By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

A recently published study from the UK examined more than 48,000 vegans, vegetarians, fish eaters, and meat eaters and their risk of heart disease and stroke over an 18 year period. Because of the relatively small number of vegans, they were combined with lacto vegetarians and lacto-ovo vegetarians into a group called “vegetarians.” The vegetarians (including vegans) had a 22% lower risk of heart disease than the meat eaters; fish eaters had a 13% lower risk than the meat eaters. According to the study’s authors, these results suggest that if a group of 1000 meat eaters was compared to a group of 1000 vegetarians, over a 10 year period, there would be 10 fewer cases of heart disease in the vegetarians than in meat eaters.

In contrast, vegetarians (including vegans) had a higher risk of a kind of stroke called hemorrhagic stroke and of stroke overall than did meat eaters. This suggests that if a group of 1000 meat eaters was compared to a group of 1000 vegetarians, over a 10 year period, there would be 3 more cases of stroke in vegetarians than in meat eaters. There are two main types of stroke – ischemic and hemorrhagic. Ischemic strokes are more common (87% of all strokes) and are due to a blood clot blocking blood flow to the brain. Hemorrhagic strokes are less common and are caused by a weakened blood vessel rupturing and bleeding into the brain.

When vegans were examined separately from other vegetarians, vegans had a lower risk of heart disease than meat eaters but a higher risk for stroke although neither estimate was statistically significant, possibly due to the small number of cases in vegans.

This study’s results are similar to those of other studies which have reported a reduced risk of heart disease or of dying from heart disease in vegetarians including vegans. Up until now, studies of strokes in vegetarians have only looked at the risk of dying from stroke and found no significant difference of dying from stroke by diet group.

The study’s authors note that vegetarians and vegans in this study have lower blood levels of vitamin B12, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids than do meat eaters and wonder if these differences could have contributed to the higher risk of stroke seen in vegetarians in this study.

We also note that there were only small differences in saturated fat and fiber intake between the vegetarian and meat eating groups. Additional research should be done using groups with larger differences in intakes of saturated fat and fiber.

If other large studies have similar results to this study, it will be important to identify dietary changes that vegetarians can make to reduce their risk of stroke without affecting their already reduced risk of heart disease. While we don’t know if lower blood levels of vitamin B12, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids were related to the higher risk of stroke, we do know that having adequate amounts of these nutrients is important for overall health.

Tong TYN, Appleby PN, Bradbury KE, et al. Risks of ischaemic heart disease and stroke in meat eaters, fish eaters, and vegetarians over 18 years of follow-up: results from the prospective EPIC-Oxford study. BMJ 2019;366:l4897.

The Vegetarian Resource Group will host a vegan dinner at Su Xing, about a six minute walk from the Pennsylvania Convention Center, on Sunday, October 27, 2019 at 6PM, during the annual meeting of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Meet vegetarian dietitians from around the country. The public is invited.

MENU
APPETIZER: seitan on stick with BQ sauce
SOUP: (choice of): hot and sour soup or tofu and vegetable soup
MAIN DISHES:
chow fun (rice noodle dish)
tofu with black bean sauce
stir-fried spinach
stir-fried string beans
rice
DESSERT: fruit
BEVERAGES: tea and water

MUST RESERVE AND PAY IN ADVANCE
Send $25 per person (includes tax and tip) with attendee names to The Vegetarian Resource Group, PO Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203. Call (410) 366-8343. Or pay at www.vrg.org/donate and write “Philadelphia VRG Dinner” and attendee names on the “Comments” box.

Dayana Love was a 2019 Vegetarian Resource Group video contest winner, and said: I am interested in veganism for multiple reasons. First is my health. I’ve watched multiple documentaries on the harmful effects that animal products have on your body. I feel that the only logical step for me to take is to cut it out of my diet. Second, I am very passionate about the environment and after learning about the negative effects livestock production has made me eager to switch to a vegan diet. Finally, I am a huge animal lover! and would like to align my diet with my values.

To see VRG 2019 video contest winners and rules for 2020, go to https://www.vrg.org/veg_videos.php

The deadline for the next video contest is July 15, 2020.
See: http://www.vrg.org/videoscholarship.php

For information about VRG’s College Scholarship Contest (One $10,000, two $5,000 awards), see http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group scholarships and internships,
donate at www.vrg.org/donate
or The Vegetarian Resource Group, Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203

Video scholarships have been given in honor of W.M. Zahn, who was a great mentor.

