Episode 555, air date May 21st, 2026. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast app.

Dr. Haransky-Beck on Seeing Clearly: Vision, Vitality and Whole-Person Healing!

Can improving your eyesight also deepen your insight into life?

In this expansive and heart-centered conversation, I speak with Dr. Elisa Haransky-Beck about the powerful connections between vision, vitality, and whole person healing. Elisa shares her decades-long journey as an optometrist and wellness practitioner, and how she came to integrate natural eyesight improvement with movement, nutrition, and spiritual practice. She explains how reconnecting with our inner and outer vision can help us rediscover purpose, presence, and alignment with our true path. This episode is an invitation to see more clearly, not just with the eyes, but with the whole self.

In This Episode
How natural eyesight improvement became her calling
The connection between vision, awareness, and inner truth
Why nature and grounding are essential for healing
How multiple disciplines weave into one life purpose
Simple practices to support eyesight and overall well-being
Her passionate outlook on leather and plastics

About Our Guest
Dr. Elisa Haransky-Beck is an optometrist and wellness practitioner, spiritual nutrition counselor, EmbodyVision somatic yoga teacher, educator, and speaker. She specializes in facilitating natural eyesight improvement to deepen insight and supports individuals in rising into their true mission in life, their “raison d’être” for being here at this extraordinary time. Her work integrates vision, movement, nutrition, nature, and spirit into a holistic path of awakening.

Connect with Elisa
Website: www.EnliveningConsciousness.com
Facebook: Dr. Elisa Beth Haransky-Beck
Instagram: EmbodyVision
LinkedIn: Dr. Elisa Beth Haransky-Beck (Elisa Beck)

Subscribe, rate, and review the Main Street Vegan Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.

Sign up for the Main Street Vegan blog and newsletter at www.mainstreetvegan.com and receive your FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.

And become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/207997266555049

Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance diet. Check our their new product Sulfora HERE, and enter ‘MAINSTREET’ in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

Posted May 19, 2026

The rise of veganism, which has become synonymous with vegan food, has been quite amazing. Some of us feel veganism is well on its way to becoming a social norm, with the hope that someday we won’t need the word anymore—everyone will live vegan. We all want to see a vegan world now. Many vegans are often frustrated and devastated because most people refuse to go vegan or refuse to move even a bit towards eating more plants and less meat.

The Reality of Veganism, Food, and Dining Out

The harsh reality is although veganism and/or plant-based eating have made progress by leaps and bounds, it is far, far, far from becoming the default social norm that we need.

So many vegan restaurants have opened, blossomed, thrived––then disappeared. Food and energy prices keep increasing, making restaurant ownership extremely difficult. The only way some formerly vegan restaurants could stay in business was to add animal products to their menus, although the majority have kept most of their menu choices vegan.

This trend has been devastating to those of us who cherish an entirely vegan venue. It can thwart our hopes and certainty of creating a vegan world. We are painfully aware of the extensive cruelty imposed upon animals. We know the excessive resource usage that threatens the ability of Earth to sustain life. Still, time and habits march on, oblivious to the obvious.

People who live in Western and other wealthy countries eat out a lot. Dining is a convenience and a fundamental social experience for us. At this point in time, however, people are eating out less because it’s become very expensive, and the value of our dollar keeps shrinking. This poses major threats to all restaurants, especially those entirely plant-based/vegan.

The Fate of a Michelin 3-Star Restaurant in a Vegan-Friendly City: A Barometer for Many Vegan Restaurants

In a most shocking twist of fate, some vegan restaurants have added animal products back into their menus. A most prominent restaurant is Eleven Madison Park in New York City. Chef and owner Daniel Humm created the first vegan restaurant in the world to be awarded Michelin designation and retained its three stars after going entirely plant-based. Initially, Humm created a menu that 90% plant-based and promoted this proudly. Even a cattle rancher from Texas claimed the dinner he had there was one of the best meals of his life. In 2021, he took things 100% plant-based and while we vegans were thrilled, the restaurant experienced revenue loss and a smaller clientele from the outset of this change. As a result, in 2025, limited amounts of animal products were added back into his menu.

Supporting Plant-Based/Vegan Foods

Although our fellow creatures are exploited in laboratories, zoos, the fashion industry, puppy mills and more, the most widespread and excessive use of nonhuman beings continues to be for food. The social and cultural norms that are deeply embedded into dietary choices are not going to fade away any time soon. Most people still eat animals, and most will not venture into an entirely plant-based/vegan restaurant. Formerly vegan restaurants that choose to add some animal products to their menus still have a vital role in introducing vegan food to the many people who are curious enough to try.

