The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet

For Sampson, for all animals who suffer needlessly, and for those who do their best to tread lightly on the earth

Preface

Having been vegetarian now for many years, I am always pleased when someone spreads the good word. Originally, I became a vegetarian when my wife, Linda, and myself were eating leg of lamb and, at the same time, watching a group of very cute baby lambs gamboling in the field. We made the connection, and so our original reason was that of compassion. Through the years, we have learned of the health benefits of a veggie diet and most recently have become aware of the extreme danger the livestock industry poses to the environment. When the United Nations (not a vegetarian group!) issued its report in 2006 saying that the livestock industry was responsible for more damage to the environment than all of the transport industry put together, I was glad to see a further reason for going veggie being made public. I believe that more and more people are looking at ways to change their diet and lifestyles, and I believe Alicia’s book will be very helpful to them and all of us.

Paul McCartney

Contents

Preface by Paul McCartney

Foreword by Neal Barnard, MD

The Journey Starts Here

Part I: Kind versus Nasty

1 What’s So Kind about Dieting?

2 Nasty Food #1: Meat

3 Nasty Food #2: Dairy

4 More Nasty Stuff: White Sugar and Processed Foods

5 Kind Foods

6 Nutritional FAQs

Part II: Living the Kind Life

7 Flirting

8 Going Vegan

9 Becoming a Superhero

10 The Kind Kitchen

11 Kind Away from Home

12 Getting Fit, Inside and Out

13 We Are All Activists

Part III: The Recipes

14 Vegan Recipes

15 Superhero Recipes

Appendix: Further Reading

Endnotes

Acknowledgments

Index

Foreword
by Neal Barnard, MD

Can this book really change the way you look, feel, and think about the world around you? Can it give you the tools to make serious changes—changes that will impact not only your own health, but that of the planet and every being that lives on it? Strong claims for something as simple as a diet plan, but it’s true. If you follow the path that Alicia Silverstone has laid out in this thoughtful, empowering book, you will discover a new way of thinking about your body and the foods that nourish it. If you’re aiming to trim away weight, regain your energy, and feel like yourself again, you’ll find the answers here. If you are dealing with more serious health concerns, this guide will revolutionize your health.

In our modern culture, there is a strange disconnect between how we eat and how we feel. In my practice, I’ve always maintained the belief that food can and should be the first line of defense against disease and have seen my patients respond powerfully to a change in their diet, whether reducing the incidence of diseases like diabetes or reversing weight gain, which can be a contributing factor to so many health concerns. Of course, I am not alone in these beliefs; researchers have been putting foods to the test for many years, and their findings show that the results of an improved diet can be dramatic, even life-changing. Dr. Dean Ornish showed that simple changes in diet and lifestyle can reverse heart disease.

If weight loss is your goal, you no longer need to torture yourself with skimpy portions and a load of guilt if you happen to stray. As my own research team has proven, not only are certain foods naturally modest in calories, they also increase your metabolism—your calorie-burning speed—after every meal, allowing you to liberate some of their calories as body heat rather than storing them as body fat. The result is gentle, continuing weight loss.

After weighing the pros and cons of many diets, from low fat to high protein and everything in between, I have come to believe a plant-based diet like the one described in this book helps my patients achieve their health goals most effectively. Funded by the U.S. government’s National Institutes of Health, our research team showed that a low-fat vegan diet helps people with diabetes lower their blood sugars and reduce or even eliminate their need for medications. We found that a similar menu adjustment helps young women eliminate painful cramps and PMS. The secret is that these healthful foods gently rebalance the hormones that contribute to menstrual symptoms.

A change in diet will make you look healthier, too. Harvard researchers found that a plant-based menu is very kind to your skin, while dairy-laden, sugary diets have the opposite effect. You will also feel healthier, as headaches and joint pains melt away.

How can changing what you eat solve so many problems? Think of it like changing the fuel you put in your car. If your car is not accelerating well, it stalls a lot, the ride is rough, and the exhaust looks terrible, you might take a look through your owner’s manual. And suddenly, you discover that your car actually does not take the diesel fuel you’ve been using; it takes unleaded. You switch to the right fuel, and suddenly, everything starts to get better. The acceleration improves, the ride evens out, and the exhaust clears up. Your body is the same way. The wrong foods slow you down. They interfere with your digestion, your blood circulation, your energy, and every other aspect of your body. With the right fuel, your whole body works better.