Newsletter Winter 2004

Vegetarian Diet vs. Drugs

A study published in the July 23rd issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that a vegetarian diet was equally effective at lowering LDL cholesterol levels (the bad kind) as statin drugs. Statins are the prescription drug of choice taken by millions of Americans to lower their cholesterol levels. The vegetarian diet and the statin drugs, which were also combined with a low saturated fat diet, resulted in LDL cholesterol reductions of about 30%. This large decrease in cholesterol is associated with about a 25% reduction in heart disease risk.

The vegetarian diet eaten in this study was not your average vegetarian diet. It was made up of several foods that by themselves have previously been shown to have cholesterol lowering effects. For example, the diet included foods rich in soluble fiber like barley, oats, beans and psyllium husk, foods rich in soy milk and soy protein like meat analogs, foods enriched with plant sterols (margarine) and a moderate supply of whole almonds, which are rich in monounsaturated fat.

An important discovery in this study was that both the vegetarian diet and the statin approach reduced C-reactive protein levels significantly more than the control group, which followed a very low saturated fat diet. C-reactive protein, or CRP, is a newly emerging risk factor for heart disease, which is thought to be a stronger predictor of heart disease risk than LDL cholesterol levels.

This study also strengthens the argument that when it comes to fat, it's not just about quantity but more about quality. A common myth about vegetarian diets is that they are low in fat. This isn't always the case-in this study the vegetarian group was getting about 30% of their calories from fat.

This article was condensed from an article published by The Kashi Company.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Our February dinner will be on February 24th at Ho Ho's, a chinese restaurant, located at 533 South Howard Avenue in Tampa. TBV member Lodewijk van den Berg will speak about his experiences as an astronaut.

We will have our annual picnic on Saturday, April 17th, from 11 AM - 3 PM at Lake Seminole Park, shelter number 13. The park's address is 10015 74th Ave. N. (Park Blvd.) in Seminole.

Sign-up for our events is required, either with Sharon at (727) 392-0268 or swhipple@tampabay.rr.com or with Michael at (813) 269-4665. There is an additional charge of $2 for non-members who attend.

In Our Community

Raw Candlelight Dinner

Natural Health Hut Clinic & Herb Farm, located in Wesley Chapel, will be having their second in a series of raw vegetarian candlelight dinners on Saturday, February 14th (Valentine's Day). Contact them at rose@imherbalist.com for more information.

Vejutopia

TBV member Chachi has opened up an all vegan cafe at the Glasshouse Art Gallery in the Seminole Heights section of Tampa (6310 N. Nebraska Ave.). You may remember that she catered our annual picnic last year.

Her Vejutopia cafe is open Saturdays from 6 PM to midnight and Sundays from 11 AM to 3 PM. Each weekend will feature a different ethnic theme. For more information, call her at (813) 622-6533 or visit vejutopia.com.

RESTAURANT REVIEWS

India Garden Restaurant

by by Paul Wilson

2950 Gulf-to-Bay, next to Days Inn, Clearwater

unch is buffet; dinner is a-la-carte.First thing that struck us was the smells coming from restaurant. Unbelievable! We knew we were in for something special. Inside it was beautiful with large murals of Indian life that were well painted. They get an A+ for ambiance. Lighting was perfect not being too dark or too bright, but just right. Indian music was playing in the background helping authenticate the mood.

There were three buffet tables with many delicious choices. There were 8 items on the separate vegetarian buffet table. Only one called Vegatables Bhaji was not Vegan. A large salad table held many other vegetarian choices. Two out of three buffet tables were vegetarian! In talking with the owners we found out they are going to rotate 100 different Indian dishes through the buffet table each week.

We had two types of Naan bread, one a flat dry Naan and one was a breadlike Naan that was warm and moist which was brought to the table special. There were 11 desserts, most were not vegan because of milk products.

We visited on opening night but it ran as smooth as any place I had ever been.

Tampa Bay does not have a full vegetarian restaurant but this is very close because the menu is so large and vegetarian dishes are separate from meat dishes. Best of all was the flavor. I have eaten at many Indian restaurants and this is the most authentic taste I have found in the area.

Sai Indian Restaurant

by Michael Pfalzer

1300 E. Bay Drive, Largo, FL 33771; (727) 581-3887

This south Indian cuisine also recently opened for business. Everything is vegetarian, with most being vegan. There is little as far as decor, but the service staff is very pleasant and the price is quite inexpensive.

Many of the dishes-particularly the toppings-are extremely hot/spicy, so be ready. The main items are dosas and uttappam's-pancakes/crepes made of rice or wheat, filled with potatoes and onions.

I enjoyed the opportunity to get this unique type of food, particularly the coconut topping. It was a bit on the greasy side, but very tasty. We've gone back.

New Membership Chairperson

Please welcome Carol Cannon as our new membership chairperson. You may remember her from the talk she gave at our July dinner at Saffron's Caribbean Cuisine, titled "Creating a Healthy Environment with Feng Shui and Bau-biologie".

Carol takes over the duties from Chris Chandler. Thanks to Chris and Carol for their time in helping our group run smoothly.

A Few Silly Words

The following lyrics were submitted by Joel Chudnow, who has a health show, "The Hawk Health Hour", on AM 1520 from Noon to 1 PM, Wednesday and Friday are live, Monday is a repeat.

from "The Fantastics" (copyright 1960) words by Tom Jones music by Harvey Schmidt

PLANT A RADISH

Plant a radish, get a radish,

Never any doubt.

That's why I love veg'tables;

You know what you're about!

Plant a turnip, get a turnip,

Maybe you'll get two.

That's why I love veg'tables,

You know that they'll come thru!

They're dependable!

They're be-friendable!

They're the best pal a parent's ever known.

While with children, it's bewilderin',

You don't know until the seed is nearly grown,

Just what you've sown.

So plant a carrot; get a carrot,

Not a brussel sprout.

That's why I love veg'tables,

You know what you're about!

Life is merry if it's very vegetarian.

A man who plants a garden is a very happy man.

A vegetari - very merry vegetarian.

About Tampa Bay Vegetarians

Our social group meets monthly, 4th Tuesday, at 7:00 PM at vegetarian or vegetarian-friendly restaurants. Click here for more information.