Making the decision to go vegan is a different path for everyone. The reasons behind the choice may range from healthy living to animal rights. Whatever they are, making the decision to be vegan is one of the biggest gifts you can give yourself, animals and the planet.

I was chatting with Be Genki‘s Sam Sample last week and she mentioned she’d recently made the transition to veganism, after years of flirting with it. I asked if she would be happy to share her journey in the hope of inspiring others who are thinking about becoming cruelty-free. Here is her story…

There’s a high chance that you may be toying with the idea of choosing to be vegan. The reason for writing this particular article is that you may find that it touches a part of you, just as living it has touched all parts of me, and that it may help inspire you to take the final step. ~ Sam Sample

Last month I finally chose to walk the vegan road. I use the word ‘finally’ because I feel it has been a slow and gradual progression over the last 15 years.

In 1995 I read the book Fit for Life by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond and was introduced to the fact that humans are the only other animal that drink another animal’s milk. This totally grossed me out and my thoughts immediately drifted to how disturbing and incorrect it is for humans to suck on cow teets. Just because someone has packaged it up in a bottle or carton makes no difference. It’s still milk that has been squeezed from a cow, and in my opinion should only be used for one thing … feeding baby cows. So my milk drinking days ended abruptly. For some odd reason though, I didn’t put cheese in the same category. Strange, I know.

Over the next five years my taste for meat declined. Correction, not so much the taste of it, but more so the flesh component. Have you ever bitten in to a piece of meat and visualized biting in to the arm, leg or torso of an animal, and that the chewy bits of meat is too closely associated with chewing your way through the flesh of that animal? Those type of visualizations also grossed me out and ended my meat eating days, with exception to mince meat in lasagna, spaghetti bolognese and carpaccio (the paper thin raw beef), as these styles of meat required no tough chewing and melted in my mouth.

My fascination for food, health and wellbeing led me to study a 3 year Diploma of Nutrition and it was during those classes that I was exposed to the horrifying documentaries about chickens in battery farms, their ghastly diet, abnormally unhealthy living conditions and outrageous cruelty and suffering. Add to that, the accounts of negative health effects that the consumption of these chickens and eggs were having on the human population. I was so appalled by this information that I have never eaten a piece of chicken since, but somehow I remained an egg eater, as long as they were the biodynamic organic free-range variety.

As time went by and my love of food and good nutrition grew, so did my love and respect for mother earth. Each day I was inspired to learn a little more about the “truth” of the type of world we live in, how my choices can have an effect on the future of the world based on the simple fact that every time I buy a product I am saying to that company, ‘keep on doing what you are doing.’ I am supporting everything that company does: every source of raw material, every packaging solution, every environmental standard that they are undertaking, every form of employee relations and every marketing choice.

When creating Be Genki, the range of bath, body and home care products, I was adamant that the brand had to be certifiably “animal cruelty free”, not containing any animal derived ingredients and certainly not allowing any of the products or ingredients to be tested on animals. Yet, I still was consuming eggs, cheese and a portion of meat once every few months. Hmmm… I wasn’t wanting to use animal products in my skincare products but was happy to eat them. Interesting inconsistency don’t you think?!

Being an advocate for holistic health and wellbeing, and possessing the inclination to think about what consequence my choices are having on my life, my loved ones’ lives, the community, the planet, and future beliefs, standards and ideals, choosing vegan seemed like the natural thing to do that would honor everything that I believe in, (that is, to help improve my awareness, consciousness and communion with mother earth.)

The tipping point for making the choice, however, was watching the short clip VEGAN For the People. For the Planet. For the Animals. (see below). Quite simply, the short film clip makes sense. Choosing to be vegan not only nurtures myself, but my loved ones, future generations and the world in which we share. Oh… and I look and feel so much healthier since making the change. Love those extra perks!

Photo courtesy JelleS

One of my best friends and favourite intuitive healers is Rebecca Dettman. If you haven’t checked out her Psyched in Stilettos blog and her new self-titled website, RebeccaDettman.com, both are treasure troves of transformative spiritual information. I always look forward to Rebecca’s weekly newsletters, from which the following guest post was first published…

Is that a dead animal on your face?…and lying in your bathroom? Let me be really, really brutally clear about this. L’Oreal tests their products on animals. So does Shiseido. Not to mention Covergirl, Pantene, Clairol, Johnson & Johnson’s, Oil of Olay, Max Factor and Oral-B. Disgusted? Shocked? You should be – especially if you could see what happens to our poor furry friends inside those horrible, godforsaken laboratories.

While the exact number of animals used for cosmetic testing is unknown, it has been estimated that around 38,000 animals are used and killed in the development of cosmetics in the European Union every year. “The problem is that most cosmetic products are imported from countries where animal testing is very widespread,” says Helen Roser, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Association for Humane Research, “and so the chances are that many of the cosmetic products that we use here everyday have been tested on animals.

“If someone sues a cosmetic company because they have had a bad reaction to its product, then the company has a better defence if it is able to claim that the product had been tested on animals and found to be safe. However, different species have different genetic make up and animals do not provide an accurate measure as to whether a product is safe for humans to use.”

Did you know this?

The terms ‘not tested on animals’ and ‘against animal testing’ on cosmetics packaging aren’t regulated – thus manufacturers can legitimately claim that a finished product has not been tested on animals, despite the fact that the ingredients used to make the finished product have been tested on animals.

