The food line stands ready at Kripalu.I’ve been spending a few days at Kripalu, the huge yoga retreat center in the Berkshires. I’ve been coming here every year or two for the past 15 years, and each time I come, I am on the alert for changes in the food that’s served.
Food is a big deal here, since the thousands who visit each year are very health conscious. And Kripalu visitors are rarely disappointed, because not only is the food wonderfully prepared, but there are nearly always interesting changes of some sort or another.
Kripalu has struggled with some of the same issues raised following my Aug. 29 post about A1/A2 milk, in the extensive discussion about vegetarian vs. meat-based diets.
When I first came to Kripalu in the mid 1990s, it was vegetarian with a vegan. Tofu, beans, and nuts were the main proteins, with some yogurt and occasional eggs There was very little in the way of sugar—no fruit juices, no sweet desserts, only occasional fresh fruit only. If you wanted something to drink, it was water or a few herbal teas. No coffee was served, though guests were known to sneak in their own thermoses and jars of instant. Not only that, meals were eaten in silence, so people could concentrate fully on the eating experience.
Gradually, over the years, a few animal-based proteins were introduced. First milk, then more regular eggs. Eventually, the strictures on sweets were loosened when apple and orange juice were served. Then there were some honey or maple sugar-sweeetened cakes served a couple times a week (like delicious chocolate cakes). The silence rule was lifted for lunch and dinner.
Finally, about five or six years ago, the revolution came when chicken salad and tuna began showing up on the back end of the salad bars. On top of that, a small cafeteria area (separate from the main dining area) that sells trail mixes and energy bars, began offering coffee and chocolate chip cookies. You could almost feel the ground shaking from the buzz those changes caused.
Last Wednesday, when I went in for dinner (my first time back in more than two years), I was astounded to see as the main course huge pans full of roasted chicken legs and thighs (chicken sans antibiotics). For dessert, there was a spice cake topped with fresh strawberries and fresh whipped cream. Astounded as I may have been, I stuffed my face along with everyone else.
The next day at lunch, I mentioned my astonishment to a few veteran Kripalu yoga teachers. They told me that long-time residents of the 1980s and 1990s (Kripalu was an ashram then, and most teachers lived at the center full time for many years) had had more than a few cases of anemia and other illnesses that some blamed on the vegan oriented diet.
Now, I know the diet changes at Kripalu haven’t been made lightly. There is much debate and discussion among the managers and board, based on extensive visitor feedback. Nor have they been made primarily because of such health considerations. They have been made mainly because yoga practitioners who come to Kripalu are demanding more variety in the food offerings at Kripalu.
At first, I felt badly about the continual breaking down of “barriers.” Part of what made Kripalu special was the austere but delicious food. But I have come to realize that the changes are probably okay. Kripalu is a nonprofit organization, and it depends on a steady stream of visitors to survive—if too many people don’t like the food, there won’t be enough revenue to keep the place going, and Kripalu has had its share of financial crises over the years.
Vegans and vegetarians can still maintain their diets. And non-vegans have meat and dairy options. Coffee, sugar, carbonated drinks, and artificial sweeteners are still out (and hopefully will stay out for a long time).
I’m always worried when the discussions about vegetarian/vegan vs meat diets become ideological, all-or-none matters. I’ve seen on a number of web sites where the discussion between vegans and non-vegans becomes quite heated.
To me, diet is a highly personal matter. For some years, I tried to maintain a mostly vegetarian diet. But gradually I came to realize that I needed the protein and fat provided by meat and dairy. Not everyone has the same needs. I think the Kripalu experience shows it’s possible for everyone to co-exist.
Oh, and one other notable change: there’s now wireless computer access in the cafe that also serves the coffee and cookies (this in a place without televisions or telephones in the rooms). I wasn’t thrilled, till I realized I could now post to my blog. I deserve blame for this particular conflict, I supposed, because I brought my computer along.
When you say "For some years, I tried to maintain a mostly vegetarian diet.", were you trying to maintain a mostly *vegan* diet or a mostly traditional lacto/ovo vegetarian diet?
This distinction is important. It is very difficult to get adequate nutrition on a vegan diet. Anemia is rare among people eating all the elements of the the traditional lacto and/or ovo vegetarian diets, which includes traditional fermented foods and condiments that ensure good digestion and a broad spectrum of nutrients.
Here in the US, I have often seen yoga centers and/or ashrams serving a handful of dishes *extracted* from a traditional vegetarian diet, but omitting other important items normally served with those dishes. The menu/nutritional planning at these centers seems to be based on modern books like Frances Moore Lapp’s "Diet for a Small Planet" and similar works from the 1960’s & ’70’s rather than the guidelines of traditional Ayurvedic or yogic nutrition that has stood the test of thousands of years. This is where the problems begin. One can technically be a vegetarian by eating only potato chips and cola, but that would not be a healthy way to eat.
