Joel Fuhrman - Eat To Live

196 Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

don't have your life revolve around a menu plan. This diet is deli-

cious; it involves no sacrifice, only different choices.

The vegetarian menus that follow are intentionally strict — for

those requiring aggressive or quicker weight loss and for those who

have had difficulty losing weight in the past. This kind of vegetarian

diet is also appropriate for those looking to reverse heart disease or

diabetes. You cannot expect to significantly reverse atherosclerosis

(blockages in your arteries), diabetes, or high blood pressure unless

you restore yourself to a normal weight. It is the combination of the

healthy, nutrient-dense diet and the fat leaving your body that brings

about predictable improvement in many health conditions.

For those not wanting to give up the flavor of animal foods, yo-

can cook any vegetable dish in chicken broth or other (unsalted)

soup stock. The nonvegetarian menus include a small amount of an-

imal products (less than two ounces per day, or less than twelve

ounces per week) and a small amount of oil. A small amount of

animal food can be added to any vegetable or bean dish for flavor,

desired.

When the menu or recipes do permit oil, remember not to use

more than one teaspoon per day. If your wedding is coming up or

you just want to look great in a bathing suit before the summer, fol

low the seven-day vegetarian plan or. if you're on the less strict non-

vegetarian plan, do not use any oil on salads or with any recipes. You

can make these nonvegetarian menus stricter and more effective by

excluding all oil and further limiting the portion size of the cooke

starch.

If stir-frying any vegetable dish, alternatives to oil include veg

etable broth, wine, or a little fruit juice, especially pineapple juice.

Another option is to create a "wokking sauce" to cook vegetables in.

We like to use a handful of dates or dried apricots blended with wa-

ter and Bragg's Liquid Aminos. Another good mix is tomato sauce

and pineapple juice. Just take a can of diced unsweetened pineapple

and add some tomato sauce to make a Hawaiian mixed-vegetabl

dish.

The nonvegetarian menu plans are mostly vegetarian. Even the

recipes that include a little animal product can be made totally

vegan — if you want to stay on a vegetarian diet, still look through

the recipes in the nonvegetarian section so you don't miss out on

some great options. I intentionally included recipes that focused o

the lower-calorie, more nutrient dense food.