Major social change happens in incremental steps. Let’s not make perfect the enemy of good.

Nancy Poznak has a Master of Science in Health Science, is a Certified Health Education Specialist, Group Fitness Instructor, Personal Trainer, and Main Street Vegan Academy graduate. She has been passionately vegan since July 2014. Her vegan food business, BotaniCuisine, which she’s owned since November 2017, hosts vegan food and social events, and organized a Vegan Burger Smackdown in 2019. She’s delivered presentations about the many solutions offered by living vegan, taught college health courses, and senior exercise classes.

Episode 554, air date May 14th, 2026. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast app.

The World Peace Way: Food, Freedom, and Foundations with Dr. Will Tuttle

Can our daily food choices shape not only our health, but the future of humanity itself?

In this conversation, I speak with bestselling author, former Zen monk, and longtime vegan advocate Dr. Will Tuttle about the deep spiritual, cultural, and psychological implications of the way we eat.

Drawing from decades of teaching and writing, Will explores the ideas behind The World Peace Diet, Food for Freedom, and The World Peace Way, explaining how modern food culture reinforces systems of domination, disconnection, and violence and how compassionate living offers a path toward healing.

This episode is both philosophical and practical, inviting listeners to consider vegan living not merely as a diet, but as a transformative spiritual practice rooted in peace, awareness, and compassion for all beings.

In This Episode

The central message behind Will’s life work and books
How food choices affect cultural, ecological, and spiritual well-being
The connection between freedom, health, and compassion
How vegan living supports personal and collective transformation
Why these ideas are often overlooked in mainstream culture
What each of us can do to contribute to peace and healing every day

About Our Guest

Dr. Will Tuttle is the author of the international bestseller The World Peace Diet. Publishers have released the book in 18 languages. He also wrote Food for Freedom, The World Peace Way, and several other books on spirituality and healthful living.

Will has followed a vegan lifestyle since 1980 and previously lived as a Zen monk. Alongside his spouse, visionary artist Madeleine Tuttle, he has lectured in all 50 U.S. states and in 50 countries.

Connect with Will

Website: www.worldpeacediet.com
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@WillTuttle

Subscribe, rate and review the Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality and compassion.

Sign up to the Main Street Vegan newsletter here and receive a FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.

Become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook here.

Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance diet. Check our their new product Sulfora HERE, and enter ‘MAINSTREET’ in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

Posted May 12, 2026

These are emotionally tough times for many of us. As we watch the news or scan social media, it seems that the problems facing us locally and globally are ever-growing. Not to mention our own personal stressors in areas such as relationships, finances, and physical and mental health.

On top of that, those of us on the vegan path recognize the vast suffering caused by animal agriculture and other exploitive industries. How do we cope when it seems that most of society—and our social and political systems—are oblivious or indifferent to the impact of our daily food and purchasing choices on sentient beings and our planet?

If you are a sensitive person, you may be feeling this even more intensely. You may find yourself in a downward emotional spiral when you hear the news or read negative comments on social media—or when you feel like an outsider at social events that are centered around animal foods. Perhaps sometimes you handle these situations with strength, grace, and wisdom. But maybe other times you find yourself overwhelmed by feelings of isolation, sadness, or anger.

There are no quick and easy answers for the emotional challenges we face. However, we can cultivate resilience that helps us navigate life’s difficulties, including those that come with honoring our convictions and taking the road less traveled. Tending to our emotional well-being is key to not only sustaining a vegan lifestyle and staying on track, but to experiencing the true fulfillment, peace, and purpose that living by vegan values can bring. When you are resilient, not only do you have more staying power, but you’re also a role model who inspires others toward positive change.

What Is Resilience—And Why Does It Matter for Vegans?

The American Psychological Association defines resilience as: “The process and outcome of successfully adapting to difficult or challenging life experiences, especially through mental, emotional, and behavioral flexibility.” Resilience is not something we are either born with or not; fortunately, the skills for becoming resilient can be learned, practiced, and developed.

Mental health professionals agree that resilience helps us to successfully navigate, and even grow from, the challenges, stressors, and traumas of life. Strengthening our resilience helps us manage difficult times and empowers us to become fuller versions of ourselves. Rather than becoming derailed or giving up when faced with stressful events, highly resilient people find a way to emotionally heal, adapt when needed, and continue moving toward their vision.

