Oh my good god!

I was just two chapters into the book No More Bull! by Howard F. Lyman when I added it to my Amazon book list. If you thought that artery clogging and cancer causing were bad enough consequences of eating meat think again.

Lyman talks about the way that the US Government has lied and manipulated the public into thinking meat tainted with BSE is safe.

I had a friend who used to ask the waitresses if the burgers or whatever he ordered were BSE-free. I use to elbow him because really, do you think the waitress knows? But reading this book makes me wish I had been more concerned.

Lyman states that BSE is equivalent to Jakob-Creutzfeld Disease and that this disease (which can be caught from BSE) can be delayed in showing symptoms. So you could have ate one bad burger and get diagnose with JCD twenty years later!

He also states that all of that garbage about the muscle being safe because BSE is in the brain and spinal cord is just that, garbage. In the slaughtering of the animals this is all cross contaminated. Like he says, did all those Europeans that caught BSE really sit at home eating cow brains? Read the book. When you find out what meat is consistently tainted with it will turn your stomach. Ugh!

Plus, the BSE tests in the US are far from being state of the art. England and Japan test ever animal and do so with a much more sophisticated test. This is also at a lower cost overall. So why won’t the US and Canada follow suit? They likely don’t want to know that their animals are diseased.

Not to mention the effects it has on health. I just love this quote: “Thoughtlessly, we kill animals, cut them up, and consume them. It shouldn’t be surprising that there’s something equally violent and thoughtless about the way we cut ourselves up in the hopes of curing ourselves of the diseases caused by eating animals…The animals will have their revenge.”

When the meat that makes up so much of the Standard American Diet (SAD) is subsidized and protected by your Government even at the expense of health and security it really makes you wonder if this is really just a slow execution.

The meat and dairy industry must make a fortune in order for the governments to keep encouraging us all to eat meat even when our hospitals are filled with poeople suffering from diseases and cancers associated with meat and dairy products.

I won’t go into this a whole lot right now because I have beat this drum a hundred times already. Just look at some of my posts on The China study.

Anyway, some food for thought…and there’s lots to think about here.

Tomorrow is World Vegetarian day.

 

There are many reasons that men, women and children decide to cut animal flesh out of their diets. These are the main ones:

 

1. Animal cruelty issues –factory farm operations (where most of your meat comes from) is often cramped, cruel and rampant with disease

 

2. Environmental issues –animal farming takes up way more resources than farming plant based stuff. By the time you factor in all the resources that go into feeding a cow and how much that cow actually feeds you, it ends up being a net loss of energy overall. It’s much better for the environment if we eat plants, which give much more energy per acre than a cow. Plus, less cattle production means less soil contamination in our veggies too. There are also large areas of trees that are being cleared to make more space for livestock productions. Eat an asparagus, save a tree!

 

3. Health issues –there are very few vegetarians that don’t notice a dramatic change in their health after giving up meat (and even more so when they give up eggs and dairy too). These include more vibrant hair, smoother skin, better eyesight, better hormone balance, better blood pressure, higher energy levels and better weight management. This has also helped some of our top athletes compete better too.

 

4. Financial issues –I think we all agree that meat and milk are bloody expensive. My grocery budget has remained the same since we stopped eating meat but having no meat or dairy in my grocery cart has allowed me to invest my dime into foods that are extra healthy for me, like extra fruits and veggies, organic produce, hemp protein powder, pure fruit juice and other yummy goodies like that.

 

5. Culinary reasons –I have always loved cooking! And when we went vegetarian and later vegan I had to rethink the way that I viewed vegetables on my plate. Instead of being the garnish beside my chicken breast they have become my main masterpiece! There is a whole new world of food and flavors out there to be discovered, especially in ethnic cuisines.

 

I implore you to give vegetarianism a chance. The earth, your body, the animals, your wallet and your taste buds will thank you!

