20 ways to Love Yourself and Help Animals During the Holidays

1. Keep an abundant supply of healthy vegan snacks available to help avoid temptations to indulge in sugary and other unhealthy snacks. Nuts and seeds in moderation, raw vegetables and fresh fruits are good snack choices.
2. If you attend a holiday potluck, take a healthy vegan dish to eat and share with others. If you are going to a restaurant or attending a holiday function where you know your options will be limited, eat something before you go to satisfy your appetite.
3. Take time to research and select healthy vegan recipes to prepare over the holidays. Try to focus the bulk of meals on vegetables, fruits and legumes. A great source for tested holiday recipes is the Vegan’s Eat What Blog.
4. Get creative with raw recipes. One of my favorite sources for raw holiday recipes is Fully Raw Kristina.

   

5. Eat raw garlic to prevent getting sick. It may seem strange, but raw garlic is one of my best home remedies for staying cold free. I’ve heard that we should eat at least 1 raw clove of garlic a day to prevent illness!
6. Take it easy on the alcohol. Instead of selecting alcoholic beverages at parties and office functions, opt for mocktails, apple cider, kombucha, herbal teas, or fruit/herb infused water.
7. Walk as much as you can to ensure 30 minutes of exercise per day. Walking with family, a friend, or the family dog is a fun way to meet daily exercise goals.
8. Don’t forget the importance of deep breathing and practicing yoga or some sort of daily stretching. Practicing deep breathing techniques helps strengthen our respiratory system which is especially important as we age.
9. Implement your favorite self-care strategies. Meditate, use aromatherapy, or indulge in a massage or other special spa treatment.
10. Get lots of rest. Good sleep is essential to long term good health.
11. Plan your holiday shopping to make it as stress free as possible. Online shopping is a huge timesaver and can help alleviate a great deal of the stress associated with traditional holiday shopping
12. Be social. Spending time with good friends and loved ones is a great way to boost your immune system.
13. Learn to say, “No.” Holidays can seem overwhelming so focus on activities and events that make the best use of your time and bring the most joy to your life.
14. Give the gift of homemade vegan foods. Homemade granola, spiced nuts, prepackaged soup mixes and spice blends are always appreciated and easy on almost any budget.
15. Ask for and give gifts such as healthy cooking classes, vegan cookbooks, or a session with a Vegan Lifestyle Coach. Coaches help many people get healthy and stay healthy and could be just what you need to help you get through something you may be struggling with. In fact, this is a great time to pre-order the delightful Main Street Vegan Cookbook written by my Vegan Lifestyle Coach colleagues to share with your loved ones!
16. Instead of buying or making gifts, donate to vegan advocacy and animal welfare organizations.
17. Save a life by serving a vegan turkey or ham alternative at your holiday meal celebrations. There are several good commercial brands currently available, or make your own animal-free holiday roast. One of the best main dishes I’ve made and served at holiday events is Lynn’s Meatloaf from the Engine 2 Diet.

18. 

    Adopt an animal in need and encourage others to do the same. Animal are great for improving your overall mood and well-being, and please remember always adopt and never shop for a companion or other animal.

19. Sponsor a farm animal at a local farm sanctuary . One of my favorite new sanctuaries is the Broken Shovels Farm Sanctuary in Colorado where the amazing Andrea Davis rescues and cares for numerous neglected and abandoned animals. You can sponsor a farm animal at Broken Shovels and at most farm sanctuaries throughout the United States and abroad.
20. And above all; stay positive, happy, and have fun at all your events. As happy, healthy, vegans we must lead by example and show people the great things being a vegan can do for them too!

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On October 17, yet another cow – a bull, actually – ran for his life from a slaughterhouse in New York City, injuring a child in his bid to live. The #BrooklynCow, so dubbed on social media, was eventually tranquilized by police and rescued by Skylands Animal Sanctuary in New Jersey.

