Vitamin B12

One of the reasons why I didn't go through with the vegan diet at first was because I tried it for 3 days and felt so tired and unmotivated, drowsy and headached. I immediately thought I was lacking vitamin B12 (which we get from animal products). 
But now I believe what I had was just a detox symptom, which is very common when one first goes on a vegan diet. All the animal toxins get released in your blood for elimination, but the process gets to you! A lot of people experience flu symptoms when they quit meat and dairy... it's expected!

So I have done some research on B12 and here's what I found:

Summary:

B12 is a bacteria containing cobalt, it is produced by the bile and the bacteria in our bodies (mouth, tonsils, intestine) also produce it, so you can easily get it from your own body! Not food! Moreover, more meat-eaters have B12 deficiency than vegans, and that's because the high-acidity of meat and dairy kills that bacteria! Lastly, the dietary requirements for B12 are based on a cooked food diet! If you're a raw vegan you may need a LOT LESS B12 than the average person who cooks almost all their meals. 

Excerpts:

"Vitamin B12 is a microbe - a bacteria - it is produced by microorganisms. Vitamin B12 is the only vitamin that contains a trace element - cobalt - which gives this vitamin its chemical name - cobalamin - which is at the centre of its molecular structure.  Humans and all vertebrates require cobalt, although it is assimilated only in the form of vitamin B12.

B12 synthesis is known to occur naturally in the human small intestine (in the ileum), which is the primary site of B12 absorption.  As long as gut bacteria have cobalt and certain other nutrients, they produce vitamin B12. Dr Michael Klaper argues that vitamin B12 is present in the mouth as well and intestines.  Furthermore, Dr Virginia Vetrano states that active Vitamin B12 coenzymes are found in bacteria in the mouth, around the teeth, in the nasopharynx, around the tonsils and in the  tonsilar crypts, in  the folds at the base of the tongue, and in the upper bronchial tree. [...]

Vitamin B12 is excreted in the bile and is effectively reabsorbed. This is known as enterohepatic circulation. The amount of B12 excreted in the bile can vary from 1 to 10ug (micrograms) a day. People on diets low in B12, including vegans and some vegetarians, may be obtaining more B12 from reabsorption than from dietary sources. [...]

External B12 coming into the body must be combined with a mucoprotein enzyme named Intrinsic Factor, which is normally present in gastric secretions, to be properly assimilated.   If the Intrinsic Factor is impaired or absent, B12 synthesis will not take place, no matter how much is present in the diet.    A B12 deficiency can be caused by antibiotics (from the drugs themselves and contained in milk and meat), alcohol (alcohol damages the liver, so drinkers need more B12) and smoking (and all high temp cooked food is smoky) and stress also raises B12 needs).

[It is believed] that a vitamin B12 deficiency is more widespread in vegans or vegetarians - this is probably just another marketing lie!  In fact, many so-called studies 'showing vegans deficient' have to be carefully studied themselves - many of them do not prove vegans to be deficient at all!  In fact, contrary to meat and dairy industry propaganda, meat-eaters are known to be more likely to have a vitamin B12 deficiency - this has been known since 1959! [...]

According to Marieb's 'Human Anatomy and Physiology', vitamin B12 can be destroyed by highly alkaline and highly acid conditions.  This assumes that the B12 in meat would be easily destroyed because the hydrochloric acid in our stomachs during the digestion of meat is highly acidic. This may explain why meat-eaters are just as likely to have a B12 deficiency as vegans - even though their diet contains vitamin B12.  Also, as mentioned earlier, another problem for meat-eaters is that there are normally antiobiotics in meat plus the fact that many meat-eaters destroy their friendly bacteria in their intestines by constant putrefaction and the putrefactive bacteria naturally present in meat will give the body a hard time.  So, the damaged intestines may not function well enough to enable adequate vitamin B12 levels to be asborbed.

