Effortless weight loss; Is this possible?

Obesity has now reached epidemic levels in the United States.  Having been overweight and having talked to many people in that very difficult position, I have discovered that most people who are overweight aren't that way because they want to be overweight.  Rather, we feel helpless and are somewhat trapped in a food environment (A food culture of abundance; a fat producing system that promotes and sustains being overweight.) that is extremely difficult to break out of.

Most everyone knows that getting thinner is extremely important to maximize health; to lower total cholesterol and to protect yourself from heart disease and cancer.  The scientific literature makes it abundantly clear that as body fat increases, so does the risk of heart heart disease and other diseases!

As our body fat increases so does what is called "visceral fat," that intra-abdominal fat around internal organs.  So it is time to ask the question, how do we really begin to address the issue of weight loss in a way that is now just a fad, starvation diet plan that is unsustainable?

Effortless weight loss
From my personal experience, the closest thing to effortless weight loss is learning to eat a diet that is rich in nutrient-dense foods, which by the way, is the fastest way to disease proof your body.  Superior nutrition has such a powerful effect on the body's ability to defend itself against illness that even one's poor genetics take a secondary role.  Win-win!  We can recapture our health and lose weight fast just by switching to a diet that is rich in plant nutrients and low in dietary fat by avoiding animal products, dairy products and processed foods that have been artificially filled with salt, fats and sugars.

For two years now, I have been learning to eat a diet that is filled with nutrient dense foods from plant sources.  A full spectrum of fruits and every color and type, vegetables  that are green, yellow, orange, red, blue and purple - a wide variety of plant foods that can be prepared or consumed raw. Whole grains of every type (Quinoa, Wheat, brown Rice, Amaranth, Oats, Buckwheat, etc.)  Beans and legumes, of every variety, shape and color - prepared and added to dishes that are truly filling and satisfying!  Nuts and Seeds - although these are naturally high in oil and fat, a small amount in their natural packaging is important to the diet.

Effortless weight loss?  Effortless in the sense of no longer needing to measure, weight or worry about eating too much.  I just eat all I want and really fill up on the "good stuff" rather than the junk that is so abundant to all of us in this culture.

Join the revolution!  Food matters!  You will lose weight and satisfy your deepest cravings at the same time.  Let food be your medicine.

To you good health!

Steve
Books to read:
Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman
The End of Heart Disease by Dr. Joel Fuhrman
The China Study by T. Colin Campbell
Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr.

Stevemattis @ instagram
Steven Jay Mattis @ Face Book
Steveveganheart.blogspot.com

Revisiting the Coronary Calcium Score

Recently my cardiologist asked me to retake the "Coronary Calcium Score."  It has been a full two years since my first CT Score was taken.  For those of you who are new to this test, it is basically a simple procedure that uses " Cat Scan" technology to view any calcium deposits located in the Coronary Arteries.  Plaque formation in these arteries in the chief cause of blockages requiring stints or Coronary Bypass Surgery or in many cases sudden death, as these soft, inflamed, and unstable plaque burst causing clotting in these arteries with the resultant heart attack.  Over time some of this plaque calcifies and becomes visible with the CT Scan.

My first CT Score was taken in August 2014.  I scored 900.  Anything over 400 is considered serious Coronary Artery Disease (CAD).  Although I did not have any other symptoms, I chose a new lifestyle treatment.  It was at that time that I converted to a fully vegan lifestyle for hearth reasons.

It has now been two years of not eating any meat, dairy, processed food or oil.  Research has shown that CAD can be halted and sometimes reversed on Plant based nutrition.  Now that it has been two years of eating this way, my cardiologist felt it was time to take another look.

The logic of another Scan suggests that one could have another scan taken and determine if in fact the calcification has slowed down or halted.  Well, my follow up scan showed a 256 point increase in calcification.  Needless to say, I was very discouraged.

Having visited The Cleveland Clinic and studies with Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr. in the well known Wellness Institute, I decided to drop him an email and ask his advice and for his perspective on this new information related to the new CT Score.

Amazingly, and true to his style, he called my cell phone within twelve hours.  I was not available so he left a detailed message which I have transcribed.  He explained the increased Calcium score this way.

