Why Vegans Don't Consume Dairy Products

As with most dietary questions, vegans are split
on the issue of dairy products--not so much on the question
of whether or not they are acceptable, but instead for what
reasons they should not be consumed.

All vegans (or at least true vegans) abstain from consuming
dairy products. Some do so for nutritional reasons;
others abstain for ethical reasons.

Those who do it for nutritional reasons cite a range of
health problems related to the consumption of dairy
products, including high cholesterol. Many also have a
problem digesting lactose or have a blood-iron or diabetic
problem related to milk protein, casein. In addition to
this, milk and cheese often contain small portions of
undesirable hormones that are added to dairy cow feeds
to increase production.

Those who abstain from consuming dairy products for
ethical reasons also have a range of reasons for doing so.

Some cite the poor treatment of dairy cows as a main
reason for not consuming milk and cheese. They note that
dairy cows are forced to become pregnant once each
year to maintain a constantly high yield of milk.
They are also fed numerous steroids
to increase production.

Others who abstain for ethical reasons often cite the
maltreatment of dairy cow offspring. They note that calves
are not allowed to spend time with or suckle from the
mother, but instead are prematurely removed to be reared
for either veal production, beef production, or as
replacement dairy cows.

The calves selected for "veal" production are often forced
to live in crates so tiny that they cannot turn around.
They must face in one direction; they cannot groom
themeselves; and they are fed hormone-laden feed until
they are sent off to be slaughtered.

If you are a prospective vegan, you may want to take
some time now to think about what is best for you.
Ask yourself whether you wanted to become a vegan for
ethical reasons, dietary reasons, or both. And from
there, determine whether or not these arguments were
strong enough to compel you to do so. Either way, you
should emerge with a stronger viewpoint and a better
understanding of what you do and do not want.

Eating A Healthful Vegetarian Diet

Many people start vegetarian and vegan diets without
devoting an adequate amount of time to nutritional
research and meal planning. As a result, a considerable
amount of people who start vegetarian diets do not last
for more than 1-2 months.

Many dieters who fail to carefully research and plan
complain that they lack energy - and often experience
a significant loss in muscle mass. Others observe a
number of other more peripheral problems that come with a
poorly-planned vegetarian diet.

The first group--the group that most failed dieters fall
into--is actually experiencing a form of protein-energy
malnutrition (PEM). PEM emerges when a person fails to
consume enough protein, leading to muscle loss - and
subsequently feelings of weakness that are often
accompanied by head and muscle aches.

This problem can be circumvented by dietary alterations.
A vegetarian who is experiencing PEM should either a) find
out what foods contain what amino chains, so they can
combine them to form proteins; or b) start consuming
larger amounts and more diversified sources of protein,
such as nuts, soy milk, and yogurt.

The first group is often iron-deficient as well. Because
vegetarians can only consume nonheme iron, which
is more sensitive to iron inhibitors, they often do
not consume enough to maintain healthy blood-iron
levels. This can cause pervasive weakness and
even anemia.

Most nutritionists suggest that vegetarian and vegan
dieters consume roughly twice the recommended amount
of iron while greatly reducing their consumption of iron
inhibitors.

People in the second group--the smaller one--who suffer
from a range of other peripheral, diet-related problems are
often not consuming enough of the nutrients that they would
normally take in unknowingly on a diet that includes meat
and dairy products. These nutrients include, for example,
zinc, calcium, vitamin b, and riboflavin.

Some recent studies have suggested that vegetarians
also process certain types of foods with less
efficiency because they consume different amounts
and varieties of absorption inhibitors and enhancers.

Recent studies also suggest, however, that
a vegetarian or vegan diet, when done right, is
not only as healthful as a non-vegetarian diet, but it
is also much more heart-healthy - and usually
contains higher amounts of antioxidants.

What does this all mean for you as a prospective
vegetarian? It means that eating a healthful vegetarian
diet is not only a good alternative to your current diet,
but it can also lower your chances of getting heart
disease and cancer.

