On June 21, 1994, McDonald's sued two young students, Helen Steel and Dave Morris who were Greenpeace activists for allegedly handing out a leaflet in London. The leaflet pointed out that an average McDonald's meal has a diet high in fat, sugar, animal products and sodium, and is low in fiber, vitamins and minerals. It went on to say that an average McDonald's meal is an improperly balanced diet, linked with cancers of the breast and bowel, and heart disease.

The case is being heard in London's High Court of Justice. Dr. Neal D. Barnard, M.D., president of the U.S. based Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine, flew to London to testify on the nutritional dangers of McDonald's products. McDonald's own cancer expert, Sidney Arnott, when called to the witness stand, described the sentence in the leaflet as "a very reasonable thing to say." Even McDonald's own lawyer, Richard Rampton, agreed after four days of Dr. Barnard's testimony that a high fat, low fiber diet was inked to cancer and heart disease, causing the defendants to point out that McDonald's had conceded the case on diet and disease. Good Medicine)

The testimony of Dr. Barnard has indicated that diet and health have been associated with several of the major causes of death, including cancer and heart disease. This statement has a significant importance to our health because we now know that by eating healthy diets, the chance that we will get these diseases is reduced. But of more importance is how this issue is related to the global environment and to the lives of others.

After years of scientific study and announcements concerning the link between high blood cholesterol levels and heart disease, the New York Times, in a front page article, confirmed that "For First Time, Cut in Cholesterol Is Shown To Deter Artery Clogging." According to the Times: A team of scientists reported today the first "clear evidence" that a large reduction in blood cholesterol will slow and in some cases even reverse the formation and growth of fatty deposits that clog the arteries and cause heart attacks.

Basically, the article does not say anything new. It is, important that the link between diet and disease, which has long been believed by the conservative American medical establishment, is finally so substantial that it can no longer be controversial. This information is particularly important for people considering a natural and safe alternative to such costly medical treatments as heart by-pass surgery.

The most recent edition of cancer facts and figures published by the American Cancer Society made the following heath recommendations: 1 Cut down on total fat intake. 2 Eat more higher fiber foods such as whole grain cereals, fruits, and vegetables.

Diets high in fat continue to be a major area of cancer research. Repeated studies have thus far linked high fat consumption with cancers of the breast, prostate, rectum and colon. Dietary fats appear to slow the passage of body wastes through and out of cell walls and the system in general, so any cancer-promoting toxins take longer to be absorbed. Toxins such as pesticides frequently deposit in the fat of animals, and when those animal products are consumed, the toxins are transferred to the human body.

The importance of fiber in a healthy diet cannot be stressed enough. Fiber aids in the speedy digestion and elimination of our foods. Foods of vegetable origin are naturally rich in high amounts of fiber and thus are easily digested, while promoting the health and cleansing of the intestinal tract. Meat and other animal products,on the other hand, contain very litle fiber. They are difficult to digest and can often remain in the intestines for three to four days. Research has show that in those cultures eating a diet high in fiber - rich grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables and low in meat, colon and prostate cancer are nonexistent. Dr U. D. Regiter, chairman of the Department of Nutrition at Loma Linda University in California, describes experiments in which a diet rich in beans, peas, etc. , actually reduced cholesterol, even while the subjects were eating larger amounts of butter.

A growing body of scientific evidence suggests that the emphasis on meat in the typical U.S. diet, coupled with the intensive animal husbandry techniques that have evolved to meet growing demands, is harmful to the natural environment. In order to accommodate the demand for beef, more than five million acres of Central and South America rain forests are cut down each year to create more grazing land for cattle, much of which is imported by US companies because of its "cheap price" (Blueprint for the Environment). These tropical rainforests are among the world's most precious natural resources, the oldest ecosystems on earth, and have developed extreme ecological richness. Half of all species on earth live in the moist tropical rainforests, and the continuing destruction of these forests jeopardizes the very existence of the animals, plants, and people. We still know very little about these forests, although it is clear that their preservation is essential to the ecology, not only to our hemisphere, but of the world. In fact, one quarter of our medicines are derived from raw materials found in these forests.

Over the years, we have also found that raising cattle puts a strain on the environment around us. This process consumes an enormous amount of water. Nearly half the water used each year in the US, goes to grow feed for cattle and other livestock. A 1992 study by the California Department of Water Resources reported that more than 1,200 gallons of water are required to produce an eight-ounce boneless steak in California. The production of meat generates over a hundred million tons of manure each year, most of which is disposed of on the soil. Nitrates from the waste material trickle down and adulterate the ground water below. Another source of groundwater contamination is from slaughterhouse waste.

Meat consumption has also contributed to the global food crisis. Production of meat consumes more than seventy percent of the grain produced in the United States and about thirty percent of the world's total grain production. Nutritionists estimate that if Americans were to reduce their meat consumption by only ten percent, there'd be enough grains and beans saved to feed tens of millions of people annually.

At the present time when most of us sit down to eat, we are not aware of how the meat affects our health and the world. We do not know that our diet, with its high fat and low fiber, has been associated with several of the major causes of death including cancer and heart disease. We do not realize that in every Big Mac and every milk shake, there is a piece of the tropical rainforests. Rare species found in these forests become homeless or extinct. We do not realize that in the piece of steak, there is the suffering of animals, the slashing of our forests, and the cry of hungry people. The humans, the animals, the forests, the sky, and the rivers are part of this earth, and it is part of us. All things are interrelated, and so the choices we make in our daily lives have enormous influence, not only on our own health, but also on the lives of other beings and on the destiny of life on earth.

Tam Dieu

References (1) "Dr. Barnard Testifies for Mc Libel Defendants". Good Medicine. Spring 1995, Volume IV, No 1 p.18 (2) Philip M. Boffey, "For First Time, Cut in Cholesterol Is Show to Deter Artery Clogging" New York Times, 19 June 1987, p.1 (3) Cancer Facts and Figures 1992, American Cancer Society pp.21-22 (4) Surgeon General's Report on Diet and Health. Blueprint for the Environment. Salt Lake City: Hower Brothers, 1989 (5) "Food Production Resources". Plant and Animal Products in the US Food System. Washington DC:National Academy of Science: 1978. 11-28