Winter 2023 VOL 4 ISSUE 14
From Health to Happiness. Dr Darren Morton offers grassroots advice The Awe Experience Why are we so moved?
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Where we stand THE WHOLE FOOD CONNECTION
Food
Health
Environment
Food is our most basic, primal desire. Even before our need for shelter or our desire to procreate, food comes first. The recipes for the food we talk about in Whole Food Living are based on solid scientific research and clinical experience over the past 50 years.
Our health, good or bad, is the result of the food we eat. There are genetic and environmental conditions that can affect our good health but for most of us, our health is determined by what we put on our plates. For this magazine, food and optimal health is our primary focus.
The third and final factor in the whole food equation is environment. Why? Because the state of our environment is impacted by the food choices we make. Understanding the connection between food, health and environment is key to developing a more sustainable world.
WFL Optimal Health Guide Legumes Whole grains & starches Vegetables Fruits, nuts & seeds Herbs & spices Oils, sugar, salt Heavily processed foods Eggs & dairy products Seafood Meat & poultry
Vegetarian Vegan
Plant based
ü ü ü ü ü ü ü
ü ü ü ü ü ü ü
ü ü ü ü ü ü ü ü
WFPB
ü ü ü ü ü Ë Ë
û ³ û û û ³ û û û ³ û ³Reduce Ë Avoid üOK ûNo
Whole Food Plant-Based The WFL Optimal Health Guide is a simplified, visual explanation of different eating styles. Our policy is to assist and encourage plant-based eating and to explain the significant health benefits available to those that become fully whole food plant-based. WFPB eating is comprised of foods drawn solely from the first five categories on the table. Strictly speaking, sugar, oil and salt are off the menu for people who are fully WFPB based, especially those who have experienced serious medical events. We place sugar, oil and salt along with highly processed foods in the Avoid category as a warning because, unless you prepare everything you eat at home yourself, you are unlikely to achieve a perfect score. In your quest towards better eating, don't let perfect become the enemy of good.
WFL MEDICAL DISCLAIMER
EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS
he medical and/or nutritional information covered in Whole Food Living magazine is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please seek medical advice before using diet to treat disease.
Critical contents of this magazine, particularly articles that cover medical issues, are referred to our editorial consultants. Our consultants are: * Dr Mark Craig * Dr Caitlin Randles * Dr Martyn Williamson
T
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- Editorial -
Reducetarians, reductionists and the grassroots
I
’d like to think there’s something significantly come I’m taking vitamin B12 every day? And yes, different about every issue we produce but this I understand the discussion about what’s not time, I believe, we’ve really hit the spot. It’s a available in the soil these days and the fact that its injected into animals and added to my plant milk good issue for me because, after almost five years but, if B12, zinc tablets, vitamin D and even iron of changing to a Whole Food Plant based-diet, I’m supplementation are acceptable, does that mean coming to grips with issues I haven't faced down all other supplements are absolutely useless? I still before. have questions at times and, as I conclude on p47, One of these is the subject of reductionism where WFPB is concerned, I can only ever be a and reductionist thinking and how it impacts work in progress. our understanding of health, particularly where Something else I’ve had my eyes opened to over supplements are concerned. If we’re taken in these past weeks is a ‘new’ brand of eaters called by its advertising we’re led to believe that many reducetarians. I’d heard of pescatarians but the worthwhile benefits are to be had if you just keep term reducetarian was new to me and made me Peter Barclay, Editor swallowing their capsules. think is a pescatarian also a reducetarian and does Maybe I’ve been a bit too ambivalent about it matter? You can see why I sometimes struggle to sleep well. supplements because, when I took statins after my stroke, I was Apparently, a reducetarian is someone who still eats some told that CoQ10 would be a big help in managing the muscle animal products but works on reducing them. That’s surely a good aches often associated with statin use – and it did. The problem thing because it can only mean eating more plants, but we're wary was the cost and the way its availability was managed. of it for anyone with a diagnosed lifestyle condition of the type Dr The chemist shop