Healthy Heart Vegan Living Blog

The more I research the Internet for plant-based eating information, I find that more and more “experts” in the field of health and nutrition are emphatically recommending the plant-based diet.  In fact, a diet containing almost any amounts of sugar, fat or salt is considered to be the most dangerous anybody can eat.  I’m presently reading a book, Unprocessed: How to achieve vibrant health and your ideal weight by Chef AJ and one point that she “hammers on” throughout the book is that so many of us are actually addicted to sugar, fat and/or salt.  She feels that this is the main reason why it is so difficult for us to stop eating processed foods, whether it is junk foods or meals at a regular restaurant.  As we know, most addictions are thought to never be totally “cured,” but they can be controlled by total abstinence.  Arriving at “total abstinence” of sugar, fat and/or salt is a very difficult journey for many people, but it can be achieved with a strong desire and a determined spirit.  Most people choose to move slowly or gradually from the “all American diet” to a total plant-based diet, in fact Chef AJ recommends that, unless you have an “all-or-nothing” personality, it is OK to start with a 30-day program to make sure you, 1) like the plan, and 2) can stay committed for a short amount of time.  In some cases where an addiction to a particular food is particularly strong, she recommends giving up that food  for a couple of days, then a week, then two weeks, etc. until you have built up to 30 days.  Most people agree that a “new habit” is established when you have done something for at least 21 days so her plan should be workable for almost everybody.  No matter what approach you choose to take, there will be times when you need to eat out at a restaurant.  Therein lays the main focus of this Post, “Dining Out.”

Whether you move slowly or all in one step to a total plant based diet, I must tell you that it’s much easier to move in the right direction when you cook your meals at home.  Eating out is much more difficult, and many times almost impossible, to “stay the course” since you are totally at the mercies of the Chef and how he or she chooses to prepare the meal.  Usually one or more of the previously mentioned “ingredients” will be in abundance in each and every dish served.  For this, and other reasons, we must constantly be diligent and ask lots of questions as we order our food.  Also, it is most helpful when someone shares the news of a “good plant-based” dish or meal at any restaurant.  In this post I want to share three “good experiences” I have enjoyed at three different restaurants…one in Columbia, SC, one in Asheville, NC, and one is a particular entree on the menu at Ruby Tuesdays.

In Columbia, SC, my wife and I had a wonderful meal at a Vegan restaurant, Lamb’s Bread Café at 2338 Main Street.  You have heard the ole adage, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” well, that applies hear.  The Lamb’s Bread Café is listed as a vegan soul food/Caribbean Café,  and is considered a Vegan-Friendly restaurant. The walls are filled with African masks and artwork and many full-figured carved, wooden statues are strategically placed throughout the restaurant.  You order you food at the counter from the daily menu written on a white board.  The servings are very tasty and plentiful and are served by a very pleasant staff.  I chose a plate containing mock beef strips, collard greens, scalloped potatoes, corn bread, and sweet potato/raisin pie for dessert.  The meal was both very delicious and well-presented and diet-wise, probably the only “no no” part of the meal was there was most likely some oil on the potatoes and in the pie crust.   Other than my ordering, then eating, too much food for one meal, I (we both) recommend the Lamb’s Bread Café as an excellent place to eat when you are in Columbia, SC.

Now, let’s go to Ruby Tuesday’s.  They have added a new item to their menu recently that sounded delicious and appeared to fit the plant-based diet criteria…spaghetti squash with marinara sauce, topped with grilled zucchini squash and Parmesan cheese.  We ordered this entree but asked them to leave the Parmesan cheese off.  This main course was preceded by a very nice all-vegetable salad with a small amount of balsamic vinegar dressing.  I’m sure the dressing had olive oil in it, but I used only a very small amount.  The meal was both delicious and very filling and I will order it again, with a couple of changes.  Upon further checking, I discovered the marinara sauce has 52% of its calories from fat…much too much, in  fact, off the chart.  Next time I will order the dish with the marinara sauce “on the side” and will use only vinegar as the salad dressing (or take a small bottle of my own oil-free balsamic dressing).  Do you think there’s a law against “brown bagging” your own salad dressing?

Here were two delicious meals at very fine restaurants, however neither meal followed the “plan” 100%, which just shows the difficulty when eating out.  However, I must say, “More and more restaurants are beginning to ‘get the word’ that their patrons are starting to be much more health conscious and are asking for, and in some cases, demanding healthier food be served!”  Whether you eat a plant-based diet or the “all American diet,” please let the owners/managers of the restaurant, where you eat, know that you prefer food items which have less sugar, fat and salt in them!  These three items are slowly killing far too many people.

