If you’ve been a vegetarian for any length of time you likely knew this in the back of your mind. You might have even become a vegetarian for one of these reasons. But hard evidence like this makes it much easier to argue your point at the dinner table and feel good about passing on the ribeye. Understanding the benefits of being vegetarian makes the diet that much more appealing.

I originally cut out meat because I moved to a place with few organic and free range options and then gradually realized that (1) I didn’t really need meat and (2) It’s cruel to eat it anyway. Here are a few more reasons.

A recent study at the Loma Linda Medical Center in California found one of the main benefits of being vegetarian is that the diet reduces your greenhouse gas emissions by one-third. Additionally, the study of more than 96,000 Seventh Day Adventists in the U.S. and Canada found that the mortality rate for non-vegetarians was 20 percent higher than for vegetarians and semi-vegetarians.

“The study sample is heterogeneous and our data is rich. We analyzed more than 73,000 participants. The level of detail we have on food consumption and health outcomes at the individual level makes these findings unprecedented,” said Sam Soret, Ph.D., MPH, associate dean at Loma Linda University School of Public Health and co-author of the study, reported in Science World Report.

Researchers contend that humans should consider the large scale production of a vegetarian diet both for health of the planet and the health of the human race.

“Throughout history, forced either by necessity or choice, large segments of the world’s population have thrived on plant-based diets,” said Joan Sabate, M.D., DrPH, nutrition professor at the Loma Linda University School of Public Health and co-author of the study, according to a news release.

Related on EcoSalon

99 Sources of Vegan Protein

Debating Reasons to Be Vegan

Why I Am Not a Vegetarian

Image: Brandon Shea

The post More Benefits of Being Vegetarian: You Live Longer and So Does the Environment (Hopefully) appeared first on EcoSalon.

Plant-based diets have become all the rage and with good reason–they’re a potent source of vitamins and minerals. Legumes have long bean a critical component of eating this way. They’re loaded with vegetarian protein as well as fiber, but that’s just a small portion of what they bring to the nutritionally dense table.

But which legumes are the healthiest? Whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan or you’re just looking to add some nutritional bliss to your repertoire, these are some good choices.

The 6 Healthiest Legumes on the Planet

1. Lentils

Lentils lower cholesterol because of their high levels of soluble fiber. It’s for this reason that they’re also good for digestive health. They prevent digestive disorders like constipation, irritable bowel syndrome and diverticulosis. In all, 26 percent of the calories in lentils can be attributed to protein.

2. Adzuki Beans

Adzuki beans are a good source of magnesium, potassium, iron, zinc, copper, manganese and B vitamins. They’re also called the weight loss bean because they’re among the lowest in calories and fat.

3. Black Beans

One cup of black beans has a whopping 15 grams of protein. Black beans are also a good source of folate, fiber, copper, manganese, vitamin B 1, phosphorus, protein, magnesium and iron.

4. Butter Beans

In the South, we call them butter beans because of their starchy and buttery texture, but they’re also called lima beans. Butter beans are a good source of fiber, copper, manganese, folate, potassium, magnesium and vitamin B6. One study found that a diet high in legumes reduced the risk of heart disease by an incredible 82 percent. That’s right–82 percent!

5. Fava Beans

Fava beans are nutrient dense. Also known as broad beans, they have no saturated fat or cholesterol and they contain a high concentration of thiamin, vitamin K, vitamin B6, potassium, copper, selenium, zinc and magnesium. Just a cup supplies 37 percent of the daily requirement of fiber.

6. Garbanzo Beans

Garbanzo beans are amped up with antioxidants. They have concentrated forms of phytonutrients like quercin, kaempferol and myricetin.

Preparing Your Legumes

It’s best to use dry beans and cook them at home rather than canned lentils and beans to avoid the endocrine disruptor BPA found in the lining of most aluminum cans. Home cooked beans are also relatively easy to make and they taste much better. They are also less likely to cause digestive problems, particularly the gas and bloat which beans are famous for causing. Here are some simple tips for preparing legumes:

Tips for Cooking Lentils

• Rinse lentils 2-3 times.
• You do not need to soak lentils.
• Add 2 cups of water per 1 cup of lentils.
• Salt lentils.
• Cook uncovered for 20-30 minutes.

