Previous Articles linked from the Celebrities For Health Home Page

updated 7/2/06

Meat? Cheese? What's that?
Ruma Singh, Times News Network
March 30, 2006

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Vegetarians are taking it a step further. Veganism is the new buzzword for those who prefer to go veg.

PAUL McCartney is one. So's Pamela Anderson. Alicia Silverstone is all for it, so are Cameron Diaz and Gwyneth Paltrow. Joaquin Phoenix goes that way, so does Alec Baldwin. They are some of the world's most high-profile vegetarians.

For many vegetarians are taking their beliefs a step further and adopting veganism. The word means the shunning of exploitation of animals for food, clothing, and the exclusion of all animal meat and products in one's diet, including eggs and dairy produce. According to lore, the very concept of veganism has originated from the ancient Hindu principle of ahimsa

Alabama mad cow is Florida concern

By Robert Bowden, Staff Writer
03/29/06

ARCADIA -- When an Alabama cow died of mad cow disease two weeks ago, red flags went up in the border state of Florida.

Previously, cows with the fatal disease had been found in Washington (brought there from Canada) and Texas.

Where the Alabama cow came from is still anyone's guess, but it was about 10 years old, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. That's old by cow standards and it means that as a calf, this cow could have eaten feed containing parts of slaughtered cows.

Cooking school in the raw

Olivia Wu, Chronicle Staff Writer
March 29, 2006

Like all canny cooks, Cherie Soria knows how to hook her audience: with desserts.

But Soria doesn't pull out the stops with butter, sugar, eggs and flour, baking them into fluffy confections.

She makes her magic with avocado and agave syrup -- and no baking at all. By the time her students taste her creations, they don't mind that those unexpected ingredients are the major components of their chocolate mousse.

As Soria would say, "If you can make a raw vegan cheesecake better than regular cheesecake, why would you eat regular cheesecake?"

First mines, then fur … now Mills McCartney wants to ban milk

By Beezy Marsh, Health Correspondent
03/26/2006

She has made her name as a vociferous campaigner against landmines and the fur trade, but this week Heather Mills McCartney will warn of a danger lurking closer to home - the humble British pinta.

At an event organised by the Vegetarian and Vegan Foundation, the wife of Sir Paul McCartney, the former Beatle, will call for milk to be dropped from the nation's diet.

Going cold-turkey
Family went vegan for son's health

By David Schmeichel, Staff ReportercSun, March 19, 2006

For organic food supplier Marnie Feeleus, maintaining a vegan lifestyle really is a family affair.

A former chef and the co-founder of Fresh Option Organic Delivery (FOOD), Feeleus decided to go vegan back in 2002.

But she didn't give up animal products to save the environment or improve her health.

She did it for the health of her then-newborn son, Ian, who was developing mysterious rashes caused by an allergic reaction.

"We had already become vegetarian, and when we had our baby ... we found out he was allergic to eggs and dairy," says Feeleus, whose all-vegan household includes Ian, husband Kevin, and eight-month-old son Keir. "We decided to go vegan and decided the whole family would go that way."

Raw food diet: half-baked idea for kids?

Columbia News Service
Mar. 19, 2006 06:15 PM

NEW YORK -- At mealtime, the Talifero family's kitchen is abuzz with the sounds of the blender, juicer and nut grinder, but there's no whir of a microwave or heat from a stove.

Raven, 11, and Jome, 8, may be lunching on spaghetti made of spirals of raw cut zucchini with a sauce of avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil and salt. Shale, 5, has simpler tastes, preferring plain fruit or whole avocado. Adagio, at 21 months, is fed primarily breast milk, nut milks and mashed fruits and vegetables. But while their home is filled with a brightly colored raw bounty, including desserts made of crushed nuts, blended fruits and raw honey, there is no cooked food to be found.

An ethical diet: The joy of being vegan
Its followers claim they look and feel healthier than ever - and have a clear conscience too. Martin Hickman examines the arguments for taking up a meat-free diet

15 March 2006

Wendy Higgins is pleased that her beliefs, her most passionate beliefs, are ridiculed by comedians. At least the gibes about vegans are evidence that vegetarians are now so numerous that they represent a substantial part of the audience.

Attorney Adam Karp, who specializes in animal law, considers the value of a dog's lost leg in a classroom at Seattle University.

Lawyer breaking new legal ground on animal issues

Tuesday, February 7, 2006
By Susan Gilmore, Seattle Times staff reporter

In a Seattle University law classroom, attorney Adam Karp plunks his feet on a bench, next to his chalkboard sketch of a three-legged dog.

His shoes are not leather. His tie, the one with a picture of a giraffe, isn't silk. He wears no wool. His belt is plastic.

And, he practices only animal law.

"It's more a way of life than a philosophy," said Karp, the only attorney in the state whose practice is limited to cases involving animals.

"It began when I became a vegan, when I was able to open my eyes to injustices in the way we treat animals. It's a serious problem here, and the law is a ripe tool for affecting change."

So Much for the Hunter/gatherer Theory
by Neil Schoenherr

The idea of early man as a carnivorous hunter doesn't jibe with evidence
You wouldn't know it by current world events, but humans actually evolved to be peaceful, cooperative and social animals, not the predators modern mythology would have us believe, says an anthropologist at Washington University in St. Louis.

McCartney, Williams debate seal hunt on Larry King Live

Chris Morris, Canadian Press
Friday, March 03, 2006

CHARLOTTETOWN -- Some supporters of Canada's annual harp seal hunt grudgingly acknowledge that Paul McCartney's global reach as a megastar could spell trouble for the hunt's future.

Pictures of McCartney and his wife, Heather, frolicking with doe-eyed seal pups on ice floes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence flashed around the world this week, along with a strong anti-hunt message.

By late Friday, the McCartneys had wrapped up taping a heated debate on the controversial hunt with Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams for CNN's Larry King Live.

Who are vegans, and what makes their diet so healthy?

Wed, Mar. 01, 2006
Suzanne Havala Hobbs

Ever eat a cheeseless pizza or dunk a cookie into soymilk?

For about one out of every 100 people, avoiding all animal products -- meat, fish, poultry, eggs and dairy products -- is second nature. They do it every day.

They're vegan (VEE-gun) -- vegetarians who go a few steps farther than the rest. Most vegans also steer clear of honey, and some even avoid refined sugar (much of it is whitened with bone char).

What motivates people to go to such extremes? Ethics, usually.

[Celebrities for Health note: Many people move to a vegan diet (especially raw) for its superior health benefits. Others may become vegan for religious and environmental reasons, as well.]

Warren couple fights cancer with Vegan diet

Wednesday, March 1, 2006

In 1992 Barry Brown, 58, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma and given five years to live.

Fourteen years later, he's still around, and credits much of his successful cancer story with a radically changed diet. He has been in clinical remission for the past five years.

Both he and his wife Chris, 61, have become vegans, and believe it is a healthy diet choice. Ms. Brown has made her interest in all things vegetable into a new career path, with a business called "The Natural Choice." She currently holds cooking classes and consultations and cooks for folks in their homes. When he is not busy with his own practice working with people with chronic health problems or at work as a mental health manager, Mr. Brown likes to relax at home and play his guitar. The couple enjoy hiking in the area, or whenever possible, in the Southwest.

Attorney Adam Karp, who specializes in animal law, considers the value of a dog's lost leg in a classroom at Seattle University.

Lawyer breaking new legal ground on animal issues

Tuesday, February 7, 2006
By Susan Gilmore, Seattle Times staff reporter

In a Seattle University law classroom, attorney Adam Karp plunks his feet on a bench, next to his chalkboard sketch of a three-legged dog.

His shoes are not leather. His tie, the one with a picture of a giraffe, isn't silk. He wears no wool. His belt is plastic.

And, he practices only animal law.

"It's more a way of life than a philosophy," said Karp, the only attorney in the state whose practice is limited to cases involving animals.

"It began when I became a vegan, when I was able to open my eyes to injustices in the way we treat animals. It's a serious problem here, and the law is a ripe tool for affecting change."