For the grand finale, let me share with you the special dinner my wife and I had at The Plant Restaurant at 165 Merrimon Ave, in Asheville, NC.  This restaurant is in a class of its own and deserves special recognition, not just for a special dinner on Valentine’s day, but every meal.  We have eaten there twice and the quality of the food was exceptional both times.  Their everyday menu selections are equally as tasty as the Valentines Day special.   The citizens of Asheville should be extremely happy that the threesome who own The Plant decided on their city for this restaurant!!  The three owners, Alan Berger, Leslie Armstrong and Jason Sellers, all vegan themselves, are totally committed to serving a plant-based menu, and doing it at a quality level that one usually finds only in a five-star restaurant.  Alan and Leslie moved to Asheville from Charleston, SC in 2004, and they became friends with Jason shortly after their move.  Jason, the chef at The Plant, worked at Candle 79 in New York City, considered by many as being the number one vegan restaurant in the USA.  Where ever he learned, he certainly takes his food creations to an entirely new level….far too advanced for this “ole farm-boy” to describe!  I just know, I like his cooking and I will eat there as often as I am in the Asheville area!!!

Rather than my trying to describe the set-menu for Valentines Day, let me just show you some pictures of the meal.  There were the three courses, all of which were vegan and I am including a picture of each.

Sausage & Vegetable Ravioli with cashew ricotta, truffled tomato-basil sauce, sauteed spinach & black garlic, and pine nuts

Sesame Crusted Seitan with chocolate-ancho chili mole, caramelized brussel sprouts, whipped smoked Yukon potatoes and arugula & cava-beet vinaigrette

Almond Cream Cake with frangelico-fudge ice cream, and mocha dipped strawberry

Not only do these dishes look delicious, but they were delicious!!  I can enthusiastically recommend The Plant Restaurant as a great place to eat if you are seeking very high quality, vegan food.

I know, this Post has only touched the tip if the iceberg when discussing the issues involved when attempting to find a healthy, plant-based meal at a restaurant.  I personally look at this, not as a problem, but a challenge to tell as many people as I can influence about the benefits of the plant-based diet, then get more and more people talking with restaurant owners/managers about adding “healthy food” to their menus.  I feel that the science speaks to this issue, the economy speaks to this issue and slowly the medical community is shifting the emphasis from “treating disease” to preventing disease” which also speaks to this issue.  For those who really care about their own health, the health of their kids, grand kids, and others,  PLEASE,  make a change in your own eating habits, then “pick up the torch” and help us move toward becoming a much healthier nation and world.  Far too many people are dying prematurely from preventable diseases!!

Milton V Massey, DDS

Now that we are a little over one month into a new year, it’s time to take a preliminary look at how your 2012 is beginning to shape up.  Since this Blog is focused on our eating habits and our health or fitness, let’s keep the conversation in that narrow window.  Since the middle of December I established a Blog website (healthyheartveganliving.com), explained to everyone what the purpose of the Blog would be, then made three Posts.  I have received many favorable comments both on the Blog and directly on my Twitter, Facebook or e-mail accounts.  Trust me I am most appreciative to those who took the time to send me your thoughts!!  I have had a few questions raised concerning how someone, who is not committed to making a TOTAL change to their lifestyle or eating habits, could begin to gradually get started in a plan that will ultimately improve their health.  To this end, I want to direct the rest of my comments in today’s Post.

When I first had an inkling of interest in this area of health, preventing and possibly reversing diseases, I read comments or heard people speak of eating “Veganish”  or “vegan-like” and I wasn’t exactly sure what they meant by those comments.  Upon further study and examining the literature, I quickly learned that many, many people consider the term “Vegan” as being too extreme for them to embrace in one step or at all, however they do want to “lean into” the Vegan concept, or “put a toe in the water” of the Vegan concept to make sure they first, like the concept and secondly, can they make the changes in their life to make this a life-long way of living instead of just “something else” they start, then stop, as they have done many other things before. So let me assure you, and reassure you, that if you are having some doubts about making changes to a complete Vegan lifestyle, you are certainly not alone.  The main question is, “Do you really want to reduce the possibility of health problems or catastrophic medical events occurring in your future?”  If the answer to that question is, “Yes” then you need to carefully consider just how you are going to address the changes necessary in your present lifestyle that will be necessary to make that happen.  We now know, based on the scientific evidence collected over the last 50+ years that many of the “dreaded diseases” we face today are almost totally controlled by the “diet and lifestyle” choices we make every day, NOT our genes.  As I understand the concept, genes predispose us to a particular disease or to specific diseases, however the nutrients/foods we eat are the driving force which makes the disease or diseases actually happen.  I realize some will consider this explanation an extreme over simplification of the process, but I don’t want anybody to feel like I’m writing a textbook.