I bought from regularly ran half-price specials Ralph Koelmeyer describes on p19. on the product which would cost $60 one week but only $30 a The Reducetarian Foundation is based in Los Angeles, California, few days later. Once, when we were particularly tight for cash, where its founder Brian Kateman works hard to further its cause. I went in only to be told that I should have come in a couple of His efforts were recognised with an article in Time magazine days earlier when the half-price offer was running. The woman in June last year so reducetarianism, I’ve concluded, must be a behind the counter insisted on the $60 price so I’ve probably had thing. I only wish we could hear more about it in the southern a negative attitude towards chemist shops ever since. hemisphere. To be fair though, having seen the medications my mother took Our discussion with Dr Darren Morton and the resulting article over the last days of her life, I think I developed an aversion to pills on p10 is this issue's absolute bonus. Morton is not only an from childhood. So, if you’ve read it already, you can well imagine expert in the field of Lifestyle Medicine, he's also internationally why T Collin Campbell’s book Whole was such an eye-opening recognised as one of its foremost exponents. read over the last few weeks. He passionately encourages us to take charge of our health and Campbell talks about a reductionist approach to nutrition and I has real concern that health systems look set to be overwhelmed. take a tilt at explaining this in an article on p42. It’s a fascinating He plumbs the deeper meaning of wellness and points out why subject but one which I still find a level of confusion surrounds, our good health is much more than a medical solution. If that even amongst some long-term WFPB advocates. thought arouses your curiosity then turn to the centrespread (34For me, if supplements are generally not a good idea, how 35) where we explore the meaning of awe.
Covers
Viewpoints
Front & Back
Whole Food Living (ISSN 2624-4101 Print. ISSN 2703-4313 - Digital, is subject to copyright in its entirety. The views expressed in this publication are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of Iclay Media. No responsibility will be accepted for unsolicited material. No liability is accepted by Iclay Media, the publisher, nor the authors for information contained in this magazine. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and veracity of all content in this publication but neither Whole Food Living nor its publisher Iclay Media is responsible for damage or harm of whatever description resulting from persons using any advice, consuming any product or using any services in Whole Food Living's print, electronic publication or website.
Nicole Morgan
Contact us
67 Kayes Road, Pukekohe, Auckland, New Zealand 2120 p. (Peter) +64 27 218 5948 e. editor@wholefoodliving.life w. www.wholefoodliving.life
Producers Editor: Peter Barclay e: peter@wholefoodliving.life
Food Editor: Catherine Barclay, e: catherine@wholefoodliving.life
Printer: Inkwise, Christchurch Distributors: Are Direct, NZ Post & Iclay Media Contributions & Assistance Contributions & assistance on this issue is gratefully acknowledged from the following: Innes Hope, Janice Carter, Karen Crowley, Dr Mark Craig, Dr Martyn Williamson, Dr Darren Morton, Nicole Morgan, Dr Ralph Koelmeyer, Silva Mirovics, Stephanie Manzinali, Jessica Lamb, Polly Baptist.
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CONTENTS 12
34
10
General Features 10. Lifestyle Medicine
30. Fasting for chemo
Dr Darren Morton dives into the details on what makes it such a grassroots effort.
Does it produce a better outcome for patients? Dr Greger reviews.
14. ELIA - healing & hope
34. The awe experience
Lifestyle Meicine Coach, Janice Carter, explains what ELIA is all about.
18. Food prescriptions Dr Koelmeyer unveils what ailments they can help.
22. Building a better brain Silva Mirovics - walking your brain to better health.
26. Little steps matter
Innes Hope outlines some of the steps that count.
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It happens almost everywhere according to Dacher Keltner. But what moves you?
38. Camouflage & mice How fake news baffles both humans and rodents alike.
42. Reductionism It now rules science and the whole of healthcare.
44. Dietary change The AA experience has some interesting comparisons.
50. Diverticulitis What causes diverticulitis and does more fibre help this gut issue?
56. Brewed meat burgers Can they help save the planet or will rampant commercialism finally face the yuk factor?
References Many of the articles published in this magazine refer to scientific studies. To view these studies use the QR code or go to the url below.
