June 2004

Unfortunately for me, it’s raining today, so I can’t work in my garden and have to get you your newsletter instead. Is that what they mean about clouds having silver linings? Bah!

We received a note asking whether the Sunday potlucks could be held a bit earlier, say at 5 PM, with an eating time of 5:30. What do people think? Come to the potluck and discuss it, or call us at (414) 962-2703, or email us at chuckgyver@aol.com.

Other issues need to be on the front burner NOW: Where will this year’s Pre-Thanks-giving Feast be held?? Do we want to do any-thing for World Vegetarian Day on October 1? Come share your thoughts at the potluck, or contact us by phone or email!!

Sunday, June 6, 5:30 PM, regular potluck at the Friends’ Meeting House, 3224 N. Gordon Pl. (from Humboldt Blvd. in Riverwest, go east on Auer a few short blocks to the parking lot). Focus will be a nondairy "ice cream" tasting, and also Jodene LeDenmat will talk about the book Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman.

Sunday, 4^th of July irregular potluck/picnic at David and Jody’s, in the afternoon not the evening. Fireworks follow at the nearby park.

Subsequent regular potlucks will be at the usual time and place on Aug. 1 and Sept. 5.

I have been unable to determine whether there will be a macrobiotic potluck in June. The usual contact is Pat O’Neill, (414) 964-9759.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

"Eating large amounts of high-fat foods for a sustained period raises the risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and several types of cancer."

-- American Heart Association statement in response to a lawsuit alleging that the Atkins diet caused the plaintiff’s heart disease.

The continuing saga regarding the (lack of) safety of meat-eating includes several items this month. News broke in May that for several months late last year and in the beginning of this year, the U.S. government quietly permitted Canadian beef to be imported, after declaring it banned due to a mad cow disease case in Canada, and only reinstated the ban after a federal judge in Montana publicly upbraided the Dept. of Agriculture for ignoring its own protocols. A more local story involved the discovery that chronic wasting disease can be transmitted through soil and decomposing carcasses, meaning that it will be much harder to make Wisconsin safe for deer (and deer-eaters) than had previously been hoped. And other researchers found prions (thought to be the agent that causes these brain-wasting diseases) in the leg muscles of sheep – but added that this didn’t make cow meat unsafe, and even assured us that lamb is probably safe to eat as well. (?) Meanwhile, a Tulane University professor of neuropathology, Frank Bastian, announced his belief that it is not prions after all, but an unusual bacterium, that causes the spongiform encephalopathy diseases. His suggestion was met with skepticism.

On another note, e.coli infections decreased in 2003, but there was a recall of pork rinds in May due to possible salmonella, and raw almonds (of all things) were recalled after a salmonella outbreak was traced to Paramount Farms of central California, a major almond repackager and distributor. Finally, the Wisconsin fishing season opened with the reminder that many lakes and streams are contaminated with PCBs and mercury, while the May Health-wise publication had a lead article weighing the advantages of eating fish (i.e., the health-giving omega-3 fatty acids that they contain) versus the concerns about mercury and PCBs now found even in formerly-safe salmon. This is reinforced by a Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) report that PCBs are now being found in Alaskan salmon.

In other news about food-related issues, the Diet Wars continue on various fronts. A 53-year-old man, Jody Gorran, who had previously been healthy, developed sudden high blood cholesterol and severe arterial blockage after eating the high-animal-protein/ low carbohydrate Atkins diet for only a few months, and with the help of PCRM he is now suing the Atkins estate. The lawsuit probably has no chance, but is clearly being used to publicize the idea that the Atkins diet can be dangerous for at least some people. In fact, PCRM is now operating a website to collect information and warn of the dangers of high-animal-protein/ low-carb diets; the most frequent complaints people report are loss of energy and constipation, with bad breath, difficulty concentrating, and problems with the gallbladder, heart, and kidneys being reported as well. Prevention magazine weighs in on the issue with a report that eating a lot of simple carbohydrates such as soda, cookies, and white flour even before pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects – but in another report, explains that whole grain and high-fiber carbohydrates can actually help keep weight down, apparently by supplying good fiber (not to mention many extra vitamins and minerals). On a similar note, the PCRM publication had a report of a study which found that when people with high cholesterol switched to a low-fat diet, not only did their blood cholesterol levels go down, but their immunity increased as well. And in a related development, a new study from Harvard found that breast cancer risk increased with a high-fat diet – but not when the fats in the diet came from plants, leading to a speculation that it might have been other components in meat than the fat itself that was to blame. And have you noticed the dairy council ads promoting milk-drinking as a way to lose weight? The note of caution here is that two different scientific studies both found a correlation between drinking milk and developing prostate cancer. Mean-while, there is still a general consensus that people need folic acid, which helps the heart and arteries and prevents some nasty birth defects, but there is now some growing controversy over whether too much can be as bad as too little, at least for some people. Stay tuned. And last, there was some mercifully brief excitement when it became public that the US Dept. of Agriculture was again trying to debase the new organic standard, with "clarifications" of its rules that would have allowed the organic label on milk from dairy cows given antibiotics, and on animals fed grains grown with toxic chemicals as part of the "inert" ingredients. Happily, there was such an immediate and emphatic firestorm the moment this news broke that the USDA backed down fast.

Not all the news is about controversy, though. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ran a very positive review of Dean Ornish’s newest book on preventing heart disease through a low-fat near-vegan diet, and a column in the NY Times food section was titled "Meatless, Not Joyless;" the writer explained how vegetarian food has become interesting and tasty over the years, and that he therefore plans to feature it semi-regularly. Nor, unfortunately, is it controversial that the U.S. is developing an epidemic of pre-diabetes and diabetes; this is especially bad news since a recent study found diabetes to greatly raise the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. And this is all about diet and lifestyle, since it is increasingly clear that people who eat whole grains, beans, and vegetables and maintain an effective exercise program and/or active lifestyle tend to avoid diabetes, while those who eat a lot of fat and simple carbohydrates while living in a sedentary manner are the ones most likely to develop that disease.