How and why does this matter for vegans? As vegans, we face the everyday stressors of life, alongside social and emotional challenges that are unique to the vegan journey. Emotional resilience helps us stay true to our values as we navigate these challenges.

Seven Tips for Emotional Resilience

1. Remember That Feelings Are Normal and Essential

When we experience painful events, witness suffering, or become aware of the widespread exploitation and harm to sentient beings, it is normal to experience sadness, anger, and even hopelessness or despair. Being resilient doesn’t mean being free of difficult emotions; rather, it honors the full emotional spectrum, while learning to accept and make meaning of our more painful feelings. Emotions are essential for our survival and thriving; even those we label as “negative,” like fear, sadness, or anger, serve important adaptive functions. They help us recognize our needs and concerns, and take appropriate action. Many times, we wish to bury or push away negative emotions because we fear becoming overwhelmed by them. However, learning to acknowledge and move through our emotions is essential to psychological, physical, and interpersonal wellness. Mindful acknowledgement of our emotional experience reduces the risk that we will bury our feelings or become “stuck” in a particular emotion. Ultimately, acknowledging our emotions enables us to engage in life more fully and authentically.

2. Name Your Emotions

For example, “I’m feeling sad, angry, afraid,” or whatever feelings you are experiencing. By giving language to feelings, it often diffuses their emotional intensity and gives greater perspective. This helps to bring the wise brain back online, so that you can access more resources for coping. Listing all your feelings on paper can help to acknowledge the complex interplay of emotions underneath your distress. Sometimes you may be feeling sad, angry, afraid, relieved, and/or hopeful all at the same time. As you write out what you are feeling, try not to get caught up in your “story” around these feelings. This step is just about acknowledging the different feelings you are experiencing. If you have difficulties identifying your feelings, tools like the Feelings Wheel can help.

3. Learn Skills to Calm Your Nervous System

While feelings like anger and sadness are normal and healthy, learning how to process your emotions and let them move through you is essential. Emotional regulation skills enable you to calm your nervous system, navigate situations with less reactivity, and respond with greater alignment and intentionality.

Practices that help with emotional release and calming include yoga, meditation, mindfulness practices, journaling, visualization, taking a walk, being in nature, talking to a trusted friend, prayer, or spending time with companion animals. In addition, you may wish to incorporate exercises such as Square Breathing, Lovingkindness Meditation, or Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT).

4. Include Yourself in Your Circle of Care

Many vegans are compassionate toward non-human animals but forget that they too are sentient beings with physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. To thrive emotionally, you must include yourself in your circle of care. Just as you would be kind to a beloved friend, child, or companion animal, you need to extend that nurturing compassion toward yourself. Daily self-care practices build greater resilience for handling difficult feelings and situations.

• Eat nutrient-dense whole plant foods to nourish yourself optimally. A whole plant food diet, rich in antioxidants, fiber, and other nutrients is associated with improved moods and emotional health.
• Incorporate other lifestyle pillars. Regular movement and exercise, restorative sleep and rest, meaningful time with loved ones, and avoidance of harmful substances.
• Include stress management practices. Meditation, yoga, journaling, spiritual practices, time in nature, connecting with beauty, and/or time with companion animals.
• Set boundaries on your exposure to disturbing news, images, and social media posts.
• Treat yourself with kindness and self-compassion. Consider trying out these self-compassion exercises by Dr. Kristin Neff.

5. Recognize the good that is happening

Rather than focus solely on what is wrong in the world, you can consciously imagine the compassionate and healthy world you want to see—and celebrate any signs of movement in that direction. While we all have negative thoughts from time to time, we don’t have to stay stuck there. Take a moment to consider, what motivates you? What gives you hope? What are your blessings? Create daily affirmations that reconnect you with your WHY. Talk to yourself in encouraging ways and affirm steps of progress. Nurture moments of laughter, humor, and joy.

Why is this important? Our thoughts impact our physiology, how we feel and act, and how others respond to us. More empowered thoughts reap more productive interactions and outcomes.

6. Take Positive Action

Song-writer Joan Baez is noted for saying, “Action is the antidote to despair.” Being involved in a cause that matters to you can make all the difference in your sense of well-being, hope, and resilience. Whatever the cause that most speaks to you—whether animal protection and rights, climate and environmental issues, human health, world hunger, injustice, or spiritual healing, taking positive action can move you from powerless to empowered. If you are already involved in a cause or a movement, take a moment to appreciate what you are contributing. And if something feels missing in this area of your life, explore how you can connect with others who share your mission and passion—and discover ways to collaborate and contribute your gifts.