Click or scan QR image for references. wholefoodliving.life/references-winter-2023
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The inside goss "It's really hard to follow through on healthy lifestyle behaviours if your mental health is suffering." - Dr Darren Morten
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just don't know where to start."
Recipes Inject more nutirents into your life. Some incredible combos in this must-try dish.
17. Tofu Mac & Cheese Another well tried and tested Janice Carter creation. Great twist on a traditional dish.
21. Mozzarella sticks
- Janice Carter
33. Fancy some Veeze? This low-fat plant-based filling contains hummus with cumin and a great cheesy flavour . A spicy Thai larb as you have never tasted before. Another Nicole Morgan creation.
37. Tofu crustless quiche Super easy, and definitely a crowd pleaser this one.
27. Turmeric cauliflower
45. Butterbean casserole
32. Potage A traditional European creation that goes back yonks.
Butterbean, potato & mushroom casserole delight.
49. Dressing is up Three taste tempting dressings you'll want to try.
Our little steps do add up. This gives me hope, and the strength to carry on."
34. Chilli tofu larb
Vegan babe Stephanie Manzinall does yum so well! An exquisite creation. A whole healthy dish of sheer delight.
human is to be healthy but more often than not, we
28 13. Miso cabbage
"The deep desire of every
- Innes Hope "Awe is almost always nearby, and is a pathway to healing and growing in the face of the losses and traumas that are part of life." - Dr Dacher Keltner
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TURMERIC CAULIFLOWER WITH CHICKPEAS, JALAPEÑO AND GARLIC / TAHINI SAUCE This exquisite dsih contains healthy fats, and is a wholesome meal or side that can be added to any part of your whole food plant based menu. by Polly Baptist | Instagram @pollybaptist | serves 4 INGREDIENTS 1 cauliflower - broken into small florets 1 jalapeño sliced 8 cloves of garlic skins on 1 tin organic chickpeas drained -keep aqua faba in a glass jar for future use ( mousse / cookies / cake ) 2 tbsp dried organic turmeric 2 tsp chipotle powder 1 tbsp Spanish smoked paprika 1 tsp salt 2 tbsp olive oil (optional) 1/2 lemon squeezed Cracked black pepper Tahini sauce 2 tbsp tahini - hulled 1 scant tbsp maple syrup 2 tbsp lemon juice enough cold water to loosen the mixture salt Pickled shallot 1/2 finely sliced banana shallot 2 tbsp Apple cider vinegar 2 tsp maple syrup pinch of salt Crunchy puffed quinoa 1/2 cup puffed quinoa 1/2 tsp dried organic turmeric pinch cracked pepper pinch of salt 1 tbsp coconut oil (optional) 2 tsp maple syrup To serve 1 cup of coriander leaves 1 avocado sliced 1 spring onion sliced finely METHOD 1. Turn the oven on to Gas mark 6 / 200°C / 400°F 2. Prepare a baking tray with baking paper - large enough to hold the cauliflower florets. 3. Prepare a small baking tray with baking paper - for the quinoa puffs. 4. Pickled banana shallot - Mix the apple cider vinegar and maple syrup together, in a non reactive bowl. Add the finely sliced banana shallot to the bowl and toss well with a small pinch of salt and set aside. 5. Cauliflower - Break the cauliflower into small florets taking them off the main core and place them in a large bowl and drizzle over the olive oil or water 24 wholefoodliving.life | Winter 2023
and toss well. Sprinkle on the spices, salt and pepper and toss well, before tossing in the garlic cloves and lemon juice. 6. Spread over the prepared baking tray and place in the middle of the oven, and roast for 20 mins. 7. Whilst the cauliflower is in the oven put the sliced jalapeño and chickpeas into the bowl that the cauliflower had been tossed in and toss again with the oil and spices left in the bowl. If you want to add more feel free to add some more spices. It is all dependent on the site of your cauliflower as to how much of the spice mix is used ! 8. After 20mins take the cauliflower out of the oven and add the chickpeas and jalapeños and toss everything on the baking tray. 9. Place back in the oven for another 20 mins, before tossing and allowing to cook for another 10mins, before removing and resting on the bench. 10. Quinoa - Prepare the puffed quinoa by tossing it in a bowl with the turmeric, pepper, salt, coconut oil and maple syrup and place on the prepared baking tray and place in the oven when you place the cauliflower back in the oven with the chickpeas and jalapeño. 