You may notice a natural inclination towards vegetarianism after some time on your yoga mat. The question is how to do this safely without ill-health, and how to make your transition a lifelong, successful one…

The main concern most new vegetarians have is whether they will get enough protein. An unknown fact is that women only need about 45g of protein a day (a little more if they are pregnant, breastfeeding or very active) and men need about 55g (more if very active). This equates to a very small piece of red meat. In fact, many dieticians recommend that red meat in particular should be eaten only once or twice a week, if you are going to eat it at all.

Getting Started
In making your transition from full meat-eating to vegetarianism, it is strongly advised to go slowly. Over the course of weeks, months, or even years, begin to eliminate certain protein foods and substitute them for vegetarian alternatives. Most people first cut out red meat, then chicken, then fish. Ensure you are comfortable with a few substitutions before you stop eating animal protein altogether.

Give yourself time to adjust to your new food intake and to ensure you get sufficient protein while your body learns that change is underway and adapts to it.

Allow your mind to overcome the attachment to a lifestyle of meat eating. If you try to do this too quickly, or too forcefully, your mind will reject the change and becoming vegetarian might be a short-lived fad for you.

Listen to your cravings and if you are craving red meat in the early stages, eat a small amount, and realise that perhaps your substitutions aren’t working and you need to pay more attention to your protein intake.

Vegetarian Proteins
As a vegetarian, your protein can come from many sources, including:

• Nuts – hazels, brazils, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pine kernels etc
• Seeds – sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, linseeds
• Pulses – peas, beans, lentils, peanuts
• Grains – wheat (in bread, flour, pasta etc), barley, rye, oats, millet, maize (sweet corn), rice
• Soya products – tofi, tempeh, textured vegetable protein, soya milk
• Dairy products – milk, cheese, yoghurt (not butter and cream as they are very poor sources of protein)
• Free range eggs

There are 20 different amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein, and we can make most of them in our bodies by converting other amino acids. Only eight amino acids – the essential amino acids – cannot be made in our bodies and have to be provided for by the diet. By mixing plant foods together correctly, we get all the essential amino acids we need. Single plant foods do not contain all the essential amino acids we need in the right proportions, but the deficiency in one is cancelled out by the excess in the other when combined properly, forming a complete protein.

A few examples of complete vegetable protein: are beans on toast, muesli, rice and peas. Adding dairy products or eggs also adds the missing amino acids, e.g. macaroni and cheese, quiche and porridge with milk.

New research has shown that the body has a pool of amino acids so that if one meal of deficient, it can be made up with the body’s own stores. Because of this we don’t have to worry about complementing amino acids all the time, as long as our diet is generally varied and well-balanced. Even those foods not considered high in protein are adding some amino acids to this pool.

In turning vegetarian, vitamin B12 is the only vitamin that may cause some difficulty, as it is not present in plant foods. Fortunately, only tiny amounts of B12 are needed and are present in dairy products and eggs.

Iron is also needed for healthy red blood cells and, although vegetable sources of iron are not as easily absorbed as animal sources, a good intake of vitamin C will enhance absorption. Drinking a glass of orange juice after a meal is a great way to enhance the absorption of iron from your meal. Iron is found in leafy green vegetables, wholemeal bread, molasses, eggs, dried fruits (especially apricots and figs), lentils and other pulses.

The Healthy Vegetarian Diet
As a rule, vegetarians who are careful about what they eat are healthier than meat-eaters: they generally eat less fat and more fruit and vegetables than meat eaters and have an increased intake of phyto-nutrients, which protect cells in the body against damage that could lead to disease, particularly cancer.

Vegetarians have a higher intake of fibre because their diets include more fruit, vegetables, whole grains and plant proteins, like lentils. Fibre intake is vital to keep us regular and has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer.

Vegetarian diets also tend to be bone friendly, because they are usually lower in protein than meat eaters and include more foods rich in magnesium. This means the body loses less calcium and bone formation is aided.

Vegetarian food is generally cheaper than meat and fish-based meals, and it can be much healthier, tastier and more exciting, as well as being friendlier to our beleaguered planet.

The Case for Vegetarianism
There are many reasons to choose vegetarianism, from personal, physical and mental health to environmental concern and moral activism, to spirituality.

