Foods I Avoid for Health

[Mystic]

I still don't get what spaghetti squash is

[cobainist403]

What are the most common cooked oils? What are the best uncooked oils?

[John]

I still don't get what spaghetti squash is

It's a squash. Like a pumpkin or a watermellon, it grows on the ground as a spreading plant with large vegetable-like fruit. The inside has soft fibers that resemble noodles. They are probably native to North America so your climate may not support them.

[Mystic]

What are the most common cooked oils? What are the best uncooked oils?

From what I know (which isn't much LOL ), olive oil is a good cooking oil as well as uncooked oil and I think coconut oil can withstand high temperatures. Flaxseed oil is a great oil and should ONLY be used uncooked

It's a squash. Like a pumpkin or a watermellon, it grows on the ground as a spreading plant with large vegetable-like fruit. The inside has soft fibers that resemble noodles. They are probably native to North America so your climate may not support them

Thanx John - I have never seen them in Autralia before - or heard of it

[Battery Cat]

I avoid Canola Oil and potatos, but if something has a bit of potato in it then it's ok sometimes but I always avoid Canola Oil. I've seen some sites about how dangerous it is.

[cobainist403]

I heard canola oil is the healthiest! That is what I most often use. What's wrong with it? I'm nervous now.

[cobainist403]

I just researched it a bit myself. Thank you battery for pointing that out! I'll be sure to stay away from it.

[blue]

I love spaghetti squash! Finding it's kind of delicate. You can't just eat it with pasta sauce, it's too heavy and overwhelms the squash. Before my Vegan days, I loved it with butter, but just about a week ago, I used Olive Oil and Pesto Sauce! It was Fabulous!

[feline01]

blue,

ever have spaghetti squash with earth balance? YUM!

[amarle]

spaghetti squash sounds fab! must keep an eye out for it...

but what is earth balance? an american thing i guess...

other things i avoid: tamarillos (aka tree tomatoes)... i have a rather vomitty reaction to them. and tamari. i can handle the nasty soy sauces, but organic tamari makes my throat constrict... weird huh.

[abrennan]

Hello friends

I think this is a pretty important thread. A vegan diet is the healthiest wy to live, generally, but there are lots of junk food that Vegans can imbibe. I have noticed that young, new, Vegans seem to easily fall into the habit of high sugar, high fat, high protein, lots of refined foods consumption.

I started to investigate and alter my diet years ago in regard to some allergies that I had so I read up lots about how food affects our health.

Also it takes time and effort to make the right food choices and to cook good food and it is easy to buy pre processed refined and packaged food. You have to be obssessed, or make a plan to be succesful.

I try to avoid sugar and deep fried food.

I have eczema and this is exacerbated by fermented food, pickled, soy sauce, and my favourite fermented soy bean paste, mustard. I have to avoid potatoes, yeast, eggplant and tomatoes for the same reason, so I try to avoid them. (I'm not happy about that but what can I do?)

I eat lots of veggies and brown rice and lentils and chickpeas and bread and juice and water and tea and soymilk (I love soymilk)

I try and avoid easy fasts things in a packet, though once in a while I succumb due to time restraints or lazyness.


Antony
This is making me hungry

[LittleNellColumbia]

How many points do you get to eat a day? Do you find it annoying to count every morsel of food that passes your lips? I am just interested because people I know who have done WW hated the fact that they were restricted to a certain amount of points and then were confused at maintenence.

Hey Tigerlilly!! Ive always been curios of the amount of points your allowed each day, coz when i go shppoing i see usually calorie-dense foods with a really low point value. does this mean you only get like 5 points a day!!!???

P.s. hope i didnt offend you by asking this

[FR]

I eat peanuts rarely. I do cook with white flour, white sugar, white rice, or white pastas. I do use cold pressed olive oil (non-hydrogenated), and I do fry with canola oil. I avoid mushrooms. I use turbinado sugar because I have a sweet tooth, which explains why I am making yummy pumkin walnut muffins today. I am a huuuuuuuge muffin fan.

