As a lifelong, confirmed meat-head I never, ever thought I'd become strictly vegetarian, much less a Vegan (no animal products whatsoever). But a less-than-stellar health report from my doctor, along with the gift from a friend of a book entitled The China Study by Dr. T Colin Campbell and his son Thomas M. Campbell II, have changed my mind, and my quality of life, forever.
If you can get past the initial rejection response most people have to the idea of living life meatless—that veganism is somehow unnatural and that choosing this lifestyle necessarily means eating the same boring vegetables over and over again—and if you're willing to become educated and listen to the facts, this book just might extend your life, and the lives of those near and dear to you, significantly. Please understand that I'm not opposed to eating animal-based products on strictly moral grounds, as long as the animals were raised in an ethical and humane way (unfortunately, though, many are not). Rather I discovered through this massive, clinically-controlled 20 year study (and others done by highly-respected, traditionally trained scientists and doctors that are cited in the book) that there is clear evidence that the western lifestyle placing a heavy emphasis on consumption of animals and animal-based foods contributes significantly to many of our "diseases of affluence."
In fact, many of the symptoms and effects of these diseases, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity, can be minimized, controlled and even reversed without drugs—simply by changing to a whole foods, plant-based diet and increasing exercise. While this sounds shockingly simple, I can assure you there is ample evidence that it's true. We've all heard over and over that we should eat more vegetables, exercise more, and eat less crap. What isn't made clear, however, is the degree to which our animal-eating lifestyle is literally killing us and how relatively easy it is to mitigate and reverse the damage being done.
Lest you think this is yet another quack diet book by some fringe nutritional "guru" out to make a quick buck, or some militant vegan with an agenda, believe me it is far from it. Dr. Campbell grew up on a dairy in the Midwest and did his Ph.D. dissertation on methods of increasing dairy production, so he was decidedly pro-animal agriculture from a very young age and continued to be so until the evidence of the negative effects of our animal-based diet became overwhelming. And what is so surprising, and so powerful, about Dr. Campbell's views is that he has been a well-respected member of the medical research establishment for years, and he knows the system from the inside out.
Extensively annotated from his own research and from that of many others, it quickly becomes clear in The China Study that Dr. Campbell is uniquely positioned to serve up these facts because of his extensive 30-year career and experience in the fields of nutrition and health research. But Dr. Campbell doesn't stop there. He examines the politics of health, the dire lack of nutritional training of our health professionals, the gamed and manipulated health care system created by the cozy relationships between doctors and the pharmaceutical industries, and the huge amounts of PAC money donated to politicians by stakeholders in the animal agriculture juggernaut. His views are therefore incredibly threatening to the health care industry and he has been vilified by many whose livelihoods are based on preserving the status quo. But believe me....if the information in this book could convince a lifelong meat eater like me to so radically change my diet, there's a good chance it will influence you as well, even if you don't decide to do anything but include more fruits and vegetables in your diet. For more information about being, or becoming vegan, go here.
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In addition, if you're concerned about the problems being caused by Global Warming, another eyeopener regarding how animal agriculture affects our planet as a whole is detailed in a study published last year by the United Nations entitled Livestock's Long Shadow, available here: Livestock's Long Shadow.
I had no idea that the animal agriculture industry worldwide was responsible for 18% of the greenhouse gasses released into the environment, and how much valuable space and how many precious recources we devote to it.
And for more great information about diet as it relates to the environment, click here and here.
I really can't encourage you enough to get your hands on The China Study. It very likely could change your life, as it has mine.
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