Diet Discovery

I’ve heard of people putting their dogs on vegan diets, homemade or store bought food, and the dogs do well and live healthy lives.

I’m vegan, but my dogs always got meat – first with dog food, and later on I switched them to a homemade diet using organic, local free range meats. I wouldn’t consider using a vegan diet until it’s been somehow proven that it’s healthy and safe for them, although of course there are ethical issues that come up with using meat, which is why I settled for free range ones.

So – what are your opinions on it? Would you ever feed your dog a vegan diet?

i had my jack russell terrier on a vegetarian diet for many years … she developed severe allergies when she was just over a year old and nothing the vet did or prescribed helped including multiple changes in food … she was even put on kangaroo kibble as a unique protein source … her allergies were so bad she was on prednisone every other day just to keep her mildly comfortable … i brought her to a doggie allergist where she was tested (cost close to a thousand dollars for consultation and testing, plus almost a full year of immunotherapy) and she was found to be allergic to most animal proteins … and while i would not normally take nutrition advice from a vet, i saw the report saying what she was sensitive to and the specialist suggested a vegetarian diet … which worked like a charm … off all medication, no more traumatizing her skin from excessive itching, no more recurrent ear infections, paw problems, etc., she became a normal dog … and she thrived on that diet for many years, very active in agility, flyball, fetch, frisbee, and could run beside my bike for miles, all eating nothing but a vegetarian diet … dogs are omnivores regardless of how many people scream carnivore and protein is protein … the average adult pet dog requires approximately 18% protein to be healthy and every well known vegetarian dog food out there meets or exceeds that protein percentage … i probably would not have put my dog on a vegetarian diet just because, but there are dogs who do truly suffer major animal protein allergies and if a vegetarian diet helps with that, i see nothing wrong with it … vegan might be too limiting … the only vegan kibble i used was made by wysong and it was just a bonus topper to her other kibble and even the bag said that … and btw, a raw diet is only around 21% in protein, hardly different from a vegetarian diet …

I need to lose weight but it’s hard when you don’t know any diets or workouts that work. I don’t eat a lot and I do go to the gym but I need a diet and workout that helped people lose weight., thanks in advance!

I have read good things about the paleo diet (caveman diet), but you have to have a strong enough will power to do it. Also with that diet you have to really watch everything you eat to make sure you are getting enough vitamins.

I don’t use this diet though, I just eat healthy, but I have no "forbidden" foods. It is easier to stick with a diet when you don’t feel like you can’t eat your favourite foods. I still have ice cream and sweets, but in moderation.

you should also make sure you are getting enough calories, to few calories an cause weight gain because your body thinks it is starving and will store anything you eat as fat.

Drink lots of water. No more pop if you are serious about losing weight fast.

For working out, anything that gets your heart rate up is good. Some people can handle the mundane running on a treadmill, or running out side. Others prefer more engaging activities like zumba or boxing. Try a few different thing to see what you like.

Don’t forget to do weight training. Big muscles increase metabolism.

Good luck!

I am trying to lose weight but I am very hungry. I’m lowering my calorie intake by 500 calories a day which will only lose me one pound a week by diet alone. I am also exercising which is increasing my hunger. Needless to say I look forward to my cheat day. All the different diets and theories differ but seem to agree that you are to splurge on your cheat day. However, mathematically speaking, the extra calories sabotage what I’ve worked towards all week.

Please help me to understand……

The reason you are hungry is because your body is used to the lifestyle and caloric intake you have past established, and you are restricting and depriving yourself so much all at once. Gradual change, such as changing your diet to clean and healthy foods (lots of fruits and veggies, lean protein, complex carbs, minimally processed), and getting some sort of exercise everyday is a good start. Once you are used to that, you can start counting calories and doing specific training.

When counting calories, first you need to calculate your BMR (Basic Metabolic Rate) which is how many calories your body burns just from being alive and needs to function. The formula is this:

Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) – ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) – ( 6.8 x age in year )

Once you figure this out, you can coordinate your caloric intake and exercise routine.
Say your BMR is 1,500. You could eat 2,000 a day and burn 500 in exercise.

A cheat day is good way to give yourself a break. You can still eat your favorite foods on this day, but the key is portion sizing so you don’t cancel everything out/ Don’t obsess over it; just read the label and keep in mind and don’t eat an entire box of cookies. Moderation is key.