[screamingcarrot]

like everyone else i avoid white versions of bread pasta and rice.
and also hydrogenated oils and saturated fats.
try to avoid too much sugar casue it makes me feel awful. but i do have a sweet tooth

happycow, my sister just joined weightwatchers..i think its a bit dodgy to be honest. i think if you stick to a balanced vegan diet you sholdnt need to fill your head with all that stuff..how stressful to be counting stuff all the time!!perhaps listen to your body instead?
she used to be a pump (a kind of aerobics ) instructor and she knows how to eat right so i dont get why shes joined..

[adam antichrist]

spaghetti squash sounds fab! must keep an eye out for it...

but what is earth balance? an american thing i guess...

other things i avoid: tamarillos (aka tree tomatoes)... i have a rather vomitty reaction to them. and tamari. i can handle the nasty soy sauces, but organic tamari makes my throat constrict... weird huh.

I think in general tamari only has three ingrediants, soy, water and sea salt. Sea salt is I think magnesium chloride, and while I haven't heard of any allergies to it this might be the cause (I'm no expert!!!). Have you tried different brands?

[twinkle]

There is nothing wrong with canola! it's a good, inexpensive source of essential fatty acids. Check out snopes for more info on this.

[eve]

canola in the US is genetically engineered.

[FR]

canola in the US is genetically engineered.

Unless it is organic.

[eve]

Oh, I was only talking about the 99 percent of it.

[FR]

As far as I know, most canola oil isn't genetically modified. Some are modified to withstand higher cooking tempartures. There are only a handful of vegetables and fruits that are genetically modified at this point. Corn, and soy being the most genetically altered plants in the U.S.

If the canola oil I buy isn't organic, I buy cold pressed, non-GE oil. I always buy organic olive oil.

[berta_the_aspie]

I avoid caffiene coz it makes me have anxiety attacks.

Wow could that really be true.. I hate coffe, and I have alot of attacks so...

So is olive oil still “safe”? Even if I fry mushrooms and potatoes in it? Why are mushrooms bad? Why are potatoes and peanuts bad? (And I dont mean coz they have carbs...)

So basically spaghetti squash is just squash? How do I make it? Can I make it?

[FR]

Wow could that really be true.. I hate coffe, and I have alot of attacks so...

So is olive oil still “safe”? Even if I fry mushrooms and potatoes in it? Why are mushrooms bad? Why are potatoes and peanuts bad? (And I dont mean coz they have carbs...)

So basically spaghetti squash is just squash? How do I make it? Can I make it?

I do not think potatoes are bad at all. Peanut butter can get moldy (but I do eat peanuts occasionally). I like other nut and seed butters better, just a personal preferance, same with mushrooms.

I bake spaghetti squash, then split it in half when baked. I then take a fork and scrape the insides from top to bottom. The end result is having a veggie that resembles spaghetti (in looks, not taste). I throw an Italian tomato sauce on top just like I would with pasta, mmmmm.

I am not aware of any issues of frying veggies in medium heated oilve oil. I do it often.

[ConsciousCuisine]

Wow could that really be true.. I hate coffe, and I have alot of attacks so...

So is olive oil still “safe”? Even if I fry mushrooms and potatoes in it? Why are mushrooms bad? Why are potatoes and peanuts bad? (And I dont mean coz they have carbs...)

So basically spaghetti squash is just squash? How do I make it? Can I make it?

I used to have panic attacks as well and avoiding all caffeine has been an important part of staving them off.

Olive oil is certainly a "safe" oil. In my opinion, it is not a good idea to cook most oils at all;it definetly isn't the "healthiest" choice.

I would never say that any food is "bad", just that they are not health-building. I occasionally eat things with organic peanuts (a few times a year, for instance I was given a jar of organic peanut butter and so made a peanut butter banana flax cake and my family completely enjoyed this as a treat!). If you want more information, read the few pages of this thread that preceed this post.

Spaghetti squash is a unique squash that can be baked, steamed and so on. Once it is done, you can scoop the strands of squash out, leaving the shell and giving you the "spaghetti". It is delicious!

