The Best Stories of 2006
From “News For Life”
We have laboriously searched hundreds of stories we covered
during 2006 looking for the best ones. While it was often
difficult to make a decision, we feel that the following
articles offer the most for you, our readers. We hope you
enjoy them!
General News Index:
Institutionalized Cruelties Inflicted On Animals
Six Arguments for a Greener Diet
How Meat-centered Eating Patterns Affect Food Security and
the Environment
The Price of Cheap Beef: Disease, Deforestation, Slavery
and Murder
Hazards of Genetically Engineered Foods and Crops
Med Schools Failing on Nutrition Teaching
Fasting Makes a Comeback in Modern Medicine
The Solution to Crime and Violence Is on Your Plate
FDA Is Urged to Ban Carbon-Monoxide-Treated Meat
Chickens, Eggs and the "Free-Range" Fallacy
Factory Farming: A Moral Issue
CARING CONSUMER WALLET CARD
'Man the Hunter' Theory Is Debunked in New Book
Daring Whale Rescue
Vegan Ultramarathoner Scott Jurek Wins Again
New Sports Nutrition Guide Touts Vegan Diet
Vegan Challenges Professor to Triathlon
Health News Index:
Study Details Nutritional Value Of Salad
Making the Healthiest Food on Earth Even Healthier
Fruit or Vegetable Combinations Offer More Health
Protection
Eat More Fruits, Vegetables to Avoid Wrinkles
Tea Offers Many Benefits
Green Tea Fights Fat
Eat Trans Fat, Get Big Belly
Research Shows Adults and Teens Who Eat Beans Weigh Less
Pepper Hot Enough To Trigger Suicide In Prostate Cancer
Cells
Broccoli and Curry May Save American Men from Prostate
Cancer
Flaxseed Can Help Fight Breast Cancer
Ginger Kills Ovarian Cancer Cells
Husband, Wife, and Even Family Dog, Defy Odds to Survive
Cancer
Omega-3 Least Known of Pregnancy "Big 3"
Do You Get Enough Vitamin B-12?
Epidemic Influenza and Vitamin D
Hamburgers cause asthma in kids
Charred Meat Chemical May Lead To Prostate Cancer
Red Meat Cancer Risk Clue Found
Chicken with Arsenic? Is That O.K.?
Salmonella on the Rise in Chicken Meat
The Fantasy of Fish As "Health Food": Actually, a Dietary
Disaster
Plants vs. Fish & Omega-3 Oil
Have Acne Problems? Milk May Be Culprit
NOT Milk? New Research Questions Value - If Not Safety of
Dairy
Environmental News Index:
HOW YOUR EATING HABITS AFFECT THE ENVIRONMENT
Hungry World 'Must Eat Less Meat'
Another Inconvenient Truth: Meat is a Global Warming Issue
Meat Consumption Has Far-Ranging Environmental Impacts
HOW GOOD IS ORGANIC MILK?
Doomed? Fishless Oceans
Fish Farms Become Feedlots of the Sea
Animal Sentience Index:
Was Your Meat Smarter Than Your Pet?
They Think, Feel Pain
Is Morality A Wild Thing?
Animal Intelligence Resists Definition
Off the Hook
*********************************************************
General News:
“If you don’t stay informed, then who will tell the others
the truth?”
Anonymous
Institutionalized Cruelties Inflicted On Animals
All of these atrocities are performed without anesthetic or
analgesics (milk and egg-producing breeds also undergo the
same procedures, so the best solution is to eliminate all
animal products from one’s diet):
* Amputations: Wattles, combs (chickens) snoods
(turkeys), and the tips of toes, not just the toenails, are
cut off.
* Branding: A brand is a third-degree burn. Animals
may be branded several times as they pass from one owner to
another.
* Castration: There are several painful methods.
One involves using a clamp, held in place for about a
minute, to crush the spermatic cords.
* Debeaking: This is not at all like cutting
fingernails. It’s a painful procedure done to sensitive
tissue, slicing through the beak with a hot knife.
* Disbudding: To prevent horns from growing, the
hide is gouged out down to the skull, or burned with a hot
iron or a caustic paste.
* Suffocation: Fish (and the male chicks of
egg-laying chicken breeds) die of suffocation, or worse.
* Buying “free-range” or organic animals products
is no guarantee that these procedures are not used.
For more information, visit
http://www.choosevegetarian.com
Six Arguments for a Greener Diet
... a meticulously researched examination of scientific
studies that finds that eating more plant foods and fewer
fatty animal products can lead to extra years of healthy
living. Happily, explains lead author and CSPI executive
director Michael F. Jacobson, that same diet also leads to
much less food poisoning, water pollution, air pollution,
global warming, and animal suffering.... ultimately, a diet
rich in fatty animal products and poor in whole grains,
fruits, and vegetables consumes the consumer: Higher rates
of heart disease, stroke, certain cancers, diabetes, and
obesity cause hundreds of thousands of premature deaths
each year. Six Arguments for a Greener Diet exposes those,
and other under-reported facts, and carefully connects the
dots between a healthy diet and a healthy planet.
http://cspinet.org/new/200608011.html
How Meat-centered Eating Patterns Affect Food Security and
the Environment
With world population projected to increase by 50% to 8.8
billion by 2030, our ability to adequately feed people will
face growing challenges (Brown and Kane 1994). Scaling back
on heightened levels of resource-intensive meat production
may be the best way to ensure food security for all people
into the next century. Essentially, the world is
experiencing an overpopulation in farm animals...