This is not the first rescue of a runaway animal in New York – in fact, those of us with knowledge of his background are unsurprised when it winds up being Mike Stura, the founder of Skylands, who saves the day. I always watch with a mixture of anxiety for the animals and exasperation towards those who root for them, even as they plan their steak dinner. It’s easy to feel for an individual, easier still to ignore the nameless billions who die in the system those individuals escape from. But does an individual who, by some stroke of luck, escaped his fate deserve to live any more than the others who weren’t so lucky?

Animal sanctuaries are forever homes to others like the #BrooklynCow, since named Shankar – cows and pigs and goats and chickens and turkeys who, by a stroke of luck, do not suffer the fate of their brothers and sisters. They often need medical care when rescued, and when they outlive the age span they are bred for. They are ambassadors for their kind, and they change hearts and minds; I’ve seen it happen. 

What sanctuaries and news stories about escaped animals do is important to the goal of stopping the use of animals. The morning after Shankar’s rescue, I discussed what had happened with some co-workers before a meeting. One person asked, “Do you think they know [they’re going to die]?” I didn’t hesitate when I answered, “Yes. They absolutely know.” I saw a video many years ago of two cows, waiting outside the kill floor. As the door closed in front of them and they heard the bellowing on the other side, they backed up in fear. Though the video wasn’t violent, it was difficult to watch.

If you’ve ever heard your dog or cat yelp after accidentally getting a tail or paw stepped on, you know that they feel? And yet, it continues to be harder for people to accept that animals they don’t see as companions also feel. There is a reason the cellophane-wrapped slabs of meat at the supermarket are presented they way they are: they don’t suggest the living being that died that meat case to be filled in the slightest.

I’m relieved that Shankar will live out his days in safety with others like him. I only hope that the next time a bull makes the evening news, or, as was the case this time, Jimmy Kimmel Live, someone watching  makes the connection and stops eating others like him.

For updates on Shankar, visit Skylands Animal Sanctuary on Facebook.

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The Vegan Cuts Vegan Beauty Box is a subscription service that delivers a box of cruelty-free beauty products to your door once a month. Each box contains 4 to 7 samples products – or sometimes full-sized products! – that are vegan, never tested on animals, paraben free, and almost always made with natural ingredients. It’s perfect for those who want to try a new product without shelling out a lot of money or for new vegans who are just beginning to discover the world of vegan beauty.

The July Vegan Beauty Box was chock-full of cruelty-free beauty products that everyone is sure to love!

The July Vegan Cuts Beauty Box Contained:

The Wonder Seed Facial Scrub – I’ve received products from The Wonder Seed in the Vegan Beauty Box in the past, and I’ve loved them all, so I was excited to receive this full-sized scrub on the July box. Made with hemp seed oil along with other natural plant extracts and oils, it gently exfoliates away imperfections while nourishing the skin. It has a light, fresh scent, and my skin felt squeaky clean after using it.

Green Goddess Organics Lip Balm – Most people who go out into the sun with sunscreen on forget about the tender skin on their lips. Fortunately this organic beeswax-free lip balm contains broad spectrum, no-chemical SPF 30. It glides on smoothly and is water resistant for 80 minutes. It has a tasty orange-vanilla flavor, too.

Moon Souls Apothecary Lunar Soaks – Made with Dead Sea salt, ultra Epsom salt, lemon oil, eucalyptus oil, fresh mint, and dried roses, this handcrafted bath soak smells heavenly. For those that don’t have a bathtub, this “soak” can be used in the shower as an aromatic steam by placing it in a muslin bag and hanging it from the showerhead.

Leeanni Eco 3 in 1 Revolution Light – Although my bathroom cabinet is full of different toners and serums, I tend to use them only a few times, and then I abandon them and go back to using just a moisturizer. This skin cream acts as a toner, serum, and moisturizer all in one, so it saves time, money, and clutter. It’s great for both morning and evening use, so there’s no need to buy multiple bottles. It’s perfect for taking with you when you travel, because you only need to pack one bottle, rather than four. I have sensitive skin, so I’m always a little nervous about trying new creams, but I’ve been enjoying this product, which is made with natural ingredients that nourish the skin.

