Your Diet: What Is Myth What Is Truth?

Have you ever heard of the Weston A. Price Foundation? The Weston A. Price Foundation is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charity founded in 1999. The purpose of the foundation is to spread the information gathered by Dr. Weston Price in the 1920,s and 1930,s regarding the health and dietary habits of small groups of people living isolated from the industrialized world. Dr. Price (who I should point out was a dentist and was, at least initially, concerned with diet and dental problems) came to the conclusion that the best diet for humans, one that maximizes both physique and health, was a nutrient-dense diet of whole foods (minimally processed, i.e., cleaned and cooked), including the meat and fat of animals.

In July of 2000 (later revised in January of 2002), Stephen Byrnes, PhD, RNCP, of the Weston A. Price Foundation, wrote an article titled The Myths of Vegetarianism. It was originally published in the Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients. In that article, Dr. Byrnes discussed 15 points as to why a vegetarian diet was not natural and could be unhealthy. As a member of the Weston A Price Foundation, of course, he stated that for humans to be fully healthy they need to ingest animal products: meat, saturated fat, certified raw milk, and so forth.

In A Critique of “The Myths of Vegetarianism...”, by Andrew Paterson (June, 2002), Mr. Paterson, who is a vegetarian, states that he has known unhealthy vegetarians and unhealthy meat-eaters, as well as very healthy specimens of both types of people. But, says Mr. Paterson, “statistically, vegetarians are healthier than meat-eaters." He does acknowledge, however that “experts have different opinions” and that “scientific knowledge is often conflicting and open to much interpretation.”

I believe this is a topic that should be discussed openly. One thing that both Dr. Byrnes, and those at the Weston A. Price Foundation, and Mr. Paterson, among other knowledgeable vegetarians, all admit: Sugar, white flour, highly refined and processed foods of all types, modern feeding techniques of animals for food, pesticides, herbicides, and hormonal treatment of food animals, among other things, are a major part, if not the very basis for much of our modern health problems.

What the rational meat-eaters and vegetarians (if I may call them that) are talking about (the ethics of killing an animal for food notwithstanding) is what is the best diet for humans if grown organically and processed minimally: meat-based or pure vegetarian? Both sides claim that not only human health is at issue, but the very environment of the Earth, where we all must live is at stake in the long run.

If you wish to find out more about this very important issue, go to the following two addresses for a starter.

Myths and Truths About Vegetarianism: http://www.westonaprice.org/mythstruths/mtvegetarianism.html

A Critique of "The Myths of Vegetarianism" by Stephen Byrnes
http://www.energygrid.com/health/2002/06ap-stephenbyrnes.html

There is one last thought I wish to leave you with. A wise vegetarian once said that "it is healthier to be a happy meat-eater than an unhappy vegetarian." Try to enjoy what you have--mainly yourself as yourself--and if you have a lot, try to share it with deserving others. It will make you feel better and that will help your digestion--whether you are a vegetarin or a meat-eater.