What If Susan G. Komen’s Sponsors Actually Helped Cause Cancer Instead Of Find A Cure?

I’ve been saying this for years, but there is good reason to question why it is that so quickly so many major brands paint themselves pink in the name of finding a cure for breast cancer.

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Sure, we all want to there to be an easy medical cure for breast cancer and we all personally know someone who has been affected by breast cancer.

It’s a deeply emotional subject. Therefore, it’s natural to want to show our support to find a cure for breast cancer.

However, what I want to point out about our society is that we’re much, much, much more concerned with finding a cure, having been throwing money at Susan G. Komen since 1984, than we are concerned with actually preventing breast cancer.

I subscribe to the philosophy of Albert Einstein: “Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses prevent them.”

The thing is, the cure for cancer was discovered decades ago. Just watch the documentary Forks Over Knives on Netflix. You’ll see testimonials from women who diagnosed with terminal cancer back in the 1980s and 1990s.

You will be able to learn the reality that “the cancer switch can be turned on and off” through a plant based diet:

They switched to a plant-based lifestyle (they stopped eating animal products and artificial flavors and colors). Turns out, they are still alive and as of the taping of the documentary were still cancer free!

The overwhelming evidence is there.

However, this truth is annoying. It requires a person to change their lifestyle in order to not get cancer.

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Our society instead places a higher value on fixing the preventable problem after it has already happened.

Just take a look at the infographic at the very bottom of this post, which illustrates which health issues we raise the most money to find a cure for, versus which health issues are actually killing us.

What you see is that the diseases that kill us the most are the most easily preventable; through proper diet and exercise; yet our passion is in “finding the cure” for the more disease that kills the lower number of us.

As for the Susan G. Komen “find a cure” movement, I’m apparently not the own one picking up on the fact that the marketable passion to find a cure is actually overshadowing the importance of actually finding a cure, and most importantly, it distracts from the fact cancer is largely preventable with a plant-based lifestyle.

Just check out this recent satirical Onion article: Susan G. Komen Foundation Launches Deep Space Probe To Bring Breast Cancer Awareness To Rest Of Galaxy

It points out the fact that lack of awareness, or raising money to find a cure for breast cancer, aren’t the problems. They are the symptoms of the problem.

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The actual problem is people are dying of a largely preventable cancer.

I think it’s important to consider the fact that countries that consume little to no dairy also happen to have the least occurrence of breast cancer.

So it seems the actual problem is the lack of awareness of how to eat in a way to prevent cancer from forming in the body in the first place.

There’s also this one featured on The Huggington Post, “Susan G. Komen Partners With Fracking Firm, Despite Possible Cancer Links“, which points out Susan G. Komen is turning a blind eye to the fact so many of brands that raise money for them (as a sales tactic, of course) actually have products that are known to cause cancer, not prevent it.

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But it’s not just with companies who wave the pink flag to increase profits, or with Susan G. Komen turning a blind eye to sponsored products actually being linked to cancer.

The annoying truth is that it’s also our society’s tendency to keep literally buying into the concept that “finding a cure” for cancer is more important or relevant than preventing it.

If you’re familiar with my blog and my life, you know that I’ve been a vegan for more than a year and a half, a vegetarian for 3 years, and kosher (no pork, shellfish, etc.) for 6 years.

I am happy to answer any questions you have about this “extreme” lifestyle. Just leave a comment below.

What If Susan Komen’s Sponsors Actually Cause Cancer Instead Of Find A Cure?

How To Have A Vegan, Vegetarian, Kosher Or Plant-Based Christmas

How To Have A Vegan/Vegetarian/Kosher/Plant-Based Christmas

Though I’ve been a vegan for more than a year and a half, a vegetarian for 3 years, and kosher (no pork, shellfish, etc.) for 6 years, I haven’t always held non-meat eaters in the highest regard.

Back before my gradual conversion that began in 2008, I used to mock the concept of vegans and vegetarians. I had them stereotyped pretty easily in my mind.

How To Have A Vegan/Vegetarian/Kosher/Plant-Based Christmas

Then, as my eyes began being opened by watching Netflix documentaries like Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change, I began understanding the attraction towards an “I eat nothing from an animal diet”,  but I chose not to participate because I wasn’t ready to make such a lifestyle change.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

If you ask me, becoming a vegan or vegetarian requires you to live an alternative lifestyle.

