OT: Angel Food

[Guest guest]

Fair question, Mark!I got into veganism six years ago, for ethical reasons. My husband Billy, whose been vegan for more than 30 years now, cannot eat any fat. No tofu, no nuts, no seeds, no avocado. I was delighted when I first found this list, when I was researching what on earth I could cook for this lovely man I'd fallen in love with - but the recipes are often still too high in fat because they have tofu or seeds or whatever. But that's cool, it's a no-added-oils list.So... back to Angel Food. New Zealand is way behind in things vegan. We're right up there amongst the countries consuming the highest amounts of animal products - and all the diseases that go with that addiction.I realised that the biggest stumbling block to people even considering veganism was cheese. So I started importing soy cheese as a sideline to my day job as a freelance writer. And Angel Food grew from there.I focus on treat foods in my business because that's the gap in the market here. As an ethical vegan (altho you might think it unethical to promote/eat unhealthy foods, and I could understand that) my aim is to increase the numbers of vegans, and I think my business does that.So. At home we eat the sort of meals Dr Barnard would approve of (my husband used to work in admin at PCRM). When I teach cooking classes, I actually teach very healthy dishes.And it is a constant juggle for me, the healthy/non-healthy foods. But I'm not a black-and-white person and the world is full of grey areas - we each have to decide on the exact tone of those grey areas, I guess.Best wishesAlice On 7/03/2010, at 3:00 AM, Mark Sutton wrote:I find it somewhat odd that you're on this list, have this very long sig block, yet you promote high sugar and high fat products (especially the cheezly) at your website.What gives? Are you on the list for marketing purposes? Why would someone selling Cheezly (which is mostly just oil, a non food), for example, be on a fat-free vegan list?

[Guest guest]

Sorry, I meant to send that Mark, not the whole list...........

[Guest guest]

Alice,

 

Why can't your husband eat fat? Is it a choice or does he have a medical condition? And, has he shown improvement in the 30 years he has been without the fat in his diet? Does a no fat vegan diet really make a difference for him? Thank you.

Maureen

 

[Guest guest]

Hi MaureenHe has a medical condition. They're not sure what the problem is, but he can't digest fat. He rarely eats any, because anything slightly fatty tastes revolting to him. If he does eat some, he has a very upset stomach for a couple of days.Despite the lack of fat in his diet, he has cholesterol problems - and he's been told by several doctors that if he hadn't been vegan since his late teens, he'd be dead from a heart attack by now.He's 52 now and his skin is getting dry from having too little fat in his diet. He takes an evening primrose oil capsule each night before he goes to bed, so that he's asleep when the oil hits his stomach - if he's awake, he feels nauseous from it.We each have 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed each morning - that's the fattiest thing he eats!He's an interesting case, alright!CheersaliceOn 8/03/2010, at 9:17 AM, maureen smith wrote:Alice, Why can't your husband eat fat? Is it a choice or does he have a medical condition? And, has he shown improvement in the 30 years he has been without the fat in his diet? Does a no fat vegan diet really make a difference for him? Thank you.Maureen