 Peta.com has a story on their main page about cats. They claim that all cats should remain indoors since there are so many dangers in urban areas. I guess there is a feline form of AIDS that street cats are prone to getting which can cause their teeth to fall out etc. See the article here: http://www.helpinganimals.com/animalsHome_cats_indoors.asp

I thought that the main reason that veg*ns are against caging animals (in circuses etc.) is because the animals don’t get a choice in the matter. It represses natural instincts and behaviours.

With dogs it is very clear that the relationship has mutual benefits. I can tell that my dogs adore being near me. Not only that but dogs can thrive off of vegan dog food. Cats cannot and must be served meat. I don’t like the idea of buying meat at all. Hence, I don’t own a cat.

I do however, own a hamster. I haven’t decided how I feel about that. I think I would have made a different decision now but our little Hammie has already been with us for over a year and I wouldn’t dispose of him now. We have bought Hammie a bunch of tunnels and he even has a burrow. However, he isn’t able to reproduce and rarely eats greens. I don’t know how different Hammie’s life would be if he were in the wild (not here in Alberta but where his species actually originates) since they seem to do little more than sleeping and eating but, in my home, he is at least always warm, always fed and is always safe from predators. He still doesn’t have a choice in his habitat and that makes me wonder whether domesticating animals is “vegan” in theory.

What do you readers think of this issue?

How do you feel about buying cat food that has meat in it?

How do you feel about repressing the natural instincts of animals through domestication?

How do you feel about letting animals suffer on the streets or be killed in overfilled shelters because you worry about the above issues too much?

Do you think that repression of natural instincts (like hunting or breeding) is less important than compromising the safety of the animal?

My personal feeling is that buying from pet stores at all is very wrong. I think if you want to have a companion animal you can help animals and society in general by going to a pound or a shelter. These animals are animals that NEED a good home. When you buy from a pet store or a breeder you are only adding to the problem of animal overpopulation and to animal cruelty. The more you buy from pet stores, the more you’ll contribute to animal breeding and in some cases even puppy mills.

Many pet stores (Peta had an article on Petsmart) will not provide adequate care to small animals because the vet bills are too expensive. And euthanasia is too expensive as well. So sick small pets (the ones they hide in the back), end up suffering from diseases or injury until they die.

Support your local shelter. That is, in my opinion, the vegan choice! You save a life and support a humane industry!

I am sorry that this post is coming to you so late. I have been having difficulty finding a topic to talk about this week. I want to encourage readers to offer suggestions for upcoming article ideas. It’s not easy trying to find something to write about that I haven’t already covered. If I receive questions from readers I will strive to find the answers and relay them back the best that I can.

Who hasn’t seen the advertisements in magazines and schools asking you if you have “Got Milk?” The dairy industry has a strong lobby, a positive message and government support. But are they right?

Milk is far from being an essential part of your breakfast.

Let’s explore the reasons to give milk the boot.

Reason #1 to give up milk forever: Calcium not well absorbed

Milk has a high fat and protein content. The latest research is showing that the high fat and protein content of milk is impeding the absorption of calcium in our bodies. Sure, there is calcium  in our milk but what good will it do if our bodies can’t absorb it. Robert Cohen, the author of Milk The Deadly Poison states that the countries who drink the most milk have alarmingly high rates of osteoporosis. Isn’t that what milk is supposed to prevent? New research is pointing to plant based sources of calcium as being better absorbed by our bodies. So Almond milk, fortified orange juice, kale or other leafy greens would be better substitutes.

If you are drinking milk for the protein then you can drink soy milk instead. Cow’s milk isn’t a natural source of Vitamin D either. The Vitamin D is added and plant based milks can have added Vitamin D too.

Reason #2 to give up milk forever: Vitamin D issues

In the book The China Study, T. Colin Campbell PHD states that although Vitamin D continues to be synthesized in the body it become inhibited by animal proteins and therefore cannot fulfill the tasks it needs to. Tasks like stopping the spread of cancerous cells etc.