These minimum vitamin requirements may be inadequate to explain the needs of a healthy raw food vegan, for example, who may require less B12 due to an improved gastric ability and a high ability to recycle vitamin B12.  (Cooking destroys microbes and a highly sterilised, cooked vegan diet may not provide the intestines with enough good quality flora). Absorption rates of B12 are inevitably higher in healthy individuals than in unhealthy individuals.  Studies, based on healthy Indian vegetarian villagers, showed that none of them exhibited symptoms of B12 deficiency, despite levels of .3-.5 micrograms of B12."  

Taken from: http://www.vibrancyuk.com/B12.html

66...65...64...63...62...61...60!!!

I lost 6 kg in one week. Never thought that was possible. I never thought I had 6 kg to lose in the first place. But that vegan diet detox allowed me to get rid of all the undigested matter I had in my intestines since I've started eating meat...

CLEAN YOURSELF GO VEGAN! 


"It is estimated that the average person will have 5 – 15 pounds (2 – 7 kilograms) of waste matter impacted on the colon wall, built up over years of eating heavy foods which require mucus secretion to protect the stomach and colon, resulting in an increase of toxins though parasites."
SCARY HUH?!

"The Hallelujah Lifestyle promotes NO meat or animal products.  When meat is a part of your diet the colon is loaded with undigested remnants of flesh foods which flood the system with poisons which will eventually start a disease process in the body.  Before that happens we have many warning signs or symptoms:

Distended Stomach, Foul breathe, Gas, Coated tongue, Indigestion, Constant fatigue, Absent-mindedness, Headaches, Insomnia, Premature aging and Digestive issues can all indicate that your “Sewer System” needs attention."

http://www.edenwellness.org/articles/colonsewer.html

MEAT & MILK

I am writing today with a feeling of disgust. Not just towards the meat/dairy industry but towards myself.

I can't believe it took me 10 years of consciousness (assuming I started thinking for myself and making choices at the age of 10) to realise that I could never eat an animal.

I can't believe that with the knowledge of cruel animal treatment, I still ignored it and wished the cows I ate were treated better and just kept on eating.

When I turned super environmental, everyone thought I was vegetarian and my answer would be "Noooo I love steak!! Can never live without it!"

And then when I was informed about how meat increases your chances of cardiovascular diseases and slows down your digestion as you get older, I started thinking "Okay I'll stop eating meat when I turn 40 or 50".

And now, it just hit me.

There is NO WAY I can ingest an animal "product", whether in liquid or solid form. There is no way I can ever ignore what happens in the industrial farms - watch the video above. With the volume on loud.

Even in farms where animals are let loose to roam the fields, there comes a time where they get locked up in tiny cages and get shot/hammered/sliced/...

They say even the milking cows live worse lives as they are TIED to mechanical pumps for the milk and live 4 YEARS INSTEAD OF 20.

In fact: "The United States dairy herd produced 83.9 billion kg of milk in 2007, up from 52.6 billion kg in 1950. Yet there are more than 9 million cows on U.S. dairy farms—about 13 million fewer than there were in 1950." 
Less cows, more milk - see the imbalance there?! Imagine a woman breastfeeding for 100 children, every day.

<sup>How is this acceptable?! How can you ignore this reality, which is only hidden by slaughterhouse- and farm- walls?? Today's media/technology can show us what really goes on, and it's time we all open our eyes, take action, and eat sustainable ethical food.

THERE ARE alternatives to your favourite meat/dairy products.

You have soy, almond, rice and oat milk. Which you can make at home.</sup>
You have a variety of veggie burgers, with different combinations of vegetables.
You have tofu that can soak up any marination.for chicken/egg/cheese replacement.
You can make cashew cheese..
You have eggplant that can give you a similar consistency to flesh...

The list goes on.

Check: http://www.vegancooking.com for vegan recipes :)

Iron and Water

Half a cup of lentils contains 9g of protein, whereas 2 chicken breasts contain 7g in total, and the lentils contain 18 times more iron. (So please tell me why bodybuilders are so obsessed with chicken?!)