Consider the following facts which appear on www.vegsoc.org:

• In the UK almost 800 million animals are slaughtered for food each year, about fifteen live animals per person per year.
• Roughly one quarter of all methane emissions come from livestock giving off gas (farts) contributing to global warming.
• Ammonia from animal waste and agricultural fertilisers contributes to acid rain, which kills aquatic and plant life.
• Intensive grazing causes soil erosion and nutrient depletion, which can make soil infertile, creating deserts on previously fertile land.
• It takes up to 10 kilos of vegetable protein to produce one kilo of meat. It takes 900 litres of water to produce 1 kilo of wheat but 100 000 litres to produce a single kilo of meat.
• Commercial fishing has decimated fish populations to the point of near extinction and many governments, including ours, have had to implement stricter fishing quotas.
• Recent health scares such as E-coli and BSE (Mad Cow Disease) which resulted in the slaughter of millions of animals.
• Research has shown that a vegetarian diet could help reduce risks from certain cancers by up to 40%; decrease the possibility of dying from heart disease by 30%; restrict the chance of suffering from kidney and gall stones, diet-related diabetes and even high blood pressure. It could also lower cholesterol levels and reduce health problems related to obesity.
• Over 90 percent of all food poisoning cases each year in the UK are related to the consumption of animal products.

Yoga and Vegetarianism
For those who have adopted yoga as a lifestyle, it is strongly suggested to turn vegetarian. The above listed reasons are the strength behind the philosophy of non-violence – ahimsa – one of the back-bones of yogic philosophy.

Yogis believe that by consuming the flesh of an animal you are consuming the emotions that the animal has stored in its lifetime. Animals treated badly store this energy in their bodies and this energy gets transferred to us when we eat their flesh. We spend time on our mats to expend emotions we store in our own bodies; it would seem odd then to replace that with the emotions of another life.

Vegetarianism prevents the yogi from creating karma due to violence toward the planet, toward the co-inhabitants of the planet and toward the yogi personally through ingesting impure foods.

In the Bhagavad-Gita, it is beautifully stated that the nature of the food we eat is a wonderful signpost to what is going on inside our minds. If you are craving hot, spicy foods, the mind is ill-at-ease and there is unrest within. If you are craving heavy, dead foods (meat, chicken, fish) or find yourself craving stale foods, the mind is depressed and dark, if you are craving pure foods (of a primary source of energy, with limited intervention), the mind is still and calm. You are what you eat. By putting certain foods into your body, you process and manufacture certain states of mind. You can be in control of the quality of your life through a greater awareness of what and how you eat.

Yoga does not only exist on the mat, however it is your choice how deeply you wish to integrate it into your lifestyle.

By Kerry Weavind and Nadine Fawell

Kerry runs the Haum of Yoga

Article first published in Complete Yoga, 2005, Volume 7

Ecosia is an independent, non-profit website whose 80% of search income goes to a rainforest protection program run by WWF, which uses this money for the sustainable protection of rainforests…

Ecosia is an eco-friendly Internet search engine backed by Yahoo, Bing and the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF). It basically works like any other search engine but, unlike others, Ecosia gives at least 80% of its advertising revenue to a rainforest protection program run by the WWF.

Because of this, Ecosia users can save about two square meters of rainforest with every search they do – without paying anything. Furthermore, all Ecosia servers run on green electricity, so they do not cause any CO2 emissions. By using Ecosia, you can turn your web searches green.

How Does Ecosia Save The Rainforest?

Ecosia does not conduct the rainforest protection scheme itself; instead they donate to a rainforest protection program run by the WWF. The current WWF project is located in Juruena National Park in the Amazon region of Brazil. Click here to learn more about the current rainforest protection project.

Why Use Ecosia?

Every year a rainforest area larger than England is burned or cut down. Therefore the deforestation of the tropical rainforests is the single most important source of CO2 emissions in the world and about 20% of all global CO2 emissions are caused by rainforest deforestation.

Each Ecosia search protects a piece of rainforest, so by making Ecosia your search engine, you can actually help the environment one search at a time. An average internet user can protect about 2,000 square meters of rainforest every year by using Ecosia – this is about the size of an ice hockey field!