Chinese man dies of bird flu, virus spreads in Europe
March 5,2006

By John Ruwitch

HONG KONG, March 5 (Reuters) - A man has died from bird flu in southern China, the ninth death from the H5N1 virus in the country, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.

The man, identified as a 32-year-old with the surname Lao, was the 15th human bird flu case in China. He died in Guangdong province, which borders Hong Kong.

In Europe, Poland detected its first case of H5 bird flu in two swans found dead, the government said on Sunday. Further tests would be needed to determine if it was the H5N1 strain.

McCartney, Williams debate seal hunt on Larry King Live

Chris Morris, Canadian Press
Friday, March 03, 2006

CHARLOTTETOWN -- Some supporters of Canada's annual harp seal hunt grudgingly acknowledge that Paul McCartney's global reach as a megastar could spell trouble for the hunt's future.

Pictures of McCartney and his wife, Heather, frolicking with doe-eyed seal pups on ice floes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence flashed around the world this week, along with a strong anti-hunt message.

By late Friday, the McCartneys had wrapped up taping a heated debate on the controversial hunt with Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams for CNN's Larry King Live.

Who are vegans, and what makes their diet so healthy?

Wed, Mar. 01, 2006
Suzanne Havala Hobbs

Ever eat a cheeseless pizza or dunk a cookie into soymilk?

For about one out of every 100 people, avoiding all animal products -- meat, fish, poultry, eggs and dairy products -- is second nature. They do it every day.

They're vegan (VEE-gun) -- vegetarians who go a few steps farther than the rest. Most vegans also steer clear of honey, and some even avoid refined sugar (much of it is whitened with bone char).

What motivates people to go to such extremes? Ethics, usually.

[SoyStache note: Many people move to a vegan diet (especially raw) for its superior health benefits. Others may become vegan for religious and environmental reasons, as well.]

He preaches vegetarianism
Minister says regimen helped cure his cancer

To Your Health | Chanda Blitch
Sun, Feb. 19, 2006

He preaches vegetarianism - Minister says regimen helped cure his cancer Stressing the wisdom of a diet of raw vegetables and fruits, the Rev. George Malkmus delivers a message of health through natural foods.

For decades the American culinary scene only recognized two types of raw food consumers. The first was a thick-skinned meat lover who would roll up his checkered sleeves and order a bloody steak fit for vampires, and the second was a sweet-toothed baker who would whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough, only to lick the bowl clean before the oven had finished pre-heating.

Only in the past ten years has a structured raw food diet (vegetables and nuts, not beef and baked goods) cropped up in public consciousness and mainstream press, with celebrities like Woody Harrelson and Alicia Silverstone touting their lean-and-green regimes.

By Harry Porterfield

December 1, 2005 - Karyn Calabrese has turned a personal health issue into a successful career as a unique restaurateur. She is a raw foodist and her Chicago restaurants were among the first of their kind in the country.

She's a restaurateur who operates with a kitchen that doesn't have a grill, oven, microwave unit or fire. For Karyn Calabrese none of the above is necessary because her restaurant -- Karyn's Fresh Corner -- serves only raw food.

If you can't imagine life without a daily dose of dairy, consider new research that questions the value----if not the safety----of this dietary staple

You know it like the Pledge of Allegiance: "Milk helps build strong teeth and bones."

But does it really? Or, as nutrition researchers from Harvard and Cornell Universities are radically suggesting: Have we all been duped by the dairy industry's slick, celebrity-driven "got milk?" advertising campaign?

Red meat cancer risk clue found
Tuesday, 31 January 2006

Eating lots of red meat is linked with DNA damage which raises the risk of bowel cancer, researchers suggest.

Scientists at the MRC Dunn Human Nutrition Unit and the Open University compared red meat and vegetarian diets.

Their study, published in Cancer Research, found the red meat diet was associated with a higher level of DNA damage.

Previous work suggests regular meat eaters are significantly more likely to develop bowel cancer.
Almost 17,000 people die from the disease each year.

FDA proposes listing red cosmetics dye
By Simon Pitman

31/01/2006 - The FDA is making moves towards listing a red coloring derived from the ground bodies of female cochineal beetles on the basis that it is a potential safety hazard to a handful of individuals.

… More specifically the concern is that vegan, vegetarian or individuals seeking animal-free products because of religious reasons should have access to clearer information about the ingredient on the product labeling to enable a more informed choice.

CANADA Trade relations with the United States should remain the same. Meat from the cow did not enter the human food chain.

By Jeff Wilson
Bloomberg News

Canada said a cow in Alberta tested positive for mad cow disease, the fourth case since May 2003 for a domestic beef industry devastated by a two-year ban on exports.

Meat from the infected breeding cow, part of a 400-head herd, didn't enter the human food chain, Brian Evans, chief veterinary officer for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said on Monday during a conference call from Edmonton, Alberta. The disease was confirmed on Sunday at a lab in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

`Downer' Cows Entering U.S. Meat Supply, Report Says (Update1)

Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. beef inspectors sometimes ignore rules for screening cattle that are intended to prevent mad-cow disease, putting the nation's meat supply at risk, the Agriculture Department's Inspector General said.

FORT SUMNER, N.M. — A mouse got its revenge against a homeowner who tried to dispose of it in a pile of burning leaves; the blazing creature ran back to the man's house and set it on fire.

As their eyes fall on either of the two Gobo restaurants, passers-by almost routinely read the curious tag line, "food for the five senses," aloud.

I too have read the description to myself while hurrying past the original Gobo in the West Village. But as soon as I began to wonder what "food for the five senses" could possibly be, my sixth sense kicked in: probably not food for me. And in a manner of speaking it was right. Gobo is a vegan restaurant.

the raw, not the cooked
by Myra Chanin

The purest of Manhattan food purists are currently down on elaborately-prepared cooked foods. So what are they up on? Elaborately-prepared raw foods like the resplendent meals prepared by Matthew Kenney and Sarma Melngailis, co-owners and co-chefs of Pure Food and Wine near Gramercy Park and Union Square. According to Melngailis, eating raw foods makes people feel light, clean, lively, and sexy. And is as cute and trim as a teenager, though he admits to being in his early 40s. Could it be that raw broccoli is better than Botox?

Don Bustos is proud to say he farms the same way his ancestors did - on the very same plot of land - in the 17th century. He irrigates off the acequia system, developed hundreds of years ago in Tewa villages.
Yet, his practices are decidedly modern: 100 percent organic and vegan.

"What we offer here is an alternative to mainstream, corporate farming," he said.

…"One day, I was out dusting pumpkins (with pesticide) and when I walked back into the house afterward, tracking the dust on the carpet, I saw my infant boy rolling around in my footsteps. Something clicked in my head, and that was the moment I switched to organic."

Immediately after the changeover, he said he noticed a predictable rise in pests and decreased productivity. But as he learned more about managing his farm organically, his per-acre yield actually increased.

Jason Allardyce
January 15, 2006

MORRISSEY, the pop singer and outspoken vegan, has been branded irresponsible for publicly backing violent attacks by extremists against scientists and companies involved in medical research using animals.

The former frontman of the 1980s group the Smiths said he believed terror tactics were justified against those who conducted animal experiments because they had brought it on themselves.

Delicious and dogma-free Jade Café needs only a more seasoned staff
~ By REBECCA EPSTEIN ~
1-12-06

The first great thing about Jade Café – a raw, organic, vegan fusion restaurant near Sunset Junction in Silver Lake – is its relaxed, nonconfrontational atmosphere. The small dining room beckons with dark wood furniture and warm red lighting; the staff is calm; and the menu offers no self-righteous mission statement.

Cutting meat from diet could limit disease, health-care costs

According to Monday's report by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the national cost of medical care escalated to $1.9 trillion in 2004. This represents a 7.9% increase from the previous year, or nearly three times the 2.7% rate of inflation.