Reason #3 to give up milk forever: Pus

When cows that has mastitis, which is an infection in the milk-duct caused by a variety of things like not being milked frequently enough or from dirt, she doesn’t get taken off the production line. She continues to be milked, and when she is, pus gets expressed at the same time. Yummy!

Sure, everything is pasteurized so there shouldn’t be concern about bacteria but would you want to drink even sterile pus?

Not only that, but those infections in people are very painful and to be milked by a machine under those circumstances would undoubtedly be excruciating. This is also an animal rights issue!

Reason #4 to give up milk forever: Antibiotics

To treat or prevent mastitis, as well as other diseases incurred from living in close quarters to each other, the cows are given antibiotics. These antibiotics find their way into the milk that we drink. Antibiotics are great in certain instances but a daily dose is hardly recommended. Some scientists are starting to question the link between milk and antibiotic resistance.

Reasons #5 to give up milk forever: Hormones

In western countries we are seeing the effects of hormones in our meat and milk: early puberty! I used to think that this was just because of the growth hormones (rBGH made by Monsanto) but when I found out that we don’t allow rBGH in Canada I had to come to a different conclusion. There are natural hormones in milk that may have an impact. Or maybe early puberty etc. is just a result of the hormones injected in beef.

Either way, hormones aren’t meant for us to be carelessly ingesting. To be fair, there are phytoestrogens in soy products that are known to mimic estrogen. I never advise anyone to eat more than one serving of soy per day.

Reason #6 to give up milk forever: Lactose intolerance

On Food and Cooking states that most people in the world are lactose intolerant. We, in the Western/Northern world have trained ourselves to drink milk. But our bodies don’t digest it very well. And if you’re not convinced that your body knows best then think about this: The only specie in the world to drink milk past infancy is humans. Not only that, but we steal the milk of other animals. Picture a person sucking on a cow’s teat and I think you get the picture. Milk is for babies! There is a reason that adults/humans are allergic to it. And speaking of milk being for babies. The babies of those cows don’t even get to have that milk because we are drinking it. The babies who deserve the milk go on formula while we drink their milk. Milk that is causing an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. Milk that suppresses our immune systems. Why do we do this?

Reason #7 to give up milk forever: Animal cruelty

I have written about this before so I will try to be brief. The short and long of it is that cows have to lug around enormous amounts of milk all day and night. They are only milked twice a day, whereas a calf would drink many times in a day. This lack of milking increases their risk of getting Mastitis. A painful milk-duct infection. The milking of the cows that have these infections is very painful too.

The life expectancy of a normal cow in a natural environment is about 25 years. A milk cow has a life expectancy of six years. They also carry up to 40 lbs of milk more than a natural cow would have to.

These cows are also kept pregnant back to back to keep their milk flow going. As someone who has had three children close together I can attest to how exhausting bearing children is. Nursing in exhausting too. The calves born to these cows may or may not get to have their mother’s colostrum. If they do, they only get milk for a few days maximum. Then they are sorted. The female calves are put on formula and raised to be dairy cows. The males are either raised as veal, which most people know is a very short and very cruel life, or they are thrown into dog food grinders.

This is your dairy industry.

Reason #8 to give up milk forever: Chronic diseases and cancers

Campbell (in The China Study) has spent over 40 years proving that casein, the milk protein, causes accelerated growth of cancer cells and helps to increase the progression of many diseases and chronic problems such as Multiple Sclerosis, diabetes, arthritis etc.

Also, the rats and mice in his trials that were given a lower dose of protein than is commanly found in western diets were healthier, exhibited more energy and vitality and lived longer.

Conclusion:

We are seeing more and more articles sneaking into the media about the new research being done to disprove the lies we have been told about milk. Lies like how it’s good and nutritious for us. Lies like how it will reduce our risk of osteoporosis etc.

While it’s hard to find all the pieces to the puzzle there is a picture starting to emerge. Will we take this information and learn from it or will we continue to make decisions that affect the quality of life of our children, ourselves and the animals?

