In this edition...
Health |
 Dr. Neil Barnard on preventing alzheimer's |
| Resistance to antibiotics now kills more people than AIDS |
| Processed meats raise risk of death - new study |
| Soy tied to better lung cancer survival among women |
| The mediterranean diet study: Bad science, worse journalism |
Environment |
| 100 million sharks killed each year by commercial fishing |
| International trade in shark fins banned |
| International happiness day: Why it's a serious global issue |
| Vegan diet is the most sustainable - new study |
Lifestyles and Trends |
| Veggie experiences: Long term vegans |
| Organizing a worry-free vegan vacation |
| How to veganize any savory recipe |
| Chicago mayor asks citizens to go vegan |
| Billionaires see value in plant-based food technology |
Animal Issues and Advocacy |
| Don't tell me what to do |
| How we can knock down the most animal suffering |
| 4 ways for activists to overcome despair |
| A first for farm animals in Canada: Supermarket to phase out battery cages and sow stalls |
Books and Perspectives |
| Fit Quickies book giveaway - be quick! |
| Open your eyes |
| Seven foods you think are healthy but aren't |
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(Excerpts are included from current news stories. Click on the "Full story" link to read the full article.)
Health 
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Fox News/Dr. Oz/You Tube - March 8
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Resistance to antibiotics now kills more people than AIDS
Full story: Treehugger
The World Health Organization recently said resistance to antibiotics might be the end of modern medicine; people could die after routine operations or when a simple scrape on the knee becomes infected. In fact, we're already seeing all sorts of antibiotic-resistant infections claim lives and strain the healthcare system. The most common, MRSA, alone kills about 18,000 people a year in the United States - that's more than AIDS. Gonorrhea is also on the verge of being untreatable, and many common antibiotics no longer cure urinary tract infections. It is estimated that 80 per cent of the antibiotics used in the U.S. go to animal agriculture.
Read more... |
Processed meats raise risk of death - new study
Full story: Yahoo!
You know in your gut (and your gut knows it, too) that bacon is bad for you. And yet you can't resist. But a new study might make it easier. It found that consuming high amounts of the breakfast favorite and other processed meats can raise your risk of premature death by 44 percent. The research, conducted by scientists across 10 European countries, included tracking the health of more than 450,000 participants over the course of a decade or more.
Read more... |
Soy tied to better lung cancer survival among women
Full story: Reuters Health
Women with lung cancer who ate the most soy before their diagnosis might live a little longer than those who ate the least, according to a new study. Of 444 Chinese women with lung cancer, researchers found those who consumed the most soy milk, tofu and similar products were 7 to 8 per cent less likely to die over a 13-year period, compared to women who ate an average amount of soy. "To our knowledge this is the first study to suggest this association," said Dr. Gong Yang, the study's lead author from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. Another study from Yang's group published last year found women who ate the most soy were less likely to develop lung cancer in the first place [and have a similar ability to reduce the risk of breast and prostate cancer].
Read more... |
Reuters Health - March 26
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The mediterranean diet study: Bad science, worse journalism
Watch video: YouTube
It's all over the news: a new study "proves" that the Mediterranean Diet saves lives, reducing cardiovascular events by 30 per cent. Except the study said no such thing. And the "low fat" diet used as a comparison was anything but. Caveat comestor! (Let the eater beware!) [5:35]
Read more... |
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| Environment
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100 million sharks killed each year by commercial fishing
Full story: Arkive.org
Ahead of the 16th meeting of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species that [ran] from the 3rd to the 15th of March, researchers again [warned] that sharks are in need of better protection. A new report, published in the journal Marine Policy, estimates the annual number of sharks killed by commercial fishing to be around 100 million, although the actual number could be anywhere between 63 million and 273 million. he large range in these estimates is due to the poor quality of data available. However, the median estimate of 100 million is by far the most accurate to date. Commercial shark fishing is driven mainly by high demand for shark fin soup. However, they are also killed for sale of their meat, liver oil, cartilage and other body parts.
Read more... |
International trade in shark fins banned
Full story: Science Daily
CITES plenary [on March 14] accepted Committee recommendations to list five species of highly traded sharks under the CITES Appendices, along with those for the listing of both manta rays and one species of sawfish. Japan, backed by Gambia and India, unsuccessfully challenged the Committee decision to list the oceanic whitetip shark, while Grenada and China failed in an attempt to reopen debate on listing three hammerhead species. Colombia, Senegal, Mexico and others took the floor to defend Committee decisions to list sharks. "We are thrilled with this result and the groundswell of government commitment that made it happen," said Amie Brautigam, Marine Policy Advisor for Wildlife Conservation Society. The German Elasmobranch Society, Humane Society International, Project AWARE, Shark Advocates International, Shark Trust, and Wildlife Conservation Society worked as a coalition to promote the shark and ray listing proposals.
