10 REASONS TO STOP DRINKING MILK NOW

1. Pus 

Milk contains pus otherwise known as 'somatic cells' - the same cells you find in that giant yellow spot on your chin. Pus cells are made by the cow in response to an infection. Dairy cows regularly get mastitis, an udder infection (blood, pus, scabs etc.) due to being constantly hooked up to automatic milking machines.

Currently 750,000 somatic cells are allowed per ml of milk [1]. That means an 8oz cup could contain up to 180,000,000 pus cells! Thirsty?

2. Jared Leto's (Not) Doing It...

So I don't normally advocate celebrities as gurus of advice but when your a vegan and have to explain the reasons why on a daily basis, sometimes you could use a little backup now and again. Since we are a culture of celebrity I think the next time you get into an argument with a meat head this quote should come in handy...

Journalist asks why Jared doesn't eat dairy, he replies:
'Because it's disgusting, sucking on a cows boobies - I'm not into it'.
Journalist: 'What no more cheese?', 'No, no more cheese, no more pus for me'.

Well said Jared!

3. It's Cruel

The dairy industry is just an extension of the meat industry, since cows are bread for meat and used for milk until slaughter. Calves raised on dairy farms are taken away from their mothers at just one day old and fed by milk replacers so their mothers milk can be sold to humans. Around three quarters of a million unwanted dairy calves (not wanted for herd replacement or rearing for veal) are slaughtered each year as ‘waste-products’ of the dairy industry — usually at around 5 - 6 days old. Dairy calves are not valued as they don’t grow at the same rate as beef calves and their meat quality is considered sub-standard by the beef industry [4].

Male calves are usually sold for veal. The female calves will usually follow in their mother's footsteps and become a dairy cow, after being dehorned that is, with saws, sharp wires, hot irons, guillotine dehorners or caustic chemicals [7]. As you can imagine this is an excruciatingly painful procedure. According to Peta the female cows live an extremely short and stressful life of continuous pregnancy:

"Female cows are artificially inseminated shortly after their first birthdays. After giving birth, they lactate for 10 months and are then inseminated again, continuing the cycle. Some spend their entire lives standing on concrete floors; others are confined to massive, crowded lots, where they are forced to live amid their own waste. Cows have a natural lifespan of about 20 years and can produce milk for eight or nine years. However, the stress caused by the conditions on factory farms leads to disease, lameness, and reproductive problems that render cows worthless to the dairy industry by the time that they’re 4 or 5 years old, at which time they are sent to be slaughtered." [2]

4. Human Bodies Fight It

We are the only species that chooses to drink the milk of another species. Cows milk and the protein in it, is suited to the nutrition of calves, not fully grown human adults. Calves need it to grow and gain hundreds of pounds in a matter of months. It isn't natural for us to drink it and so human bodies understandably reject cows milk:

"Most people begin to produce less lactase, the enzyme that helps with the digestion of milk, when they are as young as 2 years old. This reduction can lead to lactose intolerance. Millions of Americans are lactose intolerant, and an estimated 90 percent of Asian-Americans and 75 percent of Native- and African-Americans suffer from the condition, which can cause bloating, gas, cramps, vomiting, headaches, rashes, and asthma. A U.K. study showed that people who suffered from irregular heartbeats, asthma, headaches, fatigue, and digestive problems “showed marked and often complete improvements in their health after cutting milk from their diets.”

5. It's Unhealthy

There are strong indications that consuming dairy can have some serious negative health effects. Due to its relatively high contents of saturated fat, total fat and cholesterol, dairy products contribute indirectly to obesity, heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions. More directly it may contribute to the risk of ovarian and prostate cancers, autoimmune diseases, ear infections and allergies in children. [4]

6. Growth Hormones

If you live in the US this one is mainly for you guys, although living in the UK and hearing that this is what the dairy industry uses would be enough for me to take a stand against milk altogether. The Bovine growth hormone is injected into cows so they can produce as much milk as possible and their udders are literally bursting at the seams (which causes those pus infections btw). A hormone you then consume through that milk, along with a cocktail of antibiotics and pesticides that's been fed to the cows as well - yummy!

