The Circle of Life?

Since going vegan in May 2016, I have watched many documentaries on the health benefits of a whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet. In some of the films I have watched medical professionals have stated that they received little if any training in nutrition. Do you find that a little disturbing? What if instead of writing prescriptions for medications to treat our diseases, doctors actually wrote prescriptions for the kind of plant-based nutrition that could prevent and, in some cases, reverse our diseases and chronic conditions?

Scientific studies have shown that eating animal flesh and secretions (dairy, eggs) contributes to cancer, chronic illness, and inflammatory disease.  Yet there are many people who insist that animals were created for our consumption -- that this is the circle of life.  Really?  Evidence would suggest just the opposite. In an ironic twist, consuming animals has become our undoing, resulting in epidemic obesity, diabetes, cardiac disease, and cancer.

I have nothing against doctors and medical professionals. I don't believe they are in medicine merely for the money. But if it is true that they have not received adequate training in the health benefits of plant-based nutrition, why should you and I not take control of our health by changing what we put into our bodies by leaving meat off our plates and out of our diets? I would much rather spend my money enjoying the wide variety of delicious wholesome plant-based food readily available than on presription medications, hospitalization, and lost wages because of illness.

In the eight months that I have been vegan I have reaped great health benefits, lowering my cholesterol and shedding over twenty pounds. I am a believer! I have also discovered new foods I never knew existed, learned new recipes that have been real palate pleasers, and developed a true sense of happiness and well-being knowing that I am no longer responsible for harming other living beings just to satisfy myself.

Need more evidence that a WFPB diet can not only benefit your health, but also protect our environment and save the lives of billions of animals in the process? Then please check out some of the videos and books listed on our links & resources page, including Cowspiracy, Forks Over Knives, and Vegucated. Invest a little of your time to dig into these resources and decide for yourself whether the "circle of life" is all it's cracked up to be.

For better health and a better life,

Dee Dee


Copyright 2016-2017 by Dee Dee Wike and Joy Wike. All rights reserved. www.feelingveggiegood.com

One of the Lucky Ones

"I can't go vegan because I could ever give up cheese." You can't imagine how many times Joy and I have heard someone say those very words after learning that we have adopted a vegan lifestyle. Their reaction to photos of abused animals on their way to slaughter or to documentaries touting the benefits of a whole food, plant-based diet has been much like ours, yet they remain unswayed. Even my own weight loss, added energy, and improved cholesterol levels have not convinced them.

Some of these people are friends and family I know well and love deeply. Others are strangers to me or friends I have met since starting this journey. So why was deciding to go vegan such an easy decision for me but remains so difficult a choice for them? I wish I had an answer.

All I can say is that when I watched that first life-changing documentary, something was awakened in me.  I saw the suffering of animals and environmental damage caused by factory farming to produce the food on my plate.  I knew that I needed to do something to contribute to the solution rather than perpetuate the problem.  I decided to re-think a lifetime of choices by embracing a vegan lifestyle and choosing cruelty-free products over products tested on animals.

My decision doesn't make me better than anyone else, but it definitely has made me happier and healthier than I have been in a very long time.

I saw. I knew. I decided. I'm one of the lucky ones.

Don't take my word for it. Try it yourself by taking the 30-Day Vegan Challenge. There are so many good foods out there that you need never feel deprived. I certainly don't. The benefits of minimizing my waistline, cholesterol levels, carbon footprint, and the suffering of the animals make it all worth it!

Feeling Veggie Good,
Dee Dee


Copyright 2016 by Dee Dee Wike and Joy Wike. All rights reserved. www.feelingveggiegood.com

The Numbers Are In -- Change Is Good

After Joy and I finished up the 30-Day Vegan Challenge I decided to have my cholesterol re-checked to determine how much improvement there has been since adopting a whole food, plant-based diet. In many of the documentaries we have watched to-date, including Vegucated and PlantPure Nation, people switching to a vegetarian or vegan diet reported amazing improvements in their weight, cholesterol, and overall health.  Since my total cholesterol and LDL levels had moved into the elevated range at my last physical in December 2015, I was eager to see how things have changed in the past six months and, in particular, since making the switch to a plant-based diet in April of this year.  Drumroll, please....

Overall, I am pleased with my results.  The weight and triglycerides still need a bit of tweaking, but I am thrilled that I am within normal ranges and finally losing weight!

Bottom line:  I have finally found what works for me and am enjoying the benefits of better health, greater compassion, and a heightened awareness of world around me.  I am living proof that positive changes can have positive results.  The best is yet to come!!





Copyright 2016 by Dee Dee Wike and Joy Wike. All rights reserved. www.feelingveggiegood.com

Where's the Beef?

"Why on earth would you want to give up meat?"  That's a question that every new vegetarian will be asked. After all, you can't have a balanced diet without meat, right? Don't we need meat in order to get the right amount of protein? Well, the answer to that question is no. There are plenty of sources of protein in plant-based foods.