 

Resources:

Books by Robert Cohen: Milk: The Deadly Poison and Milk A-Z

High dairy in childhood linked with cancer risk: http://in.reuters.com/article/health/idINCOL97457320071219

Milk not best for bones: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7115733

A variety of perspectives in this PETA site (at the bottom of this site is a bunch of links to good articles from reputable sources): http://www.milksucks.com/index2.asp

Dairy linked with Parkinson’s in Men: http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Dairy-linked-with-Parkinsons-in-men/2007/04/20/1176697046523.html

Dairy causes dementia: http://news.scotsman.com/ViewArticle.aspx?articleid=3285459

Fit Kids (By the Canadian Heart and stroke Foundation) states an increase in childhood stroke from drinking more than two cups (500 ml) a day.

There are a pile of YouTube videos. Some of the ones I have seen and think are worth passing on are:

* About the rBGH in milk and the cover up involved (very good): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZkDikRLQrw

* Interview with Robert Cohen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYpafipJyDE

* Cute but more animal rights than anything(28  reasons not to drink milk): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBBFTpTMUbc&feature=related

Here is a big one that I struggle with.

Should Vegans support or oppose the Zoo?

When it comes to rodeos it’s pretty easy. Animals are damaged and exploited for the sake of nothing more important than entertainment. But the Zoo educates and allows adults and children to develop an awareness and appreciation for animals. We went on July 1 to the Zoo for my son’s birthday and we thought it was a great experience. We got fresh air and sunshine. We had an opportunity to see animals that we don’t see in this country and learn some new factoids.

On the other hand we contributed to the imprisonment of animals and possibly their emotional suffering.

I often wonder if there is a balance. I know in my heart that imprisoning animals against their will and far away from their natural environment is not right, but, what if they are protected and fed, and what if the Zoo genuinely strives to offer them a decent environment to exercise and be stimulated?

What if it brings appreciation for these creatures and enables the general populace to become more sympathetic towards them and care about their protection from exploitation in the wild? Like the people who are outraged about seal clubbing or the slaughter of elephants for ivory.

Does that outweigh the harm? There are animals that seem to thrive in the Zoo but there are others who don’t.

I don’t know what the right answer in this case is but I doubt that anyone can negate that my son being given the opportunity to pet goats and sheep and rabbits will reinforce our (and his) resolve to not eat animals. It’s much easier to eat the steak if you never get to pet the cow. Right?

Ok, I was bored tonight so I went on the PETA website. If truth be told I was actually going on there to see if it was time to vote for the sexiest vegetarian of the year. Alas, it doesn’t seem to be. This is the only time I even do anything remotely close to this. I just like seeing the long, long list of names for veg*n actors, athletes, singers and all the other famous people.

But while I was there I started checking out the newest animal rights issues.

PETA is taking on the Canadian Fur Council right now. I wrote to the CFC a while back because I was appalled by their full page ad in the National Post about how fur is the eco-friendly choice for winter wear. What?!?

They wrote back to me (enough to fill a book by the way) about how it is eco-friendly. Cause you know, synthetic, cruelty-free fabrics are made from petroleum products. Well, maybe they are overlooking a major fact. To condition fur or leather so that it doesn’t rot (as all animal remains naturally do) they have to be conditioned with very potent, very toxic chemicals. These tanneries aren’t even allowed to exist within communities because they pollute water supplies and the environment around them. After I found out what they use to tan leather I really felt sick about the leather couch we bought before we became vegetarians. Ever since we became veg I felt guilty about owning a big leather couch (I thought about getting rid of it but I couldn’t see how that would atone for those cows anyways) and then when I found out the toxins on the leather I felt contaminated!

So the eco-friendly (socially responsible) choice for fashionable wear is dead animal skin? Just so we are clear, there has been a group of Canadians that have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau on the grounds that it’s wrong for the CFC to use the eco-friendly claim to bolster sales when that claim is far from true. That is what the campaign is really addressing.