By making Ecosia your default search engine, you can turn your web searches green, reduce your carbon footprint and make a real difference to the planet. Instead of causing CO2 emissions with your searches, you can actually help to avoid climate change because your searches will help to save endangered rainforests.

Remember that every new Ecosia user helps to save about 2,000 square meters of rainforest every year. If only 1% of global internet users accessed Ecosia for their web searches, they could save a rainforest area as big as Switzerland every single year.

Make a choice, make a difference, click here for more information and to download Ecosia!

Resting under the shade of an ancient silent tree brings peace to the most ragged traveller. In India sacred Banyan trees were planted along roadside to give shade to pilgrims on their journey. They are quiet reminders to pause along the road of life, to take shelter. These an many other precious trees worldwide are threatened because of development and the demand for paper products. Consider the wood for the trees and plant a tree for every major journey you take.

How a Tree Can Influence a Community

The Majestic Marula Tree

In a land commonly held to be the ‘cradle of humankind’ grows the venerable Marula tree. Steeped in legend and tradition, this wild tree is revered by African tribes as the marriage tree under whose fertile branches many an African princess has been married.

The Marula tree is indigenous to sub-equatorial Africa and its fruit can only be harvested in the wild.

Marula trees are wild, uncultivated trees and are unique specimens with a long cultural, heritage and provenance that deserve to be protected and heralded.

The Marula tree (Sclerocarya Birrea), known in African tales as “The Marriage Tree”, is sacred to many tribes on the African continent. It is from this tree and its unique fruit that Amarula is produced and enjoyed internationally. The marula fruit is also coveted by Elephants – Amarula’s own roaming Ambassadors.

This medium to large sized deciduous tree with an erect trunk and rounded crown, is characterized by a grey mottled bark and its medicinal qualities. Growing up to 18m tall, mostly in low altitudes and open woodlands, this African legend is highly protected and prized by the local population.

Only the female Marula tree bears the succulent and rare flavoured fruit which ripens at the height of the African summer, filling the air with an intense tropical fragrance.

Tribal tradition has it that a woman is more likely to become pregnant after eating Marula fruit whilst the powdered bark is used to treat pregnant women to determine the gender of an unborn baby. If a pregnant woman wishes to have a girl, she will take a preparation from the female tree and for a boy she will use the male tree. Traditional healers use the hard central nut in their divining dice and the tree is often regarded as the spiritual centre for local villagers who gather under its shade-bearing boughs.

With the desertification of Africa happening at an ever increasing rate, the conservation of these trees takes centre stage and on how vital these trees are to the local communities who derive an income from its fruit.

Here are some exciting ways to get involved:

Grow A Tree

Grow A Tree manufactured by Hens Idea is a proudly South African product that has been conceptualised by Sean Hide. GAT (or Grow A Tree) is a simplistic product as all it contains is soil, a growing bag and some tree seeds, together with a mini growing guide to indigenous South African trees. You grow your tree from a seed in a colored hessian bag for nine months. The idea is there to get people to plant more trees in the world which will dramatically help our environment.

The expiry date of the product is 18 months from the manufacturing of the product. This is mainly due to the fact that the seeds become void and will not sprout if not planted. The short term plan of this idea is to actually have a million trees planted by 2015, and a million trees a year after that benchmark via the education system. The long term view is to have everyone in South Africa to grow a tree from a seed.

GAT aims at making a positive impact on the environment. People will be growing trees and feeling that they have contributed something to the growth of South Africa and therefore add to the future of the country. There are simple lessons that children can learn too, for instance the fact that a little time and effort could grow a big tree from and therefora simple small seed. Or even the lesson of patience.

The winning answer to all this is when an adult remembers the first time they bought a GAT 20 years ago while sitting in the shade of the same tree they them selves grew from a seed.

For more information, email info@growatree.co.za

This Cooks!

The cost of cooking for rural communities has a heavy burden on the environment and  on the health of women and children who are most at risk from the toxic smoke and fumes caused by the open fires, so the invention of a biomass burning stove that uses a fraction of the wood normally used to cook a family meal and that reduces smoke emissions by up to 70% is being hailed as a miracle solution.