Read more... |
International happiness day: Why it's a serious global issue
Full story: Guardian
Many people will think the idea of a special day for global happiness [March 20] is ridiculous and that the UN has far more important things to concentrate on. I would argue that human happiness is a serious issue: how on earth are we going to create political, economic and social systems that support nine billion people to live in harmony with each other and the one planet we all share? The UN's International Happiness Day is an opportunity to reflect on what a good human life looks like and why political, social and economic harmony are so vital.
Read more... |
Vegan diet is the most sustainable - new study
Full story: Justmeans
Experts at the 6th Congress on Vegetarian Nutrition, which took place in California between February 24 and 26, said that in order to meet food demands by 2050, the world will have to switch to a predominantly vegetarian diet. The statement was based on a new study carried out at Loma Linda University (LLU) providing evidence of the benefits of a vegetarian diet using data from 96,000 Seventh Day Adventists in the U.S. and Canada. The study looked at vegan, ovolacto (who eat eggs and dairy) and pesco-vegetarian (who eat fish as well), semi-vegetarian (who eat meat occasionally) and non-vegetarian diets and concluded that vegans emit less GHG than everyone else, followed by ovolacto and pesco-vegetarians.
Read more... |
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| Lifestyles and Trends
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Veggie experiences: Long term vegans
Full story: The Vegan Truth Blog
Joined together in this compilation, are people who have been living vegan for decades... prominent activists in the movement, the youngest alpine ski racer in Olympic history at the age of 14, a medical doctor, PhDs, a sociologist, an animal-rights lawyer, people raised vegan since birth, [converts at a later stage of enlightenment]... Responses from long-time vegans from all regions of the globe were combined in this moving historical document. [Editor's note: You can't help being inspired by these compelling testimonies.]
Read more... |
The Vegan Truth Blog - March 3
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Organizing a worry-free vegan vacation
Full story: Toronto Star
Traveling while maintaining personal convictions regarding the consumption of animal products can make for tough times, particularly when you're tackling unfamiliar destinations. While my personal success rate falls significantly short of 100 per cent for longer trips, I'm becoming more adept at long weekends and getaways of up to a couple of weeks. Here are a handful of tips for navigating brand choices, family highway boredom and happy hour.
Read more... |
How to veganize any savory recipe
Full story: VegNews
The cooking geniuses behind The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions and Hearty Vegan Meals for Monster Appetites, Joni Marie Newman and Celine Steen, know a thing or two about taking traditionally meat and egg-heavy dishes and transforming them into veg-friendly wonders such as a Denver Quiche and Western Bacon Cheeseburgers. Naturally, Newman and Steen were our go-to expert chefs when we wanted to figure out how to take a classic non-vegan recipe and revamp it. Here are their top substitution tips for savory dishes.
Read more... |
Chicago mayor asks citizens to go vegan
Full story: Huffington Post
 Famously fit Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, formerly President Barack Obama's chief of staff, has asked his city's residents to consider going vegan to improve their health and bring down the city's health care costs. Specifically, Emanuel endorsed a popular fitness and eating regime featured in The Engine 2 Diet by former pro triathlete and fireman Rip Esselstyn.
Watch video... |
Huffington Post - January 17
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Billionaires see value in plant-based food technology
Full story: Vancouver Sun
It appears someone has been listening to all the evidence accumulating against meat production and has seen not only the threat it represents, but also the opportunity. That someone is billionaire Bill Gates. And he's just one capitalist entrepreneur whose not-so-invisible hand is behind an embryonic high-tech industry that might help save billions of animals from suffering and slaughter. In February, Bloomberg BusinessWeek magazine reported that Gates is among several investors and venture capitalists supporting Silicon Valley startups working on "sustainable food innovation" - new firms creating imitation meat and eggs that are not only animal-friendly, but are also cheaper, better for the environment and just as tasty.
Read more... |
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| Animal Issues and Advocacy
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Don't tell me what to do
Full story: Gentle World Blog
I don't have any problem with your way of life. I respect your point of view. You are entitled to your opinion, and I am entitled to mine. Don't get me wrong. I admire people with strong moral values. I just don't like them being shoved down my throat. I, for example, see nothing whatsoever wrong with slavery.
