The End of Dieting: How to Live for Life (28 page)

Rod’s doctor concluded that genetics predetermined Rod’s health and that medication was the only solution. Rod refused to accept that and found that a nutritarian approach was his answer
.

WEIGHT BEFORE:
215 pounds

WEIGHT AFTER:
145 pounds

TOTAL CHOLESTEROL BEFORE:
231

TOTAL CHOLESTEROL AFTER:
127

I had just received the results of my annual physical. For the fourth straight year, my total cholesterol was over 215; this year it was 231. The doctor called me and wanted me to start taking a statin drug. Why, I wondered, did I have to take medicine to reduce my cholesterol?

One December evening I received an e-mail from a friend. She had read Dr. Fuhrman’s
Eat for Health
, had been following the nutritarian diet style for five months, and had seen her cholesterol level drop drastically. That’s when I realized I had found the answer to my dilemma.

After three days of exercise and eating according to Dr. Fuhrman’s advice, I lost 6 pounds! As I continued to eat green vegetables, fruits, beans, and a few nuts, I started to feel better. My cravings for processed foods and bad carbohydrates began to fade away. My energy level improved, and I was inspired to eat the foods that fueled my body.

About eight weeks later, I had my cholesterol rechecked. My total cholesterol had dropped from 231 to 127. My HDL went from 35 to 34. My LDL dropped from 168 to 82, and my triglycerides dropped from 142 to 56. Doctors told me I was just fighting genetics, yet this program proved otherwise.

Dr. Fuhrman’s approach is successful because it focuses on what you
can
eat. You don’t have to count points or measure out food—you just have to eat the
right
foods. I’ve tried many diets, but they weren’t sustainable. Dr. Fuhrman’s approach teaches you how to eat for a lifetime! My “new” favorite foods are my famous vegetable soup, smoothies, and best of all, my evening bowl of fresh pineapple with frozen blueberries and blackberries.

This diet style has brought me other life benefits as well: I no longer need a daily nap, for instance, and I run 7.5 miles a day. A nutritarian diet has also eliminated my cravings for toxic foods. And another added benefit: Old friends and relatives can’t believe how good I look!

Your Efforts to Eat Right Are Wise and Well Spent

More medical care doesn’t result in a longer-lived and healthier population. A healthy lifestyle and diet style are the only significant predictors of a healthy and long life. You can’t rely on luck to get rich; nor can you rely on luck, or even genetics, to achieve excellent health. Longevity must be earned. There’s no better investment of your time, attention, and money to take the best possible care of your health. That means seeking out high-quality natural foods and preparing the best meals possible for you and your family.

You really are what you eat, or said another way: You become what you once ate. When you are exposed through life to negative elements, toxins, and disease-promoting foods, they cumulatively take their toll. A healthy brain is our greatest gift; we must remember that our physical and emotional health are intertwined. Our intelligence and memory, our mood and happiness, depend on our proper food choices.

Though people love to believe that moderation in harmful substances and unhealthy foods won’t hurt them, this simply is not true. Certainly our genetic makeup determines varying sensitivities to a toxic diet, but our lives are finite, and the more our bodies are stressed dealing with poor food choices, the more we squander our ultimate health and life potential. Eating unhealthfully isn’t free. Ultimately, we must all pay a price.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Recipes