11. Check the quinoa puffs after 20 mins and toss and then place back in the oven for another 20 before taking out to cool and crisp up - do not let them burn, so keep checking on them, every 10 mins. 12. Tahini sauce - Whilst the cauliflower was cooking prepare the tahini sauce. Place the tahini, lemon juice, maple syrup and salt in a bowl and mix well. Add water slowly to loosen the mixture. Taste and season with some more salt or lemon juice. 13. Lay some of the sauce on a platter and place the cauliflower, chickpeas and jalapeño top with sliced avocado, sliced spring onions, and coriander leaves, sprinkling on some of the crispy quinoa, Serve the roasted cauliflower with extra sauce on the side and some baby spinach. Some of the health benefits of this meal consist of being high in fibre, having over 14 different plants in it, full of antioxidants, sulforaphane an antioxidant that is good in helping suppress cancer, reducing high blood pressure and helps in keeping the arteries clean. It is low in carbohydrates, and high in whole foods, the quinoa is a pyseudograin and is packed full of flavonoids which are anti inflammatory, it is gluten free and is a great source of protein. Using the leaves of the cauliflower helps in less wastage and also adds a different element to the dish.
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Little Steps to a Lower-carbon Kitchen by Innes Hope Political and collective action is key. If we, as individuals, shoulder the blame, judging each other and bearing the burden of every solution, it lets corporates and rampant profiteers off the hook..
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he kitchen: heart of the home, where lowering our carbon footprint can happen in leaps and bounds while we enjoy the whole process! Well, that’s what I was enthusing about with a chap I met recently. We were discussing how the world could be a better place, and the conversation was going well - until. “Climate change,” he scowled. “They’re calling it the climate crisis now. We have a housing crisis, a cost-of-living crisis. Climate change, yes, but not a crisis. They want to blame us. We can’t fix the problem, but they want us to think we can, get us buying green this and that. More stuff. Bad for the environment. Good for business. Eating plants and alternative transport isn’t going to save the world. Being all caught up in little feel-good steps like that distracts us from pressuring the government. They’re the ones who have to step up. Corporates and governments around the world. The big players. The system has to change.” I was about to agree about stepping up, but he kept talking. “They want us to drink oat milk, stop cooking with gas, give up meat and cheese, buy an electric car. All that lithium, plastic, and metal ... bad for the environment. As for those plant milk tetra paks. It’s pollution. I’m passionate about the environment ... That’s where we can really make a difference.” I didn’t mention the obvious; that climate change is devastating the environment. But I was interested to hear what he’s doing. Ditching plastic, composting, tree planting, beach clean-ups, op-shopping. Reducing, reusing, repurposing, recycling. On an individual level, the same little feel-good steps I’m taking. Except. He is avoiding alternative transport, regenerative energy and plant-based eating, the very areas Big Oil and Big Ag want us to avoid. Where individuals can make a noticeable difference. Interesting. We parted agreeing, though, that political and collective action is key. If we, as individuals, shoulder the blame, judging each other and bearing the burden of every solution, it lets corporates and rampant profiteers off the hook. This intensifies
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the problem, and everyone suffers more. Especially the increasingly disenfranchised poor. No single person or country can save the world. But as individuals supporting wider-good action campaigns, voting, living more in harmony with nature, and helping each other in the community, we’re part of the movement effecting change. Our little steps do add up. This gives me hope, and the strength to carry on. If we ever meet again and he asks for ‘little step’ kitchen tips, I hope he’ll enjoy chatting over a delicious plant-based lunch…
Reduce •
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•
•
•
•
