Hepatitis A is the most commong form of the virus, which affects the liver. The good news is that in most cases it clears up on it’s own and does not cause long term damage to the liver. You can only get the virus once, after that, your body will build an immunity to it. The not so good news? How the virus is spread.

WebMD states that the Hepatitis A virus is found in the stools of an infected person. It occurs when a person eats food or drinks water which has come in contact with the infected stool.

When we are eating out, not only do we have no concept of where the food is coming from, what type of quality it is made from, and how fresh it is. We also have no idea of the person who is preparing it for us. And as it seems more and more illnesses and infectious diseases are on the rise (just look at “Swine Flu” and the now antibiotic resistant Staph infection), how likely is it that we will see more of similar cases? Do you think this will curb the amount of Americans going out to eat? Or will this be another issue we push to the back because we’d rather not think about it?

First thing first, I must say I love Pillsbury because all of their icings are dairy free!! It is easy to make a chocolate or white cake vegan, just substitute for the milk and eggs. But icing is a different story. Out of all the icings I checked, only Pillsbury won the dairy free nod. I am a happy, happy girl.

But to add to my happiness, I popped on over to the freezer section to see if there was any type of soy-based or non dairy ice cream I could partake in. And there, all the way at the end of the aisle, next to the Haagen Daez pints, I spot it. Plain in it’s all white container, with a splash of pink and the words Tofutti splattered in cursive. I couldn’t resist.

I could choose from Vanilla, Chocolate, and Vanilla Almond Bark. Hhmm…figuring I may be in for a sad disappointment, I chose the Vanilla Almond Bark, figuring the extra ingredients had to give it something tastey.

After eating my dinner of Butternut Squash and rice, I decided it was time to dive in. Opening the lid, it looks like any other cup of ice cream. I was not about to fool myself though. I admit, I was expecting the worst.

When I first put the spoon to my lips, I get the distint flavor of soy, which is quickly drowned out by the almond flavor. I am surprised by the texture, it is very creamy, not grainy. Not quite like ice cream, but softer, smoother. I rather enjoyed it. As an extra special treat, there are bits of chocolate inside as well. Chocolate!! Most of it is made with milk so Vegans pretty much have to kiss it goodbye.

But don’t get it twisted, this is no health food. A pint weighs in at 240 calories and 15 grams total fat. Compare that to Turkey Hill Vanilla and Chocolate Ice Cream at 140 calories and 7 grams of fat, and you can see that if you plan on eating a pint of this frozen dessert everynight you will quickly be packing on the pounds.

All in all, if eaten in moderation and as an occasional snack, it is good enough to curb your ice cream cravings while not sacrificing your personal and nutritional choices.

But what exactly is gelatin, anyway? From Wikipedia: On a commercial scale, gelatin is made from by-products of the meat and leather industry, mainly pork skins, pork and cattle bones, or split cattle hides. [sic] Contrary to popular belief, horns and hooves are not commonly used[citation needed].

Gelatin can also be prepared at home. Boiling certain cartilaginous cuts of meat or bones will result in gelatin being dissolved into the water. Depending on the concentration, the resulting broth, when cooled, will naturally form a jelly or gel.

Gross! Vegetarian or not I’m sure the thought of boiled cartilage is certainly not appetizing to you. Also if you do not consider yourself a vegetarian, but avoid pork products due to religion or personal beliefs, you need to be diligent about this as well. Pork is the most common form of gelatin.

Most people are familiar with gelatin being in Jell-O and Marshmallows. You can also find it in jellies, gummy candies (not just Gummy Bears either, even Skittles have it). Definetly anything that “jiggles” will have the product in it. And it also creeps into some ice creams, yogurts, and margarines, to name a few.

Of concern also is a lot of medication that comes in capsule form contain gelatine. It is even offered as a health supplement, in the form of joint and bone health containing ingredients such as L-proline, L-hydroxyproline, and glycine.

Upon much research online I have concluded that there is not enough evidence of the study of the effects gelatin has on the body. You can find plenty of opinion articles, some touting all of it’s healing abilities, and vegetarian forums with young girls freaking out because they took a pill capsule not realizing the gelatin was in it.

Personally, as I do not eat any parts of an animals body, I choose to stay away from it. Will I freak out if I find that something I ate had it in? No, I will just be more diligent the next time. If there is one thing us Vegans know, it is that we must read lables!!

For those that have not meditated before, it may seem like a daunting task. Having to bend your legs in unnatural positions, close your eyes while holding your thumb and middle finger together while chanting “oohhhmmm”. It looks like more WORK than relaxation!!