If you have more questions, feel free to e-mail me 🙂

Me and my friend are going on a diet together, because we fail on our own, ha! I was wondering what diets are good and quick? And also, what food should we avoid and eat more of etc… 🙂 Thankyou so much for any suggestions

the exercise diet. one hour four days a week. incorporate exercise into your social life.
jogging, cycling to work/school/town, swimming, surfing, dancing, aerobics, a martial art, ice-skating, roller-blading, tennis, basketball, go gym, yoga, orienteering
example healthy menu
for breakfast have some fruit like watermelon with cereal and milk, brown toast with topping like beans, egg, peanut butter and banana or a muffin/scone
lunch can be a wholemeal sandwich, bagel, roll, wrap with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and either tuna or ham or cheese(no butter) and a yogurt and a piece of fruit. chopped avocado on bread
eat proper dinner and at weekends make veg soup because it super healthy
drink lots of water, herbal tea and a little fruit juice
snack on salad, raw veg sticks eg.peppers and celery with a jar of hummus or salsa, fruit, yogurt, nuts and choc biscuits sometimes

I really want to lose weight and i want to find a diet where i can lose weight fast but not starve my self or take any medications.. does anyone know any diets like that?

Basically low-carbs. I started a new program one week ago and I’m down 10 pounds – could be mostly water weight but I’ll take anything and it’s working great and I’m not hungry like I thought I would be.
I eliminated starches such as pasta, bread, potatoes and I’m only eating meats (fish/chicken), eggs, fruits, veggies and nuts. Eliminate diet sodas and sugars! This is all in Phase 1 of my new diet and then in Phase 2 you’re allowed one or two meals per week that allow you to eat whatever you want such as chocolate cake or pizza… You should consult a physician before you do anything since everyone is different but eliminating trigger foods for me has been successful. I’ve done other programs that made you track what you ate and calculate calories – they worked but it wasn’t a long-term solution. So far I’m eating better and I haven’t been hungry all week. Drink water and you can have unsweetened iced tea or coffee – try to limit dairy as well.

So far I’m loving it and I’m hopeful that this will work well for me!

I’m very interested in the macrobiotic diet. I have a lot of questions one in particular being does it always include fish? I’m vegan, so that’s why I’m asking. Are there any books/websites about vegan macrobiotic diets?

A close friend and biochemist recommended this diet to me and he surprised me with his emphasis on local vegetables his stringent avoidance of highly processed or refined foods and he avoided just about all animal products except fish. He worked at a food science laboratory and he wouldn’t eat any processed foods that he helped develop!

More recent research I’ve found suggests that people consume ground flax seed instead of fish for the Omega-3 essential fatty acid requirement. The problem with fish is the mercury and other heavy metal contamination. Other contaminants can be even more dangerous in fish because fish concentrate environmental pollution. Fish also contain the undesirable fats that cause cardiovascular problems.

The latest research supports the idea of eating mostly fresh whole plant based foods and minimizing animal based foods. In fact, there is absolutely no need to eat any animal based products if you eat a well balanced vegetarian diet. A key is to eat a wide variety of leafy greens, legumes, whole grains, and fruits. You may need to supplement B12 (if your intestinal bacteria don’t help you) and D (if you don’t get enough sunlight on your skin).

The best cook books I’ve found are by the following authors:

Rip Esselstyn (son of Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr.)
Dr. Dean Ornish
Dr. Neal Barnard

There are many other cook books that claim that they are "whole plant based" which is what you are looking for. You should cook food and eat raw foods. For example, some nutrients are best released when beans are cooked, and others are released when the beans are sprouted. It’s best to eat some raw and some cooked foods.

The "vegan" cook books often contain too much sugar, salt, vegetable oils, and processed ingredients. Some can be too complicated for me, a sub-average cook.

What are some health risks of a vegan diet? I know absolutely nothing on the topic. I dont need to know any pros to vegan diets just any information of health risks would be great. Thanks!

There are no health risks at all.