... the land requirements of plant-based agricultural
economies are only a fraction of those with high rates of
meat production. With fewer animals to feed, it might be
possible to rebuild world grain reserves, ensuring
dependable supplies for direct human consumption in
countries facing food scarcity. Reducing land use by
cutting meat production would also be a very effective way
to ensure that wilderness areas are maintained and even
expanded. Wilderness is crucial to providing biological
diversity, climate control, and a store of carbon
dioxide...
... Numerous studies have pointed out the advantages of
vegetarian foods in prevention of heart disease, cancer,
and many other diet-related diseases...
... As the Earth's human population continues to expand,
two things will be critical for our survival: adequate food
resources and intact wilderness areas. One sure way to
achieve both would be to dramatically change food choices
from animal products to plant-based foods.
http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-30610-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html
The Price of Cheap Beef: Disease, Deforestation, Slavery
and Murder
The past three years have been the most destructive in the
Brazilian Amazon's history. In 2004, 26,000 sq. km of
rainforest were burned, the second-highest rate on record.
This year could be worse, and most of it is driven by
cattle ranching... Cattle ranching, if it keeps expanding
in the Amazon, threatens two-fifths of the world's
remaining rainforest. This is not just the most diverse eco
system, but also the biggest reserve of standing carbon. Its
clearance could provoke a hydrological disaster in South America, as rainfall is reduced as the trees come down.
Next time you see footage of the forest burning, remember
that you might have paid for it.
http://www.americas.org/item_22592
Hazards of Genetically Engineered Foods and Crops: Why We
Need A Global Moratorium
…With little or no regulatory restraints, labeling
requirements, or scientific protocol, bio-engineers have
begun creating hundreds of new GE "Frankenfoods" and crops,
oblivious to human and environmental hazards, or negative
socioeconomic impacts on the world's several billion
farmers and rural villagers. Despite an increasing number
of scientists warning that current gene-splicing techniques
are crude, inexact, and unpredictable -- and therefore
inherently dangerous -- pro-biotech governments and
regulatory agencies, led by the US, maintain that GE foods
and crops are "substantially equivalent" to conventional
foods, and therefore require neither mandatory labeling nor
pre-market safety-testing. This Brave New World of
Frankenfoods is frightening….
http://www.purefood.org/GEFacts.htm?tr=y&auid=1585859
Med Schools Failing on Nutrition Teaching
Almost 60 percent of US medical schools do not meet
recommendations for nutrition education for med students,
producing physicians - the first port of call for nutrition
advice for many consumers - who may have inadequate
nutrition knowledge... many medical schools did not offer
nutrition courses.
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=67000-nutrition-obesity-ed
ucation
Fasting Makes a Comeback in Modern Medicine
Fasting, practiced for thousands of years as a cure for a
variety of diseases, is making a comeback (slowly) among
the practitioners of modern medicine... many hard-to-treat
conditions, from arthritis to allergies and various skin
disorders, benefit from the metabolic switch that takes
place when the body starts living off its own reserves...
Other studies have shown success in lowering blood pressure
and treating chronic pain like migraine or arthritis... "The
more we look into it, fasting seems to work like a reset
button for the body's own self-regulating mechanisms,"
Andreas Michalsen, deputy director of the Institute for
Integrative Medicine at Essen University, said.
http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14316166
The Solution to Crime and Violence Is on Your Plate
At first glance, there seems nothing special about the
students at this high school in Appleton, Wisconsin. They
appear calm, interact comfortably with one another, and are
focused on their schoolwork. And yet, a couple of years ago,
there was a police officer patrolling the halls at this
school for developmentally challenged students. Many of the
students were troublemakers, there was a lot of fighting
with teachers and some of the kids carried weapons. What
happened? A glance through the halls provides the answer.
The vending machines have been replaced by water coolers.
The lunchroom took hamburgers and French fries off the
menu, making room for fresh vegetables and fruits,
whole-grain bread and a salad bar. Is that all? Yes, that's
all. [The article cites many other examples and studies
relating nutrition and behavior. It concludes: "We need to
know more about the composition of the right nutrients. It
could be the recipe for peace."]
http://www.odemagazine.com/article.php?aID=4143
FDA Is Urged to Ban Carbon-Monoxide-Treated Meat
Shoppers who judge the freshness of meat by its color may
be deceived by a relatively new industry practice of
treating meat with carbon monoxide, critics say.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/19/AR2006021901
101.html
Chickens, Eggs and the "Free-Range" Fallacy
Every year, billions of chickens are raised and killed for
human consumption. The conditions on today's
high-production farms are appalling. Animals are crammed
into tiny cages or crowded pens, unable to express natural
behaviors, and can't even see sunlight or breathe fresh
air. Chickens also undergo painful mutilations such as
debeaking and toe-clipping without benefit of anesthesia...
