Schools Advised to Have Meat Free Day Each Week

It's official. School Food Plan.

Healthier School Meals in Croydon?

"Encourage all children to have a meat-free day each week, using alternatives such as pulses, soya
mince, tofu and Quorn™.

Ensure vegetarian meals are as varied as the rest of the menu by using pulses twice a week, soya,
tofu, or Quorn™ once or twice each week, and eggs and cheese once or twice each week."

No excuses now Croydon!

Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston says "This is a great first step to fighting childhood obesity and diabetes. We look forward to seeing how these guidelines are put into practice"

Meat Free Mondays in London - Croydon Health

http://londonvegansocieties.com/lmfm/

London Meat Free Mondays

Croydon Health Officials

Now that the #changeyourplate campaign seems to be getting off the ground thanks to an article in the Daily Mail  and the success of The London Vegan Society In Southwark It's probably about time we had another stab at trying to talk the Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Council in Croydon into tackling the obesity and diabetes problems in our area head on.

#LondonMeatFreeMondays is in line with the latest research that we should eat MORE THAN 7 portions of fruit and vegetables a day and government recommendations that say that any amount of red meat increases your risk of bowel cancer and that no more than 1 small portion of meat should be eaten per day.

Croydon's PCT dietitians have claimed in the past that a plant based diet is something the British Dietetic Association cannot condone as it excludes important food groups even though their (out of date) Vegetarian and Vegan Diet information sheet admits 'Well planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of life'

NHS eatwell plate advises a portion of Cake and Cola a day

 With the certainty that 5 a day, probably only 3 portions of vegetables a day, is woefully inadequate to help protect our children from chronic disease isn't it time we started a meaningful education program with one day a week focusing on increasing the foods we need to eat more of.

One Meat Free Day a week across all council sponsored facilities seems the very least a responsible administration could do.

Croydon Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston says 'The latest NHS recognised research has at last caught up with Nutrition Therapist optimum Nutrition advice that is we should be eating at least 5 portions of vegetables a day,  3 portions of fruit with an emphasis on berries, at least one portion of beans a day and one portion of essential fat rich seeds a day. The fact that we need to encourage and educate children and their parents about eating more natural, fresh, plant foods is undeniable even for a head in the sand Tory Council with a laissez faire attitude to public health"

It's unquestionably not a case of letting sleeping dogs lie, the rabid dogs of morbid obesity, heart disease and childhood diabetes are biting health budgets squarely on the bum - it is irresponsible to simply dismiss solutions such as a 5 a Day Day in Croydon

Meat Free Catering Excels in Croydon - Vegan & Delicious

http://www.thebestof.co.uk/local/croydon/community-hub/blog/view/is-this-a-new-record-for-ethical-healthy-sustainable-vegan-catering

Lloyd Hesom at the Selsdon Park Hotel has become Lush Handmade Cosmetics chef of the year after delighting 300 Lush employees for 3 days with a 100% vegan menu. There was even a full vegan cheeseboard.

Products showcased at the Lush event will be available to taste and buy at the http://www.london.vegfest.uk  extravaganza

London Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston (who has a clinic in Croydon and will be speaking at London Vegfest) said "It's these sort of chefs that Croydon Council should be consulting to get more fruit and vegetables into Croydon children's school dinners and initiate 5 a day day / meat free Mondays school meal menus"

Croydon Mums May Suffer Misleading Health Claims Until Autumn

BHS Annabel Karmel - Healthy Meals for Kids ??

Healthy Meals for Kids?

British Home Store BHS have been adverstising Annabel Karmel meals as healthy meals for kids report the Daily Mail. These meals include sausage and chips, nugget and chips and burger and chips - processed meats, that the govt says needs to be drastically cut down on because of a an increased risk of cancer and other chronic diseases.

The Croydon Food Safety Officer was recently able to get agreement from British Home Stores and Annabel Karmel to remove misleading claims about Healthy Meals for Kids, but not until after the school summer holidays were over.

Meanwhile BHS British Home Stores in Hampshire will now stop misleading claims about Annabel Karmel Healthy Meals for Kids immediately thanks to Hampshire Trading Standards who challenged them on burger, nuggets, sausages and chips and jam sandwiches in white bread wrongly advertised as 'Healthy Meals for Kids'

Other areas in the UK including Croydon may be misled for the rest of the school summer holidays for a 2nd year running.