A plant based diet is the healthiest one you can go on. No plant food has cholesterol ( we are designed to make your own cholesterol and get sick off animal protein). All plant food has fibre and vitamins.
When eaten right- with all colours and nutrients, a plant diet is 100% the best type of eating to do. It is the very one that human bodies are created to eat.
Our bodies have long twisting intestines- designed to extract water and vitamins from our food. The fibre in the food sweeps the intestine clean. Water from raw food which is fuelled with the vitamins, goes into the cells when it’s absorbed from the small and large intestine. Perfect harmony.
Nuts and seeds inside fruit and veg- give us oil ( omega oils found in nuts and seeds), fruit gives us energy and the B vitamins needed for nerves and neurons are coated in the soil the food grows in. We are designed so perfectly to eat plant foods that it’s the only way you can consider eating if you’re intent on eating ergonomically with your body.
Some people eat a bad diet. That’s nothing to do with a vegan title.
A bad diet would consist of- only eating white bread and jelly. Or cereal and nothing else. Or tofu and carrots. Or chips, pasta and an apple.

You need lots of colour- dark green, orange, red, yellow, purple and all the colours of foods you can get.
Eat vegetables like mushrooms, spinach, carrots, turnips, kale, swedes that have bits of soil on them. This gives you B vitamins. Also, fermented foods like beer, miso paste, vinegar and pickled foods, they all give you B vitamins too. Fermented foods are really healthy to eat. Natto and seaweeds are also some of the healthiest things to eat. Japanese people eat these all the time. It’s so common there that it’s not necessary to mention it. Natto is fermented sticky soybeans, it sounds disgusting but it’s a bit like mustard I guess. Used like a condiment or a base for soup and stews. I use it all the time like miso paste.

Oats, rice, buckwheat ( not a wheat despite its name), yam, yucca= these are all good for energy. I don’t like wheat much. But up to you.
And only eat whole grains. That means no white bread, no "wheat flour" bread, as some brown bread lables will tell you thinking you’ll assume that means whole wheat. It doesn’t.

So when you hear a vegan diet is unhealthy and vegans don’t get B12 and protein, the usual myths, don’t believe it.
There is more protein in spirulina ( too much actually) and soybeans than most meat, and there is b12 in plenty of fermented foods, fortified soymilk and cheese, cereal and so on, also spinach and mushrooms and anything with even a tiny speck of soil .

The only risk is when he perpetrator eats a really bad diet!

We keep hearing about these healthy diets and that you have to consume enough vitamins and stuff everyday but how come some people in Africa are able to become well in their 70s without a varied diet (usually relying only on grains, milk and meat). Lacking fruits, vegetables and fiber.

acai berry is the best tool for diet

Recently I have been struggling with frequent colds, headaches and nasal congestion. I feel that eating less acidic foods might help with quieting the symptoms a little and after looking for some diets I found some information about the alkaline balance diet. Why does the diet work and kind of foods should I try to avoid and which kinds should I try to eat more of to start and keep one of these diets?

Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables as well as nuts and tubers.

The basic premise behind the alkaline balance diet is that because our modern diet is more heavy on ingredients like salt, cheeses, meat, and sugar our blood’s pH level, or level of acidity, has generally risen over time. Our distant ancestors ate a very simple diet consisting mainly of unprocessed meat, fruits, vegetables, and roots but as soon as agricultural technology emerged their diet began to change. With the domestication of livestock such as cows or goats came the advent of dairy products like milk, butter and cheese as well as an increase in the amount of meat that was eaten. When stone milling tools came about refined grains and bread products entered the diet. The industrial revolution saw the consumption of sugar and sugar based products like molasses and various syrups increase sharply. When these kinds of foods are digested and metabolized, they release acids into the gastrointestinal tract. raising the blood’s pH level slightly.

I recommend you check out a site like: http://www.acidalkalinediet.com
They have a good alkaline food chart also: http://www.acidalkalinediet.com/Alkaline-Foods-Chart.htm

Some believe that the body operates ideally in a certain pH range and that if the blood is too acidic that it can inhibit the absorption of essential minerals such as potassium, calcium, and sodium. This can manifest itself in symptoms including more frequent cold or flu symptoms, excessive mucous generation, headaches, or lack of energy. The alkaline balance diet advocates eating a more natural diet of nuts, fresh fruit and vegetables, roots, tubers and cutting things like meat, sugar, salt and cheese out of the diet entirely.

I can usually go on diets easily, but the thing is its hard for me to stay on them. They usually ony last from one -two weeks.

Why not combine diet and workout together. You do not have to burn your fat in the gym, you can find work to do around the house, yards or other out door projects.

Such as …..

Something to do with landscaping, you move a lots of dirt, rocks etc. The results will be so quick and pleasant than just set there and thinking about the cherry pie or ice cream on top of fresh made hot apple pie …..