…The real tragedy is most of the diseases associated with the outrageous cost of medical care are self-inflicted - through flawed lifestyles. These include inactivity, smoking, substance abuse and meat consumption.

Eating veg 'cuts blood pressure'

Tuesday, 10 January 2006, 00:22 GMT

A vegetable-rich diet can help to reduce blood pressure, researchers say.

A team led by Imperial College London, which studied 4,680 people aged 40-59, said it was not clear why eating more vegetable protein had such an effect.

But amino acids - the building blocks of protein - or vegetable components, like magnesium, may be key, they said.

by Meghan McAndrews
Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Feed Fido without guilt
As I watched my dog Finn sprint away with glee, his meaty rawhide prize clenched tightly in his jaws, my stomach turned, and I knew things had to change—fast. In the year that I had become vegan, I had carved out a healthy, happy, veg-friendly niche for myself, as free of animal products as it could be. When I adopted Finn Biscuit, a rescued Blue Heeler, in July, I never considered how bringing pounds of meat-based products into my home would feel.

ATLANTA, Jan. 9, 2006

(AP) Miriam Archibong remembers the food offerings her high school cafeteria used to serve for vegetarians: bland salads and greasy cheese pizza.

But salads are "not sufficient to survive," she says. "Cheese pizza _ that's not healthy because of all that grease."

Archibong often brought her own food, lunching on applesauce, carrots and water. Finally, she and other vegetarians at Grady High School demanded _ and won _ some changes two years ago.

Today, Grady High has a separate vegetarian lunch line with a menu as varied as veggie eggrolls, pasta salad, vegetarian pizza and sloppy joes made of tofu.

Like most of her peers on the Moorpark High Academic Decathlon team, Ariana Rodgers, a junior, is an accomplished young woman who aspires to make a difference in the world.

Although studying for competition is demanding, Rodgers is glad she joined the team. “It turned out to be even better than I imagined,” she said, adding her teammates are amazing, witty and special people and she loves to spend time with them.

Tony Banks was a parliamentary character who has made more impact on the general public than most of his colleagues, with his "man of the people" image.

…The vegetarian MP continued to pursue his passion for animal welfare from the backbenches, making an outspoken contribution to the Hunting Bill debate.

This morning, you stood in front of the bathroom mirror and looked into the thighs of a stranger. After a few minutes of arguing that the steam from your shower had “warped” the mirror, you gave up and admitted the truth: A solid month of engaging in December’s favorite pastime – emotional eating – left you with a backside the size of a Buick and a pair of thighs that could pass for the veal scaloppini at Delmonico’s.

Which brings us to January’s favorite pastime – choosing a diet. But with diets as diverse as Atkins and The Zone all claiming quick and lifelong results, how do you choose between them? How do you decipher which diet will keep you trim and which will leave you sheepishly admitting 20 years from now that, yes, you ate grapefruit seven times a day for a week and didn’t lose an ounce?

By Saturday afternoon, the heifer that made a dramatic escape from a Great Falls meat packing plant Thursday was the subject of clemency pleas from across the nation.

As a result of her escape efforts and the publicity, she probably will be spared from the killing floor, the plant's manager said.

Lunch crush is coming and the deli crew is busy making burgers, lime tarts and pizza dough. Things are really cooking -- at least figuratively.
In fact, none of the food being prepared at In The Raw will touch a flame or a griddle. None of it will encounter a temperature higher than a sweltering summer day. All of it, from the vegan cakes to vegan burgers, is served raw.

"No ovens," said owner Barbara Banfield. "Just dehydration. No flames."
The recently opened organic vegetarian deli and juice bar in this artsy tourist town is another outpost marking the mainstreaming of raw food diets.

With 2006 quickly approaching, losing weight is on the minds of many people considering a New Year's resolution. Doctors with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) suggest a new approach to weight loss based on a recent study showing that a low-fat vegan diet is an effective way to shed unwanted pounds.

Consumed by his faith in fruits
By Ng Wei Loon
Friday December 16, 2005

FREELANCE sports trainer Peter Oh Kah Leong, 39, survives mainly on fruits these days. In fact, his diet consists of 80% fruits and 20% vegetables.

He has not been eating anything else from the other food groups since he turned to fruitarianism four years ago.

Paris Hilton worst dog owner

16.12.05
When it comes to celebrity pooch-parenting skills, Joss Stone is tops and Paris Hilton is the worst, according to two dog magazines.

Animal Rights Group PETA Names Paris Hilton Worst-Dressed of 2005

The Associated Press
NEW YORK Dec 15, 2005 — Move over Mr. Blackwell, PETA has issued its own "worst-dressed" list based on fur, not style. Paris Hilton was named the year's worst-dressed celebrity by the animal rights group Thursday.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals cites the hotel heiress/reality TV star for wearing fur coats.

Press Release: Vegan Xmas
December 12, 2005

Catering for a vegan at Christmas dinner would probably be enough to cause heart palpitations in the average omnivore. Not so for self-taught Birkenhead chef Colin Sky, who is organising a Christmas feast for up to 50 vegans on December 18, at Blissful Foods in Mt Albert.

(PRLEAP.COM) Tony Bishop-Weston vegan guru and food writer has challenged mothers around the world to prepare for what may be their worst christmas nightmare.
He asks mothers "How would you cope with this situation?"

"Your son texts from school to say he’s bringing his girlfriend back home for the holiday season."

"Before you can get the cork off the bottle of champagne to celebrate the fact that he’s not gay he says ‘just one more little thing - She’s Vegan!’"

Exactly one year ago, I decided to make a change I had been contemplating for quite some time.

Familiar with the obstacles of maintaining a vegetarian diet — I'm slightly larger than the average person, many restaurants don't offer meatless alternatives, my acquaintances would think I'm crazy — I took this challenge for all sorts of reasons.

Sir Paul McCartney has credited the animated film character Bambi with inspiring his fight for animal rights.

The former Beatle, 63, is famous for his animal welfare activism. But the singer says that it was the tale of Disney's animated infant deer, whose mother is shot by hunters, that provided a poignant lesson.

"If you think of Bambi, its mum gets killed by a hunter, and I think that made me grow-up thinking hunting isn't cool," he said. "It always gave me that idea.

By Brian Cook/ Correspondent
Friday, December 9, 2005

Mark Howards has always been interested in alternative energy so it probably comes as no surprise to learn that he now he owns a car that runs on vegetable oil.

By Katie Wilmeth
November 23, 2005

POOLESVILLE, Md. — For many Thanksgiving Day diners, the ceremonial carving of the turkey is often the main event.
But for those at the Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary's Thanksgiving dinner this past Saturday, the only turkeys in attendance were dinner guests.

DAVIS, Calif. Nov. 21 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Speaking out for turkeys this holiday season, Heather Mills McCartney has recorded a PSA for the animal group Viva!USA. It focuses on the amputation of turkeys' toes by farmers and implores the public to forgo eating turkeys this holiday season.

Hassan Moutaouakkil prepares a pizza in the vegan kitchen at TJ´s House of Pizza.

While the name may not suggest it, T.J.'s House of Pizza in Allston is a paradise for vegans.

Pizza, meatball subs, chicken fingers, buffalo wings, baklava and cheesecake are just a few of the vegan-friendly items adorning the menu at T.J's House of Pizza, and vegan-lovers have helped their choice items outsell the T.J.'s traditional pizza shop menu.

Kosher vegetarians

By Stacey Dresner, 11/10/05

STATEWIDE -- Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, the first chief rabbi of Israel, was one.
So was Rabbi David Rosen, the former chief rabbi of Ireland.
Famed Jewish writer Isaac Bashevis Singer was one as well.
Besides their prominence, these Jews shared another thing n they were all vegetarians.

Vegan Weight Loss
Is It For You?

Karen Schradin
WSAV News 3
Wednesday, November 9, 2005

Justin Barnes works here at WSAV. Six months ago, he decided his weight was climbing out of control.
Instead of dieting, he chose to change the way he was eating.
Justin is now Vegan. He's cut all cheese, milk, eggs and meat from his diet for the last 6 months.