Croydon  Nutritionist and author Yvonne Bishop-Weston says "It's great that Croydon Trading Standards have got agreement from BHS to remove these signs but sad that BHS are dragging their heels outside Hampshire and feel unable to provide healthy alternatives for frustrated mums trying to feed their kids healthier alternatives."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2384625/Annabel-Karmel-roasted-healthy-menu-claims-Food-guru-forced-backtrack-nutritionist-reports-local-council.html

Mystery shopper Johannes Bishop-Weston, age 7, said that the BHS Annabel Karmel pasta dish and chocolate ice cream was quite nice but 'wasn't a healthy meal for kids'. "We are supposed to have at least 5 a day that means at least two portions of veg with each main meal"

1 Tbsp of veg with ice cream + sugary drink

Yvonne Bishop-Weston will be appearing at Vegfest UK London ( http://www.london.vegfest.co.uk ) on Oct 5th and 6th talking about Healthy Meals for Kids.

Croydon could ban new fast-food outlets due to obesity crisis | Metro News

Croydon could ban new fast-food outlets due to obesity crisis | Metro News

One in four adults in Croydon and a similar level of children are said to be morbidly obese. Nationally, some 1.3million children are obese, with more than one in four adults.

‘If people realised the damaging effect fast food and high-fat, deep-fried food can have on your health, they probably wouldn’t choose to eat it,’ said Croydon North MP Steve Reed.
‘There’s a particular issue with young people whose health can be damaged in the long term if they have an unhealthy diet. I’d like to see efforts made to reduce the number near schools.’

Justine Sharpe, of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, said children were suffering obesity-related problems that were usually confined to adults.‘There are multiple health risks associated with eating fast food,’ she said.‘The biggest are obesity and its related health conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.’

Croydon Nutritionist & London Vegfest Share 10 Year Anniversary

London VegFest :: VegFest UK - The UK's biggest and best Vegetarian/Vegan Festival

Croydon Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston and Vegfest UK both celebrate 10 years of encouraging people to be more healthy this year.

 

Yvonne has had a regular nutrition clinic in Croydon since summer 2003 and Vegfest started in Bristol in November 2003. Yvonne will be appearing at Vegfest London and talking about childrens healthy diets and helpin parents to get their kids to eat more healthily. The aim is to try and reduce increased rates of childhood obesity and onset diabetes that will lead to increased chance of early heart attacks.

Tickets to London Vegfest are current on a special offer for a limited time - buy one get one free -  http://london.vegfest.co.uk/news/38-tickets-on-sale-for-london

Meatless Monday - Veganwiki

Meatless Monday - Veganwiki

The idea of meat free days such as meat free Monday,  meatless Monday  and Fruity Fridays are gaining ground.

There are already Meat free Mondays in Australia, south Africa, Belgium, the USA and of course the UK with more groups popping up all over the world

It's time Croydon, with rising problems of childhood diabetes and childhood diabetes, did something a bit more proactive than dismissing vegetable eating as "a restrictive diet"

New McDonalds Vegan Recipe Burger is 'Better Than Meat' !

World Vegetarian And Vegan News: McDonalds Vegan Diet Monster Burger 'Better Than Meat' !

Better than meat burgers - new vegan diet alternative recipe

A new Monster Vegan Burger said to be better than meat has been launched by McDonalds to celebrate 40 years of the Loch Ness Monster Project. The Sea Horse flavour dairy free cheeseburger suitable for those on a vegan diet and made with a secret vegan recipe approved by both the Vegetarian Society and The Vegan Society that is rich in omega 3 DHA and EPA

It's being launched in response to reports by Vegfest UK London, Veggie and Vegan Societies and google that there is a 40% increase in demand for vegan diet foods

It's said to be unconnected with the Dutch launch of the new Mc2 burger by a Dutch Vegan Butcher and also said to be better than meat.

A London Nutritionist says "The recipe is higher in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and omega 3 DHA and EPA than beefburgers and hamburgers"

Day Out in Brighton - Healthy Eating

VegfestUK

Croydon Teachers, Councillors, NHS Trust, take a  trip to Brighton and see how delicious , sensible, sustainable and easy the solutions are!