"free-range," "cage-free," and "organic" labeling programs
fail to address many of the cruelties inherent in chicken
meat and egg production.
http://www.satyamag.com/feb06/engebretson.html
Factory Farming: A Moral Issue
For low meat prices, the animals, the environment and rural
neighborhoods pay steeply.
There is a growing consensus that factory farming of
animals - also known as CAFOs, or concentrated animal
feeding operations - is morally wrong... The overwhelming
majority of these animals have spent their entire lives
confined inside sheds, never going outdoors for a single
hour. Their suffering isn't just for a few hours or days,
but for all their lives...
http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2006/03/22/67620/
CARING CONSUMER WALLET CARD
Use this caring consumer card to examine the choices you
are making when out shopping or purchasing any form of
entertainment. Print and cut out the card, laminate it if
you can, and place in a visible spot in your wallet. When
you are out making purchases, pull the card out and
hesitate long enough to mindfully read the questions on the
card. Many of the choices we make may seem to give us
short-term satisfaction or pleasure, but do not serve us in
the long run or the big picture. This is a great ritual to
begin with children old enough to be thinking about these
issues. One of the largest groups of consumers in the world
is teens. Print out one for each member of your family who
is old enough to be making purchases. 1. Is this a want or
need? 2. Will having this add meaning to my life? 3. Is
purchasing this item the best way to care for myself and
the planet? 4. What is the true cost of the item to: My own
health? Other species? The environment? Other cultures? 5.
Is there something more worthwhile I could do with my
money?
Download the wallet card as a pdf file (higher quality),
print and cut out to carry in your wallet.
http://www.simplyenough.com/images2/wallet%20card.pdf
'Man the Hunter' Theory Is Debunked in New Book
The idea of "Man the Hunter" is the generally accepted
paradigm of human evolution... when you really examine the
fossil and living non-human primate evidence, that is just
not the case."... "These early humans simply couldn't eat
meat. If they couldn't eat meat, why would they hunt?"
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-02/wuis-th020305.php
Daring Whale Rescue
Team members realized the only way to save the endangered
leviathan was to dive into the water and cut the ropes. It
was a very risky maneuver, Stoudt said, because the mere
flip of a humpback's massive tail can kill a man. Lines
were cinched so tight, Moskito said, that the rope was
digging into the animal's blubber and leaving visible
cuts... "When I was cutting the line going through the
mouth, its eye was there winking at me, watching me,"
Moskito said. "It was an epic moment of my life."
When the whale realized it was free, it began swimming
around in circles, according to the rescuers. Moskito said
it swam to each diver, nuzzled him and then swam to the
next one. "It seemed kind of affectionate, like a dog
that's happy to see you,'' Moskito said. “I never felt
threatened. It was an amazing, unbelievable experience."
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/12/14/HUMPY.TMP
Vegan Ultramarathoner Scott Jurek Wins Again
... Scott Jurek has won the grueling Badwater Ultramarathon
for the second year in a row. Known as the toughest footrace
on earth, this 135-mile race takes runners from Death
Valley, where temperatures often soar to 130 degrees
Fahrenheit, to the trailhead of Mt. Whitney in California.
The runners cross three mountain ranges with a combined
vertical ascent and descent of over 17,000 feet... Jurek,
who has been following a vegan diet since 1999, credits his
wins to his healthy diet, which allows for faster recovery
to restore his body to a higher level of conditioning.
Jurek was named Runner's World Hero of 2005 and
UltraRunning magazine's Ultrarunner of the Year in 2003,
2004, and 2005. In 2003, he was awarded UltraRunning
magazine's Performance of the Year.
http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/gm06autumn/marathon.html
New Sports Nutrition Guide Touts Vegan Diet
The guide is available for free on the web or as a
download:
http://www.organicathlete.org/guide.
Vegan Challenges Professor to Triathlon
Christchurch vegan Ella Soryl (11) has challenged Professor
Robert Pickard to prove his claims that her diet is lacking.
Ella, a life-long vegan has never eaten animal products, won
her school triathlon this year, and was a finalist in the
Vegan Triathlon in 2005 and 2006. Ella has challenged
Professor Pickard to compete with her in a one-on-one
triathlon. "If you're going to say silly things like
'children must eat animal products,' you have to be
prepared to put your money where your mouth is," says Ella.
"I challenge Professor Pickard to meet me on the sports
field and run, swim and bike it out with me."
Professor Pickard, whose trip to New Zealand has been
financed by the animal foods industry, has been unable to
provide references as proof for his claims when asked by
vegetarian organisations in the UK. His claims contradict
the position of the New Zealand Dieticians association that
a vegan diet is appropriate for all stages of the human life
cycle. "Pro meat 'experts' sponsored by animal industries
are as credible as tobacco industry 'experts' who promote
smoking," says New Zealand Vegetarian Society (Christchurch
Centre) spokesperson Yolanda Soryl...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0609/S00236.htm
Health News:
"Let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your
food."
Hippocrates, father of modern medicine.