On April 6, 2016, I decided to drop all meat from my diet and become a vegetarian. Not once have I wistfully looked at my plate and cried, "Where's the beef?"  On the contrary, one night I dreamt that a friend invited me over for dinner and the only thing on my plate was the beef, and it wasn't even cooked!  Talk about a nightmare.

Four weeks into this adventure...

• I feel great! -- with more energy, a greater sense of well-being, and excitement about trying new foods and discovering new information. I am convinced that part of my increased energy is a result of not having to digest foods I probably shouldn't be eating anyway, including meat, refined foods, and sugar.
• I feel empowered to finally be able to take control of my weight and my health. My whole life I have struggled with being overweight. As a middle age menopausal female, this has been especially bothersome. To add insult to injury, a recent physical revealed that my cholesterol is elevated and I am considered obese. Now that I have cut meat (and most dairy) out of my diet, the needle on the bathroom scale is moving in the right direction! I have hope that by the time I have my next physical I will have lost the 20 pounds the doctor told me to lose and my cholesterol reading will have improved significantly.
• I have discovered there are things I can do to help the environment and show compassion to our animal friends. Did you know that animal agriculture generates a lot of methane (a greenhouse gas) and results in the destruction of the planet's rain forests? Those poor cows have to graze somewhere! Have you seen the inhumane methods used to produce the meat we eat? If not, watch Vegucated, the film which was the catalyst for my decision. It might just make you think twice about picking up that package of steaks in the meat section of your grocery store.
• I enjoy grocery shopping now! Each trip is an adventure and an education experience as I read labels, try new foods, and check out with a cart full of healthy fare.
• I am genuinely happy!  Happy to be on my way to better health. Happy to be doing something positive with my life, in partnership with my daughter, for the benefit of mankind, our animal friends, and our planet.

Maybe you don't think the vegetarian lifestyle is for you. After all, it's kind of hard to imagine giving up that favorite cut of steak or chicken. Or, maybe you aren't aware of the health benefits of a plant-based diet or the environmental impact of animal agriculture. If that's you, I pray you will take a look at the information linked on our Links &  Resources page and begin doing some research of your own.

We aren't here to sell you a product or make you any promises regarding your health, but rather our desire is to educate you so that you can decide in your heart what action you need to take. It's up to you to make the choice.

Our "Vegucated" Life

For weeks my daughter has been toying with the idea of adopting a vegan lifestyle, consuming only plant-based and whole foods and NO animal products.  I am not entirely sure what prompted her to consider doing something so radical, especially knowing how much our entire family loves good food. However, her interest in good health and wise dietary choices were not something I could ignore and with the increased choices of organic and vegan foods it is certainly feasible.

Before going on our recent vacation I sat down with her to watch a documentary, Food, Inc., an eye-opening film which "examines the costs of putting value and convenience over nutrition and environmental impact."[i]  After watching the film I made the decision to eat more whole and organic foods, and fewer processed ones, particularly since I have always struggled with being overweight and have experienced a recent rise in my bad cholesterol. Simple enough, right?

Shortly after watching Food, Inc., we took a family vacation and traveled back home to Tennessee to visit family and friends.  One of our goals was to eat some of our favorite foods which we have not been able to find since our move to another part of the country. We relished every bite of Memphis barbecue, southern-fried cornmeal-breaded catfish, and Chinese food we consumed.  That I only gained five pounds in that week of indulgences was nothing short of a miracle!

Upon our return home, Joy resumed the task of educating herself, asking me to sit down with her to watch another documentary, Vegucated, the story of “three meat- and cheese-loving New Yorkers who agree to adopt a vegan diet for six weeks. Lured by tales of weight lost and health regained, they begin to uncover the hidden sides of animal agriculture that make them wonder whether solutions offered in films like Food, Inc. go far enough.”[ii]  Joy and I were moved to tears and so disturbed by what we saw that we both decided to immediately eliminate meat from our diets, not only because of our health but perhaps even more importantly because of animal cruelty and the negative impact of animal agriculture on our environment.

Joy and I have decided that for now we will be lacto-ovo vegetarians (consuming no meat but allowing ourselves eggs and dairy products in small amounts).  We may eventually go vegan all the way.  After a week of consuming no meat and trying diligently to eat whole, unprocessed foods, I feel more energetic and healthy. I have lost 4 of the 5 pounds I gained during our vacation, despite eating my fill.  Because there are more good choices out there than ever before, I have not once felt deprived.  I still get to enjoy my husband’s delicious homemade veggie pizza, and what’s not to love about that?

Why am I telling you all this? It’s certainly not to condemn your choice to eat meat or, on the other hand, to persuade you to adopt a strictly vegan lifestyle.  But as an animal lover who has become more aware of the environment since moving to the beautiful state of Virginia, I feel compelled to do my small part to prevent animal cruelty and to help effect positive change in our environment. 

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[i] http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/food-inc/

[ii] http://www.getvegucated.com/

Copyright © 2016 by Dee Dee Wike. All rights reserved. www.deedeewike.com