We should all give thanks this holiday season by leaving turkeys off of our plates, and eating whole food, plant-based diets, for the animals, for the Earth, and for our own health and our family’s health.

Halo, thoughtful viewers, and welcome to the week’s edition of Healthy Living. The fourth Thursday of every November is a holiday in the USA called Thanksgiving where celebrants give thanks for the blessings in their lives. A tradition is to cook a glorious, bountiful feast that is shared among friends and family.

The first Thanksgiving was observed in 1621 in a place that is now known as Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA by the Pilgrims, or English settlers, and the indigenous people from the Wampanoag Nation. After the vegetables had been gathered and stored for the winter, a banquet was held thanking God for the year’s plentiful harvest.

The meal featured a variety of Wampanoag delicacies, including cornmeal and nuts, gooseberries, strawberries, plums, cherries, cranberries, and possibly pumpkin and squash. Over the years making turkey and other animal products a part of Thanksgiving dinner has become common. However as we will see on today’s program, serving loved ones such health-damaging foods during this holiday, or any day for that matter , is a grave mistake and a truly better alternative exists.

One concern some people have during the holiday season is weight gain. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, two-thirds of the adults and one-third of the children in the United States are overweight or obese. Considering these alarming statistics, should a host give their guests animal-based foods that are largely the cause of this serious problem?

Turkey and other kinds of meat, eggs and dairy products are all high in fat and calories and the portions eaten during festive occasions are often excessive. All these high-fat foods exacerbate weight gain. Besides fat, turkey, like all meats, is high in cholesterol. Elevated cholesterol levels in the body raises one’s risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.

According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a US-based public health organization, one serving, or 140 grams, of turkey breast, even without the skin, contains 100 milligrams of artery- clogging cholesterol. By contrast, plant-based foods do not contain this substance. Nutritionist Tim Radak of PCRM has stated: “Foodborne illness is a serious problem caused mainly by consuming tainted beef, chicken, eggs, and other animal products.”

According to the Canadian Inspection Food Agency, as many as 13-million Canadians suffer from food poisoning each year. Typical symptoms include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pain. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that one of the most common bacterial causes of diarrheal illness in the world is ampylobacter, a pathogen that lives in the intestines of factory farmed animals, including chickens and turkeys.

In fact, Food Standards Australia New Zealand, a bi-national food safety government agency, concluded from a study that 84% of chickens slaughtered in Australia were infected with campylobacter. Rinsing raw turkey or chicken can spread the pathogens to kitchen sinks, counter surfaces and utensils. Thus other foods can become cross-contaminated with campylobacter during the preparation process. Consuming foods with these bacteria may result in fever, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and in extreme cases, death.

Another health concern involving consumption of chicken, turkey and other meats is the presence of “super bugs.” According the US-based non-profit organization, the Union of Concerned Scientists, 70% of all antibiotics produced in the US are fed to livestock. As a result, several dangerous strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria have begun developing in these animals.

Hi, I’m Dr. Carl Myers and I would like to talk a little bit about some of the problems with eating turkeys. I know Thanksgiving is coming soon, but think twice about having turkey for Thanksgiving. One of the issues is the super bugs, the super bacteria that you might have been hearing about.

The one that is most important in turkey is Clostridium difficile; 42% of turkeys in a recent study were found to have clostridium difficile, and this is incredible. One of the problems with clostridium difficile, called “C-Diff,” is that the usual cooking process does not kill this bug.

And so someone can cook their turkey at 160 degrees (Fahrenheit) for two full hours longer than what is recommended and it’ll still have the clostridium difficile in it. So I am quite concerned about this becoming one of the super-bugs that is resistant to antibiotics and therefore I would advise to go with a plant-based diet for Thanksgiving.

Dr. Michael Greger, Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture for the Humane Society of the United States, is also seriously concerned about super bug infections and now describes one such bacterial strain that is becoming ever more prevalent in turkey, chicken and other types of meat in the USA and elsewhere in the world.

Methicillin-Resistant Staph Aureus (MRSA) is an emerging super-bug and anti-biotic-resistant bacteria which we’re increasingly finding amongst livestock and farm workers, and that is contaminating retail meat.

Now in the hospital, we have something called contact precautions, where you’re supposed to (wear a) glove, mask and gown anytime you come anywhere near anyone with MRSA, because of the concern that it’s such a dangerous bacteria. Yet we continue to allow children running up and down the meat aisle in the supermarket, where MRSA has been confirmed.