Study Details Nutritional Value Of Salad
A new UCLA/Louisiana State University study of dietary data
on more than 17,500 men and women finds consumption of salad
and raw vegetables correlates with higher concentrations of
folic acid, vitamins C and E, lycopene and alpha and beta
carotene in the bloodstream... The findings blunt concerns
about the human body's ability to absorb nutrients from raw
vegetables, as well as concern that the structure and
characteristics of some plants undercut nutritional
value...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060901161202.htm
Making the Healthiest Food on Earth Even Healthier
. . . two new studies just discovered two ways to make your
daily (at least!) green leafy salad even healthier. Those
eating a salad including half an avocado absorbed about 10
times more carotenoids than those eating the fat-free
scientists experimented with adding different fresh herbs
to salads and measuring their resultant total antioxidant
content. They found that adding just a single sprig of
fresh herbs (the weight of 3 paper clips worth of thyme,
sage or marjoram--a kissing cousin of oregano) literally
doubles the antioxidant power of a bowl of salad. It's
almost like eating two salads for the price of one!
http://www.drgreger.org/june2005.html
Fruit or Vegetable Combinations Offer More Health
Protection
That salad of mixed vegetables you ate for lunch may not
look like a scientific breakthrough, but dishes that
combine a number of vegetables together may be just what
the doctor ordered. Cancer researchers are finding new
evidence that the many phytochemicals in plant-based foods
seem to work best as a team to protect us from cancer...
This interactivity is likely to be taking place in any diet
high in a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and
beans...
http://www.infozine.com/news/stories/op/storiesView/sid/19097/
Eat More Fruits, Vegetables to Avoid Wrinkles
People who eat lots of fruit and vegetables are likely to
have fewer wrinkles, says a new study... [which] found that
people with a high concentration of antioxidants in the skin
look younger because they have fewer wrinkles... The study
showed that vegetarians had more antioxidants in their
bodies than non-vegetarians.
http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/Health/20060418/308742.html
Tea Offers Many Benefits
After water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the
world. Not only is it comforting with a pleasant flavor,
but it has been known for centuries to confer a variety of
health benefits. As research progresses, we are finding
more and more reasons to consume tea on a regular basis...
The strongest evidence for the consumption of tea so far,
has been related to heart disease and cancer... other
promising areas of study involve cognitive health, immune
system function, oral health, and weight control. Most of
the positive research results on cognitive health has been
with green tea.
http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/06042006/health/106260.htm
Green Tea Fights Fat
Need another healthy reason to drink green tea? Aside from
fighting heart disease, cancer, and other diseases, a new
study shows that drinking green tea may also fight fat.
The study showed that people who drank a bottle of tea
fortified with green tea extract every day for three months
lost more body fat than those who drank a bottle of regular
oolong tea. Researchers say the results indicate that
substances found in green tea known as catechins may
trigger weight loss by stimulating the body to burn
calories and decreasing body fat...
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/99/105398?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Eat Trans Fat, Get Big Belly
... Trans fats make you fatter than other foods with the
same number of calories -- but that's not all. Researchers
at Wake Forest University find that trans fats increase the
amount of fat around the belly. They do this not just by
adding new fat, but also by moving fat from other areas to
the belly... Trans fats are found in vegetable shortenings,
some kinds of margarine, and in manufactured baked goods
such as cookies, crackers, and snack foods. A major source
of trans fat in American diets is fast food fried in the
stuff.
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/123/115139?src=rss_nafwa
Research Shows Adults and Teens Who Eat Beans Weigh Less
... the study found that adults who eat beans weigh 6.6
pounds less - yet eat 199 more daily calories - than adults
who don't eat beans. Similar results were found for teenage
bean eaters who consume 335 more daily calories but weigh
7.3 pounds less than non-bean-eating teens... In addition,
other research has shown that diets including beans may
reduce the risk of heart disease and certain cancers.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-04/epr-rsa033106.php
Pepper Hot Enough To Trigger Suicide In Prostate Cancer
Cells
Capsaicin, the stuff that turns up the heat in jalapeños,
not only causes the tongue to burn, it also drives prostate
cancer cells to kill themselves, according to studies
published in the March 15 issue of Cancer Research…
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/03/060319150754.htm
Broccoli and Curry May Save American Men from Prostate
Cancer
The most common cancer in American men – prostate cancer -
may be prevented, and possibly treated, by something as
easy as eating certain vegetables like broccoli, and the
curry spice turmeric (also watercress, cabbage, winter
cress, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower,
kohlrabi and turnips), says a new study... and could be
effective in treating established prostate cancers... This
has been attributed to the dietary consumption of large
amounts of plant-based foods rich in phytochemicals -
nonnutritive plant chemicals that have protective or
disease-preventive properties.
http://www.seniorjournal.com/NEWS/Health/6-01-15-BroccoliAndCurry.htm
Flaxseed Can Help Fight Breast Cancer
Flaxseed may slow breast cancer, according to a recent
study at the University Health Network in Toronto. In
addition to their regular diet, 32 postmenopausal women
with breast cancer were asked to have a flaxseed muffin or
a muffin with similar nutrient content but without
flaxseed. Women in the flaxseed group showed a 34.2 percent
reduction in tumor cell growth and a 71 percent decrease in
_expression of an aggressive type of cancer cell known as
C-erbB2.
http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/gm06winter/nyn.html
http://www.wcfcourier.com/articles/2006/02/22/features/lifestyles/doc43fc94a
279437030101404.txt
Ginger Kills Ovarian Cancer Cells
Researchers from the University of Michigan Comprehensive
Cancer Center have found that ginger not only kills cancer
cells, it also prevents them from building up resistance to
cancer treatment. Ginger is already used as an effective
remedy for nausea and inflammation... 15,000 women are
expected to die from ovarian cancer this year (in the
USA).
