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Cover of 1922 Sears Modern Homes Catalog. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons/public domain image.

Editors note: This story was originally published by Undark. It appears here as part of theClimate Deskcollaboration.

The United States has a housing problem. Not only are there too few, those that we have are gluttons, using almost twice as much energy per home as those in Europe. Only Canadas homes, most of which endure long and biting winters, use more.

Our leaky, inefficient homes produce nearly one-fifth of the countrys energy-related greenhouse gas emissions, a number that has probably crept higher as the pandemic has kept people at home. Thats because most of our homes are stubbornly stuck in a previous generation. The median age of a US home is 37 years, and its not getting any younger. Many of our houses and apartments are still heated and powered by fossil fuels. If were going to meet the Paris Agreement goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent from 2005 levels by 2050as many states and municipalities are still striving to dowe have some work to do.

More than 40 percent of our energy use at home comes from electricity, and the absolute amount has risen seven-fold from six decades ago. Greenhouse gas emissions from household electricity use have dropped 31 percent since 2005. But the dip is largely the result of a decline in coal power plants, not changes in home energy use.

Fortunately, eliminating electricity-based emissions is relatively easy. Many homeowners can put up solar panels today and reap enough energy savings to cover the investment in about eight years, sometimes less. For those who cant, pushing utilities to phase out fossil fuel power plants in favor of solar, wind, and other forms of renewable energy would be a boon. Eliminating carbon from the grid alone would slash nearly half of household emissions.

Unfortunately, taking care of the rest wont be so easy. Heating is still the largest portion of household energy use, said Benjamin Goldstein, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Michigan who was the lead author of a new study that looked at how US homes could eliminate fossil fuels. Across the country, millions of home furnaces still burn natural gas, oil, and even coal. Thats one reason fossil fuels still account for 80 percent of the countrys energy use. To fully wean ourselves from carbon, well have to tackle home heating, too.

In short, we need to rethink housing from the ground up, Goldstein says. We need to have a bunch of actions, from individual to structural changes, in order to make the housing stock meet the carbon goals. Because a new home built today will likely be around in 2050, we have no time to waste.

For new homes, theres a relatively straightforward solution, and thats simply to build them better. Several states have adopted stringent building codes when it comes to energy efficiency in new homes. In Massachusetts,most townsnow require new homes to be at least 15 percent more energy efficient than those built to the current standard code, with incentives for builders to strive for even greater improvements. The construction costs are higher, but the state says that homeowners can expect to save money from day one in most cases.

Still, theres room to improve these codes. Travis Anderson, director of design at Placetailor, a Boston-based architecture and development cooperative, says the most underestimated factor in energy efficiency is airtightnesshow well the home is sealed off from the outdoors. He came to that realization when tweaking models he developed for the city of Boston, which is looking tozero out carbon emissions in its housing portfolio by 2050. That discovery had surprising benefits. When Anderson improved a homes sealing, he was able to use less insulation, install lower performance windows, and lower costs, while still meeting stringent energy targets. You cant make a building too airtight, he said. I think code is still lacking in that regard.

Improving buildings energy efficiency will also go a long way toward alleviating energy poverty. Renters are at the mercy of their landlords when it comes to efficiency; according toa surveyby the US Energy Information Administration, an estimated 25 million low-income renters forgo food or medicine to pay for energy bills. Renters making under $15,000 per year spendmore than 15 percentof their income on energy costs, compared with just 1.4 percent for households making more than $75,000. A well-insulated apartment with efficient appliances would not only slash a renters carbon emissions, it would free up money to spend on other necessities.

In California,dozens of citieshave taken another approach to cutting carbon emissions: They have effectively banned new natural gas hook-ups. This has pushed homebuilders to use only electric appliances and heating, preparing homes for a carbon-free grid. Electric heat pumps, much improved in recent decades, can provide heating and air conditioning to these homes ata fraction of the energy useof conventional systems. And when powered by solar or wind, they have zero emissions.

But we cant necessarily switch over to electric homes and call it a day. These houses still use a lot of energy, Goldstein said. When he and his colleagues analyzed energy use in 93 million homes across the US78 percent of the housing stockthey also modeled what it would take to reach the Paris Agreements goal of reducing emission by 80 percent from their 2005 levels. Decarbonizing the grid and electrifying homes were a necessity. So, too, were other substantial measures.

For one, Goldstein said our homes should probably go on a diet. Starting in the early 1980s, the median size of a new home has swelled from around 1,600 square feet to 2,300 square feet today. In their new paper, Goldstein and his coauthors recommend that houses slim down by 10 percent nationwide, returning the median size to what it was in 2001. Existing homes will need significant retrofits. In some places, communities will have to grow a bit denser and make do with fewer single-family homes. Goldsteins recommendations for each state vary significantly depending on what their cities look like today. But nationwide, the changes are relatively modest: Hitting the Paris Agreements 2050 target will require just a 25 percent increase in housing density and a 3 percent reduction in single-family homes.

Packing more homes and apartments into smaller spaces might seem like a hard sell in the Covid-19 era, as space has become a luxury.

But the pandemic may make some of the changes Goldstein is proposing a little more palatable. Extended families, now often scattered in large homes throughout the country, have been warming to the idea of multigenerational housing for decades, and despitethe added difficultiesof social distancing with multiple generations under one roof,61 percentof the millions of Americans who moved during the pandemic moved in with a family member, according to the results of a recent survey. This not only brings families together, but it also helps lower everyones household footprint.

We might find a lesson in multigenerational housingscontinued appealeven in the face of a crisis: Climate-friendly housing may not look exactly like todays homes and households. But in their own way, theyll be better. And well be better for it.

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Time for a diet: Today's US homes have super-sized into energy gluttons - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Gastric bypass surgery has been seen in the past as one of the most effective therapies in treating or reversing type 2 diabetes.

And now we know why.

It isnt the surgery itself, as was once presumed, but the resulting weight loss.

Experts say this means major weight loss through dieting produces the same beneficial metabolic effects as surgery-induced weight loss.

That contention is at the heart of a new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri.

Researchers studied people with obesity and type 2 diabetes who had undergone gastric bypass surgery and then lost 18 percent of their body weight.

They compared these study participants with others who also had diabetes and obesity but had lost the same percentage of body weight through diet alone.

The health improvements across both groups included lower blood sugar levels throughout the day, improved insulin action in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue, and a reduction in the need for insulin and other diabetes medications.

Dr. Vijaya Surampudi, an internal medicine specialist at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in California, says weight loss can have numerous health benefits.

It can improve blood glucose control, blood pressure, reduce cholesterol, improve mood, and reduce depressive symptoms, Surampudi told Healthline.

There is also some evidence of prevention of certain cancers, including breast and colorectal cancer. And weight loss can improve functional capacity, she added.

But that doesnt mean losing weight is necessary for everyones health.

People vary in the ideal body fat/weight range for them, said Krista Scott-Dixon, PhD, the director of curriculum at Precision Nutrition.

What is ideal is not a specific number, but rather a set of indicators about physical function, well-being, and thriving, she told Healthline.

Scott-Dixon adds that different ethnic groups and genetic subpopulations can be healthy and functional with different body mass indexes (BMIs), body weights, and body fat percentages.

For instance, we know that folks whose ancestors have East Asian genetic heritage tend to be less healthy at a lower BMI than folks from other regions, she explained.

When determining if weight loss is recommended, a medical professional will consider not just BMI, but weight distribution (adipose tissue volume and location), medical history, family history, and/or current lifestyle, said Caroline West Passerrello, MS, RDN, LDN, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Scott-Dixon says high levels of body fat can change the hormonal and chemical environment within the body.

These changes can elevate a persons risk for conditions such as:

And when body fat gets too high, it starts depositing into places where it shouldnt be, or shouldnt be in high amounts, she said.

These areas include the heart, liver, kidneys, muscle tissue, bone, and in and around other internal organs.

Past a certain point, excess body weight loads our structures primarily our joints in the lower body, Scott-Dixon said.

For example, Surampudi says 1 pound of weight loss is 4 pounds off your knees and ankles.

