Myth Busting: Aren’t humans meant to eat animals?

Welcome to part 2 of the vegan myth series. This is fun, isn’t it?  Today I want to dig into the argument that humans are meant or designed or created (or whatever) to eat animals. This can be a touchy subject, but hear me out, I’ve got facts. Throughout our early history, humans have always eaten a plant-dense diet, only adding meat infrequently for survival when plant foods were unavailable. But dwelling on the past is not very relevant, since none of us live in caves.

Unlike true carnivores (lions and wolves) we do not have claws or razor sharp teeth meant for tearing apart flesh. Rather, we have jaws that move side to side for grinding, saliva with enzymes to break down food in our mouths, and the ability to get all of our nutrients from plant foods (all of which carnivores do not).

      

      Meat-eaters: have claws

      Herbivores: no claws

      Humans: no claws

      Meat-eaters: no skin pores and perspire through the tongue

      Herbivores: perspire through skin pores

      Humans: perspire through skin pores

      Meat-eaters: sharp front teeth for tearing, no flat molar teeth for grinding

      Herbivores: no sharp front teeth, flat rear molars for grinding

      Humans: no sharp front teeth, flat rear molars for grinding

      Meat-eaters: intestinal tract only 3 x body length to pass rapidly decaying meat quickly

      Herbivores: intestinal tract 10-12 times their body length.

      Humans: intestinal tract 10-12 times their body length.

      Meat-eaters: strong hydrochloric acid in stomach to digest meat

      Herbivores: stomach acid that is 20 times weaker than that of a meat-eater

      Humans: stomach acid that is 20 times weaker than that of a meat-eater

      Meat-eaters: salivary glands in mouth not needed to pre-digest grains/fruit

      Herbivores: developed salivary glands necessary to pre-digest grains/fruits

      Humans: developed salivary glands necessary to pre-digest grains/fruits

      Meat-eaters: acid saliva with no enzyme ptyalin to pre-digest grains

      Herbivores: alkaline saliva with ptyalin to pre-digest grains

      Humans: alkaline saliva with ptyalin to pre-digest grains

      *(Based on a chart by A.D. Andrews, Fit Food for Men)


All omnivorous and carnivorous animals eat their meat raw. So why do we have to cook it and season it in order to digest it and not be disgusted by it?  We have no instinct to catch living animals and eat them raw. We don't see a grazing deer and want to grab our forks. We don’t salivate at the sight of a dead animal on the side of the road.We have been conditioned our entire lives to think that eating meat is “only natural.”  In reality, science, nutrition, and epidemiology have shown us that we are not meant to eat meat, and that the body of humans is better equipped for a vegetarian diet.

Hope for Egg Laying Hens

The Humane Society of the United States and the United Egg Producers announced an unprecedented agreement to work together toward the enactment of a new federal law that will directly better the lives of 280 million hens involved in egg production in the United States.

The proposed standards would define the first federal law addressing the treatment of animals on farms. This fact alone is very significant. There are laws that deal with the slaughter and transportation of animals, but this would be the first law about how they live on farms. We can only hope that setting this type of standard will make other areas of the agriculture industry follow. 


According to the HSUS, if congress were to pass the proposed law it would:

• Ban current battery cages, require all hens be given enough room to stand and spread their wings, and provide perches, scratching areas and nesting boxes
• Require labeling on all egg cartons to tell consumers the method used to produce the eggs, such as “eggs from caged hens” and “eggs from free-range hens”
• Prohibit feed or water-withholding molting, which basically means starving hens for 2 weeks so that they start to lay eggs
• Prohibit excessive ammonia levels in henhouses
• Ban the sale of eggs and egg products nationwide that don’t meet these requirements

To have animal protection groups and the agriculture industry come to an agreement about something like the living conditions of farm animals is virtually unheard of. If you are interested in learning more, you can read what The Farm Sanctuary has to say about the proposed law.

Scenes from the Weekend

Chris rocks out at The Soiled Dove, opening for The Freddy Jones Band and a sold out crowd.

Sunday morning hike near Lookout Mountain.