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/healthnews.php?newsid=41747&nfid=crss
Husband, Wife, and Even Family Dog, Defy Odds to Survive
Cancer
... Mr. Wade, 57, had a rare cancer and was given six
months to live. Mrs. Wade, 50, underwent a mastectomy after
she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Then their beloved
boxer dog, William, was diagnosed with cancer too... They
basically told us there was nothing more they could do and
we should go away and enjoy ourselves for the three to six
months he had left... But, Mr. Wade amazed doctors by
overcoming the disease after attending a course at Bristol
Cancer Health Centre that taught him to adopt a healthy
vegan diet and meditate to give his body the best chance of
fighting back...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=
390893&in_page_id=1766&ito=1490
Omega-3 Least Known of Pregnancy "Big 3"
Only 41 percent of mothers and expectant mothers know they
should be consuming omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy,
according to a recent survey, emphasizing a need for more
education as well as an untapped market. The Washington,
DC-based Society for Women's Health Research (SWHR)
conducted a public opinion survey involving 500 American
women aged 18 and older who were either pregnant, nursing
or had children aged three and under. Questions were put to
the women regarding the "Big 3" of pregnancy nutrition:
folic acid, calcium with vitamin D and omega-3 fatty
acids... women 'in the know' are eager to purchase DHA
fortified foods (omega-3 fatty acids) rather than eat fish,
according to the survey. After being informed that pregnant
women are advised to avoid fish because it may contain
mercury... The survey is clear in its support for
algae-derived DHA...
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=70645-omega-prenatal
Do You Get Enough Vitamin B-12?
Adults over 50 may have problems absorbing it, new research
shows. Most Americans don't worry about vitamin B-12. Health
experts once thought that only strict vegetarians were
likely to have a shortage. As long as basic blood counts
didn't show any anemia, even these people were considered
safe. Now research shows that vitamin B-12 may be a concern
for many more people.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10086995/#storyContinued
Epidemic Influenza and Vitamin D
... scientists from UCLA published a remarkable paper in
the prestigious journal Nature. The UCLA group confirmed
two other recent studies, showing that a naturally
occurring steroid hormone - a hormone most of us take for
granted - was, in effect, a potent antibiotic. Instead of
directly killing bacteria and viruses, the steroid hormone
under question increases the body's production of a
remarkable class of proteins, called antimicrobial
peptides. The 200 known antimicrobial peptides directly and
rapidly destroy the cell walls of bacteria, fungi, and
viruses, including the influenza virus, and play a key role
in keeping the lungs free of infection. The steroid hormone
that showed these remarkable antibiotic properties was
plain old vitamin D... most humans only make about a
thousand units of vitamin D a day from sun exposure; many
people, such as the elderly or African Americans, make much
less than that. How much did humans normally make? A single,
twenty-minute, full body exposure to summer sun will trigger
the delivery of 20,000 units of vitamin D into the
circulation of most people within 48 hours. Twenty thousand
units, that's the single most important fact about vitamin
D. Compare that to the 100 units you get from a glass of
milk, or the several hundred daily units the U.S.
government recommend as "Adequate Intake." It's what we
call an "order of magnitude" difference... the patients on
my ward had been taking 2,000 units of vitamin D every day
for several months or longer. Could that be the reason none
of my patients caught the flu?...
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=51913
VM Note: If you can't get enough sunshine, then you should
supplement, there's a lot more information in the article!
Hamburgers cause asthma in kids
… Researchers found that kids who ate hamburgers more than
once a week were twice more likely to have asthma attacks
and wheezing. Other takeaway food and fizzy drinks were
found to increase the risk of asthma. Children who ate at
least one hamburger a week were 75 percent more likely to
have asthma and 100 percent more likely to have wheezing
problems…
http://foodconsumer.org/7777/8888/C_hildren_amp_W_omen_33/Study_Junk_food_ca
uses_asthma_in_kids.shtml
Charred Meat Chemical May Lead To Prostate Cancer
The compound PhIP
(2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine), formed
by cooking meats at very high temperatures, acts as both an
initiator and promoter of prostate cancer...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/04/060406101252.htm
Red Meat Cancer Risk Clue Found
Eating lots of red meat is linked with DNA damage which
raises the risk of bowel cancer, researchers suggest.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4662934.stm
Chicken with Arsenic? Is That O.K.?
Arsenic may be called the king of poisons, but it is
everywhere: in the environment, in the water we drink and
sometimes in the food we eat. The amount is not enough to
kill anyone in one fell swoop, but arsenic is a recognized
cancer-causing agent and many experts say that no level
should be considered safe. Arsenic may also contribute to
other life-threatening illnesses, including heart disease
and diabetes, and to a decline in mental functioning. Yet
it is deliberately being added to chicken in this
country...