However, in order to eat a HEALTHFUL vegetarian diet,
you must actually put in the time to research and plan;
if you don’t, you most certainly will end up in one of the
two groups discussed above.

Natural Remedy for High Blood Pressure

Blood pressure can be defined as the force that is applied against the artery walls as blood passes through the arteries. Blood pressure is determined by the speed of blood-flow coming from the heart, and also the tone of the arteries. Adequate intake of calcium, potassium, and magnesium is necessary for blood pressure control. Less sodium will reduce blood pressure even more in many people. High blood pressure, or hypertension, is not a medical condition to take lightly. Once detected, it is essential that you comply with treatment for this condition, whether you use traditional medicine or a natural remedy for high blood pressure. Elevated blood pressure increases the risk for heart disease, stroke, aneurysm, kidney failure, heart attack and atherosclerosis. High blood pressure is not by itself fatal, but it is the main cause for additional life-threatening illnesses such as heart diseases, strokes, kidney diseases and blindness. Did you know that 90% of high blood pressure sufferers can treat themselves naturally.? Over the centuries, practitioners of herbal healing have isolated natural substances that act as natural remedies for high blood pressure. Garlic contains substances called alliin, alliinase and allicin that have beneficial effects on blood flow to the heart and brain. Garlic, however, has a negative interaction with blood-thinning drugs like Warfarin, and large doses used by pregnant women can cause a miscarriage. Olive leaves contain oleuropein, a substance that lowers blood pressure, treats infections and lowers cholesterol. Flax seed, whether ground or as oil, is another option for a natural way to decrease high blood pressure. Passion fruit juice is another option to keep away from the high blood pressure medications yet still decrease high blood pressure. Hawthorn leaves, flowers and berries are useful in combating mild high blood pressure by improving heart function and in treating irregular beating of the heart and angina. Another natural way to decrease high blood pressure, completely unrelated to food, it the idea of owning a pet or spending time with animals. Animals have a natural calming ability and studies have shown people who interact with pets have decreased blood pressure Higher dietary fiber can also lower blood pressure. One final way you can do in order to lower your blood pressure is eat low-fat, low-cholesterol foods. Don't saturate your bloodstream with fat and salt. In addition to the above natural remedies for high blood pressure ,lifestyle changes include following a low sodium diet, exercising, quitting smoking, losing weight, and avoiding excessive alcohol intake will increase your chances of lowering your high blood pressure. Are you concerned that your high blood pressure will keep you from leading a normal life? If you are serious about correcting this potentially life threatening condition for good Click Here!


About the Author
Mary Freeman is an accomplished Author who writes articles on Natural and Home Remedies. To access her remedy website, please visit http://www.eRemedySpot.com

MSG, Toxin in Our Foods

It is crucial today for us to live as natural as possible for human than ever. Human being in dire need of LOHAS (lifestyle of health and sustainability). Many unnatural or processed substances are comprised in our foods. We are exposed to those substances with unknown and proven effects. All of opinions are debatable, but we may take a glimpse into the proven quality of natural, healthy lifestyle.
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) was invented as a food ingredient in 1908 in Japan, by Kikunae Ikeda. After that he formed a company, Ajinomoto, to manufacture MSG commercially. Lastly, this food additive appeared in the United States at the late 1940s, after the Second World War. It had been said during the war that Japanese soldiers' food provisions tasted better than US soldiers'. The difference was believed to be MSG. Nowadays, MSG or its reactive component, "processed free glutamic acid," is found in many processed foods in many countries.

In the beginning, people didn't know what the effect of MSG to human health. In 1957, Lucas and Newhouse found that normal neonatal mice suffered acute degenerative lesions when MSG was administered. In 1968, the New England Journal of Medicine published a Letter to the Editor in which Ho Man Kwok, MD, asked why he suffered reactions shortly after eating in some Chinese restaurants, though he never experienced such reactions when he lived in China. The journal titled the letter "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome," and researchers suggest that Dr. Kwok's problem was intolerance to MSG.