How often have you wanted to make a gift in honor of a loved one or friend but weren’t sure which charities are vegan-friendly, pro-environmental, or pro-animal rights? Please remember The Vegetarian Resource Group. You can make a gift in memory of a loved one or as a living tribute to honor someone you care about on a special occasion, such as a wedding or birth. We’ll send an acknowledgment to you and to the recipient(s) you choose. Your gift will support educational programs and help promote veganism.

Make checks payable to The Vegetarian Resource Group and mail to PO Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203, or donate at vrg.org/donate.

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Here are some recent vegan restaurant additions. The entire guide can be found here: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support the updating of this online restaurant guide, please donate at: www.vrg.org/donate

Here are some new additions to VRG’s guide:

Baby Blue

3207 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR 97214

Baby Blue is an all-vegan pizzeria which makes wood fired pizza. Specialty pies include the Gringo Starr, the Truffle Shuffle, and even a vegan Margherita. Mouth-watering pictures and regular updates can be found on their website and at @babybluepizzapdx on Instagram. Don’t wait, because they’re not open late!

Bloom Sushi

368 Saint-Paul Street W., Montreal, QC H2Y 2A6 Canada

Bloom Sushi is totally vegan, but spares nothing in presentation, selection, or taste! From miso soup without bonito to spring rolls with Beyond Meat, they have vegan versions of the dishes you expect from a Japanese restaurant. And of course, there’s the sushi! From traditional veggie rolls to all-vegan custom futomaki, they have everything you’d want at a traditional sushi bar, but most importantly, nothing you don’t.

Cheeky Martini Lounge

203 4th Ave. E., Ste. E, Olympia, WA 98501

Ever go to a bar and the only vegan food they offer are the olives in your martini? At Cheeky Martini Lounge, all their dishes (and martinis, and other drinks) are vegan! Try a Waldorf salad with vegan chicken and vegan lemon mayo sauce, or a gluten-free Spicy Southwest Bowl with black beans, quinoa, corn, vegan cheese, and more! There are also smaller snack-sized dishes served later into the evening.

Chickpea & Olive

625 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11217

238 Bedford Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11249

Chickpea & Olive calls their dishes “peace on a plate”! Aiming to help their customers, the planet, and animals, they serve 100% vegan dishes at two sites in Brooklyn, one within Whole Foods Williamsburg. Chickpea and Olive also offer a variety of vegan fries, including truffle and nacho fries, as sides at their Whole Foods location to accompany any of their “comfort food” entrees!

Eden’s Café

1660 W. Broad St., Athens, GA 30606

Eden’s Café focuses on minimal waste and maximum compassion. Grab and go options include a tempeh banh mi, “Buddha noodles,” and other quick sandwiches, wraps and plates. If you’re not in a hurry, sit a while and enjoy a kombucha, chai, coffee or tea. There are also vegan baked good available, for those of you with a sweet tooth.

Honeybee

1820 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Honeybee is a straight-forward burger shop. They offer Impossible and Beyond burgers, and cheeseburger with Violife vegan cheese. Pair it with some sweet potato tots or fries, and a vegan soft-serve ice cream or milkshake for a classic American meal!

Inconceivable Café

147 First Ave. East, Hendersonville, NC 28792

Located inside Sanctuary Brewing Company, Inconceivable Café is a great spot for easy comfort food. With all manner of burgers, salads and sandwiches, it’s the perfect spot for a no-fuss lunch or dinner, even with a non-veg crowd. Cupcakes of various flavors are available daily, and there’s a kids’ menu too! While you’re there, grab a beer that brewed made in the same building.

Papyrus

337 Danforth Ave., Toronto, ON M4K 1N7 Canada

Saving for a trip to Egypt? Dreaming of eating a picnic by the pyramids with a basket filled with authentic Egyptian goodies? While you will still need to get to Egypt for your rendezvous with the Giza Necropolis, you may have a short cut to the food part! This Egyptian vegan restaurant serves food for the soul – they call it the “balance of fresh and umami” (savory). From hearty soups,  yummy ful sandwiches filled with fava beans blended with flavors from Egypt to drool-worthy konafa – a pastry stuffed with cheese and wrapped in crispy vermicelli-like dough, you can find your happy palate and a four-course meal here. If you want to get adventurous and mix-and-match your sandwich or order a cold dessert, the options are plenty. At the end of the day, this is sure to please your taste buds and become an unforgettable sensory experience to etch in your memory lane! Be aware, they do close for some local holidays observed in Canada.