7. Know When to Seek Help

If you experience severe emotional distress or symptoms that are disrupting your life, consider seeking support from a qualified psychotherapist or professional. In Defense of Animals offers a list of therapists who are sensitive to vegan and animal rights issues. The support of a trained professional, who not only understands your feelings and concerns, but also offers tools for coping, can nurture your resilience.

Cultivating resilience empowers you to courageously prioritize compassion, love, and health in your daily choices. It allows you to stay true to your values, even when you are in the minority. It empowers you to be a leader and role model for creating a kinder and healthier world. Becoming resilient is not a one-time event, but rather something that you nurture over time—through healthy self-care, supportive connections, honoring what truly matters, and taking aligned actions.

Angela Crawford, Ph.D. is a psychologist, Main Street Vegan Master Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator, and award-winning author of The Vegan Transformation: A Journey to Heal Yourself and the World (Lantern Publishing & Media, 2025). Formerly a psychotherapist for 25 years, she shares psychology principles to empower vegans and veg-seekers toward greater emotional well-being, fulfillment, and purpose on her YouTube channel. Learn about Dr. Crawford’s other classes and resources through her website. For more resilience tips, check out her free Vegan Emotional Resilience Toolkit.

Posted May 5, 2026

As the Main Street Vegan Podcast nears its 600th episode, I often think of favorite past guests. One is certainly David Jenkins, MD, PhD, DSc. He’s now sceintific royalty but was once a sensitive boy who went vegetarian when his mother expected him to eat a pet chicken. When I interviewed him in April 2022 (listen here on Spotify), we focused on his development of the Glycemic Index and his Eco-Atkins diet, a way for people who want a lower-carb diet to get that and stay fully plant-based. However, Dr. Jenkins is also the developer of the Portfolio diet for lowering the LDL cholesterol that fuels our number 1 killer, coronary heart disease.

The development of this plan, all vegan, dates back to 2003, but it’s surging in popularity now as the recommended levels for LDL continue to lower. While anything sub-100 was once considered fine, that’s now under 90 for the general public, under 70 for anyone with heart disease risks, and “as low as you can get it” by many cardiologists. The most direct way to accomplish this is with statin drugs, but those are not without side effects and since no drug is vegan (all were tested on animals) many of us would prefer to keep pharmaceuticals to a minimum.

But why do need a new diet? Don’t we know from the groundbreaking work of Dean Ornish, MD, in the late 20th century and that of Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr., MD, in the early 2000s that heart disease can be reversed with a low-fat vegan or virtually vegan eating plan?

Let’s back up. The original Ornish program featured a diet with less than 10% of calories from fat, all plant-based except for small amounts of low-fat dairy and egg whites, and lifestyle components: a miniumum of 180 minutes of cardiovascular exercise per week, weight training 2 or 3 times, 1 hour of stress management daily (yoga, meditation, visualization, breathwork, or yoga nidra (NSDR: non-sleep deep rest), and ongoing group support.

Dr. Esselstyn focused entirely on the diet. Both eliminated the dairy and eggs fairly early, and Dr. Ornish added EPA/DHA (omega-3) supplementation and eventually one ounce of nuts and seeds daily.

Those plans worked, and they still do––so effectively that Medicare, Medicaid, and many insurance programs cover the 9-week Ornish program, now offered via Zoom. The Portfolio Diet fits in as:

1. An alternative to this very low-fat approach, especially for people who do not have active heart disease
2. A slightly easier way to eat in a very heart-healthy way for people who are younger or at lower risk
3. An added bonus of LDL-lowering potential for people who do eat according to the earlier proven heart-disease-reversal principles
4. A way to add in LDL-lowering foods for people who are not motivated to make major dietary deletions.

I put myself in group #3. I follow the Ornish principles (dietary and lifestyle) and while my overall cholesterol is low, my LDL was sticking stubbornly in the upper 80s. Then Dr. Michael Greger came on my podcast early this year and reminded me about the Portfolio principles, a potential gamechanger.

Here they are in a (literal and figurative) nutshell:

1. Plant sterols
2. Soluble fiber
3. Plant protein
4. Nuts

Incorporating all four is key.

