General Wellness

Don’t believe any of the dairy industry’s claims about the so-called
bone-strengthening benefits of milk. In fact, quite the opposite is true.
— Read on plantstrong.com/plant-strong-recipes/milk-doesnt-do-a-body-good

WHY CUTTING BACK ON MEAT IS THE EASIEST AND FASTEST WAY TO REVERSE CLIMATE CHANGE.

Yesterday, I went on a bike ride on the beautiful Chester County, PA backroads and it was spectacular. I was in shorts and a t-shirt. It was warm and the fall leaves were beautiful. Earlier this week, I went for an afternoon run shirtless!

As wonderful as it felt to be outdoors in this nice weather, THIS IS NOT NORMAL!!! This is fall, not summer. Thanksgiving is in 2 weeks! At least in the US

As much as I love this weather, this should not be happening. But it is. You have to really have to have your head shoved pretty far up you-know-where not to accept that global warming and climate change are real. Record heat, the latest that Northern Siberia has ever frozen, melting polar ice caps, rising ocean levels (Miami is already continuously pumping sea water from under the city), the most storms and hurricanes ever recorded, the worst fire season ever… the list of heat and climate events is undeniable.

The time to slow climate change has passed. We must reverse it. As it is, the predictions are that we have maybe 40-50 harvests left before we have run out of usable land, since we pesticide the crap out of our world. The soil is dying. Population growth can’t possibly be sustained by our present system of agriculture. 

Although the list of reasons is lengthy, and I have much more on this on my website, there is one simple thing everyone can do today that will start the long, slow process of reversing climate change. And it’s not recycling, which is basically useless. And although the fossil fuel issue is obviously important, switching to a hybrid or electric car won’t do it either. These are long, slow processes and we don’t have the time. It’s meat and animal products in general.

STOP or CUT BACK ON EATING ANIMAL PRODUCTS.

This includes fish, dairy and eggs.

Why is this the fastest and easiest step?

1. The animal agricultural industry is responsible for at least 15-20% of CO2 emissions but in addition, it is the main source of methane and NO2, both of which are orders of magnitude worse than CO2 for the climate. Although the fossil fuel industry generates much more CO2, it also generates SO2 (sulfur dioxide), which actually cools the atmosphere. Some climatologists feel that this actually leads to a net neutral effect on global warming. Don’t get me wrong, the fossil fuel issue is also crucial, but change in that area is slow. I was impacted directly by the effects of this industry when a popular reservoir 1 mile from my house was contaminated by fracking chemicals being spilled into it this past summer.
2. It is immediate. You can have an impact TODAY. Start with your next meal. Expand from there.
3. It immediately results in less forest and Amazon rainforest being destroyed and the trees are one of the most important carbon sequesters there is. Half of what makes up a tree is carbon, formerly found in the atmosphere.
4. With less land being used to grow food for animals, fewer chemicals are used and the land is allowed to restore itself. As it is, we grow more than enough food to feed the planet. The vast majority of what we grow goes to feed the animals. It is incredibly inefficient. Skip the middleman (the animals) and feed the grains directly to the humans.
5. It immediately allows the oceans to restore themselves. The oceans are tremendous temperature absorbers and are the location of plankton, which generate the vast majority of the oxygen we breathe.

Paul Hawken, a well respected climate activist, wrote a comprehensive book, “Drawdown”, about the top 100 things we can do to reverse climate change. 4 of the top 10 related to food. The first, by the way, was decreasing refrigeration and cooling. Also in the top 10 was educating girls (#6). Women ARE the smarter and more compassionate gender without a doubt.

In addition, while saving the planet, you will make yourself much healthier and also prevent a lot of torture and death. 90 billion animals are killed a year for humans to consume and much of it is wasted anyway.

We have a lot going on right now, especially with Coronavirus impacting so much on our lives. However, Coronavirus, politics, personal agendas are all irrelevant on a planet inhospitable to humans and we are fast approaching that scenario.

In the meantime, we need to continue to respect the virus. Yesterday saw the 4th highest new Covid cases in the US at over 104,000. Please continue to do all the important things to keep yourself and those around you safe.

DISTANCE. 

WEAR A MASK.Wear an effective one and wear it correctly. 

WASH YOUR HANDS. Don’t rely on hand sanitizers unless it’s an emergency. DON’T TOUCH YOUR FACE.  

VENTILATE.  

VACCINATE. 

GET HEALTHY.  

Stay safe and be well.  

AC