Seed and Soil Plant-Based Eatery

High Street Terminal, 300 E. High St., Pottstown, PA 19464

Located in the new High Street Terminal, Seed and Soil offers a pleasant variety of vegan options. Best known for their baked cauliflower wings. They also offer a Jerk Caesar Salad, Burger and Fries, and more. Communal seating available on premises.

Somebody People

1165 S. Broadway, #104, Denver, CO 80210

Ever feel like other restaurants treat you like a nobody? Try Somebody People instead! Their Mediterranean-inspired menu features eggplant dip and olives, as well as pasta dishes like rigatoni and linguini. Or simply go with the Chef’s Selection, and let someone else make the decisions for you! Call ahead for reservations.

The Good Good Vegan Kitchen + Bakeshop

4871 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90029

That’s no typo! The Good Good Vegan Kitchen + Bakeshop is just that good. For breakfast there’s sweet or savory oats. Get lunch in a bowl or on bread, like the sesame crusted falafel bowl or the “meat” and potatoes. They have gluten-free options too! And of course they have baked goods as well. Need a custom cake? Give them a call.

In answer to a consumer question, Late July said:
We recently completed a thorough review of all Late July products and recipes. As a result of this review, we determined that the optimal recipe for this product includes peanut oil/whey. Because we are fully committed to providing consumers with transparency, clarity and the highest quality ingredients across our snack portfolio, we made the decision to update the front of the packaging and the ingredient statement to reflect the new ingredient.

The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

By Jeanne Yacoubou, MS

Plaza Azteca is a chain of family owned and operated Mexican restaurants located (at the time of this writing) in seven East Coast states: Virginia (23), Pennsylvania (9), North Carolina (3), Connecticut (2), Massachusetts (1), Maryland (1), and New Jersey (1). Their first restaurant opened in Virginia Beach, VA in the 1990s.

The VRG received an email from a reader who dined recently at the Midlothian, VA Plaza Azteca. He wrote:

“…I wanted to share that the rice used by this chain is cooked in either chicken broth or with a chicken broth bouillon. I spoke with a manager at the Plaza Azteca in Midlothian, Virginia to verify. She brought out the cooks and we asked how the rice was prepared. The biggest concern is that their menu had a ‘Vegetarian’ section and all ‘vegetarian’ dishes are served with a side of rice.

I would also like to add that I initially asked my waiter if the rice was vegetarian, he said yes, I specifically asked if it was cooked in stock and his hesitation in answering made me question his knowledge.”

The VRG wanted to determine if the rice at Plaza Azteca is prepared with animal broth so we first sent an email through their website contact form,
and then called the Midlothian, VA restaurant. First we learned from employees that there isn’t a corporate office that handles inquiries such as ours. The menu should be the same in all restaurants but may vary.

When we asked specifically about the rice, we learned that “white rice” offered with the vegan menu option is not made with animal stock. It’s “just water, garlic and salt.”

“Rice” on the menu is not vegetarian. It’s “yellow in color due to spices and is prepared in chicken stock.”

We called Plaza Azteca a second time to learn more about its “vegan burrito bowl” listed on its online menu. In September 2019 we were informed that the online menu is not current. Now they offer a vegan bowl and a vegan burrito called Burrito Vegano. The vegan bowl consists of soy meat, rice, black beans, guacamole, corn, onions, poblano peppers, mushrooms, vegan cheese, and pico de gallo sauce. The vegan burrito has the same components of the vegan bowl placed inside of a wheat tortilla. The “soy meat” is a “plant-based protein.”The “vegan cheese” is “tofu.” The white rice, black beans, guacamole, corn, onions, mushrooms, poblano peppers, and pico de gallo sauce are vegan.

The VRG asked if there are any animal flavors, fats or stock in any vegan bowl or burrito component. We were informed that there were not. They replied to our question about kitchen protocols that the soy meat “is grilled on a clean surface away from meat products.”

In another conversation, they read off the labels of the soy meat, soy cheese, and tortilla. The soy meat is PlantFare^® brand. The soy cheese is West Soy^® brand. They called the cheese “tofu” on several occasions during our call. Both appear to be all-plant soy products from what we gathered from reading off the labels while we spoke.

We asked specifically if the wheat tortilla contained L-cysteine or egg or dairy products. They read the label while we were on the phone, spelling out the names and concluded L-cysteine, dairy (whey or casein) or egg ingredients were not present.

The manager also confirmed that the soy meat and vegetables are grilled separated in vegetable oil away from all meat products.

When we asked if gelatin was in the guacamole, the reply was that they make their own and do not add gelatin.

They use the menu put out by the Plaza Azteca corporate office. All restaurant locations should offer the same menu but call before visiting to avoid surprises.