Corner-Ucopia

50th and Brooklyn in the "U" is a choice location

by Nora West, November 2005

As the season of bounty and gratitude is upon us, I recently had the opportunity to give thanks for the corner of 50th and Brooklyn in the University District. On one little piece of real estate is a cornucopia of choices.

The Chaco Canyon Café is such an ecologically and nutritionally noble place that it inspires, and at the same time, makes me feel abashed. I say that because it acutely reminds me how much more I/we can do for our bodies and our planet.

Chaco Canyon is so committed: Recycling and composting more than 80 percent of their total waste, not offering plastic utensils, using 95 percent organic ingredients, preparing raw and vegan food, serving fresh live juices and much more.

Naked ambition

Canada's 'princess of punk' says her self-deprecating lyrics are autobiographical in nature ... and she's cool with that

11/04/05
By Sherri Wood, Toronto Sun

Up at 5:30 a.m., feed the dogs a homemade organic breakfast, pack the briefcase for the office, hit the dog park, then the gym, off to work, then home for a 9 p.m. bedtime.

Welcome to a day in the life of Bif Naked, Canada's "princess of punk," in town Saturday for a show at ThePhoenix.

The 34-year-old tattooed Can-rock vet (born an orphan in India and later adopted by U.S. missionary parents who eventually settled in Western Canada), leads a surprisingly non-rockstar lifestyle. The singer, who says her biggest vice is bubblegum, stays focused on her raw food vegan diet, her two dogs and her work -- namely, her new album, Superbeautifulmonster.

Mad cow may have gotten into human food supply

November 01, 2005
The Dallas Morning News, By Katie Fairbank

DALLAS _ Researchers hunting the herd linked to the first U.S. case of mad cow disease found most of the animals were slaughtered _ and possibly in the human food supply _ even before the government probe began.

Eat It Raw

Yes, rah, rah, raw! Santa Cruz embraces the raw food aesthetic at the overnight sensational Café La Vie.

The mystery of how deer and elk spread chronic wasting disease from one animal to another may be solved: Their tongues are infectious.

When the animals lick or slobber on each other -- a fairly common occurrence -- the agent that causes the fatal disease may be shed from their tongues via saliva. And when they graze, leaving sloughed-off tongue cells and saliva in grass and soil, the disease could be widely transmitted.

Saturday, October 08, 2005

In the chaotic heart of Mong Kok, one man is quietly winning converts to a healthier eating regime and more relaxed lifestyle. Andrea Chiu investigates
It's no picnic being a vegetarian here, even though Hong Kong has 600 Buddhist temples and Buddhism encourages the practice of not eating meat.
On a busy Saturday afternoon in Argyle Street in Mong Kok, home to some of the territory's best street markets, the sidewalks are crowded with pedestrians and at every other store women shout to shoppers to try the food on offer. Much of it is meat and seafood. In the unassuming Cheung Ming Building in Argyle Street, however, a quiet revolution is brewing.

Senior Anthony Salm eats ginger rice noodles, a vegetarian Thai food dish. (by Kate Briquelet, of the Advance Titan)

Freshman Hannah Hildebrandt said she was sick of greasy plates of hamburgers, brats, hotdogs and chicken.

Influenced by health factors, she became a vegetarian three years ago. Her meals do not take long to make and she said her vegetable-only lifestyle is trouble-free.

Nora Lenz was on a vegan diet for 13 years, taught aerobics five times a week, but was never able to lose the excess pounds until she discovered raw foods and the lifestyle of a natural hygienist. Now in her 40s, her body is trim and sleek-it's the body she wanted in her 20s.

George Washington University researchers have found that the vegan diet, supplemented with B12 vitamins, is an effective way to lose weight and seems to confirm the end of an era predominated by low-carb diets.

Nature-lover, hippie and tree-hugger are words that come to mind at the mention of vegetarianism.

There is no definite answer. Some teenagers give up meat in response to the mistreatment of animals, and others say that a meat-free diet leads to increased energy and helps them feel better.

I used to ridicule non-meat eaters mercilessly in my younger days. Why, I thought, would one want to sacrifice something as great as meat simply for the sake of some silly animal? In retrospect, my ignorance is somewhat appalling.

While there are an abundance of arguments for vegetarianism based on animal rights and environmental concerns, the clearest reason that one might change one's diet is simply for the radical health benefits associated with alternative diets. Meat eating has been linked to stroke, type II diabetes, heart disease, a variety of cancers, gallstones, hypertension, constipation, Alzheimer's, asthma, impotence, coronary artery disease, osteoporosis and myriad other ailments.

As America is transfixed by the horrible devastation of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, a much deadlier disaster looms. Avian influenza, or bird flu, is growing into a global epidemic deadlier than the 1918 Spanish flu, which killed 50 million people.

The deadly virus originated a couple of years ago in Southeast Asia's poultry farms, killing dozens of people throughout the region, and has spread to Russia and Europe. Millions of Americans are expected to succumb, once the virus mutates to allow transmission among humans.

Matt Samuelson moves through the kitchen of Cafe La Vie like a ricocheting bullet.

He zigs into a back room to show off the cold-pressed coffee that takes all night to make, then zags to the prep area to test a marinara sauce made of raw and sun-dried tomatoes and sample a bit of his homemade hummus.

All that energy may be a testament to the health benefits of the mostly raw, vegan food he prepares at one of Santa Cruz's newest restaurants.

LONDON – Nestle has come off the worse in a brush with vegans, who took it to task for claiming that dairy products were "essential for healthy bones" in an ad featuring its Sveltesse Optimise dairy drink.

PORTLAND, MAINE – September 26, 2005 – The producers of Delicious TV announced today that their new vegetarian cooking and lifestyle TV series was picked up over the summer by Public Television distributor NETA and is now available via satellite feed to all public television stations nationwide.

High-fat fare increases risk of heart disease for hospital staff and visitors

WASHINGTON--Nutrition scientists with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) have conducted a nationwide survey to determine if hospital cafeterias and restaurants are meeting the need for low-fat, cholesterol-free foods that can help people maintain a healthy weight and prevent heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. While there are some promising trends, such as the wide availability of whole-grain products and fresh fruit, there is an urgent need for improvement.

HYDERABAD: Who wouldn't agree that eating vegetables is good for health. But Jaggavarapu Rama Reddy would further qualify this statement. He would like you to eat raw vegetables and shun eating cooked ones. And you cannot disagree with him.

He has been on a raw vegetable diet for over a decade and is now a perfect picture of good health.

WOMEN who follow a vegan diet, while eating as much as they want when they want, are more likely to lose weight than women on traditional diets, a new study has found.

Researchers from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington DC examined 59 overweight women over 14 weeks, with about half on a traditional weight-loss diet and the other half on a diet which allowed them to eat as much as they desired, but without meat, cheese, milk or heavily oily foods such as chips.

A new study shows a high-carb, vegan diet leads to major weight loss for postmenopausal women.

A low-fat, plant-based diet is more effective at helping women lose weight and improve insulin sensitivity than one that contains meat, according to the results of a new study appearing in the September issue of The American Journal of Medicine.

TORONTO — A leading medical journal has published a disturbing theory on the origins of mad cow disease, suggesting it may have developed because human remains from the Indian subcontinent were mixed into cattle feed in Britain in the 1960s and 1970s.

The authors say the practice may still be taking place elsewhere, adding it is important to discover whether other countries are importing animal byproducts contaminated with human remains that are destined for feed mills.

South Bend, IN - People in downtown South Bend got quite an eye-full around noon Tuesday, as two protestors posed nearly naked.

The protestors bared it all right in front of the St. Joseph County courthouse to prove a point.

At first the display drew a few stares, but got a lot more attention when those involved took off most of their clothes.

The health benefits of eating plenty of fish have been seen in a wealth of scientific studies, but data from a historical cohort study has led to a surprising observation – that high fish intake in childhood may be linked to eventual death from stroke.

