Abundant evidence suggests that the most healthful diets set aside animal products and also reduce fats in general, while including large amounts of vegetables and fruits. Eliminating meat and dairy products from your diet is a powerful step in disease prevention. Vegetarians avoid meat, fish, and poultry. Those who include dairy products and eggs in their diets are called lacto-ovo vegetarians. Vegans (pure vegetarians) eat no meat, fish, poultry, eggs, or dairy products. While there is a considerable advantage to a lacto-ovo vegetarian pattern, vegan diets are the healthiest of all, reducing risk of a broad range of health concerns.

Download Your Free Vegetarian Starter Kit

What type of diet is best for disease prevention and to maintain a healthy weight? The best diet is one that you can stick with for life. A healthy diet is a lifestyle, not a fad that is dangerous or difficult to maintain. My book, Becoming Slender For Life and its hypnosis CD set can support you in making healthy lifestyle changes that you can stick with for life.

At the Seattle weight loss and Bainbridge Island Weight loss offices of Slender For Life™ I frequently refer clients to the resources available from the 5000 physicians of the Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine. (PCRM).

Check out Slender For Life™ and call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!

Are your teens eating enough fruits and veggies? Fruit, vegetables and whole grains are essential to the mental and physical development of your children. One way you can encourage your kids of any age to eat healthy is to only buy healthy food for meals and snacks and to set a good example by eating a plant based diet yourself. Its good for your health, good for your waist and good for your family. At Slender For Life™ teens learn weight loss hypnosis to end their desire for junk food and to create a healthy desire for plant-based food.

Teens Don’t Eat Enough Fruits and Veggies

WebMD Health News, November 23, 2011: Many American teenagers may be eating fewer fruits and vegetables each day than nationwide guidelines recommend for this age group, a CDC report suggests. In 2010, about one in four high school students ate fruit less than once a day, and one in three didn’t eat vegetables more than once a day.

Although diets rich in fruits and vegetables can help control weight and are also linked with a lower risk of chronic diseases and some cancers, most teens are falling short of the recommended daily levels.

The survey of 10,765 high school students showed that teens ate both fruits and vegetables an average of 1.2 times a day. Researchers say that’s likely to mean that they’re eating much less than the 1.5 cups of fruits and 2.5 cups of vegetables for girls, and 2 cups of fruit and 3 cups of vegetables for boys that dietary guidelines advise for many kids this age who participate in less than 30 minutes of physical activity daily.

To improve teens’ interest in these healthy foods, it is recommended that more school cafeterias offer salad bars and that school breakfast and lunch programs regularly include fruits and vegetables that students may not get a chance to taste at home.

Farm-to-school programs can also give students access to fresh-picked produce at meals. And school gardens can teach teens where foods come from and involve them in their preparation.

Read Teens Don’t Eat Enough Fruits and Veggies

Kids of any age can change their eating habits with your support, encouragement and example. Weight loss hypnosis can help you and your family make the life style changes necessary to increase your consumption of fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Who knows – maybe you will discover that your family actually loves healthy eating!

Check out Slender For Life™ and call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!

Vegetarian Diet May Prevent Diverticular Disease

Experts Credit High-Fiber Foods, Such as Fruits, Veggies, Whole-Grain Cereals

WebMD Health News, July 18, 2011: A high-fiber, vegetarian-style diet may reduce the risk of developing diverticular disease, a new study suggests. Diverticular disease is an umbrella term for diverticulosis, which is small pouches in the colon, and diverticulitis, which occurs when these pouches become inflamed or infected. Symptoms of diverticulitis include painful abdominal cramps, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea, and can last anywhere from a few hours to a week or more.

In the study, vegetarians were more than 30% less likely to develop diverticular disease when compared to their counterparts who ate meat. Vegetarians were less likely than meat eaters to develop diverticular disease, the study showed. What’s more, people who had a diet rich in fiber (about 25 grams a day) had a lower risk of being admitted to the hospital and/or dying from diverticular disease, compared with people who ate less than 14 grams of fiber a day.

