From wheeler@super.org Wed Feb 24 17:52:41 1993
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 92 10:34:16 EDT
From: wheeler@super.org (Ferrell S. Wheeler)
To: tms@cs.umd.edu
Subject: BB/OPED Barnard



OP-ED 2

  Beyond Beef Campaign
  1130 17th St., NW
  Suite 300
  Washington, D.C.  20036
  Tel: 202-775-1132
  Fax: 202-775-0074


The Beef Diet -- Prescription for Disaster

  By Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
     President, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
     Washington, D.C.


  Imagine if two jumbo jets collided over a major city and, in the
resulting fireball, 4,000 people died -- it would be a national tragedy
-- one of the worst accidents ever.  People would demand that airlines
and the government made sure nothing like that could ever happen again.

  A tragedy of this proportion happened the day before yesterday.  It
happened yesterday, too.  It will happen again today _and_ tomorrow.
Every single day in the United States, 4,000 lives are taken by heart
attacks and almost nothing is being done about it.

  For years now, we have known of the role diet plays in health, yet
unhealthy diets are still promoted by the government, livestock
industries, advertisers, and even doctors.  Healthy diets must be
presented and encouraged by these groups if America's health care crisis
is going to be solved.

  Dietary changes are worth making.  Two of the three leading killers of
Americans are heart disease and stroke.  Both are linked to "hardening
of the arteries" -- atherosclerosis -- which, in turn, is largely caused
by high-fat, cholesterol-laden diets.  As we all know, animal flesh, and
beef in particular, is a major source of cholesterol and saturated fat.

  The enormous toll of these diseases is taken one patient at a time, as
doctors finally give up trying to resuscitate yet another heart that is
damaged beyond hope.  The toll is also felt in the national pocketbook.
Coronary bypasses and expensive diagnostic tests are now the
budget-breaking routine in every city in America.

  Many other diseases also have their roots in our daily meals.  Breast
cancer, which has reached epidemic proportions, killing one woman every
twelve minutes, is clearly related to diet.  The same connections have
been drawn between diet and cancers of the colon and prostate.  In fact,
according to the National Cancer Institute, some 80 percent of cancer
deaths are attributable to smoking, diet, and other identifiable and
controllable factors.  Foods rich in fat and oils increase our cancer
risk.  About 40 percent of all the calories we eat comes from the fat in
meats, poultry, fish, dairy products, fried foods and vegetable oils.
These fats stimulate the over-production of hormones which encourage
cancer and promote the development of carcinogens in the digestive
tract.

  Not only are beef and other meats high in cholesterol and saturated
fats, but they are also low in some vital vitamins and minerals, and
they contain zero fiber.  Recently there has been enormous scientific
attention given to the role beta-carotene and other vitamins and
minerals play in blocking cancer growth.  Whole grains, fruits, legumes,
and vegetables are full of vitamins and minerals.  And plant foods have
fiber -- a substance completely lacking in beef and other meats.  We
have long known that fiber helps eliminate many common gastrointestinal
problems such as constipation; however, evidence shows that it also is
protective against a wide variety of diseases ranging from colon cancer
to diabetes, and from gallstones to appendicitis.  It also binds with
carcinogenic substances, bile, and excess hormones which would otherwise
rest in the digestive tract, and moves them out of the body.

  As one studies the diets of people around the world, one thing becomes
clear: as people give up traditional diets that are low in fats, high in
fiber, and predominantly plant-based in favor of beef and other meats,
the incidence of diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and
kidney disease rises.  At the same time, life expectancy and quality of
life decline.  In recent years, Japan has been the target of American
beef and tobacco promotional campaigns that seem to be some sort of
Pearl Harbor revenge program.  Members of the higher socioeconomic
strata, who are adopting Westernized diets, have much higher rates of
breast, colon, and prostate cancer and heart disease than their
counterparts who eat less (or no) meat.

  The Beyond Beef campaign is encouraging people to make this simple
change -- to step away from beef.  It is a move that is good for you,
for others, for animals, and for the environment.  So live a little; try
some new cuisine; experiment with traditional and ethnic foods.  It
could well help you live a lot longer.


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