The good news (thank God):

The ever-progressive European Union (who have also banned other nasties, such as DBT in nail polish – get with it Australia!!) is bringing a new ban on the testing of cosmetic ingredients into place in 2009. In addition, there will also be a ban on the sale of cosmetic products and ingredients tested on animals for all but three tests (reproductive toxicity, repeat dose toxicity and toxicokinetics) from 2009. “The ban will have a huge impact on the amount of products available to use that are cruelty free,” says Roser. “It will also be likely to put more pressure on other countries, like the United States, to ban product testing.”

Plus, check the Choose Cruelty Free website before you buy, as every brand on their Preferred Product List has filled out a comprehensive legally-binding questionnaire re: their the ingredients, formulation, manufacture, packaging and more. “If a company is on our list, you can be as certain as you can be that they have not been involved in animals testing,” says the site’s Cherie Wilson. “If a company is not on the list, it means they test or have declined to answer our questions. We have contacted every company we know of or that has been referred to use by consumers.”

So, you want to know the animal friendly beauty brands? Try these for starters:
A’kin
Al’chemy
Australis
e.l.f.
Guinot
In Essence Aromatherapy
Le Tan
Springfields
Musq
Trilogy

Rabbit photo courtesy laverrue
Main photo courtesy dreamglow pumpkincat210

Growing up, I used to love the smell of freshly washed towels. Whenever the breeze would blow as they hung on the line to dry, I’d get a waft of fragrance that somehow made me think of all things lovely: a warm bath on a cold winter night or coming home after being away on vacation.

What I didn’t know back then is that comforting, fresh smell was actually nasty, toxic chemicals… chloroform, ethyl acetate and limonene (among many others)… dressed up as flowers, luring me in, to believe that I was as close to a lavender field as I could get without actually being in one.

Besides the carcinogenics, I also recently found out (thanks to www.thevegandecision.com) there’s another great reason to stop buying and using fabric softeners: animal tallow, or animal fat, if you will. Common, every day fabric softeners are a recipe made from dead animals and toxic chemicals, not a lavender field or bowl of fresh lemons in sight.

So what does this mean for the planet and our own health? These chemicals are detrimental to marine life, as they enter our waterways (whatever we put in a washing machine, toilet, dishwasher ends up in the environment). But once the towels and clothes are dry, how harmful can these chemicals be to our health? Extremely. Anything worn close to, or applied to the skin ends up in the blood stream.

Here’s an excerpt from Natural News:

Most fabric softener products—dryer sheets, for example—are positioned as being at least somewhat earth friendly thanks to a claim in the ingredients list that reads “biodegradable fabric softeners.” Unfortunately, the second ingredient in fabric softeners is “fragrance,” and the fragrance chemicals are so highly toxic that they cause cancer in humans and are extremely destructive to aquatic ecosystems downstream. Merely drying your clothes with common dryer sheets, then washing them the next time you do laundry unleashes a chemical tidal wave of toxicity that is shockingly harmful to (you and) the environment.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (US), here’s a list of what you can expect to find:

ALPHA-TERPINEOL Causes CNS (central nervous system) disorders… “highly irritating to mucous membranes” …”Aspiration into the lungs can produce pneumonitis or even fatal edema.” Can also cause “excitement, ataxia (loss of muscular coordination), hypothermia, CNS and respiratory depression, and headache.” “Prevent repeated or prolonged skin contact.

BENZYL ACETATE Carconigenic (linked to pancreatic cancer). “From vapors: irritating to eyes and respiratory passages, exciting cough.” “In mice: hyperanemia of the lungs.” “Can be absorbed through the skin causing systemic effects.” “Do not flush to sewer.”

BENZYL ALCOHOL Causes CNS disorders … “irritating to the upper respiratory tract” …”headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drop in blood pressure, CNS depression, and death in severe cases due to respiratory failure.”

CAMPHOR Causes CNS disorders. On EPA’s Hazardous Waste list. Symptoms: “local irritant and CNS stimulant” …”readily absorbed through body tissues” …”irritation of eyes, nose, and throat” …”dizziness, confusion, nausea, twitching muscles and convulsions”. “Avoid inhalation of vapors.”

CHLOROFORM Neurotoxic. Anesthetic. Carcinogenic. on EPA’s Hazardous Waste list. “Avoid contact with eyes, skin, clothing. Do not breathe vapors …Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness.” “Inhalation can be fatal.” “Chronic effects of overexposure may include kidney and/or liver damage.” “Medical conditions generally aggravated by exposure: kidney disorders, liver disorders, heart disorders, skin disorders.” “Conditions to avoid: Heat…” Listed on California’s Proposition 65.

ETHYL ACETATE Narcotic. On EPA’s Hazardous Waste list. “…Irritating to the eyes and respiratory tract” …”may cause headache and narcosis (stupor)” …”may cause anemia with leukocytosis and damage to liver and kidneys”. “Wash thoroughly after handling.”

LIMONENE Carcinogenic. “Prevent its contact with skin or eyes because it is an irritant and sensitizer.” “Always wash thoroughly after using this material and before eating, drinking …applying cosmetics. Do not inhale limonene vapor.”

LINALOOL Narcotic. Causes CNS disorders. …”respiratory disturbances” …”Attracts bees.” “In animal tests: ataxic gait, reduced spontaneous motor activity and depression …depressed heart activity …development of respiratory disturbances leading to death.”

PENTANE “Danger – Harmful if inhaled …Avoid breathing vapor.” “Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness. Repeated inhalation of vapors may cause CNS depression. Contact can cause eye irritation. Prolonged exposure may cause dermatitis (skin rash).”