Currently the use of the bovine injection (BST/BGH) is banned across Europe and the UK but who knows how long for. This also doesn't stop people consuming it through American food products or when they visit on vacation. The effect of this hormone on humans has not been thoroughly tested for long periods of time so who knows what impact this could have on our long term health (I could hazard a guess)...

7. Propaganda 

We have grown up with the comforting notion of a glass of milk providing us with all the calcium and protein we need for healthy strong teeth and bones. Remember the famous 'Got Milk' advertising campaign? Why would a big corp pump so many millions of dollars into advertising a product like milk and even using celebrities to promote drinking it - because they care about you? Wake up and smell the (soy) coffee! The dairy industry makes 11 billion dollars a year on milk alone and their primary motivation is profit, not your health. [6]

8. It Does Not Give You Strong Bones

Following on from the last point, contrary to popular belief milk will not give you strong bones. In fact it may even cause the very things we are trying to prevent by drinking it, such as fractures and osteoporosis. Studies have shown that women in America (a country that consumes the most dairy in the world) also have the highest osteoporosis rate while women in China (a country that consumes the least) have the lowest cases of osteoporosis. Coincidence? Read on...

Amy Lanou Ph.D., nutrition director for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. states that: “The connection between calcium consumption and bone health is actually very weak, and the connection between dairy consumption and bone health is almost nonexistent.” [3]

A Harvard Nurses’ Study of more than 77,000 women ages 34 to 59 found that those who consumed two or more glasses of milk per day had higher risks of broken hips and arms than those who drank one glass or less per day. T. Colin Campbell, professor of nutritional biochemistry at Cornell University, said, “The association between the intake of animal protein and fracture rates appears to be as strong as that between cigarette smoking and lung cancer.” [2]

If you've read The China Study (highly recommended) this information will already make sense to you.

9. Poor Source of Calcium

As mentioned above the connection between calcium consumption and bone health may be weak but none the less calcium is still very important for overall function as it's the most abundant mineral found in the body. However humans can get all the calcium they need from a healthy plant-based diet as the top rich in calcium foods include: broccoli, dark leafy greens, tofu, almonds, pack choi, bok choy, okra and green snap beans [5]. You could also opt for soy/almond milks with added calcium.

10. Environmental Destruction

Large dairy farms have a huge detrimental effect on the environment. Cows produce a lot of Methane and Nitrous Oxide in their digestion system. These are greenhouse gasses that are about 21 and 296 times as strong as that of Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Cows also produce a lot of manure which pollute the water and soil and can disturb the natural nutrient balance needed for normal plant growth. Additionally cows need a lot of land to graze on (if they get the opportunity) and the production of their feed also takes up a lot of land area. The production of cattle feed is a major reason for deforestation and is putting pressure on nature. [4]

Sources:

[1] http://www.naturalnews.com/035489_got_milk_celebrities_pus.html
[2] http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/animals-used-food-factsheets/cows-milk-cruel-unhealthy-product/#ixzz2zS4dlt6Q
[3] http://saveourbones.com/osteoporosis-milk-myth/

[4] http://www.animalsaustralia.org/factsheets/dairy_cows.php

[5] http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/foods-high-in-calcium.php

[6] http://www.appetiteforprofit.com/docs/dairy_industry_propaganda.html

[7] http://lifeorlunch.wordpress.com/2014/02/22/18-images-big-dairy-doesnt-want-you-to-see-features-peta/

Credit for the inspiration behind this post goes to Freelee the Banana Girl, check out her amazing video on YouTube for more info about why you should stop drinking milk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TS9hh-Npc50

EASY PEASY MAC AND CHEESEY!

With the likes of pizza and mac and cheese being my all time favourite indulgence meals, the one thing I sometimes miss as a vegan is cheese. Sure there's Cheezly, Sheese and No Muh (No Muh has to be the best I've tried so far) but nothing has quite hit the spot in terms of substitutions. The time came to take matters into my own hands and see if I could come up with something that would satisfy my needy cheesy tastebuds. 

This isn't technically a recipe, you just throw the ingredients together in a pan until it tastes good! First of all you need to cook the pasta shells (or macaroni if you prefer), I won't baby you by telling you how to do this...