Using fewer luxury and imported ingredients and replacing them with locally grown and manufactured foods reduces food-mile emissions and strengthens food security. Walnuts, for example, instead of cashews. Australian sultanas and staples we can’t grow, instead of those from the other side of the planet. Keeping everything visible in the pantry and fridge helps reduce waste when ‘out of sight, out of mind’ ingredients pass their use-by date. Getting creative with left-overs and unused produce helps get us closer to zero waste. If you have a juicer, juice vege stalks, and other produce you might otherwise throw out. Great for stock. Walking, cycling, mobility-scooting and taking public transport to the shops reduces fossil fuel use. If you can’t, and you don’t have an electric or hybrid car, make fewer, more efficient trips. Maybe take turns with another household. Cooking without oil and fat radically reduces the need for dish detergent, helps prevent ‘fat-bergs’ forming in drains, and results in healthier grey-water and healthier air. Pressure cooking uses much less energy, saves a lot of time, and makes food more digestible. More nutrients
Café Chair Innes Hope
He’s leaning back in a café chair, Staring at the atmosphere. How much C02’s up there? Evidence shows more than enough. Thousands of scientists measure the stuff, (In ‘parts per million’ they report, Writing ‘ppm’ for short). He searches the web - danger, danger! Four-Seventeen? That is major! Three Fifty should be the max. His stomach churns, he can’t relax. Cries ‘Waiter! Can I change my order? Can I have the plant-based burger?’ He sits on the edge of that plastic chair, Staring at the atmosphere •
If you’ve no room to grow food, or the landlord won’t even allow pot plants, guerrilla gardening or a community garden might be for you. Guerrilla gardening is growing food on neglected public land.
Recycle • •
•
•
•
are made available too. Great for beans and beetroot! Being minimalistic with cleaning and personal care products, reduces our environmental footprint. Using fewer products from businesses that aren’t ‘greenwashing,’ helps up-the-ante in the marketplace. Choosing essential appliances with a good energy-star rating, and resisting the impulse to buy novel, singleapplication electrical gadgets that end up not being used, reduces the plundering of the world’s natural resources, and junk in landfills. Choosing an electric stove rather than gas reduces fossil fuel use. New research also reveals that regular fumes from cooking with gas indoors is damaging to our health. Filling the dishwasher before using it, turning taps and lights off when not in use, covering the pot when steaming or boiling – we do that already, surely?
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Reuse & Repurpose • •
• •
Reusing glass jars adds value to homemade pickles and jams. Using reusable ‘unpaper’ towels, cloth serviettes, tablemats in natural materials, and waxed-cloth food wraps and bowl covers, is better for the environment. Motel shower caps make great bowl covers! Or reuse Gran's food covers or make some from old net curtains. Using mum’s old hand utensils saves electricity, strengthens the arm muscles, and enhances your retro kitchen look. Great to have in a power cut.
•
It is better to avoid buying products that need to be recycled. A worrying amount of stuff we put out for recycling is not recycled, despite it being clean and in the right categories. Recycling as the final straw helps us prevent, reduce, reuse, and repurpose, avoiding waste in the first place. Tetra Pak/aseptic cartons can now be recycled. They’re made into building board by saveboard.nz. Pressure your local council to provide this service. Soft plastics can also now be recycled. They’re made into planter boxes and fence posts. Find your nearest depot via recycling.kiwi.nz/store-locator Eating plant-based creates more food scraps for composting and worm-farms than traditional diets. Healthier soil, healthier plants. Using genuinely compostable products, e.g. sponges, wooden brushes, etc, causes less pollution. Packaging made of natural materials can be composted, reused, and more effectively recycled, e.g. oatmeal in paper bags, peanut butter in glass jars. Don’t be fooled by brown-paper-looking plastic. Check the compostability of plastic-lined paper and card. When the plastic lining in your jute shopping bag is disintegrating, (see image) peel it off and put it in the soft plastic recycling. The bag looks as good as new. Happy, sustainable, eco-shopping!
