Real Results

This is my husbands friend Troy. Troy lives out of town and commutes each week to St. George for his 4 day work week at the hospital and stays in our guest room. Before he joined us for dinner the first time, my husband warned him about my vegan cooking. He was open and willing to give it a try and figured he would just sneak out later for some "real food." To my surprise, and his as well, this 6' 5" 255 pound "meat and potatoes" guy loved the food!! OK, so I got lucky this time. Well, 6 months later he still loves the food and has converted his wife who is now drinking green smoothies, and his kids are talking about "super foods." And not only that, he's got half the staff on his floor at the hospital coming to him with questions and has several converted. This great new diet is just about all he talks about! I think I've created a monster! 

When Troy first came to stay with us, he had already lost about 30 pounds from just giving up the sodas and other junk foods. Since then he has lost almost another 40 pounds and is feeling better then he has in years! He has lost all desire for his previous meat and potatoes diet and loves his new plant based diet which he now refers to as "real food." He has converted his brother Travis (testimony below) and they are both now rubbing off on a third brother.

Weight loss has never been a motivating factor for Troy. For him it's more about his health. After all, he is a nurse and should be a healthy example to his patients.

 I think his weight loss is very exciting because it's such a motivator for so many others. As of April 2011 when this picture was taken, he was at 225. He is now hovering around 215 and feeling great!

He has said many times that if you would have asked him a year ago if he would try a "vegan" diet he would have said "no way!" Now he Say's "if I can do it, anyone can!...It's not hard and I love it!"

From Troys brother Travis:
 April,

Thanks so much for the reading recommendations. I've got people asking me for advice on what to eat. I love knowing such good information. It all makes so much sense and after a little practice is so easy. My brother Ben called up wanting your Shepherd's Pie recipe, my favorite so far. Last night he had to call me and let me know how stinkin' good it was. And let's not forgot how healthy too.  

I do want to thank you for being an influence on Troy in this area. I couldn't imagine making such a HUGE lifestyle change without him and the constant reminder as I read all I should being doing. EAT TO LIVE really is the way to go. I've learned so much, lost weight, lowered my blood pressure, I'm sure lowered my cholesterol, and feel better with more energy.  Thanks!!!   Travis / Wyoming

Cathy is off statins and on to better health!

For as long as I can remember I’ve had high cholesterol. Up until 2 years ago I’ve been on satins.

The side affects I had taking the satins were in my chest and legs muscles. No matter what satin drug I was on it gave me problems. I had difficult breathing or walking. I would take the satins for 3 months at a time and go off it for a month just to relieve my symptoms.

In October of 2010 I went to my doctor for my yearly check up. After having blood work done my cholesterol was 350. Triglycerides 104, LDL 210, and HDL 68. That was a wake up call. I exercise all the time and I have a high HDL which is good. My doctor said to me that I need to go back on the satins or change my eating habits. I told him I wasn’t going to go back on the satins. I choose to change my eating habits over drugs.

In February 2011 I met April for the first time at her home for a vegan dinner. After that night I became I Veganist. I love fruits and vegetables so I was already had a good start. April had on her dining room table that night several books written by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and Dr. Caldwell B.Esselstyn. Upon April’s recommendation I bought these books. Later on I bought two more books by Dr. Joel Fuhram. These books have help me in so many ways.  Excellent information. They are my bibles.

Today, 10 months later, I’m happy to say that my cholesterol is now 203*. Triglycerides is 74, LDL is 132 and HDL is 88. My previous weight was 134 and I now weigh 112. I’ve gone from 32% body fat to 21.2%, blood pressure from 120/96 to 95/59 and from size 12 to a size 6.

I feel better, look better, sleep better and have tons of energy. The whole food plant based vegan diet has done wonderful things for me. 

I have another success story to share:

I’ve had numerous root canals over the years. So I know firsthand what the symptoms are. This past fall a tooth of mine was starting to hurt like crazy. I said to myself "oh no not another root canal." Then I remember April talking about her success with using sesame seed milk to heal her tooth. So I  emailed April and told her what was going on. She emailed me back and told me what to do and I did it. My tooth pain went away. Amazing! 