Relevant Facts:

• CNS = Central Nervous System, your brain and spine.
• CNS disorders include: Alzheimer’s Disease, Attention Deficit Disorder, Dementia, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Seizures, Strokes, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
• CNS exposure symptoms include: aphasia, blurred vision, disorientation, dizziness, headaches, hunger, memory loss, numbness in face, pain in neck and spine.

I discovered vegan chef Christy Morgan on Twitter and instantly fell in love with her philosophy and her food. I asked the LA-based veganista, who has whipped up dishes for the likes of Alicia Silverstone, to share her journey, insights and one of her fave recipes…

How did you become the Blissful Chef?

I’ve been studying plant-based nutrition for about eight years and teaching for four. I came up with the name “The Blissful Chef” as a way to brand myself and create an image that people will remember. The name fits me well, because to feel bliss is to experience true happiness and spiritual joy. My life, business, teachings, blog, and whole existence is all about spreading happiness and joy to others through food, and helping them access their bliss.

What inspires you?

In life, I’m inspired by all of my amazing friends that do what they are passionate about everyday and those who have dedicated their lives to saving animals. With cooking, I’m inspired by the changing seasons and the different produce that is available throughout the year. I love gardening, and find growing my own food to be a fascinating process. I’m also inspired by different cultures. Often times I just open the fridge, see what’s in there and whip something up.

Your fave raw vegan treats?

I love raw vegan desserts because they are made with wholesome ingredients and they are so rich that I only need a little to be satisfied. If I eat baked desserts, like Uncle Eddies cookies for instance, I can literally eat the whole bag in one sitting. I love raw chocolate, Earth Cafe pies, and my Heavenly Raw Chocolate Mousse.

If you could recommend one thing about veganism to someone who’s not, what would it be?

Eating a healthy, balanced, plant-based diet I feel is the best thing for our minds, bodies, spirits and for the planet. But if you can’t go whole hog overnight, then start by having two plant-based meals a day (or as much as you can). Slowly start transitioning the “good” things into your diet, like whole grains and dark leafy greens, then start taking away the not-so-good things (meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, processed foods). I have some great tips on my blog for making the transition that are extremely helpful and realistic.

The 80/20 Rule
This is the only thing that keeps me sane and not OCD about my diet. If you can eat super healthy 80% of the time, you can let yourself be a little naughty 20% of the time. Hold on now, I’m not talking about having hamburger and fries for that 20%, but if you are at a party or want to go out to dinner with your friends you can have something fried or a piece of cake with frosting. I don’t compromise as far as eating only vegan foods, but sometimes I do eat sugar or have more oil than I’d like to when I eat out. I’m human too! I just have a rule that at home I’m making the healthiest food possible, with wholesome organic ingredients, no oil and no sugar. That way I can relax when I go out with friends.

It doesn’t serve you or your health to be fanatical about your diet. But it is the most important tool that you have for creating optimal health free of physical pain and mental suffering. Your food choices will affect everything in your life, so choose them well.

Check out The Blissful Chef blog for more ramblings from Christy Morgan, natural food chef and educator, who continues to study plant-based nutrition with the best in the field, has cooked for Alicia Silverstone, and continues to be sought out for her accessible approach to nutrition and holistic living.

Follow Christy on Twitter @TheBlissfulChef.

Avocado, Strawberry, & Grape Tomato Salad

Strawberries are the most popular berry in the world. They go great in salads and as a compliment to a savory dressing like Balsamic Vinaigrette like in this recipe.

1 head butter lettuce, leaves torn or chiffonade
2 avocados
1 medium carrot, thin julienne
10 grape tomatoes, quartered
6 strawberries, ends cut off and sliced
1 cup yellow pepper, thinly sliced
Pinch of pepper and sea salt

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2-3 teaspoons maple syrup
¼-½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 clove fresh garlic, sliced (optional)

Preparation

Blend dressing ingredients in a blender or whisk by hand. Toss salad ingredients together with vinaigrette right before serving.

I’d never really given much thought to the healing properties of herbs and spices, until recently. Now the herb and spice aisle at my local organic grocer is one of my favourite places.

I received an email yesterday from Dr Steven Joyal’s publicist, who, besides promoting his new book, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Diabetes, also explained how the doctor is a big advocate of the significant health boosting properties of common herbs and spices. I wanted to know more, so had a quick chat to the doc…

SD: How did you come to be an advocate of adding spices to the diet in order to achieve good health?
SJ: The scientific data in support of spices like curcumin, ginger, rosemary, cumin, and cinnamon is strong.

SD: How are spices best consumed for maximum impact?
SJ: Fresh or dried, spices have a wealth of health benefits. Scientific research suggests that spices/herbs like marjoram, thyme, and rosemary may help reduce the formation of cancer-causing substances called heterocyclic amines in grilled or broiled foods.

SD: Have we come full circle, understanding perhaps what our ancestors did, that spices have profound health-boosting properties?
SJ: Before the pharmaceutical companies found disease profitable, ancient traditions like Ayurvedic medicine understood the value of herbs and spices in helping to maintain optimal health.

SD: How can spices help someone with diabetes?
SJ: Cinnamon and cumin are two spices with interesting anti-diabetic properties. Scientific data suggests that these two spices can help support healthy blood sugar levels and reduce the oxidant damage from diabetes. Efficacious doses are about two teaspoons daily.

