Plant Based Pharmacist Success Stories
Empower Total Health Success Stories
'I lost 55 kilos by eating the food we’re often told to avoid'
Forks Over Knives Success Stories
Star Mcdougallers (those who have improved their health following Dr John McDougall’s program)
Food Choices focuses on how the food we consume affects not only our personal health, but that of the entire planet. Filmmaker Michal Siewierski takes an in-depth look at how the consumption of animal products has a long-lasting, negative effect on the earth’s biosphere. Not only does he report on facts relating to the unethical treatment of animals raised for human consumption, but he also addresses the addition of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and antibiotics to animal feed. This trickle-down effect results in the poisoning of both our bodies and the planet.
Food Choices features interviews with medical doctors, nutritionists, and fitness experts to provide factual data to support Siewierski’s stand that the wrong foods can cause more harm than good. This eye-opening documentary exposes common misconceptions about food and nutrition and explores how future generations can make more informed choices for sustainable food supplies not polluted with additives and chemicals.
On my Whole Food Plant-Based journey I, like many people, was searching for the definitive answers to many questions. I was searching for
In my research, I found the advice from Jenny Cameron to be the words of wisdom I needed.
So, here are some of her comments - presented like a FAQ
Post Workout Food
a big bowl of porridge with berries and some flaxseed meal. Oats are 14% of calories from protein. It’s all you need, so long as the serving size is big enough for your energy needs.
How fast can blood pressure drop?
“Need some insight. Husband and I have been vegan for 2 1/2 years. He had high blood pressure and was overweight after changing our lifestyle he has lost 70 lbs, cut his blood pressure medication to a very little dose. After taking this course, we’ve decided to try Whole Foods plant based. So basically we cut out oils and sugar. His BP has been normal 124/79 with RX but After 4 days of oil free/sugar free his blood pressure dropped 90-100/60-70. He could feel it and we thought, great this is working. Goal is to be off BP meds all together. Do you think 4 days of oil free/sugar would make BP drop that fast?”
The answer is YES! This is why we are vigilant about oils, it makes a difference. I’ve seen this at our immersions and other plant-based practitioners have documented this phenomenon.
Make your own milk?
You don’t need to make your own milk, there are several brands of soy milk that are oil free.
re Arnotts BBQ Shapes
Whilst you may think it is the spices that attract you to BBQ shapes, the high fat content is a key part of it plus the salt and flavour enhancers. They are a pleasure trap food so I wouldn't be looking to re-create them at home. For those times when you are craving some crunch you can get that with air fried potatoes that were cut into wedges or gems, then parboiled, steamed or microwaved and tossed in garlic & onion powder plus spices which could include paprika, chilli, cayenne... depending on how hot you want them. Sumac is a great flavour to add too. Then air fry for as long as it takes. Small pieces that kind of mash on the bottom of the air fryer which you then have to lever up with a spatula - these can have a nice amount of crunch.
FYI: the calorie density of BBQ shapes is 490 calories per 100g. See our chart here to see where this sits - https://www.wholefoodsplantbasedhealth.com.au/weight-management/energy-density/ ie they are very calorie dense (and have almost no nutritional value). Check out the resources on the page, in particular the videos by Jeff Novick, Alan Goldhamer and Doug Lisle. Your goal in eating WFPB is to not be craving foods like this. Fill up on foods of lower calorie density.
re Vitamins
I would be wary of supplement marketing claims. You also only need B12 - the rest of your B vitamins come from food. Isolated concentrated nutrients are not always harmless so only take what's essential (which is B12).
re oils
Yes, a vegan diet rich in fried foods, processed foods containing vegetable oils and also high in nuts like almond, cashews and peanuts that have a poor omega 6 to 3 ratio... yes such diets are not protective of your arteries (and thus brain health). This is why we advocate a LOW FAT WFPB diet.
Vegetable oils, including olive oil and Nuttelex (which is made from oil) have no place in a whole food plant-based diet. Oils are no more WFPB than chicken or cheese. Every member of this group needs to understand this. We know that many of you are not avoiding oils and we say that what you do in the privacy of your home is your business, however posts or comments suggesting oil (or Nuttelex) as an ingredient are not acceptable, just like posts or comments suggesting chicken are not acceptable.
Admins recently removed more than a dozen comments that were each recommending adding Nuttelex to mashed potatoes. Most of the group members who made these comments had been in the group for several years. It is not an acceptable excuse to say they didn't realise which group they were in.
A key purpose of this group is to support people who are trying to do WHOLE foods plant-based. It is important to have a clear message about which foods are consistent with WFPB, and which are not. Avoiding oils is fundamental to this way of eating and we can't have people posting comments that serve to confuse people in this regard. If you don't understand why oils have no part in the WFPB diet please read the information on this page - https://www.wholefoodsplantbasedhealth.com.au/no-oil/
NB This page has recently been revised and updated so even if you've seen it before I recommend you check it out again.
re Zinc
When people give an amount of a nutrient by weight it always makes the more calorie dense foods (like nuts and seeds) look better. However if you look at the number of calories for the given weight of food, e.g. chickpeas at 119 calories per 100g vs cashews at 605 calories per 100g you can see that nuts and seeds don't do so well. A better comparison is per 100 calories: chickpeas 0.95mg zinc vs cashews 0.91mg zinc you can see that chickpeas have more zinc per 100 calories than cashews. Most health professionals, including many dietitians, do not understand this concept so they will always tell you to eat nuts and seeds for whichever mineral they are wanting you to get more of. With a whole food plant-based diet, where food processing is minimal, nearly every bite of food from all the food groups contains zinc, etc. so it is not important to go looking for specific sources. FYI, pumpkin seeds do better than chickpeas, but not by much - 1.29mg zinc per 100 calories. At least the dietitian included green peas as a good source - they have 2.88mg zinc per 100 calories.
Re How many serves of fruit and vegetables should you have each day? (The Australian Government recommends 5 - 6 serves of vegetables & legumes / beans and 2 servings of fruit)
The recommended 5 veg + 2 fruit should be considered a minimum. We easily double that each day. The benefits of fruit and veg on overall health is unequivocal and the research shows these benefits in a dose response manner. Note that 95% of Australians don’t meet the 5+2 guidelines.
Is white rice OK?
Choose the whole grain version of any grain wherever possible. The difference between a refined (white) grain and the whole meal version can be nutrient loss by more than half, ie the refined version has less fibre, iron, zinc, polyphenols etc. for the same number of calories. We advise making whole grains the norm - but the occasional consumption of a refined grain won't throw you too far off the path.
Re Gluten Free & eating legumes
There are plenty of non-gluten grains you can eat - oats, millet, buckwheat, sorghum etc. Legume consumption is most strongly correlated with health and longevity, so it is worth experimenting to see which of the legume family you can tolerate and eat small amounts regularly. However, you can get plenty of protein from eating grains and potatoes. Nuts and seeds are no better source of protein than grains and potatoes as you can see from the table on this page - https://www.wholefoodsplantbasedhealth.com.au/protein-needs/ Nuts and seeds are calorie dense, so when you compare foods by 'per 100 calories' rather than 'per 100 grams' you get a very different picture. Most people, including most nutritionists/dietitians, fail to understand this concept. Nuts and seeds are mostly fat, not protein and they can contribute to raising cholesterol.
From the co-creator who brought you the groundbreaking documentary Cowspiracy comes Seaspiracy, a follow up that illuminates alarming -- and not widely known -- truths about the widespread environmental destruction to our oceans caused by human behavior.