It is not necessary to give up meat in order to be healthier. It IS a good idea to have less of it. And if you can afford it, try organically-fed, or free-range, hormone-free, no antibiotics or food color, meats, chickens, turkeys, etc. The American Institute for Cancer Research talks about the New American Plate. Take a look at this for help in eating healthier. http://www.aicr.org/publications/nap/nap2.lasso Full Fat, Full Benefits Forget the fat-free dressing on the side. Turns out, you need fat to absorb carotenoids, the disease-fighting antioxidants that give fruits and veggies their color. A recent study found that volunteers absorbed more carotenoids when they munched salads with full-fat dressing, less when they dined with low-fat dressing, and almost none when they opted for nonfat. But you don't have to rely on dressing to get the biggest nutritional boost from your salads-according to the head researcher, other fat sources such as avocado, cheese, or nuts, may work just as well. Source: Alternative Medicine, October, 2004 Ann's NOTE: Olive oil - PERFECT for salad. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen, 9/98 Study from Norway Animal Fat & Breast Cancer Link Food Serving Size Equivalents Fruit/Vegetable Consumption/Weight Mgment Olive Oil Needed on Salad to Help Absorb Carotenes Raw vs Cooked Vegetables & Cancer Risk: REVIEW Fruits/Veg & Cancer Prevention: Review from 1992 EAT THEM Int J Cancer, 5/02 Vegetarian Diet Approved by ADA Fruit/Vegetables: Benefit the Body Efficiently (Vitamin Okay) Raw & Cooked Veg/Fruits/Micronutrients & BCa Risk J Carcinogenesis, 4/03 Diet LINKED to Cancer Risks Dietary Variety is BEST LINK to organization that funds studies on nutrition, offering very useful information LINK to Men's Health, fruits and Vegetables LINK to main page for nutritional advice Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, 1/04 LINK to website w/lots of information J Agricultural & Food Chem, 6/04 Antioxidant Supplementation:Reduced Ca Risk in MEN Most Diets Need Supplementation Source: New York Times, 9/21/04 Int J Food Sci Nutr, 9/04 LINK to site on value of vitamin D and sunlight J Environmental Health Perspectives, 10/02 1/6 Level of Pesticides in Kids Eating Organic foods Study Evaluates Nutritional Modulation & Chemo Pesticides and Children LINK to NYC-based doctor and cancer survivor offering programs designed to optimize health through nutrition LINK to Changing the Way we Feed our Children Pediatric Academic Societies' Annual Meeting, May 2007 Remember we are NOT Doctors and have NO medical training. This site is like an Encylopedia - there are many pages, many links on many topics. Support our work with any size DONATION - see left side of any page - for how to donate. You can help raise awareness of CAM.