My sister-in-law passed along the following food log from her friend who has been struggling, and is not sure what she’s doing wrong. Before we take a look at her food log, let me just say that she is a very good example of how we have internalized the messages of the food industry at the expense of our health:
Weekday breakfasts: a cup coffee with sugar and non-dairy creamer; a cup of yogurt (type unspecified); a rice cake with peanut butter.
Weekend breakfasts: pancakes make with soy milk, topped with margarine; soy bacon, soy sausage; cereal with soy milk; biscuits.
Lunch: Soy bologna (or ham) and cheese sandwich on white bread (due to “issues” with healthier breads) with veganaisse (non-dairy mayonnaise); Dr. McDougal’s vegan soups –“chicken”/miso/sweet & sour.
Dinner: white pasta with sundried tomatoes or peas/chick peas/olive oil or margarine and locatelli cheese; bean burritos with corn tortillas and cheese; veggie burgers; spaghetti with “meat” sauce; tacos with ground “soy meat” and cheese; other soy products like ribs and “chicken” strips.
She likes the soups at lunchtime because they are vegan and low in fat, but is concerned that they are high in soy, and they, too, have been causing some “issues.” She says that all veggies upset her stomach, and soy products maybe also. She also reports that she eats out differently, but does not say how many meals that affects on a weekly basis.
My impressions: Firstly, it is impossible not to notice how much processed food she is eating, and how much of it, virtually all in fact, is soy-based. At some level she knows the soy is a problem but she is eating so much of it that she doesn’t know how to extricate herself from it. Therefore, the first thing I would recommend is to eat soy only as tofu or edamame. No more soy analog products, at least until her belly feels better.
Another observation is that she is trying to minimize the amount of fat she eats. No need to do that. Fats are really good for you — especially plant-based fats like avocados, nuts and nut butters, and olive oil.
For breakfast, I like the peanut butter, and coffee is fine, but I would use almond milk for now. Eat the peanut butter on a spoon, or with banana or apple slices. Use real butter, and make sure the pancakes are made with whole grain flour, whether wheat or some other grain. I don’t know what she means by “cereal,” but I’m pretty sure it’s boxed breakfast cereal. I would suggest substituting some homemade trail mix, or a bowl of real oatmeal, or both. Again, without soy milk, margarine, or soy meats. And no non-dairy creamer either. Buy only plain yogurt, and add whatever you want. Commercial yogurts contain a ridiculous amount of sugar.
I don’t know if her sensitivity to vegetables is due to the fact that her gut is upset from all the soy, or if she is really sensitive to absolutely every vegetable on the planet. The best way to find out is to see an allergist and let them test her. Then she’ll know what she can eat and what she should avoid.
For lunch, eat the cheese slices plain, or an avocado, maybe a bowl of whole grain rice with sunflower seeds and raisins, perhaps with olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing. Or eat a baked potato with cheese melted on top. Or a bowl of black beans. The best soups are homemade — scroll through YOUR HEALTHY PLATE recipes on this site for many easy soup recipes. I am assuming that the cheese is real cheese from a cow and not from a soybean.
I see that she does eat some cheese, so she’s obviously willing to eat dairy. Therefore, eat real butter (hopefully from grass-fed cows), and toss the margarine. I don’t know if she eats eggs, but they would be a nutritious addition to her diet if she does. She could make scrambled eggs for dinner, or eggs poached in tomato sauce. A pot of squash-peanut soup and a loaf of sourdough bread would be a much better choice than the processed-soy-based dinners she is currently eating. A great resource for real vegan and vegetarian cooking is all the Moosewood cookbooks.
Our diets have traditionally been based on produce and other real food. The only produce she listed above was tomatoes, sun- dried. Virtually all the other items were “manufactured calories.” We have strayed so far from a real-food-based diet, and whatever we can do to reclaim it will be to our collective benefit.
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