The traditional vegetarian diet of yogic ashrams is definitely *not* vegan. Dairy is an important part of the traditional lacto vegetarian diet and as a result, dairy quality is extremely important. Our traditional lacto-vegetairan communities were significantly affected by the deterioration in milk quality as the US dairy industry moved from pasture to CAFO. Many families switched to goat milk in the search for a "non-industrialized" milk supply. We are very strong supporters of the pastured dairy and pastured raw milk dairy producers.
http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/BlogtownPDX/archives/2009/08/12/everything-joel-salatin-does-is-illegal
Joel Salatin says it all and its just plain common sense.
David
All that sounded good on paper to someone, but in effect they created a mostly "carbotarian" diet that is difficult to digest and very high in phytic acids that would block the absorption of necessary nutrients. The long term residents of these yoga centers that come for Ayurvedic and nutritional consultations lack radiance to their skin and most have similar signs of malnutrition. We don’t see this type of ill health among vegetarians eating traditional diets.
Whether vegetarian or meat eater, the loss of traditional food preparation skills is a great tragedy.
She is a student of nutrition, and she is a chef, a caterer, and owns her own restaurant. She gardens a lot, and we always joke about not using sunscreen. I’m just saying that it can be done, but it takes work. I would never attempt to live without meat, because I love it, but I have to acknowledge that I’ve seen at least one admirable success story.
Her husband – my brother – is not doing as well. He’s had one hip replacement and is talking about doing the other hip. We were raised omnivores; I wonder if belief systems impact health?
-Blair
I believe it has great impact on health. The mind is a powerful instrument.
http://web.missouri.edu/~hartmanj/rs150/papers/jonesf993.html
If a poll were taken, many would say that as you age you are supposed to have aches and pains, they expect to be on numerous medications.
Instead of finding out why osteoporisis is at epidemic proportions, they shove pills at women. The same goes for diabetes,obesity and many other diseases. Diet is a key factor in many illnesses/diseases. As is the quality of food/water/environment.
Did flouride improve dental health? Or was it that kids/people did better dental hygiene as they were in a study? I would bet it is the latter.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119274903/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0
I can easily understand how planning nutritious vegetarian meals may seem like a lot of work for someone raised on a meat-eating diet because there are is no familiar comfort zones of childhood memories to draw on. It works the same way in reverse. If you were raised on a healhty vegetarian diet and then need to do a menu/meal plan for those who eat meat, there is no comfort zone there either!
Some of my friends say it is just "too much work" to remember to soak the legumes or grains, yet they have a lengthy protocol for thawing frozen meat safely that seems far more complicated and hazard prone to me. LOL!
We have never asked anyone not to eat meat. We do ask that they respect our choice to follow our traditional diet. If asked, I do suggest that they (the meat-eaters) consider eating pastured meats and animal products for better health and offer suggstions on where to find this.
Traditional vegetarians have also been adversely affected by the move away from real, nutrient dense foods to an industrial food supply although it may have taken longer to show up, as I believe that feedlot beef became a common practice before confinement dairies. I could be wrong about the timing on those. Curd (yoghurt), kefir, fresh soft, cultured cheese and other cultured vegetables are part of our daily diet. This may have delayed or slowed the digestive reactions to pasteurized milk for some, but certainly not all.
The ongoing advocacy for real foods, in their natural state, with actual nutrients still in them, and the fight have the right to choose and procure these foods for ourselves and our families is something that affects both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. We can be a stronger voice if we work together.
Many, if not most, traditional medicine systems view the body, mind and soul/spirit as being interconnected. One cannot have a truly healthy body if the mind and/or soul is agitated or imbalanced. Humans need something to keep the the less tangible aspects of ourselves in balance and operating in a healthy way. It does not matter if we call this meditation, prayer, powwowwing, journaling, knitting or _______ (fill in the blank with whatever keeps you in a positive outlook).
Good nutrition is more than just what we eat or breathe. We are affected by everything that we take in.
Fluoride has given us an epidemic hypothyrodism. The bisphosphonates (Fossamax, Actonel, Didronel, Boniva, Reclast) have proven to be bone hardeners, rather than bone strengtheners. They actually increase the likelihood of fractures and slow bone healing.
If the push for profits over people had not been present, would they have studied this class of drugs for a longer period of time and chosen an alternative. Would fluoride ever have been allowed in our drinking water?
Have you seen the money driven medicine documentary?
http://www.moneydrivenmedicine.org/
When I was a child, if you were ill, you took "a course of medicine" for a couple of weeks or a few months, then you were done with it. Hopefully you wouldn’t need it again. Now prescriptions are a routine "consumable". Scary.