 everybody to another episode of Lillian's Vegan World, coming to you live from gorgeous downtown Honolulu with the Think Tech Hawaii team of journalists. I talk about the plant-based diet and vegan lifestyle on my show and today's show is about veganism in 2021. Why should we go vegan? So many reasons and we're going to go through them all and help you understand more about why people are giving up their knives for forks especially after the new year and entering this new year of 2021. I would like to give a warm huge mahalo and welcome to my two guests today, vegetarian society of Hawaii president, my dear friend Lorraine Sakaguchi. Welcome to the show Lorraine and Lillian. It is so wonderful to finally have you on the show. Welcome and thank you so much for taking out the time to be here. I do also want to introduce my other awesome guest, Grace, Dr. Grace Chen O'Neill, MD from Honolulu. Grace, welcome to the show. Thank you. We are really looking forward to what you have to say because you are actually my first medical expert on the show and I'm really excited to get your insight as to what all this fuss about the plant-based diet is. So we're going to just dive into it. I'm going to start with Lorraine. If you don't mind Lorraine, just give us a quick introduction about what you do here in Hawaii. Well, I'm currently serving as the president of the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii. It's an all-volunteer nonprofit organization that's been around since 1990. So 2020 was our 30th anniversary year and we didn't expect that it was going to happen, of course, but what we do is we're an outreach educational organization and our mission is to promote human health, animal rights, and protection of the environment by means of whole food, plant-based, vegan education. And so all of the services that we provide are for everyone in the community. It's not limited to members. It's for everyone and we try to do as many educational events as we can. We have a monthly lecture that's open to the public, both on Maui and on Oahu, where we bring in visiting lecturers from who are experts in their field, some very well known. And also we have a monthly potluck on Kauai, where we sometimes send those same speakers or they'll have Kauai-grown speakers speaking as well. And so our three groups are all, you know, just trying to do the same thing to help educate people. We, I guess so, that part of what we do now is on pause until we can get back to in-person events. So we can hardly wait. I can imagine. Yes, Lorraine, I do want to show slide number seven. It's a slide of a group of people that got together to listen to a very amazing speaker. Please tell us a little bit about this slide. Well, it's kind of, it's kind of small on the left-hand side. That's Dr. Michael Greger, who's a best-selling author of the book, How Not to Die and other similar books. And he primarily concentrates on whole food plant-based education. And he's got a great website called nutritionfacts.org, which I highly recommend. It's free to everyone. Ask any question you want about nutrition and health in general. And more than likely, he'll have many, many videos, short videos about it. And they're really helpful. You know, obviously he had a huge crowd waiting from in Honolulu. We also had him speak at Tripler Army Medical Center, where Grace works as the emergency physician. And also at the John A. Burns School of Medicine. And also on Maui, whereas they had a full capacity crowd of 300 as well, which is pretty big for Maui. So we're so glad to be able to bring him here. And then the pandemic struck right afterwards. He was there in February. Yes. It's just fantastic what you do there. And as you mentioned all, it's a volunteer-based organization that you're running there. And I do urge anyone who's interested in the plant-based diet to go to the Vegetarian Hawaii Society of Hawaii and check out their website. There's so much information there. I think you'll find it very useful if you're intending on at least venturing out into a plant-based diet. On that note, I do want to welcome Dr. O'Neill back. Dr. O'Neill, please tell us a little bit about yourself. And before you go on, I do want to thank you so much for what you do helping others during this pandemic. So I am an emergency physician. I work primarily in the emergency room, but I have an interest in lifestyle medicine. And so I've been in my free time. I blog and I write about the things I see in the emergency room. I see a lot of diseases that are really preventable with lifestyle changes. And I try to tell my patients about it. But to get the word out, that's why I started my blog. And I have videos where I talk about how you can improve your lifestyle to kind of get rid of some of your medical problems. And I also, you know, I post on YouTube, I post on Instagram, and then I also write about it in my blog. So where can we find you? And what is the name of your blog and your YouTube channel? So my blog is at graceinhawaii.com, but I call it 365 days of graceful living. And my YouTube channel is Graceful Living 365. And on that Instagram also Graceful Living 365. So most of the videos I post, I double post on Instagram and YouTube. However, this last video, I had a very long video about composting. So I posted this on YouTube because it was too large to fit on Instagram. But I've been posting a lot of things about, you know, I post things about exercise, about the plant-based diet, about, you know, different things that I did one post on the organization here is BEACH, Beach Hawaii, about how, you know, plastic in the oceans is damaging the environment. So those are my main interests. And, you know, when I came here, I, you know, I was always interested in this stuff as I was growing up. So when I came here, I saw the flyers for Vegetarian Society. And that's how I got