• There is nothing for you to worry about! (Since I am doing 100% Plant Based Nutrition)
• There is no diet that is more "anti-inflammatory" than plant based nutrition.
• A high number of calcified plaque also reveals a high amount of uncalcified plaque.
• It is the soft, uncalcified, unstable, inflamed plaque that causes most heart attacks.
• Plant based nutrition removes inflammation from these soft, unstable plaques and the body jumps in on the healing project by dumping calcium into these soft unstable plaques and thereby making them stable, non-inflamed and resistant to rupture.  This is how one becomes "heart attack proof," even though they have a lot of plaque build up.  
• Therefore, one who is eating a Whole foods, Plant Based, No oil diet (wfpbno) is actually converting their softer, unstable, inflamed plaque into stable, non-inflamed, calcified plaque.

A higher Coronary Calcium Score, after a couple years of eating Plant Based Nutrition, doesn't mean that your condition is worsening.  It actually means that you are stabilizing and are much safer.

Bottom line:  Continue to eat your veggies!  Oil still corrodes the coronary arteries.  Animal foods and dairy products are converted through protein synthesis to highly inflammatory compounds that cause plaque to grow.

Coronary Artery Disease is still the number one killer of men and women in America and everywhere the Standard American Diet is consumed.

Diet makes all the difference!

Check out my Instagram Food Diary at Stevemattis@instagram
Facebook at Steven Jay Mattis
Caldwell B. Esseltyne Jr. Book:  Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Staying on Track

How do you stay on track with a Whole foods, Plant Based Diet in an environment with foods that are filled with oil, dairy, meat and processed foods? Having just returned from traveling in France and India for two weeks, it has been difficult to stay on track.  After all, France in particular, is the land of Cheese, Pastry, and Oil filled french cooking.  Here is what I do:

Make a commitment to know the truth about foods.  Resources like The China Study by T. Colin Campbell help me understand the down side of dairy, and its cancer promoting proteins.  Eat to Live. by Dr. Joel Fuhrman gives a wonderful overview of the research related to the Standard American Diet and animal protein.   Also, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn gives one of the clearest explanations of what a diet laden with fat, process foods, and animal products does to the coronary arteries.
In short, I find it helpful to occasionally review these resources.  I go back and reread key part of these books.  I also try to stay abreast of the research and read new books on the market, like How Not to Die, by Dr. Michael Gregor.  Also check out his website: Nutritionfacts.org.

Try to stay on top of the latest and greatest vegan recipes.  Through staying in touch with great vegan recipe developers you resource yourself with wonderful alternatives to grease, dairy and animal laden foods.  Follow some of them on instagram.

Here is a dozen or so I follow on @instagram:
@kristi.keating
@fruitandveggies4life.
@littlebitesofbeauty
@deliciouslyella
@engine2diet
@plantpurechef
@avitualvegan
@mrsplantintexas
@plantbasedseattle
@plantbasedchef
@veronicathevegan
@veggiesdontbite

There are thousands more available; all quality @instagram accounts.

Stay in touch with the reasons you are vegan!  Understand the deception we have been "fed."
Stay in touch with the literature!  Research is not that confusing.
Grow in your understanding of really good vegan alternative recipes!  Eating vegan is awesome!
Stay on course for your health.  Stay on course for the environment.  Stay on course for the animals.

Stevemattis@instagram.com
Steven Jay Mattis @FB

Osteoporosis: The most important contributors to this disease.

Osteoporosis continues to be one of the great needs that an aging population faces in America and other  Westernized countries.  Of course, dairy products are held in very high esteem in these countries.  Everyone knows that without sufficient calcium we would not have strong bones.  Is this actually true or have we been misled by years of misinformation and advertising?

There have been numerous studies that have found that milk consumption has a high statistical association with higher rates of hip fractures.  These studies do not suggest that dairy products cause Osteoporosis.  However, it does suggest that dairy products are not protecting us from osteoporosis as we have been indoctrinated to believe.

Osteoporosis has a complex etiology that involves many factors including what is termed the "acid-alkaline balance."  Dr. Campbell, head of nutritional research for the China Project, reported, "Ironically, osteoporosis tends to occur in countries where calcium intake is highest and most of it comes from protein-rich dairy products.  The Chinese data indicate that people need less calcium than we think and can get adequate amounts from vegetable source plant food."  He reported to the New York Times that there was basically no osteoporosis in China.