“Plant sterols act like a lock that blocks cholesterol from entering the bloodstream. Viscous [soluble] fiber acts like a broom, sweeping cholesterol and bile acids out of the gut. Plant protein, particularly soy, increases the number of LDL receptors in the liver, helping the body remove LDL from circulation. Nuts provide monounsaturated fats, additional sterols, and fiber, further enghancing cholesterol reduction and offering cardiovascular protection.” — David J. Martins, RDN, The Portfolio Diet Dr. David Jenkins: The Evidence-based Plan to Lower Cholesterol, Reclaim Heart Health, Boost Energy and Become Overall Confident

To do this in real life, component #1 will require a supplement. Plant sterols certainly exist in plant foods––pine nuts, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews––but the amounts needed to do a superior job of cholesterol-blocking are higher than you can realistically expect to get from food alone. While many supplement are out there, the one that appears to have 3rd party safety and efficacy verification is Metagenics Meta-Sitosterol 2.0 (there may be others, as well; I have no affilation with Metagenics and no reason to recommend their product other than my research indicates that this is a quality brand).

#2, Soluble fiber, is all about the food. Here are the strongest sources:

• psyllium husk
• black beans, lima beans, lentils
• Brussels sprouts, okra, sweet potato
• flaxseeds
• oat bran, oatmeal, barley
• dried figs
• pears, blackberries, oranges, apples

#3, Plant protein we’re already eating: dried beans and peas of all sorts, with an emphasis on soy foods: black soy beans (soy protein plus lots of soluble fiber), edamame, tempeh, tofu, soy milk.

#4, Nuts. Walnuts are the allstars here, but all raw, unsalted nuts are good. The magic amount is 45 grams daily, about an ounce (also the amount used in the contemporary Ornish program.) Says David J. Martins, RDN, “Unlike restrictive diets that eliminate indulgence, the inclusion of nuts demonstrates the power of strategic additions. A daily handful feels satisfying, adds texture and flavor to meals, and reinformces the principle that dietary changes do not need to feel like punishment.”

Victoria Moran is the founder and director of Main Street Vegan Coach Training Academy, training Vegan Lifestyle Coaches and Educators since 2012. The next cohort takes place in the fall of 2026.

For more information on the “strategic additions” that lower LDL, see both Mr. Martins’ book (see above) and Dr. Greger’s latest: Lower Cholesterol Naturally With Food.

]]> https://mainstreetvegan.com/a-new-asset-for-your-heart-health-portfolio/feed/ 0 https://mainstreetvegan.com/ancient-plant-based-food-traditions-with-nathaniel-altman/ https://mainstreetvegan.com/ancient-plant-based-food-traditions-with-nathaniel-altman/#respond Tue, 05 May 2026 11:42:45 +0000 https://mainstreetvegan.com/?p=25984 Episode 553, air date May 7th, 2026. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast app. Nathaniel Altman on The Spiritual, Nutritional, and Medicinal, Power of Plants   Where did the foods we eat every day actually come from and what stories do they carry? In this fascinating and far-reaching conversation, Victoria […]]]>

Episode 553, air date May 7th, 2026. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast app.

Nathaniel Altman on The Spiritual, Nutritional, and Medicinal, Power of Plants

Where did the foods we eat every day actually come from and what stories do they carry?

In this fascinating and far-reaching conversation, Victoria Moran speaks with prolific author Nathaniel Altman about the origins, evolution, and healing potential of plant foods across human history.

Nathaniel and Victoria also reminisce about their early days at the Theosophical Society in America in the early 1970s, a formative time that helped shape their shared interest in spirituality, consciousness, and compassionate living. We touch on the influence of spiritual teacher Geoffrey Hodson, whose work Nathaniel has helped reintroduce to modern audiences.

Nathaniel explores how ancient food traditions, global migration, and cultural exchange have shaped the plant-based foods we know today. The conversation also nods to an earlier Main Street Vegan Podcast episode featuring Dr. David J. A. Jenkins, creator of the Portfolio Diet, connecting historical food wisdom with modern clinical approaches to lowering LDL cholesterol and improving heart health.

This episode is a rich reminder that food is more than nourishment it is history, medicine and a thread connecting body, mind, and spirit.

In This Episode

The origins of the world’s oldest plant foods
Surprising stories behind everyday ingredients
What phytochemicals are and why they matter
Foods linked to disease prevention and longevity
The global roots of modern plant-based diets
The spiritual influences that shaped Nathaniel’s work
Connections between traditional diets and modern health science

About Our Guest

Nathaniel Altman is a Brooklyn-based writer and the author of more than twenty books on diet, alternative healing, metaphysics and relationships. His extensive body of work includes titles on vegetarianism, natural health and holistic living, reflecting a lifelong interest in the connection between food, healing, and human consciousness. His latest project, The Genealogy of Plant Foods, explores the origins and cultural journeys of the foods we eat.

