Almost Vegan Due to Reason · 7 December 2012
The more I read The China Study, the more I believe eating almost vegan is the right way to eat for health. The studies that the author keeps citing point to the conclusion that eating less than 10% of calories from animal sources is surely the way to eat to be healthy.
In the past when I have tried a new way to eat, I was taken in by the hype and promises of results. Naturally, when you have some success at weight loss, you tend to believe the hype. The thing is that regardless of what type of diet I tried, my initial weight loss was always a result of calorie restriction. Anybody will lose weight cutting calories. The problem is keeping the weight off. Fad diets do not work to accomplish lasting changes. My own results verified that.
As a result of my diverse ways of eating in the past, my wife has been skeptical of my newest way of “healthy” eating. So much so that she asked pointedly why I believe The China Study to be true.
When it comes right down to it, I believe the author of The China Study because of the science and the methodologies behind the science. And I look at the reason Dr. Campbell (and his son) wrote the book in the first place. He is really just trying to sell good health. (He does get to make money selling his book, but I would not begrudge an author his royalties.)
Dr. Campbell was already renowned for his research and had authored many papers before he published The China Study. He was an expert before he wrote his book and he states that his initial goal was really to find out if one cancer study finding could be replicated. It was, but you will need to read the book for more details. While I believe his scientific methodology because of his credibility, I believe Dr. Campbell’s findings because he does not have anything to sell beyond his book. He stands behind his advocacy of a whole food, plant-based diet purely on his and others’ scientific findings. He has no supplements or videos or packaged foods to sell. He just wants people to know the facts and decide for themselves.
When my wife asked me why I believe The China Study has the answer to eating right, I was not able to articulate the reasons very well. I fell into the trap of getting defensive of my choices. Especially since she brought up my past attempts at losing weight and being healthy. But she was just trying to help me reason things out. (As it turns out, she was helping me come up with the reasoning in the last two paragraphs.)
I am sure there are detractors to The China Study and a whole foods, plant-based diet. But I am sure their pitches are not based on fact so much as passion, misinformation, or some other motivation. I wish my own passion had stayed out of my discussion with my wife and I had instead relied on the data. But even though I am passionate about health and eating right, after reading The China Study and looking at the facts, I believe eating almost vegan is the correct way to eat for optimum health.
© 2012 Michael T. Miyoshi
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