THE NEGATIVE CALCIUM BALANCE
Let's say you consume about 1,000 mg of calcium a day.  About a third of the calcium ingested gets absorbed.  So if you absorb about 300mg, the remaining 700 mg remains in the digestive tract and passes out of the body.  Now, if in this same twenty-four-hour period, you excreted 350mg of calcium in your urine, would you be in a negative or a positive calcium balance?
(Ingested 1000, absorbed 300, excreted 350 = retained -50)

A negative calcium balance means more calcium is excreted in the urine than is absorbed through digestion.  Therefore to answer this riddle one must know what happens in the body.  Animal-protein ingestion results in a heavy acid load in the blood.  This sets off a series of reactions whereby calcium is released from the bones to neutralize the acid.  Because the sulfur-based amino acids in animal products contribute significanly to urinary acid production and the resulting calcium loss.

BOTTOM LINE 
The six most acid producing substances are here listed in the order of their acidity.
1.  Animal protein (meat and dairy)
2.  Salt
3.  Caffeine
4.  Refined sugar
5.  Alcohol
6.  Nicotine

BEST SOURCES FOR CALCIUM? (for strong bones)
LOTS OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES.
Green vegetables, beans, tofu, sesame seeds, and even oranges contain lots of usable calcium, without the problems associated with dairy and meat.

What diet is best for strong bones?  The Whole Food, Plant Based Diet ranks at the top!
_________________________
FB Steven Jay Mattis
Food Diary: SteveMattis@instagram

Warning: The Standard American Diet (SAD) will kill you!

I used to be pretty nonchalant about my diet.  I loved meat, dairy products and processed foods.  I was addicted and sick!  Unfortunately, this apathetic lifestyle has caught up with me. For that, I am so thankful!  In fact, it catches up with everybody! However, unfortunately for some, without warning with grave consequences.  Some things you can run from (denial); but you can't hide from ultimately (reality).

The Standard American Diet seems pretty good to most of us.  In fact, I have discovered that many people think they eat pretty healthfully.   And I guess compared to "old so and so" next door, perhaps you do eat quite a bit more healthfully than most.  However, when you begin to examine your diet from the perspective of a percentage of total calories consumed, things might look a little different.

If you're able to study the attached pie chart, you will begin to understand many things about the American Obesity and Disease epidemic.

Remember Heart Disease is the #1 killer of both men and women in America.  Followed by Cancer and the other "diseases of affluence."

You might be interested to know that not just overweight people suffer from Heart Disease.  I know people who have taken steps to find out the condition of their heart and arteries, even though they were "normal weight," only to discover that the ravages of their diet over time has produced a diseased heart and associated arterial trunk.  In plain English, they were suffering from heart disease - the #1 American silent killer!

So what should a "healthy diet" look like?
If your diet looks like the pie chart above, so that you're only consuming in the range of about 10% plant based foods, you might not like what I'm about to say, but you are sowing the seeds in your life for all the American Diseases to express themselves in you.  Consider the Plant-Based Pyramid below:

 
This "Pyramid" isn't perfect, but it is light years ahead of what we have been "sold" through the misinformation campaigns of the USDA and the NIH.

Truth really can set you free!

Tired of dieting?  Tired of measuring?  Tired of being hungry all the time and losing very little weight?  Fad diets don't work in the long run; they are totally unsustainable!  Only a lifestyle change works in the long run.  Making you disease proof, and heart attack proof!  You don't hear much about those terms do you?

I am so grateful that I have been given the chance to change my lifestyle and Eat to Live!
Join the revolution!  Whole Foods, Plant Based, (and if you have CAD), No Oil.  Choose Life!
____________________________
Food diary on instagram@stevemattis
FB: Steven Jay Mattis

Why Protein Deficiency is virtually Impossible!

People always ask me, "since you eat only a vegan diet, where do you get your protein?"  We have been absolutely brainwashed into thinking that all protein comes only from Milk and Animal Muscle.  The Meat and Dairy industry have certainly done their job in marketing their products to the American public.  The results are also clear and stunning:  Coronary Artery Disease is the #1 killer of both men and women in America!  Followed by Cancer, Stoke, Hypertension and Diabetes.  These Diseases of Affluence are the direct result of eating our Standard American Diet; made up of processed foods (filled with sugar, fat and salt) and animal foods (Meat and Dairy products.)  So then, the question still remains, if one stops eating our Standard American Diet, where do we get our protein to sustain life?