Ideally, a steak has 49g of protein and nearly the same amount of iron as a 1/2 cup of lentils. But it also has 10 times more fat than lentils.

Furthermore, a steak requires 5000 L of water to end up on your plate, that's 5 cubic meters. Can you fit 5 cubic meters in your room?! 

The problem is not only water shortage, but the degradation of water quality after it passes through a slaughterhouse.

A bowl of lentils would require at most 1000 L for its production, it's already 5 times less water consuming than meat, and without the horrifying sound of an animal being killed.

More about diet-related water consumption here: http://green-food.org.uk/eat_less_meat.html

There are so many vegan bodybuilders now, it's truly inspiring as it really shows that eating plants can make you as strong as a bull.

http://www.veganbodybuilding.com

Chemicals, chemicals, chemicals

OK, let me start with this:

Now go grab your favorite "beauty product" and read the ingredients.
It's basically CANCER IN A BOTTLE.

But here's the thing, all these products are new (1920's), how did humans survive before that?!

Sure, in the Middle Ages they rarely bathed in Europe because the water wasn't clean.. but before that, or in different parts of the world, people only used natural things for health and beauty.
That doesn't mean that The Body Shop has it, in fact their products contain the same crap, just marketed better.

Instead, the answer lies in your garden or kitchen. Or simply in your bathroom.

I stopped using shampoo/conditioner/cream on June 6th. I only wash my hair with water, and guess what? it's thicker, stronger and happier! I use natural oil (coconut or cactus) if I swim in the sea because seawater dries it up, but other than that, JUST WATER :D

My hair after 3 months of no chemicals :)

As for people with oily hair, it will be hard to suddenly stop using shampoo, you will have to use sodium bicarbonate to remove the layer of silica most of your products have been coating your scalp with. You can find that in a pharmacy or supermarket. Just take a spoon of powder, put some water on it, it will foam and you can use that instead of shampoo for 1-2 weeks :)

Regarding other products: lotion, lip balm, etc. -> coconut oil, almond oil, shea butter.. the list goes on! Even olive oil, it's an amazing make-up remover too :D

Make-up is a tricky one, there are brands that stick to all natural minerals and pigments but they're hard to find.. You have to do your local research and look online for what suits you best.. but honestly you don't need make-up, you're beautiful the way you are!

And lastly, I would like to add two things:

Deodorant: spare yourself the alcohol, salt, and weird names you can't pronounce, just use a strong smelling oil to prevent you from stinking: lavender, tea tree, jasmine, ylang ylang... so many beautiful pure smelling oils out there! Also costs nothing.

Toothpaste: Choose one WITHOUT fluoride, that actually calcifies your brain and leads to all sorts of diseases, we get enough fluoride from our drinking water! FInd a natural herbal toothpaste, or just make some at home! All you need is crushed herb (basil, mint, miswak), sodium bicarbonate and water!
Check this out http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Toothpaste for more details :)

Honey

Honey is an amazing gift from Nature, not only it taste deliciously sweet but it has a wide range of health/beauty applications:

Firstly, it heals any wound, even burns. Apply a thin layer on the wound, let it get absorbed (it might take several hours) and you'll wake up the next day quite surprised :)

You can go a step further and mix it with cinnamon, not only will it speed up the healing process but it can:

A- Serve as an amazing facial for spots and blackheads (the cinnamon is a perfect scrub)

B- Applied to your hair, for several hours, can lighten it because the two ingredients together form hydrogen peroxide

Simply mix equal amounts of each:

Honey is also an amazing moisturiser for your hair, apply and leave on for 1 hour or so, then shower (without using any chemicals), your hair will be super soft and glowing :) Don't worry, honey dissolves almost immediately in water!

And of course, a hot lemonade with honey, cinnamon and ginger is the BEST thing to cure the flu!

Also, try to use it instead of sugar whenever you can! it's more natural, much more beneficial and also heals internal ulcers (mouth, oesophagus, stomach) :D

QUESTION: Do you believe honey is vegan?