Tips for Cooking Beans

• Rinse beans 2-3 times.
• Soak beans for at least two hours in water.
• Add your beans to a large pot and cover with 2 inches of water.
• Bring to a boil and turn down the heat to a simmer.
• Remove the coating of white foam that forms on top with a wooden spoon if need be.
• The cooking time depends on the bean, but start checking after 30 minutes.

Related on EcoSalon

Recipe: French Lentil Dip

Sensonal Superfood: Fava Beans

White Bean and Sweet Potato Veggie Burger Recipe

Image: jean-louis zimmermann

The post The 6 Healthiest Legumes on the Planet appeared first on EcoSalon.

To you doers of good, we say thanks. You clean up after yourself. You say kind things in YouTube comments. Your DIY projects make killer Christmas presents, and you always know where to get the best arepas. But sometimes, we really wish that you’d give it a rest. Need us to get more specific?

7. The Advice-giver. In his mind, he’s the only person in the world with access to the internet. And it’s his responsibility to make sure that you know everything he does. He’s just trying to help, so why are you getting so defensive? His favorite response to any good news is “Actually, did you know [that can kill you and everyone you love]?” For example, you just posted a video from your phone of your baby taking his first step. He writes: “Actually, did you know that the radiation from cell phones are probably the leading cause of peanut allergies today? Just a thought before you point that death ray at your baby’s head.”

6. The Experimenter. If you can cleanse it, she’ll pour lemon juice on it. If she reads an article about the evils of shampoo (“My God, they put chemicals in it?”), she’ll dump every bottle she has and buy a lesser evil. A pair of $90 running shoes designed to mimic the experience of not wearing shoes? She wears them to the farmer’s market. She drank raw milk every day until she gave up dairy, and whether she’s Paleo or vegan, you can bet she’s going to tell you exactly what she had for lunch today, whether you asked her or not.

5. The Petitioner. Every Facebook status is a link to another atrocity you have to learn about right now, followed by an online petition that will halt said atrocity immediately by adding your name to an instantly-generated email that will be sent to your local state representative. “You guys really need to sign this, or else they’re going to close Planned Parenthood forever and replace it with farm factories staffed exclusively by violent police officers and plastic bags.” Her profile picture is lilac today, in a mark of protest against a recent crime against human rights, and if you don’t know what crime that is, you’re clearly part of the problem.

4. Gwyneth Paltrow. For cupping, for GOOP, for cheating on poor Matt Damon and then killing everyone in Contagion – take your pick.

3. The Label-Free. “I don’t think labels belong on people. I’m pansexual. But honestly, even think that term doesn’t really begin to capture my shimmering, omni-gendered nature. It’s such a shame that we have to use such limiting means of communication like language to express something as fluid and subversive as sexual orientation. I actually prefer to identify as a ball of glitter that pulses and contracts with the cycles of the moon. Or a dolphin made of teamwork. I haven’t decided. Oh, I own four pairs of custom-made fairy wings; why do you ask?”

2.The Fundraiser who Needs Fundraisers for Self-Worth.

“Don’t forget that my 10K/Ironman/cross-country bike trip to fight/raise awareness for/cure AIDs/breast cancer/global inequality/child slavery/non-GMO seed banks is next week!”

“Oh, can I not just write a check?”

“Can a check fill my Facebook Charity Walk 2011 album with 50 unique crowd shots? Can a check send me monthly emails thanking me for doing my part and reminding me that this year we’re going to exceed our goal and they couldn’t do it without me?”

“I guess I just don’t see how giving to charity and exercise are related, other than they both generally seem to be good things. You don’t do push-ups to resist global food distribution inequality or anything.”

“So are you going to donate or what? 50% of all donations will go to race-day expenses and staff salaries, but the rest directly funds life-saving research. And Cancer Awareness apparel. But 3% of all sales from the apparel goes back into the research fund! Which is evaluated and redistributed at the end of the year by a team of paid accountants.”