I am so glad that PETA is taking these jerks on! You can see some of what they’re up to here: http://blog.peta.org/archives/2008/04/is_the_canadian.php

You can send a letter of protest here (just fill your name in): http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/fur_council_canada

PETA has also been working hard on the animal testing front. I have a blog entry from a while back where I address animal testing. You can check that out if you are unsure about the controversy of animal testing, mainly about how it is often unnecessary because it doesn’t affect outcomes or drugs, products etc. Another reinforcement of that idea would be the countless rodents who died in lab tests to prove that aspartame is indeed not safe and yet it’s in everything! Same thing with cosmetics. Anyways…just read it if you want to get the scoop.

I have one rant for today: Margarine!

Margarine has always felt wrong to me but I didn’t know why until, about two years ago, I was reading Dr. Ogi Ressel’s book entitled Kids-First: Health with No Interference.Dr. Ressel is a father of three, a chiropractor, a researcher, a lecturer and a pediatric and x-ray expert, living in Ontario. He has also been a staff writer in Alive magazine (which I highly recommend) and Canada’s Healthy Living Guide magazine.

I have never been able to find a copy of this book on Amazon but here is the link from the publisher: http://www.longlifecatalogs.com/SHOP/STORE/viewItem.asp?idProduct=211

It’s a great book and it has great information about behavioural drugs and asthma and anything pertaining to children’s health. The part I want to talk about today is what he says about margarine.

Margarine seems OK in theory but it is its processing that makes it unhealthy. Vegetable oils are heated to very high temperatures which causes the oils to become rancid. Dr. Ressel then says that a Nickle catalyst is added with hydrogen atoms to solidify this rancid oil garbage. Then deodorants and colourants are added to take the smell away and make the grey solid turn into that lovely, appetizing cream colour.

The solidification process causes harmful trans-fat acids to be formed. These are carcinogenic, mutagenic and difficult for the body to digest.

Dr. Ressel states that once finished, margarine is one molecule away from being plastic. We’re supposed to store food in Tupperware containers not spread it on our toast! He also issues a challenge. He says that if you don’t believe him you can leave a container of margarine out in your garage and even after months it won’t have changed. Flies won’t eat it and bacteria won’t grow on it. Does this sound like something you want to be ingesting?

I was looking on the Alive website today and they had an interesting statement. Trans fatty acid content does not have to be disclosed on labels in the US or Canada. Hydrogenated oils and trans fatty acids are included as polyunsaturated fats (the source material) so that manufacturers can maintain saturated fat-free claims for their products. So the whole idea of margarine being better for you is total garbage. You can read the article here: http://www.alive.com/3631a4a2.php

The article also states that margarine will increase your levels of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and lower your levels of “good” cholesterol (HDL).

Butter on the other hand is a much more suitable spread/cooking medium as it is stable at high temperatures. Alive magazine as well as many other resources state that butter and coconut oil are the most stable frying oils. Olive oil ranks really well as well but canola oil and most other inexpensive oils will begin to develop carginogens due to the heat way before they fry much of anything. So in low temperatures they are OK (as in vinaigrettes) but I don’t bother stocking them at all. The processing makes a difference in the quality and health factor of the oil and since they don’t usually specify the methods of extraction on these oils, I don’t buy them. When cooking you’ll want to use a virgin or extra-virgin olive oil that has been cold pressed (or unrefined) or you can use butter.

Butter also has stores of vitamins, minerals, fatty acids and cholesterol. Although a diet high in cholesterol is bad for you, a little butter won’t be harmful in a properly balanced diet. In fact, children need fats in their diets and as a vegetarian family, fats are never a concern.

I do try to use butter as little as possible and substitute all I can for oils. This is only because dairy farms are big contributors to animal suffering. After all, your veal comes from the males calves of dairy cows. Dairy farms have no use for male calves and since they can’t be milked they are either chopped up into dog food in their infancy or raised in tiny crates for veal.