In an earlier Post I spoke about the spectrum of health/disease.  Normally, we think of a “spectrum” of anything, i.e. color, sound, etc., as including the extremes, and all points in between, i.e. low—high, dark—-light, bad—good, poor health—excellent health, etc., etc. One of my mentors, Dr. Dean Ornish, Cardiologist and Professor/Researcher at the University of California School of Medicine at San Francisco, wrote a book, titled The Spectrum.  In this book Dr. Ornish discusses the “spectrum concepts” concerning such things as nutrition, stress management, cholesterol levels, weight loss, lowering blood pressure, preventing and reversing Type 2 Diabetes, just to name a few.  He basically said that each person needs either a “Pound of Prevention” or the “Pound of Cure” depending on how they view their own personal health.  I think it’s a very good way to explain very many situations in our life, there’s no such thing as “one size fits all.”  In the final analysis, each of us must: 1) evaluate “the level” of our health today, 2) determine our goals of where we want to be, or not to be, 3) develop our plan of attack, then 4) carry out the plan….sound simple?  It really is!! Please remember, “keep it simple, have fun and never, never lose sight of your dreams and goals!!!!!”

Having said all this let me remind you that only YOU have ownership of your health.  My strongest “wish and hope” is that you improve it and live a very long and fruitful life!!!

In closing, please let me share with you a Post I read a few days ago on Facebook by another one of my mentors, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, author of the book, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. Someone asked him the question, concerning his plant-based diet, “Is this diet too extreme?”  His answer was, “A Western diet guarantees there will be half a million people who have to have the front half of their bodies divided, their heart exposed, then veins will be taken from their leg and sewn on their heart. Some people would call that extreme.”

As I previously said, in one of my earlier Blogs,  “…just a few years ago I was the ‘Poster Child’ for all the things you can do to help destroy your health.”  As a result, three heart surgeries within 19 months and prostate cancer surgery two years later…now that’s EXTREME.  A thought right here might be in the form of a question…Would you rather spend 5% of your time each day improving your health and preventing disease or later on spend almost 100% of your time recovering from the consequences of the disease?

I’d love to hear from you. Let’s spend a few minutes “talking about anything related to this subject” soon in the next Post.

Milton V. Massey, DDS

Now that we’ve turned the calendar to a new year and made our new year’s resolutions, it’s time to get started accomplishing all those things we “said we were going to change” in 2012.   In the Blog today, I want to talk about “getting started,” especially as it applies to changing our eating habits.  I hesitate to use the word, “diet” since that usually has connotations of something with a starting point and a finish line.  What we’re talking about here is a permanent “change” to the eating habits and sedentary lifestyle that got each of us to  our present position of poor health and  being “not fit,” when we consider physical fitness standards.  As a result of all this, many of us have gained weight (some have become obese or morbidly obese), developed medical problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, Type II diabetes, etc. etc., and whether we realize it or not, have begun the process of self-inflicting our demise.

Let’s spend a few minutes looking at “fitness” or being “fit.”  To many, the words “fit” or “fitness” denote your level of activity…how far you can walk or run, how much weight you can lift or how many pushups you can do, etc.  Actually the definition that I am using utilizes about five different areas of your life:  1) your coronary health level,  2) your level of physical exercise or fitness,  3) your diet,  4) how you handle stress and  5) how you relax/meditate.    Once you  know the answer to all five of these points you will have a pretty good idea of  just how “fit” you are at the present or the beginning of your new journey.   Another way to look at this is, where are you on the “spectrum” of health/disease.  Let’s look at some of these points.

Your level of coronary health can only be determined by your Physician and a few tests.  Please remember, it’s NOT how you look on the “outside,” it’s how you look on the inside that counts, i.e. your cholesterol level (ideally below 150 without the aid of Statin drugs), your HDL and LDL levels, LDL particle size (NMR Cholesterol test), A1C level, C-Reactive Protein level, to name a few  of the things  that might be considered.  Some people may need a Coronary Calcium Scan.  In the end, it’s TOTALLY up to your Physician to make the final decision, based on your test results, your personal history and your family history.  Please remember, I’m a Dentist, not a Physician, so I’m not trying to practice medicine!

