetable delivery.  They deliver, the freshest fruit and vegetables-straight from Capay farms- to your door step.  You can choose what size box you want; small, regular, more mixed, or monster mixed.  And how often you want it.  I have decided to get my delivery every other week.  What I love about this system is that I can view what will be in my box that week, and change something out if I don't like it.  For example, I don't like brussel sprouts, so I could get extra kale that week if I wanted too.  You can cancel anytime if you are not happy. 

It is a family run business that started in 1992 by Kathleen Barsotti, who has sadly passed away from breast cancer.  She left the business to her three sons.  They offer farm tours for families on weekends with music, arts and crafts, animals, picking of veggies or fruit, and tractor rides. 

In todays box, there was a whole bunch of fresh, organic, fruit and veggies.  I had strawberries, mandarins, avocados, apples, zucchini, broccoli, garnet yams, baby carrots, lettuce, turnips, and peppermint!  Now, I have never cooked with yams or turnips but I will change that.  On their website www.farmfreshtoyou.com they have a section with recipes.  All I have to do it look up what veggie I want to use and they give me a delicious recipe.  Or of course, I can google what veggie I have, and be bombarded with thousands of things to do with it.  Fun!

If you want to try Farm Fresh to You out simply go to their website www.farmfreshtoyou.com and sign up.  If you use promo code 6164 you will receive $5 off your next delivery.  If you mention my name, my account will be credited for a complimentary delivery :)

Gorgeous, right? 

In the newsletter today, farm manager Thaddeus wrote:

          "I took a few minutes to sit down in the middle of the apricot orchard.  There was a light breeze.  The blue sky was scattered with a few clouds.  Sitting on the floor of the orchard, the trees surrounded me like a small army of giants.  Their leaves shuffled in the wind, exposing the two different sides of each leaf to the sun. 

          The orchard was not quiet; the shuffling of the leaves made a light rattle that grew and faded with different speeds of breezes that passed through the orchard.  In between the mature leaves, were fruit the size of marbles, green and hard as rocks. It will be about five to six weeks before this fruit is ready to harvest.  On the ground, below the trees, some of the last fall's cover crop was thriving and exposing its bright blue flowers to the bees who diligently buzzed from flower to flower.

          The orange orchards have moved from their winter surivival mode to their spring growth mode.  All of the trees are packed with tiny green new leaves.  The trees are also packed with the beginning of their blossoms for the year.  There are thousands of tiny white balls on the orange trees that have not yet opened into flowers.  My favorite smell is that of the orange blossoms; it should be a week or so before I can indulge myself.

          We have been busy transplanting crops into the ground as fast as we can.  It started with our first planting of tomatoes, then broccoli and lettuce, followed by eggplant, cucumbers and summer squash.  All of the ground is prepared.  I like the way fields look right after they have been transplanted.  The transplanting machine keeps the plants in straight lines and ensures that they are separated by the same distance.  In one day, a field will go from being bare to being populated with a healthy stand of two-month-old plants. 

          The strawberry patch has been awake and growing rapidly over the past month.  It will not be long until we are able to pluck handfuls of ripe fruit from the field.  The strawberries you are receiving in your boxes are from Watsonville (NorCal) and Fullerton (SoCal), where it is warmer earlier; it is for this reason that they beat us into the strawberry market.  I enjoy their fruit, as I always enjoy the first fruit of any season, but the strawberries from our farm in Capay have a unique, sweet flavor.  I would imagine it is because of the more intense heat later in the season.

          Enjoy your boxes this week." -Thaddeus

 I feel like on this beautiful morning, gearing up to celebrate Earth Day, I got the most amazing gift from...the Earth!  Really, it should be the other way around.  I should be doing something for our shining blue and green planet.  Which I will.  I am planning on planting a grapefruit tree with the kids this afternoon.  Our yard is big enough, and I can't wait to have fresh fruit at my fingertips especially as the boys get older and grow up.

On a side note, I am reading a wonderfully well written book called, Eating Animals by Jonathan Foer.  It is incredibly interesting, disturbing, and very philosophical at the same time.  It has influenced me to make smarter eating choices. Unfortunately or rather fortunately, it is restricting my diet even more.  But I really don't look at it as restricting, more like fueling my body with peace, love, and things that make my bod feel great!  I got into eating more vegan for health reasons, but the books I have been reading address the ethical reasons behind it.  Here is a great excerpt from his book:

"And nothing inspires as much shame as being a parent.  Children confront us with our paradoxes and hypocrisies, and we are exposed.  You need to find an answer for every why-Why do we do this?  Why don't we do that?- and often there isn't a good one.  So you say, simply, because.  Or you tell a story that you know isn't true.  And whether or not your face reddens, you blush.  The shame of parenthood-which is a good shame- is that we want our children to be more whole than we are, to have satisfactory answers.  My son not only inspired me to reconsider what kind of eating animal I would be, but shamed me into reconsideration."

Most of us don't know where are food (meat, poultry, and seafood) come from, and it is VERY disturbing when we do.  I LOVE hamburgers and steak like the next person, but I find it hard to consciously eat it now-nor do I enjoy it when I do.  Now peeps, things might change over the weeks, months, and years.  I don't really like talking about my diet with folks because it can change, so I am not making promises to anyone.  I simply eat what I want or feel like, when I want it.  I love that in the book, Jonathan Foer address this issue while talking about another amazing author, Michael Pollan (author of The Omnivore Dilemma, Food Rules, and In Defense of Food):

"Let's assume you're like Pollan and are opposed to factory-farmed meat.  If you're at the guest end, it stinks not to eat food that was prepared for you, especially (although he doesn't get into this) when the grounds for refusal are ethical.  But how much does it stink?  It's a classic dilemma: How much do I value creating a socially comfortable situation, and how much do I value acting socially responsible?  The relative importance of ethical eating and table fellowship will be different in different situations (declining my grandmother's chicken with carrots is different from passing on microwaved buffalo wings). 

 More important, though, and what Pollan curiously doesn't emphasize, is that attempting to be a selective omnivore is a much heavier blow to table fellowship than vegetarianism.  Imagine an acquaintance invites you to dinner.  You could say, "I'd love to come.  And Just so you know, I'm a vegetarian."  You could say, "I'd love to come.  But I only eat meat that is produced by family farmers."  Then what do you do?  You probably have to send the host a web link or list of local shops to even make the request intelligible, let alone manageable.  This effort might be well-placed, but it is certainly more invasive than asking for vegetarian food (which these days requires no explanation).  The entire food industry (restaurants, airline and college food services, catering at weddings) is set up to accommodate vegetarians.  There is no such infrastructure for the selective omnivore."

I am still in the beginning of the book but I am thoroughly enjoying it! 

Have a fabulous Earth Day!

Animal agriculture makes a 40% greater contribution to global warming than all transportation in the world combined; it is the number one cause of climate change. - Jonathan Foer

On a side, side note :)  The Husband and I went to the 15th Annual Komen Sacramento Race for the Cure Survivors' Reception last night.  It was an amazing night and I felt honored to be surrounded by such strong, brave, and courageous women.