One more thing to add about aspartame from Dr. Ressel’s book, he writes: Methanol, from aspartame, is released in the small intestine when the methyl groups of aspartame encounters the enzyme clymotrypsin.

Free methanol begins to form in liquid aspartame-containing products (ie. pop, juices etc.) at temperatures above 86 degrees F also within the human body which is at 98.6 degrees F.

The methanol is then converted to formaldehyde. The formaldehyde converts to formic acid, an ant sting poison. He goes on to say that toxic formic acid is used to strip epoxy and eurothane coatings and that it can’t be good to be ingesting it. That only accounts for 10% of aspartame’s toxicity! There are other parts of aspartame mentioned in his book that are even worse than what is mentioned in the excerpt above.

On to some positive stuff. One of these days I will talk about all the good things hidden in our fruits and veggies but that is much too much work for today.

I will talk about seaweed though. Seaweed is a power house of many amazing minerals. It is chlorophyll-rich and one of the best sources of electrolytes! Brendan Brazier states in his bookThe Thrive Diet that they have 10 times the calcium of cow’s milk and several times more iron than red meat.

My favorite way to eat seaweed in is sushi! I love avocado sushi but you can add anything from veganaise, carrots, cucumbers, mushrooms, sprouts, lettuce, peppers, anything you can think of. I have even tried tofu slices wrapped in arrowroot powder and fried in olive oil (see your health food grocer for arrowroot powder). They make a decent substitue for fried shrimp.

I found a website with good instructions for rolling sushi. See it here: http://sushiday.com/archives/2006/10/26/how-to-roll-maki-sushi/ 

The only thing I want to add to these instructions is that I always use water to seal the flap that end the sushi roll. It helps to keep your sushi roll from falling apart. Then make sure to use a really low sodium soy sauce (the regular stuff tastes too salty and detracts from the sushi) and some wasabi (you’ll find it on the shelf beside the nori sheets but it must be refrigerated after opening). Yumm…wasabi! I know what I am making for lunch!

I am including two rice recipes.

Traditional white sushi rice:

This is much easier than it looks. You basically just do a 1:2 ratio of sushi rice and water. I use one and a half to two cups of rice and that makes about six rolls. You are supposed to rinse the rice until all the water runs clear. I often forget this step. Oops. The sushi rice is important because other types of rice will stay dry and won’t stick together very well. Aged rice is even better.

Cook until the rice is tender, sticky and the water is all gone. While the rice is cooking you want to combine 5tbsp of rice vinegar, 3 tbsp of sugar and 2 tbsp of salt. You heat that until the sugar is all dissolved and then let cool.

Once the rice is cooked you transfer it to a large wooden bowl or a large ceramic bowl will do and use a spatula constantly dipped in the rice vinegar mix to separate the grains of rice. Let cool until at room temperature. I have often let sit in the fridge a bit when I am in a hurry. The recipe is derived from the book SUSHI made easy and my own experiences making sushi.

Then follow the instructions for rolling your sushi in the link above!

Brown rice:

The instructions are pretty much the same as the recipe for white rice but the recipe urges you not to refrigerate. I imagine this would make the rice quite dry.

This recipe is derived from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch and I haven’t tried it yet.

You can also add other forms of seaweed (such as arame) into miso soups and rice dishes.

Here’s to slimmer waist lines, good food and great health!

Oh man, well my husband and I talked it over and decided to bring cheese back into the house. We have both eaten it while at friend’s homes but haven’t actually bought any yet. I don’t know that I actually will buy it but may rather just leave the cheese on my sandwiches etc. when I eat out.

I realize that that doesn’t make us vegan anymore (we were never 100% anyways because we refused to use margarine and so had to use butter for anything I couldn’t substitute with oil.

