Part 1: Health
I’m asked by many people, “Why did you go vegan? What is whole food, plant based vegan? Don’t you miss meat? How do you get your protein? How can you be sure you’re getting all the nutrients you need?” The answer to these questions and more is relatively simple, really. The plant kingdom has all the nutrients you need. Couple that with sunshine, and you’re all set. There is no greater boost to the immune system, treatment or cure for diabetes, and all around health than a robust dietary intake with a riot of color and flavor.
I went whole foods, plant based vegan (WFPBV) because I became convinced that it was the best way to not only treat my Type 2 Diabetes; but, to cure it. We are working toward that very thing and taking you all along for the ride.
During the process of researching the effects of the WFPBV way of eating, I was stunned to realize just how devastating the animal agriculture industry had become to the planet. Prior to that, I had been completely unaware of the absolute destruction the process of producing meat to put on our plates truly was. I was simply appalled. Part one, which you are currently reading, is devoted to the health reasons we chose this lifestyle. Part two will describe what we have found out about the environmental impacts of animal agriculture.
Please don’t get me wrong here. I am most definitely not a militant vegan. Most of my family still consume the (SAD) Standard American Diet. They are not horrible people. I do believe that the food chain exists for a reason; however, I also believe that it has been abused and is being destroyed.
For those reasons, my husband and I have gone entirely WFPBV in our dietary consumption. We are just beginning this journey really. So, we have plans to further move into the lifestyle of veganism. The more I learn, the more I deplore the use of animal products in any facet of life; however, I will never condemn anyone for choosing a lifestyle different than my own. My goal, like with this website, is to educate people to enable a more informed decision about their own choices.
So, to find out the answers to those earlier questions, let’s dig into what the experts have to say on the subject and what our conclusions are from those findings.
What follows are things I have learned from the works of people like Dr. Dean Ornish, T. Colin Campbell, PhD., Michael Greger, MD., Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, and many others. I have linked some specific resources below.
Health: What causes diabetes and the effects of a WFPBV diet on Type 2 Diabetes (T2D)
For many years I thought that the cause of diabetes was the over consumption of carbohydrate calories, genetic coding, and inactivity. And, that is partially true. Over-consumption is indeed the primary culprit. Further, the more you move, the better off you are is also true. And, your genes lay the groundwork for susceptibility. But, that’s about where it ends.
Genes certainly are integral to how we function; no question there. The science proves that it isn’t the genetics that cause the disease to rear its head though. Many people eat astonishing amounts of all manner of unhealthy food options; and yet, they never become ill with diabetes. This is despite ballooning waistlines and bathroom scale stress. That is because they do not have the predisposition in their genetic coding for T2D. It is what we consume in conjunction with the genes. What we put into our bodies can literally activate or deactivate specific portions of our genetic code. To quote the experts, “Genetics load the gun. Diet pulls the trigger.”
Contrary to the conventional lines of thinking, it isn’t consumption of carbohydrates, as a whole, that is the culprit. Carbohydrates can’t simply be lumped altogether as a single entity. There are a vast array of carbs out there. Those that are produced naturally and have been minimally processed are categorically GREAT for our bodies. So, what then is the primary culprit? It’s fat. Saturated fat to be precise. When you break it down to “brass tacks,” it’s saturated fat. This type of fat will be absorbed by the beta cells in the pancreas. Those beta cells are then killed off by the fat they have absorbed. Further, saturated fats will clog the insulin receptors in our cells! When I saw the research findings on this, it answered a question that had haunted me since I had been diagnosed.
Before we get to that, let’s talk a bit about the role of insulin and glucose. I’m going to go with the short version. Glucose is the fuel our body uses. Insulin is a hormone in the body that opens the cells and helps glucose get inside so it can be consumed for energy. When our bodies become insulin resistant, our cells can no longer get the life-giving, energizing, health producing glucose they need. Now then, back to those burning questions….
Why did my cells suddenly not like glucose anymore? The best answer I could find was that the cells thought they were full and didn’t want any more food. Why, then, did they send near constant hunger signals out as glucose built up in my blood? FINALLY, here was the answer! I was ecstatic. It isn’t that the cells are full or that they are malfunctioning! They’re clogged! The saturated fat essentially sticks to the insulin receptors making it impossible for the insulin to escort the glucose into the cell!