Connect with Nathaniel

Website: https://foodgenealogy.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathaniel.altman.9/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nathanielaltmanauthor/

Subscribe, rate, and review the Main Street Vegan Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.

Sign up for the Main Street Vegan blog and newsletter at https://www.mainstreetvegan.com and receive your FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.

And become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/207997266555049

Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance your diet. Check our their new product Sulfora HERE, and enter ‘MAINSTREET’ in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

Posted April 28,, 2026

Eight days in March, I enjoyed the blessing of cruising on the Holistic Holiday at Sea’s Vegan Cruise with stops in Mexico and Honduras. This beautiful cruise is in its 21^st  year and what an amazing experience! There were about 800 vegans on this cruise of about 4,500 passengers.

Bon Voyage!

The journey began with a Bon Voyage Party in Houston the evening before setting sail—amazing in and of itself. An added VIP option included line dance lessons with Dr. Neal Barnard, supporting the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. This was more fun and invigorating than words can say.

Along with the fabulous talks led by vegan visionaries, delicious plant-based food, and wonderful companionship, I found myself pondering. Perhaps it was good amount of time on my own, time to think and reflect. There was a moment on the Holistic Holiday at Sea, a feast for the senses, that stuck with me:

We were all on the same ship, MSC’s Seascape, sailing the same beautiful ocean, enjoying the same gorgeous sunrises and sunsets, with the same inspiring music drifting through the air. And yet, there it felt like two very different experiences were unfolding at once.

One Ship, Different Ways of Being

On one level, we were simply people on a cruise, enjoying rest, entertainment, and vacation time. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Joy, relaxation, and celebration are an important part of life. Yet within that same space, something else was happening, a quieter, deeper current: group of people intentionally gathering around shared values: compassion, health, awareness, and connection on the Vegan Cruise.

Same ship.

Same setting.

But a different way of moving through it.

A Microcosm

What intrigued me the most was not the contrast itself, but what it showed. This wasn’t just about a cruise. It was a reflection of the world we live in every day. We share the same space—the same planet, the same world, even with our differences. And yet, we are not each experiencing it in the same way.

Some move through on autopilot. Others begin to ask questions. Some live within the default culture. Others intentionally choose something different. Each of us does each of these things at different times. On the ship, however, the contrast seemed to stand out more.

The Vegan Calling

For many of us in the plant-based/vegan community, that “something different” is not just about food. It’s about alignment. It’s about intention. It’s about asking:

• How do my choices affect others?
• How do I live compassionately?
• How do I care for my body, the Earth, and every being I share this precious planet with?

This path often isn’t easy. But it is joyful.

It can feel like we’re swimming against the current. But the current is changing.

Spaces like Holistic Holiday at Sea remind us that we’re not alone.

A Moment of Connection

One of the highlights of this experience was connecting with leaders and other vegans who have helped shape this movement. Moments like these remind me that this way of living is not fringe, it’s growing, grounded in science, compassion, dignity and community.

A Different Kind of Awareness

What I experienced on that ship was not separation, but awareness and connection. Not judgement, but invitation. An invitation to notice that even within the same environment, we can choose:

• To be present or distracted
• To be intentional or automatic
• To live in alignment or out of it

And those choices shape our entire experience.

Bringing It Home

The most powerful part of this experience was not what happened on the ship, but what happened afterwards. Because the same choice exists in our everyday lives. We may all be moving through the same world, but we each decide how we will show up within it.

The MSC Seascape became a kind of mirror. It was a reminder that even in the same place, living side by side, we can be part of very different experiences. And for those of us on a plant-based vegan path, it’s a quiet but powerful affirmation:

This way of living matters.

Not because it separates us, but because it calls us to live more consciously, more compassionately, more empathetically, and more fully awake as we sail on this ship of precious and magnificent Planet Earth.

Happy Sailing! With Love, Rev. Dina

Rev. Dina Miani Lauman is the founder of the WellBeing, a sanctuary for vegan Christians and spiritual seekers. An Ordained Minister in the United Church of Christ and an Ordained Animal Chaplain through the Compassion Consortium, she serves where faith, compassion, and Creation meet.

Dina integrates plant-based living with spiritual and emotional healing as a Main Street Vegan Academy Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator. As a narrative experiential practitioner and counselor, she helps clients reconnect with their stories and embodied wisdom—guiding them toward wholeness, wonder, and thriving. She also loves Disney Magic and will meet you there to explore possibilities and imagination.