These findings lend support to public health recommendations that encourage the consumption of foods high in fiber, such as whole wheat breads, whole-grain cereals, fruits, and vegetables, conclude study authors led by Francesca Crowe, a nutritional epidemiologist at the University of Oxford.

Overall the opportunity for preventing the occurrence of diverticular disease and other conditions, such as colorectal cancer, probably lies in the modification of diet, at either a population or an individual level.

Diverticular disease is related to the Western diet and the fact that we don’t have enough fiber, and our diets are animal-based. This is why Western stools are very small. A high fiber, plant-based diet is like the broom that’s sweeps the colon clean.

Not all fiber is created equally. We are not talking about muffins and breads and granola. Plant-based fibers such as kale and nectarine and cabbage and broccoli are really good. A high-fiber diet can also help prevent a recurrence of diverticulitis if you already have a history, she says. Fiber keeps the stool moving so they don’t fester in pockets and set up an inflammatory reaction.

Read Vegetarian Diet May Prevent Diverticular Disease

Its been said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” I continue to be amazed at the power that food has over us mortals. Several times each day people choose the fat and sugar that lead to obesity and disease over health. I frequently hear excuses like “I don’t want to eat just rice and beans.” I can only giggle and refer you to Slender For Life™ where I have web sites that have more than 12,000 fiber rich  plant-based recipes. When you have tried all of those and are bored, talk to me then.

In the mean time, if you are serious about taking charge of your health and are willing to create a new relationship with yourself and a new relationship to food, discover how hypnosis can help you eat a high fiber, plant-based diet and sweep your colon clean.

Check out Seattle hypnosis and Bainbridge Island hypnosis.
Call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!

So how about a plant-strong Halloween? It is the beginning of sugar season, a dangerous time for children and adults. It is especially a dangerous time for people who are overweight or who are dealing with other health issues. Most of that Halloween candy is nothing more than artificially flavored sugar filled with chemicals and preservatives that only add inches to the waistline and pour gasoline on the fire of disease. One client recently described the day after Halloween in her office as feeling like she was an alcoholic working in a bar. Slender For Life™ hypnosis for weight loss clients learn hypnosis and other tools that makes it easy to walk past the Halloween candy without temptation.

The folks at The Engine 2 Diet have some great tips for creating a plant-strong Halloween.

Plant-Strong Halloween

1. Trade up! Have your kids go trick-or-treating and at the end of the night they can trade their candy for something bigger, like a special toy/book they really want, or a few smaller toys/trinkets. *Donate candy to the office/send to our troops overseas.

2. For every pound of candy they earn a dollar amount.

3. Let them choose 5-10 pieces of candy from the loot. Donate the rest.

4. Throw a Halloween party with healthy food and fun games instead of trick-or-treating!

5. Make it a game. See who can pick out the healthiest treats from their bag. Whoever wins gets a prize.

6. Hand out healthy treats at your house, or opt for non food treats, Halloween themed pencils/erasers/hair accessories/stickers instead of treats. That way there is no junk in the house when the night is over!

7. Find some new, fun traditions! Watch a Halloween themed movie with some popcorn (no butter of course) and other plant-strong snacks!

8. Make these caramel apples by Chef AJ and Julieanna Hever:

9. Try this spooky black bean hummus!

10. Have a family craft night! You can carve pumpkins, or make fun Halloween themed (or fall themed) crafts together.

Read Plant-Strong Halloween

Have you purchased your copy of The Engine 2 Diet yet? It is a great cookbook, especially if you are a guy or have manly men in your life. Another must have book is Julieanna Hever’s book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition.

If Halloween makes you feel like you are an alcoholic living in or working in a bar, learn hypnosis and stop the cravings.

Check out Slender For Life™ and call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!

Vegetarian Diet May Help Children Stay Fit, Avoid Obesity

NaturalNews.com, October 8 2011: With the poor quality of many of today’s conventional meat products, a vegetarian diet just might be an appropriate fit for some modern children, one of three that are now overweight in the US.

