Oprah on Vegan Diet

Posted by Jill Harris May 26, 2008

“I never imagined meatless meals could be so satisfying.”! Oprah proclaims on her blog.

Oprah’s 21-day cleanse version aims to “eliminate sources of toxins and allergens, giving the digestive system a break from working overtime to process the substances that inhibit optimum performance the most.” It is a caffeine-free, vegan plan.

I’m not a firm believer in cleansing, but I do find it interesting that they do not include meat or dairy. Why? Milk is a potential allergen (although so is soy, but it’s allowed), and apparently meat is very difficult to digest. I’ve had friends tell me they’ve felt better after cutting meat out of their diets – they have more energy and feel somehow “lighter”. Could there be something to cleansing?

It’s hard to tease out the effects individual foods have on the body, but it makes sense that cleansing could help you do just that. By removing potential problem foods and becoming more in tune with your body, it would be easier to pinpoint a source of discomfort (for example, milk in somebody with lactose intolerance) when you do add it back in. And by eating lots of fibre, digestion will almost certainly improve.

Even on a caffeine-free vegan diet, Oprah is apparently satisfied and loving it. There are some good vegan meal ideas (“cream” of asparagus soup, tempeh Creole) and recipes on her blog site.

I have to give her credit – it takes guts to embrace meatless meals filled with seaweed and soy yogurt, coming from a typical American diet. I question the usefulness of including processed sugary foods like soy creamer, but the rest of the plan looks sound.

If Oprah can do it on National TV, you can do it your home. Check out some vegan recipes now, or read more about Freeganism on Oprah.