Dina pastors a charming country church in Northern Illinois, where she integrates spirituality and psychology into her ministry. Her congregation is one of a kind, with cherished therapy dog and beloved church member Queenie, reflecting a deep commitment to interspecies compassion and inclusion.

Let’s stay connected in compassion.

Episode 552, air date April 23, 2026. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast app.

Inside the Fight for Farmed Animals with Dan Shannon

What would it take to truly transform the global food system?

In this compelling episode, I speak with nonprofit leader and animal protection advocate Dan Shannon about the strategies, challenges, and breakthroughs shaping a more humane future.

Dan shares insights from his decades of experience in advocacy, philanthropy and corporate campaigns, explaining how sustained public pressure and collective action are driving major shifts, including recent landmark victories in the push toward cage-free eggs. He also offers a behind-the-scenes look at how change happens at the highest levels of the food industry and why progress is accelerating.

This episode explores how everyday choices, combined with organized advocacy, can help reshape a system that affects billions of animals and all of us.

In This Episode

What consumers might not realize about the egg industry

Why transforming the food system is urgent and possible

What the shift toward cage-free eggs really means

Surprising trends in consumer behavior

How global campaigns create change across cultures

The power of collective action in animal advocacy

What a fully humane food system could look like in the future

About Our Guest

Dan Shannon is a seasoned nonprofit strategist with over 2 decades of experience in campaigns, philanthropy, and animal protection, including leadership roles at PETA, Purpose, and Tides. As CEO of The Humane League, he drives corporate campaigns, public policy, and global coalition-building to accelerate progress toward cage-free eggs and end factory farming and he is also the co-author of two acclaimed vegan cookbooks and continues to promote compassionate living through his writing and advocacy.

Connect with Dan

Website: https://thehumaneleague.org\

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehumaneleague/\

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehumaneleague/\

X: https://x.com/DanShannonTHL

Subscribe and review our podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.

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Posted April 21, 2026

To those who really don’t understand how easy and liberating it is, the word vegan carries weight—moral, social, logistical. To make it even more complicated, meat and dairy industry marketing wants us to believe that vegan implies an all-or-nothing commitment to plant-based whole foods. Meat and cheese or bread and water. This feels impractical for most people.

Meat and dairy marketers want us to believe family dinners would be too complicated. Travel will be harder. The idea of giving up something beloved for good is too much. This is enough to make people abandon the thought entirely and change nothing.

But the research does not ask for all or nothing. You can get moving in the right direction toward fabulous skin, mind, and body, and help the planet a lot if you move plant-forward, inching towards a plant-based whole foods lifestyle. Ultimately you may even ask why you didn’t do it sooner.

The Case for Getting Going – Even if It Means Doing Less than what You Think Is Needed

Flexitarian eating, a primarily plant-based diet that occasionally includes animal products has emerged as one of the most significant nutrition trends of 2026. According to a major nutrition industry report ¹, 82% of food and wellness experts surveyed see flexitarianism as having the greatest growth potential of any dietary lifestyle. It is not a niche movement. It is what most health-conscious people do when they are honest about their habits.

While any consumption of animal products is tragic for the individual animals involved, health outcomes for flexitarians show real yet modest improvements over standard omnivorous diets that include meat, fish, and/or cheese. The science is equally clear that whole-foods plant-based vegan eating produces the strongest results. A landmark randomized clinical trial from Stanford University studied 22 pairs of identical twins. One twin from each pair was assigned a healthy vegan diet and the other to an oxymoronic healthy omnivore diet for eight weeks. Because the twins shared genetics and grew up in the same households, researchers could isolate diet as the variable. The results were as expected by healthy vegans and surprising to the twins themselves.

The twins eating a whole-foods vegan diet showed a 20% drop in insulin levels, a 12% drop in LDL cholesterol, and an average weight loss of four more pounds than the omnivorous twins—all within 8 weeks. ² The omnivore group’s LDL barely moved. The lead researcher, Dr. Christopher Gardner of Stanford, concluded: “Anyone who chooses a vegan diet can improve their long-term health in two months, with the most change seen in the first month”.