Thank you April for all your delicious  vegan dishes, cures, information, daily e-mails, support and caring. Cathy Volp, St. George, Utah

*Comment from April: Cathy's cholesterol levels at 203 are still above favorable range (studies show that at 150 you become heart attack proof) but I am confindent that they will continue to drop as she sticks with a whole food plant based diet. Congratulations Cathy!

April's success story with sesame seed milk.
I had a tooth that my dentist told me needed a root canal. I like to try and fix my aches and pains myself, so I searched and prayed for direction. A friend suggested that I might need more calcium. Knowing that sesame seeds are one of the best sources of calcium, I was impressed to make this recipe using a half cup sesame seeds. I drank this in the morning, and within 24 hours, my pain had lessened, and continued to get better each day. Within a week the pain was gone. I continued drinking this shake every morning, eventually cutting back to 1/4 cup of sesame seeds, for a few months. It's been 7 years and I've never had that root canal. And the sensitivity from my receding gums has gotten 95% better.
A year ago (2010) I had some dental work done and was cautioned about a potential root canal. I've been very diligent about eating sesame seeds regularly and have never had any issues with that tooth.

Ellen - "Do I ever feel better!"

I have been very active all of my adult life, running, hiking, swimming, which I thought gave me the go ahead to eat most anything I wanted.  I also carried a low cholesterol.  This past April I went for a wellness check and my total cholesterol was 220 and my bad cholesterol was over the limit.  I could not believe it!!!  It really startled me but I did not really decide to make major changes until late summer, I noticed I was having some chest pains at times which concerned me. 

 

I have a family history of health problems. My Mother and Father both died of cancer in their sixties, granted they both smoked but had given up the habit for years.  They were wonderful people but had horrible eating habits. My Mother suffered with rheumatoid arthritis and had both knees and a hip replaced starting in her 40's. She died from pancreatic cancer and I have no doubt that diet played a huge part in her health problems.

 

In July, I started attending April's cooking classes and became obsessed about attending all that I could, not only for recipes but for the education that April provides and to get me motivated.  I also purchased April's cookbook. Thanks to Aprils counsel, I'm no longer confused about what to eat. She has made it so easy!! I now eat my GOMBS daily, (greens, onions, mushrooms, beans and seeds), and I only eat fruit in the morning. I have to admit I spend much more time in the kitchen but it is worth it. As April would put it ......

"Would you rather spend more time in the kitchen or time in the emergency room?" 

At my last check up I had lost around seven pounds. That does not sound like much but I really did not have much to lose.  My blood pressure was also lower.

I feel better in my clothes and I feel so much better at work and when I exercise. I just feel lighter and not sluggish. I just feel better in general.

 

I continue to be challenged because I am addicted to sugar, but not as much now. I use to eat ice cream regularly, now I eat nut based ice cream and don't crave the other ice cream at all. 

 

Thanks to April for her guidance and encouragement!

 

After only a week of following my recommendations (which are Dr. Fuhrmans recommendations) this is from an e-mail I received from Ellen:

"I know I should have had my salad but just had a busy day and to tell you the truth I just am more satisfied and not as hungry.  Do I ever feel better though!!!!  My clothes already feel like they are fitting better, my skin even looks better to me, could that be?  Anyway I'M going with it.  My cravings for sweets has gone way down thank goodness that was a big downfall for me.  I am planning on having my labs done in two months to see the difference."

Fighting Cancer

I have been eating whole/grain plant based for over 4 mos. now. I feel better than I have in many years and am encouraged about my own cancer prognosis and quality of life. Thank you for being an answer to my prayers. I only wish this information was widely distributed to cancer patients. In my 3 year battle with cancer, no information was given from my doctor or breast cancer support coordinator about the importance of my diet. Now that I have studied many books and articles...there is a WEALTH of information about nutrition and the prevention of most western diseases. i am doing my part to get the word out and have many many opportunities to share what I know. Every person on my Christmas list is getting either Dr. Fuhrman's books or The China Study.

 

Kindly, Kathy