When we asked if guests could substitute a meat product with the soy meat in other menu dishes, we were told that it could be done, but advised that patrons should make the request upon ordering. Their rep also pointed out that vegan diners should request the white rice in these menu substitutions since the yellow rice is prepared with chicken broth.

VRG readers should check with the manager at any Plaza Azteca restaurant if in doubt about any menu options or ingredients. Here is the website list of locations: https://www.plazaazteca.com/locations-hours

The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

For information about other restaurant chains, see https://www.vrg.org/fastfoodinfo.php

For information about vegan and vegetarian restaurants in the USA and Canada, see https://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

By Gene Slothour-Hudnall

Uno is testing the Beyond Meat burger, as well as Daiya Vegan Cheese in shredded form, that can be used either for pizza or with a burger. The menu is currently in test at their Springfield, Revere, Wrentham, Nashua 1&2, Astoria, Clifton, Ellicott City, and Merrifield locations. It launches to all locations on 10/22/2019.

The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

For information about other chains, see https://www.vrg.org/fastfoodinfo.php

To find vegetarian and vegan restaurants, go to https://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

by Lucia Rivera, VRG Intern

When I first stopped eating meat at the age of seven I was much less informed on vegan foods as I am now, at the age of fifteen. I also never made my own food, leaving my parents to please my past self with requests for meat-free meals. Yes, accommodations had to be made, but I nostalgically remember many dishes I loved during the earlier years of my childhood.

For example, I still recall the delicious vegetable soup that became a comfort dish to my younger self; full of potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, and spices. Young kids, and even teenagers, can be easy to please with warm soup for dinner. Besides home cooked recipes, there were products my parents would buy for the whole family from grocery stores. Before I became a vegetarian, a family favorite was veggie corn dogs from Trader Joes. Almost any traditional meat dish can now be found “veganized” in the frozen food section of a local grocery store, and items like vegan corn dogs that are available today are especially attractive to young kids. Anything in a unique shape or that one can eat with their hands has an extra element of fun!

As part of a Latinx household, beans were also always on the menu, with so many different ways to prepare them! Perhaps a cultural staple in some families, beans can be adopted by any parents who want to serve their young kids a vegan meal that is delicious and full of nutrients as well. On tostadas topped with tomato and avocado, or in a bowl with broth, beans can be best friends to young kids and parents.

Along with vegan store-bought items and vegan staples that can be blended into a range of recipes, vegan snacks for kids are actually everywhere, starting with fruit! Looking back on my early childhood, I absolutely adored going to the backyard to pick ripe guavas from our tree, and most importantly eating them after. Watermelon, bananas, mandarins, tomatoes, and avocados were just the beginning. Applesauce was great on the go, as were raisins, craisins, and nuts. Kids wouldn’t be kids without also indulging in snacks like potato chips, rice cakes, pretzels, and tortilla chips, but those are all vegan-friendly too.

When going out I easily learned to order the veggie burger or veggie delight in place of sliced turkey and orange chicken, respectively. Perhaps surprisingly, a lot of kids are flexible with their diet if you give them the chance to be, and can be willing to try something new if it’s sold to them in a convincing manner. I was definitely willing to try an alternative lunch provided by my elementary school instead of what my friends were served so that I could help my animal friends.

Otherwise, school lunches ranged from a thermos full of pasta to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, with diced fruit cups to the side. No matter what you have to eat, lunches at school are a part of childhood that will be remembered later on. For me, I recall presenting my lunch with friends as if I was on a fancy cooking show, and thoroughly being excited to have the chance to choose my own lunches as I got older.

Overall, despite the general pickiness of younger kids, there are a very wide variety of vegan foods that can become nostalgic favorites over time. Below are just a few of the meals and snacks that could please the vegan kid in your life:

Meals:
–    Vegan pizza
–    Pasta with tomato sauce
–    Vegetable or lentil soup
–    Nut butter and banana sandwiches
–    Vegan waffles/pancakes
–    Veggie burgers/dogs

Snacks:
–    Apple slices and peanut butter
–    Trail mix
–    Fruit salad
–    Smoothies
–    Fruit popsicles
–    Carrot sticks (with your choice of dressing or dip)

For more suggestions, Join VRG’s Parents’ Group. See: https://www.facebook.com/groups/VRGparentsandkids/

Also, go to https://www.vrg.org/family/tips_for_young_vegans.php

VEGGIE HAPPY has compiled a list of veggie food served at NFL and other stadiums. See: https://www.veggiehappy.com/listings/