Surampudi says bariatric surgery is simply a tool in ones health journey for weight loss.

She adds that there are several types of bariatric surgeries, but the two most commonly offered are the gastric sleeve and the gastric bypass surgery.

The decision on which surgery [is appropriate] is based on the individual patient, their medical history, and what the individual and their physician feels is the best choice, she explained.

But surgical weight loss, including gastric bypass surgery, isnt for everyone, says Scott-Dixon.

So, individuals looking to improve their glucose control need to know they have options to reduce their adipose tissue volume, she said.

Passerrello has these general tips for weight loss:

Its also accurately stated [in the study] that losing 18 percent of body weight with diet therapy alone is difficult, Passerrello told Healthline.

Scott-Dixon says its also difficult to maintain in the long run.

In part, this is because most traditional diets are not only nutritionally poor and relatively unsustainable, theyre also done in a context where building deep health and the broad foundation for long-term changes arent addressed, she said.

Scott-Dixon defines the concept of deep health as that which addresses a multifaceted set of indicators, including:

There are so many things to consider: your access to food, your schedule, your current medical history, and your lifestyle, to name a few, Passerrello said.

A registered dietitian may use the social ecological model of health to frame a plan that will address these factors, as well as the amount of food to eat and how much movement to strive for, she added.

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Losing Weight by Dieting Has the Same Health Benefits as Surgery - Healthline

A person'sheart beats about 2.5 billion times over the span of an average lifetime. We seem to take that for granted. Half of Americans suffer some form of heart disease, and more than 840,000 people died last year from heat-related illnesses (including strokes), which is more than cancer and COVID-19 combined.

Not to get grim about it, but there are things we can do to reverse this trend, and most cases of heart diseasein the US is at least partly brought on by lifestyle choices like being sedentary and smoking, and other daily risk factors such as eating a mostly meat-based diet, according to a recentstudy. Prioritizing getting daily vigorous exercise and eating a whole food plant-based diet is the bestway toboost your hearthealth, naturally.

There is a simple way to reduce the chances of heart disease, regardless of your age, right now, which is to eat more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. These 7 foods are among the best to boost heart health without the need for medication, In fact, a new study found that all it takes to move the needle on heart health and diabetes is to eat one more serving of fruits and vegetables a day.

Foods containing high levels of saturated fats like meat, processed foods, and pastries may be a leading cause of the risk of heart disease. Choosing a plant-based diet significantly reverses heart failure symptomsbecause wholefoods with fiber naturallylower your cholesterol and help maintain healthy blood circulation.

When you are seeking heart-healthy foods, turn to those that are closest to what you couldgrow inthe earth, like fruits and vegetables and minimally processed foods (potatoes not chips).

Everyone can benefit from eating this way, not just people with heart disease.If you don't know where to start here are7 ways to eat less meatand lower your risk of heart disease by cutting back on saturated fat. And check outTheBeet's new healthy plant-based recipesevery day that you can enjoy too add more plants to your plate, and years to your longevity.

1. Beets

If you've ever heard someone say, "a beet helps the heartbeat," they're right. In fact, these small vibrantly-coloredroot vegetables contain a high concentration of nitrates. Nitratesare a natural chemical found in soil, air, water, andsome foods that can help your body to reduce blood pressure, which can lead tolessrisk of heart disease, heart attacks, and stroke. You can't beat eating beets! Mix them into your smoothie or chop them into fine pieces and add them to your salad.

2. Berries

These are berry good for your heart! "Eating a cup of blueberries a day reduces risk factors for cardiovascular disease," according to a study by the National Library of Medicine.To be specific, eating 150 grams (about 5 ounces) of blueberries a day reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease by up to 15 percent.

The study examined the effect of six months of blueberry intake on insulin resistance and cardiometabolic function in patients with metabolic syndrome.The research team concludedthat "blueberries and other berries should be included in dietary strategies to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease particularly among at-risk groups." Add berries to your smoothies, yogurt parfaits, salads, or simply enjoy them on their own.

3. Avocados

Avocados have a bad reputation because most people think eating fat will make you fat, but the opposite is actually true in the case of plant-based fat like avocado. The 5 grams of fat in an avocado can help you lose weight and boost heart health because it trains your body to burn fat as fuel. The two fats in avocados are mono andpolyunsaturated fats that take place ofsaturated or trans fats when eaten in moderation. This can help reduce bad cholesterol in the body and decrease your risk of heart disease.Because avocados are full of "good fat" they can help your body absorb nutrients without raising LDL levels (so-called bad cholesterol) in the body. LDL creates plaque, blockages and eventually heard disease. If you'refighting high cholesterol,try eating avocados regularly, or adding them to your smoothies and salads.

4. Tomatoes

When people say, "A Tomato a Day Keeps the Heart Doctor Away," they're actually talking about Lycopene. This chemical that gives tomatoes their bright red color, and can be found in watermelon and grapefruit, is a powerhouse antioxidant that helps to keep cells from becoming damaged.Lycopene may work to lower LDL. Lycopene in the diet also appears to prevent clotting, which can limit the risk of stroke according to health studies.

5. Garlic

Aside from garlic'spowerfulaftertaste, the food has powerful health benefits. Garlic, when chopped releases allicin which can help lower LDL, the "bad" cholesterol that canlead toheart disease. People with high cholesterol should consider taking garlic supplements because they appear to reduce LDL by about 10-15 percent according to a health study by The National Library of Medicine.

6. Edamame

Edamame is neither a fruit nor vegetable, but a powerhouse legume that delivers major benefits when it comes to boosting heart health. Edamameis rich infiber, antioxidants and vitamin Kwhich together work to lower LDLand improve your blood lipids. "Eating 47 grams of soy protein per day can lower total cholesterol levels by 9.3 percent and LDL by 12.9 percent, according to a health study by The National Library of Medicine. In addition, the vitamin K in edamame helps regulate your blood vessels and improves circulation in the body.

7. Oranges

Oranges are the perfect refreshing fruit to enjoy all year round and they appear to protect your heart against aging. Oranges contain flavonoids which is a class of pigments that help give it structure. Specifically, the chemical hesperidinfound in citrus may support heart health according to several studies. In one recentstudy, hesperidinhelped improveblood pressure, and lower cardiovascular risk. Results show that drinking orange juice daily for just four weeks has a "blood-thinning effect and may reduce blood pressure" for overweight men.

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The 7 Best Foods for Heart Health to Eat Today and Everyday - The Beet

Now more than ever, athletes are reaching for lentils, edamame, and chickpeas instead of biting into steak dinner, to raise their strength, fitness, and overall performance levels. Here are twenty athletes who creditswitching to a vegan or plant-based diet with improving their fitness and results--through faster recovery time between workouts, quicker healing from injury, and being able tobuildleaner, strongermuscles. These superstars say that their dietshelped them get to where theyare today,such as preparing for Olympic Gold or becomingthe number one tennis player in the world.

These champion players report that eating a plant-based diet increasesenergy levels, provides more than enough clean protein to refuel and rebuild, reduces inflammation, and improves recovery time. Eating plant-based also helps them with mental clarity, andevenabates allergy symptoms like asthma during the most intense allergy season.

In the nearly one yearsinceThe Game Changerswasreleased last September and became one of the most-watched documentaries, and showed that some of the world's strongest and accomplished athletes don't need meat or dairy to succeed, more and more players are limiting their animal protein intake and are going all or mostly plant-based.

The number one tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, went plant-based more than twelve years ago to enhance his athletic performance and win more matches. In recent interviews, he has creditedgoing vegan with helping him rise from third place in the world to first in the world because it helped clear his allergies. Before changing his diet,Djokovic had searched for cures to the breathing issues that cost him matches and focus which caused him tostruggled during his most intense matches. The allergies used to make him feellike he couldnt breathe and would be forced to retire from competitive matches as he did in Australia.

"Eating meat was hard on my digestion and that took a lot of essential energy that I need for my focus, for recovery, for the next training session, and for the next match," he said. Djokovic emphasized he does not eat foods that require a lot of digestion, especially in the morning, when he needs all of his energy for training. Instead, he starts the day with hot water and lemon, then celery juice, and some superfood supplements.