British vegetarians and vegans have lower but stable plasma concentrations of omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) compared to their meat-eating compatriots, and the length of time a consumer adheres to a vegetarian diet has no impact on omega-3 levels, finds a new study from the University of Oxford.

264 Dupont St., Toronto, 416-515-2002. Lunch for two with vegetable juice, tax and tip, $55.

Nothing is quite as it seems at Live Organic Food Bar. The turf floor is actually linoleum printed with photographs of green grass. The giant apples on the shelf above the cash are decorative faux. And the food, well, give us a second and we'll explain.

The reason we're here is Leah's digestive tract. Apparently there was too much bad stuff living in it, so she has gone on a two-week herbal cleanse. For the past week, to Tralee's amusement and occasional disgust, she has raved about the detoxified state of her liver, kidneys and colon.

PHILADELPHIA - Just a few years ago, chef Matthew Kenney was ascending to the height of success and celebrity, with a string of thriving New York City eateries, two well-received cookbooks, and, early on, a ranking by Food & Wine as one of the "Ten Best New Chefs in America."

But after Sept. 11, 2001, his empire collapsed in the economic fallout. And the French-trained chef took a surprising turn.

Would somebody please explain to me why we're still hearing about raw food diets?

When this ridiculously labour-intensive way of eating first started getting attention five or six years ago, I ignored it and hoped it would go the way of the grapefruit diet.

Cindy Sawyer felt sick after almost every meal and had so much arthritis in her legs, stairs were almost insurmountable.

That decision led the Lovington woman and her husband, Aaron, to make a life-transforming one to go on a vegan diet consisting primarily of raw vegetables and fruits. Known as the Hallelujah Diet, it's based on the diet God intended for Adam and Eve.

Anton La Guardia and his family get out the blender to get a taste of life on a raw food diet

I couldn't help myself. The aroma suffused the air, my mouth was moist at the thought of the morsels melting on the palate, and my stomach stirred in agreement. Looking over my shoulder to make sure the children could not see me, I walked up to the counter, ordered a cheeseburger and ate it behind the cover of a potted plant in the service station. Delicious.

Anton La Guardia, his wife Jane and their three children tuck into a raw food breakfast

My wife, children and I were about to try the latest diet craze, "raw food", in which one is supposed to forsake all cooked food - never mind junk.

For the next two days, at a raw food retreat in Norfolk, we crunched salad until our jaws were sore, savoured nut patÈ, and drank chocolate drinks made from almond milk and raw cocoa.

Dharmsala, India -- Wildlife and nature conservation was the core concern today, when His Holiness the Dalai Lama addressed his people at the formal launch of an awareness campaign.

The joint campaign launched by the Wildlife Trust of India and Care for the Wild International aims to build awareness on the significance of nature conservation and the status of protection of wild species among the Tibetan community living in India and the Buddhists of the Himalayan region.

Professional body builder and vegan Robert Cheeke, right, works in a few sets while Tonya Kay, left, and Brendan Brazier stretch before filming for a movie about vegan athletes at Gold's Gym on Tuesday afternoon.

Three Corvallis residents are making a movie that will track a week in the lives of three vegan athletes.

Four-year-old Gabe is learning how to become a racecar driver, just like his dad, Jerrod Sessler.

Jerrod races on the regional NASCAR circuit. It's his passion. But he was told he was about to lose everything because of an annoying mole.

After much speculation, it looks like pop star Avril Lavigne and her boyfriend of more than two years, Sum 41 front man Deryck Whibley, are going to tie the knot.

... Avril recently explained that appearances may be deceiving. “I'm on a vegan diet, I do yoga every day, I work out, I'm totally spiritual," she said. "I'm completely opposite of what everyone thinks I am.

Forget the album charts or the hard fought `Biggest Band In The World' title, some of the world's most famous musicians, including Thom Yorke, Chris Martin and Anthony Kiedis, are up against each other for the title of World's Sexiest Vegetarian.

Oh yes, this is the poll the world's biggest acts have been waiting for. Forget about creating a truly legendary and emotionally resonant album attempting to publicise the plight of the world's starving millions in the medium of song, as PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) have launched their fifth annual poll to find out the world's sexiest vegetarian.

Interest in eating food in its pure form, uncooked and unprocessed, is growing. Celebrities swear by the raw diet and local stores scramble to keep raw products in stock.

And at the uncooked heart of it all, are San Diego natives David Wolfe and Thor Bazler, the founders of Nature's First Law.

(PRLEAP.COM) Even though the word Vegan is considered a taboo, dirty word by the UK tabloid newspapers, veganism is reaching out and inspiring people all over the world like never before in it's 60 year history.

You wouldn't know it by current world events, but humans actually evolved to be peaceful, cooperative and social animals.

Washington University, St. Louis, MO - In a new book, an anthropologist at Washington University in St. Louis goes against the prevailing view and argues that primates, including early humans, evolved not as hunters but as prey of many predators, including wild dogs and cats, hyenas, eagles and crocodiles.

GWYNETH PALTROW and her husband CHRIS MARTIN gave their daughter APPLE a feast to remember for her recent first birthday party, when they feted her with vegan dishes.

Friends and relatives - including Paltrow's mother BLYTHE DANNER - gathered at the couple's New York City townhouse on 14 May (05) for a range of vegan dishes catered by Teany, a local eatery co-owned by Paltrow and MOBY.

Co-owner KELLY TISDALE says, "Gwyn wanted to personalise the cake, so she had a big apple made out of raspberry puree on the vegan cheesecake."

03/05/2005 - The health benefits of differing low-fat diets are far from equal, say researchers, suggesting that a low-fat diet rich in vegetables and fruits has twice the cholesterol-lowering power of a conventional low-fat diet.

Scientists have begun putting genes from human beings into food crops in a dramatic extension of genetic modification. The move, which is causing disgust and revulsion among critics, is bound to strengthen accusations that GM technology is creating "Frankenstein foods" and drive the controversy surrounding it to new heights.

Even before this development, many people, including Prince Charles, have opposed the technology on the grounds that it is playing God by creating unnatural combinations of living things.

Environmentalists say that no one will want to eat the partially human-derived food because it will smack of cannibalism.

Though he's balding and talks a little like Jerry Seinfeld, Dr. Michael Greger is a very scary guy. Especially if you listen to him after you've eaten a bacon cheeseburger.

“I am today not the paragon of health that I have been called, but I will try to muddle through,” the Boston medical doctor said Apr. 15 before asking how many in the Cameron Center auditorium knew someone who died of cancer.

There were about 50 people gathered—which was excellent for a Friday night Vegetarian Society of Hawaii lecture—and a substantial portion had one arm in the air.

Gregor spoke for about an hour, then his voice gave out. His thesis—which he said is supported by the weight of many scientific studies and meta-studies—is that the best way to fight cancer is to avoid exposure to carcinogens like pesticides. And the best way to do that is to eat a “plant-based diet.”

ANIMAL rights groups are sexing up the health benefits of eating greens in a bid to move their message from the butcher's to the bedroom.

Vegetarians International Voice for Animals (Viva!) will bring its roadshow to Edinburgh at the end of the month with the claim that ditching meat products will spice up life between the sheets.

High consumption of processed meats, like sausages and those used in hot dogs, might lead to a 70 per cent higher risk of pancreatic cancer, a study has found. In addition, those who showed high intake of red meats and pork, 70 grams or more per day, also faced a 50 per cent higher risk of pancreatic cancer.

“The results suggest that carcinogenic substances related to meat preparation, rather than their inherent fat or cholesterol content, might be responsible for the association,” said Ute Nˆthlings, the lead author of the study. However, high intake of other non-vegetarian items like fish, dairy products, eggs and white meats did not pose a similar risk.

The Rawsome! Cafe at Gentle Strength Co-op in Tempe sells raw and organic foods. People from all different walks of life are beginning to consume this healthier food. Not just hippies anymore.

The movement toward uncooked food appears to be here to stay. Local workshops and menus that mimic mainstream meals can feed the curious.