I would know, since I live the vegan life 100% every day, no exceptions.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

By the way, part of the lure to veganism is that it means your daily cholesterol intake is less than 1%; or in other words, 0%. While “vegan food” (veggies, fruit, grains, beans, nuts, & seeds) do contain some cholesterol, it’s never enough to register high enough to count as 1% on the food label.

So I thought it would be interesting to produce a collection of picture collages featuring what our family ate during the 5 day Christmas vacation we just came off of.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

I must admit, I have a major advantage in my vegan lifestyle: My wife is an extremely good cook, and she loves planning and cooking our family’s meals. (That’s her in the picture above in the blue and back shirt.)

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

In the way I am passionate about blogging, she is passionate about making good food for our family.

One of her secrets is a website called Oh She Glows. The majority of the food you see today is derived from her plant-based recipe website.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

Over Christmas vacation, we dined on sweet potato chili, spinach pasta with “vegan meatballs” (made with oats), vegan veggie pizza (vegetarian for those who eat cheese), vegan nachos (made with potatoes and avocado), and cashew sauce pasta, to name a few meals.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

And thanks to my mom and my sister, we definitely weren’t short on vegan desserts.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

How To Have A Vegan/Vegetarian/Kosher/Plant-Based Christmas

My mom had a table full of vegan cookies and cakes, while my sister made vegan chocolate cupcakes, per my son’s request.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

The biggest challenge was when we drove an hour to a family reunion near Chattanooga, Tennessee.

We wanted to be able to spend time with that side of the family, but we were unable to eat any of the food there; and I especially didn’t want to be a hardship to them because of our dietary limitations.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

So here’s what we did: We packed the Lexus LX (the vehicle I was reviewing last week) with Larabars and water; which kept us full through the visit. We arrived 30 minutes early, to maximize on spending quality family time, before the food part started.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

In total, we were there for a solid hour and a half, before they started serving their food, which is the point at which we left.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

Fortunately, the Whole Foods was only 8 miles away; that’s where we had our lunch that day.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

I admit I was a bit skeptical going into this holiday season how as I vegan, I would be able to participate in a feast of Biblical proportions. But my family made it happen.

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

Honestly, I don’t feel like I missed out on anything food-wise this holiday season. I ate very well and had a great time; just without the cholesterol.

For more on this kind of stuff, just click on tab on the upper left-hand side of the page: My Vegan Life.

And of course, feel free to ask questions in the comments below!

Supersize Me, Food Inc., Forks Over Knives, Vegucated, and Hungry For A Change

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego Themed 4th Birthday Party

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

4 years old.

Dear Jack,

It is true, you are now a 4 year-old! And I can absolutely without a doubt tell you that you had an awesome 4th birthday and birthday party.

Knowing the relevance of Legos, given the fact you will spend hours at a time building Optimus Prime and Dinobots, we booked your party months ago at a place called Bricks 4 Kidz.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

That was the best decision for your party. Not only did you and your friends have a great time playing with Legos, but the parents felt at ease, yet still involved, with all the action.

Dear Jack: We Actually Let You Open Your Presents At Your Birthday Party

There were also optional peripheral activities going on for any of your friends who wanted to mix things up; like making a cool spiral design on a paper plate using a Lego-operated device.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

This made the first birthday party you’ve had outside of our home; I quickly realized how stress-free it truly is when you don’t have to worry about anything.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

Your birthday party was on autopilot; it flowed so well.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

The only thing we were really responsible for was bringing the food, which, you know me… that’s a big deal.

I made sure that in addition to your party having a Lego theme, that it also had a “no artificial anything” theme as well.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

These days, you really have to go out of your way to find “birthday food” that doesn’t have garbage ingredients in it, like artificial food dyes, animal bi-products, or mysterious chemicals.

Of course, for me, your vegan dad, I knew just where to look…

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

I reached out to Annie’s and GoGo Squeez and they helped donate the majority of the snacks for your party. They are just as passionate as I am about spreading the word about the importance of eating real food.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

Obviously, your friends loved our Annie’s crackers & cookies and Go Go Squeez pouch buffet!

And that was in addition to your vegan birthday cake that I special ordered from Whole Foods. You said you wanted it to be chocolate with blue icing, so that’s exactly what you got.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

It was so good…

No eggs, no dairy, no artificial dyes or flavors… no problem! We liked it so much that Mommy and I (jokingly?) talked about ordering another cake from Whole Foods to celebrate when we move into our new house in January.