Innes Hope works in the arts, crafting thoughts into words, verses and recipes for a better world.
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POTAGE A One Pot ‘Stewe’ - History’s Sustenance Food – by Innes Hope
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otage, the traditional staple food across Europe for centuries, often included foraged roots and greens. Everyone ate it in one form or another. The wealthy enjoyed various exotic varieties based on meat, fish, or game, while the average worker made do with vegetables, herbs, and grain. Potage kept thousands of people alive during times of famine. When affluent families started planting cottage vegetable and herb gardens, sometimes with a fruit tree or two on the perimeter, these became known, and still are in some places, as ‘potagers.’ Pease Porridge, valued by common folk in Old Britain is a potage made of dried yellow peas, boiled until they’re as thick as hummus. Today’s version is Pea & Ham Soup. Minus the ham, it’s a delicious way to enjoy natural, un-processed pea protein. Dhal, the Indian version, is spiced with cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli, and so on. Yum! Minestrone is a popular Italian version. For Native Americans, corn and beans were used, and sometimes acorns, chestnuts, or walnuts were added. Yes, under many different traditional names, and in many forms, potage is eaten around the world, with vegetables included or served alongside the thick grain or legume mush. Sweet forms of English and French potage, made with grains, dairy milk, or almond milk, became known as porridge.
If you fancy venturing into the romantic realm of savoury medieval English potage recipes, gather some oatmeal, violet & strawberry leaves, endive & chicory, marigold flowers, scallions, spinach, parsley, wild prickly-oxtongue herbs, and mutton offcuts. Hmm … prickly herbs and mutton? Maybe not so romantic after all! Food is a symbol of social status, with meat at the top of the ladder, and weeds at the bottom. Ironically, peasants working outdoors anywhere in the world who could eat sufficient amounts of good potage, and very small amounts of animal food, may well have been healthier than the privileged ruling class. Now we know why; the rich grabbed most of the animal food, and the poor only got enough to supply essential Vit B12. The bulk of their diet was plant-based whole foods. Meanwhile, here we are in 2023, shopping bag in hand, musing on what’s on the shop shelves. I’ve a surprise for you. Take a close look at a packet of ordinary soup mix. Yes! - it is potage mix! The basic ingredients, cereal and legumes! Cook as is or add veges of your choice. Still nourishing us to this day, potage has got what it takes to see us through hard times. Make it your own way, as thick or thin as you like, and you’re keeping ancient cultural traditions alive, and yourself well.
INGREDIENTS
METHOD
•
Water, or saved vegetable-cooking water.
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Either soup mix, or a small amount of whole grain of your choice, e.g. buckwheat, corn, kibbled wheat, barley, steel-cut oats, and nowadays, quinoa, amaranth, etc.
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Legumes, e.g. fresh, canned, or dried, e.g. peas, beans, mung beans, lentils, etc.
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Fresh or frozen vegetables, root veges and greens.
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Optional extras; edible flowerheads of cabbage, herbs, spices, etc.
1. Soak any large dried grains and beans, chickpeas, etc, overnight. 2. Boil these in the water or vege water until everything is soft. If you’ve a pressure cooker, this won’t take long at all. If top-cooking, stir occasionally to prevent the ingredients sticking to the bottom of the pot. Add more water if necessary. 3. Add any quick-cooking grains, e.g. quinoa, (strictly speaking, quinoa isn’t a grain, but that is irrelevant). Keep the pot gently simmering and keep stirring if necessary. 4. While the brew is stewing, chop or grate the root veges and toss them in, then the greens, herbs and spices of your choice. Cook everything a little longer until the flavours merge. Taste and tweak by adding the likes of a little lemon juice, salt, or extra seasonings, then you’re done! Serve with bread to dip into the potage. Either serve it sliced in thick ‘sops’ (strips) or break the bread as you eat.