involved in vegetarian society. You know, I met Lorraine at the hospital, actually at the hospital I used to work at. And that's how we connected. So it's interesting, you know, also, I do want the viewers to know that the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii is a vegan, in fact, a vegan society. Don't get the yes, just so that there's no misconceptions. It was named, you know, quite some time ago, as Lorraine pointed out, but it is a vegan, plant-based society. From day one, from day one. That's right. It was founded by four people who were very unhappy that Dr. John McDougal, whom, as you know, who is, you know, the pioneer in the field of plant-based diets to help with people's medical problems, to really help them optimize their health. And he has done so much here in Hawaii at first, and then he moved to California now, he's in Oregon. But he's written many books on this subject, which I think you'll find pretty good, pretty helpful. By the way, we also have a website, VSH.org, and you can find our lectures that we've presented there in our video library, and also on our YouTube channel, VSH Video. You can also find us on Channel 54 O'Lellow, Channel 54 at 11 a.m. on Sundays, and the third Tuesday every month at 6 p.m. And that's also on O'Lellow, Channel 54. That's just part of what we do, yes. Oh, we also have a great discount program for our members. We have dozens and dozens of discounts that many vegan and veg-friendly businesses throughout the islands. The Big Island, Maui, Kauai, and Oahu, and also some national and international discounts as well. So all the more reason to get on board the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii train. Thank you for that information. Very useful. Let's just dive into this and talk about where we're going in 2021 with veganism. Dr. O'Neill, what are your thoughts? What's this year looking like to you? We're just heading into a new year. People are starting to really think more carefully or seriously about their health given the pandemic and the situation we find us in. So what are your thoughts? Well, my thoughts are that I hope that people will consider a plant-based diet. I feel like at work more and more people are considering it. So I think we're moving in the right direction. I think, unfortunately, a lot of the reasons why we have all these different diseases like COVID or SARS-CoV-1 is because we are in such close proximity to animals, which we were not originally in close proximity to, and they're in a concentrated space. And so this is how viruses are able to replicate, to mutate. And so this is part of the reason we're having this problem. So if people could get rid of their dependence on animal products, they could also improve their health and also decrease this pandemic problem we're having right now. And we're going to get more and more of these problems probably if we continue to live the way that we are living. So and another thing is that not only is it causing the pandemic, our lifestyle, but it's also bringing about a lot of risk factors for getting really severe disease. That's what we're finding. The people who are consuming animal products, they have more propensity to have diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, heart disease, and all those things and more are risk factors for getting severe COVID disease. So if we could sort of knock out these diseases or at least minimize them, I mean, being vegan or being plant-based, even if you eat really well, it's probably not like 100%, but almost near probably 100% eliminating a lot of these diseases. And if you could, you know, eliminate a lot of these diseases, then a lot of people might not get really sick from COVID. And we wouldn't have, you know, 400,000 people dying in the United States. I mean, it's baffling that there's so many people dying, it's terrible. I know it's sometimes it seems to people like us who are actually following a plant-based diet and vegan lifestyle, it seems so easy to us like what is it that people are not missing when it comes to just giving up their knives, like just letting the animals be and, you know, have a life that everyone deserves, that every living being deserves. It is quite baffling. I do want to mention an article that I was mentioned in as The Source, which was on Ideas.Ted.com. The article just came out yesterday. It was written by Sally Fitzgerald. And it's the title of the article is Not Ready to Be Vegan, Here Are Five Tweaks to Make Your Diet Earth Friendly. And she goes on about how plant-based food production typically requires less carbon emissions than livestock. For example, producing 100 grams of beef protein releases 90 times more emissions than it takes to produce the same amount of pea protein. So people are going to argue back and forth which is better, which is leaving more of a, you know, footprint on the environment. I mean, it is clear to everyone on this planet that a plant-based diet is the way to go if that's, if you're, you know, eco-conscious and ready to take that dive. And we're going to talk about ways you can do it. Stay tuned. We do have to take a quick one-minute break and we'll be back after these messages. Welcome back everyone to Lillian's Vegan World. I'm your host, Lillian Cumick. I am a vegan chef and author of the newly released vegan cookbook Hawaii, A Vegan Paradise. It's available worldwide for Amazon and Barnes and Noble members. It's free shipping. It's available in stores all around Hawaii. And you can also get more information about the book and how it all came about by looking on my webpage, Lillian Vegan. I'm also on Instagram, Lillian Vegan under bar chef Hawaii. And I have a YouTube channel with over 200 recipe videos. So do check it out at Lillian Vegan. I would like to give a warm welcome back to my guests, Dr. O'Neill and Lorraine Sakaguchi. Welcome back. Nice