I have great guilt about this. I realize that the dairy farms slaughter many, many animals and that I am contributing to that. But on the other hand I have come a long way from last year and I don’t think I should be too hard on myself for having a hard time breaking the addiction to cheese. I don’t eat eggs if I can help it (as in I don’t badger my friends if they offer me cake) and I don’t eat meat or gelatin or wear leather or wool. I don’t drink milk or eat yogurt but I have a weakness for the cheese. Besides I can’t stop my husband from eating cheese if he wants to. I want him to embrace his vegetarian lifestyle, not feel restricted by it. So far he is quite happy without meat and constantly says he couldn’t go back to eating meat but the vegan thing is harder for him. He loves the puddings and ice cream and cheese and milk and such. I am hoping that with time he will stop craving it and we can keep our home fully vegan.

I am also cautious because of our toddlers. I know that a vegan diet is very low in fat but my babes are young enough that they need a high-fat diet and it’s easier to get those calories in if they can have milk and cheese.

Before I started worrying about animal rights I worried about the health of my kids. I started reading and watching documentaries and soon realized that there is no regulatory body that regulates the safety of products sold in stores. Not only are our home cleaners, shampoos, soaps and laundry detergents increasing our rates of cancer, asthma attacks and other respiratory problems, it is also destroying our environment. You know that disgusting sterile smell you get when you clean your house? I don’t get that. Mine smells like tea tree oil! It’s a fresh smell that gives me peace of mind about what is being inhaled by my kids. We have anything chemical stored outside of the house (as is recommended Canadian Medical Association).

I could write a well referenced book on this but here is an ultra basic intro to the topic.

Whenever we let chemicals like Tide, Clorox, Windex and so on  run down into our sewers (and unless you clean EVERYTHING with paper towel you do. Except then it ends up in the garbage which is no better) we are contributing to dead lakes, acid rain and other water and plant problems.

But what if you could use a eco-friendly cleaner which, as a bonus, won’t poison your kids? There are many options out there. Some grocery stores are starting to carry green products and there is usually a wide variety of these products in health food stores (HFS). Here is a list of what I use:

Dish-soap: Seventh Generation (HFS, Save On) 

Dishwasher soap: Ecover tablets (Save On)

Laundry soap: Biovert (HFS)

Fabric softener: I have one of those reusable fabric ones. It’s pretty good (HFS).

Stain remover: I don’t know how natural this is but it’s a bar of soap in the laundry isle called Sunlight (not the same brand). Anyways it works well and I get it at Save On

I still have some products from Melaleuca left. They make pretty decent stuff.

Cosmetics (and other personal care products) contain a variety of bad chemical compounds such as formaldehyde and many known carcinogens such as parabens. There is a website (http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/splash.php?URI=%2Findex.php ) that lists the potential dangers of the various brands of mascara, lipstick etc. They rate them on scale of which are potentially more harmful than others.

Natural cosmetics (although not always vegan) are made from natural mild products such as beeswax and herbs. The colours come from natural sources too. You often have to try a few before you find one that works for you.

Here are the ones I like:

Toothpaste: Auromere -Herbal Ayurvedic formula. The JASON brand is good too and the Beaver one (green apple is pretty good too) (HFS)

Shampoo and conditioner: Prairie Naturals (HFS)

Deodorant (his and hers): earthscience liken plant unscented (HFS)

Mascara: Ecco Bella -flowercolor (HFS)

Facial cleanser: derma e Vanilla Bean Cleansing Mousse (their Microdermabrasion is really great too) (HFS)

Shaving (for men): Herban Cowboy (pucks) (HFS, Superstore)

Most of my makeup, moisturizers and so on are residual from my Melaleuca days. I haven’t had the need to find replacements yet.

I also make my own bug spray. It’s made with water, a variety of essential oils including citronella and eucalyptus. I can post the recipe if anyone wants it.

Cosmetics etc. are heavily reliant on animal testing. Did you know that they will smear products on the eyes of mice just so they can write “to avoid contact with eyes” on the label? Did you know that these rodents and dogs and whatever other animal they choose to test upon will spend weeks in pain from the blistering caused by products placed on their bare skin for hours on end? Did you know that this is vain? If a bad reaction is found in animals it doesn’t make the product unsuitable for the marketplace but rather just forces them to put a warning on the label? Animal testing in cosmetics and personal care products save no human lives! The products pass regardless. Why couldn’t we allow testing on humans instead? I would be willing to give my arm up for a skin irritation test so that animals didn’t live everyday of their unusually short lives in pain.