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'Camouflage' hides seeds & cuts losses over 60%
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"When a food is too difficult to find, or an odour is not a useful indicator of food, foragers must give up and search for something else to avoid wasting energy."
or as long as humans have grown our own food, we have battled pest animals that destroy crops and take food for themselves. The traditional approach has been to try to kill the pests, typically with poisons. Too often, however, this fails to kill enough pests, harms native animals, and only minimally reduces damage. We tackled this problem in a different way by asking: how do we stop hungry animals finding our crops in the first place? In a research paper published last month, we show how “chemical camouflage” can prevent house mice from finding newly sown wheat seeds. The method reduced mouse damage to wheat crops by more than 60% even during plague conditions, without killing a single mouse.
The rodent menace Rodents are responsible for an estimated 70 million tonnes of grain lost worldwide each year. Even a 5% reduction in these losses could feed more than 280 million people. In Australia, the 2021 mouse plague cost farmers in New South Wales alone upwards of $1 billion, according to an industry association estimate. A mouse plague occurs somewhere in Australia at least every four years. Currently, the only management option to reduce mouse numbers is broad-scale baiting. However, baiting is often ineffective and has led to calls for more lethal poisons, which carry major risks for native wildlife. The relationship between baiting effort and crop yield is not well understood, and mouse numbers typically crash in plague years even without intervention. A better approach is to focus on reducing mouse impacts, rather than mouse numbers.
How to fool a mouse Mouse damage to Australia’s most valuable crop, wheat, occurs mostly in the two weeks between sowing and germination. During this time, mice are attracted to the smell of the wheat germ – the nutritious and fatty part of the seed – beneath the ground, and they learn to dig up seeds with pinpoint accuracy, leading to significant crop losses. This led to our question: can we hide the seeds so mice can’t find them? Like many animals, mice primarily use their sense of smell to find food. The world is full of odours, and hungry foragers must prioritise important smells and disregard useless ones. When a food is too difficult to find, or an odour is not a useful indicator of food, foragers must give up and search for something else to avoid wasting energy. Because hungry animals can’t afford to waste effort on odours that don’t lead to food, they are vulnerable to olfactory misinformation and chemical camouflage. As with visual camouflage, if the background, in this case, smell, appears the same as the item we are trying to hide, the target item cannot be distinguished. Animals can also learn about the usefulness of information,
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For several years now, a group of conservation experts from the University of Sydney have been working on ways to outfox rodents that come to destroy almost every food crop we humans grow. In the following article, republished under Creative Commons license from The Conversation, Professor Peter Banks and his associates, Finn Cameron Gillies Parker, Catherine Price and Jenna Bytheway, explain how they made it happen. making them vulnerable to another form of misinformation – odour pre-exposure. By deploying food odours before food is available, foragers initially attracted to the odour repeatedly receive no reward and learn to ignore it. When the food does become available, foragers don’t follow the odours because they know they’re unrewarding. We recently used this technique to dramatically improve nest survival for threatened shorebirds at risk from by predation by invasive predators in New Zealand.
A test under tough conditions Until now, these techniques have been tested on relatively widely dispersed food items with fewer foragers over a larger area. Whether olfactory misinformation could protect a crop with more than 300 mice and 1.6 million seeds per hectare was unclear. We worked on a 27-hectare wheat paddock in southwest NSW, using 60 plots to test our two olfactory misinformation techniques. We used wheat germ oil to provide the odour background, as it is made from the part of wheat seeds that mice seek out and is a relatively cheap byproduct of the wheat-milling process. Both techniques involved spraying a fine mist of wheat germ oil solution onto the plots. Each application was equivalent to the smell of around 50 times the number of seeds on the plot. Our first technique, odour camouflage, began immediately after the crop was planted and was reapplied several times until seedlings appeared. This created a blanket of wheat odour to hide seeds from detection. Our second technique, odour pre-exposure, had wheat germ oil applied six days before the wheat crop was planted and continued for the week after. We predicted that mice attracted to the odour before seeds were planted would begin to ignore wheat odour after repeatedly finding no seeds. We also had three control treatments: one sprayed with canola oil to control for an oil effect, one we walked on without spraying to control for seed loss due to trampling, and one that remained totally untouched. One and two weeks after sowing, we counted mouse damage in the form of diggings where seeds had been extracted by mice. After two weeks, we also estimated the number of seedlings that
were lost to mice. The results were staggering. After two weeks, our camouflage and pre-exposure treatments had reduced mouse damage by 63% and 74% respectively, compared to the control. We also estimated that 53% and 72% fewer seedlings, respectively, were lost to mice on these plots. The difference in the effect of pre-exposure to wheat odour and the effect of camouflage treatments was not statistically significant, and we concluded the camouflage effect is the most likely reason for the reduction in damage.