Based on your Physician’s advice, you, along with a trainer or exercise specialist, can determine the best exercise routine to follow.  For me, I walk, ride an exercise bicycle and lift small weights, not over 20-30 lbs. each…I want to be “fit,” not Mr. Atlas.

There are many different “self-help” books on handling stress, ways to relax, and ways to meditate so we won’t visit these areas in this Blog, but may come back to talk about them in the future.

Now, Diet.  This may be the most difficult area to discuss since almost everyone has his/her own set of circumstances and opinions of where they are at the present time and where they want to be for the rest of their life.     Let me stress once again,  I am convinced that a plant-based or plant-oriented eating plan gives us the best chance of preventing and/or reversing many medical problems and  diseases, and I will direct all my remarks accordingly.

Having said all that, let’s look at two ways to get started.  First, you can use the “cold turkey” approach, by cleaning out your refrigerator, freezer and pantry, and throw all non-plant oriented foods away or give them to a worthy charity that serves meals.  With this approach, your next trip to the grocery store will be both lengthy and very, very expensive, since you have to buy almost everything you will eat for a week or so.  It’s OK if you feel this approach is too bold for you and your family.  Most people had rather “phase in” this new eating pattern over a few weeks or even a couple of months.  I suggest you don’t take too long because as long as you have “the “bad foods” in your house the stronger the temptation will be to “cheat or fudge.”  Personally, I took about three weeks to totally change my eating habits and I felt the transition was both reasonable and virtually painless.  I was amazed just how quickly I stopped craving my “former” favorite foods.  You might start out by having “vegan or plant-based” meals one day a week, then two days a week, then three days a week, etc. etc. until you are totally on the new plan.  Once you run out of one of the “bad foods” do NOT replace them!!!

To help you get started, let me suggest two excellent cookbooks that will help make your meal plans much easier and faster…The Happy Herbivore by Lindsay S. Nixon, and Engine2 Diet by Rip Esselstyn.  For working moms, The Vegan Slow Cooker by Kathy Hester may help tremendously.

Actually, getting started is really just a decision and a personal “reason” to make the changes necessary for it to happen.  Remember, keep it simple, make it fun and don’t listen to those who will try to discourage you, mainly because they don’t have the courage or convictions to make the “decision” for themself.  Not a single one of my “detractors” ever offered to “stand in” for me during either of my heart surgeries or my prostate cancer surgery, therefore, why do their opinions matter now?

I read an interesting and timely article in the AARP Bulletin this week, “The 5 Percent Solution.”  In the article it listed, “The 10 Commandments of Health” by Dr. George W. Calver, US Congress’ first appointed doctor…written in 1928.  Enjoy:

“1-Eat Wisely

2-Drink Plentifully  (of water)

3-Eliminate Thoroughly

4-Bathe Cleanly

5-Exercise Rationally

6-Accept Inevitables  (don’t worry)

7-Play Enthusiastically

8-Relax Completely

9-Check Up Occasionally

PS.  Give 5% of your time to keeping well.  You won’t have to give 100% getting                              over being sick.”

In an earlier Blog I promised to include some recipes, so here’s a couple you might want to consider…

1-Milton’s Breakfast Smoothie:

1 cup frozen triple-berries (blackberries, blueberries and raspberries) from Sam’s or            Costcos.

1 scoop Soy Protein Powder (Earth Fare brand)

1 frozen banana

4 baby carrots

½ Gala Apple or apple of your choice

3-4 slices of canned sugar beets

1 cup Almond milk (low fat)

1 cup pomegranate juice (or Black Cherry Juice)

½-1 teaspoon minced ginger

Place all ingredients in blender and blend to your favorite consistency…drink and enjoy!!

*If this is too much for you to drink at one time, try cutting the recipe in half except the protein powder.

 2-Healthy Homemade Hummus by Rip Esselystyn in Engine2 diet (page 236)

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon Bragg Liquid Aminos or low-sodium tamari

3 tablespoons water or vegetable broth

Blend all the ingredients into a thick paste, using as small amount of water as necessary to achieve desired consistency.