After only 72 hours, MRSA, often called the "flesh eating bacteria" can take hold in human tissue and become resistant to treatment. It initially appears as small, red bumps resembling pimples, but within a few days the bumps become large and painful, and can develop into pus-filled boils. Children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems are the most susceptible to MRSA. How widespread is MRSA in meat?

It’s true only about five percent of retail meat tested so far in the United States comes up positive for MRSA. The concern though is that even though it’s kind of a one-in-twenty chance, because it’s such a dangerous bacteria, I certainly encourage anyone who comes in contact with raw meat to, wear gloves and wash their hands.

But certainly the best thing to do is to eat a plant-based diet and avoid these increasingly concerning multi-drug-resistant bacteria, which have emerged, in part, because of our massive use of antibiotics in animal agriculture.

Some people choose to serve ham for Thanksgiving dinner. In a nine-year study of over 175,000 men by the National Cancer Institute in the United States, it was found that participants who consumed the highest amounts of red and processed meats were at increased risk of developing advanced prostate cancer.

Aside from the pollutants from the environment, meat itself can also cause cancer. There are two kinds of amino acids in meat, especially in red meat like beef and lamb that are different from other kinds of amino acids. They are deadly. One is called L-Phenylalanine. The other one is called creatine.

Red meat contains a lot of these two amino acids. When meat is heated, these two amino acids are converted into heterocyclic aromatic amine or HCAs which have been proven to be carcinogenic. One kilogram of well-done steak produces the amount of carcinogens in 600 cigarettes. One grilled chicken leg produces the amount of carcinogens in 80 cigarettes. That’s why eating meat is deadly.

A very horrible chemical preservative added to food is nitrate. When nitrates enter our intestines and interact with the bacteria, they produce a kind of compound called nitroso compound, which is a very potent carcinogen. What kinds of foods contain this carcinogen? Preserved meat, sausages, ham, etc. all contain a lot of nitrite.

I would definitely urge you to try and avoid eating the kinds of foods that are normally celebrated on Thanksgiving such as turkey which have been altered through genetic breeding to become these very unhealthy, unnatural, oversized animals that promote excess cancer and a variety of other health problems or ham and other pork products that are loaded with salt. It’s best to avoid these foods and embrace healthy, plant-based alternatives so that you can have a truly thankful and wonderful Thanksgiving Day.

The plant-based diet can also reduce the chances of cancer recurrence. According to a 2010 study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, women consuming large amounts of soy products have a lower chance of breast cancer recurrence. Specifically the researchers found that women who ate more than 42.3 milligrams of soy isoflavones daily had a 33% lower risk of breast cancer recurrence than did those who consumed less than 15.2 milligrams a day.

Soy isoflavones are found in soy milk, tofu and edamame, and one eight-ounce glass of soy milk contains 20 milligrams of isoflavones. For those who will be observing Thanksgiving this Thursday, please remember there are many plant-based alternatives to turkey, including Tofurkey, a highly nutritious, soy-based vegan product with the flavor and texture of turkey.

Or you might consider some other delicious vegan dishes that are both healthful and slimming. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine suggests a delightful Thanksgiving menu featuring a hearty autumn stew with lentils and vegetables, baked acorn squash, and roasted faux-turkey served with cranberry sauce.

Dessert could include pumpkin custard pie or sliced mango with ginger cookies. If animal-free recipes like these are used, you can rest easy knowing that your meal is nutritious, colorful, flavorful, high in fiber, low in fat and low in calories and your guests will feel light and energized.

By having a plant-based meal for Thanksgiving, and eating vegan every day, we contribute to the betterment of our own health and the well-being of our planet. To close today’s program, Dr. Anteneh Roba, the Ethiopian-American co-founder and president of the International Fund for Africa, shares his thoughts on Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving will be upon us and during that wonderful celebration of life, I am imploring all Americans to desist, and seriously re-consider being involved in the sacrifice of thousands of poor turkeys that will give up their lives for, a celebration that necessarily does not have to involve killing.

If people realized the health effects of eating meat, which turkey is meat, they would understand that it’s not good for their health, but it's even worse because of the karmic effects it has. So I hope people will reconsider and if they have to eat anything that assimilates animals, they could consider going to a grocery of their choice and get tofu turkey, which is made of tofu.

For vegan Thanksgiving recipes, please visit the following website:
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine www.PCRM.org/health/Recipes/holiday_recipes.html

Thank you for joining us today on Healthy Living. Up next is Science and Spirituality, after Noteworthy News. May your holiday season be filled with harmony, joy and love.