Tia Blanco wongold at the International Surfing Association Open in 2015 andcredits her success to her vegan diet.Blanco reports thata vegan diet helps her stay strong and she enjoyseating different forms of vegan protein like nuts, seeds, beans, and legumes.

The professional surferwas influencedby her mother, who is a vegetarian andgrew up in a veggie-forward household, Blanco hasnever eaten meat in her life,which made the plant-based switch much easier. And speaking of making things easier,Blanco has an Instagram cooking page called @tiasvegankitchen where she shares her favorite simple vegan recipes so all of her fans can eat like their favorite professional vegan athlete. In addition to her home-cooked meals, Blanco recently became an ambassador for vegan company Beyond Meat and now she posts Instagram stories and highlights of her favorite meatless meat recipes.

Steph Davis has been vegan for 18 years now and says, "theres nothing in my life that hasnt become better as a result, from climbing and athletics to mental and spiritual well being." Davis has competed on some of the most challenging verticle routeson the planet likeConcepcion (5.13), which is known to be one of thehardestpure climbsanywhere. Davis holds the third overall ascent and is the first female to ever make the ascent of theroute. Davis described it as her "most technically demanding climbever."

Davis explainedwhy she went vegan eight years ago when she partnered with PETA."What can we do to start making changes in a positive way? And if it just so happens that changing our lifestyle leads to environmental benefits, health benefits, economic benefits, and positive social change, then all the better. One thing Ive learned is you dont have to do or be anything you dont want to be, and you can change anything in your life just by starting to do it. Its you who chooses who and what you are, by the things you think and the things you do."

She goes on to add,"no one says you have to become a perfect vegan overnight. But why not start making small changes and see how it feels? I believe its the small choices people make that have the biggest power to change, and nothing is more simple yet also more far-reaching than changing how and what you choose to eat. Were all here for a short time, in the end, and living a well-intentioned and compassionate life seems like what ultimately matters the most, the only real goal that I aspire to."

Tennis champion Venus Williams swearsthat making the switch to veganism was one of the factors that helped to improve her performance and get over an auto-immune disease. Thetennis star went vegan back in 2011when she was diagnosed with Sjgren's syndrome, a debilitating autoimmune disease with a range of symptoms from jointpainto swelling, numbness, burning eyes, digestive problems, andfatigue.She chose to eat plant-basedto recover to herformerly healthy self, and it worked so she stuck to it.

The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion recovers faster on a plant-based dietnow, compared to how she felt backwhen she ate animal protein. When you have an auto-immune disease you often feel extreme fatigue and random body aches and for Venus, a plant-based diet provides energy and helpsher reduce inflammation.

The Beet reported on Willaim's diet and what she normally eats in a day to stay healthy, fit, and win more matches. Talking about her favorite dinner meal, Williams adds,sometimes a girl just needs a donut!"

Mike Tyson recentlysaid he is "in the best shape ever" thanks to his vegan diet. The boxing legend then announced he's getting back into the rings after 15 years,to fightagainst Roy Jones, Jr. in Californialater this fall.

Tysonwent vegan ten years ago after dealing with health complications and in the wake of having cleaned up his life: I was so congested from all the drugs and bad cocaine, I could hardly breathe."Tyson said, I had high blood pressure, was almost dying, and had arthritis."

Now, the 53-year-old powerhouse is sober, healthy, and fit. "Turning vegan helped me eliminate all those problems in my life, and "I'm in the best shape ever." His new trainer agrees:Watching Iron Mike's speed during recent training sessions, observed: "He has the same power as a guy who is 21, 22-years old."

Oklahoma City's point guard Chris Paul decided to ditch meat and dairy and was asked join on as a co-executive producer for the popular documentary,The Game Changers.

For breakfast, Paul enjoys oatmeal with plant-based milkand nut butter. For lunch, hefuels up with pasta or brown rice with Beyond Meat sausage, grilled vegetables, and a curry sauce. His chef toldUSA Today,"The main thing is, we try to keep it as light and clean as possible for his normal routine, with organic ingredients. Anything that can minimize body inflammation. Chris is always worrying about what he can and can't eat." So far it appears he's getting it right.

In an exclusive interview with The Beet'sAwesome Vegans columnist Elysabeth Alfano, Paul said eating a plant-based diet helps him keep up with players half his age.

In 2016,Kaepernickmade the switch to veganismwith his longtime girlfriend to recover froma series of injuries that had him down for the count.The Beetrecentlyreported onhow this dietary switchhasallowedKaepernick to stay strong and healthy. Now, he's in the gym building muscle and looks fitterthan ever. But will he be picked up? The professional football player claims that a vegan diet makes him feel "always ready" to perform his best on the field.

Cam Newton just replacedTom Brady, who also follows a mostly plant-based diet, as the New England Patriot's QB, after havingmade the plant-based switch back in March 2019. The NFL Star first decided to ditch meat and dairy to recover quicker from injurieswhen he learned that a plant-based diet is proven to help reduce inflammation."I've seen such a remarkable change in the way my body responds to the food that I eat," Newton told PETA for his recent partnership for a new campaign called, "Built Like a Vegan," proving that you don't need to eat meat to be strong. Newton enjoys a meat-free burger on a pretzel bun, heavy on pickles and sauce.He adds: "People often ask, 'How do you get your protein?' I just say, 'I get it in the same way you do, but it's fresher and cleaner.' "

Newton shares how to do it: "My advice to a person who wants to become vegan is to eat on schedule. If you can eat on a schedule, you won't miss [a meal or crave meat] or think anything different, and you'll be alright."

Elijah Hall says about his vegan diet:"Going vegan was the best decision" he has ever made.Hallholds records in the indoor 200 meters and was training for the Tokyo this summer when it got postponed by a yeardue to the pandemic. Hall said "the effects that its having on my body are amazing. Becoming a plant-based athlete has opened many doors to my health and my training." We predict he'll only get faster in the next 11 months and break records, come home with golf and be the world champion in 12 months.

Five-years ago, Morgan Mitchell went vegan and it made her faster, leaner and happier. Last year she was featured in the plant-based athletes documentary The Game Changersand said,Being vegan has helped me immensely. I dont feel sluggish like I did when I was eating meat, and my recovery from training really took off. It felt like an overall cleanse for my body, and I started seeing greater results on the track.

Now Michelle is committed for the planet as well.Ultimately helping the environment and not contributing to animal cruelty was a big thing for me, too. That was my initial reason for going vegan, and the rest of the benefits were just added bonuses.

Mitchell describeswhat she eats in a day for enhanced performance and more energy to win sprints. I like to make sure I have three different types of protein in there. I use tofu, beans, and mushrooms, along with spinach, vegan cheese, and hash browns, she says. I also love to add Beyond Meat for more flavor, which is a great source of plant protein as well. That usually keeps me full for the better part of the day," she told Well + Good.

"We were taught that eating animal products was good for us but we've been lied to for hundreds of years," said Lewis Hamilton. The Beet reported on Hamiltion'svegan diet quotingThe New York Timesthat he credits his new plant-based diet with making the difference in his career. Hamilton gave up processed food and animal products for vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, because of his strong compassion for animals, for the benefit of the environment, and his own health. Hamilton isn't the only vegan in his family. His dogRoccois fully vegan and Hamilton says he's "super happy" on Rocco's very own IG post.

Earlier this year, Hamilton gave up his private jet because he said it's a big pollutant and aims to live a sustainable lifestyle. Back in February, he started a line of sustainable clothing with Tommy Hilfiger at London Fashion Week.

Featured in The Game Changersfor his elite strength and his superhuman ability to lift a car, Patrik Baboumiam is one of the strongest men in the world and also happens to be vegan. Baboumian lifted 358 poundsin the 2009 German log lift nationals.

Back in 2014, Baboumiam partnered with PETA in his campaign "Want to be Stronger" describing powering yourself with plants and how you can build muscle without eating meat.

One of his 2019 PETA campaigns showed him posing with crossed arms and leaves in his mouths with the text:"The world's strongest animals are plant-eaters: Gorillas, buffaloes, elephants and me."