Guess what doesn’t naturally have high levels of saturated fat? That’s right! Plants! Carbohydrates! Starches! Now, nuts, seeds, coconuts, and the like certainly do have some saturated fats in them. This is particularly true of coconut and palm. Nuts and seeds in general contain a load of fats; however, they are predominantly UNsaturated fat: the type of fats that the body needs. So, a certain amount of control is needed when consuming these types of plants. Outside of that, you would not believe how much you can eat and still lower your blood sugar levels!
We were convinced. Vegan was the way to go. Then, we kept digging and found out that the olive oil and avocado oil we liked to cook with was not great for us either. It turns out that while these oils are better than your typical vegetable oil, they’re still simply distilled fat. They have none of the fiber or nutrients of the parent plant. The same thing goes for sugar. Most sugar is made from beets or corn and the like. It has been stripped of its nutrients. Even the “raw” sugars. So, it was time to take a look at how we were cooking. We committed to reducing the amount of oils we cooked with. It really hasn’t been super difficult and we’re now 90% oil free. We were never big sugar users to begin with, so, that part was easy. Having said that, almost all packaged foods have some form of sugar in them. We had to take a hard look at what we were buying and pare that back, drastically.
I am a huge eater; HUGE. And, I eat until I am completely full. When I feel like having a snack, I get one; minus the guilt. So long as I am eating WFPBV, I never go hungry and I never feel guilty about what I’m eating.
I haven’t seen overnight success; however, I have seen some very encouraging events. My blood sugar is lower with less effort. There’s less stress surrounding what I eat, how much I eat, and when. I’ve found that food really did taste better once I stopped overstimulating my taste buds with lots of oils, sugars, and processed foods. It is amazing how sweet fruit really is!
We’ve just begun this journey. So, my body is clearing out years of bad choices. My cholesterol actually went up at first even though my A1C stabilized. As I lose weight and my body rights itself, the numbers will begin to drop further and come more in line. Also, the more I incorporate a natural way of eating, the more my body will respond. It has already begun.
The next hurdle we will be confronting is that of moving more. It has been proven time and time again. Though all the experts will tell you the same thing, I don’t need an expert to tell me. I’ve tracked it with an almost religious fervor in the past. The results are crystal clear. Moving more, even gentle strolls, has an immediate and profound effect. I have seen this drop my blood sugar by 100+ points in a single day before. Given the busy way of life we all have, it can be difficult to have the drive and time to maintain any type of physical pursuit regimen. So, we will be looking at changing our rituals and cornerstone habits that surround these resistant tendencies. We’ll be posting updates about that; meanwhile, feel free to check out the articles on Rituals and Cornerstone Habits.
The transition is a personal experience. There is no right or wrong way to do it. If you’re interested, dip your toe in the water. Some easy suggestions would be:
- Go for incorporating a “Meatless Monday” into your week.
- Start including more whole foods. The more of those you eat, the less room there is for the stuff that will hurt you.
- Above all, educate yourself on the effects that your current diet is having on your body. Treat it well, and it will return the favor! When you take a look at studies, don’t just take them at their word. Take a look at who funded the study. Is it really a blind study? Are they, for example, touting that chicken is a better choice than carbs according to their study when their study pitted chicken against sugar coated chocolate? (Yes. It exists.) Does that study that you found showing that eggs are a fantastic food actually cover a long period of time or is it short term? Who funded it? Is it unbiased? In short, try to follow the solid science. One of the best and easiest sources I’ve found is NutritionFacts.org. Dr. Greger dissects all the studies to bring the facts out in a digestible way.
Be sure to check out the article about how WFPBV helps the environment, here.
Information Curated From These Resources:
[Video file]. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.forksoverknives.com/the-film/
FACLM, M. (2019, April 03). The Best Diet for Diabetes. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://nutritionfacts.org/video/the-best-diet-for-diabetes/
Barnard, N. D., & Grogan, B. C. (2017). Dr. Neal Barnard’s program for reversing diabetes: The scientifically proven system for reversing diabetes without drugs. New York: Rodale.
Esselstyn, C. B. (2011). Prevent and reverse heart disease: The revolutionary, scientifically proven, nutrition-based cure. New York: Avery.
AUM Films & Media (Director). (2020, April 15). [Video file]. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://vimeo.com/ondemand/whatthehealth
[Video file]. (2019, April 01). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.netflix.com/title/80033772
Foods That Cure Diseases [Video file]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.amazon.com/Foods-That-Disease-Colin-Campbell/dp/B07DQ7W2R8
ORNISH, D. (2020). UNDO IT! HOW SIMPLE LIFESTYLE CHANGES CAN REVERSE MOST CHRONIC DISEASES. NEW YORK: BALLANTINE.