Read more... |
Gentle World Blog - March 2
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How we can knock down the most animal suffering
Full story: Farm Sanctuary Blog
Because chickens are so much smaller than cows and pigs, many more of them must be slaughtered to produce the same amount of meat. [Meat from a single cow or four pigs equals more than 200 chickens.] That's why, despite the fact that people eat almost as much pork and beef as they do chicken, they eat many, many more chickens than they do cows or pigs. Each year, the average American consumer causes the death of 28 chickens but only one half of a pig and one eighth of a cow. Chickens (both meat and egg-laying) and farm-raised fish endure roughly 920f the number of days of suffering farm animals endure. We should tell people that the first and most important thing they can do to help farm animals is to cut out or cut back on chicken [our emphasis].
Read more... |
Farm Sanctuary Blog - February 27
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4 ways for activists to overcome despair
Full story: Care2
I don't know many activists or changemakers who don't sometimes feel sad. The more we expose ourselves to exploitation and cruelty toward people and animals; the more we learn about climate change and the rapid extinction of species; the more we see corruption in politics and greed in business, the greater the likelihood that despair will creep in. o face and overcome the periodic despair I feel, I have found four things that work well for me...
Read more... |
A first for farm animals in Canada: Supermarket to phase out battery cages and sow stalls
Full story: Calgary Herald
Calgary Co-op [one of the largest retail co-operatives in North America, with more than 44,000 members and annual sales of more than $1 billion] has staked out a bold animal welfare stance, despite opposition from agriculture leaders who warned that the industry needs more time to change its farming practices. At their annual general meeting, Co-op members voted 97-67 in favour of a resolution [put forward by a member of the Canadian Coalition for Farm Animals] calling for the retailer to phase out the sale of eggs and pork produced using intensive confinement cages. Co-op spokeswoman Cindy Drummond said the results of Wednesday's vote mean animal welfare is a top-of-mind issue for Co-op members.
Read more... |
Calgary Herald - March 14
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| Books and Perspectives
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Fit Quickies book giveaway - be quick!
Lani Muelrath, the plant-based fitness expert, has generously offered one of our subscribers a free copy of her new book Fit Quickies. Lani makes fitness fun and accessible - check out the great reviews and visit Lani's website for more info. Send us an email with "I need Lani's Fit Quickies" as the subject by April 10 and you might be the lucky recipient (name to be randomly selected). Be quick!
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Seven foods you think are healthy but aren't
Full story: PBS Newshour
 The guacamole tasted "a little spicy." At least that's the way Therese Warner described it after taking a bite. There was no other sign the stuff had been rotting in the back of the refrigerator for nine months, other than a little brown discoloration around the edges. No mold. No bad smell. The elderly woman had mistakenly plucked the guacamole from her daughter's "food museum" - a collection of processed food that her daughter, former New York Times reporter Melanie Warner, had allowed to sit around her house for months [as] part of research for a new book, Pandora's Lunchbox: How Processed Food Took Over the American Meal. But she never intended for her family to eat any of it ... especially her mother, who was already prone to food-borne illness because of her age. [Watch interview and read about the seven foods at the link.]
Watch video/Read more... |
Also of interest:
Events:
International Veggie Pride, Geneva, May 16-20, March May 18
Originally held in France in 2001, it will be an international event this year and activists from many countries are expected. It will include conferences, a demonstration in front of the UN, another at the World Health Organization, an initiative asking society to recognize legal rights for animals, and more. More info and petition at the links below:
veggiepride.ch - info in English and French
Petition: Respect of the rights of vegans and vegetarians - to be presented to the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief of the United Nations during the event.
Can't make Geneva? How about marching in Toronto or Chicago in June?
Toronto Canada Veggie Pride parade
Chicago Veggie Pride parade
For inspiration, check out pictures from the New York City Veggie Pride parade - March 24
World Weeks for the Abolition of Meat, May 18-25, September 21-29
The World Weeks for the Abolition of Meat (WWAMs) are intended as a means of promoting a political debate around the idea of abolishing the production and consumption of the flesh of sentient beings. Check out more info, list or find an event at the link below.
World Weeks for the Abolition of Meat (WWAMs)
Websites/Blogs:
The Food Revolution Network - Check out the new website with blogs,interviews and great resources.
Femininbio - veggie testimonials in French. Add your own!
Treehugger recipes - Treehugger doesn't just have the lastes environmental news - we recently discovered it's a great source for veggie recipes to add to our own...
VegE-News recipes and tips - check out our easy and delicious vegan chocolate cake.
Would you like to support or sponsor VegE-News?
Your support in any amount is really appreciated.
Visit our VegE-Store for books and more
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