This stove uses 50% less wood or charcoal than what is usually required. It only takes three small 30 centimetres pieces of wood – compared to 10 pieces of wood on an open fire – to cook 1.5kg of pap or a 1kg rice and in half the time.

The stove also retains its heat for hours afterwards. Feedback received from a mother in rural Kwazulu-Natal said when she had finished making dinner, she would put a pot of water on the stove. In the morning, the water in the pot was still hot and she used it to wash her children before school.

In South Africa alone, the scale of people using wood or charcoal or coal on a daily basis is immense (at least 2 million households), and this is increasing as electricity, paraffin and LPG prices continue to rise. The problems of air pollution, rising energy costs etc. become even more of a burden in the winter. The impact that this product can have on poor households in rural and urban areas is enormous and there is a lot of interest from farmers buying stoves for their farm workers as well as outdoor enthusiasts who like to cook over an open fire.

The stove is made of ceramic and sheet metal; is very quick to set up. The top is made of cast iron and supports a pot, a pan, a kettle or even a flat-bottomed potjie.

It was designed by Dr. Dean Still of the Aprovecho Research Centre in United States and has already been awarded the prestigious Ashden Energy Champion Award in 2009.

The stove is available from Restio Energy, a renewable energy consulting company that has been involved with rural and alternative energy solutions for the past 10 years, focusing specifically on Southern Africa. Contact francois@restio.co.za for more information.

Article extracts from Life In Balance.

Herbs not only provide plentiful properties for health and wellbeing; herb gardening is a fun and meaningful pastime that’s healing for the soul too

Growing your own herb garden is one of those little known pleasures in life that can be enormously satisfying and joyous to do – to plant a seed and watch it sprout into a functional, beneficial plant that yields both culinary and medicinal properties. Whether grown in a pot on your kitchen windowsill or within the realms of a beautiful stone-laden herb garden, utilizing your very own herbs can be both fun and very meaningful.

Man has become disconnected from the source of “things” – we pick up our groceries laden with fruit, vegetables and dried herbs from plastic containers on the supermarket shelves; we use plastic money to buy these items not realising that nature, in its abundance, can provide us all our needs if we only put in a minimal amount of effort. Growing your own herb garden helps you to realign with the true nature of the universe and reconnects us to the principle that when we put in a small amount of effort we are rewarded in abundance. All that is asked of us is to place seeds into the soil and with the correct amount of sunlight and water new life bursts forth.

The benefits of planting your own herbs

Not only do herbs grown and nurtured from seed or seedling taste better than their supermarket counterparts, you can also pick them fresh whenever you need and they replenish themselves with very little effort on your part. For kitchen use, only a few plants of each herb are needed and a little will have strong aromatic and culinary effects. Our taste buds have become dulled from too much refined sugar and salt, but adding fresh herbs to food will invigorate and refine your sense of taste. Herbs can also be an important ingredient in many cosmetics and beauty preparations. They are nature’s beauty secret to looking and feeling vitalized.

The following are some easy-to-grow herbs along with their uses and how to prepare them at home:

Chamomile
Chamomile is quite famous for its medical and household uses. It is an excellent, gentle sedative and is safe in small doses for children. It has strong relaxing actions and is therefore very good in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia. Indigestion and inflammations such as gastritis are often eased with chamomile. It can be used as a mouthwash for mouth inflammations, a gargle for sore throats and an eye bath for sore eyes. Inhaling chamomile over a steam bath will speed recovery from nasal congestion. Externally chamomile speeds wound healing and reduces swelling. The parts most commonly used are the flowers and leaves.

Preparation: Pour a cup of boiling water onto 2 tablespoons of dried chamomile leaves and let infuse for 5 – 10 minutes. For digestive problems this tea should be drunk after meals. Half a cup of flowers boiled in 2 litres of water makes a steam bath. Cover your head with a towel and inhale the steam.

Coriander
Coriander can be used medicinally to aid the digestive system in getting rid of wind and ease the spasms that can accompany it. It will also ease diarrhoea, especially in children, and may be used as an equivalent to gripe water, used to ease colic in babies. The oil acts as a stimulant to the stomach, increasing secretion of digestive juices and thus also stimulating the appetite. Coriander has a very distinctive scent and flavour and is an indispensable ingredient in many Indian and Thai dishes.