[abrennan]

potaters are in the nightshade family and they contain chemicals that inhibit the stomach from producing enough enzymes (acids) to disgest food proply. this increases the acidity on the body

I have to avoid them and eggplant and tomatoes for the same reason

I think most people are not badly affected by them but people with digestion issues and allergies and disease can be sorely affected. I get rashes and itchiness if I have too much. I'm trying not to have any.

If you're well I'm sure a moderate amount won't do you any harm


Antony
no mash fer me

[berta_the_aspie]

Oh okay I think I get it. Im not very allegic. But yesterday I ate fresh pineapple and my tounge swelled up... Was that just a coincident or...?

Okay so caffeine induces anxiety? What kinda stuff has caffine in it? (Black tea and coffe..)

Okay I have a squash in the fridge, I will try and make it. So what does "bake" mean? In the oven or in a pan or in boiling water?

[berta_the_aspie]

It seems like spaghetti squash is something that i have never seen or tasted before. Online it is pictures of it and its not normal green squash..

[foxytina_69]

i have to avoid white flour products as im celiac and cant have them! everything i eat is brown rice based. (EXCEPT my homemade rice flour bread as brown rice flour doesnt work too well with it, so i need to use white. i try to not eat this too much, but the bought rice bread is brown rice flour based.)

also, organic tamari is the only kind of soy sauce i can eat!

[foxytina_69]

oh i also try to avoid sweets. they ALWAYS make me feel nauseous and i think theyre gross :S (although if im pmsing, i SOMEtimes eat something sweet which is odd, like soy icecream which normally makes me ill. any kind of sweets do. this is why i have a hard time eating fruits) they also make me gain weight without fail! i have a much more salty starchy tooth rather than a sweet one.

[FR]

I prefer Bragg's liquid Aminos over Tamari.

[Yoggy]

I think I should start avoiding white rice and noodles. I like white rice SO much better than brown, and rice noodles are one of my favourite foods . I should switch to brown, or just cut back on the rice and increase my legume consumption.

[Juice]

i avoid brussel sprouts because vomiting isn't good for my health

[Yoggy]

LOL Juice, at least you know what to do if you ever accidentally swallow poison and need to induce vomiting!

[Pilaf]

i avoid brussel sprouts because vomiting isn't good for my health

More for me.

I tend to avoid eating too many sweets. I don't wanna fall into the "junkfood vegan" category and be one of the 2% of vegans who are obese.

I do enjoy organic chocolate spread, but usually in small amounts on my Wasa bread and peanut butter sandwiches. Adds a sort of "smores" flavour.

[StmpyElephant]

Can I ask what is wrong with mushrooms? I finally like them and now it seems I should not be eating them? *cries*

Also, should one avoid popcorn?

[Jane M]

Why can't you eat mushrooms? As for popcorn...I like it for those mindless munchy nights. Low in fat (air popped) spritzed with flax oil and topped with nutritional yeast...what could be wrong with that???? Don't tell me please...I need to have something....please ...pleasel.... I'm begging you....

[Pilaf]

Why can't you eat mushrooms? As for popcorn...I like it for those mindless munchy nights. Low in fat (air popped) spritzed with flax oil and topped with nutritional yeast...what could be wrong with that???? Don't tell me please...I need to have something....please ...pleasel.... I'm begging you....

Please share.

[Hemlock]

i avoid brussel sprouts because vomiting isn't good for my health

Mmmmmmmmm, brussels sprouts are gorgeous, I could eat a whole pan full all on my own....and often do
The resulting fall out isn't so good tho'

[insubordination]

I love nightshades and coffee, other than those, I'm on a health kick. No high GI including potatoes (exc. sweet potato), most rice (exc. basmati) most bread (exc. heavy grain or sourdough) and crackers.

I'm not eating white or raw sugar but eat cookies made from brown rice syrup if I need a treat.

I have cut soy out of my diet, I only have 1 serve/month or fewer. I believe excessive soy was a major contributor (along with lack of iodine) to my thyroid and hormone conditions. Of course, I encourage people to make up their own mind about soy.