CLEARWATER - A mere taste of a well-prepared uncooked pizza may have you reconsidering the notion that the raw food diet is a wacky trend on its way out.

Okay, it is a bit extreme and does require more equipment than a can opener, but that doesn't mean the food isn't fabulous. Especially when raw food mimics favorite foods such as pad Thai, pancakes and pies.

The Vegetarian Society of El Paso is working to let people know that food can taste good without containing meat or meat products with a five-course vegan dinner this week.

ATLANTA The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has launched an ad campaign on the public transit system in Washington, D.C., to find plaintiffs for a class action lawsuit against the milk industry.

People who follow a raw food vegetarian diet are light in weight but healthy, according to US researchers.

It has been suggested that eating only plant-derived foods that have not been cooked or processed might make bones thinner and prone to fractures.

But a study in Archives of Internal Medicine found although bones were lighter on this diet, turnover rates were normal with no osteoporosis.

Actress Alicia Silverstone is joining Alec Baldwin in a bid to turn more Americans onto alternative medicines.

The health-conscious Clueless star will speak at the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine next month (APR05), where she'll encourage lawmakers and medical experts to be more open to acupuncture and aromatherapy among other things to treat the sick.

WASHINGTON, 16 February 2005 — Troubled with high blood pressure? Want to lower it safely? Well, put your pills down and pick up some vegetables. New scientific findings have proved that high blood pressure can significantly be lowered without the use of expensive drugs; all you have to do is change your eating habits.

Growing up in a Mexican household allowed me to eat some of the most delicious foods I've ever come across. I ate quesadillas of buttery cheeses, beef steaks broiled on the grill, and breakfasts of eggs and protein-rich Mexican sausage.

I recently became a vegan, and I'm convinced I've made the best choice of my life.

Quote: " For someone who has been raised on steak, cheese, and eggs, the transition from omnivore to herbivore was a little dramatic. Meat can be delicious, but health tastes infinitely better."

In a novel attempt to differentiate itself in the marketplace, Chingford-based accountancy firm Jackson & Jackson has become the first practice to earn the official approval of the Vegetarian Society.

The firm, which is entirely vegetarian, applied and received the accreditation which allows it to display the Vegetarian Society's "seedling" symbol on its promotional material. Usually the Vegetarian society requires companies to submit their products for approval to show that all the ingredients comply with its standard.

Alicia Silverstone | 28, actress from "Clueless" and "Blast From the Past," on becoming a vegan more than six years ago:

"I started to notice all these amazing things happening to my body right in front of my eyes and it was an incredible, incredible feeling ... I looked better, I had so much energy, I was on fire and people were noticing."

The British founder of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the world's biggest animal rights group, is auctioning off a lizard tattoo on her right arm - with proceeds going to the charity.

Billed as "waterproof and weathered" and "suitable for making into a wallet or watch strap", the tattoo is being offered on website eBay to draw attention to the plight suffered by skinned animals.

By all that is sacred in our hopes for the human race," wrote the passionate poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1813, "I conjure those who love happiness and truth, to give a fair trial to the vegetable system." The cardinal rule of that blithe spirit: "Never take any substance into the stomach that once had life."

BRUSSELS – European scientists have found mad cow disease in a goat – the first naturally occurring case known to hit a ruminant other than cattle.

A taste for meat prompted early humans to wean their children at a young age. The idea explains why we now wean our infants years earlier than other great apes.

In non-industrialised societies, women breastfeed their children for an average of two and a half years, while chimpanzees feed theirs for five. Anthropologist Gail Kennedy of the University of California, Los Angeles, US, suggests that humans made the transition to early weaning 2.6 million years ago.

That was when a branch of hominids began to eat animal carcasses - a risky activity that would have brought them into contact with other predators and significantly raised mortality rates for the hunters. This would have created a selection pressure to wean infants earlier and earlier, since those no longer dependent on breast milk would have been more likely to survive their mother's death, says Kennedy.

The Andressohns denied officials' claims about Woyah's diet, saying she received "freshly made" foods whipped up in a food processor instead of food "by Gerber."

(CBS/AP) A new lawyer stepped in with a defense that could turn around the case against two vegan parents charged with manslaughter of their baby, who was allegedly malnourished.

Defense Attorney Ellis Rubin says a birth defect, not a vegan diet, is to blame for the death of a Florida couple's infant daughter Woyah.

In the past three years mega dairies have been locating in Indiana. During this time the dairies have consistently violated the Clean Water Act. Because of these discharges, many Indiana rivers and streams have increased pollution of E. coli, other harmful bacteria and heavy metals. Not only does this affect the rivers and reservoirs, but it also has the potential of contaminating private wells near the dairy.

I read a piece in the San Jose Merc recently that got me all riled up. The topic was "Going Vegetarian," and the focus was on teenagers. I knew it was a little unrealistic to expect the article to come down wholeheartedly in favor of the practice, but I thought at the very least they'd mention the standard long-term health benefits associated with such a diet. I thought wrong.

Writer Wins `Proggy' for Dishing Up `Vice Cream' That Isn't as Sinful as it Tastes

Seattle — In recognition of his trailblazing efforts to provide conscientious cooks with healthy, humane alternatives to cholesterol- and saturated-fat-laden dairy frozen desserts, Seattle resident Jeff Rogers, author of the Vice Cream cookbook, has won People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' (PETA) Proggy Award for Best New Dessert Cookbook. Proggys (short for "progress") are presented to animal-friendly people, companies, and organizations. Rogers will receive a commemorative plaque and will be featured on PETA's Web site PETA.org, which is visited by thousands of people every day.

LONDON - A new study gives scientific clout to a conclusion many already see as obvious: Eating lots of fast food makes you fat and increases the chance of developing diabetes.

Parts of cattle supposedly banned under rules enacted after the nation's first case of mad cow disease are making it into the human food chain, according to the union that represents federal inspectors in meat plants.

Eating a large amount of red meat has been linked to an increased risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, scientists say.

A study showed people who ate meat every day had double the risk of the disease compared to those who ate meat less, perhaps twice a week.

Washington, 1 December 2004 — Dr. Neal Barnard was working as an autopsy assistant when he examined a patient who died in hospital of a massive heart attack. He was required to inspect the heart by removing a section of ribs from the front of the chest, and found the arteries were totally clogged. Plaque had also clogged arteries leading to the brain. Bernard said the pathologist explained this was a common problem and that these blockages in the arteries began quite early in life, in the mid-20s, with heart attacks following in the next twenty years.

“At the end of this exam, I took the ribs and put them back in his chest. We sewed up his skin and washed our hands and made our notes, and then we went up to the cafeteria. They were serving ribs for lunch,” said Barnard. “It smelled and looked just like his body and I just couldn't eat it. It was a gut-level experience. This started me down the road of thinking about how what we eat directly connects with the condition of our bodies.”

I still remember, as a little girl, the displeasure I felt when eating most vegetables (I am sure most of us felt the same way). Little did I know of its value to health at that unripe age. In many traditional diets and medicines, green plants take an important place due to their nourishing and healing effects. With the invasion of fast food, they were set aside. Fortunately in the last couple of decades, they have regained their significance as nutrients and remedy in their natural form and in supplement form.

The number of people leading a vegan lifestyle is estimated to have doubled * in the UK, as Vegan Society announces The Diamond Jubilee Award Winners. Winners include `Supersize Me' the movie for best campaign/project and Redwoods super melting vegan cheese.

(PRWEB) November 14, 2004 -- The Vegan Society Diamond Jubilee Ball was a truly sparkling event, a worthy launch party to herald a new dawn of veganism.

Corn on the cob - plain - and green beans - plain - were the only vegetables he would eat as a youngster.

Today, Hirsch is an enthusiastic vegetable gardener and vegetarian cook at Moosewood Restaurant in New York, named by Bon Appetit magazine as one of the 13 most influential restaurants of the 20th century. Others on the list range from McDonald's to Alice Waters' Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif.