SD: What are your must-have spices for your rack and why?
SJ: Ginger (anti-inflammatory), cumin (support healthy blood sugar levels, anti-oxidant), cinnamon (anti-oxidant, supports healthy blood sugar levels), turmeric (curcumin) {anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-oxidant), rosemary (anti-oxidant, anti-cancer) are all great spices and herbs for supporting optimal health.

SD: Turmeric is often a spice touted for its amazing healing properties. What is it about turmeric that has such a big impact on the body?
SJ: Turmeric’s “secret” is curcumin, and this interesting ingredient has anti-cancer properties, antioxidant properties, and anti-inflammatory properties. In fact, several experimental studies, as well as human clinical studies, show benefit for curcumin in Alzheimer’s disease, a devastating neurological illness!

Guest post by celebrity nutritionist Kimberly Snyder

Low-level radiation is a silent killer, because we can’t see it, feel I, hear it, taste it, or smell it. I am not talking about just nuclear weapons, but rather the low levels of exposure we are continuously exposed to on an every day basis. This post is dedicated to a friend of mine, and was born out of my concern for her, as she flies often.

Firstly, what is radiation? In the broadest definition, it is the process in which the energy in the form of, for instance, light or heat, is sent out through space. The different types of radiation are classified according to the electromagnetic spectrum by their wavelength and frequency. One end of the spectrum is the “low energy” forms of radiation, which include radio and television waves. These forms have long wavelengths and low frequencies. As we go up the spectrum and the wavelengths become shorter and the frequencies higher, the spectrum expands to include microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultra-violet light, x-rays, and gamma rays. When me move towards this high end of the spectrum, the radiation energies have a special power known as ionization. X-rays and gamma rays, when they pass through a cell, can separate electrons from their atoms and endow these runaway electrons with higher amounts of energy. The result may be tissue damage in many different forms—from cancer to genetic and birth defects.

What are sources of radiation in our lives? Nuclear weapons and nuclear waste is one obvious source. Radon is another. But what I want to really talk about today is everyday, low-level forms of radiation, which emanate from such devices as microwaves, high-voltage power lines, radio transmitters, and cell phones. For years, our society has maintained that exposure to low levels of electromagnetic waves are harmless, but evidence is mounting that all this exposure to low-level radiation is indeed much more harmful that previously thought.

There is no safe level of exposure and there is no dose of radiation so low that the risk of malignancy is zero… the genetic risks, and especially those associated with recessive mutations, may be as harmful and debilitating to the human race as the increases of cancer.

What is also a major source of radiation exposure? Flying in an airplane. The higher up the plane goes in the atmosphere the more radiation we are exposed to. In a flight from (only!) Los Angeles to San Fancisco there is said to be a tenfold increase in radiation (as  measured by a mini-Geiger counter) that jumps from 12 to 125 radiations per minute when the plan is leveled off at the maximum flight pattern.

What does this really mean? An airplane flying coast to coast will expose the flyer to several hundred milliards (1/1000 of a rad). The average dose for medical X-rays is 300-500 millirads for pelvic X-rays, 100-1000 millirads for a full facial dental X-ray, and 10-500 millirads for chest X-rays. That means that one single flight may expose us to the same or possibly more radiation than a full chest X-ray(!).

This is a big problem because as we know, continual exposure to low-level radiation produces free radicals, a major cause of premature aging and health problems. Free radicals can cause cross-linking among tissue proteins (wrinkles!), inflammation, disrupt and/or deplete the immune system, and can produce mutations. Many researchers in the field of aging agree that free-radical destruction is the basis of aging, or at least always goes along with the aging process.

Dr. Abram Petkau stated (reported from the Radiological Physics Dept. at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine) that the free-radical effect from chronic low radiation exposure to be 1,000 times greater than a single large exposure (!). John Gofman, Ph.D., M.D writes in Radiation and Human Health, “Harm in the form of excess human cancer occurs at all doses of ionizing radiation, down to the lowest conceivable dose and dose rate.” Perhaps the most succinct summary is given by Dr. Karl Z. Morgan, who was the director of the Health Physics Division a the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for 30 years:

“There is no safe level of exposure and there is no dose of radiation so low that the risk of malignancy is zero… the genetic risks, and especially those associated with recessive mutations, may be as harmful and debilitating to the human race as the increases of cancer.”

THERE IS SOMETHING WE CAN DO

Okay, sorry for all the doom and gloom! But I say these things as we should at least be aware of radiation exposure.

And I am happy to say that there are things we can do in our diet to help minimize the effect of radiation. How can food help? Firstly, if we have enough minerals in our system, the cells become saturated with minerals and there may be less opportunity for the radioactive  minerals to be absorbed into our systems. Second, there are certain specific foods which can actively help draw the radioactive materials to them and pull them out of the body (chelation). Thirdly, if we eat foods very high in antioxidant nutrients and enzymes, it will help squash out the free radicals created by radiation exposure.

Anti-Radiation Foods that Fit into Our Above Criteria

• Swiss chard
• Turnip greens
• Watercress
• Mustard greens
• Kale
• Spinach (no surprise here, all greens!)
• Kelp
• Dulse
• Chlorella
• Nori
• Beets
• Bee pollen (note: non-vegan)
• Garlic
• Apples
• Chaparral
• Siberian ginseng

What else can we do besides loading up on these foods? Don’t smoke! Don’t live near nuclear plants, avoid unnecessary diagnostic X-rays, and use infrared saunas whenever possible. Check out my post on cell phones, and wear that wired (not Bluetooth) headset.