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/05/dining/05well.html?ex=1301889600&en=9eae0f
4e93407166&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
Salmonella on the Rise in Chicken Meat
A type of salmonella found in eggs is turning up more often
in chicken meat and needs to be reduced, according to the
Agriculture Department... Salmonella sickens at least
40,000 people and kills about 600 every year in the United States...
http://www.forbes.com/business/energy/feeds/ap/2006/11/20/ap3192338.html
The Fantasy of Fish As "Health Food": Actually, a Dietary
Disaster
"Eat more fish and seafood to protect against heart
disease," many well-meaning but misinformed physicians and
nutritionists recommend. "Seafood is rich in omega-3 fatty
acids," they state correctly but fail to warn against the
hazards of ingesting the toxic flesh, polluted fatty
tissues, or diseased organs that most marine creatures
contain. If omega-3 fatty acids are nutritionally
beneficial, other sources are available that ordinarily do
not carry the pollution associated with seafood.
Whole-grain breads and cereals contain omega-3 in
abundance; so do flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin
seeds. Seafood sales have risen more than 25 percent during
the past [two] decades. Simultaneously, cholesterol
problems, gastrointestinal ailments, and infestation
diseases have increased...
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/533049/the_fantasy_of_fish_as_health_fo
od_actually_a_dietary/index.html?source=r_science
Plants vs. Fish & Omega-3 Oil
Plant omega-3 fat is found in the seeds and oils of rape,
soy, flax, and nuts, particularly walnuts. Research shows
that plant-based omega-3s reduce the risk of secondary
heart attacks by 70 percent compared to 35 percent for fish
and, unlike fish oils, give long-term protection against the
disease…
http://www.drgreger.org/june2005.html
Have Acne Problems? Milk May Be Culprit
Researcher suspects iodine in milk linked to acne
problems... Dermatologists seem to agree that something in
milk and dairy products may be linked to teenage acne, but
they haven't been able to pin down the reason why.
http://www.nbc4.tv/health/5492282/detail.html
NOT Milk? New Research Questions Value - If Not Safety of
Dairy
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?
http://www.ediets.com/news/article.cfm/2/cmi_1793664/cid_1
Environmental News:
"Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for
survival of life
on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet."
Albert Einstein
HOW YOUR EATING HABITS AFFECT THE ENVIRONMENT
* POLLUTION/GLOBAL WARMING - Animals raised for food
produce 130 times more excrement than the entire human
population---86,600 lbs. per second---which all too often
leaches into streams and contaminates groundwater. Nearly
90% of all U.S. farms drain into a single body of water-the
Mississippi River. Waste lagoons on livestock farms release
a considerable amount of methane, a greenhouse gas which
contributes to global warming, into the atmosphere.
* LAND USE/DEFORESTATION/HABITAT DESTRUCTION - Nearly 90%
of all agricultural land in the U.S is used to raise
animals for food. Twenty times more land is required to
feed a meat-eater than to feed a pure vegetarian. For every
quarter-pound burger made of rainforest beef, 55 square feet
of land are consumed. Livestock grazing is the number one
threat and cause of elimination to tropical rainforest
species.
* WATER - Nearly 50% of all water consumed in the U.S. is
used for livestock. The production of one pound of
California beef requires a total of 2464 gallons of water.
You would save more water by not eating a pound of
California beef than you would by not showering for 6
months.
* ENERGY - Raising animals for food requires more than 30%
of all raw materials and fossil fuels used in the United States. Producing a single hamburger patty uses enough
fossil fuels to drive a small car 20 miles, not to mention
enough water for 17 showers.
* FISH FARMS/FACTORY TRAWLERS - Fish and shrimp farms
destroy habitats and contaminate water with heavy use of
antibiotics, causing coastal pollution, displacement of
local people from their land, and the clearing of mangrove
forests. They take away land that is traditionally used for
growing rice, the primary staple for most of the world's
people. Just like their land-dwelling counterparts, fish
and shrimp are highly inefficient converters of protein. It
takes 5 lbs. of wild ocean fish to feed and produce a single
pound of farmed saltwater fish or shrimp. Think you're
better off eating wild-caught? Think again. Factory
trawlers use long lines with thousands of hooks and huge
nets, spanning up to 80 miles. These lines wreak havoc,
destroying the ocean floor and drowning everything in their
path, including seabirds, seals, dolphins, sea turtles, and
countless other species. About 25% of all animals caught in
factory nets are thrown away. Factory trawlers have driven
more than 100 species of "food fish" to full or near
extinction and caused irreparable harm to others.
* PERSONAL HEALTH/ANTIBIOTICS - The obesity rate among the
general (meat-eating) U.S. population is nearly 20%. For
vegetarians, that number drops to 6%, and for vegans
(people who abstain from all animal products), it is only
2%. The increased risk of heart disease and gallstones for
obese people is double to triple, the risk of colon cancer
is triple to quadruple, and the risk of diabetes is 40
times greater than for people at a healthy weight.
