FOOD!

[Faust]

Haha, it's all good. Also, I forgot the most important caveat, which would've made the whole argument unnecessary perhaps - "It depends on each individual's organism. I have met plenty of former vegetarians turned meat-eaters on doctors orders and who have felt healthier."

[Dorje]

It depends on each individual's organism.

I'd agree with this, everyone will react differently to diet and some people seem to be able to live without eating meat with no problems, others can not. And sometimes things change with people, my mom was a vegetarian her whole life... but as she grew older it stopped working for her as well as it used to. She needed to start eating meat in her mid 50's, it was recommended by more than one doctor and has helped her maintain strength.

I tried to be veg for 6 months and it was not a good change for me, my blood sugar was not stable.

[Ahimsa]

I wouldn't recommend asking doctors about what you should and shouldn't eat, that's the job of a dietitian. Doctors don't receive that much information about nutrition and how it correlates to health in school so a good deal of what they might know about nutrition is usually self-taught. I had one tell me I need to make sure I'm combining proteins, which is pretty much considered a myth at this point, even though it was listed in my college nutrition textbook

I know a doctor who was told to go meatless due to his pancreatic cancer by a dietitian. When it cleared up a doctor told him he could now start to slowly put meat back in his diet. It came back and when he went meatless again it disappeared again. (This is an anecdote obviously. I'm just pointing out an instance of a food knowledge/ doctor knowledge clash as each person has very specific needs.)

tl;dr - Talk to a dietitian about what you should be putting in your body instead of depending on a doctor completely or at least have them work together to create a plan that works best for you. (Not all dietitians are good for your needs due to education/biases so pick wisely. I obviously have a bias towards a meatless diet.)

[Chinorlz]

I wouldn't recommend asking doctors about what you should and shouldn't eat, that's the job of a dietitian. Doctors don't receive that much information about nutrition and how it correlates to health in school so a good deal of what they might know about nutrition is usually self-taught. I had one tell me I need to make sure I'm combining proteins, which is pretty much considered a myth at this point, even though it was listed in my college nutrition textbook

I know a doctor who was told to go meatless due to his pancreatic cancer by a dietitian. When it cleared up a doctor told him he could now start to slowly put meat back in his diet. It came back and when he went meatless again it disappeared again. (This is an anecdote obviously. I'm just pointing out an instance of a food knowledge/ doctor knowledge clash as each person has very specific needs.)

tl;dr - Talk to a dietitian about what you should be putting in your body instead of depending on a doctor completely or at least have them work together to create a plan that works best for you. (Not all dietitians are good for your needs due to education/biases so pick wisely. I obviously have a bias towards a meatless diet.)

I know it is anecdotal, but can you talk a bit more about this? Even diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is typically a very late stage thing where there isn't much to be done... even with complex operations, 5 year survival is quite low... unless it was found incidentally and at an early stage (ie- lucky).

Then having it come back/go away due to diet change (any chemo/radiation treatment in tandem?) is curious.

[Ahimsa]

/\ Unfortunately I don't know that much more about the situation. I think he was given along the lines of 2-3 months to live. He was talked into treatment, but he did the vegan thing as a last ditch effort. It went into remission but after beginning to eat meat again it came back.

[fncyths]

My question to you folks is this: If you eat meat, would you be willing to take the Pepsi challenge? If you chose the meatless product and actually enjoyed it, could you see yourself replacing meat with it? For the vegetarians, do you eat meat substitutes? Do you feel like processed soy and gluten is really a healthy option?

A little late to the game on this one. I did do somewhat of this challenge. Actually what inspired it was Stefan Sagmesiter's Ted Talk : The Power of Time Off

I decided to do a full purge / sabbatical if you will. Completely put all my belongings in storage. Sold off most of unneeded wardrobe, and moved to Puerto Escondido Mexico and lived/worked at a vegetarian/vegan hostel for about 4 months. That experience probably belongs in another thread so I'll just stick to my dietary habits.

I do eat meat, but am considerate of my seasonal intake. When I began substituting seitan and tofu I did notice a change in my body. One of the vegan chefs I lived with never used substitutes, she got me into other types of proteins that were available to us (assortment of beans, and grains) I felt healthier and my body was happier when I didn't use meat substitutes. She also turned me on to the Ayurvedic diet and I noticed that when I ate food that pertained to my particular dosha type my overall appearance looked "healthier" (skin, eyes, hair...)

Now that I'm back in states I'm exploring more about Ayurvedic practices. As with anything, I think it's about moderation. I do still eat meat, and from time to time will eat meat substitutes, but what I'm focusing more on is being in tune to what my body needs, like pretty much whatever lionlimb decides to jam from her garden , and this:

[Faust]

Can anyone recommend a gourmet food shops in Florence (I know Batalli had opened an Eataly branch there, any others?), and some vegetarian/fish friendly restaurants? Thank you.

[Faust]

Just wanted to bring to everyone's attention a gem of a restaurant in Helsinki, should you ever find yourself there (which I guess you won't).

http://chefetsommelier.fi/en/

Fantastic new nordic cuisine, intimate space, passionate staff. Really one of the most enjoyable meals I've had in my life. Reserve well in advance.

[LelandJ]

/\ Unfortunately I don't know that much more about the situation. I think he was given along the lines of 2-3 months to live. He was talked into treatment, but he did the vegan thing as a last ditch effort. It went into remission but after beginning to eat meat again it came back.

He was probably eating industrial meat which is toxic.

When you live in a big city it's difficult to find meat from pastured and healthy livestock unless you can afford to eat out in expensive restaurants all the time.

Big part of my diet now is ground wild elk, makes grass-fed beef too inferior to eat. I also have a couple good friends who raise heritage chickens on open pasture that are delicious.

I used to love eating Pacific tuna, and raw otoro was a culinary pinnacle, but haven't been able to eat any for three years now. Daiichi contaminates enough of the Pacific and tuna bioaccumulates radionuclides from their position in the food chain.

[PoubelleMaBelle]

Chefs Fight for Songbird (Swallowed Whole)


worth it for this excerpt alone:

“...and to eat the flesh, the fat and its little bones hot, all together, is like being taken to another dimension.”

[Ahimsa]

Cocoron - NYC
-Soba and sake




Formosa Tea House - St. John's, Newfoundland
-Tea and buns