While the pasta is cooking, pour some unsweetened almond milk in a pan on a medium heat, I would say allow 1 cup for each person. Add lot's of nutritional yeast (this gives it that cheesy taste) then a half teaspoon of: nutmeg, paprika, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and cumin. Squirt in a teaspoon of mustard and a sprinkle of turmeric to give the sauce a golden colour.  Add a corn starch/thickening mixture, following the instructions on the packet. Then season with salt, pepper, paprika and hot sauce to taste (optional). 

A quick and easy meal using cheap pantry ingredients. You can also add extra ingredients to the mac and cheese to make it more interesting and substantial such as; tofu dogs, soy protein and broccoli or peas. 

VEGGIE STIR FRY

Another one of my favourite dishes I like to keep in circulation is this Asparagus, Broccoli, Ginger and Mint stir fry. This dish is full of feel good ingredients; ginger is renowned for aiding colds and flu's, mix this with hot chillies and colourful veggies and you've got the perfect combo to combat Winter. 

Ingredients (Serves 4)

1 tbsp sesame oil or vegetable oil

2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

5 cm of fresh root ginger, sliced into fine strips

1 bunch spring onions, cut into 5cm (2in) lengths

2 garlic cloves, grated or finely chopped

1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced into fine strips

1 head broccoli, about 300g, cut into florets

1 bunch fine asparagus spears, trimmed and halved

1 tbsp caster sugar

1 handful fresh mint leaves

1 pinch salt

1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a wok over a medium-high heat, and swirl to coat the surface. Add the chillies and ginger and toss for a few seconds, then add the spring onions and a few seconds later add the garlic. Stir-fry for 5 minutes until soft.
2. Add the pepper, and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the broccoli, and stir-fry for a few minutes more, before adding the asparagus. Continue stir-frying for another minute or two.
3. Sprinkle over the sugar, and season well with salt and black pepper. Stir-fry for a few seconds until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat, and stir through the mint leaves. Serve immediately either on its own, or with some fluffy rice.

This recipe is another Ocado beaut and can be found here, if you shop with Ocado you can add the ingredients straight to your basket. The only changes I made were to substitute the sugar for a light agave syrup and I served mine with brown rice to make it a bit healthier. 

As the recipe states you have to be quick with this and keep constantly frying the veggies in the wok so they don't burn.  You can use fresh or frozen veggies, I prefer fresh (although it takes a bit longer to prepare) as they cook easier, taste better and have more nutrients!

CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE

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MY VERSION: WASABI YAKI SOBA

I have a bit of a thing for Japanese food and think I would be in my element if I decided to visit Japan one day. Wagamamas, Dim T and Wasabi are all at the top of my list for a casual meal out or a quick grab and go. When I worked in Central London I would religiously order the Roasted Veg Yaki Soba noodles from Wasabi, which are accidentally vegan (you can check out their allergy info here). Looking at the handful of ingredients in the Yaki Soba I thought this would be easy enough to recreate at home, plus it's always fun to experiment in the kitchen with foods you love. I actually now prefer the home cooked versions of my restaurant faves to the real thing (Read: check out my Wagamamas recipe). At least this way you can control what goes in and you know exactly what your eating!

Ingredients (serves 3):

2 bundles of organic udon or buckwheat soba noodles
Firm organic tofu
Frozen garden peas
1 onion chopped into chunks
2 tbsp oil
Salt
Hot sauce and soy sauce to taste

Instructions:

1. Chop the tofu into large cubes and the onion into chunks.
2. Fry the onion in 1tbsp oil in a large pan till lightly brown.
3. Boil the noodles in a pan of lightly salted water for about 8mins.
4. In a separate pan add 1tbsp of oil and fry the tofu cubes for about 6mins.
5. Meanwhile boil the peas for 4mins in a pan of lightly salted water.
6. When everything is ready drain the noodles and sprinkle them with cold water, toss till they are dry. Then put them into the same large pan as the onions and add the tofu. Drain the peas and add those to the pan. Cook everything in the pan together till warmed through.
7. Add salt, hot sauce and soy sauce to taste. Delicious served with miso soup and vegetable spring rolls.

I'm ready for my close-up.

Healthy tips:

• Skip frying the noodles at the end and just serve the ingredients straight on top of the boiled noodles after draining.
• I usually make this dish with udon noodles but it's a matter of preference and depends on how healthy you want to be, the soba noodles are healthier as they're made from buckwheat.
• You could always try adding more veggies to this dish to make it as nutritious and colourful as you like.