to be here. We are talking about the vegan, veganism in 2021. Lorraine, what are your thoughts? My thoughts are that it is more relevant than ever before and more necessary. We're facing such huge climate change. And the one thing that every person can do no matter how unlike an activist they feel they are, they can just do this in their daily lives, just to go and eat a plant-based diet. And they've already made a huge contribution just by that one act alone. And it's a delicious diet. Lillian's recipes in her book, they're amazing. And you're not going to miss anything in flavor. In fact, you'll find a lot more great gourmet dishes by following a plant-based diet, I believe, than just the meat diet. I agree. I absolutely agree. People are still under the, you know, have this notion that vegan food is boring. And I think that's what really pushed me to write this book and go, look, guys, we eat more of a variety of healthy foods and foods that you haven't even heard of that are just great for the body and not harming anyone. And, you know, it is something to be said of how far we've come with vegan food. And even when you consider all of the substitutes out there for meat, we just have an abundance of non-dairy products, vegan cheeses everywhere, mock meats, meat substitutes. So you can, you know, there's information out there everywhere, if you really want to find it. I do want to go, I do want to show the third slide that we have, that Dr. O'Neill has prepped for us. What are risk factors for having severe COVID-19? Could you take us through this briefly, Dr. O'Neill? I kind of touched on this a little bit before. So a lot of these risk factors are related to lifestyle, you know, people's lifestyle. So, you know, obviously smokers are at risk because COVID really affects the lungs. And so if you smoke, you are at risk. And, you know, if you have asthma, you will be at risk too, but definitely smoking is worse. And another thing, even with asthma, I found that, you know, some patients we had in the Ornish program when I used to work there, there was a patient, she joined the Ornish program just for her husband and she happened to have asthma, but her asthma improved when she gave up animal products, you know, well, she was still having some dairy, but it still improved a lot just from that. So, you know, people don't realize, you know, if you just give up, even if you just give up dairy, I've had patients say that just giving up dairy improves their asthma. So, you know, that and then obviously the other risk factors, which I think is in another slide, but they're all part of the metabolic syndrome, you know, hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, you know, which is insulin resistance. And also, you know, people think of it as a central obesity. And it's a lot of intraabdominal fat. So fat, like, you know, some people, they don't look like they're larger when you look at them, but they might have a lot of intraabdominal fat that you can't see. And that's the worst kind of fat for these risk factors. So, you know, all these risk factors make COVID more severe for these people, you know, and then there's other ones that, you know, that people might not have control of like age, but I mean, a lot of these things, you do have control of. So, you know, control what you can when you can control it. That's not something I feel right. That's actually great advice. You know, my mother makes excuses all the time, because of her age, like every time it comes to saying, Mom, come on, you know, you've got to do a bit of exercise or clean up the diet a bit. Oh, no, I'm too old. I think we're at the stage now where, you know, 80 is the new 50. Yeah. 80 year olds are walking around looking 30. Look at Lorraine. I don't even know how old she is, but I'm not going to ask, but I bet you she looks a lot younger than she actually is. I just turned 50 on Saturday. I can't even believe you look amazing little. Thank you. You do as well, Dr. O'Neill. I mean, it just goes to show that there is something to be said about the plant-based diet, that why people are not jumping to, you know, try it out and get on board is kind of beyond me at times. But the list goes on about, you know, about why this is a great chance to do it. I think at the beginning of every year, you go into a new year with a positive mindset. And I think this is when you really have to, you know, grab that chance and just go for it. So there's lots of support out there, lots of things you can do. Even just, I don't know, what's your advice on how to start it? Like go and watch some documentaries. There are so many awesome documentaries. One that keeps popping back is Game Changer. I think Game Changer is literally a game changer when it comes to how people think about the plant-based diet, because we are no longer living on, you know, alfalfa sprouts and brown rice. So this is definitely a documentary. I would hope that people check out. What is your advice for starting a vegan plant-based diet, Lorraine? Well, I think the Game Changer is a good movie, especially for people who are sports-oriented, and they can see that you, excuse me, you can improve your performance considerably in many different ways. One of which is pretty hilarious if you watch the movie, but true. And one of our board members and a past president is Dr. Ruth Hydrick. And she has won so many triathletes, marathon, and other medals. This was after she changed to a plant-based diet. And the reason for that is because she met Dr. MacDougall right after she had a mastectomy. And her breast cancer had passed a size to pretty much all the major organs, I think, in her body. But she changed over to a plant-based diet, and she never looked back several decades ago now. So pretty amazing. There are stories like that all over the internet, aren't there? I mean, this is clearly a