I don't usually post on Friday's, but I feel like I had to share this with you. I was chatting with my mom today. She's retired and the stock market hasn't been treating her well, so she's trying to come up with ways to earn some cash. After reading the PETA / breastmilk thing, she's thinking of asking her doctor for drugs so she can start lactating... this way she can sell her milk to supplement her failing portfolio.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is behind a new ad campaign suggesting that even one hotdog consumed in childhood can increase the risk of cancer in adulthood. The campaign is actually run by The Cancer Project (an affiliate of PCRM).

It is based on a comprehensive report released late last year by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund. After reviewing all existing data on nutrition and cancer risk, researchers concluded that processed meat increases one’s risk of colorectal cancer, on average, by 21 percent for every 50 grams consumed daily. (A 50-gram serving is approximately the size of a typical hot dog.) The landmark report clearly states that no amount of processed meat is considered safe to eat.

Source:  PCRM

The Cancer Project is hoping to reform the federal Child Nutrition Act, up for renewal in 2009, which determines the foods that are served in the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture currently includes processed meats in the lists of foods available to schools.

However, not everyone is in agreement with the message PCRM is sending...

"My concern about this campaign is it's giving the indication that the occasional hot dog in the school lunch is going to increase cancer risk," said Colleen Doyle, the American Cancer Society's nutrition director. "An occasional hot dog isn't going to increase that risk."

Source:  MSNBC.com

While I applaud the Cancer Project for trying to reform school lunches, I think the ad is rather alarmist, and might even backfire in the end.  Here's the ad, what do you think?

Our friends over at Alltop, the online magazine rack, have done it again. In addition to compiling the best of the internet, by topic, they now have a vegan page. Check it out! With over 60 sites listed, it certainly seems like vegan is becoming more and more mainstream.

They've also got a whole slew of pages related to many other topics... from Adoption to Yoga and everything in between.

Unfortunately, the salmonella outbreak that first reared it's ugly head in April, is still going strong. And it almost feels like we trying to figure out who gave us this horrible, lingering, head-cold.

Federal health officials said they might never find the cause (of the salmonella outbreak) —and that tomatoes might not be the culprit after all.

Though fresh tomatoes have a "strong association" with many of the cases and remain a top suspect, health officials have not confirmed that the fruit carried the rare Salmonella Saintpaul strain.

Source: Chicago Tribune (thanks Bea)

Officials investigating the salmonella outbreak now are looking at jalapeño peppers as a leading suspect for spreading the bacteria that has sickened hundreds across the U.S. over the past three months.

New surveys with patients who only became sick recently, as well as some earlier victims, show that many ate jalapeño peppers along with tomatoes, one official said.

The CDC has said their food detectives settled on tomatoes shortly after the outbreak because a disproportionately high number of victims -- eight in 10 -- ate them. But the number of salmonella cases didn't decline, even after a warning issued by the FDA on June 3 prompted a sharp drop in tomato consumption. The number of reported cases had grown to 922 as of Wednesday, from 40 on June 2, 2008.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

While tomatoes are still being investigated, they are no longer considered one of the primary culprits in this salmonella outbreak after all. We've been hearing hints of this for the last few weeks, but still there is no definitive answer where the blame lies. The CDC is now looking at jalapeno peppers as a potential culprit, and other foods commonly eaten with tomatoes.

Officials have acknowledged the slow pace (of the investigation), while facing growing pressure to identify the source of contamination conclusively -- something the Food and Drug Administration has warned may be impossible.

The CDC is focusing on 29 "clusters" of illnesses, Mr. Nowak (a CDC spokesperson) said. A cluster is created when two or more people become sick within a 10-day period after eating at the same restaurant. Most of the restaurants serve Mexican food, and most of them are not chains, Mr. Nowak said.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

So, people are continuing to fall ill across the country and we may never know what caused this salmonella outbreak. I wonder if the anti-vegan blogs out there are writing posts entitled "yet another reason not to eat produce?"

Yesterday, ESPN offered an article entitled, "Who says you have to eat meat to be a successful athlete?" In this article they discuss a few of the various vegetarian and vegan athletes. If you need to convince people that vegan eating is a healthy option, this is good article to reference. With the exception of Prince Fielder (and it may be too early to weigh in on his progress), they're all thriving. The ESPN article does point out that you can thrive on a vegan diet (just make sure it's a healthy vegan diet, not a junkfood diet).

The article profiles:

• Prince Fielder, Baseball -- made the switch for ethical reasons. Unfortunately, his stats aren't quite as good as they were last year when he was a meat eater. His batting average is consistent with last year, but his power numbers are off somewhat. However, he went 2 for 3 tonight and hit his 13th home run of the year. I'm sure we wont' be the only ones keeping an eye on his progress....
• Tony Gonzalez, Football -- changed his eating after being diagnosed with Bell's Palsey, and a subsequent health scare. After moving to a produce-based diet, he had a stellar year: 99 catches - 2nd highest of his career, and 1,172 receiving yards - 3rd highest his career.
• Mac Danzig, Mixed Martial Arts -- went vegan in 2004, after a gradual progression. Attributes his quicker recoveries from the beatings he takes during his fights to his vegan diet.
• Pat Neshek, Baseball -- switched over to a meatless diet gradually. Until he tore a ligament (ulnar collateral) he was averaging more than one strikeout per inning.
• Scott Jurek, Ultra-Marathon Runner - began removing meat from his diet in 1999. Like Danzig, he too attributes his easier recovery times to his vegan diet.

Below are my two favorite quotes from this article.

Mac Danzig had this to say:

"My whole philosophy is not that it's bad necessarily -- we are omnivores, with the ability to survive on both. But in this day and age, I don't want to contribute to the meat and dairy industries if it's not necessary. That's not just for the animals. It's for the Earth, too."

Scott Jurek:

"It's really not that hard once you get things down," he said. "You just have to be a little creative. Sometimes you may not find a great vegetarian protein source in a restaurant -- no tofu, for instance. So you can do something like add chick peas to salad. Ethnic foods are good, too. Mexican beans, Asian tofu, Indian lentils. [To] some people it's this weird diet. But most grocery stores have a plethora of foods. Just keep variety in your diet, and you'll be good."

If they can thrive, anyone can.