Bahoumiam's diet consists of a dairy-free shake for breakfastwith 8 grams of protein and 0 carbohydrates. For lunch, he enjoys vegan sausage, falafel, low-fat oven fires, peppers, and more grilled veggies. He normally eats 250 grams of carbs and 90 grams of protein just for lunch. Dinner includes vegetables cooked potatoes, and tofu. If you want to eat like Boubanian, he reports his food diary onhis blogBarBend.

Here's a guy who has worn many hats: Bodybuilder, Terminator, California Governor, and now vegan and advocate for the plant-based lifestyle. Arnold Schwarzenegger ditched meat and dairy and has proven that you don't need to eat animal products to be strong, healthy and reverse symptoms of heart disease. Now 73, he had a pulmonary valve replacement 1997 due to a congenitaldefectandunderwent emergency open-heartsurgery in 2018 to replacethevalve again. He thenchanged his eating and fitness habits and now extolls the virtues of plant-based eating for the environment as well as health reasons.

He is a producer of The Game Changers (a movie with many masters) and an advocate for going vegan for health, the environment and the sake of animals (he posts on IG with his pet donkey and miniature pony, both household dwelling animals).

Schwarzeneggersaid last year: "Right now, seven million people are dying every year. That is alarming and everyone in the government has the responsibility to protect the people.... 28 percent of the greenhouse gasses come from eating meat and from raising cattle, so we can do a much better job."

Jurek is an extreme ultra-marathon runner who has won the Hardrock Hundred, the Badwater Ultramarathon, the Spartathlon, and the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run (you get the idea). Jurek has been vegan for almost two decades, after easing intoit by cutting out meat in college, heslowly stopping seafood and finally giving up all animal products once he realized that eating this way made him feel healthier and happier.

To run such an extreme amount of miles, you need to fuel your body with plant-based foods that will give you enough energy and carbohydrates to go the distance.The goal is to eat 5,000-6,000 calories of plant-based foods daily.

Jurekoutlined his plant-based diet in an interview with Bon Appetite. Instead of waking up to a hot cup of coffee to boost energy, he prefers to drink tea anda green smoothie with spirulina or chlorella and a host of other ingredients. He adds bananas, frozen pineapple slices, or mangoes, brown rice and pea protein, (for protein) to rebuild what's lost in training. This is not just any smoothie.

Soccerstar, Alex Morgan is one of the beloved members of the USA National Team that won the World Cup and has shown that the female players deserve to get equal pay as their male counterparts by the US Soccer Federation.She is also an animal rights advocate and longtime vegan, having given up meat when she decided that "it didn't feel fair to have a dog, and yet eat meat all the time, referring toher adorablepup Blue.

Morganaims to eat 90 grams of plant-based protein daily to stay fit and lean, especially for her workouts and on the field.Morgan admitted that breakfast was difficult because "a lot of the things I love like pancakes and French toast had dairy and eggs." But now she enjoys oatmeal with nut butter and berries, smoothies, rice, quinoa, veggies, black beans, protein shakes, Mediterranean food, Impossible burgers, Mexican beans, and sauteed veggie burritos, she told USA Today.

Paul Rabil who played for the Boston Cannons and the New York Lizards of Major League Lacrosse, ditched meat and dairy after his 2019 season ended and revealed he's now "officially" vegan on YouTube. "At first [switching to a plant-based diet] was to help solve some pain and trauma that I was going through. Over the last two years, I've had two herniated discs.... and that has led to a ton of shooting pain down my legs, its called sciatica," Rabil explains the purpose of his diet switch.

Headds: "I've tried to a lot of things; I've had a number of cortisone shots; I've done physical therapy for two years. And I reached a place where I was thinking 'okay maybe I can solve this with nutrition because a lot of our pain stems from inflammation.Within a few weeks, I started noticing a lot of alleviation so I started focusing and doubling down more on veganism"

Hannah Teter won Olympic gold and silver in the halfpipe and is also a seven-time XGames medalist. She changed her diet after watching the documentary,Earthlingswhen she discovered how "horrible" factory farming is. After a strict vegetarian diet, Teter liked the way she performed and believes that her diet helped her win gold at the 2006 games.

She now considers herself "plant-based" and in an interview with theHuffington Post, Teter said, "I feel stronger than Ive ever been, mentally, physically, and emotionally. My plant-based diet has opened up more doors to being an athlete. Its a whole other level that Im elevating to. I stopped eating animals about a year ago, and its a new life. I feel like a new person, a new athlete."

Djokovic is not the only tour player to go plant-based. Nick Kyrgiosshared that he does not eat meat anymore because of his strong compassion for animals.

During the time of the Australian wildfires, the Aussie native explained: "I've been passionate about animal welfare for some time now. I don't eat meat or dairy anymore. Thats not for my health, I just dont believe in eating animals."

"I tried a vegan diet a couple of years ago but with all the travel I do, it was hard to stick to it. Since then I've managed to make it work, and I've been vegetarian for quite a while.

"Seeing the footage of these animals suffering from the fires only reinforces why I've chosen this diet. When I see these terrible photos, I cant comprehend eating meat."

Matt Frazier has run 27 ultra-marathons in his career so far and continues to write about the endurance strength of being a vegan athlete in his personal blog, which he started 11 years ago: No Meat Athlete.

The Beet recently interviewed Frazier about his vegan journey and howto be a successful athlete on a plant-based diet. Whenasked about the first time he ditched meat Frazier replied, "I had already cut 90 minutes off my first marathon time. I was still 10 minutes away from the Boston Marathon qualifying time.I had plateaued, and I was not sure how I was going to find 10 minutes. [Plant-based eating] was what I was missing. Thats what it took. The other big noticeable difference to me [after going vegan] was I stopped getting injured. Injuries had always been a big part of my running journey. When I became vegan, it was around the time I ran three 50-milers and a 100-miler. I didnt have any injuries. If its done right, [plant-based diets] can really help you recover faster."

Rowing is grueling. It's known as the toughest endurance sport in the world. The world record-breaking female rower, Michaela Copenhaverwent vegan in 2012 for ethical reasons, she toldGreat Vegan Athletes.Initially, I just wanted to eat more vegetables. Those things are super good for you, and they're delicious. Beingvegetarianandveganmade me more conscious of how many servings I was getting a day (or not).

When she switched from vegetarian to vegan it was almost accidental: I was traveling for a regatta in the fall of 2012. I had been vegetarian for 1.5 years already but relied pretty heavily on dairy and eggs. While I was traveling, I was bouncing from couch to couch and had no way to safely store dairy or eggsso I decided to try a week without them. I felt great, and it wasnt nearly as scary as I thought. Ive been vegan ever since.

Now it's a value system: Once I stopped eating and using animals, I felt I could finally address a question that had been bothering me for a long timewhat right do we have to exploit other creatures? Now, I understand that we have no right, and my motivations are primarily ethical.

Go here to read the rest:
20 Who Athletes Swear by a Plant-Based Diet to Boost Performance - The Beet

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

Dieters looking for a healthier substitute of their favorite high-fat food such as a bag of potato chips typically have two choices in the grocery aisle: a smaller package of the exact same food or a larger portion of a light version. In a series of studies, we put this choice to consumers and found that people who frequently try to cut back on their eating or are essentially always on a diet known as restrained eaters prefer the larger portion size of the light version, even though both contained the exact same number of calories. Participants who indicated that they rarely dieted tended to pick the smaller size with the full flavor.

Our first study involved a vending machine choice between a medium-sized bag of Lays Baked BBQ potato chips and a smaller package of the regular version both 150 calories. Participants who took a survey in which they reported frequently trying to cut back on their eating for example, by taking smaller servings and skipping meals opted for the larger bag of baked chips. We got similar results over four additional studies involving other snacks, such as popcorn and cookies.

People tend to want food to be tasty, healthy and filling. Our studys restrained eaters were definitely interested in choosing a snack that seemed healthier, but their choice of the larger size suggested they wanted a snack that they felt would make them feel full as well possibly at the expense of taste. Feeling full can help people consume fewer calories overall.