But never fear, you do not need to get in any special position or chant anything in order to get the benefits of meditation. All that is required is that you are comfortable,  are able to relax in a quiet place, uninterrupted. There are many ways and things that you can meditate on, but for the novice, the easiest will be a guided meditation. This will walk you through a visual experience, and allow your mind to stop “chattering” and just get “out of the way”.

Now add to that the audio which is called binaural beats. Wikipedia describes it as: Binaural beats or binaural tones are auditory processing artifacts, or apparent sounds, the perception of which arises in the brain independent of physical stimuli. This effect was discovered in 1839 by Heinrich Wilhelm Dove.

Sounds complicated. But, I assure you, it is not. Very simply put, 2 different frequencies of sound are played on a headset. The brain perceives the difference between the 2 tones, and produces entrainment of the brain waves to that particulary frequency.

What is entrainment you ask? It is the act of your brain wave following into the frequency surrounding it. It happens in our every day life, particularly when we listen to music. That is how some music will cause you to want to dance and party, and other will cause you to feel peaceful and tired.

You do not need to study and learn how the binaural beats work to enjoy their benefits. You can find these beats by themselves, with soothing music in the background, with nature sounds, or with guided meditation. You also do not need to play these at a loud volume because the effects should be subtle, however I highly recommend wearing headphones so you get the full effect and benefit.

The following is a great website that offers free streaming binaural beats with all sorts of desired effects.

www.i-dose.us

Let us know if you enjoy the binaural beats, and if you’ve experienced a change in your mood while using them!

So I took the plunge into Vegan….

I know what you’re thinking. Vegan?? How could you ever give up CHEESE??? And that is the exact reason I pushed it off for so long as well. Ask anyone that knows me what my favorite food is, and they will tell you it’s cheese. And I don’t discriminate…I love all kinds. Well I’m getting off track…

My reasons for going Vegan were pretty much the same as they were for going Vegetarian. Animal cruelty played some part (just go to goveg.com and you will find plenty of videos to make you never want to eat an animal again). But my main reason was because of health. There is a ton of information on the web regarding the ill effects of eating meat and animal byproducts, so I won’t beat you in that head with it. But while this way of eating may not be for you, everyone can certainly benefit from a vegan meal now and then.

You can incorporate a vegan meal one night a week to make sure you are getting a good variety of vitamins. You can try it for a week or weekend to give your body a detox. Or you can jump right in and choose to eat this way forever. Whatever your choice, vegan is healthy and delicious!!

Oh..I must say..I am not a TRUE Vegan because I DO eat honey! Honey has many health benefits and I have not been able to find one ill effect it has. Plus it is yummy!

So off to google.com I went, in search of some good vegan recipes. I don’t have a whole lot of money to go out and buy a ton of exotic foods, so I needed to find ingredients that I already had in the house. This proved to be a very difficult task.

When searching for vegan recipes, it became apparent that most of the websites were offering gourmet meal ideas, and plenty of “fake” dairy substitutes. This is all well and good, but I just wanted a simple dish I could make for dinner or lunch. Not an easy task to complete online.

So what I have found in my first short week of being vegan is that you need to be a little creative, but it is really not as hard as you would think. This is what my menu looked like the first week :

Breakfast – piece of fruit and one piece of toast smeared with honey and cinammon.

Lunch – salad made with lots of tomatoes, cucumbers, and almonds. I used an olive oil/red wine vinegar concoction I mixed up for the dressing

Dinner – soup made with white rice, diced tomatoes, onions, green peppers, and Sazon seasoning. It was very filling and very nutritious!!

I snacked on Pistachios and Popcorn…butter free of course!

This weekend I’ve been making my version of an omelet by frying potatoes, onion, green pepper, and tomatoes in olive oil.

I have even found a Wacky Cake Recipe that includes no eggs or dairy, and Pillsbury Icing does not have any dairy in it either (the highlight of my weekend)!

Also, you do not need to go out and buy Soy Milk and egg substitutes. Through google.com you can find quit a variety of ways to substitute for eggs in baking, none of them including dairy. I made carrot muffins and substituted orange juice for milk. The ways you can be creative are countless!

I may at some point go for some vegan cheese or want some cereal with Rice Milk on top, but for now I’m focusing on eating whole, natural foods. And I feel like I’m discovering for the first time the joy in eating fresh fruits and vegetables, and really experiencing their fresh tastes.

So is anyone up for a challenge? Do you think you can go vegan for just one day??? I know you can do it!! Try it and let us all know how you feel!!