Green Tidings Natural Deodorant – I don’t have much luck with natural deodorants, as I tend to be kind of sweaty and stinky, especially in the summer months. Fortunately, Glad Tidings has come through for me, though. Made with coconut oil, sea butter, lavender oil, and other natural ingredients, this non-toxic, aluminum-free deodorant has left me dry and odor-free.

Terre Mère Cosmetics Mineral Bronzer – I’m pretty pale, so I tend to avoid bronzers, but I love the light, shimmery pink “Sunstone” color I received in this month’s box. It gives my skin a light, sun-kissed glow without the heavy, fake tan look comes with most bronzers. It’s made with minerals, so it doesn’t contain any the harsh chemicals that other bronzers contain, too.

The Vegan Beauty Box is available as a monthly subscription, which means that once you sign up, a new box of products gets delivered to your door every month.

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Have you ever been ashamed of being vegan? I have. Are you appalled? Hear me out…

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Let that sink in for a moment.

If I worked for the dairy industry, that statistic would probably make me happy. It indicates that there are millions of consumers who really don’t know the truth about where their food comes from. That’s great for the food industry, but it’s horrible for the billions of animals who are bred for their meat and secretions.

Billboards, magazine ads, and television commercials are designed to influence us to consume. Animals are cut up, packaged in cellophane and styrofoam, and packed into the grocery store as beef, wings, breasts, shanks, and loins. Industry takes cows, chickens, turkeys, and pigs out of the language it uses, which makes it easier for consumers to forget to even ask what those cuts of meat started out as.

Even “conscious consumers” are in the dark. When it was announced that Amazon had purchased Whole Foods Market in a multi-billion dollar deal, an email went out to customers. In part, it read:

Meat will still come from animals raised with no-added growth hormones, ever. And all eggs in our dairy cases will continue to come from cage-free hens that aren’t given antibiotics. Those standards are core to Whole Foods Market and we will remain committed to them.

What Whole Foods’ antiobiotic and hormone-free, 5-step Animal Rating program leaves out is the reality that awaits every animal raised for food products. Free-range or otherwise, there are no happy chickens. Grass-fed or grain-fed, there are no happy cows. The painful and difficult lives of these animals end in violent deaths that are rarely seen and certainly not considered by millions of adults who think brown cows are responsible for their chocolate milk.

This ignorance is one of the reasons why I’ve supported campaigns run by organizations like Mercy for Animals, where they pay people a dollar to watch a video, exposing them to the abuse that is rampant in food production. I believe we should know where our food comes from. I believe that people should know the truth.

And yet, it becomes increasingly difficult for me to engage on social media when faced with these videos and violent images. “If you eat pigs, you should watch this.” “Would you be able to slit her throat? Then why pay someone else to?” These statements are valid, of course. We need to speak out for those who can’t speak. But can we do so with warning, with compassion?

Is there a happy medium between violent images and sugar-coated memes? I hope so. Because while the dairy industry is laughing its way to the bank, we’ve got animals to save.

Image: Tim Abbott

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Dr. Neal Barnard’s new book, The Cheese Trap: How Breaking a Surprising Addiction Will Help You Lose Weight, Gain Energy, and Get Healthy, breaks down the many reasons why giving up cheese is a good idea, then gives you plant-based options as an alternative.

When I went vegan in 2009, cheese was the last animal product I stopped eating. Salty, greasy cheese is still something I like eating – I was just at the store yesterday, lamenting the fact that I’d missed the sale on Daiya’s cheese pizza by one day. We live in an amazing time – there is a vegan version of nearly everything that is traditionally made with the flesh and fluids of animals.

Barnard breaks it down for readers with a convincing case. Cheese is made from the milk of nonhuman animals – cows, goats, sheep, water buffalo – and it’s addicting. This is great for baby animals – because they are the ones who are supposed to be consuming their mothers’ milk. It’s not so great for the humans who do so instead – especially in the form of cheese, which is full of concentrated fat, and casomorphins that make us addicted!

Through personal stories of change, we’re shown the effects of a cheese-heavy diet, which can include weight gain, arthritis, high blood pressure, skin issues, and more; and how a vegan diet can improve or even resolve these health issues.

