Why the Mastery Program and what makes me qualified to teach you?

If you’ve been participating in my surveys, then you already know about the forthcoming Vegan / Vegetarian Mastery Program. But you may wonder… why did I decide to create this program? And what makes me qualified to help you?

I’m writing this post to answer these questions. I’ve been a vegetarian for 22 years, and a vegan for much of that time. In college, I got good at making quick tasty meals and thought I knew it all.

But then in 2002, I learned that I was hypoglycemic. Worse, the bottoms of my teeth, once surrounded by bone, had become exposed. As a result, one of my teeth became lose and fell out. When I mentioned this to vegetarian friends, a couple of them had dental problems too.

Danny Polanco was vegetarian for a year, and then vegan for four years. One morning, he woke up to find the top halves of two upper cuspeds gone. Apparently, he swallowed them in his sleep. He had to have the roots pulled.

Another friend (who wants to remain anonymous) was vegan for 20 years and relied heavily on soy products. One day during her 20^th year, half a tooth fell off while chewing nuts. She subsequently lost bits of her other teeth and needed several crowns. What’s more, her hair started falling out in clumps and she was diagnosed with a low thyroid.

These experiences forced us to re-examine our diets, identify which nutrients were missing, and determine how to get them.

Alarmed, I began flying to vegetarian conferences, and learning from nutrition experts like Dr. John McDougall, Dr. Michael Klaper, and Dr. Doug Graham.

I discovered that my diet — and that of most vegetarians — was deficient in some key nutrients. And meals that appeared healthy were actually making my blood sugar problems worse.

Gradually, I learned the RIGHT way to be a vegetarian.  But I didn’t want anyone else to make the mistakes I did.

So in 2004, I began teaching vegetarian cooking classes. Here are testimonials from a few of my students:

“Following your simple food combining guidelines, I have alleviated many symptoms of gastric distress (indigestion, bloating, GERD, etc.)”

– Lisa Books Williams, Pleasanton, CA

“I already know tons about nutrition since i’ve been studying it for years…..but i was pretty stoked on learning about agave nector and unsweetened cocoa! that night i made a ‘chocolate shake’ with coconut milk, silken tofu, unsweetened cocoa and stevia….it was soooooo great. i haven’t had a chocolate anything in forever!!!!! i’m hooked!”

– Marsha Vernoga, Chico, CA

“Thanks… I came home with more depth of understanding of how I can bring more zest into mealtime for myself and my husband, without compromising healthy eating.”

– Alexandra Theard, Mill Valley, CA

“Your class is the only one that has not only talked about food combining but also implemented it in the kitchen.”

– Selenia Mason, Los Angeles CA

It was a good start. But teaching 6-8 people at a time, I could only help a small fraction of the people who needed help. So at Thanksgiving dinner, 2008, I resolved to create The Vegetarian Health Institute and show vegetarians around the world how to stay healthy — using the Internet.

Ever since, I’ve been hard at work developing a Mastery Program for vegans, and another for vegetarians. I’ve also enlisted respected chefs like Jo Stepaniak, Meredith McCarty, Elaina Love, and Nomi Shannon to collaborate with me — as contributing writers and guest experts on our Q&A calls.

Feel free to post a reply to this blog, and tell me about your story.

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