Los Angeles City Council Embraces "Meatless Mondays" | NBC Southern California

Los Angeles City Council Embraces "Meatless Mondays" | NBC Southern California

Whilst LA has joined the list of Cities around the world embracing Meat Free Mondays, the London Borough of Croydon, with it's high rates ofchildhood obesity, heart disease and diabetes refuses to take responsibility for it's part in it's health crisis.

Conservative / Tory run Croydon Council refused point blank the idea to declare a "Five a Day Day" suggested by leading UK London and Croydon Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston,  just one day a week.

"We really should all be focussing on eating more vegetables every day, not just one day a week. Unfortunately Croydon Council have consistently turned down the idea  where schools, colleges, nurseries, council offices and health trusts all focus on eating more fruit and vegetables at least one day a week" complains Yvonne.

"Croydon Council's reticence to set a good example and be part of the solution instead of part of the problem is totally irresponsible and just shoving their head in the sand to ignore the Croydon health stats" adds Yvonne

It's not rocket science, even if you aren't a qualified experienced nutritionist like Yvonne it's obvious from the available studies we have to eat more fibre, vitamin, mineral, essential fat and antioxidant foods and less foods that are full of ingredients we have too much of, high in saturated animal fat, sugar, salt with essential nutrients processed and refined out of the food.

Croydon Council declares war on 'fast food culture'

Vegetarian Visitor UK - Delicious Accommodation / Eating Out: Croydon Council declares war on 'fast food culture' | This is Croydon

Nutritionist, London Leading UK Nutritionist with Harley Street Clinic Yvonne Bishop-Weston says Croydon Council is right to revue moves to encourage healthier food options on the streets of Croydon, Surrey in south London

The nutritionist says it's easier to buy healther food in central London with restaurants and cafes such as

• Tibits - www.tibits.co.uk
• Leon - www.leonrestaurants.co.uk
• Feng Sushi- www.fengsushi.co.uk

In Croydon it is much more difficult to find  healthy food

Croydon Businesses need encouragement to both offer delicious healthier options and then promote the new healthy choices. People, even those who want healthier lunch and snack options, won't psychically know that new healthier choices are now on the menu. It will take time to spread the good news and break through their previous fruitless and disappointed searches.

Otherwise Croydon businesses will simply apathetically maintain there is no demand in Croydon and we'll be back to square one, with the same old uninspired boring high fat, high carbohydrate, low fibre ubiquitously unhealthy menus.

5 a day day on Planet Earth

I will eat a sustainable healthy plantarian, pure vegetarian, vegan diet:

Well what are you waiting for? Armageddon? Press the blue button!




Plantarian - One World Day

Healthy Snacks and School Meals

Healthy Snacks and School Meals:

More healthy ideas for schools from an initiative supported by Bill Clinton and the American Heart Association

Excessive meat-eating 'kills 45,000 each year' - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent

More statistics on why a 5 a Day Day would make sense, save money, save the planet and save lives.

This time from Oxford University in The Independent

Excessive meat-eating 'kills 45,000 each year' - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent: "Oxford University's heart unit analysed the health consequences of a range of diets, concluding that eating meat no more than three times a week would prevent 31,000 deaths from heart disease, 9,000 deaths from cancer and 5,000 deaths from strokes each year, saving the NHS £1.2bn."

Whilst Croydon Council turns a blind eye, people are dying, kids are becoming chronically ill.

mechanically reclaimed chicken

Say hello to mechanically separated chicken. It’s...: Meat the truth - those delicious chicken nuggets are made of this - hungry? KFC = Kak Freakin Crap? Kreepy Frankenstein Chooks?
Yum Yum Yum - NOT!

Interesting piece on transition town food here - New Forest Food by Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston

Child Nutrition Act USA

Child Nutrition Act USA: More effort to give children a healthier start in life; legislation to improve healthy options for school children. If you know anyone in the USA please forward to them ASAP to try to stop the senate from watering this legislation down to another worthless 'could do'.