It is critical if you fly often that you eat only the best food while flying on the day. You want to give your body the best to help combat the radiation as much as possible.

Diet Tips to Help Minimize Radiation Effects by Kimberley Snyder. Photo courtesy of Stewart.

Kimberly Snyder’s work as a clinical nutritionist is rooted in a holistic approach that works to heal the body from the cellular level up, increase energy, and achieve overall balance naturally. Her main protocols include increasing the body’s alkalinity, consuming an individualized diet largely consisting of natural foods, increasing efficient digestion, and intelligent, guided and ongoing cleansing. Snyder’s philosophy is that Outer Beauty is a Reflection of Inner Health.

You just have to browse the web or your nearest book store to see the world is obsessed with dieting. Yet if statistics are accurate, we’re not just tipping the scales, we’re on our way to breaking them. It has taken many of us years of restrictions and meal replacements to figure it out: diets don’t work.

From calorie counting to cutting out carbs, a Pandora’s Box awaits those who still dare to follow the latest diet craze. Yet achieving and maintaining your ideal figure is actually more simple than what we’ve been lead to believe—and it comes with a bonus: vibrant health.

There is one major requirement that’s needed on this path to ultimate wellness and the body we’ve all dreamed of: taking full responsibility. Taking charge and becoming our own nutritionist and not relying on big business to deliver a magic bullet that is nothing more than body-disruptive chemicals dressed in drag.

Perhaps it’s an assumption to say most of us were taught the same stuff in school, none of which covered off real nutrition and how to actually apply it. Yet, the lesson of nutrition is one of the most important life lessons we can ever learn. We also weren’t taught that nourishing ourselves is actually fun and can lead us to a full, love-fuelled life. A nourished, healthy body results in clear thinking, more energy and, for many, a channel to the divine. No pill could ever compete with that.

Enter Lars Gustafsson: author, speaker, life and nutrition guide. Born in India to Canadian parents, he grew up living an authentic mix of tribal and western life. “This upbringing,” he says “created a balance between the scientific passion of the west and the ancient wisdom of the Far East.”

For 23 years, Lars has explored nutrition, fitness and healthy lifestyles. As founder of the BodyMind Institute—a global enlightened school of learning—he teaches that nutrition is so much more than just the food we eat. It’s the total way we nourish our mind and body.

In 2003, Lars introduced The BodyMind Nutrition Certification online programs to meet an emerging demand for true to life systems, formulas and programs, creating the opportunity for people everywhere to discover and pass on a nutrition and lifestyle process that creates a personal discovery of balance in body, mind and spirit.

“I believe in the scientific method, that there are natural laws that govern our physical universe … yet in these 23 years I have often found the ‘unexplainable’ happening all around me,” Lars says. “These have created questions which led me to find hard scientific data that hasn’t found it’s way into the mass media or awareness of the masses.”

“Over these years I found that I needed to personally experience something in order to accept it as fact.  In the end I have found that it is only through personal experience in the application of any information can you make your own informed decisions. Your own level of personal truth will grow according to your willingness to experience more.”

Most recently, Lars has teamed up with raw food nutritionist and expert David ‘Avocado’ Wolfe to deliver a program in raw food nutrition—a course that shares more than 15 years of David’s sought-after knowledge. With this course and other programs including 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and Sports Nutrition, the BodyMind Institute is changing the way we look at real nutrition, forever.

As a student of the BodyMind Raw Nutrition, the 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and the Nutrition I certifications, I wanted to reach out to Lars, to hear first hand how these online courses are bringing real nutrition to people at their own pace, in their own time. What I discovered is a man with a passion that goes beyond simply developing courses. Lars Gustafsson is making a difference, one person at a time through life-enhancing education that literally changes lives.

So passionate is he about reaching those who share his dream to make a difference, that with David Wolfe, Lars is offering free entry to the BodyMind Institute Level I BodyMind Nutrition Certification for those who sign up for David’s Raw Nutrition Certification. It’s a $1,500 gift, he explains, to reach those who also want to make a difference—to their own health, the health of others and the health of the planet.

“Let’s bring about a stunning shift to our planet together,” Lars (pictured left) says.

I interviewed the BodyMind Institute founder for The Green Dove and Conscious Life Media. Click here to listen. I hope you enjoy part I of my chat with Lars, as he takes you behind the scenes of his passion that is giving back in a big way. Check back next Monday (May 17) for part II.

To find out more about Lars and the BodyMind Institute, please click here.

Main image courtesy alicepopkorn

One of my favourite sites is The Vegan Decision. It’s full of inspirational stories that explain why people from all walks of life decided to stop eating animals—personal journeys from those who are giving back every day by being vegan (or vegetarian).

The following is a guest post from Kelley Derr, courtesy of The Vegan Decision. If you want to share your own story to help inspire others on their journey, click here.

Always being a supportive yet concerned parent, my mother made an appointment with my pediatrician when I suddenly declared myself a vegetarian at age 11 in 1984. I felt victorious when I heard my doctor respond, “Well, she’ll be healthier than the rest of your family.” On the way home, my mother stopped by the local bookstore and purchased Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe. Despite my physician’s professional opinion, she was terrified that my new diet would be gaping with nutritional holes.

Admittedly, my self-imposed dietary restrictions meant I would subsist on Morningstar Farm’s “Grillers” (the original veggie burger) and cheddar cheese—lots and lots of cheddar cheese—which wasn’t the best way to eat. But I was swearing off meat because I couldn’t stand the thought of eating anyone, not because it was a healthier diet.

