the china study.

i requested this book (by t. colin campbell, phd) from the library and finally got it but of course i haven't had to time to read. i got about 1/4 through if that means anything.
so it's due back now but i want to make some notes while i have the book.
i was flipping through to see what i'd be missing and the "eating right: eight principles of food and health" looks especially interesting. i can't wait to read more but for now, here are just the principles to get you thinking:

principle #1: nutrition represents the combined activities of countless food substances. the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

principle #2: vitamin supplements are not a panacea for good health.

principle #3: there are virtually no nutrients in animal-based foods that are not better provided by plants.

principle #4: genes do not determine disease on their own. genes function only by being being activated, or expressed, and nutrition plays a critical role in determining which genes, good and bad, are expressed.

principle #5: nutrition can substantially control the adverse effects of noxious chemicals.

principle #6: the same nutrition that prevents disease in its early stages (before diagnosis) can also halt or reverse disease in its later stages (after diagnosis). 

principle #7: nutrition that is truly beneficial for one chronic disease will support health across the board.

principle #8: good nutrition creates health in all areas of our existence. all parts are interconnected.

radha, 2nd chance.

i went to radha for the first time for dinner just a few months ago... i was excited to eat somewhere with raw-friendly offerings on the menu and my friend had just got back from LA, experiencing a RAWvolution! we shared some raw nori rolls and cabbage rolls and a lime cheezecake for dessert. the most inspiring part of the meal was that i had a mother in my kombucha. it was a major bummer.

but i really believe you can't base an opinion on one experience and when the opportunity arose to catch up with a friend from almost a decade ago who is new to vancouver, we came to radha. it was wonderful!

she had panelle with tagine & ratatouille (the top plate in the photo) and i had the living/raw special which was a falafel with salad and there were so many familiar strong tastes but i am at a loss of words to try recall them all! i was so happy to have crunchy and soft, spicy and cool... it was a glorious balance. hurrah!

and then i had a raw white chocolate mousse with raspberries and strawberries. YES!

it reminds me that i tried a chocolate/mango parfait, new at organic lives in the afternoon which i've been excited to try. i think it should just be a mango parfait. the cacao mousse is not KAPOW enough. just sayin!

so anyways, i just watched, er, sort of listened to in the background while i'm typing, a thing about diet versus skin cancer. and it's been something i've been thinking about a lot lately. the sun has finally come out here and fairly intensely and i've been biking around a fair bit and i have not gotten burned. i'm amazed. and i have burned my skin in the past looking at a sun vacation brochure. i swear. and i'm not feeling invincible or anything - like mike adams says, i'm not going to go out and fry in the sun for 8 hours with confidence that i'm not doing damage (everything in moderation, yes???) but i do really believe more and more that sunscreen is a big scam (how terrible does it feel to put it on and how many people do you know have reactions to it? and goodness, thinking about putting this gross stuff on and letting it seep into my skin! GAH!) and that diet and general well-being play a huge role in getting cancer or not...