Elizabeth Kucinich, Director of Public and Government Affairs in PCRM, has published this message today: Congress is on the verge of voting for a new Child Nutrition Act, and we’ve received word that an excellent House version of the bill, which would allow more children to have access to healthful plant-based options, may be rejected for a much weaker, stripped-down Senate version. This Senate version will make it harder for children to choose healthy food options in the cafeteria. Our chance to improve school lunches across the nation lies in the hands of Congress today! Please urge key leaders in the House to pass the superior House bill, H.R. 5504, and reject the Senate’s bill, S. 3307.

Please follow this link ASAP to send an email, or for more info: http://www.pcrmlf.org/cna/index.cfm

The health of America's children is declining rapidly, with millions afflicted by obesity and at high risk for adult diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers. These children, many of whom get more than half of their daily calories in the school lunch line, are not given the opportunity to choose healthier food or learn good eating habits at school. Urge Congress to help provide students more plant-based options in the federally funded school lunch and school breakfast programs. Please support H.R. 5504, The Improving Nutrition for America's Children Act of 2010, to give students the healthy school lunches that they deserve.

Fruits & Veggies More Matters

Fruits & Veggies More Matters: More logic and sense this time from the Produce for Better Health Foundation or PBHF.

Wake up Croydon Council ! Wake up Croydon PCT ! Yo hello Headmasters of Croydon Schools and education trusts.

The status quo is suicide - inaction is not acceptable - what are you going to do ?

Most Americans still aren’t eating enough vegetables, and fruit consumption has dropped slightly, according to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report. Researchers found that last year about one-third of U.S. adults consumed fruit or fruit juice at least twice a day, down slightly from more than 34 percent in 2000. About 26 percent of Americans ate vegetables three or more times a day, the same results as reported in 2000.

 

California had the highest consumption rate for fruit, Oklahoma had the lowest.  The state with the highest consumption rate for vegetables was Tennessee, and South Dakota had the lowest of any state. No state, however, met the Healthy People 2010 targets as set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  The goals for fruit and vegetable consumption under this initiative are for three-quarters of adults to consume two or more fruit servings and for half of adults to consume three or more vegetable servings each day.

 

Eating a colorful variety of fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruits and vegetables (including 100% juice) is an easy and positive step in helping to lead a healthy life.

The UK and particularly Croydon need to take a lead on this to avoid even more damning figures on Croydon's state of ill health 

Meat Free Monday Early day motion

Early day Motion - for meat free monday

Early Day Motion

EDM 669  MEAT-FREE MONDAYS CAMPAIGN

06.09.2010

Leech, John

That this House acknowledges UN figures which suggest that meat production is responsible for approximately 18 per cent. of global carbon emissions; further acknowledges that methane, emitted by cows and pigs, is 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas; recognises that across the UK 1 million tonnes of beef, 1.3 million tonnes of pork and 1.8 million tonnes of poultry are consumed every year; further recognises that this level of meat consumption is detrimental to the health of the nation and increasingly to the public purse; further recognises that global meat production is forecast to almost double to 456 million tonnes in 2050 compared to 2001 levels; believes that current meat consumption levels are unsustainable if the Climate Change Act 2008 is to be successfully implemented tohelp the UK fight against climate change; calls for a shift towards less meat-oriented diets nationally; further recognises that meat-free Mondays would help to promote this; and furtherbelieves that Parliament should set an example by supporting meat-free Mondays in all cafeterias in the Houses of Parliament.

Nestle's Obesity Summer Swindle

Nestle's Obesity Summer Swindle: so is Nestle in Croydon conning the Nation with it's get set go free campaign?

Will the calories you have to eat to get the tokens over shadow the calories you could burn from doing the activity?

Will it be a net weight gain or net weight loss?

More childhood obesity or less?

Boris Mayor of London Rd Kidnapped!

DAD'S TIME PLAY GROUP: - Boris, The Mayor of London Road Croydon is kidnapped and finally lost for words as he hops on and off a London bus to take a tour or the dads time family toddler activity play group in Croydon set up specifically to support dads and their children.

xxx

The government want people back to work at the same time as threatening to reduce child care and activity centres such as dads time. It's vital for social equity and development that dad's have a place to go with their kids. Research available from the Pre School Learning Alliance shows a number of benefits for children who have a stable and empowering relationship with their fathers that benefit society and community immensely.

Projects such as dadstime are vital for children's emotional, educational and physical well-being as well as impacting on health and nutrition and general social development.




Mobile Phone Version Boris Goes to Dadstime