WAYNE CREED: I Was Wrong about Backyard Chickens
By WAYNE CREED
Cape Charles Wave Columnist
March 30, 2015
On Friday, March 20, Farm Animal Rights Movement (FARM) set up their annual campaign, the 2015 MeatOut, meant to encourage the public to try a vegan diet for one day. People from 96 countries pledged to “Eat Vegan for a Day.” This simple effort saved 1,343 farmed animals. MeatOut was soon followed by an opinion in the New York Times by Dean Ornish, clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and the founder of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute. Ornish’s article focused on the questionable notion that “Americans have grown fat because they eat too much starch and sugar, and not enough meat, fat and eggs.”
The implication is that consuming lean meat and animal byproducts (even those labeled organic or grass fed) is somehow “healthy.” More recent research indicates that animal protein may significantly increase the risk of premature mortality from all causes, among them cardiovascular disease, cancer, and Type 2 diabetes, and a study published by NIH last March found a 75 percent increase in premature deaths from all causes, and a 400 percent increase in deaths from cancer and Type 2 diabetes, among heavy consumers of animal protein under the age of 65 — those who got 20 percent or more of their calories from animal protein.
According to Ornish, “Low-carb, high-animal-protein diets promote heart disease via mechanisms other than just their effects on cholesterol levels. Arterial blockages may be caused by animal-protein-induced elevations in free fatty acids and insulin levels and decreased production of endothelial progenitor cells (which help keep arteries clean). Egg yolks and red meat appear to significantly increase the risk of coronary heart disease and cancer due to increased production of trimethylamine N-oxide, or TMAO, a metabolite of meat and egg yolks linked to the clogging of arteries.”
When questioning the ethics of eating and the effect that our food choices can make, it is important to realize that those choices have much broader implications than just weight loss or personal health and well-being — they also play a big role in the health of our environment. By the numbers, one person going vegan for one year would preserve 53,900 square feet of rain forest, and save 1,350,500 gallons of water.
For many folks living on the Eastern Shore or greater Delmarva, the environmental effects of agribusiness have been a concern for some time. A report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) provides key data points on the adverse environmental aspects of animal farming, such as land degradation, air and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity. Even as agribusiness (livestock) only accounts for a relatively small proportion of the total GDP, it should still be noted that the sector still plays an important role both socially and politically in not just the poorest developing countries, but also the poorest communities of the United States. [Read more…]
ALTERNATIVE TABLE: Fat and Scientific Shenanigans
By KAREN GAY
Cape Charles Wave Columnist
March 30, 2015
In my article of last week, I featured the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) and described how their recommended traditional diet helped me lose 50 pounds over nine months by changing my fat intake to greater than 30 percent of calories coming mostly from saturated and monosaturated fats.
As I lost my food cravings I began to do research on fat and its impact on one’s body. How could it be that for over 40 years the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) was a strong proponent of low fat diets?
In 1968, after seeing an image of a child who had died of starvation in the CBS documentary, Hunger in America, George McGovern became the chair of the “Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs” with the goal of wiping out hunger and malnutrition in the United States. In 1977 the Select Committee published the “Dietary Goals for the United States” after hearing Dr. Ancel Keys and other supporting researchers speak about the link between saturated fat and cholesterol consumption.
From 1972 to 1973 and concurrent with the Select Committee, the American Heart Association, American Medical Association, and the National Academy of Science developed the following recommendations:
- Americans’ cholesterol is too high;
- We should measure our cholesterol in medical examinations;
- People considered as “at risk” should receive appropriate dietary advice;
- At risk Americans should reduce their intake of saturated fat by substituting polyunsaturated vegetable oils;
- Modified and ordinary foods (to support the ingestion of vegetable oils) should be available in the marketplace; and
- More studies should be performed to determine if lowering cholesterol can reduce chronic heart disease.
The piling on the bandwagon by these organizations led to the 1992 USDA Food Pyramid that most of us remember so well.
So how did all of these organizations arrive at these conclusions? I believe it was the work of Ancel Keys in the 1950s that started the idea that saturated fat led to the increase in heart disease. He noticed that death from heart disease dropped in areas where food rationing had been in place due to WWII and increased in industrialized areas of the world. Keys created graphs using food intake data and mortality statistics from the late 1940s using six countries: Japan, Italy, England, Australia, Canada, and the USA. The data appeared to show a correlation between the ingestion of fat and the increase in heart disease. We now call this the Diet-Heart Hypothesis which puts forward the idea that saturated fat causes cardiovascular disease (CVD) by raising blood cholesterol. He presented a graph at the 1955 World Health Organization conference that mapped fat intake to each country’s rate of death from heart disease. [Read more…]
SATURDAY 4/18: Book Sale at Northampton Library
The Friends of the Northampton Free Library in Nassawadox will be having their first annual Spring Book Sale on Saturday, April 18, from 1:30-5 p.m. in celebration of National Library Week. Teens will also be able to choose a free book from selected young adult titles in honor of Teen Lit Day. [Read more…]
FRIDAY 4/3: Bill LeCato Chairs Addiction Seminar at ESCC
Science and Philosophy Seminar of the Eastern Shore of Virginia’s event this week is “Addiction: A Panel Discussion.” The free 2-hour + seminar will begins at 12:30 p.m. Friday, April 3, in the Eastern Shore Community College Lecture Hall, 29300 Lankford Hwy., Melfa. Bill LeCato of Hospice will lead the discussion on various aspects of addiction and its consequences here on the Shore. [Read more…]
Jack White: County Supervisor, Bridge-Tunnel Commissioner, Shore Memorial Board Member
March 26, 2015
John “Jack” Williams White, Sr., 88, passed away Wednesday, March 25, at Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital in Nassawadox. A graveside service will be conducted 2 p.m. Sunday, March 29, at Christ Episcopal Church Cemetery in Eastville with Rev. Daniel Crockett and Rev. Jonathan Carpenter officiating.