sign that plant-based food should be looked at more as medicine than food, because it is, really. I mean, every time you nourish your body, you have to think about what you're putting into it. In the TEDideasTED.com article that I was mentioned in, I did talk about mindfulness when you're eating. Now, I want to ask Dr. O'Neill about this, because I think we spoke about this briefly in a conversation before. What is the difference between a plant-based diet versus a vegan lifestyle? Well, I mean, a plant-based diet, I mean, I'd like to think of it as a whole foods plant-based diet. And you're also aware of, you know, there's some things that are plant-based, but they're not necessarily that great for your health. Like coconut meat, unfortunately. I mean, I think it's okay to have once in a while or coconut milk, but it is very fatty. But I think a vegan lifestyle implies that you're thinking about, and as some people do the plant-based lifestyle because they want to improve their health, which is fine. But I think with a vegan lifestyle, you're implying it's more like a, you know, encompasses more things that people are conscious about the environment and how, you know, our consumption of animal foods and products is harming our environment. People are also conscious of, you know, the ethical ideas behind veganism and they're also conscious of health as well. So that's what my interpretation is. I don't know what your interpretation is. No, I agree. And I think what I tried to explain in my book is some of the reasons why people go on a plant-based diet or follow a vegan lifestyle. And there are so many things to consider. Like, do you wear leather, leather clothing, leather shoes? Do you buy a leather bag? Do you have a leather couch sitting in your home? All these things start to, the more you delve into the longer you are actually on a plant-based diet, I have to say when in my own experience, it makes you become more mindful of everything in general. It's like an awakening. I've been vegan for 14 years and I can honestly say I've never felt more at peace with my beliefs and with how I'm living my life in regards to, you know, trying to be aware of other living beings. And that includes, you know, a little bug coming to your home and not immediately grabbing something to go and smash it. My husband has learned how to catch bugs and take them out and release them. And he thinks it's the funniest thing. But he also now is aware of the fact that you don't need to end something's life just because it's tiny and it looks irrelevant in your eyes. So there's so many things that kind of become very enlightening. And another thing I have to say is being mindful when you eat. I cannot stand to eat like while I'm watching TV or doing something that's distracting. I like to make this moment of nourishing the body important. And I think when you start to do that, things happen in your mind where you start thinking, okay, so where did this come from? You trace it back, you know, and I hope that people start to become aware of that burger that they're munching on while they're talking about how much they love animals. A really good thing. Mindful eating is somewhat like that. In fact, it is a kind of mindful eating. And we had a speaker come a few years ago who taught us to do more good and less harm. Basically, we're not perfect human beings. And so we may fall a little in our desire to eat fully vegan, to live a fully vegan lifestyle. But the more good you can do and the less harm and forgive yourself along the way as well. But I think you'll find that joy in that piece. And also some good health along the way. Absolutely. And what you said is correct. My husband isn't vegan, but our home is. And he respects our home and doesn't bring anything non-vegan into it, including furniture. And I always say to him too, he's on his own journey. Everyone is. And you don't just, you know, become vegan overnight. You have to be ready to, you know, mentally be ready and prepared to, you know, for a big change for a really big, good change if you can do it. So I agree. Forgive yourself. You know, if you stray, don't be hard on yourself. No one's here to boss you around until you have to live your life. We're just giving you, you know, options here. And one of them is definitely a plant-based diet. So we are going to come to, unfortunately, the closing of the show. I do want both of you, if you don't mind, just to give a quick message to the viewers. Anything that comes to mind. Dr. O'Neill, I'll let you start. So for all you viewers out there, I think maybe if for 2021 you don't have a resolution yet, this is time to make a resolution. And for your health, for your longevity, for the planet, you know, maybe if you don't feel like you can go completely plant-based, you can start a little bit, you know, maybe one day a week, do meatless Mondays and you can go from there. So that'd be my thing to encourage people to do. Fantastic. Yeah, I agree. Lorraine, go ahead. I would say join the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii. And as Lilian says, don't worry if you're not a vegan or a vegetarian yet, we are open. Our membership is open to everyone in the community. You can check it out that you want to be an associate member because you're not vegetarian or vegan yet. And we have hundreds of members who are like that. So you won't be alone. And it's going to be so much fun to explore plant-based the wonders and the benefits of a plant-based diet. It's kinder to the animals, kinder to the planet and kinder to yourself. Thank you so much. On that note, I do want to thank you both so very much for joining the show and to the viewers out there. I hope you consider everything that we put out there for you. Good luck on whatever your journey leads to in this new 2021. Take care. See you soon again on Lilian's Vegan World. Aloha.