1. The Office Watchdog. We’re not sure who you are, because you seem to operate under the cover of darkness, but we see the trail you leave behind. The suspiciously chipper notes in the kitchen (“PLEASE BE SURE TO WASH ALL DISHES AS SOON AS YOU’RE DONE USING THEM – THANKS!!!!” and “DO NOT PUT FOIL IN THE COMPOST BIN; SOME OF US HAVE TO GO THROUGH IT AND CHECK FOR NON-BIODEGRADABLE ITEMS :)”) belie an undercurrent of rage and bile so potent it nearly chokes you. Please seek help.

Image: Fanpop

The post The 7 Do-Gooders Who Drive Us Crazy appeared first on EcoSalon.

Call it flexitarianism, conscious meat consumption, or low meat eating, lots of people are saving the flesh for special occasions and adopting a veg-centric diet. If you’ve been thinking about going vegetarian or vegan for the planet, but you really like meat and think you’ll miss it, or you’re worried that your nutrition will suffer, or you don’t want to subject your entire family to an extreme change, I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be black and white.

On a personal note, I’ve been eating about 85% veg for a few years now and it works for me”¦my body, my budget, and my beliefs.

Conventional livestock production uses tons of grain, water, and petroleum. It’s extremely inefficient, has huge environmental impacts, and is cruel to animals. For a detailed picture, read this now classic piece on The Meat Guzzler by Mark Bittman of the New York Times.

On the other hand, abolishing meat entirely is a bad idea because livestock can be an important part of ecological farming (not to mention a tough sell to a meat loving public). Pasture-raised meat is better for the environment, animals, and us by far, but requires more land. If we’re going to produce meat more sustainably, we’re going to have to eat a lot less of it. That’s the challenge.

Because drastic lifestyle changes can be overwhelming, humans have a tendency to do nothing until they feel ready to make a leap, but tiny steps can actually make a difference and lead to a complete change in the end, if that’s where you decide you’re headed.

The first step is to change your mindset from thinking of meat as the center of the plate and shift your shopping and cooking habits. It starts at that all-important moment when you’re thinking of what to make for dinner. Train your brain to build the meal around grains, beans, and vegetables, instead of a pork chop. There are many ways to do this and none of them are difficult.

Let’s get started!

1. Take a Class

This story about an eco-conscious, low meat cooking teacher in Portland, Oregon Made me think there must be others all over the country. Check Craig’s List and your community message boards.

2. Adopt a Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet has been shown to be healthy for your body. It’s also low in meat, not to mention so delicious.

3. Participate in Meatless Mondays

Started by Johns Hopkin’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, Meatless Mondays have taken the blogosphere by storm. Why not make it Meatless Mondays, Wednesdays and Sundays?

4. Take EcoSalon’s 5 Day Eat Low on the Food Chain Meal Challenge.

On the 6th day, roast a pasture-raised chicken, make a broth, and make it last.

5. Surf the Web

The 10 in 10 Diet is all the way veg, focuses on budget cooking, real, fresh foods, and has great tips for switching your thinking and shopping habits in the form of a funny robot video.

Low Meat is a new site that promises lots of goodies for readers.

6. Buy a Cookbook

There are heaps of cookbooks that are all or mostly veg, yet friendly to meat eaters.

The Flexitarian Table by Peter Berley has adaptable recipes for people that have to feed both vegetarians and carnivores or those, like me, who only want to eat meat once in awhile.

The Flexitarian Diet focuses on health and weight loss with recipes.

The Adaptable Feast by Ivy Manning includes recipes from a variety of traditions that have a “fork in the road” allowing for the accommodation of different diets.

There’s the James Beard Award-winning Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by almost-vegetarian Deborah Madison.

The upcoming book Licking Your Chops by rock star blogger Kim O’Donnel, who was one of the original proponents of Meatless Mondays, promises to be delicious.

7. Do the bulk of your shopping at the farmers market or join a CSA.

The easiest way to lower your meat consumption is to start with the freshest seasonal vegetables. The flavors are so vibrant and they are such a pleasure to cook that it will be easy to make meat an after-thought.