TORONTO - A nutrition advocacy group is slamming McDonald's Restaurants for failing to get trans fats out of its cooking oil.

The company vowed it would eliminate trans fats from its menu two years ago, but still uses the same cooking oil as then.

So the U.S.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest launched an ad campaign this fall to call the fast food giant on its broken promise, taking out full-page ads in newspapers such as the New York Times.

Twenty years ago, when Davis Frydman was a college student, he became vegetarian. “I came from a household that ate a lot of meat,” he says, “and I began to sense that meat was not healthy. I didn't just cut back; I stopped altogether. I'm a `cold turkey' kind of guy.”

Frydman, a Concord resident, has become one of the 12 million Americans who have made the choice to become vegetarian, cold turkey (or cold tofu, as the case may be).

The Atkins diet has gone from phenomenon to facing a backlash, and now the iconic weight loss plan is in the crosshairs of aggrieved patients and a pro-vegetarian group raising questions about its safety – and bent on suing it out of existence.

Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - About fifty vegetarians across the country on Saturday congregated in Accra for a national seminar on "Vegetarianism; Disease and Prevention," which is aimed at promoting health consciousness in Ghana.

Vegetarian food sales doubled since 1998, hitting $1.6 billion in 2003. The market is forecast to grow another 61 percent by 2008, according to Mintel, a global market research firm. That growth is giving an extra kick to the expanding business of organic produce and natural foods companies, and forcing mainstream food producers to scramble for a way to love veggies.

A vegan landlord in Swansea is advertising for home hunters who are non-meat eaters.

Michael Sosner says vegetarians make good tenants, saying they are sociable, healthier and prefer to live in a meat-free environment.

Many cancers are strongly linked to un-healthy lifestyle choices like smoking, poor diet and obesity. Now researchers are trying to figure out how the foods you eat, work to lower your cancer risk.

Sixty-three-year-old Wade Breed used to chow down on the typical American diet. But he switched to heart-healthy, primarily vegetarian meals, after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

WASHINGTON—In a new study appearing in the summer 2004 issue of the Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation, Neal D. Barnard, M.D., and his colleagues show that patients easily transition from a standard omnivorous diet to a low-fat, vegetarian diet that helps people lose weight, lower blood pressure, and otherwise improve their health. Many doctors are aware that a low-fat vegetarian diet can reverse heart disease and provide other benefits; however, they mistakenly think that patients will not make the transition. Now, there are at least four studies published in scientific journals showing that patients can and do adapt to a "strict" diet that dramatically improves their health.

Federal health officials said yesterday that in an effort to eradicate mad cow disease, they were moving toward a policy, based on the advice of international experts, to ban the feeding of any farm animal parts to other farm animals.

TO SATISFY THE PUBLIC'S ever-growing appetite for meat, slaughterhouses in the United States killed ten billion animals last year. That's 27,397,260 animals every day, 1,141,553 every hour, 19,026 every minute. Most Americans, largely disconnected from their food supply, assume these animals met a painless end, if they think about it at all. Even readers of books and articles about conditions in factory farms may not be aware of what happens to animals at slaughter.

MANALAPAN — The attendance of about 500 people at a vegetarian workshop sponsored by the Monmouth County Library System on June 5 shows that the time has come for vegetarianism to be considered seriously, according to an organizer of the event.

WOMEN who strictly follow the Atkins diet could damage their chances of getting pregnant, new research suggested today.

There are some hip-hop artists who don't drink Tanqueray and Alizé and want no part of the late-night trips to the BK.

This week, Matthew Kenney, the chef who once presided over New York's famed Canteen, Commissary and Commune restaurants, celebrated the opening of his latest venture: Pure Food and Wine.

Devoted to raw vegan food, the eatery's menu includes items such as gnocchi fashioned from red beets, green curry noodles made from coconut and spelt-crust pizza topped with pignoli cheese. Meanwhile, the wine list is devoted to organic vintages and the décor includes elements made from sustainable materials. Pure Food and Wine is located at 54 Irving Place in New York City.

One of the stars of the upcoming New Line Cinema comedy "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle" is a committed vegetarian.

A quart of whiskey, a pack of cigarettes and a cube of LSD is better for you than eating one piece of meat, a doctor once told Peter Burwash, former Hawai'i resident and Davis Cup champion turned tennis coach, author and motivational speaker.

"The trauma of the extra (meat-derived) chemicals in the body is horrendous," Burwash said, clarifying the analogy. "An athlete should have no meat, fish, poultry or eggs."

Passover takes on many guises in our multicultural society. On the eve of April 5, Jews and many non-Jews all over the world will sit down to the Seder table.

They will relate the same story, that of the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt to the Promised Land. But each gathering will have its own props and its own menu in keeping with Passover prohibitions and varying lifestyles.

In an almost biblical setting in the cactus-filled Sonora valley of southern Arizona, Gabriel Cousens, a physician, director of the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center in Patagonia and author of "Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine" (North Atlantic Books, $30), lives with his wife, Shanti. Both are vegans and subscribe to a diet of strictly organic raw foods, high in minerals and fiber, low in sugar. Here are two of his recipes that can grace a Passover table.

New Delhi: A panel of American medical experts has warned against the Atkins diet, saying intake of ultra-high protein is a sure recommendation for potentially fatal cardiac ailments.

Summer Phoenix says there's little she wouldn't do to land the right role - except, that is, for eating meat and having sex. Here, River and Joaquin's baby sister talks to Polly Vernon about making her own name and how a vegan with family values copes with Hollywood

Bruce Friedrich , Director, People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), On his visit to India

You prescribe a 'vegan' diet, meaning no flesh, or even milk or milk products. Won't people reject it on nutritional grounds?

We maintain that adults don't need milk; you can get the nutrients you need from other foodstuffs as well. But our main argument is humanitarian: we say that animals kept for meat or milk are mistreated, that they have feelings and should be treated like human beings. More and more people are being convinced by our message. We also say a vegan diet is good for your health, in preventing heart disease, for example. A poll by the UK-based Mirror newspaper said that the UK's entire population would go vegetarian in 10 years at the rate at which people were giving up non-vegetarian food.

NEW YORK - Normally sane actors have been known to gain or lose huge amounts of weight for their art. Think of Renee Zellweger in Bridget Jones's Diary. Directors, of course, never have to undergo such torture. Or so it used to be, until Morgan Spurlock had a bright idea for a film project.

The first clue to his particular misery comes in the title of his documentary, which has become the darling of this year's Sundance Film Festival. It is called Super Size Me: A Film of Epic Portions and it is a sometimes comic but serious look at America's addiction to fast food.

(CBS) Chef Charlie Trotter has created culinary magic since he was 28, and his latest cookbook shows just how much his wizardry has evolved in the kitchen. "Raw" is Trotter's ninth cookbook and, just as the title indicates, every dish in it is made with uncooked food.

Long-shot Democratic candidate says his only vice is being 'a member of Congress'

Washington -- Dennis Kucinich is hungry for the nation's biggest job and a plate of kidney beans.

IF YOU TOOK every failed, trendy educrat idea, packaged them in a school and put radical animal-rights activists in charge of it, you'd end up with something like the Humane Education Learning Community -- a K-6 charter school approved by Sacramento's San Juan Unified School District.

CORTE MADERA, Calif. — Calling Roxanne Klein's home a house is a bit like trying to pass off a sequoia as a humble tree.

When a California foie gras producer came under scrutiny last month for force-feeding ducks to enlarge their livers to 12 times their natural size, Sonoma Foie Gras made claims to the media that the ducks are "not force fed" and that they are "free range." The Animal Protection and Rescue League went inside the company's Stockton farm as well as that of the only other foie gras farm in the United States to document that both places force large metal pipes down the throats of these birds two to three times a day, and pneumatically pump into them grain equaling one-tenth of a healthy duck's body weight per feeding.

If you've got the notion that raw food is synonymous with rabbit munchies and that it lacks luster, you might nix the idea after you taste it and behold its sometimes luscious looks.