Vegetarians and vegans enjoy a reduced risk for obesity,
coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes, and some
types of cancer. This translates to a much lower drain on
U.S. tax dollars spent on health care and preventable
medical procedures. In addition, the EPA estimates that
60-80% of all livestock receive antibiotics as a routine
food additive, leading to an increase in antibiotic
resistance in humans by causing selective pressure for the
emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Roughly 24
million pounds of antibiotics (about 70% of the nation's
total antibiotic use) are added to animal feed every year
to speed livestock growth.
* PUBLIC HEALTH - Open waste lagoons on factory farms store
urine and liquefied manure, home to more than 150 pathogens
(disease causing organisms) such as Salmonella, E. coli,
Cryptosporidium, and fecal coliform. These pathogens are
10-100 times more concentrated than in human waste and pose
a serious threat to human health. Animal waste is also
contaminated with endocrine disruptors from pesticides
(consumed via feed crops) and hormones (fed to cattle to
speed up growth), which can alter sexual development in
humans, undermine intelligence, and render us less
resistant to disease. Animal waste lagoons emit toxic fumes
(such as ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and
methane) which can cause diarrhea, nausea, headaches, eye
irritation, sore throat, shortness of breath, wheezing,
excessive coughing, seizures, coma, and even death.
Nitrate-contaminated drinking water can increase the risk
of methemoglobinemia (blue baby syndrome), and high levels
of nitrate contamination have been linked to spontaneous
abortions.
* WORKER SAFETY - On average, 25% of factory farm workers
suffer job-related injuries and/or illnesses each year--the
highest rate of any job in the country. At high
concentrations, methane and/or carbon dioxide can displace
enough oxygen to suffocate a worker; hydrogen sulfide can
result in unconsciousness, respiratory failure and death
within minutes; and ammonia causes severe irritation to the
eyes, nose, throat, and lungs, and can also be fatal.
* SUSTAINABILITY / WORLD HUNGER - Livestock are simply not
efficient converters of protein--it takes 17 pounds of
grain to produce 1 pound of beef. As the meat industry
devotes more and more grain to feeding livestock, valuable
food resources are diverted from the hungry, contributing
to food scarcity for the world's poor, particularly in
developing countries. An astounding 70% of U.S. grain and
soybeans are fed to livestock. If Americans were to reduce
their beef consumption by only 5%, it would free up the 12
million tons of grain needed to adequately feed every
single person on the planet that dies from hunger or
hunger-related diseases annually.
http://rawlivingfoods.typepad.com/1/2006/07/how_your_eating.html
Hungry World 'Must Eat Less Meat'
World water supplies will not be enough for our descendants
to enjoy the sort of diet the
West eats now, experts say. The World Water Week in
Stockholm will be told the growth in demand for meat and
dairy products is unsustainable…
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3559542.stm?tr=y&auid=1585842
Another Inconvenient Truth: Meat is a Global Warming Issue
Al Gore's movie (and book), An Inconvenient Truth, is
playing to rave reviews. His laudable project is an urgent
message on the vital issue of global warming. We all must
heed the call... Among the biggest contributors are
electrical generation, the use of passenger and other
vehicles, over-consumption, international shipping,
deforestation, smoking and militarism.
What many people do not know, however, is that the
production of meat also significantly increases global
warming. Cow farms produce millions of tons of carbon
dioxide (CO2) and methane per year, the two major
greenhouse gases that together account for more than 90
percent of U.S. greenhouse emissions, substantially
contributing to "global scorching."
... The editors of World Watch concluded in the July/August
2004 edition that "the human appetite for animal flesh is a
driving force behind virtually every major category of
environmental damage now threatening the human future —
deforestation, erosion, fresh water scarcity, air and water
pollution, climate change, biodiversity loss, social
injustice, the destabilization of communities and the
spread of disease."
http://www.emagazine.com/view/?3312
Meat Consumption Has Far-Ranging Environmental Impacts
Growing demand for meat has become a driving force behind
virtually every major category of environmental damage now
threatening the human future. Total meat consumption has
increased five-fold in the past half century, putting
extreme pressure on Earth's limited resources, including
water, land, feed, and fuel…
http://www.worldwatch.org/press/news/2004/06/21/
HOW GOOD IS ORGANIC MILK?
Milk is the most popular organic product on the market,
commanding up to twice the price of regular milk. Yet the
idyllic vision many people have of organic dairy farms -and
organic milk's environmental benefits- is often not the
reality. An increasing amount of milk that is certified
organic under current USDA standards is produced by cows
that spend most of their lives in crowded feedlots. These
"factory" farms generate tons of manure that pollute the
air and water, posing risks to the environment, farm
workers, and nearby residents. What's worse, some of the
country's largest organic milk producers are fighting to
weaken USDA standards...
http://www.ucsusa.org/publications/greentips/
http://tinyurl.com/p68ue
Doomed? Fishless Oceans
Mushrooming human population is overwhelming Planet Earth,
exhausting farmland, wiping out forest, worsening
pollution, crowding out wildlife, causing erosion and
global warming,...
... Today, how close is exhaustion of the seas? Quite
close, according to a grim report in the latest Science
journal. A team of 13 researchers from five nations
analyzed 50 years of oceanic data... Intensive reforms must
be pursued, while there's still time.
