Well said, Nelson. There seems also to be the other problem, at the extreme as well - there are now so many ultra-processed vegan foods that mimic meat, dairy, eggs, etc., and many people go vegan and eat large amounts of these very unhealthy foods in order to have compassion for animals, etc., and then after 6 months announce on FB that they are miserably sick from vegan food and go back to eating animal-sourced foods. Both extremes are harming our movement.
Thanks, Will, for your comment. I agree wholeheartedly about the problem of vegan processed foods. We address this topic in the book I coauthored with my father--not only the poor health effects of these products, but also the way they came to define the entire plant-based category and consequently undermined our movement (as your comment suggests). Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.
This is one of my greatest fears for our movement. The people who have a bad experience become our worst critics. Everyone knows someone who tried being vegan and claims to have gotten really sick as a result.
I’m glad you wrote this. I have tried sos free and didn’t enjoy my food. I only use a little oil when necessary and sweeten with dates or occasionally maple syrup. I eat salt but make everything from scratch. I enjoy my food way more than sos free
Thank you, Nelson, for sharing this vital information which definitely helps with compliance in WFPB eating. So grateful for you and Dr. Campbell’s research and sensible recommendations!!
I’ve always been impressed with yours and Kim’s common sense approach to plant-based eating. I found sos free lacking in taste and satiety which led me to snacking when I didn’t actually need to.
Thank you for sharing this thoughtful explanation of SOS free and why giving up some salt and a little sugar doesn’t really make any difference. I will be sharing this to my 1.2K member WFPB group that I’ve lead for 10 yrs, 1st as a POD group. I’m wfpb no oil.
Nelson, I really appreciated the points you made in this piece, including the acknowledgment that there isn't strong evidence to support completely eliminating salt and sugar, and the point you made about too much SOS being at the root of binge eating. When I tried implementing WFPB No SOS for my family it did not go very well. I generally prefer to eat without SOS but I was fighting a losing battle with my kids and husband, and realized I was losing sight of the woods for the trees. These days when I am cooking for the family I season the cooking water for veggies. I still try to avoid oil but recognize that a very small amount can go a long way towards making a dish more tasty for them, especially for my kids whose taste buds are accustomed to what is served in the school cafeteria. We must not make perfect the enemy of the good, especially when there is no clear evidence that perfection makes a difference, at least when we are talking about salt and sugar.
Well said, Nelson. There seems also to be the other problem, at the extreme as well - there are now so many ultra-processed vegan foods that mimic meat, dairy, eggs, etc., and many people go vegan and eat large amounts of these very unhealthy foods in order to have compassion for animals, etc., and then after 6 months announce on FB that they are miserably sick from vegan food and go back to eating animal-sourced foods. Both extremes are harming our movement.
Thanks, Will, for your comment. I agree wholeheartedly about the problem of vegan processed foods. We address this topic in the book I coauthored with my father--not only the poor health effects of these products, but also the way they came to define the entire plant-based category and consequently undermined our movement (as your comment suggests). Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.
This is one of my greatest fears for our movement. The people who have a bad experience become our worst critics. Everyone knows someone who tried being vegan and claims to have gotten really sick as a result.
I’m glad you wrote this. I have tried sos free and didn’t enjoy my food. I only use a little oil when necessary and sweeten with dates or occasionally maple syrup. I eat salt but make everything from scratch. I enjoy my food way more than sos free
Thanks Ingrid. It sounds like you are doing what you need to do to achieve your best health.
Thank you, Nelson, for sharing this vital information which definitely helps with compliance in WFPB eating. So grateful for you and Dr. Campbell’s research and sensible recommendations!!
Thanks for your comment Janice
I’ve always been impressed with yours and Kim’s common sense approach to plant-based eating. I found sos free lacking in taste and satiety which led me to snacking when I didn’t actually need to.
Thanks, Kim, and I hope you and John are doing well.
Thank you for sharing this thoughtful explanation of SOS free and why giving up some salt and a little sugar doesn’t really make any difference. I will be sharing this to my 1.2K member WFPB group that I’ve lead for 10 yrs, 1st as a POD group. I’m wfpb no oil.
Nelson, I really appreciated the points you made in this piece, including the acknowledgment that there isn't strong evidence to support completely eliminating salt and sugar, and the point you made about too much SOS being at the root of binge eating. When I tried implementing WFPB No SOS for my family it did not go very well. I generally prefer to eat without SOS but I was fighting a losing battle with my kids and husband, and realized I was losing sight of the woods for the trees. These days when I am cooking for the family I season the cooking water for veggies. I still try to avoid oil but recognize that a very small amount can go a long way towards making a dish more tasty for them, especially for my kids whose taste buds are accustomed to what is served in the school cafeteria. We must not make perfect the enemy of the good, especially when there is no clear evidence that perfection makes a difference, at least when we are talking about salt and sugar.