One of the hardest parts of living vegan is the absence of cheese. For whatever reason, leaving the pepperoni off a pizza is easier than eating a cheese and pepperoni free pizza. An oil free, whole grain, vegetable seasoned pizza is nearly unthinkable to most. This means that diet can be infinitely restrictive, especially when an individual is attempting to optimize and reclaim their health. But not all diet cheating is equal. The author therefore submits a diet cheating continuum that may help prevent large scale slipping when diet cheating is impossible to prevent.
10: Supplemented Low Histamine, Oil Free, Whole Foods Vegan Diet: The most healthy way to eat and suppress all symptoms of ill health. Only fresh greens, apples, melons, root vegetables, gluten free whole grains, herbs, limited sea salt, black beans, and blueberries/blackberries. Eat as much as needed for satiation. The author's personal record on this diet is 1 week, but it sapped muscle mass and energy needed for daily functioning, so this diet is not recommended for any extended length of time.
9: Supplemented Low Histamine, Mostly Whole Foods Diet: All the above, except refined cereal is allowed (corn flakes, crisped rice) with oil free oat milk. This can be helpful for avoiding excessive weight loss and maintaining muscle mass. Digestion will be negatively impacted, given the high volume of processed grains. Eating whole grains and tubers with herbs at frequent intervals helps alleviate this concern. This level of cheating will allow for a suppression of allergic symptoms as well as disease reversal without negatively impacting quality of life or physical robustness. My goal for this diet is 6 months of strict adherence. I've made it 2 days as of this post.
8: High Histamine, Oil Free, Whole Foods Vegan Diet: Tofu, soy sauce, sauerkraut, limes, lemons, nightshade vegetables like tomatoes and peppers, spinach, chard, and mushrooms are all allowed. Cheating with large amounts of these foods can result in allergy symptoms and elevated heart rate, though arterial diseases will still be effectively prevented and possibly reversed.
7: High Histamine, Limited Plant Oil, Whole Foods Vegan Diet: All of 8, except nuts and plant oils are also allowed in moderation. Peanut and almond butters are also allowed. Avocados and guacamole are now allowed. This may maintain heart health in healthy individuals, but may be risky for reversing existing heart disease. This is the beginning of ambiguous effects on long term survivability. Nuts are shown to be great at increasing longevity in the general population, but not with heart disease patients. Best to be cautious about all oils if you have identified symptoms of heart disease. Supplement vegan omega 3 if you want to get all benefits of nut consumption without the saturated fat. Cheat at this level only rarely if diseased, and only moderately if healthy. One handful of nuts per day is adequate for alleged health benefits.
6: High Histamine, Limited Plant Oil, Whole Foods Lactovegetarian Diet: Also known as the 7th Day Adventist Diet which corresponds to a much greater life expectancy if followed faithfully from birth. Dairy and all the above foods are allowed. Moderation is encouraged for all foods, so no snacking or binging is ever allowed. The dairy begins to prevent heart disease reversal and seems to maintain typical rates of prostate cancer in 7th Day Adventists, despite their increased life expectancy.
5: High Histamine, Moderate Plant Oil, Whole Foods Lactovegetarian Diet: All the above, plus baked goods made with limited plant oils and dairy. Homemade egg free pumpkin pie with whipped cream is a great example of this cheating level. Not harmful on special occasions, but potentially risky when consumed regularly.
4: High Histamine, Moderate Plant Oil, Whole Foods Ovolactovegetarian diet: All of the above with eggs. Eggs have been shown to be as harmful as smoking and drinking on cancer and heart disease risk. Enjoy at your own risk. Any amount of diet cheating with eggs should be treated with extreme caution, as eggs cause disease in a dose dependent manner in some studies.
3: High Histamine, High Plant Oil, Some Processed Foods, Ovolactovegetarian diet: All of the above with processed baked goods made with egg batter, processed grains, and added oil. There's really no excuse to ever cheat this badly unless you have completely abandoned your health. Cheese danish or donuts with milk are great examples of this level. Weight gain and health decline are assured.
2: High Histamine, High Plant Oil, Processed Foods, Low Meat: All the above with small amounts of meat. Like pepperoni on pizza. Still better than eating steaks, but worse than almost all other diets.
1: Standard American diet: All the above, plus large amounts of meat. Burgers, steaks, bacon, refined greasy foods. I ate this way on a daily basis for years in addition to hard exercise 5 days per week. Hopefully, the damage done to my arteries can be reversed.
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