The problem is research suggests eating more of lighter foods might not make people feel full, and this may point to a reason why most diets fail. Some psychologists argue that restrained eaters do not achieve the health and weight outcomes they desire possibly because, in depriving themselves of the fattier, tastier food, they may later engage in binge-eating or overconsume.

By opting for the lighter, less pleasurable food, even in larger packages, restrained eaters might be depriving themselves of the food they actually crave regular chips, buttered popcorn or a sugary cookie.

More research is ultimately needed, however, to test whether the emphasis on increasing the portion sizes that one can eat of light foods, rather than focusing on eating smaller portions of foods that are more satisfying, is a successful long-term strategy. Or, as past research indicates, might it actually backfire and contribute to failed dieting? Its still not entirely clear.

At the moment, we are working on new research examining how people decide what to eat, how much to eat and how frequently to eat it. For example, why do some people decide to try to avoid any treats, whereas others try to seek moderation? If they seek moderation in their diet, would they rather have a small treat every day or have a cheat day on the weekend?

Were also trying to understand whether or not consumers actually feel as full as they think they do by eating more lighter foods rather than less of calorie-dense foods.

We use a variety of approaches in our research on food, including conducting lab and online-based experiments, field studies and exploring existing data sets, such as food diary data. For this particular research, we recruited participants to pick chips out of a vending machine and used online panels to simulate real-world choices.

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Continued here:
Constant dieters might be choosing the wrong way to lose weight - The Conversation US

Now more than ever, athletes are reaching for lentils, edamame, and chickpeas instead of biting into steak dinner, to raise their strength, fitness, and overall performance levels. Here are twenty athletes who creditswitching to a vegan or plant-based diet with improving their fitness and results--through faster recovery time between workouts, quicker healing from injury, and being able tobuildleaner, strongermuscles. These superstars say that their dietshelped them get to where theyare today,such as preparing for Olympic Gold or becomingthe number one tennis player in the world.

These champion players report that eating a plant-based diet increasesenergy levels, provides more than enough clean protein to refuel and rebuild, reduces inflammation, and improves recovery time. Eating plant-based also helps them with mental clarity, andevenabates allergy symptoms like asthma during the most intense allergy season.

In the nearly one yearsinceThe Game Changerswasreleased last September and became one of the most-watched documentaries, and showed that some of the world's strongest and accomplished athletes don't need meat or dairy to succeed, more and more players are limiting their animal protein intake and are going all or mostly plant-based.

The number one tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, went plant-based more than twelve years ago to enhance his athletic performance and win more matches. In recent interviews, he has creditedgoing vegan with helping him rise from third place in the world to first in the world because it helped clear his allergies. Before changing his diet,Djokovic had searched for cures to the breathing issues that cost him matches and focus which caused him tostruggled during his most intense matches. The allergies used to make him feellike he couldnt breathe and would be forced to retire from competitive matches as he did in Australia.

"Eating meat was hard on my digestion and that took a lot of essential energy that I need for my focus, for recovery, for the next training session, and for the next match," he said. Djokovic emphasized he does not eat foods that require a lot of digestion, especially in the morning, when he needs all of his energy for training. Instead, he starts the day with hot water and lemon, then celery juice, and some superfood supplements.

Tia Blanco wongold at the International Surfing Association Open in 2015 andcredits her success to her vegan diet.Blanco reports thata vegan diet helps her stay strong and she enjoyseating different forms of vegan protein like nuts, seeds, beans, and legumes.

The professional surferwas influencedby her mother, who is a vegetarian andgrew up in a veggie-forward household, Blanco hasnever eaten meat in her life,which made the plant-based switch much easier. And speaking of making things easier,Blanco has an Instagram cooking page called @tiasvegankitchen where she shares her favorite simple vegan recipes so all of her fans can eat like their favorite professional vegan athlete. In addition to her home-cooked meals, Blanco recently became an ambassador for vegan company Beyond Meat and now she posts Instagram stories and highlights of her favorite meatless meat recipes.

Steph Davis has been vegan for 18 years now and says, "theres nothing in my life that hasnt become better as a result, from climbing and athletics to mental and spiritual well being." Davis has competed on some of the most challenging verticle routeson the planet likeConcepcion (5.13), which is known to be one of thehardestpure climbsanywhere. Davis holds the third overall ascent and is the first female to ever make the ascent of theroute. Davis described it as her "most technically demanding climbever."

Davis explainedwhy she went vegan eight years ago when she partnered with PETA."What can we do to start making changes in a positive way? And if it just so happens that changing our lifestyle leads to environmental benefits, health benefits, economic benefits, and positive social change, then all the better. One thing Ive learned is you dont have to do or be anything you dont want to be, and you can change anything in your life just by starting to do it. Its you who chooses who and what you are, by the things you think and the things you do."

She goes on to add,"no one says you have to become a perfect vegan overnight. But why not start making small changes and see how it feels? I believe its the small choices people make that have the biggest power to change, and nothing is more simple yet also more far-reaching than changing how and what you choose to eat. Were all here for a short time, in the end, and living a well-intentioned and compassionate life seems like what ultimately matters the most, the only real goal that I aspire to."

Tennis champion Venus Williams swearsthat making the switch to veganism was one of the factors that helped to improve her performance and get over an auto-immune disease. Thetennis star went vegan back in 2011when she was diagnosed with Sjgren's syndrome, a debilitating autoimmune disease with a range of symptoms from jointpainto swelling, numbness, burning eyes, digestive problems, andfatigue.She chose to eat plant-basedto recover to herformerly healthy self, and it worked so she stuck to it.

The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion recovers faster on a plant-based dietnow, compared to how she felt backwhen she ate animal protein. When you have an auto-immune disease you often feel extreme fatigue and random body aches and for Venus, a plant-based diet provides energy and helpsher reduce inflammation.

The Beet reported on Willaim's diet and what she normally eats in a day to stay healthy, fit, and win more matches. Talking about her favorite dinner meal, Williams adds,sometimes a girl just needs a donut!"

Mike Tyson recentlysaid he is "in the best shape ever" thanks to his vegan diet. The boxing legend then announced he's getting back into the rings after 15 years,to fightagainst Roy Jones, Jr. in Californialater this fall.

Tysonwent vegan ten years ago after dealing with health complications and in the wake of having cleaned up his life: I was so congested from all the drugs and bad cocaine, I could hardly breathe."Tyson said, I had high blood pressure, was almost dying, and had arthritis."

Now, the 53-year-old powerhouse is sober, healthy, and fit. "Turning vegan helped me eliminate all those problems in my life, and "I'm in the best shape ever." His new trainer agrees:Watching Iron Mike's speed during recent training sessions, observed: "He has the same power as a guy who is 21, 22-years old."

Oklahoma City's point guard Chris Paul decided to ditch meat and dairy and was asked join on as a co-executive producer for the popular documentary,The Game Changers.

For breakfast, Paul enjoys oatmeal with plant-based milkand nut butter. For lunch, hefuels up with pasta or brown rice with Beyond Meat sausage, grilled vegetables, and a curry sauce. His chef toldUSA Today,"The main thing is, we try to keep it as light and clean as possible for his normal routine, with organic ingredients. Anything that can minimize body inflammation. Chris is always worrying about what he can and can't eat." So far it appears he's getting it right.

In an exclusive interview with The Beet'sAwesome Vegans columnist Elysabeth Alfano, Paul said eating a plant-based diet helps him keep up with players half his age.

In 2016,Kaepernickmade the switch to veganismwith his longtime girlfriend to recover froma series of injuries that had him down for the count.The Beetrecentlyreported onhow this dietary switchhasallowedKaepernick to stay strong and healthy. Now, he's in the gym building muscle and looks fitterthan ever. But will he be picked up? The professional football player claims that a vegan diet makes him feel "always ready" to perform his best on the field.

