Author: dangchristine

On the Way to Pescatarianism & Beyond

Clean Eating, Personal

Before a few months ago, I would always say that I would never, EVER give up meat. I grew up eating some type of meat at every meal and loved it. Don’t get me wrong, I still do love meat (red meat especially), but something clicked in me one day and I started watching documentaries and videos about being vegetarian/vegan, the animal industry, and things of that nature. No one tried to force it in my brain or tried to persuade me, it just happened. As you may know, judging from this blog, I live a pretty healthy lifestyle and eat well to begin with, but I want to take my health to the next level and I think eliminating meat will definitely do that. I’ve started to eat less and less meat and soon will eliminate it completely. I’ll continue to eat fish and seafood, becoming a Pescatarian. I won’t say goodbye to my beloved sushi just yet! Side note: Some friends and I went to a Brazilian Steakhouse this past weekend and my body did not agree with the meat I consumed at ALL.

Like before a lot of things I do, I did some major research before legitimately deciding on the switch and boy, did I learn a lot! Disclaimer: The point of the post is not to try and persuade you to give up meat as well or to push my views on you, but to share my experience and why I made the choice. Here are some of the things I learned about animal agriculture and the benefits of not consuming meat.

It contributes to world hunger. The majority of crops grown worldwide go towards feeding livestock, not people.

I want more energy and better skin! Animal products clog arteries, zap your energy and slows down your immune system. A lot of people that I’ve read about or seen videos of have said that eliminating meat from their diets have made them feel more energized and has made a significant difference in how their skin looks and feels. I also get sick easily and often, so I’m hoping this will boost my immune system. Lord knows I need it!

Animal agriculture has a huge impact on the health of our planet & its inhabitants. It is extremely destructive to the planet as it is the single largest contributor of gas emissions. It is estimated to produce more greenhouse gases than the whole transportation industry combined! Lowering meat intake can have a huge impact on climate change. It is also the leading cause of land and water use, deforestation and species extinction. 2,000 gallons of water is needed to produce just 1 pound of beef! 

But, I NEED to eat meat for protein!! False. Did you know that broccoli actually contains more protein than beef? That and a lot of other plant-based foods! The average omnivore consumes 1.5 times the optimal amount of protein, mainly from animal products. Many people don’t think this would be a bad thing, but excess protein doesn’t make us stronger or leaner, it just stores as fat in our bodies or turns in to waste – which leads me to my next fact.

Animal protein is a major cause of weight gain, heart disease (leading killer in the US), diabetes, inflammation and cancer. Protein from whole plant foods protects us from many chronic diseases. Plants are naturally anti-inflammatory because they are high in fiber and antioxidants. Saturated fat found in animal products is a major driver in rising cholesterol levels, which is a key risk factor for heart disease. Animal protein impairs the way insulin functions, so eliminating it form your diet can dramatically lessen your chances of getting diabetes, especially by eating whole plant foods instead. This includes whole grain carbs, since they are highly protective against diabetes! Yes, good carbs!

Raise my chances at living a longer life. Studies show that people who consume saturated fat found in animals have a shorter life span and more disabilities at the end of their lives.

Besides all of the health benefits for myself and the planet, I just love animals! The more I think about it, the more it makes me sad to say how much I love animals (dogs, cows, pigs, whatever) and express how cute they are, but end up eating them. I get sad when I see an animal getting abused, but I still eat them? Especially when they’re coming from those inhumane slaughterhouses? That just doesn’t sit right with me.

 

#Goals

Personal

Besides the usual ‘travel more, continue eating healthy, and maintain a steady workout schedule’ goals, one of my biggest goals for this year is to do hands on volunteer work and get more involved with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Since my brother’s passing, I have participated in five Out of the Darkness walks (more information here: http://afsp.donordrive.com). The walks are a great way for people to show their support for the foundation while connecting with others who have suffered from suicide and depression, whether it be personally themselves or a family member/friend. It really is touching. Although I will continue to join these walks, I want to volunteer my time in other ways as well.