Barnard also explains how marketing has been used to keep us in a cycle – and how the government is complacent in it. For those who aren’t already knowledgeable on the topic, there’s basic information on what happens at the dairy farm. There is suffering in every ounce of cheese and if you’re going to eat it, you should know how it came to be. I’m glad that the information is in this book.

Lastly, Barnard gives a look at some of the great plant-based cheeses that are now available – including Miyoko’s Creamery, Treeline, and Kitehill. Then, Dreena Burton helps with recipes that will help the most-addicted cheeseheads to break their habit. The plan outlined in The Cheese Trap will help readers to take control of their health and break their cheese addiction, while still enjoying foods like lasagna, vegan cheesecake, and pizza.

While I am biased in that I’ve been vegan for some years now, and am therefore the choir that doesn’t need to be preached to, I believe that The Cheese Trap is an accessible book for those who haven’t yet made the connection between dairy and the problems it causes. Well-reasoned scientific explanations for that “gotta have it” feeling a slice of cheddar invokes? Explanations about how studies paid for by the dairy industry are not to be trusted? Anecdotal information from those who saw health improvements when they gave up cheese? Facts about factory farming and recipes to get you started?

This book’s a winner.

I received an advanced e-copy of this book from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Much like there are food deserts throughout the country, I’d count airports among the places with some of the worst food options around. Sure, if you do some digging you can find a few sorry, overpriced bananas or red delicious apples, and maybe some packages of raw nuts in Hudson News. Can we pause for a moment and talk about why red delicious apples are so prevalent? They’re arguably the least delicious of all apples — instead they’re sad, waxy, and practically devoid of flavor. Their only redeeming quality is that they look like a quintessential apple, which is probably one of the main reasons that they are everywhere. But I digress.
On our flight from Los Angeles to New York City, I was fully prepared for a day of travel. Empty water bottle to fill up after going through security, an apple, banana, and pink lady apple that I packed at home, and a big tupperware full of recently dehydrated homemade kale chips. But on our flight back west today, I am woefully unprepared and despite scouring the meager options in Terminal A of Newark Airport, have resigned myself to a day of fasting until we get back home. I sit here looking directly at a wall full of candy, chips, cookies, and crackers. To my right is a coffee stand with a bursting pastry display, nary a vegan option in sight. To the left of the pastries lie some sugar-laden (and in lots of cases, honey-laden) granola bars that, if I were truly famished, I might think about purchasing, save for the fact that they all contain the ingredient dreaded by vegans everywhere: milk fat. It boggles the mind why food manufacturers choose to add milk fat to items that would otherwise be dairy-free, but such is the world we live in.

I briefly perked up at the Ruby Tuesday To-Go stand when I saw a big, luscious display of garden salads…but much to my chagrin, they were overpriced and topped with not one, but two types of cheese. I’m kicking myself for not at least packing a peanut butter sandwich from my in-laws’ house, but we were in such a rush to leave that I neglected to do so. My husband and I actually just now decided to forgo any food at the airport, and instead indulge in Veggie Grill as soon as we touch down in Los Angeles — land of sunshine, sea breeze, and vegan options galore. He suggested getting an apple and a banana, but on principle alone, I refuse to pay $6.00 for two pieces of fruit that, let’s be real here, have probably been sitting on that shelf for days. Instead, I shelled out $7.00 for two passably decent coffees. I was ready to drink mine black, assuming that they had no dairy-free milk options…but was pleasantly surprised to hear “yes!” when I asked if they had soy milk. I’ll chalk that up to one small victory for airport vegans, and hope for a day when healthy, delicious, vegan options can be found in every single airport.