Juices and Smoothies

Hemp Almond Milk

Super Veggie Juice

Eat Your Greens Fruit Smoothie

Kale Power Blended Salad

Mixed Berries and Greens Smoothie

Breakfast Options

Apple Pie Oatmeal

Banana Cashew Lettuce Wrap

Chia Breakfast Pudding

Cinnamon Currant Muffins

Orange Goji Bars

Overnight Oatmeal

Veggie Scramble

Salad Dressings, Dips, and Spreads

Creamy Almond Vinaigrette Dressing

Easy Avocado Dressing

Orange Sesame Dressing

Pistachio Mint Dressing

Russian Fig Dressing/Dip

Southwest Ranch Dressing

Walnut Vinaigrette Dressing

Super Simple Hummus

Roasted Eggplant Hummus

Fresh Tomato Salsa

Avocado Pumpkin Seed Salsa

Mediterranean Tomato Spread

Garlic Nutter Spread

Salads

Balsamic Tomato and Asparagus Salad

Kale Salad with Avocado and Apples

Kale and Quinoa Salad with Blueberries and Mangoes

Roasted Beets with Leafy Greens, Red Onions, and Walnuts

Warm Corn and Zucchini Salad with Mint

Soups

Black Bean Quinoa Soup

Boston Green Pea Soup

Creamy Cabbage Soup

Creamy Butternut Ginger Soup

Greens, Beans, and Mushroom Stew

In-a-Hurry Anticancer Soup

White Bean and Kale Soup

Main Dishes and Vegetable Side Dishes

Baja Mango Black Bean Lettuce Wraps

Balsamic Portobello and Eggplant Stacks

Bean Pasta with Cauliflower in a Garlicky Walnut Sauce

California Creamed Kale

Chickpea and Tofu Curry

Black-Eyed Collards

Stuffed Eggplant Tofenade

Mexican Lentils

Portobellos and Beans

Ratatouille over Spaghetti Squash

Sweet and Smoky Baked Beans

Sweet Potatoes Topped with Black Beans and Kale

Szechuan Sesame Stir-Fry

Tailgate Chili with Black and Red Beans

Vegetable Gumbo

Vegetable Chickpea Loaf

Burgers, Pizza, and Fast Food

Arugula- and Spinach-Stuffed Pitas with Watercress Pesto

Crispy Mushroom Fries

Easy Vegetable Pizza

Flax and Sesame Crackers

Kale Chips

Sunny Bean Burgers

White Bean, Wild Rice, and Almond Burgers

Meat-Lover’s Beef, Bean, and Mushroom Burgers

Black Bean and Turkey Burgers

Tofu Fingers Marinara

Zucchini Bean Burrito

Desserts

Apple Surprise

Banana Mango Sorbet

Black Cherry Sorbet

Blueberry Banana Cobbler

Chunky Blueberry Walnut Sorbet

Cocoa Ice Bean

Fudgy Black Bean Brownies

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Filled with Blueberry Jam

Strawberry Panna Cotta

Summer Fruit Pie

Vanilla Coconut Nice Cream

Vanilla Cream Topping for Fruit

JUICES AND SMOOTHIES

Hemp Almond Milk

Serves: 6

1 cup hulled hemp seeds

1 cup raw almonds, soaked 6–8 hours

2 Medjool or 4 Deglet Noor dates, pitted

4 cups water

½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or ½ teaspoon alcohol-free vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in a high-powered blender. If using a vanilla bean, scrape interior pulp and seeds from pod with a dull knife and add to the blender; discard pod. Blend until smooth. If desired, strain through a nut milk bag or fine mesh strainer.

PER SERVING: CALORIES 263; PROTEIN 9g; CARBOHYDRATES 16g; TOTAL FAT 20.1g; SATURATED FAT 1.6g; SODIUM 17mg; FIBER 8.1g; BETA-CAROTENE 8mcg; CALCIUM 110mg; IRON 2mg; FOLATE 25mcg; MAGNESIUM 146mg; ZINC 1.6mg; SELENIUM 5.4mcg

Super Veggie Juice

Serves: 1

3 cups kale

1 cup broccoli

1 cucumber

2 carrots

1 apple

½-inch piece of ginger root

½ lemon, peeled

Run all ingredients through a juicer.

PER SERVING: CALORIES 155; PROTEIN 9g; CARBOHYDRATES 36g; TOTAL FAT 1.3g; SATURATED FAT 0.2g; SODIUM 104mg; FIBER 2g; BETA-CAROTENE 14,577mcg; VITMIN C 180mg; CALCIUM 212mg; IRON 2.7mg; FOLATE 85mcg; MAGNESIUM 77mg; ZINC 1.1mg; SELENIUM 2.6mcg

Eat Your Greens Fruit Smoothie

Serves: 2

5 ounces baby kale and baby spinach

1 banana

1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries

½ cup unsweetened soy, hemp, or almond milk

½ cup pomegranate juice or other unsweetened fruit juice

1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds

Blend all ingredients in a high-powered blender until smooth and creamy.

PER SERVING: CALORIES 201; PROTEIN 6g; CARBOHYDRATES 39g; TOTAL FAT 3.6g; SATURATED FAT 0.4g; SODIUM 94mg; FIBER 6.9g; BETA-CAROTENE 4,245mcg; VITAMIN C 27mg; CALCIUM 111mg; IRON 3.1mg; FOLATE 167mcg; MAGNESIUM 105mg; ZINC 0.9mg; SELENIUM 5.1mcg

Kale Power Blended Salad

Serves: 2

2 ounces kale

3 ounces romaine lettuce

1 banana

½ avocado

2 Medjool or 4 Deglet Noor dates, pitted

In a food processor or high-powered blender, blend all ingredients well until a smooth pudding-like consistency.

PER SERVING: CALORIES 211; PROTEIN 3g; CARBOHYDRATES 39g; TOTAL FAT 7g; SATURATED FAT 1g; SODIUM 32mg; FIBER 8g; BETA-CAROTENE 3,139mcg; VITAMIN C 27mg; CALCIUM 68mg; IRON 1.9mg; FOLATE 166mcg; MAGNESIUM 70mg; ZINC 1mg; SELENIUM 1.2mcg

Mixed Berries and Greens Smoothie

Serves: 2

1 cup pomegranate juice

¼ cup unsweetened soy, hemp, or almond milk

2 cups frozen mixed berries

1 cup romaine lettuce

1 cup watercress

½ banana

2 tablespoons ground chia seeds

Blend ingredients in a high-powered blender until smooth and creamy.

PER SERVING: CALORIES 223; PROTEIN 4g; CARBOHYDRATES 45g; TOTAL FAT 3.9g; SATURATED FAT 0.4g; SODIUM 36mg; FIBER 6.9g; BETA-CAROTENE 1,613mcg; VITAMIN C 78mg; CALCIUM 84mg; IRON 2.2mg; FOLATE 82mcg; MAGNESIUM 67mg; ZINC 0.8mg; SELENIUM 4.8mcg

BREAKFAST OPTIONS

Apple Pie Oatmeal

Serves: 2

½ cup old-fashioned oats

1 cup water

2 apples, peeled, cored, and diced

¼ teaspoon ground Ceylon cinnamon (see Note)

2 pitted dates, finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

Place oats and water in small pot and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in apples, ground cinnamon, and chopped dates. Add additional water if desired to adjust consistency. When oatmeal and apples are heated through, remove from heat and stir in walnuts.

Note:
Ceylon cinnamon is known as “true cinnamon.” What is commonly found in the United States is cassia cinnamon, a closely related and less expensive variety. Ceylon cinnamon is preferable because the cassia variety contains high levels of coumarin, a naturally occurring substance that has the potential to damage the liver in high doses. The Ceylon variety contains only traces of coumarin.