You've got questions...
Q: Does a plant-based diet help with MS?
A: Current research suggest that it does. For more information, please see Dr. McDougall's website re: MS. (Dr. McDougall is currently researching the connection between diet and MS and the benefits of a plant-based diet on MS). Dr. Gregor also has a video.
Q: Any suggestions for kid meals?
A: The tricky part with kids is they are all different. Anyone who guarantees a recipe is kid-approved is a little too optimistic. For example, I have 8 nieces and nephews. 7 like blueberry muffins, 1 does not. 6 like pancakes, 2 do not. 4 out of 8 like oatmeal. Even within the same family (each family has 4 kids), there is no consistency. What I can tell you is that my testers have kids of all ages — from newborns to college-age, and I don't include any recipe in my cookbooks that doesn't win over the majority.
Q: I was wondering if you could talk about depression and bipolar at all when it comes to eating a whole foods plant-based diet. I do believe there might be a link to eating healthy and helping with these mental illnesses.
A: While some people have experienced benefits in treating their depression with diet and/or exercise (and there are some studies that support this), it's not necessarily applicable to every case of depression, and while I am not a doctor, my understanding of bipolar disorder is that it is much more complex than a simple dietary cause (though perhaps diet could help). For example, a friend of mine is bipolar, and will always have to be on medication, no matter what diet she eats. We know this because her bipolar disorder remained unchanged when she changed her diet. Both bipolar disorder and depression are serious and anyone who has either, or thinks they might, should speak with a professional immediately for evaluation and if necessary, treatment.
Q: Do you recommend any books on this link between diet and health?
It depends on what you're looking for, but generally speaking:
The Starch Solution
Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease
Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes
The Pleasure Trap
The China Study
Whole
Forks Over Knives (film)
Q: Do you have a video of your making brown rice milk?
Yep. See my post, "What is Rice Milk (& How to Make Rice Milk Recipe)"
Q: Do you have a beginner's shopping list for getting the pantry/fridge stocked when first starting out?
There is a shopping list at the front of each book, and I also did a blog post on pantry staples. If you use our meal plans (which I can't recommend enough for beginners), you get a custom shopping list each week.
Q: Is there any way to search your blog or find by keywords?
A: Yes, use the labels or the search bar at the top of the page.
Q: How long can I keep grains once they are cooked?
A: If you don't use them in 2-3 days, put them in the freezer.
Q: Can you share a day or week's worth of no soy/tofu ideas?
A: Our meal plans are always soy-free and tofu-free. You can also see these related posts.