What's your favourite place to eat? Have you ever attempted to make your favourite restaurant dish or adapted it to make it vegan? I'd love to know! 

MY HAPPY PLACE: CAMDEN LOCK

INSPIRAL

Camden is my new happy place - mainly because it's so great for vegans! We took a trip there last weekend, first stop was lunch at Inspiral where we enjoyed a delicious (vegan) lasagne with a mixed salad. You seriously don't know how good this was seeing as it's been such a long time since I last had a lasagne! If your planning to visit Inspiral be warned, it's a bit on the pricey side although I guess that's to be expected when they're using top notch vegan ingredients. It also gets very cosy in there when it's busy (which is pretty much all the time) but that's a great sign of how popular healthy vegan food is! 

We then perused the infamous Camden Lock market and picked up some very fancy laser cut Christmas cards (sorry I was so excited about these I forgot to take a pic). I've been to Camden market in the Summer but somehow it was even more fun browsing the stalls with a cosy Christmas vibe in the air.

I loved these inventive motorbike seats for diners to sit and eat their takeaway's while overlooking the beautiful canal scenery. 

COOKIES AND SCREAM

Last but not least we visited the Cookies and Scream stall as I've been dying to go for ages. It more than lived up to my expectations, I was in vegan heaven with milkshakes, brownies and cakes galore! The 50's diner style outfits were so fun and the whole stall has such a cool spooky theme going on, definitely not your average cake shop. Again it was unbelievably popular, what you can't see in the photos is me leaning over everyone to get these shots! With all their bakes being gluten free, low in fat and using only the finest ingredients I can definately see why. We took home some salted caramel cake and two chocolate donuts, just thinking about them now is making my mouth water.

Hello Salted Caramel Scream shake

The one that came home to mama.

WORKOUT WISHLIST

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While everyone else is thinking about Christmas preparations I'm thinking about workout preparations. A month ago I joined my local gym and while I may have had a habit of letting my workouts fall by the wayside in the past, I'm determined not to let it happen this time (famous last words!). However I have been keeping to my word and going at least 2-3 times a week, the only thing that's slightly hindering my routine at the moment is my kit, I'm in desperate need of some long joggers like the Nike ones in the pic. The thought of going out in my trusty pair of cropped Nike leggings in this weather is enough to send me running straight back to the sofa with a blanket and hot chocolate (I know I'm such a girl). 

My ideal gym kit consists of a couple of pieces I currently own, the BPA free Delta Hydration water bottle by Kor (7) and Mizuno Wave Rider trainers (6) in the hope that I will eventually be able to afford the rest of the wish list items to go with them! Mizuno trainers are the best for running, they're so supportive and bouncy, I bought this pair last year after having my run analysed in my local sports shop. This is where they put you on a treadmill for a few minutes and recommend trainers based on your stride, they also create insoles moulded specifically to your feet which helps to prevent any running injuries, a must for anyone who runs regularly. The Mizuno trainers are coincidentally not made of leather, however I have heard some people online say they may use animal ingredients in their glue (not confirmed) so you might want to check this out by contacting the company. 

I'm all for gym gadgets, whatever makes my workout go quicker and easier is fine by me! The Polar watch (8) counts calories based on your heart rate, which seems a lot more accurate than casually gripping the machine handle bars now and again, not to mention calories burned during floor work and weights. The little iPod shuffle would also be ideal to clip on to my waistband as I'm too worried to run full speed with my iPhone attached to my ears (I also have the habit of forgetting I'm still attached before leaving the machine, does anyone else do that?). 

I've been lusting over the Fjällräven backpack (1) ever since Zooey Deschanel rocked the blue one in New Girl, they're quite expensive but I think I'd get a lot of use out of it, both inside and outside the gym. Plus it matches the Nike Balance tank (3) nicely, it's made from Dri-FIT mesh so you can break a sweat in the most elegant way! 

While it would be nice to have these pretty little extra's to add to my kit I'm not going to let it stop me going to the gym, after all it's only 7 months till Summer so with that scary thought in mind I'm off to workout!...

Do you have any gym kit recommendations?