One of my biggest goals in life is to spread awareness about bullying, depression, and the prevention of suicide. I feel that so many people in this world are not aware of how their actions or words can really affect an individual. As sad as it is, people don’t take suicide and depression seriously and that it really is a reality for many, many people. For example, I was watching a video the other day about a high school student who commited suicide because he was being severely bullied at school for absolutely no reason (but is there ever a reason?). The words that finally triggered him were, “Why don’t you do us all a favor and kill yourself.” Now at this point, the bully that said this most likely did not think the kid would actually do it, but he did. Hearing the kid’s mom speak about the type of person he was really hit home to me. He was a happy kid, smart, funny, loveable – just like my brother, but when you constantly have certain people bringing you down, it can really get to you. By the end of the video, I was bawling my eyes out. Every time I read about someone committing suicide, my heart just breaks.

It would be amazing to be able to go around to different places and speak to people, especially kids/young adults, about depression and suicide through my own personal experiences with myself, a close person to me, and my brother. I would love to spread awareness and educate them about how important it is to take care of your mental health and act right towards others. Your words and actions really do hit deeper than you think and suicide isn’t something to take lightly. I would love to encourage them to reach out for help no matter what because your mental health comes first.

I took the first step and reached out to someone at AFSP to express my interests. I was sent back a form to tell them all about myself and what I wanted to accomplish, and this form will be sent out to volunteer chairs who will reach out to me. I know I won’t be going around to speak immediately, but it will be nice to just get my foot in the door with helping out in any way. I am so excited to start this new chapter and put my passion in to motion.

Micellar Water: Garnier vs. Simple

Girl Time

As I am getting older (I know I’m still very young), I am trying to be more responsible and attentive towards my skin, especially to prevent things from happening to it in the future. I am not shy of putting on a full face of makeup every day for work, so properly removing my makeup at the end of the night is very important. I am very much a creature of habit when it comes to skincare products because my skin can be very sensitive. When I find something that works and doesn’t irritate my skin, I tend to stick with it.

My old nighttime face routine would just consist of me wiping off my makeup with a makeup wipe. At the time, I thought the wipes were taking off all of my makeup. Oh, was I wrong! This is bad because I was basically still going to bed with makeup residue on my face, clogging my pores and/or causing me to breakout. Then I discovered micellar water. Since I wear a good layer of makeup on my face, I still wipe my makeup off with my wipes first, but now I follow up with micellar water on a cotton pad. It is amazing how much MORE makeup the water takes off. It really makes you feel clean and refreshed. Since I wear makeup almost on a daily basis, micellar water is great because it allows my skin to breath while staying hydrated without having to layer on moisturizer. If you are someone that wears minimal makeup, all you really need is micellar water to remove all of your makeup.

What is micellar water? Micellar water is made up of micelles, which are tiny balls of cleansing oil molecules, suspended in soft water. Micelles are attracted to dirt and oil, so they are able to draw out impurities without drying out the skin. Ideally, it is used as a facial wash, makeup remover and moisturizer all in one. Micellar water is great because it is different from a typical foamy face wash that can strip your skin and leave behind harsh chemicals, which will dry out your skin and make it feel stiff. Also, unlike many toners, micellar water does not contain alcohol and never stings.

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I’ve tried two brands of micellar water so far – Garnier Skin Active Micellar Cleansing Water and Simple Micellar Cleansing Water. Although they both work very well, I feel that the Garnier one works slightly better. I did a test on my face by wiping one side with the Garnier one and the other side with the Simple one. I found myself needing to use more of the Simple water to achieve the same results as the Garnier side. It also struggled a bit when removing my waterproof mascara (sidenote: trick is to hold the cotton pad over your mascara to loosen it up before wiping away). The Garnier side felt smoother than the Simple side, although the Simple side didn’t feel sticky at all. Depending on the store, the Garnier micellar water retails for around $7 and the Simple micellar water retails for around $6. You’re honestly getting more bang for your buck with Garnier since you’re getting 13.5 fl oz, whereas with Simple, you’re only getting 6.7 fl oz.