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

So not only was there plenty of fun to be had at your 4th birthday party, but I was able to feel confident that I was serving you and your friends the best “birthday food” out there: Annie’s, Go Go Squeez, and Whole Foods vegan birthday cake.

Of course, there is that whole part about you opening the presents, but more on that in the next letter…

Love,

Daddy

Dear Jack: Your “No Artificial Anything” Lego-Themed 4th Birthday Party

Dairy And Egg Free Testimonials: James Hardy’s Asthma- Week 7

Let’s found out about James Hardy’s 7th week on my challenge:

Journal entry date: November 2, 2014

Since my last update I have had some great changes since I have cut all eggs and dairy from my diet. I have lost 6 lbs and kept it off without any additional changes to diet or exercise. My back acne is dropped to only a few zits here or there. Around this time of year my asthma gets the worst yet it seems to be causing me no major issues. In the past 2 weeks I have no longer needed my emergency inhaler while at the gym. With lacking breathing problems my workouts have gotten easier and I have actually noticed I am recovering faster after a workout.
Dairy And Egg Free Testimonials: James Hardy’s Asthma- Week 2
Today 11/2/14 I have decided to test how my allergies are being affected. I went to a local pet store where every time I have ever entered I needed 2 Benadryl and 2 puffs of my emergency inhaler. Today I was in there for 30 minutes and I usually stay less than 10. I had no need for my inhaler or Benadryl. I did get have my nose run a little bit but it went away probably 10 to 15 minutes after I left.
After the gym I played with my dog and kept him close to my face than normal. He hasn’t caused me more than just light sinus issues when we played too long, but today we played for a long time and I had no issues. I even pushed it by sticking my fingers in my eyes and nose. Yes, my nose, and I had no issues.

Dairy And Egg Free Testimonials: James Hardy’s Asthma- Week 2

Let’s found out about James Hardy’s 2nd week on my challenge:

Journal entry date: September 21th, 2014

Dairy And Egg Free Testimonials: James Hardy’s Asthma- Week 2

I have officially gone over a week with no dairy or eggs. This has been a very tough week for me. I never knew how many things needed eggs, or milk and how much of the food I purchase had eggs and milk in it.

In this week I have had all kinds of things happen to my body that were out of the ordinary. I had a very harsh sinus drain on day 4. I wasn’t sick, it lasted only a day, and it was very clear. Since then my breathing has had an improvement and something else improved that I didn’t expect. I have had hearing issues in my left ear since I was 16 years old. I qualified for a hearing aid but after that sinus drain I have noticed a very noticeable improvement in my hearing.

The last weird thing I have had happen is my stomach some crazy issues on day 7 and 8. These weren’t normal bowel movements and I feel my body was moving out all of the nastiness that doesn’t get moved due to all of the dairy. Things are back to normal now.

 Day 6 was a big test day for me for how no dairy and eggs would affect my asthma and allergies. On day 6 my wife and I went to visit her parents and brother for her brother’s birthday. Her parents have cats and dogs all over the place. Normally when I go over there I take a total of 6 Benadryl throughout the time there and will have to take many puffs of my emergency inhaler.

This visit I only used 2 Benadryl and 1 puff of my inhaler but I don’t think I needed it. I could breathe perfectly fine and wasn’t having allergy issues but my brain was freaking out like it was. My body is starting to have positive reactions to this new diet but my brain has yet to make new connections to what is going on.

On day 4 I had felt like I was having an asthma attack yet I could breathe perfectly fine. I took some deep breaths and it stopped. I have a few theories as to why my brain is doing this but for now I am having less breathing issues, less allergy issues and I can calm my body down from these fake reactions through deep breathing.

I plan on another expose test to an allergen on day 16 to see what my reactions. This will be a controlled test, with medication ready and my focus will be to see how my eyes, nose and skin reacts to cat allergens.

So far this diet change has not affected my workouts. I have been using a pea based protein for after gym protein intake. It taste like I am drinking rice when I mix it with water but when I mix it with vanilla almond milk, it taste great. So far I have not physical changes to my body.

Still at the same weight and I seem to be the same body fat percentage. I am hoping other than my asthma and allergies getting better I am hoping to finally lose my love handles.