Within the next couple of days we’re going to fix the Mushroom Barley Risotto that was featured on the Today Show this past week.  It looked good and I can hardly wait to try it….will let you know the results in a later Blog.  Happy plant-based eating!!!

Milton V Massey, DDS

As we head into 2012, many people will be making New Year’s resolutions.  In fact, I plan to make a couple myself.  Unfortunately, if past performance is any indication,  most of those resolutions will be abandoned before we leave the month of January.  How would you like to have $1.00 for everyone who makes a resolution then fails to follow through on it…I certainly would!  I don’t want to have a negative attitude about resolutions, but very few are kept.

Let’s take a couple of minutes and talk about ways that will make it easier to keep those resolutions we do make.  A  resolution is really a “change” you want to make in your life.  So, how do you make changes in 2012 and follow through with them?

1.  Make that change personal.  Be sure the “change” is something YOU really want and not something that others want you to make.  Determine “your reason” for wanting the change.  Once you do something for a “reason” it’s much easier to stick with the “process” of making the change.  Change is a process and not an event.  Something in your life will be “different” from now on.  Remember, “Change” isn’t Change until you Change something!!

2.  Once you “decide” then “start” and start now!  It’s not about a date, or “when I finish doing something else,” or “when I feel like it,” etc. etc., it’s all about “starting.”  Remember, “a journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step.”  If you find excuses for not “starting” right now, your journey has not begun! Develop a sense of urgency, just don’t panic or procrastinate.

3.  Determine your goals.  Too often we complicate our goals by setting them so high or make them so complicated that it’s virtually impossible to achieve, therefore we get discouraged and quit.  Keep your goals simple, realistic, and divided into many short, simple steps. Use the KISS method (Keep it simple, stupid.)  For years I help train ladies to become excellent Dental Assistants.  When they began their training, most would ask, “How will I ever learn how to do all these procedures?”  I explained, then taught them, that each dental procedure, i.e. root canal, making a crown or a denture, etc. etc. is just a group of simple steps which must completed in a particular sequence.  Once they understood that concept the learning process was much shorter.  The same with goals:  Don’t say you’re going to lose 50 lbs.  Instead, concentrate on losing 1-2 lbs. per week and you will be successful.  So what if it takes 6-12 months to lose 50 lbs…remember it’s a “process” not an “event.”  How do you eat an elephant? ?  One bite at a time…sorry vegans for that example.

4.  Concentrate on becoming”fit” rather than “losing weight.” This topic will be the sole topic for a future Blog, but I do want to say a couple of things here. If you think about the things that made you “not fit,” if that’s a proper term,  you will realize it’s mostly about what you have been eating and your lack of exercise that made you overweight or obese.   I refer to that as the “All American Diet and Lifestyle.”  Remembering that to have “change,” you must “change something,” so let’s change something!!   A  science-based alternative is to switch to a plant-base eating plan, not diet, and get up off your “rusty dusty” and start moving.  As you become closer to the “fit” definition, you will have lost weight, feel better and have much more energy, to say nothing of the vast improvement in your “vitals” when you see your Physician for your next exam.  He or she may be very surprised to see your BP, total cholesterol, LDL, blood sugar, etc. are significantly lower, and ask you what you have been doing for these improvements.  As a wonderful “extra” the scales won’t read a high as before…you lose weight as a result of becoming more “fit,” not because you have concentrated on losing weight.

5.  Find someone or a group of like-minded people and support and encourage each other.  Hide the scales and have fun!  Remember, you’re focusing on becoming “fit,” not losing weight!!

6.  Become educated in this new lifestyle.  Some books that will help you achieve this goal are: The China Study, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, Forks Over Knives, The Spectrum, and Engine2 Diet.  All these books are available at your local bookstore or Amazon.com.  There is a DVD that goes along with Forks over Knives…well worth the extra cost!!  I received the book, The Vegan Table for Christmas and the recipes look very interesting…some may need to be slightly modifies to reduce or eliminate the oils.  I can hardly wait to get in the kitchen and start playing with new dishes.  For those  who have known me for awhile, please don’t pass out over the fact that I now “cooking.”  You have known me as the guy who could “burn” water when attempting to boil it!!  This “ole dog” is learning a new trick!!

I could add several more “numbers” to this list, but I’ll stop here for now.  Best wishes for a Very Happy New Year!  Let 2012 be “the year” you turn you life around, especially with your fork!!  Let this coming year be the year that you give up the “fear of dying,” and begin the “joy of living.”

Happy New Year,

Milton V Massey, DDS