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Follow up on that report about veggies preventing your arteries from hardening up.

My mom is insisting that you can't compare mice and humans. (Then why do we test so many things on them?) She continued, "And the truth is in humans is that you need fat protein from meat to keep your arteries elastic."

I learned in school protein repaired and built tissue and helped produce hormones and stuff. I also learned that eating a lot of meat is very very bad for you, especially if you have an inactive lifestyle. People who run, jump, climb trees for a living need more protein than someone who sits on her butt typing at a computer all day. (And no where have I ever seen dietary rules that say the protein has to come from an animal.)

I'm not sure what "fat protein" is. I asked her to offer up some research that proves her right. If she can, I'll listen. If she can't, I will do the happy dance of "I am so much better than you."

Besides, you can get protein from plants. It's incomplete protein, but you can combine it with other plant proteins and get the complete set of amino acids or whatever it is you are trying to collect. Plus eggs and dairy have the proteins you need.

Mom's just crazy. As always.

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I think she means actual fats, rather than fat protein. Different lipids and sterols like cholesterol in your diet will change the makeup of cell walls. Making them more fluid or elastic depending on their composition. But, I don't think there is a needed fat that can only be obtained from animals only.

Also, mice and rats have very similar bodies to humans. Their digestive and circulator system is very similar to our own. I mean, they're not perfect, but usually there aren't huge glaring differences between us.

more fluid or rigid

I've always been under the impression that animal fats are on the list of bad fats for your body. It's saturated fat, right? That's the stuff that causes heart disease.

Also, mice and rats have very similar bodies to humans. Their digestive and circulator system is very similar to our own. I mean, they're not perfect, but usually there aren't huge glaring differences between us.

That's what I thought. I was pretty sure that our bodies were pretty similar. If there were glaring differences, they'd be useless in the lab and scientists wouldn't be using them.

Heh, as an animal researcher myself, the similarities between humans and lab animals is profound. I am too tired right now to list things, but your mom is, uh, in denial or something. Animal fats are indeed very bad for you in large quantities, and there is no protein that you absolutely must obtain from eating an animal; like you said, you can get them from combined veggies.

Haha! I knew I was right! Yay! :)

I like having lots of friends in animal research that can all back me up on things like this.

I ran across this article today and this particular paragraph made me think about you and your mom and her comment about mice and humans:

"In itself, similarity among species is not new. Animal models that employ diverse species as surrogate humans have long been a staple of scientific research. Together, rats, mice, cats, dogs, apes and even invertebrates form the backbone of the biomedical and anthropological research that shapes the theories, practices and policies of human health and well-being. It is this understanding of relatedness that grounds scientific inference and makes studies on animals translatable to humans."

It's an interesting article, anyway, but I just thought I would share :-)

Animal fats in themselves aren't bad. It's large quantities of these fats that are bad. But, as with most things, small quantities are just fine/good for you

Yes, I guess I should have been more specific. Animal fats fit at the tippy top of the food pyramid, which I understand to mean, "You can eat this, just take it easy and don't have a lot of it." Right?

Ummm yes. But the food pyramid we all learned as children is really not very healthy for you. Way too much grain. Didn't they make a new one not too long ago?

I didn't learn about the food pyramid until right before college. :P I was still doing the 4 food groups.

I didn't know there was a new one. I don't know. I just eat what I like.

Way too much grain.

No such thing with my metabolism. If I cut back on carbs even the slightest bit, I crash from lack of energy.

I might be wrong but I thought that someone postulated that if you tried to eat the 8-11 servings or whatever of grain everyday you'd probably end up with colon cancer.

Yeah, I guess the food pyramid doesn't actually work unless you take into account your actual body size. I'm sure a huge gigantic man who lifts and tosses cows for a living would need that much grain. But smaller people probably need much less.

I'm tiny so I eat fewer servings than it says. Otherwise I'd get really really fat!

Whoever decides these things needs to make a chart that can be easily adapted for people's actual body needs.

I don't think anyone could eat as many servings as reccomended and move. Well, maybe Ben. He can eat!

I think the charting thing is silly. I don't know about you, but when I haven't been eating enough fruit and veggies, my body craves them. I think our bodies are pretty adept at maintaining themselves, for the most part.

My mom never craves veggies. Just fatty bloody meat. They need to make these charts for people like her who refuse to listen to what their body needs!

I mean, I guess they are good for people who really need a guideline, but most people can just go about their eating business.

With the obesity problem in america, I'm not sure the "go about your business" approach has been working for most people.

You have a point, miss.

i think the only complete protein you can get from a non-animal source is quinoa. at least, this is the impression i was under for a couple years of veganism.

According to the internet, that stuff is very good for you. The UN classifies it as a supercrop! But the europeans refused to eat it because it was non-christian. And that's why no one eats it today. I learned something new! Yay!

she can't cuz she's wrong. how've you been.

I'm as well as I can be, considering I live in the 8th circle of hell. ^^; How are you?

I've had ups and downs.. you've got your boy with you so I doubt it's the 8th circle... maybe the 5th???

so why's your life so unhappy???

Even ben cannot make virginia a happy place!

The people around here are so different from what I had become used to. It's amazing how cruel, rude, and thoughtless people can be.

Like last night, my dog knocked me on the ground and the 2 people nearby just laughed. Didn't even ask if I was ok. I know it's just a little thing, but it's little things like that all the time that wears me down.

Do you know that people actually stop and thank me when I hold a door open for them? Not just a "thanks" and they go on their way, but they stop and tell me how nice I am and what a nice surprise it was. I hate when the old people thank me. It makes me sad that this place is like this.

If ben wasn't here, I would have either lost my mind or left already. I really really hate it here. Don't ever move to virginia. You'd be so miserable.

that bothers me about the world... has for awhile.
it's one of the reasons I've never left here for long..

you could always visit.. it's always good to see that those who've moved one are still doing well.

I definitely plan on visiting. I really want to go back.

Right now, we're saving up for our secret ninja california trip of freedom, but after that new orleans looks like the best place to go. I was SO homesick for it this weekend when we were in DC and it was drab building after drab building with no places to eat and everything was so manicured and controled.

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