Preparation: For food preparation the leaves are used. Medicinally, the ripe seeds are used as a carminative and anti-microbial. Pour a cup of boiling water onto 1 tablespoon of the seeds and let infuse for 5 minutes in a closed pot. This should be drunk before meals.

Lavender
This is an effective herb for headaches especially when they are related to stress. Lavender is effective for the treatment of depression, especially if used in conjunction with other remedies. As a gentle strengthening tonic of the nervous system it may be used in states of nervous disability and exhaustion. It can be used to soothe and promote natural sleep. Externally, the oil may be used to help ease the aches and pains of arthritis.

Preparation: To take internally, pour a cup of boiling water onto 1 teaspoon of dried lavender and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. This can be drunk three times a day. The oil should not be taken internally but can be inhaled, rubbed on the skin or used in baths. To relax before bedtime add a cup of the leaves to a warm bath and soak in it to calm and prepare your nervous system for a restful sleep.

Peppermint
Peppermint has a relaxing effect on muscles, anti-flatulent properties and stimulates bile and digestive juice secretion, and so can relieve symptoms of intestinal colic, flatulent dyspepsia and inflammatory bowel disorders. The volatile oil acts as a mild anaesthetic to the stomach wall, which helps relieve the vomiting of pregnancy and travel sickness. It is also valuable in the treatment of fevers, especially colds and flu. As an inhalant it can be used to relieve nasal congestion. Peppermint also aids with period pain and eases anxiety and tension.

Preparation: Pour a cup of boiling water onto a heaped teaspoon of the dried herb and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. This should be drunk as often as desired. One to 2ml of a peppermint tincture can also be taken three times a day.

Parsley

This fresh herb, used widely in cooking, is one of the richest sources of vitamin C. Medicinally, parsley has three main areas of use. Firstly it is an effective diuretic which helps the body get rid of excess water; secondly it works to stimulate the menstrual cycle (although it’s not advisable to use parsley during pregnancy as there may be excessive stimulation of the womb); and thirdly it can be used as a carminative, for easing babies’ colic pains.

Preparation: Pour a cup of boiling water onto 1 – 2 tablespoons of dried parsley and leave to infuse for 5 – 10 minutes in a closed container. This should be drunk three times a day. For culinary uses, it works well when cooked with fish and can also be added to dips like eggplant.

Rosemary
Rosemary acts as a circulatory and nerving stimulant. It has a toning and calming effect on the digestive system and can also be used where psychological tension is present. It is therefore useful where headache or depression is associated with disability. Externally it may be used to ease muscular pain, sciatica and neuralgia. The oil acts as a stimulant to the hair follicles and can be used for premature baldness.

Preparation: Pour a cup of boiling water onto 1 – 2 tablespoons of dried rosemary and leave to infuse in a covered container for 10 – 15 minutes. This should be drunk three times a day. As a tincture take 1 – 2 ml three times a day. For culinary uses, it can be added to roast potatoes and pasta dishes to enhance the flavour.

Did you know?

Herbs are amazing plants. They have been used for centuries to promote recovery, health and wellbeing. We find their use within the Indian Ayurvedic system and in Chinese medicine alongside acupuncture. They were used in the spiritual healing ecology of Native North Americans and we see their constituents being used as a source of drugs in modern day medicine. In fact modern medicine has its roots in the use of herbs and only until about 50 years ago, drugs were manufactured using herbs alone. Despite the refinement of chemical technology, the majority of drugs on today’s market still have their origin in plant material.

By Laurey Hyman

Laurey is a qualified nutritionist who has studied holistic nutrition, herbalism, environmental medicine and Ayurveda. Originally from South Africa, Laurey lives in Israel with her husband and children. Laurey’s passionate about natural medicine and is currently writing a cookbook using healthy foods as a basis for delicious meals.

