Vegan wine was on display to accompany this cheese, which is similar to regular wine except that it dispenses with animal-based clarifying agents that some winemakers use in the production process.
There was even a plant-based dog food called Wild Earth, scheduled to launch later this year. Your four-legged carnivorous friend will “go wild for plant-based protein,” the ad blurb says.
Very little of the food looked organic – but that wasn’t presented as a selling point. This is likely because some plant-based burgers are processed foods that require additives such as methylcellulose (found in the popular Beyond Meat burger and Dr. Praeger’s All-American Veggie Burger) to serve as emulsifiers and agents. binders to prevent them from disintegrating.
Highlights of the summit included discussions led by luminaries in the plant-based health movement.
Dean Ornish, clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, shared his controversial thinking on how a plant-based diet can reverse some chronic diseases, not just prevent them. Thomas Colin Campbell, an American biochemist specializing in the effects of nutrition on long-term health, spoke about his book The China study – which examines the link between consumption of animal products and chronic diseases – and findings on cancer.
Clinical nutritionist Michael Greger gave a talk reflecting the title of his best-selling book, How not to dieenergetically explaining to attendees how organizations like the American Medical Association have been slow to endorse new techniques and ideas that could prevent disease.
Also speaking was author and weight loss doctor Garth Davis, who criticized teaching methods in medical schools.
“When I was in medical school, we never thought about food. We have never looked at the causes of cancer or heart disease,” he said, adding that some diseases share the same underlying causes and are linked to diet.
“When you look at a patient, look at their food,” he continued. “Ask what comes with steak: heart disease or cancer? »
Davis said doctors should learn more about nutrition given that some research has shown how diet can — and it’s certainly just a “can” in mainstream medicine right now — cause diseases like than cancer.
He remained angry about the animal protein trend, saying that too much of it is bad for your health.
“Look at the protein research,” he said. “People get information (about protein) from the food industry, an industry that pays no attention to health.” This information is rarely challenged, he says, because “the medical industry doesn’t pay any attention to diet.”
Eating animal protein, Davis said, accelerates aging and increases cancer risks. Some scientific studies support Davis’ claims, but his findings currently lie outside the medical mainstream.
Less controversial is the idea that we need less protein than we think – about 43 grams per day for men and 33 grams for women – and that we can get it in everything we eat, rather than having to seek them out in a protein-focused diet. . Plus, Davis said, it’s generally accepted that we can get enough protein just by eating plants — we don’t need to get it from meat, as is often believed. Or, as he puts it: “Give the peas a chance.” »
Davis exposed a popular vegan belief: that humans were not created to eat meat. “We are not carnivores by nature,” he said. “We are aligned with fruit-eating animals.”
Meanwhile, Greger – who is on a mission to compile scientific theories about plant-based diets – explained how official medical bodies can be slow to respond to studies, pointing out that it took 7,000 studies before that smoking is declared harmful to health.
Greger referenced numerous advertisements and articles from the 1950s that proclaimed the safety of smoking, while some even claimed that smoking was good for your health.
“If you wait for the (U.S.) Surgeon General’s report (to tell you that animal protein is bad for you), you’ll be dead,” he said.
“There are enough studies that advise you to change your eating habits. We can’t wait to be told, we need to take responsibility for our own health and our own diet.