Cam Newton just replacedTom Brady, who also follows a mostly plant-based diet, as the New England Patriot's QB, after havingmade the plant-based switch back in March 2019. The NFL Star first decided to ditch meat and dairy to recover quicker from injurieswhen he learned that a plant-based diet is proven to help reduce inflammation."I've seen such a remarkable change in the way my body responds to the food that I eat," Newton told PETA for his recent partnership for a new campaign called, "Built Like a Vegan," proving that you don't need to eat meat to be strong. Newton enjoys a meat-free burger on a pretzel bun, heavy on pickles and sauce.He adds: "People often ask, 'How do you get your protein?' I just say, 'I get it in the same way you do, but it's fresher and cleaner.' "

Newton shares how to do it: "My advice to a person who wants to become vegan is to eat on schedule. If you can eat on a schedule, you won't miss [a meal or crave meat] or think anything different, and you'll be alright."

Elijah Hall says about his vegan diet:"Going vegan was the best decision" he has ever made.Hallholds records in the indoor 200 meters and was training for the Tokyo this summer when it got postponed by a yeardue to the pandemic. Hall said "the effects that its having on my body are amazing. Becoming a plant-based athlete has opened many doors to my health and my training." We predict he'll only get faster in the next 11 months and break records, come home with golf and be the world champion in 12 months.

Five-years ago, Morgan Mitchell went vegan and it made her faster, leaner and happier. Last year she was featured in the plant-based athletes documentary The Game Changersand said,Being vegan has helped me immensely. I dont feel sluggish like I did when I was eating meat, and my recovery from training really took off. It felt like an overall cleanse for my body, and I started seeing greater results on the track.

Now Michelle is committed for the planet as well.Ultimately helping the environment and not contributing to animal cruelty was a big thing for me, too. That was my initial reason for going vegan, and the rest of the benefits were just added bonuses.

Mitchell describeswhat she eats in a day for enhanced performance and more energy to win sprints. I like to make sure I have three different types of protein in there. I use tofu, beans, and mushrooms, along with spinach, vegan cheese, and hash browns, she says. I also love to add Beyond Meat for more flavor, which is a great source of plant protein as well. That usually keeps me full for the better part of the day," she told Well + Good.

"We were taught that eating animal products was good for us but we've been lied to for hundreds of years," said Lewis Hamilton. The Beet reported on Hamiltion'svegan diet quotingThe New York Timesthat he credits his new plant-based diet with making the difference in his career. Hamilton gave up processed food and animal products for vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, because of his strong compassion for animals, for the benefit of the environment, and his own health. Hamilton isn't the only vegan in his family. His dogRoccois fully vegan and Hamilton says he's "super happy" on Rocco's very own IG post.

Earlier this year, Hamilton gave up his private jet because he said it's a big pollutant and aims to live a sustainable lifestyle. Back in February, he started a line of sustainable clothing with Tommy Hilfiger at London Fashion Week.

Featured in The Game Changersfor his elite strength and his superhuman ability to lift a car, Patrik Baboumiam is one of the strongest men in the world and also happens to be vegan. Baboumian lifted 358 poundsin the 2009 German log lift nationals.

Back in 2014, Baboumiam partnered with PETA in his campaign "Want to be Stronger" describing powering yourself with plants and how you can build muscle without eating meat.

One of his 2019 PETA campaigns showed him posing with crossed arms and leaves in his mouths with the text:"The world's strongest animals are plant-eaters: Gorillas, buffaloes, elephants and me."

Bahoumiam's diet consists of a dairy-free shake for breakfastwith 8 grams of protein and 0 carbohydrates. For lunch, he enjoys vegan sausage, falafel, low-fat oven fires, peppers, and more grilled veggies. He normally eats 250 grams of carbs and 90 grams of protein just for lunch. Dinner includes vegetables cooked potatoes, and tofu. If you want to eat like Boubanian, he reports his food diary onhis blogBarBend.

Here's a guy who has worn many hats: Bodybuilder, Terminator, California Governor, and now vegan and advocate for the plant-based lifestyle. Arnold Schwarzenegger ditched meat and dairy and has proven that you don't need to eat animal products to be strong, healthy and reverse symptoms of heart disease. Now 73, he had a pulmonary valve replacement 1997 due to a congenitaldefectandunderwent emergency open-heartsurgery in 2018 to replacethevalve again. He thenchanged his eating and fitness habits and now extolls the virtues of plant-based eating for the environment as well as health reasons.

He is a producer of The Game Changers (a movie with many masters) and an advocate for going vegan for health, the environment and the sake of animals (he posts on IG with his pet donkey and miniature pony, both household dwelling animals).

Schwarzeneggersaid last year: "Right now, seven million people are dying every year. That is alarming and everyone in the government has the responsibility to protect the people.... 28 percent of the greenhouse gasses come from eating meat and from raising cattle, so we can do a much better job."

Jurek is an extreme ultra-marathon runner who has won the Hardrock Hundred, the Badwater Ultramarathon, the Spartathlon, and the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run (you get the idea). Jurek has been vegan for almost two decades, after easing intoit by cutting out meat in college, heslowly stopping seafood and finally giving up all animal products once he realized that eating this way made him feel healthier and happier.

To run such an extreme amount of miles, you need to fuel your body with plant-based foods that will give you enough energy and carbohydrates to go the distance.The goal is to eat 5,000-6,000 calories of plant-based foods daily.

Jurekoutlined his plant-based diet in an interview with Bon Appetite. Instead of waking up to a hot cup of coffee to boost energy, he prefers to drink tea anda green smoothie with spirulina or chlorella and a host of other ingredients. He adds bananas, frozen pineapple slices, or mangoes, brown rice and pea protein, (for protein) to rebuild what's lost in training. This is not just any smoothie.

Soccerstar, Alex Morgan is one of the beloved members of the USA National Team that won the World Cup and has shown that the female players deserve to get equal pay as their male counterparts by the US Soccer Federation.She is also an animal rights advocate and longtime vegan, having given up meat when she decided that "it didn't feel fair to have a dog, and yet eat meat all the time, referring toher adorablepup Blue.

Morganaims to eat 90 grams of plant-based protein daily to stay fit and lean, especially for her workouts and on the field.Morgan admitted that breakfast was difficult because "a lot of the things I love like pancakes and French toast had dairy and eggs." But now she enjoys oatmeal with nut butter and berries, smoothies, rice, quinoa, veggies, black beans, protein shakes, Mediterranean food, Impossible burgers, Mexican beans, and sauteed veggie burritos, she told USA Today.

Paul Rabil who played for the Boston Cannons and the New York Lizards of Major League Lacrosse, ditched meat and dairy after his 2019 season ended and revealed he's now "officially" vegan on YouTube. "At first [switching to a plant-based diet] was to help solve some pain and trauma that I was going through. Over the last two years, I've had two herniated discs.... and that has led to a ton of shooting pain down my legs, its called sciatica," Rabil explains the purpose of his diet switch.

Headds: "I've tried to a lot of things; I've had a number of cortisone shots; I've done physical therapy for two years. And I reached a place where I was thinking 'okay maybe I can solve this with nutrition because a lot of our pain stems from inflammation.Within a few weeks, I started noticing a lot of alleviation so I started focusing and doubling down more on veganism"

Hannah Teter won Olympic gold and silver in the halfpipe and is also a seven-time XGames medalist. She changed her diet after watching the documentary,Earthlingswhen she discovered how "horrible" factory farming is. After a strict vegetarian diet, Teter liked the way she performed and believes that her diet helped her win gold at the 2006 games.

She now considers herself "plant-based" and in an interview with theHuffington Post, Teter said, "I feel stronger than Ive ever been, mentally, physically, and emotionally. My plant-based diet has opened up more doors to being an athlete. Its a whole other level that Im elevating to. I stopped eating animals about a year ago, and its a new life. I feel like a new person, a new athlete."

Djokovic is not the only tour player to go plant-based. Nick Kyrgiosshared that he does not eat meat anymore because of his strong compassion for animals.

During the time of the Australian wildfires, the Aussie native explained: "I've been passionate about animal welfare for some time now. I don't eat meat or dairy anymore. Thats not for my health, I just dont believe in eating animals."

"I tried a vegan diet a couple of years ago but with all the travel I do, it was hard to stick to it. Since then I've managed to make it work, and I've been vegetarian for quite a while.