Ingredients:
3 cups water
3 cups milk
3 blades of lemongrass or mint
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 tsp Indian Tea masala
sugar as needed
Use Rooibos teabags or Ceylon tea or mixed loose tea

Method:
Place the water, lemon grass, ginger, masala and tea in a stainless steel pot and bring to boil. Add mild and sugar and allow to simmer for a few minutes. Don’t allow to boil over. Strain and serve. Serves 6 cups of tea

Tip: Really nice at any time, but especially on a cold day

Sent in by Pramilla Kooverjee

Summer Yoga Salad
A light, nutritious and protein- rich summer salad, this flavour-filled dish is a guest-impressing crunchy delight!

Ingredients

• 400g asian lettuce leaves
• 4 medium tomatoes
• 1 medium english cucumber
• 4 green chillies
• 2 medium onions
• 1 cup coriander leaves
• 80 g blanched salted peanuts
• 100g desiccated coconut
• 2 tsp grated ginger
• salt to taste

Method

• Finley dice onions and tomatoes into squares
• Julienne the cucumbers lengthwise into long sticks ( 8cm-10cm )
• Add your onions into a pan with a little olive oil
• Add the grated ginger, chilli , and coriander leaves with the onions and lightly fry for two mins on a medium heat, leaving the onions with crunch
• Place your asian greens and lettuce into a bowl, add your onions and tomato and mix well
• Place the mixture onto a plate or platter of your choice
• Add the cucumber, and then sprinkle the salad with the peanuts and  desiccated coconut
• Serve with the yoghurt mayonnaise and add salt to taste

Goan-Style Yoghurt Mayonnaise

Ingredients

• 15ml english mustard
• 20 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 200ml natural yoghurt
• 15ml lemon juice
• 2ml salt
• 1ml freshly ground white pepper
• 1 tbsp mixed herbs
• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2-3 curry leaves

Method

• Fry the mustard seeds, curry leaves with a little olive oil for 1 min
• Take the spices out of the pan and add to the yoghurt
• Place the rest of the ingredients with the yoguhrt mixture and blend until the mayonnaise is smooth and silky
• Can be served on or with the salad

Recipe Courtesy of Flair Executive Mobile Bar Services

Food by Brad Ellis
Photographs by Dixon & Libera photography

Website: www.flairbar.co.za
Enquiries: info@flairbar.co.za
Dixon & Libera photography : Richard: 0829016161

Rare Earth Incense

From India to Africa, the Rare Earth range of incenses are derived from recycled paper and are completely natural and toxin-free. Harvested from re-forested local forest areas, indigenous herbs and flora-organic products, the oils and ingredients are not only environmentally friendly, they smell simply divine too. Rare Earth includes the Ayurvedic range; the Classic range (traditional fragrances like sandalwood, frankincense and patchouli); the Mosqui range (repels flies and mosquitoes) and the Zen range (for yoga, meditation and relaxation). To order visit: www.faithful-to-nature.co.za or call (021) 709 0110.

More than a meal

Passionate about job creation, the environment and design, Mielie creates innovative hand-crafted products using only reclaimed materials that are stylish and trendy and look great in the home too. From cushions to chairs and plenty of gorgeous bags, this proudly South African initiative is more than a meal for many, it’s a design for life! Order online at www.mielie.com

Designed to look like a flat and well-rounded, shiny pebble, Samsung’s Blue Earth is the first solar powered full-touch screen phone. By charging with the solar panel located on the back of the phone, users can generate enough electronic power to make calls at anytime, anywhere!
Blue Earth is also made from recycled plastic called PCM, extracted from water bottles and is free from harmful substances such as Brominated Flame Retardants,
Beryllium and Phthalate. It also comes with an inbuilt pedometer function that calculates the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by walking as opposed to motor transport. For more information on this nifty gadget visit www.samsungmwc.com.

Planting a tree in the name of a loved one, friend, relative, business associate or client is not only a wonderful way to commemorate a special event and show that you care, but a tree is rather a “gift of life” that keeps giving back to the planet by providing oxygen and offsetting harmful carbon dioxide emissions. Food & Trees for Africa arranges for trees to be planted in the name of your recipient through the National Tree Distribution Programme, usually planted in disadvantaged communities, or otherwise at a location of your choice. The cost of planting a tree is just R84 and you’ll also receive a personalised certificate acknowledging your contribution. Call Food & Trees for Africa on (011) 803 9750 or visit www.trees.co.za.