It came easily to me. I found that all I had to do was think a little bit harder about what I was putting into my mouth. I started reading food labels and navigating restaurant menus and that was that—I never looked back. However, I quickly discovered that no matter how comfortable I was with my dietary decision, others around me were not. In fact, I was regularly interrogated and challenged by anyone who discovered I was a vegetarian, despite the fact that I was a quiet one.

Most responded as if I had attacked them personally, as if my taking advantage of meat-free food options was a direct comment on their carnivorism, despite the fact that I never (ever!) broached the subject without invitation. I suspect the judgment they were feeling was from within; and if I could make even one person stop and consider the way they were eating, I was willing to have that uncomfortable conversation.

It is my belief that very few meat-eaters would actually kill their food themselves, were that a requirement.

I am still a vegetarian, but I have evolved beyond Grillers and cheddar cheese. It has been a process, a natural progression. I stopped eating animals when I was a kid because I love animals. I have recently stopped eating animal products because I could no longer talk myself into believing that nobody has to die in exchange for a glass of milk and that eggs could never become chickens because they are not fertilized. The health factor is still an added benefit for me, a freebie.

And being a vegan, which innately requires taking pause to reflect on what I am feeding my body, has affected my health in immeasurable ways: five servings of fruits and vegetables today? Check. (Actually, double check.) Diet? Huh? And getting eight hours of sleep per night has never been an issue. Perhaps because I know that in my own small way, I am not contributing to the horrors of factory farming.

It is my belief that very few meat-eaters would actually kill their food themselves, were that a requirement. And I am certain that shoppers would think twice if ham and bacon were labeled “pig parts,” and their grocery store purchases consisted of “chicken embryos” and “horse, cow, and pig collagen” instead of eggs and Jell-O. I suppose all of these more gentle terms adequately distance the eater from what is really on their plate. And I would bet that if more parents were honest with their children about where food comes from, hot dogs would not be so popular.

These days people are not as defensive when they hear I am a vegan. Most often I receive a much more gentle response such as, “I wish I could do that, but I just don’t think I could give up (insert meat or dairy product here).” Being a quiet vegan, I listen willingly, glad to know that people are paying more attention to their choices, are realising that there are infinite options, and are considering a change.

Kelley Derr, 36, Los Angeles, CA

My favorite vegan things:

The China Study (book)

Farm Sanctuary (organisation)

Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook

Trader Joe’s Chicken-less Strips

Vegan Donuts at Buddha Belly (restaurant, Sarasota, FL)

Photo courtesy of bronclune

The following is a guest post from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’s and HGTV’s Desperate Spaces’ Daniel Kucan…

Changing your mind is hard, make no mistake. In particular it’s very nearly impossible when the entire world is telling you how correct you are, that you are on the path, doing the right thing, valid. But even so, the little voice is powerful, the tiny, whispering spirit that pokes at the folds of your grey matter and slowly insinuates itself into your consciousness, telling you that you are completely, utterly, ferociously astray.

It’s gotten easier as I get older, I guess. I don’t say that because it actually feels more effortless, I say that because I seem to change my mind a lot these days. It’s a little disconcerting, actually, the vast array of things on which I’ve swung: I like plaid now, for instance. I used to dig cats, now I’m squarely a dog guy, I like gardening (too boring for me before), I love my scars, and I don’t eat animals.

It’s really just a different way of looking at something that I didn’t completely understand formerly. Sometimes, I find that I need to flip something on its head in order for me to see it right, stare right at it until my retinas burn into clarity and yes becomes no, up becomes down.

The first time I met Maldanado, the guy who’s going to throw down with me tonight, we were maybe 19 years old. He was a little guy, thin, whipchain arms, long braid down his back to his waist. Everything was point style back then, which meant you never went to the ground and if you got in a clinch, the referee would stop it and separate you.  It wasn’t like the continuous brawls that you see now in the UFC. But at the same time, in point style, you could have five, six fights in a day. Nowadays you have a fight, and then recover for three weeks. I’ve already cleared the next several days to ice my bones and sew on anything that gets knocked off.

Maldanado is taping his hands. He’s sitting in a full split, wrapping each finger, gung-fu style. He’s a Chinese stylist from a Taekwondo history, so his kicks are faster than my internet connection.  One time, back at a club tournament fight at NYU, Maldanado threw a round house kick at me that was so blindingly quick that he tapped my nose with his big toe and set his foot back down on the ground before I even raised my hands. I spent the next seven days explaining my two black eyes to classmates and had to take handfulls of pills until my shoulder worked again.  No one ever said these lessons come easy, but they come all the same.

But tonight, I’m way more ambitious. So much so, in fact, that I’m hoping to be able to walk home without a limp.

I’m a vegan, haven’t eaten any meat since ‘89. It’s funny ‘cause I get all this guff for it, right? The grand master of our school was a Chinese National Living Treasure named Chan. He was, I don’t know, four, maybe five hundred years old and mean as a snake. The only words in English I ever heard him say were, “wrong ” and my favorite, “idiot ”. He used to teach class with a glass of whiskey in one hand and you could smell the cigarette smoke on him. Chan used to call me Lo Han Jai, which sorta means “vegetarian,” but also means “guy who eats like Buddha” but in that ineffable way that Chinese phrases always have several levels of meaning, is more like calling me “Spicy Tofu with Veggies.” That used to make me crazy, ‘cause he was basically calling me a wimp. The Chinese language can do that, call you four different things with one name.  No one ever caught the irony in all that; up was still up for them, I guess.