"Seeing the footage of these animals suffering from the fires only reinforces why I've chosen this diet. When I see these terrible photos, I cant comprehend eating meat."

Matt Frazier has run 27 ultra-marathons in his career so far and continues to write about the endurance strength of being a vegan athlete in his personal blog, which he started 11 years ago: No Meat Athlete.

The Beet recently interviewed Frazier about his vegan journey and howto be a successful athlete on a plant-based diet. Whenasked about the first time he ditched meat Frazier replied, "I had already cut 90 minutes off my first marathon time. I was still 10 minutes away from the Boston Marathon qualifying time.I had plateaued, and I was not sure how I was going to find 10 minutes. [Plant-based eating] was what I was missing. Thats what it took. The other big noticeable difference to me [after going vegan] was I stopped getting injured. Injuries had always been a big part of my running journey. When I became vegan, it was around the time I ran three 50-milers and a 100-miler. I didnt have any injuries. If its done right, [plant-based diets] can really help you recover faster."

Rowing is grueling. It's known as the toughest endurance sport in the world. The world record-breaking female rower, Michaela Copenhaverwent vegan in 2012 for ethical reasons, she toldGreat Vegan Athletes.Initially, I just wanted to eat more vegetables. Those things are super good for you, and they're delicious. Beingvegetarianandveganmade me more conscious of how many servings I was getting a day (or not).

When she switched from vegetarian to vegan it was almost accidental: I was traveling for a regatta in the fall of 2012. I had been vegetarian for 1.5 years already but relied pretty heavily on dairy and eggs. While I was traveling, I was bouncing from couch to couch and had no way to safely store dairy or eggsso I decided to try a week without them. I felt great, and it wasnt nearly as scary as I thought. Ive been vegan ever since.

Now it's a value system: Once I stopped eating and using animals, I felt I could finally address a question that had been bothering me for a long timewhat right do we have to exploit other creatures? Now, I understand that we have no right, and my motivations are primarily ethical.

Read more:
What You Can Learn From 20 Athletes Who Went Vegan to Get Stronger - The Beet

A research group led by Jack Dekkers, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University, has received a grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to further genetic improvement of livestock by integrating biological models of growth that have been developed by animal nutritionists.

The $500,000, two-year grant for Dekkers and his team will support the project, Integration of Biological Models in Genomic Evaluation: Pig-Growth-Model Whole Genome Prediction (PGM-WGP),as part of a national USDA initiative for Research in Tools and Resources for Animal Breeding, Genetics and Genomics Research.

Genomic evaluation and selection are used to improve the rate of genetic gain by identifying the animals with the best genetics for traits of economic importance. Using these animals for breeding future generations results in a more profitable final product, increased value of by-products and more. However, existing genomic evaluation models often fail to predict how the progeny of an animal will perform when they are exposed to diverse environmental conditions.

This research will take an existing genomic model and integrate it with models of growth that have been developed and used to formulate diets for pigs. This will allow breeders to better predict the genetics of an animal that underpin an animals ability to grow under different environmental conditions, including temperature, humidity, diets and disease.

"The idea to incorporate a biological growth model into genomic evaluation of pigs is based on similar work that has been conducted by scientists at Corteva, formerly Pioneer, who have successfully integrated crop-growth models into genomic evaluation to predict the performance of corn hybrids under normal versus drought conditions," said Dekkers.

Co-director Nick Sero, assistant professor of animal breeding, agreed, The integration of biological models with genomic models is expected to have a significant impact on genetic improvement for different environments in the swine industry.

To develop the model, the team will use in-depth data on feed intake, body weights and body composition on pigs from several lines from a commercial breeding company. The resulting model will be validated using this data to demonstrate its ability to improve prediction.

This project is being directed by Dekkers and will be co-directed by Sero and Andrea Doeschl-Wilson, reader and group leader of the Mathematical Modeling Group and Deputy Head of Genetics and Genomics Division of the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh.

Other team members include Iowa State faculty Rohan Fernando, professor of animal breeding, Jayasooriya Ranga Appuhamy, assistant professor of animal nutrition, along with a post-doctoral fellow and a PhD student who will be appointed to help conduct the research. Another collaborator is Jaap van Milgen, senior researcher and deputy-head of the INRAe-Agrocampus West Research Unit and developer of the INRA-Porc growth nutrition model. Several industry partners are also involved to supply insight, provide access to data and help facilitate model validation.

See the original post:
Iowa research team wins grant to study growth, genetics and nutrition in pigs - The Pig Site

It is essential to drink low carb drinks for the keto diet to work. It is easy for us to forget about nutrients in drinks, carbohydrates hidden in drinks may mean the diet is not effective.

Of course, one of the healthiest drinks to sip on is water. It contains no calories, so sugar, and is essential for healthy body function.

Aside from water though, there are still a lot of drinks you can enjoy on the plan.

This includes hot and cold drinks.

So what drinks can you eat on the keto diet? And what drinks should you avoid?

READ MORE: Keto recipe: How to include carbs in your low carb diet

Coffee

Black coffee without cow's milk or sugar is a good keto option.

The caffeine can help with weight loss too and aid those going through the transition to keto craving sugar.

Diet fizzy drinks

Diet fizzy drinks made with certain sweeteners such as stevia or erythritol are good for keto and cause less subsequent sugar cravings than those with aspartame.

Tea

Black and green tea are good options for the keto diet.

The drinks are thought to be positive for weight in themselves. They speed up the metabolism and decrease appetite.

They also have limited carbs, as long as you don't add sugar.

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Sparkling water

Sparkling water is good the keto diet, while also giving the feel of a fizzy drink.

Spirits

If in search of an alcoholic fix, lots of spirits are low carb. These include:

Low carb beer

It is possible to find low carb beers on the market for those on the keto.

Some options are:

Drinks to avoid on the keto diet

Drinks to avoid on the keto are essentially any drinks with sugar in.

The list includes wine, as well as fruit juices.

What are the best keto breakfasts?

Eating when you wake up can help boost your metabolism which will help your body to burn more calories throughout the day.

Eggs are a great keto breakfast that can help support weight loss.

Research suggests that eggs boost metabolic activity and increase feelings of fullness.

Avocados are also a good option.

Due to their high content of healthy fats, avocados make a great addition to a ketogenic diet.

Excerpt from:
What to drink on the keto diet - low-carb plan for fast weight loss - Express

Anne Kiltie and her team.

By 2066, its predicted that around a quarter of the total UK population will be over 65 years old. A number approximately equivalent to the population of London.

This is in part due to increasing life expectancy, a result of progress made through medical research. But as life expectancy increases, an ageing population brings up a whole host of new challenges for healthcare, as weve blogged about before.

One of these problems is considering the side effects of cancer treatments, which can often be experienced more intensely by older patients.

We can see this with radiosensitisation, where additional treatment, such as small doses of chemotherapy, can be added to enhance the sensitivity of a tumour to radiotherapy.

But this comes at the cost of harmful side effects.

We caught up with Professor Anne Kiltie and PhD student, Chee Then, who are part of a team looking into the relationship between the gut microbiome and radiosensitisation in bladder cancer.

A radiosensitiser can be thought of as an enhancer, an additional agent that increases the sensitivity of tumour cells to radiotherapy.

So classically, radiotherapy was given on its own for any sort of tumour. And then people discovered that if you add a little bit of chemo at the same time as giving radiotherapy,it acts locally to enhance the effects of the radiotherapy, explains Kiltie.

This is often the case for patients who are being treated for pelvic tumours including cervical, rectal and bladder cancers. The problem, Kiltie explains, is that the radiosensitising chemotherapy frequently results in increased toxicity in local organs and tissues, causing negative side effects.

And these negative side effects may be too much for older people to cope with. Kiltie has witnessed this first-hand in her clinics. The median age of my radiotherapy patients is about 81 to 82, Kiltie explains, and patients older than this end up having radiotherapy alone.

So Kiltie and Then set out on the hunt for a radiosensitiser with reduced side effects, which led them to the gut.

The gut is one of the most widely researched parts of the body, but scientists are finding out eye-opening information about the gut and its unusual inhabitants every day.