A Plant-Based Whole Foods Diet Is Slowing Aging

The same study’s epigenetic follow-up found that the vegan twins also showed measurable improvements in biological aging markers, meaning the cells themselves were aging more slowly. Slowing down aging is not a benefit you get from flexitarianism: that takes being a plant-based, whole-food vegan.³

There is also solid evidence that vegans have significantly lower rates of type 2 diabetes than either vegetarians or omnivores, with possible additional protection against prostate cancer. The EPIC-Oxford and Adventist Health Study-2 cohorts, two of the largest long-running dietary studies in the world, both show that the more animal products are ejected from our refrigerators and our minds the more health protection increases.⁴

A Big Bonus: Reducing Climate Anxiety from Your Plate

Meat products from cows, pigs, chickens, and lambs are the most resource-intensive, planet-degrading systems of any—far worse than fossil fuels. Livestock production consumes trees, land, water, and fossil fuels at a scale that vegetable, grain, legume, and fruit agriculture simply does not. Every meal where plant-based whole foods replace meat is a vote for life on earth, stopping waste and deforestation, and a vote for rewilding the planet to its best functioning self. Fewer hurricanes and wildfires everyone?

If most of the global population adopted a flexitarian-style diet aligned with the EAT-Lancet planetary health recommendations, global dietary greenhouse gas emissions would drop by 17%. ⁵  If all eight billion of us joined in for a plant-based global diet it would reduce those emissions by up to 60%.⁶ The direction is clear: the further from animal products, the better for the planet, for animals and people.

Three meat-free days per week is enough to qualify as flexitarian. That is not a sacrifice. That is just Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. And throwing in a couple more days gets us anti-aging bonus credits. But if you want the full picture, for your health and the planet’s health, the destination is whole-foods, potatoes, rice, beans, lentils, grains, vegetables, and fruit. The goal is progress. The science says keep going.

Starting Points that Actually Stick

The most durable dietary changes are the ones that do not feel like deprivation. Start by making plant-based meals genuinely delicious, which is easier than it sounds when you build them around beans, grains, potatoes, and seasoning. A spiced garbanzo stew. A ramen bowl that takes 10 minutes. A lentil soup that is even better the next day.

Let protein come from legumes, the highest-fiber, most climate-positive, and most affordable protein sources available. Eat what you love. Just make vegetables the center of the plate more often, and keep the direction of travel clear, onward to plant-based nirvana.

Boon Broth, the product I am proud to have created, is made expressly for the person who is not going fully vegan (yet) but is making deliberate, consistent choices to fuel their body with plant-based whole foods. Boon products, made from nutrient powerhouses – mung beans, sea plants, pea protein – and packaged to compost, are for the table you are building, not the one you are leaving behind. Shop Boon Broth

1. Trend Report Nutrition 2025. Nutrition Hub, in collaboration with the Federal Center for Nutrition (BZfE), Dr. Rainer-Wild Foundation, EIT Food Region West, and Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg Heilbronn. Published 2025. Via: premiummedicalcircle.com
2. Landry, M.J., Ward, C.P., et al. “Cardiometabolic Effects of Omnivorous vs Vegan Diets in Identical Twins: A Randomized Clinical Trial”. JAMA Network Open, November 30, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.44457. Stanford Medicine: med.stanford.edu/nutrition/research/completed-studies/twins.html
3. Dwaraka, V.B., Aronica, L., et al. “Unveiling the epigenetic impact of vegan vs. omnivorous diets on aging: insights from the Twins Nutrition Study (TwiNS)”. BMC Medicine, July 29, 2024. doi:10.1186/s12916-024-03513-w.
4. EPIC-Oxford & Adventist Health Study-2 analysis: “Vegan or flexitarian which diet is healthier?” tabledebates.org. Referencing: Davey GK et al. EPIC-Oxford. Public Health Nutr. 2003; and Orlich MJ et al. Adventist Health Study-2. JAMA Intern Med. 2013.
5. Willett, W. et al. “Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems.” The Lancet, January 16, 2019. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31788-4. Also cited in: The Lancet Planetary Health, January 2025. doi:10.1016/S2542-5196(24)00305-X.
6. Springmann, M. et al. “Analysis and valuation of the health and climate change cobenefits of dietary change.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), March 21, 2016. Vol. 113, No. 15, pp. 4146–4151. doi:10.1073/pnas.1523119113.

Sally Malanga is the Plant-Powered Powerhouse with a Philanthropist’s Heart. She is an eco-warrior by passion, entrepreneur by mission, wordsmith by necessity, and Main Street Vegan Academy graduate. Sally blends advocacy with mindful elegance—rallying communities, rewriting tired narratives, and elevating plant-based living into a movement. Sally is Founder of Boon For All. She is all in for replacing animal bone broth and animal collagen powder to save animals and glow skin.