So keep your blase’ hipster bacon references and your outdoor meat-fest cookouts, ladies. You all just look like cowards to me, silk-skinned scaredy-cats too fragile and wavering to resist your own appetites.

Maldanado climbs into the ring and rolls his head. It’s three rounds tonight, three minutes each, and let’s be honest, nobody expects me to win. If I could take him to the ground, I’d be preaching the painful gospel all up in here, but tonight is all stand-up.  Now I have way more knockout power than Maldanado does, but in order for that to matter, I gotta hit him, and trust me when I tell you that I’m not optimistic on landing anything.

We step up into the ring and the ref gives us a quick once-over before shooting me a look through cowboy eyes that kinda says, “Wow, do I feel bad for what’s about to happen to you” and someone rings the bell. Now I’d like to tell you that I shoot in all full of fire and razor wire but sometimes you know you’re gonna take a beating and anyone who says otherwise is delusional. But I aint making it up when I tell you that oftentimes the delusional cats are the best fighters; they think they can take ANYBODY. Maldanado was like that, would step in the ring with guys three times his size and walk away without a mark on him, and right now, I’m envying his myopic badassery.

When I was about 11, having stumbled onto the momentous discovery that the dance studio was packed with unbelievably hot girls, I began an epic ballet career that lead to two things: the first was that I determined that chicks really liked guys who could dance, the second was that I was called a faggot pretty much every day of my life up to, and including, today. But it got me jacked and ultimately lead me to gung fu and then Jujitsu and finally MMA. But those ballet dancers I learned from in the beginning, no lie now, they were some of the biggest toughguys I’ve ever known. They could jump higher, kick faster and had better balance than any of the guys I’ve fought with since. I’m not saying they could take a punch, and, yeah, pretty much all of them were gay, but I never equated those things.  I always saw them the same as the fighters I knew.

Somewhere along the lines, we made the same mistake about vegetarians; we decided as a nation that they are soft, effeminate. That never made sense to me either. Not just because I am one and I never thought of myself as particularly soft, but more so because I’ve seen the alternative.

The only difference is that one group likes to make stuff, and one group likes to destroy stuff.  Go watch a Jujitsu class and see if you can tell the difference between a bunch of half naked, sweaty Brazilian guys rolling around together on a mat and your average West Hollywood rave scene.  Not kidding, same thing.

Somewhere along the lines, we made the same mistake about vegetarians; we decided as a nation that they are soft, effeminate. That never made sense to me either. Not just because I am one and I never thought of myself as particularly soft, but more so because I’ve seen the alternative. Burger fiends, pork hounds, you trying to tell me that those guys come down on the butch side of the spectrum? You gonna try to sell me on the hunky masculinity of the huge pot belly, the mullet, the wheezy lungs, heart disease? Go try it right now, go spend some time at the KFC and try to pick out one guy, one effing guy, who embodies virility. Hunters in particular strike me as especially anemic and cowardly, packing gigantic weapons to take down the world’s less dangerous species. In my rubric, kid, killing weaker critters comes down squarely in the box marked “pussified.”

Maldanado goes to work with some stiff jabs and plants a roundhouse kick under my arm that shatters my breathing into shards of jagged rasps. I tuck in one elbow to hold my ribs in place and switch sides. I can fight right or left handed, so I still have a shot at landing a big hammer to his beak, but right now I’m more worried with catching my breath.  He knows I’m rocked and he starts using a long, flicking kick to my kisser to keep me off balance; every time I move in, he sticks me in the teeth with it.

Now don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind the taste of blood and meat, even my own.

My mouth fills up with the iron flavor, and every time he nails me again, I get that slick, metallic syrup shoved down my throat a little more.  And don’t think for a second that he doesn’t know.  He can smell the disquiet comin’ off me like cold sweat and he’s predator enough to know when to press his advantage. His legs are so long and fast that I can’t get inside, I simply have no answer to his speed; and two minutes into the first round, I already know how this thing is going to end, so settle in, bitches, ‘cause I won’t hesitate to splinter your preconceptions.

Hunters, predators, bullies, they’re all the same, man. They all believe that power grants absolution or at least, immunity, but it doesn’t. Power grants culpability, the ethical onus of restraint.  Restraint, kid, see that’s a valorous concept, that’s masculinity. We have dominion over this world, that power is ours and at some point, the world will demand to be paid back. Immunity is a myth, man, trust me on this.

You know what?  I miss meat every day, every damn day. And you want me to think that ceding to that craving is all beefcake?  I don’t get it, since when is doing what’s easy as opposed to doing what’s right the one way ticket to valorous manhood?  I covet all sorts of stuff, that doesn’t mean I go take it. I’ve dreamt the impossible dream, I’ve fought the unbeatable foe (I’ll show you those scars if you ask me kind) but unlike the venerable Lord of La Mancha, I don’t glean any satisfaction merely from the struggle; I glean satisfaction from the fact that I didn’t fucking eat anybody.

Quite honestly, I’m tired of your assumptions, so back off and let me tell it. We end the round with Maldanado sauntering to his corner, fresh as a dang daisy, and I stumble to my stool and miss it by a good six inches. Climbing back up, my corner man is spitting instructions at me but I’m not really sure which one of his faces I should be listening to.  I’ve already got it worked out, so he’s wasting his words anyhow.  Just give me some water and don’t let the ring doctor know I’ve got a cracked pin on the left side.  I know how to deal with predators.