Up next week in The Green Plate: tips and tricks for shopping the farmers’ market.

This is the latest installment in Vanessa Barrington’s weekly column, The Green Plate, on the environmental, social, and political issues related to what and how we eat.

Images: Moe, K.I.T., Martin Kingsley, NatalieMaynor, nblumhardt, Mecookie, gamene and MR+G.

The post Calling All Carnivores: 7 Painless Ways to Be an Almost-Vegetarian appeared first on EcoSalon.

On a personal note, I’ve been eating about 85% veg for a few years now and it works for me”¦my body, my budget, and my beliefs.

Conventional livestock production uses tons of grain, water, and petroleum. It’s extremely inefficient, has huge environmental impacts, and is cruel to animals. For a detailed picture, read this now classic piece on The Meat Guzzler by Mark Bittman of the New York Times.

On the other hand, abolishing meat entirely is a bad idea because livestock can be an important part of ecological farming (not to mention a tough sell to a meat loving public). Pasture-raised meat is better for the environment, animals, and us by far, but requires more land. If we’re going to produce meat more sustainably, we’re going to have to eat a lot less of it. That’s the challenge.

Because drastic lifestyle changes can be overwhelming, humans have a tendency to do nothing until they feel ready to make a leap, but tiny steps can actually make a difference and lead to a complete change in the end, if that’s where you decide you’re headed.

The first step is to change your mindset from thinking of meat as the center of the plate and shift your shopping and cooking habits. It starts at that all-important moment when you’re thinking of what to make for dinner. Train your brain to build the meal around grains, beans, and vegetables, instead of a pork chop. There are many ways to do this and none of them are difficult.

Let’s get started!

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

1. Take a Class

This story about an eco-conscious, low meat cooking teacher in Portland, Oregon Made me think there must be others all over the country. Check Craig’s List and your community message boards.

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

2. Adopt a Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet has been shown to be healthy for your body. It’s also low in meat, not to mention so delicious.

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

3. Participate in Meatless Mondays

Started by Johns Hopkin’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, Meatless Mondays have taken the blogosphere by storm. Why not make it Meatless Mondays, Wednesdays and Sundays?

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

4. Take EcoSalon’s 5 Day Eat Low on the Food Chain Meal Challenge.

On the 6th day, roast a pasture-raised chicken, make a broth, and make it last.

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

5. Surf the Web

The 10 in 10 Diet is all the way veg, focuses on budget cooking, real, fresh foods, and has great tips for switching your thinking and shopping habits in the form of a funny robot video.

Low Meat is a new site that promises lots of goodies for readers.

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

6. Buy a Cookbook

There are heaps of cookbooks that are all or mostly veg, yet friendly to meat eaters.

The Flexitarian Table by Peter Berley has adaptable recipes for people that have to feed both vegetarians and carnivores or those, like me, who only want to eat meat once in awhile.

The Flexitarian Diet focuses on health and weight loss with recipes.

The Adaptable Feast by Ivy Manning includes recipes from a variety of traditions that have a “fork in the road” allowing for the accommodation of different diets.

There’s the James Beard Award-winning Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by almost-vegetarian Deborah Madison.

The upcoming book Licking Your Chops by rock star blogger Kim O’Donnel, who was one of the original proponents of Meatless Mondays, promises to be delicious.

• «
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• »

7. Do the bulk of your shopping at the farmers market or join a CSA.

The easiest way to lower your meat consumption is to start with the freshest seasonal vegetables. The flavors are so vibrant and they are such a pleasure to cook that it will be easy to make meat an after-thought.

Up next week in The Green Plate: tips and tricks for shopping the farmers’ market.

This is the latest installment in Vanessa Barrington’s weekly column, The Green Plate, on the environmental, social, and political issues related to what and how we eat.

Images: Moe, K.I.T., Martin Kingsley, NatalieMaynor, nblumhardt, Mecookie, gamene and MR+G.

The post Calling All Carnivores: 7 Painless Ways to Be an Almost-Vegetarian appeared first on EcoSalon.