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/738765/doomed__fishless_oceans/index.ht
ml?source=r_science
Fish Farms Become Feedlots of the Sea
…Industrial fish farming raises many of the same concerns
about chemicals and pollutants that are associated with
feedlot cattle and factory chicken farms. So far, however,
government scientists worry less about the effects of
antibiotics, pesticides and artificial dyes on human health
than they do about damage to the marine environment.
"They're like floating pig farms," said Daniel Pauly,
professor of fisheries at the University of British
Columbia in Vancouver...
http://www.latimes.com/la-me-salmon9dec09%2C0%2C6535872.story?tr=y&auid=1585
847
Animal Sentience:
"The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They
were not made for humans any more than black people were
made for white, or women created for men."
Alice Walker, author and activist.
Was Your Meat Smarter Than Your Pet?
If you could talk to the animals, would they have anything
to say? New research suggests they might. One sheep who got
a reward every time she recognized a human face correctly on
a video screen scored a perfect 50 out of 50. Hamlet the pig
is a computer wiz. He gets a reward every time he uses a
joystick designed for a chimp to move a cursor into a blue
area on a computer monitor. A Jack Russell terrier couldn't
achieve such a task after a year of trying. New research
shows that chickens can be taught to run the thermostat of
the chicken coop. Cows have been known to form lifelong
friendships, and one recent study found that they actually
show excitement when they've learned something new. If farm
animals are intelligent creatures, should we all be
vegetarians? "I stopped eating meat as soon as I began to
really think about it," said Jane Goodall. "People actually
don't think about it."
http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/Science/story?id=771414&page=1&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds031
2
They Think, Feel Pain
... Recent studies have shown that mice empathize with
familiar mice who are suffering, that captive male monkeys
will hand over a bottle of fruit juice for a chance to ogle
photos of female monkeys' bottoms, and that rats accustomed
to being tickled will come running for more, making
high-pitched chirps linked to the origins of human
laughter. Such discoveries are not confined to mammals.
Pigeons navigate using human roads, ravens slide or roll
down snow banks just for kicks, and iguanas will shun
boring food and brave the cold for a gourmet treat...
The once-long list of uniquely human traits is dwindling
almost as fast as you can say ''human supremacy.''...
Because animals are sentient -- because they can feel fear
and pain, pleasure and joy -- it follows that to them,
their lives have value. It matters little what their IQ is.
Their pain and pleasure are akin to yours and mine, and
their will to live is just as strong. If animals experience
the world essentially as we do, can we really justify
harming and killing them for our own interests?
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/15975425.htm
VM Note: Many vegetarians believe that eating organic dairy
and eggs is inconsequential to cows and hens. However, most
of these animals are treated cruelly and their short lives
are ended brutally once production has fallen off.
Is Morality A Wild Thing?
Some scientists believe animals are capable of sympathy,
shame and compassion
Morality is usually seen as the exclusive province of
humans with highly developed brains. But world-famous
primatologist, Frans de Waal believes primates like
chimpanzees and bonobos are moral creatures too. Ethics, he
feels, is an inborn biological trait... Take the story of
the elephant who thundered menacingly into a compound of
wildlife scientists in Kenya. The staff fled in panic,
except one employee who recognized the elephant as a female
he had looked after for six years. The elephant had since
been successfully integrated into a wild herd in a national
park and had obviously come by to give her caretaker a hug.
She touched him gently with her trunk, embracing him
occasionally. After half an hour, she left again,
trumpeting loudly. What else can you call that but love?
http://www.odemagazine.com/article.php?aID=4299
Animal Intelligence Resists Definition
People generally define intelligence in terms that place
our own species at the apex, but recent studies on other
animals suggest skills such as abstract thinking, problem
solving, reasoning, and language - once thought unique to
us - may not be so uncommon after all. "The closer we
examine animals, the more they surprise us with their
intelligence and
awareness," said Jonathan Balcombe, a research scientist at
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, DC. "Chickens practice deception, pigeons can categorize
images in photographs as quickly as we can, a gorilla plays
a joke on a human teacher, and a tiny fish leaps from one
tide pool to another using a mental map formed during high
tide."...
... "Our particular intelligence also endows us with an
advanced capacity for morality," Balcombe added. "Gradually
we are coming to realize that it's wrong to make other
feeling beings suffer for our own selfish interests," he
said. "Might doesn't make right. If a more intelligent race
arrived from outer space, would they have the right to
torture and
kill us? I think not!"
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2006/06/30/animalintelligence_ani.html?categor
y=animals&guid=20060630160030
Off the Hook
..."Fishing is very cruel, it causes extreme pain and
suffering to the animals involved, and it has nothing
whatsoever to do with fun or recreation. I think we have to
see that our culture makes a distinction between animals who
live in the sea and those who live on the land. They should
not be treated any differently to how we treat our dogs and
cats."
http://www.abc.net.au/victoria/stories/s1581531.htm
*********************************************************
If you received this email from a friend and would like
your own free subscription, please send a blank email to us
with "subscribe" in the subject line to
info@VegMichigan.org
We NEVER share our email list with any other organization
or business.
To UN-subscribe, simply reply to this email and change the
subject to "unsubscribe."