THE SHORT ANSWER
Experimental studies carried out in the 1940's and '50's showed that people require about 2.5 percent of their total calories from protein.  In order to provide a definitely safe level - to cover situations such as chronic infections and injuries - the World Health Organization (WHO) DOUBLED these figures.

Since 1974, the WHO has recommended that men, women, and children consume about 5% of their calories from protein.  Pregnant women should consume about 6.5% of their calories from protein, and lactating women 7% of their calories from protein.

Nature designed her foods to be complete long before they arrived on the dinner table.  Think about it!
There is sufficient protein in plants to grow elephants, horses, and hippos, so there ought to be enough to grow human beings. The most rapid time of growth in a person's life is during infancy.  We double in size in the first two years of life.  No one would contest that the ideal food for a baby is human breast milk, which is only 5% protein.  Commonly consumed starches and vegetables contain from 6 to 45 percent of their calories as protein and therefore are more than sufficient to supply the protein needs of children and adults, who grow at a much slower rate than babies.

FINALLY CONSIDER - PROTEIN IS PLENTIFUL

RICE-----------------------------------@8%PROTEIN
POTATOES--------------------------@11% PROTEIN
CORN----------------------------------@12% PROTEIN
SPAGHETTI-------------------------@14% PROTEIN
WHOLE GRAIN BREADS------@16% PROTEIN
BEANS--------------------------------@26% PROTEIN
PEAS-----------------------------------@28% PROTEIN

The starchy foods above are part of a Whole Foods, Plant Based Diet.  Eat lots of Fruits, Vegetables, Whole Grains, Beans and Legumes, some nuts and seeds (unless you suffer from CAD) then eliminate most of the nuts and seeds.

A protein deficient diet is virtually impossible!  However, too high amounts of animal protein from meat and dairy, has specifically be shown to generate the Diseases of Affluence that are killing us!
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Comment adapted from Dr. John and Mary McDougall.
Food Diary at instagram@stevemattis

Heart Disease: Good News, Bad News.

Atherosclerosis is the disease that destroys the arteries of millions of Americans every year.  In fact, it is the number one killer of men and women.  Atherosclerosis leads to heart attacks, strokes, hearing loss, kidney failure, impotence, disability, immobility and leg and back pain.

How does atherosclerosis get started?
The disease process begins when the inside linings of the arteries are injured by oxidized cholesterol, a by-product of antibody reactions started by eating meat and dairy products.  Slivers of cholesterol and globs of fat leak under the inside lining of the arteries (The Endothelium).  These slivers of cholesterol and fat cause festering sores known as atherosclerotic plaques.  Unfortunately, our arteries do not contain nerve endings so we don't know to take action until a tragedy strikes such as a heart attack or stroke!  The tragedy of complete artery closure begins with the rupture of a tiny overstuffed plaque bulge.  When this happens, the content of the plaque (a fatty liquid) drains into the bloodstream and immediately a clot is formed, causing the artery to close off.  The blood clot is called a thrombus and a heart attack has just occurred, called a coronary thrombosis.  Obviously, this is very bad news to the one having the heart attack or stroke and to their loved ones.

How do you treat the cause of Atherosclerosis?
There is good news for those suffering from atherosclerosis (Coronary Artery Disease or CAD).  It has been discovered and proven that CAD is not only preventable but also can be halted and even reversed!

The rather simple solution to Atherosclerosis is to begin a life-style change including a dietary make over.  The disease is defeated by following a Whole Foods, Plant Based Diet.  The attached photo is  an actual angiogram of a Left Anterior Descending Artery. Courtesy of Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn from the Cleveland Clinic.

On the far left, the lack of blood flow is clearly visible due to blockage.  After treatment with nutrition alone, the artery on the right, is clear and has normal blood flow restored.

So what causes Heart Disease: Eating the Standard American Diet! (Meat, Dairy, Processed Foods and Oil).  The choice is clear.  The solution is actually doable; eating a wonderful diet of quantities of VEGETABLES, FRUITS, WHOLE GRAINS, BEAN AND LEGUMES.

Compare the arteries and chose life!


Comments adapted from Dr. John A. McDouball, M.D.
Food Diary/Instagram@stevemattis