People differ in their tolerances to MSG, but typically always suffer similar reactions each time they ingest amounts of MSG that exceed their tolerances. Neuroscientists believe that the young and the elderly are most at risk from MSG. In the young, the blood-brain barrier is not fully developed, exposing the brain to increased levels of MSG that has entered the bloodstream. The elderly risk blood-brain damaged by aging, by disease processes, or by injury, including hypertension, diabetes, hypoglycemia, and stroke. MSG has now been implicated in some neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, multiple sclerosis and Huntington's disease.

In reality, the natural glutamic acid found in food does not cause problems, but the synthetic free glutamic acid formed in industry is a toxin. In addition, when MSG is formed using hydrochloric acid the final product includes carcinogens. This is one indication for us that natural foods is always better to eat.

An FDA-sponsored study dated July 1992 concluded that "...it is prudent to avoid the use of dietary supplements of L-glutamic acid by pregnant women, infants, children, women of childbearing age and individuals with affective disorders." (MSG is called glutamic acid when used in supplements.) After that, the industry stopped the practice. However, several years later, hydrolyzed proteins were introduced. Hydrolyzed proteins always contain MSG.

Based on those considerations, it is strongly recommended that you do your best to eliminate MSG from your diet, and that means avoiding all processed foods, having natural meals on your dining table, living with LOHAS (lifestyle of health and sustainability).



About the Author
Ozie Klein is health and natural therapy consultant. He is enthusiast for environmental issues and tips too. Just visit and get cool infos at his site, http://lohasian.blogspot.com

Eat Yogurt and Lose More Fat Around Your Tummy

According to recent studies, adding 2-3 servings of yogurt to your diet may increase your body's ability to burn fat, improve weight loss and trim fat from your waistline.
Obesity, especially in children, has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. The number of overweight children has more than doubled in the last three decades. Researchers have concluded that overweight adults who eat three servings of fat-free yogurt per day as part of a reduced calorie diet lose 22% more weight and 61% more fat than those who only reduced calories and didn't increase their calcium intake.

Those eating yogurt also lost 81% more fat from their waistline than those not eating yogurt. The calcium and protein from low-fat dairy products help the body burn fat and increases weight loss. The calcium in yogurt reduces the fat cells' ability to store fat.

Fat around the stomach is the most dangerous kind of fat. People carrying excess fat around their mid-section are more at risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke and some types of cancer.

Yogurt-eaters also hold on to their lean muscle mass while losing weight than subjects on a yogurt-free diet. This is extremely crucial when dieting - your goal is to lose fat, not muscle. Muscle is a critical component to burning calories.

If you are trying to lose weight, eating calcium-rich foods such as low fat milk and yogurt while increasing physical activity will yield surprising results. Your consumption of carbonated and sweetened drinks should be reduced.

I recommend plain yogurt because nutritionally it is the best. If you must have some flavor, try adding some sugar free maple, honey, bananas, apples or blueberries. Vanilla or lemon extract are tasty additions to yogurt as well. It is best to add your own flavorings to your yogurt so you can remain in control of the amount of added sugar.

I would also recommend investing in a yogurt maker. With a yogurt maker you have control over your ingredients. It's more cost effective and you can make a substantial amount of yogurt at a time. You'll have fun creating your own recipes and achieving the perfect taste for your palate.

It is unwise to exclude dairy products, such as yogurt, while dieting. It is critical to keep your calcium levels high to maintain bone density and muscle mass. The calcium from yogurt will also aid in increasing fat loss and will make your weight loss efforts easier.



About the Author
The author's website Yogurt Maker Enthusiast features tips on yogurt, using yogurt makers, yogurt starters and homemade yogurt recipes.