More China Study

I've ordered probably another half dozen copies of the China Study in the last week for friends I've met who unfortunately ask me "what have you been reading recently?" or "what have you been up to?" Sadly I cannot stop myself from talking about it. My sister Kathleen and I are both huge advocates of proper nutrition through plant-based diets for obvious reasons, as our mother died over ten years ago after a long battle with many cancers. If only we knew then what we know now about how much nutrition plays into the picture, I am completely confident we would have saved her.

Then again, her situation was desperate in the final days. I've met several people in the last two years who have loved ones who are dying of cancer, yet they still laugh at the concept that diet will have any net effect on their conditions. Most people, as the China Study points out, are more likely to accept that they will die of cancer or heart disease, or have horrible cholesterol or high blood pressure, or have osteoporosis, or age much faster, than they are willing to even consider a notion as heretical as dietary change, especially with--gasp--only vegetables and fruit and nuts! Yuck!

I'm one week into my high-raw, all-vegan diet and loving it so far. I don't miss meat at all, but I do find it tough at times when I can't find anything without meat, and even worse at times when I end up resorting to potato chips or other "bad vegan" foods. Still, the rhodiola rosea seems to work a lot better on the vegan diet, and all the intelligence I've read suggests this diet is optimal for long-term health. Just stay away from the bread and pasta and white rice. (some intel suggests whole grain pastas, breads, brown rice, wild rice are OK, but it's still better to avoid them)

It is somewhat cool understanding that I can lose a pound per day until around 185 lbs just by eating a raw vegan diet. I just can't wait to see what that combined with all the high intensity workouts will lead to -- a whole new world, no doubt.