The second reason was the environmental impact. Cows that are herbivores, meaning they are meant to eat grass, are fed corn; this is a technique used to help the cows grow fatter, quicker all the while keeping them in restricted and tight areas. The problem that presents itself is in turn they need to be injected with hormones and antibiotics to ward off disease and other issues that come with altering the natural ways and habits of these animals. Outside of the quality and treatment of these cows being inhumane, the feces of the thousands and thousands animals are then washed into our water ways infecting them with all of the antibiotics and hormones the cows were given. This is just one example of this kind of treatment and environmental impact.

So, when I read about the initiative to get families, friends and essentially anyone who wants to get on board to stop eating meat for all meals one day a week, I knew I had to help spread the word. The goal of MeatlessMondays.com is to reduce meat consumption by 15 percent to improve our personal health as well as the health of our planet.

The other important note I wanted to add, in addition to encouraging us all to lower our meat consumption, is to ensure that when you are purchasing meat and poultry products, be aware of where it comes from. While packaging can sway you into thinking that what you are buying comes from picture-perfect farms with animals frolicking on the hills, this is certainly not the case. When possible, buy from a local farmer where you can see the farming practices used or even a local farmer’s market. Getting out of the supermarket and away from industrialized and processed foods is key.

Click here to make your pledge or via twitter (@dietsinreview). Whether you plan to go Meatless on Mondays or any day in the week, let’s all work to lower our animal consumption, and be more conscious of the meat we do purchase to help rid the practices currently in place.

Need some recipe ideas for your meatless day:

Pasta with zucchini and fresh tomatoes
Spinach stuffed pasta shells
Vegetarian rice casserole
Weight Watchers vegetarian chili

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

Start the Week with Meatless Monday

The new film by British filmmakers, PLANEAT: How to Feed a Planet, is an eye-opening look into how our love of meat and dairy is taking its toll on our health, environment and the planet.

Here is clip from PLANEAT.

Recent research has suggested that making small dietary changes, such as limiting the amount of meat consumed each week, can have drastic benefits. From reduced cancer risk to lessening the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, the consequences have the potential to be life and earth-changing.

PLANEAT features breakthrough research from scientists, doctors, and research and agriculture experts from around the world, all of whom connect the dots among the Western Diet, cancer and the devolving health of the planet. But rather than leaving you with your hands thrown up in the air in despair, PLANEAT calls on innovative chefs, researchers and scientists, whose simple yet creative solutions offer hope to those who feel like doomsday is just a cheeseburger away.

Since PLANEAT was produced independently and without any big movie funding, the film, which was an official selection at London’s 2009 Raindance Festival (the British version of the American Sundance Film Festival), it is only being shown at select locations upon the request of interested viewers like yourself.

If you would like to find out more about the film, visit the PLANEAT website where you can pledge to watch the movie, learn more about the addressed issues and participate in an interactive map of likeminded research institutes, restaurants, farms, organizations and shops from around the globe.

Also Read:

Omnivore’s Dilemma

Food Rules

Video: Michael Pollan’s 10 Questions

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

New Film PLANEAT Shows How the Way We Eat Affects Us and Planet

• Walk instead of taking the moving sidewalk. Or for a really great workout, cut your time short and sprint to your gate with all your luggage. Trust me, that is a workout!

• Pack your own healthy snacks and pass on the salted peanuts and spiced cookies. A small baggie of trail mix can easily fit in a carry on. The airline will provide water (or coffee if you had to get up as early as I did). Do not give in to the bright colors and temptations of McDonald’s, Cinnabon, or Starbucks at every gate.

• Avoid a stiff neck by lightly stretching and maintaining good posture. The better you feel, the more likely you are to make healthy choices. Move around as much as you can without disturbing your neighbors.

• Even while seated, you can work your muscles by flexing or doing light exercises. Belly dancing can provide many abdominal exercises that can be done under the discretion of a comfortable shirt. It’s also a good time to lightly work your glutes.

• Use the time in flight for some healthy reading and writing. Catch up on podcasts by Jillian Michaels or your favorite health expert. Read a new motivational or diet book, or learn more about the food industry.

• If you have a layover, utilize the time to walk through the concourses or do light exercises. Many airports have interesting sights and shopping; all have interesting people to watch. You can read your paper when you are stuck in your seat.

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

6 Ways to Stay Healthy at the Airport

• On average our food travels 1,500 miles from the farm to our plate

• Because of the long distances that food travels, we no longer eat with the seasons and therefore eat produce that does not provide our bodies with all their nutritional benefits

• Grocery stores now boast over 47,000 products to choose from – most of which can sit on shelves for weeks or even months

• In present day, four companies control more than 80% of our poultry and meat production

• 30% of U.S. land is fields of corn, most of which is used to feed cows because of how cheap it is and because it keeps cows fat. All of this despite the fact that cows should only eat grass

• In the 1970s the FDA conducted more than 50,000 food inspections a year, in 2006 there were only 9,000 inspections

• Kevin’s Law, while not currently passed into law by government, would empower the USDA to shut down any contaminated food plants. This would have helped the widespread salmonella outbreak  that occurred recently due to a contaminated peanut facility and could have helped prevent the many who became sick

• 1 in 3 Americans will contract diabetes

• While we have been programmed to think fast food is cheap food,  we will pay much higher health care costs from the consequences of eating this fast food

If you demand good, wholesome food, farmers will deliver. It is up to us to decide what food we want to be putting on our table. Eat in season, eat locally and plant a garden of your own. These are some of the best ways to help yourself be healthy, help your family be healthy, help your environment be healthy and help our animals be healthy, too.

If you are hungry for change, visit www.foodincmovie.com to learn more about how you can take part.

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

We are Still Hungry for Change with Food Inc.

The documentary-style feature shows how the majority of the food we consume is controlled in the hands of just a few giant food manufacturers whose sometimes deplorable and shocking processing practices have not only been hidden from the American consumer but have had the consent of the government’s two food regulatory bodies, the FDA and USDA.

The movie, which features interviews with In Defense of Food author Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser of Fast Food Nation, is more than just a jaw-dropping expose that graphically shows our food travels from farm (or machine) to fork, but it also motivates all of us to think twice before we order a hot dog at the baseball stadium, grab a box of sugar corn popped cereal or select a few tomatoes from our mass grocer for a summer salad.

As a Variety magazine movie critic commented, “Food Inc. does for the grocery store what Jaws did for the beach.”

What is equally compelling about the movie is that Food Inc. is part of a larger and growing movement to ensure more honesty in how our food is being grown, processed and manufactured. In addition, Food Inc. doesn’t just leave you feeling like the only way to safeguard your health is to grow your own garden, raise your own livestock and hull your own wheat. Accompanying the movie is a comprehensive take-action website that helps you become involved in the Hungry For Change movement. From no longer drinking sodas and other sweetened beverages to reading food labels, eating at home more and urging Congress to pass more food safety laws, Food Inc. empowers us with tools for change that you can start employing today.

Yes, it’s a terrying look into our nation’s food industry but Food Inc. is also an incredibly important movie that is worth every dollar of your $10 movie ticket. But you will probably want to forego the popcorn and post-movie burger and fries.

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

Food Inc. is Hungry For Change