More specifically, the trillions of bacteria, fungi and viruses that call the human body home, often called the microbiome.

The vibrant community of bugs can help protect us from harm, programming our immune system as well as providing nutrients for our cells. And its a real area of interest for cancer research.

Scientists, including our OPTIMISTICC Cancer Grand Challenges team, are interested in a whole host of possible links between the gut and cancer, from looking for cancer clues in poo, to discovering unique strains of bacteria that could act as a genetic marker for bowel cancer.

So far, changes to the gut microbiome enhancing anti-cancer treatment have only been explored in the context of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, but there is not any study about radiotherapy and the gut microbiome, says Then.

Because of its effect on the microbiome, scientists are also interested in the role that diet particularly high fibre foods can play in cancer. Previous studies have looked at how a high fibre diet has the capacity to reduce tumour growth, but havent looked explicitly at the mechanism behind how a high fibre diet could change the bacterial composition in the gut.

Kiltie and her team wanted to explore this gap in the research by further examining the connection between the microbiome and radiotherapy.

The lab focussed their work on mice with a compromised immune system and bladder cancer, who were fed a variety of fibre diets. We treated the mice with either a low fibre diet, or a high soluble fibre or insoluble fibre diet or a mix of the two, Then explains.

The team went on to analyse the composition of the gut microbiome of the different groups of mice, and how they responded to radiotherapy.

The team found that the mice fed with the high soluble fibre diet on average had the slowest tumour growth rate following small doses of radiotherapy.

Changes to fibre consumption can be seen almost immediately in the mices poo. With an indication of an increased amount of a short chain fatty acid known to confer anti-cancer effects, called butyrate.

Interestingly, and more unexpectedly, of the mice administered the high soluble fibre diet, those who responded to radiotherapy were enriched with a strain of bacterium known as Bacteroides acidifaciens. A relatively newly-discovered bacterium, I suppose isolated in 2000, Then comments.

The team believe the increase in the Bacteroides acidifaciens could be the missing link between the change in fibre consumption, short chain fatty acids and radiosensitisation. And that this bacterial strain plays a crucial role in the production of short chain fatty acids.

So, the gut microbiota needs the fibre to produce short chain fatty acids and we think that this might be a potential radiosensitiser, Then explains.

Like Kiltie and Chee, Our Cancer Grand Challenges OPTIMISTICC team are also investigating correlations between the microbiome and treatment response. Some of their latest work has identified a bacterial strain which is associated with a higher chance of relapse of patients with rectal cancer who have been treated with chemotherapy.

Kiltie and her team believe the proof is in the fibre. And it wont take any expensive medicine to get this into practice, but repurposing of an existing treatment.

The team are looking into different types of fibre, including ispaghula husk. This is currently administered as a standard treatment for radiotherapy patients, but as a way to reduce diarrhoea.

Currently, patients only start taking it halfway through their radiotherapy to help the side effects, explains Kiltie. But the argument is that the fibre can actually increase the short chain fatty acid production.

The idea would be to get patients to take the fibre supplement before and during their radiotherapy to act as a radiosensitiser, whilst also reducing side effects. And most importantly, this would be something easily administered to older patients.

The beauty of ispaghula husk, or whatever fibre supplement we end up giving, is its a medicine and old people take lots medicines and theyre generally pretty compliant, says Kiltie. To try and modify somebodys diet is unlikely to work in a 78-year old, theyre probably going to say no way.

Its early days, and the team have lots planned before they can trial it in humans, but the latest results are promising. The idea has been kind of boiling, bubbling along for two or three years, says Kiltie, but to actually show something in the mice is really exciting.

Lilly

Then, C.K., Paillas, S., Wang, X. et al. (2020). Association of Bacteroides acidifaciens relative abundance with high-fibre diet-associated radiosensitisation. BMC Biol 18, 102. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-020-00836-x

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The team tackling the serious side effects of cancer treatment in an ageing population - Cancer Research UK - Science Blog

Donna Eschenbrenner, Special to the Ithaca Journal Published 8:00 p.m. ET Aug. 21, 2020

When Ithaca resident Freida Diemond turned 100 years old during the coronavirus pandemic, the staff at Oak Hill Manor Nursing Home arranged a party for her. Ithaca Journal

Humans have been beekeepers for a long time. A rock painting in Spain dating from 7000 BCE shows a man gathering honey from a beehive. Ancient Egyptians kept bees, and the Romans had large apiaries for honey production.

There are about 20,000 different species of bees, but one kind that is commonly known to people is the honey bee, or apismellifera. European settlers of North America brought this bee with them in the early 1600's. The environment was well suited for this prolific little social bee, and it spread widely across the United States.

By the mid-19th century, beekeepers here and abroad were working to develop hives that would enable them to better harvest honey, but they didnt succeed until 1851, when the Rev. L.L. Langstroth, a minister and part-time beekeeper, developed a new kind of commercial hive that allowed beekeepers to remove combs of honey safely and securely. According to one scholar, Langstroths innovation enabled the growth of beekeeping from a gardening or small farming sideline to a full-scale commercial enterprise.

ProfessorRoger Morse, of Cornell University, has written that there are around 300,000 beekeepers in the United States a few of them commercial beekeepers with hundreds (or sometimes thousands) of bee colonies, but many are merely hobbyists producing honey as a sideline.

In the early years of the 20th century, one of the most successful beekeepers in the world, W.L. Coggshall, lived here in Tompkins County.

W.L. (LaMar) Coggshall is pictured here with his two sons in his beeyard.(Photo: Provided)

John Coggshall, of England, emigrated to Newport, Rhode Island, in the early 17th century. His family became farmers in Connecticut, but his great grandson David Hayt Coggshall moved to Groton in 1820.

Davids son, another David, was a farmer and apiarist, or beekeeper, in Groton, where he lived until his death in 1889. The next generation produced two beekeepers of note: yet a third David Coggshalland, more importantly, William LaMar Coggshall, who was to become one of the most prolific and successful beekeepers in the world in his time.

Born in 1852, LaMar, as he was known to colleagues, was also a farmer like his ancestors. His beekeeping interests were supplemental to that, but he nonetheless managed to grow and expand his bee colonies throughout the years. He was one of the first beekeepers in New York to expand his bee colonies to what are known as out-yards. These are locations away from his home farm, and he developed several, some in Lansing, Mecklenburg, Enfield, Danbyand Ellis Hollow.

Eventually, he expanded his business to Arizona, Coloradoand even Cuba. At the height of his success, he had more than 3,000 colonies. His most productive hives were here in central New York, and he attributed that to the generous buckwheat crop of the Finger Lakes area, from which bees can produce excellent honey.

He trained his farmhands (usually teenage boys) to work quickly and forcefully as they extracted honey from the combs, ignoring, as much as possible, the stings of some angry bees. On a good afternoons work, they could extract more than 1,000 pounds of honey in just over an hour. The records of the Empire State Honey Producers Association reflect this success: In 1904 Tompkins County was the record honey producing county in the state; the county produced 236,000 pounds of honey. W.L. Coggshall, the worlds largest honey producer, had over 20 apiaries in the county.

LaMar Coggshall died in 1926. His sons, and later his grandson William L. Coggshall, also kept up the familys beekeeping interests throughout the middle of the 20th century. They were instrumental in starting the Finger Lakes Honey Producers Cooperative in Groton.The first manager of the cooperative was Elton J. Dyce, of Ontario, Canada, who later became professor of apiculture at Cornell. The Dyce Laboratory for Honey Bee Studies is named for him.

Honeybees are threatened now by a parasitic mite, Varroadestructor, as well as overuse of pesticides, and whole colonies are dying off in alarming numbers. American beekeepers are reporting that more than half of their colonies are infested with the mite, and this could have a direct impact on our food supplies.Many staples of American diets ,including almonds, apples and pears, are pollinated by bees.

Special thanks are due to Peter Borst, of Cornell, for his generous gift of invaluable information on all things related to beekeeping.

Donna Eschenbrenner is the archivist at The History Center in Tompkins County.

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Then & Now: One of the world's most successful beekeepers was a Tompkins County resident - Ithaca Journal

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