A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that people of all ages, including children, that adhere to a vegetarian diet generally have lower average body mass indexes (BMI) than others, and are generally leaner than their meat-eating counterparts.

The report explains that obesity is less prevalent among vegetarians, and that average BMI increases progressively higher depending on how much meat a person eats. Vegans, for instance, generally have the lowest BMI, while vegetarians that eat dairy and eggs have a slightly higher average BMI. Meat eaters, suggest study authors, have the highest average BMI of all.

Besides simply the visible weight benefits, adhering to a vegetarian diet may also improve lipid profile, say the authors, which means that a person is less likely to experience coronary heart disease. This means that vegetarians may have a lowered risk of developing high cholesterol, or having a heart attack or stroke.

Because a plant-based diet can contain far more nutrients, complex carbohydrates, fiber, and water, than a meat-based diet, it is more likely to promote lean body mass rather than added fat, says the team. The extra fiber found in plant-based diets also contributes to making a person feel “full” more quickly than a meat-based diet would, which results in less food being eaten.

“Obesity represents a significant threat to the present and future health of children and leads to a wide range of physical and psychological consequences,” write the study authors. “A plant-based diet appears to be a sensible approach for the prevention of obesity in children.”

Read Vegetarian Diet May Help Children Stay Fit, Avoid Obesity

Nutritionists and physicians have learned that plant products are good sources of protein, iron, calcium, and vitamin D because they can be easily absorbed by the body and don’t contain artery-clogging fat. The American Dietetic Association states, “Well-planned vegan … diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence.” [American Dietetic Association, "Position of the American Dietetic Association and Dieticians of Canada: Vegetarian Diets," Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Jun. 2003.]

At Slender For Life™ children and adults learn how to make healthy, long-lasting lifestyle changes that support a life of health and wellness. Please let me know what you are doing to put an end to childhood obesity in your family.

Check out Slender For Life™ and call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!

Pros and Cons of Going Vegan

“It is a little bit of a change and whole lot of people know that they want to do it because they know if they do it they can get rid of all the cholesterol, all of the animal fat and they can be slim and healthy,” said Dr. Neal Barnard from the Physicians for Responsible Medicine. Dr. Barnard says a plant-based diet can help people lower their cholesterol, blood pressure, and lose weight. But it does require a lot of meal planning. Vegan convenience foods can help ease the transition, but dietitians say just because it’s vegan, doesn’t mean it’s healthy.

“If it comes in a package, it’s still a processed food,” said registered dietician Rececca Scritchfield.

All that food can still be packed with calories, sodium and sugar, so read labels carefully, she advised.

Read Pros and Cons of Going Vegan

The use of processed foods in any eating strategy should be minimized. Sometimes I hear from clients that they are trying to take short cuts to healthy eating by purchasing packaged vegan convenience meals. When I send them home to read the label, they rarely continue to purchase processed food.

In the news clip, the question is raised about protein. Just a few weeks ago I wrote Where do you get your Protein if you don’t eat Meat? where I pointed out that if you are healthy, it is impossible for you to have a protein deficiency if you only eat plant-based food. The question I always ask is, “Who do you know that has a protein deficiency?” The answer, “no one.”

My book, Becoming Slender For Life and its hypnosis CD set can support you in making the lifestyle changes necessary for your health.

My Simple Recipes ~ Jeff Novick, MS, RD is an excellent resource for simple, fast, inexpensive and healthy meals. To learn more about vitamin B12, read Vitamin B12 Deficiency—the Meat-eaters’ Last Stand, by Dr. John McDougall.

Read Eating Your Way to Heart Health
~ Sanjay Gupta

Thank you Jean Enersen and KING 5 HealthLink for promoting healthy vegan eating.

Check out Slender For Life™ and call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

Remember to sign up for your FREE 8-part audio course, Understanding Hypnosis, at the right side of this page NOW!