Maldanado flies out of his corner, right at me.  I shrug off his hands, not enough brawn there to end this thing.  But he keeps driving me back with those crazy bolts of lightening that he walks on.  I step back again, trying to sidestep and keep my back off the rope, and manage to avoid the majority of his spleen.  I can feel his frustration as he tries harder and harder to land something substantial, and right when he’s off his nut with ire, I go right at him.  Off his back leg, his power leg, he throws guan men, which means “slam the door” and I tuck my head and block it full on with my face.

Hunters, predators, bullies, they’re all the same, man. They all believe that power grants absolution or at least, immunity, but it doesn’t. Power grants culpability, the ethical onus of restraint.  Restraint, kid, see that’s a valorous concept, that’s masculinity. We have dominion over this world, that power is ours and at some point, the world will demand to be paid back. Immunity is a myth, man, trust me on this. And what Maldanado never learned (predators never do) is that sometimes the boot to the brainpan is its own justification. Not only is the shock of a cracked bean worth the hurt if it lets you get inside, but the throes of that pickle bring a sort of clarity, a transcendent epiphany that heals your wounds and resolves your bleary vision.

So keep your blase’ hipster bacon references and your outdoor meat-fest cookouts, ladies. You all just look like cowards to me, silk-skinned scaredy-cats too fragile and wavering to resist your own appetites.

Maldanado can’t believe it.  He can’t get his head around the fact that I just traipsed right into his kill shot. And even worse, that I’m still standing there, way too close for his comfort. And in the whisper quick moment that he hesitates, I drop an overhand soup bone right out of nowhere and lay it across his gob. As his back hits the mat, the thing I’m most aware of, besides the ache in my elbow, is the baffled look of confusion on Maldanado’s mug as his eyes flicker dim like a bad neon bar sign; and I drag my battered carcass out of the ring.

The humor doesn’t guise it, really. Every time my manager tells me, “Don’t worry, Kucan, this cow was suicidal,” as he tucks into a t-bone with a self-conscious giggle, it’s really like Maldanado’s weak ass jab, a carefully placed barb trying to perpetuate that illusion of moral exculpation. I’ve learned now to step into those shots, block ‘em right on the dial. And every time you call my dinner rabbit food, or ask me if I’m a vegetarian because I love animals or because I hate plants, or tell me that God intended for us to eat animals because he made them out of meat; I can feel my rib go squishy again but I’ll step right into it just the same.

After Maldanado wrestles back his lucidity, he comes over to my corner and smiles and points at me, “I’m gonna need that,” he says. Stupid me, I’m thinking he means my courage, or skill, or something internal that he sees now but had missed before. He clears it up for me when he takes hold of my arm, the one that just put his lights out and pulls from my elbow a long, bloody incisor. “Thanks,” he says, holding up the jagged tooth, and he grins wide enough for me to see the space where it belongs.

Ah well, I’m thinking.  No one ever said these lessons come easy, but they come all the same.

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Share your own vegan journey at www.thevegandecision.com. Also, check out Daniel’s view on “eating right for your blood type” here.

I’m not sure how long ago Jamie Oliver was quoted as saying, “stop being a vegan and start enjoying what you eat”, but I only heard it for the first time the other day. It felt a little ironic to me, as I only truly started enjoying food when I became vegan. It’s of course understandable that you could only know that when you actually become vegan. I like Jamie and I think he is creating a healthy food revolution in many regards. I do look forward to the day he becomes vegan, however.

Besides discovering living foods and their incredible benefits, becoming vegan also taught me to be conscious about food … to think about where it came from, the energy and life force it holds and how lucky I am to be transferring that life force into me. It’s such a powerful process when you really think about it: a plant has lived and breathed the earth’s elements … soaked up the sunshine, filtered rain water. Then we, hopefully consciously, get to transform this energy into us, so that we may live our greatest potential, fueled by life force energy as it was all intended, really, in the beginning.

While Jamie Oliver isn’t yet vegan (and I do hold expectation that he will one day stop eating meat—why not?), he is doing some great work to transform the way we all think about our food and health. He’s working to at least get people to be conscious about not consuming junk and highly-processed “food impostors” and chemicals. To start thinking about what we’re feeding our kids. To put fruit and vegetables back on dinner plates.

Right now, after making healthy food choices a high priority in the UK, Jamie has set his sights on the United States where obesity has become the norm and many children can no longer identify what fruit and vegetables are (yes, this is true). In his quest to bring healthy food choices back to American schools and homes, The Naked Chef has started a petition to highlight its importance and start a movement towards health (you can sign it here).

Jamie’s mission is an important one that we could all pitch in and help with. No matter how small a contribution we can offer, it can help lead to not only greater health in America and in the countries so influenced by America, but also to a shift in consciousness.

A better diet, as Jamie is pushing for, also leads to clearer thinking, which leads to better choices, which leads to even better choices. Of those who directly benefit from Jamie’s work, some may awaken to find they have a passion burning inside that could influence others in ways never thought of. Even if Jamie doesn’t become vegan, those he has encouraged and helped to become healthy may blaze a vegan trail to encourage others in this fabulous, conscious way of life. With every transformation to good health comes unlimited potential. The wonderful thing is, we can all help to make it happen.

Jamie Oliver was recently awarded the 2010 TED prize for his contributions. Here is his speech…

Main photo courtesy of EatBoutique.com