Buying products that have natural products and that has not been tested on animals is not only healthier but also more compassionate. Although it is still a grey area as some companies (like the Body Shop (which is not even considered a natural product)) will not test their products on animals but will buy materials that have been tested on animals by the seller. That doesn’t make a product humane if it’s ingredients were involved in the suffering of animals. Also the Body Shop is owned by Loreal and they do test on animals! Peta.com has a list that you can print off and leave in your purse. It lists the companies that have adhered to Peta’s restrictions on animal testing. http://caringconsumer.com/resources_companies.asp

Babies are a major source of waste. Diapers and wipes alone make up an astronomical amount of waste! Not only that but the safety of diapers are still up for debate. I never buy wipes (even when we go camping). I buy packages of those baby bath cloths and use those as wipes. I have a container filled with water and I just moisten them before use. They actually work better than the wipes because their texture allows them to grab and scrub much better than those soft wimpy wipes. And there are no chemicals as I wash then in all natural, eco-friendly detergent. 

I like doing cloth diapers but they are becoming more and more work. My kids are getting bigger bladders and that means I am dealing with a lot more leaks than I used to when they were smaller.

However, cloth diapers are the best eco choice (coupled with a eco-friendly detergent).

As I mentioned is an earlier post, I was reading The Vegan Sourcebook by Joanne Stepaniak M.S.ED. It’s a truly solid book with lots of information on the many MANY aspects of Veganism. I thought I would publish their definition of the word Vegan on my blog for all to see.

“Veganism is an ethic that is committed to reverence and respect for all life and the planet that sustains it. Veganism brings with it the joy of living with peace of spirit, and the comfort of knowing that one’s thoughts, feelings, words and actions have a strong benevolent effect on the world.”

The book also includes a code of Vegan ethics which covers, but is not limited to, being sensitive to suffering (this includes human and non-human), valuing the uniqueness of ALL life forms (in my opinion living and non-living). Therefore Vegans shouldn’t disregard the exploitation of resources going towards over-consumerism.

It is also included in the code to never use violence (and I think throwing red paint on people qualifies as violence), withholding support from companies/people who treat animals poorly, choosing clothes and any other products that do not compromise the life or quality of life of living creatures, and advocate against testing and the using of animals as experimental or educational materials.

I, myself, think that being Vegan is about living in harmony with the earth. Do unto others as you would have done unto you. I don’t believe that animals are created for us to eat, wear, sit on and beat on. I think every creation of God is a miracle and has a purpose other than to be preyed upon by humans.

Before the fall, Adam and Eve were given seed bearing plants to be their food and even after they sinned, God didn’t give them loin cloths to cover their nakedness but rather fig leaves. I think that eating and exploiting animals has become a concession to our sins (much like divorce). I know many Christians don’t see it that way but the Holy Spirit (commonly known as a conscience) tells ME (me…not everyone as a whole) that eating animals and the cruelty that they endure in their life and death is wrong or, dare I say it, a sin?

The Vegan Sourcebook talks about the five different kinds of compassion. Here they are in brief.

1. Linear Compassion: How we react to those who are close to us. Your sibling, spouse, parent, friend etc.

2. Parallel Compassion: How we react to people like us. Based on a similar interest like religion, race, colour, hobbies etc.

3.  Perpendicular Compassion: How we react towards another species that is close to you (mostly cultural). Feeling bad for a beaten dog or a dead cat even if they aren’t your own.

4. Circular Compassion: How we react to species that we have no contact with. For example, feeling bad about battered chickens or lobotomized monkeys.

5. Spherical Compassion: Feeling compassion towards ALL people and species. Those connected to us and those that aren’t. “This is the essence of Veganism.”