Burritos, pizza, lasagna, carrot cake, ice cream, homemade crackers and marinara sauce are among the wide range of dishes prepared -- and enjoyed by its devotees.

Can you be a serious vegetarian - and seriously fashionable at the same time? Simon Chilvers investigates

The USDA has an apparent (obvious) conflict of interest. The same organization whose job it is to promote US agriculture is also the same organization that tells us what is supposedly the best food for us to consume, nutritionally.

Celebrities for Health: When will the USDA relinquish control of the Food Pyramid, so it can lead people to more vibrant health?

Japan has quarantined 604 cows to prevent the spread of mad cow disease after authorities found a 23-month-old bull with a possible new strain of the illness, a farm ministry official said Wednesday.

Mumbai, September 17: Yet another award comes superstar Amitabh Bachchan's way. And this time it's because of him being a veggie.

In an online contest conducted by the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), India, Bachchan won the ``hottest vegetarian alive'' this year. Czech-born supermodel Yana Gupta is the winner in the women's category.

On World Vegetarian Day, (1 October) the Royal New Zealand Plunket Society (Inc) would like to remind both vegetarian and meat-eating parents alike that they are key to their baby having a healthy start to life.

KOLKATA: Vegetarians score over non-vegetarians. At least, when it comes to controlling diabetes.

According to latest research, diabetics who are vegetarian have a lower risk of complications that are associated with later stages of diabetes than those who have a non-vegetarian diet. What's more, a vegetarian has a much lower risk of acquiring adult-onset diabetes than a non-vegetarian.

MANGALORE: Between coaching the Indian cricket captain, Sourav Ganguly, and trips to India, former Australian cricket captain and living legend Greg Chappell has taken time out of his busy schedule to team up with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to create a new ad touting veganism.

The discovery of a piece of cooked penis in her stew was so traumatic for a hospital cleaner that she had to receive psychiatric help.

At a recent getaway at a hot springs near Safford in southeastern Arizona, a small group of raw food devotees gathered recently to munch on foods such as downed zucchini "pizza," coconut "pudding" and almond butter drinks. This retreat, whose location is not revealed, is also frequented by movie stars who have taken up this new lifestyle.

Nicole Lutes and Hilary Disch each changed to vegetarian diets for similar reasons -- they feel it is a way for them to help prevent cruelty to animals.

TORONTO -- If you think vegetarian diets are risky or just a passing phase, you'd be wrong. A well-planned vegetarian diet can be a healthy alternative to standard meat-based eating styles for all age groups, say the Dietitians of Canada and the American Dietetic Association.

As you enter the Bushey production office of the TV drama Judge John Deed, you're left in no doubt about the ethos which underlies it. "Please note - all the catering on this production is vegetarian."

LONDON - Men who eat a diet without meat or dairy products may reduce their risk of contracting prostate cancer, according to British scientists.

Somewhere, Rachel Carson is smiling. On the campus of her alma mater, Chatham College, a modest greenhouse has become the incubator for a pilot program to bring homegrown organic goodness to the resident dining hall.

MANGALORE: Going ahead with their intense campaign against non-vegetarianism, People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has now released a new advertisement which warns of impotence from eating meat.

"Eat Your Vegetables." This is not your mother speaking, admonishing you at age 5 to clear your plate. It is the cheerful philosophy -- think of it as an invitation, not a command -- that underpins Cafe Eight, perhaps our favorite vegetarian restaurant in all of eastern Japan.

WASHINGTON (AP) --A food fight is brewing in school cafeterias that could elbow aside the long-standing drink of choice -- milk -- to make some room for soy.

Move over, Salisbury steak and fish sticks. A band of vegan parents and a California legislator wants the state's school lunchrooms to offer daily vegetarian lunches.

The resolution from Assemblyman Joe Nation, D-Marin, asks that at least one daily entree in each school cafeteria menu be plant-based, which would make it as close to vegan as possible.

Like cattle pens, the salmon operations bring product to market cheaply. But harm to ocean life and possibly human health has experts worried.

Now there's all the more reason to turn a veggie. According to a recent study conducted by researchers at the Industrial Toxicology Research Centre here, smokers and meat eaters show a higher incidence of DNA damage than non-smokers and vegetarians.

LARKSPUR, Calif. -- Something is drawing crowds to this small community north of San Francisco. Is the raw food at Roxanne's restaurant a genuine culinary breakthrough or the emperor's new clothes?

McCartney's Help Welcomed by Oregon's Genetically Altered Food Campaign
[article outdated - Oregon Measure 27 defeated :(]

Oct. 25--The forces trying to defeat Measure 27, the food labeling initiative on the Nov. 5 ballot, have the deep pockets of biotech giants such as Monsanto on their side, but the proponents have something money can't buy: A ringing endorsement from a certain pop music giant named Paul McCartney.

Group claims offering dairy products only is discrimination
Thursday, October 17, 2002

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A physicians' group has asked the Agriculture Department to allow schools to serve soy milk as part of the subsidized school lunch program, arguing that many minority students cannot digest dairy products.

OCTOBER 14. In Appleton, Wisconsin, a revolution has occurred. It's taken place in the Central Alternative High School. The kids now behave. The hallways aren't frantic. Even the teachers are happy.

HOUSTON — A federal judge has dismissed a lingering lawsuit that accused Oprah Winfrey [and Howard Lyman] of violating Texas' "veggie libel" law by maligning the beef industry.

In addition to all the meat-eaters, China also has a new generation of lifestyle vegetarians.

The vegetables are thought to protect the lining of the colon Eating a diet rich in leafy green vegetables can cut the risk of colon cancer by nearly half.

After a 21-year study, Swiss scientists have given a ringing endorsement to organic farming methods.

Bowing to pressure from animal rights activists, the National Collegiate Athletic Association says it will phase out the use of leather balls in its tournaments because they are cruel to cows, reports The Associated Press.

FIRE, they say, is the enemy. They are a small, but increasingly influential group of culinary zealots (mostly in California, of course, but traveling a lot and proselytizing along the way), who have become so extreme in their vegetarianism that they refuse to eat food touched by heat — for fear of destroying the nutrients.

They challenge conventional science with the power of their conviction and a gift for persuading even vegetarians that there is still more wrong with food than anyone might have thought. And their persuasiveness is leading some of the best chefs in the country to turn off their stoves.

Got milk? If not, then thank your lucky stars. Because if you do, medical research shows that you are likely to be plagued by anemia, migraine, bloating, gas, indigestion, asthma, prostate cancer, and a host of potentially fatal allergies--especially if you are a person of color.

The practice of boiling down euthanized dogs and cats for industrial fat and protein causes an uproar in St. Louis

WASHINGTON — Jeanette Pearson, a homeless woman who lives in a Washington, D.C., shelter, knows she is being exploited, but she's got a warm fur coat, and for that she's willing to make the trade-off.

PETA TV: Animal Rights Television Kicks Off With Exclusive Celebrity Interviews From Peta's 21st Birthday Bash

LONDON - People in Britain have received yet another dire warning about health risks associated with their beef industry – and this time it involves drinking water.

A claim by McDonald's that its famous french fries are cooked in "100 percent vegetable oil" is being challenged by a Seattle lawyer representing Hindus and vegetarians.

Soy milk is a staple for many vegetarians, but they need to look twice at the ingredients!

Dr. Neal Barnard founded the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine [PCRM] in 1985. The group persuasively argues the health benefits of a vegan diet

"We promote preventative medicine, which mostly involves exercise and diet. There is abundant evidence that the healthiest diets are those that avoid animal products..."

At least there is one doctor and possibly other doctors (the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine) who are willing to "come out" espousing the vegan way of life to save people's lives. Thank you, Peter Brandt, for interviewing Dr. Neal Barnard to let us know the medical community is not completely without the guts to say "Just say no" to animal products in your diet.

BERLIN, Germany -- Germany fears more cases of mad cow disease will be found in its herd following the discovery of a second cow infected with the brain-wasting disease in Bavaria.