Bela Fleck and Bruce Hornsby concert at the Denver Botanical Gardens, with Joe and Jess.

On a side note:

Congrats to Michael and Kathryn McGuirk… their new baby girl, Quinn, arrived!

Monday Munchies: Lemon Poppyseed Bread

I love lemon and I love bread... so this lemon poppyseed bread from Manifest Vegan should hit the spot. Still light enough for summer, yet comforting on a Sunday morning with a glass of fresh squeezed juice.

Bread Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 Tbsp poppy seeds

1 1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup melted Earth Balance vegan butter

1 1/2 tbsp vinegar

1/2 cup non-dairy milk

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup lemon juice

zest of one lemon

Glaze Ingredients:

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

2 tbsp orange juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp water or simply syrup

1.  Grease 8″ x 5″ loaf pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Mix flour, salt, baking powder, sugar together in large mixing bowl. 

3.  Add melted Earth Balance, lemon juice and non-dairy milk.  Stir in vanilla extract, poppy seeds, and lemon zest.  Stir in vinegar.

4.  Pour batter in prepared loaf pan and bake 50-55 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

5.  Let bread cool about 15 minutes on wire rack before removing from pan.

6.  Make glaze by combining all glaze ingredients and stirring.  Immediately pour on bread.  Let rest until glaze has hardened and serve.

Myth Busting: Where do you get your protein?

I am starting a little series called "Myth Busting" to disperse some information that we have learned to anyone reading this.  There are a lot of myths, criticisms, mysteries and questions about veganism, and I am hoping to clear up some things with this series. The number one question that most vegans get is: Where do you get your protein?

First of all, ask yourself: What is protein? I am guessing that most of us don’t actually know. Proteins are made from chains of 20 different amino acids that connect together in varying sequences. There are 8 amino acids that humans cannot make themselves and thus, must be obtained from our diets. These are called “essential.” You can get all of the essential amino acids your body needs on a plant-based diet. That’s right, no meat required!


Quinoa and soybeans (which means tofu, tempeh, soymilk, etc) are two examples of plant-based foods that contain all eight essential amino acids. Eating an adequate number of calories per day made up of any variety of plant foods gives us all the protein our bodies need. (There is protein in nearly everything from nuts and beans to veggies and grains.)

Although there may be potentially less protein in a vegetarian’s diet, this is actually an advantage. Excess protein has been linked to kidney stones, increased calcium excretion (which could lead to osteoporosis), some cancers, and possibly heart disease. A diet centered on beans, whole grains, and vegetables contains adequate amounts of protein without the “overdose” most meat-eaters get. The average American eats twice as much protein as needed.


I mean, seriously, have you heard of anyone suffering from kwashiorkor? Because that's the term used to define protein deficiency. Consider another thing… the most powerful animals on the planet (gorilla, elephant, giraffe, rhino, hippo) are all herbivores!


Now that you know the truth, please stop asking us this silly question and go eat some quinoa!
Blueberry Mango Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing:

Smokey Tempeh Wrap:

Happy Birthday Roscoe!

Five years ago little baby Roscoe was born on a farm. A few weeks later Chris happened to be delivering a chair to the same farm and was greeted by a bunch of kittens. As pets often do, Roscoe choose us. That evening he was waiting for me at our house... and he has been a part of the family ever since.

Happy 5th birthday Roscoe! You are one of a kind (and not the least bit photogenic) and we love you.

Grand Lake Mini Vacation

Last weekend we spent a few days in Grand Lake, CO to celebrate the birthday of our awesome friend, Melanie. We had a great time exploring, boating, soaking up the sun, relaxing with friends and even visiting a classic townie bar. We renting a log cabin and I cooked up a delicious vegan meal the first night, complete with tempeh BLTs, potato salad and chocolate birthday cupcakes.

I even got to see my first moose! Checking that off the list. Chris and I were hiking near Adam's Falls when we came upon a herd of 5 moose. Pretty awesome and majestic.

Great times with great friends (plus a gunslinging albino cowboy, a service-challenged waitress and some cute bouncy birds). I am already thinking about the next time we can go back.

P.S. Rob... here is the recipe for those fabulous peanut butter cups.