So you don’t find yourself in the same pickle that I’m currently in, here are some of my go-to vegan meals and snacks that I’ve packed in the past to enjoy mid-flight or while waiting at the airport:

• “turkey and cheese” wraps with mustard, lettuce, pickles, and cucumbers
• fruit salad filled with berries
• overnight oats (mine have always passed the liquid rule for carry-ons)
• DIY trail mix with carob chips and nuts
• dried fruit
• carrot sticks with peanut butter
• grapes
• homemade granola bars or energy bites

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Soup

Your standard five-course dinner starts with soup. It’s best to make this ahead of time. Soup is always better after being refrigerated for at least one day, if not more. The flavors are enhanced, and more balanced when allowed some time to marry. I prefer a smooth blended soup like a bisque for Valentine’s Day. Not only are they richer and more luscious, but they’re not as splashy as brothy soups. If a vegetable chunk or a noodle falls off of your spoon and splashes into your brothy soup, blam, now you’ve got soup on you. Unless of course, you wear a bib, like I do. It’s important to know your limitations. So make your blended soup – whether it be a tomato bisque, roasted cauliflower and fennel, or potato-leek – at least two days in advance, then simply reheat, re-season, and adjust thickness with additional broth at dinner time.

Salad

Salad doesn’t have to contain 10 ingredients to be special. Elegance is in simplicity. Choose a bag of pre-washed greens, like baby spinach or wild arugula, and toss with a simple vinaigrette that you make the day before. My super duper dressing-making tip is to keep a few empty glass spice jars handy. They make great shakers for mixing up a small portion of vinaigrette. Add 1 ½ teaspoons sherry vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon maple syrup, ¼ teaspoon dijon, and a pinch of salt. Shake it up until combined, then drop in a smashed garlic clove, and refrigerate overnight. Just before serving, fish out the garlic, give it one last shake and dress your greens. Toss in some toasted pecans for texture, and you’ve just knocked out a whole course and didn’t have to chop a thing.

Appetizer

Appetizers can be easy too! A shared plate of marinated vegetables, fancy vegan cheese like Miyoko’s Kitchen, Treeline, or Kite Hill, and some toasted baguette is all you need. Two days before the big night, cut some button mushrooms in half, and place them in a zip top bag. Add a smashed garlic clove, and a couple whole sprigs of fresh thyme. Squeeze in the juice of a lemon, drizzle in some olive oil, add a couple healthy pinches of salt, and a pinch of chili flakes. Mix it up and marinate in the fridge for two days, turning the bag every so often. Take them out of the fridge an hour before serving, then simply fish out the thyme sprigs and garlic, toss with fresh chopped italian parsley, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Entree

The entree is the part where I like to add a little showmanship. This Valentine’s Day, look no further than a vegan filet mignon. But you say, “Vegan filet mignon? That’s not a thing.” Au contraire, it is a thing. The recipe is right here in my new microbook, Sexy’s Best, Vol. 3: Vegan Filet Mignon (LINK: http://bit.ly/veganfiletval). It will be the best $0.99 you spend all week! You can make the main part of the seitan and the sauce ahead of time, then save the flashy, sizzling part of the recipe for just before serving.

Dessert

I’m not big on making dessert so I like to keep it easy. I’ll take a couple slices of one of those Daiya cheesecakes, spoon some apricot preserves over top, and call it a day. I guarantee that no one will complain that your dessert was made by just opening two different containers and putting the stuff from one container on top of the stuff from the other container. Besides, it’s getting late, and it’s time to move on from “dinner mode”, because remember…your bed is, like, right there.

Photos by Jackie Sobon from veganyackattack.com

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10 Health Benefits of Chocolate