[coconut]

At the moment I'm avoiding everything that has little or no nutritional value. Luckily if you shop at the right places, there's very little vegan food which is empty of nutrition. I'm really going to try frying food less as well. I do that way too often.

[Tigerlily]

Can I ask what is wrong with mushrooms? I finally like them and now it seems I should not be eating them? *cries*

Also, should one avoid popcorn?

I could be wrong but...

Mushrooms are a fungi and too much mushrooms can increase the fungus growth in your body, or something. I don't really know. I like them and I still eat them. Being really restrictive about what I eat makes me go crazy!

[Tiggerwoo]

Yep that's true Tigerlily, anyone who suffers from candida should avoid mushrooms becuase of the fungus which feeds candida. I still eat them as they taste sooooooooo good!

[Tigerlily]

Ahh candida is yeast infections?

[ConsciousCuisine]

Yes, Tigerlily, candida albicans causes yeast infections. which can occur in various places throughout the body.

[grail]

Hi everybody,

The best advice is still the oldest: eat a lot of different foods. I think the whole soy scare is overblown, but people have to realize that you can't live eating one food three times a day. You have to mix it up a bit!

As for food sensitivities, if you are suffering from migraines like I did, think about eliminating your "comfort foods" for a while and see what happens. Mushrooms or wheat could be a cause, especially if you feel "reliant" on those foods to help you feel better. It probably means you are in some sort of self-reinforcing cycle.

I haven't discovered any real sensitivities since I've gone vegan, although I do suspect nutritional yeast from time to time if I get too much of it. Sulfites in white wine are a bad thing for me, even just 2-3 oz. I allow myself 1-2 diet sodas a week and maybe 2 cups of decaf coffee per week. Wine, maybe a little more - say 3-4 glasses a week.

Greasy things make me sick now. But what did I expect?

I guess I look at veganism as granting me the power to eat freely what I choose and not be captive by my own food intolerances and sensitivities. I had a horrible sensitivity to dairy that I never even realized because of the self-reinforcing cycle that my "comfort foods" put me through.

[rantipole]

I love mushrooms and they are loaded with selenium and other necessary trace minerals. Shiitakes are being investigated for their anti-cancer properties.

I do avoid hydrogenated oils, except for Tofutti cream cheese once a week. I avoid high fructose corn syrup. I don't eat white bread or white sugar. I try to eat only whole-grain pasta. I probably should cut back on my soy intake.

Cheers,
rant

[Tigerlily]

Is high fructose corn syrup an American thing? I never find it in any Canadian product!

[herbwormwood]

I love mushrooms and they are loaded with selenium and other necessary trace minerals. Shiitakes are being investigated for their anti-cancer properties.

I do avoid mushrooms as I read they provoke acne, which I get sometimes. However I do like them once in a while. I slice them up and fry them in oil. I add chopped tofu and fresh tomatoes to the pan. I then add frozen spinach. To finish I add a small tin of baked beans! Yum, such comfort food.
And very easy. Occasionally we do a vegan all day breakfast (like when we are away on holiday as a treat). Slice mushrooms, fry, add veggie sausage, veggie bacon, halved tomatoes, baked beans and maybe some potato or fried bread. Graffitti Tofu Terrine works in place of the egg too if we have it.
Foods I avoid for health are mainly sugar and salt and processed foods, and chemicals like e-numbers and MSG. Also Alfalfa as I have Lupus.

[luvzsunshine]

Is high fructose corn syrup an American thing? I never find it in any Canadian product!

I find high fructose corn syrup is on nearly every food label in the US.

[piggy]

i avoid bread, pasta, flour of all types, even if not refined (except if part of cake or cookies )
other than that, white sugar and sweets (as in candy)

[Jane M]

I avoid most processed foods but I do have my lazy days. I will use canned tomatoes in the winter and canned beans when I run out of the ones I've cooked and froze. I can't handle refined sugar or flour very well. The flour is the worst for giving me rashes up and down my legs and arms. A little bit I can seem to handle but I just would rather not risk it.