Mr. White was a Cape Charles native and served in numerous positions of distinction, including as a Northampton County Supervisor, a Board Member of Shore Memorial Hospital, and a Commissioner of Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. He was a retired salesman for Dunn and Bradstreet and a member of Christ Episcopal Church.
Mr. White was the husband of the late Lucy Addison Restein White and the son of the late Richard Read White and the late Jessie Williams White. He is survived by a son, John William White, Jr., and his wife, Carin, of Virginia Beach; a granddaughter, Brooke White of Virginia Beach, and a niece, Linda White Volner and her husband, Rick, of Onancock. [Read more…]
Town Beach Replenishment and Bay Creek Erosion
TOWN BEACH REPLENISHMENT AND BAY CREEK EROSION
March 23, 2015 — At top, Craig Richardson’s drone equipped with fisheye lens provides a dramatic shot of Cape Charles public beach’s new real estate, courtesy of the Army Corps of Engineers, who are dredging the harbor channel and pumping the spoil onto the beach.
Meanwhile (bottom left), erosion at Bay Creek’s private beach prepares to again attack the golf cart path, which previously fell to Hurricane Sandy.
At bottom right, Wayne Creed reports that the muddy material dredged from the harbor will be taken to the Upland Placement Site, just south of the railroad tracks that parallel Stone Road. Construction and rehabilitation of the site has already begun.
Council Appoints Brent Manuel Town Manager, Commends Heroes for Icy Rescue
By WAYNE CREED
Cape Charles Wave
March 23, 2015
Cape Charles Town Council met March 19 at the Civic Center, and Mayor George Proto began by announcing that the Town has appointed Brent T. Manuel of Woodstock, Virginia, as the new Town Manager. The appointment is effective April 6.
Hardly a newcomer to local government, Manuel has over 16 years of experience, having served the towns of Purcellville, Strasburg, and Woodstock and the county of Frederick. For the past 13 years Manuel was Woodstock’s Assistant Town Manager of Operations and Director of the Department of Planning and Community Development.
“While I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Northern Shenandoah Valley, I am very enthusiastic about the opportunity that awaits in the beautiful town of Cape Charles,” Manuel says.
Mayor Proto stated, “The Town Council and I look forward to his beginning, his tenure, and the contributions I believe he will make to the town.”
Councilman Frank Wendell added, “We are very excited to have him here, and the fact that he chose to live in town is a very good sign.”
Although the decision to hire Manuel was made a few weeks ago, the process had been stalled due to his difficulty finding rental housing within the town limits. But with that problem resolved, Manuel begins work in two weeks.
Mayor Proto issued Commendations to Officer Tom Potts, Sergeant Jay Bell, and Keith Lewis for a dramatic rescue at the Town Harbor on the night of March 5. About 7:45 p.m., Lewis saw a man fall off the icy dock into the frigid water. He immediately dialed 911, alerted authorities, and attempted to assist the victim. Officer Tom Potts soon arrived, and he and Lewis crawled out on the ice, where Potts worked to keep the man above water. A few moments later, Sergeant Jay Bell arrived and joined the effort. The team pulled the victim out of the water and dragged him across the ice and up to the dock where an ambulance was waiting to transport him to the hospital. The victim has made a full recovery. [Read more…]
Rezoning ‘Information Session’ Turns into Showdown
Supervisor Larry Trala faces up to two of Northampton County’s most determined rezoning opponents: Bob Meyers (from back) and Ken Dufty (right). (Wave photo)
By WAYNE CREED
Cape Charles Wave
March 23, 2015
After several delays, the winter weather finally relented and allowed Northampton County to conduct two Public Information Sessions for the county’s proposed zoning ordinance. Although the event was sparsely populated, those in attendance were eager to hear or see just what was in store, and if it differed in any way from what had already been gleaned from Economic Developer Charles McSwain’s Information Paper.
The first session, at Kiptopeke Elementary, kicked off with an overview of what the county considered the most significant and impactful changes, such as shore widths, allowable uses, the continued incorporation of the Bay Act throughout the county, and the inclusion of mobile homes in the plan. County Long Range Planner Peter Stith emphasized that this effort was meant to be a way to streamline the process, make definitions more clear, and simplify the overall zoning, such as by reducing the number of districts from 21 to 15.
The room had stations set up on the perimeters, with county staff available to answer questions. Mr. Stith and the Geographic Information System Department also provided several large wall maps showing just what the physical changes are going to look like in a very holistic manner. Each station was loaded with a fairly robust level of information, and county staff was pleasant and eager to answer questions. Among those attending were Cape Charles Town Council members Chris Bannon and Joan Natali.
While the mood of the general public was initially buoyant, news that public comments would be limited to “written only” comments sucked a good bit of the air out of the event. As the public milled about, and somewhat hushed conversations echoed off the cinder block walls of the auditorium, the room began to take on the sad feel of a job fair intended for recently released inmates from the county jail rather than an exciting question and answer session.
Night two at Occohonock Elementary, however, had an entirely different feel. The format was the same, but after Planner Stith finished his introduction and was on his way to one of the tables, he was bushwhacked by Dr. Art Schwarzschild of Willis Wharf. “Peter, I have a question. There is such a big difference between the first proposal and the current one, and the difference is not well highlighted. We at Willis Wharf and Oyster, we spent a lot of time, two years, picking all the things we wanted in our villages — why did we change this for something new that was developed behind closed doors?” he asked. [Read more…]