1. Nutrient Dense – High quality dark chocolate is rich in omega 3 fatty acids, fiber, protein, iron, magnesium, copper, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, and selenium, as well as other trace minerals.
2. Great Source of Antioxidants – Dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidants, such as polyphenols, flavanols, catechins. One study showed that cocao and dark chocolate contained more antioxidants than any other fruit.
3. Balances Cholesterol Levels – Studies have shown that the powerful antioxidants in dark chocolate can raise HLD levels (“good cholesterol”) and lower LDL levels (“bad cholesterol”).
4. Lowers Blood Pressure – The flavanols in dark chocolate can stimulate the lining of arteries to produce nitric oxide, which send signals to the arteries to relax. When the arteries are relaxed, blood flows easier and blood pressure is reduced.
5. It’s Good for the Heart – Several long-term observational studies have shown drastic improvements in heart health in those that eat chocolate on a regular basis. Balanced cholesterol levels and a lower blood pressure are obviously good for the heart. Chocolate is also known to lowered the risk of having calcified plaque in the arteries.
6. It Protects the Skin from the Sun – The high levels of flavonoids in chocolate are known to protect against sun-induced damage, improve blood flow to the skin, and increase skin density and hydration
7. May Improve Brain Function – The high amount of flavanol in cocoa boosts blood flow to the brain, which improves performance and alertness. It’s also been shown to significantly improve cognitive function in the elderly.
8. Improves Feelings of Wellbeing – Chocolate contains tryptophan, which is a building block for the feel-good hormone serotonin. It also contains phenethylamine, which is a stimulant that’s released in the brain when we fall in love.
9. Weight Loss – This may sound counterintuitive, but a little dark chocolate in your diet might be helpful to your waistline. Studies have found that dark chocolate is rather filling, cutting down on cravings for sweet, salty, and fatty foods.
10. Stress Reduction – A Swiss study found that when people suffering from anxiety ate an ounce and a half of dark chocolate every day for two weeks, their stress hormone levels were significantly reduced and the metabolic effects of stress were diminished.

The health benefits of chocolate don’t mean that you should be eating large quantities of it though, as it is relatively high in calories. A little bit of chocolate a day goes a long way.

If you want to learn more about chocolate, I suggest reading Vegan Chocolate by Fran Costigan, Superfoods for Life: Cacao by Matt Ruscigano with Joshua Ploeg, and Naked Chocolate by David Wolfe.

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Below are some of the many tips I’ve accumulated over the years for keeping the peace with family during the holidays. The first three deal with family interactions and relationships, and the last two cover inclusion and emotional wellness.

Find your voice. When the questions come rolling in, we need to know where to begin. Finding an effective voice is a process that is continually being refined. The intense empathy we feel can be interpreted by others as melodrama. In reality, we are acutely aware of and rightly sensitive about animal suffering. If you lose your cool, or feel as though you weren’t the best advocate for animals, don’t beat yourself up. Learn from the experience, and do better next time. As we grow, we learn how to better represent what we stand for.

Engage with discretion. Are the questions out of genuine interest, or do they hope to trip you up and prove you wrong. If you think the person is truly curious, answer their questions as best as you can in a style that’s authentic to you. Are you’re a bookworm? Have statistics handy to back you up. You’re the comedian? Respond with witty jokes to lighten the mood. When you don’t know something say, “I’m not sure about that. I’ll look into it and get back to you.” Don’t forget to follow up! If they don’t actually have an interest in the topic or if their pestering becomes unbearable, disengage. Simple as that. There’s nothing good that would come from that kind of interaction.

Listen. For a successful discourse, there must be a willingness on both sides to listen. Stay open to what they’re saying, and take a moment to let it sink in before you respond. Then, answer in a loving way. Ideally, you both listen to each other, and the conversation leads to new levels of understanding and respect for one another. Of course, doing your part doesn’t guarantee that the other person will reciprocate. We can influence, offer information, practice love and acceptance, and listen from a place of nonjudgment, but we cannot force others into an exchange if they’re not willing. At the very least, you gain a better understanding of why they are the way they are.

Find an ally. Look for ways to minimize any discomfort, and reach out to people who care about how you’re feeling. If the sight of the turkey being stuffed and carved bothers you, leave the room (quietly) or switch seats with someone who is farther from where the meat is displayed. If the smell of roasting pig flesh turns your stomach, put a few dabs of essential oils under your nostrils. As a kid, I used to excuse myself to an empty bedroom in my grandma’s house and take a nap while the Thanksgiving turkey was being prepared. My dad, who is not vegan but is sympathetic to what I was feeling, would come get me when we were ready to eat.

Include yourself. The best thing to do when you feel distanced is to find ways to include yourself and your compassion. Bring vegan food to share with everyone. Put your Adopt-a-Turkey card on display, or gift someone a sponsorship for a sanctuary animal. These all represent veganism (and you!) in a friendly way.

With all of these thoughts, ideas, and actions in mind, holiday tensions can be minimized. Every little bit helps. And remember that, above all, holidays are a time of celebration, togetherness, and love.

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