my doctor doesn't agree

October 31, 2003

OK, I'm having some problems. My boyfriend and I told his mother that we do not

want our son Nathan, 11 months old, to have meat or dairy. She threw a fit and

insisted that we talk to Nate's doctor. So I did, and he advised that it's ok

if Nate doesn't eat meat, but he said that Nate needs milk products to get all

the calcium he needs. I asked why he couldn't get calcium from soy, fruits, and

veggies, and he said it isn't absorbed as well. What do I do? Now the doctor

is backing up my boyfriend's mother, and now my boyfriend is beginning to doubt

the safety of a vegan diet! Are there any websites that list vegan doctors? I

live near Wichita, KS.

" Now I can look at you in peace; I don't eat you any more. "

Franz Kafka, while admiring fish in an aquarium

" Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will

not himself find peace. "

Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher, physician, and musician (Nobel 1952)

____

Get Paid... With Your Free Email at

http://www.zwallet.com/index.html?user=fiona25

November 3, 2003

So I did, and he advised that it's ok if Nate doesn't eat meat, but he said

that Nate needs milk products to get all the calcium he needs. I asked why

he couldn't get calcium from soy, fruits, and veggies, and he said it isn't

absorbed as well. What do I do? Now the doctor is backing up my boyfriend's

mother, and now my boyfriend is beginning to doubt the safety of a vegan diet!

Are there any websites that list vegan doctors? I live near Wichita, KS.

" Now I can look at you in peace; I don't eat you any more. "

This Dr. doesn't have a clue about nutrition.

The excess amount of protein in dairy products leeches the calcium out of the

body.

My suggestion is that you contact P.C.R.M.( Physician's Committee for

Responsible Medicine. Dr. Neal Barnard is the president. He teaches at George

Washington Univ.; and does clinical research there. That group has free

materials

that it will send out to you. The info. is backed up with sound research. They

are on the web.

Also contact Vegetarian Resource grroup.

As far as a Dr. in your area. You might try to look in a resource guide to

wholisitic practitioners.

Hope that helps.

Peace,

Laura

November 3, 2003

Sorry that I do not know of any vegi drs in your area, but thought that the

following info may be of some help anyways.

Check out the table at:

<A

HREF= " http://www.veggiepower.ca/caltable.htm " >http://www.veggiepower.ca/caltable\

..htm</A>

This lists plant sources of calcium & their bioavailability (how well they

are absorbed). Only 32% of the calcium in cow's milk is absorbable by humans -

a comparable amount is absorbable in soy milk & tofu. Some green leafy vegis

have even higher fractional absorption rates.

Also, you may want to find & print out a copy of the American Dietetic Assn's

(ADA) statement on vegan diets. It is easy to find on-line. They state that

a vegan diet (containing no dairy, eggs nor meat) is sufficient for good

health and growth for all ages including infants, children, pg women, etc.

My experience has generally been that medical drs are not well versed in

nutrition & what information that they do have is given to them from parties

that

are not impartial (the Dairy Council, etc.).

One option that you may want to look into is looking for a Seventh Day

Adventist doctor, as they are almost universally vegetarian. I have not run

into

too much trouble fortunately, but I think that I am given a bit more slack b/c I

have a masters degree in Public Health & work as a researcher for the food

science/human nutrition dept of a university. Good luck!

You may also want to check out available info on vegfamily.com - a vegan

family website.

Christa

November 3, 2003

Check out the PCRM website. It's either pcrm.org or pcrm.com. Probably the

..org! Peace. --Tracy

November 4, 2003

Got milk and... got osteoporosis?

By RB McLean

Most educated people, health professionals included, accept that cigarette

smoking causes lung cancer and that high cholesterol clogs arteries leading

to heart attacks, impotence, and strokes. Dr. T. Colin Campbell, professor

of nutritional biochemistry at Cornell University, says the correlation

between animal protein [intake] and fracture rates is as strong as that

between lung cancer and smoking.

How's that? Doesn't milk protect you from bone loss?

The Harvard's Nurses' Health Study, which included over 57,000 women, found

women who consumed the most calcium from dairy products had almost double

the rate of hip fractures compared to women who got the least calcium from

dairy.

In a report published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1,600

women in Michigan were studied using direct photon absorptiometry to measure

bone mineral density. Women who had been vegetarians for at least twenty

years had only 18 percent less bone mineral when they reached the age of

eighty. Closely-paired women who ate a typical American diet, however, had

35 percent less bone mineral.

Why is this?

FULLL STORY:

http://www.cyberparent.com/nutrition/osteoporosisimpotencecancer.htm

November 9, 2003

Richelle,

Please contact Dr. Michael Greger, MD. His website is

http://www.veganmd.org. Dr. Greger can be contacted at

mhg1 at (206)312-8640. Michael is a wonderful person,

with TONS of vegan nutrition knowledge and would welcome any calls

and would most certainly be glad to speak to Nathan's doctor.

Nathan's doctor is making some serious mis-statements about the

absorption of calcium and needs to be set straight before he gives

out poor advice to another parent.

-Scott

, Richelle Rakestraw <fiona25@z...>

wrote:

> OK, I'm having some problems. My boyfriend and I told his mother

that we do not want our son Nathan, 11 months old, to have meat or

dairy. She threw a fit and insisted that we talk to Nate's doctor.

So I did, and he advised that it's ok if Nate doesn't eat meat, but

he said that Nate needs milk products to get all the calcium he

needs. I asked why he couldn't get calcium from soy, fruits, and

veggies, and he said it isn't absorbed as well. What do I do? Now

the doctor is backing up my boyfriend's mother, and now my boyfriend

is beginning to doubt the safety of a vegan diet! Are there any

websites that list vegan doctors? I live near Wichita, KS.

> " Now I can look at you in peace; I don't eat you any more. "

> Franz Kafka, while admiring fish in an aquarium

>

> " Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living

things, man will not himself find peace. "

>

> Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher, physician, and musician

(Nobel 1952)

>

> ____

> Get Paid... With Your Free Email at

> http://www.zwallet.com/index.html?user=fiona25

November 9, 2003

If a vegan diet is safe and healthy during pregnancy, how does your

doctor suddenly account for the fact that it suddenly isn't OK for

childhood (and at 11 months old, your child should still be getting

breast milk along with solid food)? If your doctor doesn't think a

vegan pregnancy is safe, then you know he doesn't know what he's

talking about (thankfully, my care providers knew it was safe).

Most MDs know little to nothing about nutrition, in general, and

even less about vegan nutrition.

As for the absorption issue, it varies with the plant food. For him

to make a blanket statement like that is ridiculous. The calcium in

something like bok choy is extremely well-absorbed. The calcium

from nuts like almonds and seeds like tahini is not as well

absorbed. The calcium in fortified foods (soy milk, orange juice)

is a reliable source and is well-absorbed. It sounds like your

doctor just needs some vegetarian nutrition education. If he

doesn't respond to the education, you might want to consider a

lawsuit. He is not working within your dietary requirements, and

these are requirements that have been proven safe. He is giving you

dangerous medical advise because he is too lazy to do the research

he needs to do.

Compassionately,

Allison