"You don't eat no meat? Oh that's okay I make you lamb." Haha! Many of us have seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding. One of my favorites!
Yes I haven't had meat for 5 weeks. I have made the choice to steer clear of it. I'm not a PETA activist, but I am staying away from animal products for my health, so I'm considered a WFPBD whole foods plants based diet. What are your thoughts about giving up meat? When I first looked into this way of eating, I thought no way am I going to give up meat. I love hamburgers, and ham, and chicken, and ribs! I love it all, and sometimes I have a bite or two now, but after looking into the cause of diseases I have given up meat about 99.9% of the time. Let me tell you why.
A doctor by the name of Neal Barnard (if you want to read up on him here is his blog link (www.PCRM.com) has done extensive research on why meat consumption is not a healthy choice not even if animals are grass fed or organic. Any kind of meat contains saturated fat, this includes chicken and fish. The bad cholesterol LDL (low density lipoprotein) is the cholesterol that causes atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries. It is that plaque that clogs arteries and causes heart disease and heart attacks. 2,200 Americans die each DAY from cardiovascular disease.
Not only do animal products cause cardiovascular disease, but other diseases as well such as arthritis, asthma, cancers, colitis, constipation, dementia, diabetes obesity just to name a few.
What about protein you ask, because I don't consume dairy products either. Have you ever looked on the ingredients of a loaf of bread? Grains, legumes (beans), vegetables all contain protein. Here is a great chart to show you that plants have enough proteins in them for your needs. Everyone is different in protein needs depending on how active you are.
When I first started this program, I was at a loss of what to eat. I had lots of meat in the freezer, and what about my husband! How was he going to react to all this! We started on a Monday, and by Tuesday night I was pulling my hair out. I craved meat and dairy. How could I give up on cheese and yogurt. Wait I still had yogurt out in the fridge. Tempting! I then began to think wait, I made a commitment, and for my health I needed to stay on track. I also decided it was time to de-junk our house of unwanted products, anything that was tempting me to lose it. If it wasn't there, I couldn't eat it! We gave most of it to the missionaries in our church. Some say to just throw it away, but I felt that was wasteful.
After that I started to look up recipes, and let me tell you, there are a ton out there. I will be sharing mine and what I thought of them. I hope you enjoy reading, and if you feel inspired, let me know and share it with others!
Thanks!
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