On the other hand, there are many ways in which eating plants continues to be good for you. The May Healthwise listed its "15 Super Foods for Super Health," 13 of them vegan: avocados (for the monounsaturated fats, vita-min E, folate, potassium, vitamin B6, and fiber); blueberries (vitamin C and phytonutrients protective of eye and brain); Brazil nuts (for immune-boosting selenium and calcium); broccoli and its relatives cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, and cabbage, all containing cancer-protective plant chemicals); butternut (and other orange-fleshed) squash for the beta-carotene which becomes vitamin A; edamame (green soybeans) for the isoflavones that can hinder the development of hormone-dependent cancers and also cool hot flashes; ground flax seed for the omega-3s; kale for eye health and all the other dark green leafy nutrients; kiwi-fruit for vitamin C and other vitamins and minerals; lentils for folate, fiber, and protein; onion for important antioxident flavonoids; quinoa for fiber, protein, iron, copper, magnesium, zinc, potassium, vitamin E and riboflavin; and tomatoes (especially cooked and concentrated in sauces) for cancer-preventive lycopene.

The other two items on the list were yogurt for the protein, calcium, and friendly bacteria – vegans get the same goodies from soy yogurt – and sardines for the omega-3 fatty acids (instead eat dark green leafy vegetables, flax seed and flax seed oil, and hemp seed oil).

A variety of recent studies all found plant foods to help protect against various diseases.

For example, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reported a study which found that the phytoestrogens in soy seem to help prevent endometrial cancer. A study reported in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that flavonoids in black tea, onions, apples, and broccoli helped protect against heart disease. And then there was the news out of Harvard that people who ate a lot of fat had increased risk of vision-destroying macular degeneration – but those who ate fatty nuts frequently had a much lower risk than those who avoided them.

On a similar note, a UCLA study found that preventing precancerous colorectal polyps requires both calcium and vitamin D, while an Australian study found that eating citrus foods daily may help cut the risk of mouth, throat, and stomach cancers. And another Australian study shows that the best formula for control-ling blood pressure is to eat more potassium than sodium; potassium-rich foods were listed as including apricots, peaches, nectarines, cantaloupes, honeydew melons, and bananas. And if you have indigestion after all that, a new, rigorously designed scientific study reports that artichokes really do have a com-ponent which eases indigestion, just like old-time folk medicine claimed.

DIALOG

The Humane Farming Association wants us to ask our Congressmen to oppose HR 4121, the so-called "Consumer and Producer Protection Act" which actually undermines rules meant to keep downer cattle out of the human food supply. Reach them at: The Honorable__, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 20515. At the same time, HFA asks us to tell Senators Kohl and Feingold to support S1298, the Downed Animal Protection Act. Their address is:

Senator__
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510.

It is farmers’ market time again, and this year’s list for Milwaukee County (according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) is as follows:

Brown Deer at Bradley Village, N. 43d and Bradley Rd., 9 am–6 pm, Weds. 5/19-10/27

Cudahy, 4700 Packard Ave., Fri. 10 am-5 pm, 5/7-Oct.

East Side, off North Ave. between Farwell and Oakland, Sat. 10 am-2 pm, 6/19-10/2.

East Town at Cathedral Sq. in downtown Milwaukee, Sat., 7:30 am-12:30 pm, 6/5–10/9.

Fondy, Fond du Lac near North Ave., 8 am-2 pm, Sun. through Thurs, and 6 am-4 pm on Sat.

Fox Point, near Stormonth School, 7300 N. Lombardy Rd., starting mid-June, Sat. 8 am-noon.

Greendale, in the municipal parking lot in the heart of the village, 8 am–1 pm, Sat 6/26, 7/10, 7/24, 8/7, 8/21, 8/28, 9/11, 9/25, 10/2.

Hales Corners, 9724 W. Forest Home Ave., 8am-1 pm, Sat. 6/19, 7/17, 7/31, 8/14, 9/18, 10/9.

Howell Avenue, bank at 4015 S. Howell, 8 am-noon, 7/31, 8/14, 8/28, 9/11, 9/25, 10/9.

New Mitchell St. Market, NE corner of Mitchell St. and Muskego, 8 am-3 pm Tues., Thurs. and Sun., 7/6-10/31.

Riverwest, Locust and Bremen Sts., 2 blocks W of Humboldt, 11 am-4 pm, Sun., 6/20-10/31.

Sherman Park, N. 49^th St. and Roosevelt Ave., 11 am-3 pm, Sun., June through Oct.

South Milwaukee, 1304 Manitoba Ave., noon – 4 pm, Thurs. 5/6 – mid-Oct.

South Shore, South Shore Park, 2900 S. Shore Dr., 8 am-noon, Sat. 7/17 – 10/16.

Wells St., N. 29^th St. and W. Wells, 9 am-1 pm, Sat. 7/10 – 10/9.

West Allis, S. 65^th St. and W. National Ave., Tues., Thurs., and Sat., 1 pm on, now? through 11/27.

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North American Vegetarian Society (of which MARV is an affiliate) is still advertising its 2004 Vegetarian Summerfest, with great vegan food and lectures and celebrities and activism and socializing with the like-minded. It will be held on July 21-25 at the Conference Center at Pitt-Johnstown, PA. We have some flyer/registration forms if you want any – either come to the June potluck or call me at (414) 962-2703.

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