Working with the animals In an increasingly populated world where food security is becoming a priority, we need new ways to tackle pest problems sustainably and safely. Our methods are simple, safe and highly effective, even during a mouse plague. They carry no risks for native wildlife and involve no killing. Mice don’t go hungry either – they simply eat the foods they ate before the wheat was planted. We believe simple behavioural interventions like ours, which work with animals’ motivations rather than against them, are the way of the future in wildlife management and conservation. We believe this new approach has the potential to manage pest impacts without the side effects that come from using lethal pest control.
Footnote: Studies conducted in New Zealand by Prof Peter Banks and Catherine Price, and published in 2021, found that birds are just as easily saved by what they labeled as ‘fake news’.
They determined it was possible to protect endangered shorebirds by spreading misinformation — in the form of bird smells — to deceive predators. This helped reduce the number of birds lost, without using lethal force. The project had its origins 10 years earlier and, at that time, it all seemed a little crazy the authors said. “But after seeing how fake news messes with the minds of both humans and animals, it now makes a lot of sense,” they said. Introduced predator species kill local wildlife. If local species have not evolved with such predators — and so learned to evade them or ward them off — the damage can be devastating. “Alien predators have far more impact than native ones and are a major driver of extinctions. In Australia alone, cats threaten the survival of more than 120 listed species, while foxes threaten 95 species. In the South Pacific the threat is even greater." "Five weeks before the shorebirds arrived for their breeding season in 2016, we mixed the odours with Vaseline and smeared the concoction on hundreds of rocks over two 1,000-hectare study sites. We did this every three days, for three months. The predators were initially attracted to the odours. But within days, after realising the scent would not lead to food, they lost interest and stopped visiting the site. The number of nests destroyed by predators almost halved. As a result, chick production was 1.7 times higher at treated sites compared to control sites over the 25-35 days of the nesting season."
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58 wholefoodliving.life | Winter 2023
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PLANT-BASED TIPS
By Catherine Barclay
CLEANING YOUR BREAD BOARD
Run the cut side of a lemon over the board to remove food stains and smells. For extra cleaning power, sprinkle it with salt or baking soda first.
FLAVOUR POPCORN
ROASTING GARLIC
Need help eating nutritional yeast-flavoured popcorn, try adding balsamic vinegar to a spray bottle. Then, spray the popcorn to make the nutritional yeast stick.
Use your paper cupcake cups .. preheat oven to 190°C, and slice off the top of 12 garlic bulb heads enough to expose the garlic. Place the cups into muffin trays and add water to the paper cups. Place the garlic cut part downwards into the paper cups. Cover with aluminium foil and bake for 35-40 mins.
HOMEMADE LEMON POWDER Keep your lemon peels when you have 6 - 8 lemons worth of peels. Place them on a tray and dry them in the sun or use a dehydrator. Once they are dry, blend until they form a fine powder. Mix with ground pepper and use to flavour chips or wedges.
KEEP AVOCADOS RIPE Put your avocados in the freezer when they are at the proper ripeness. When they are ready to use, run it under warm water and leave it on your counter to thaw. You know when it is ready when you can press your finger into it.
CUTTING HERBS A roll pizza cutter is wonderful for cutting herbs and greens, is quicker and safer than knives and stays sharper for longer.
FREEZE VEGETABLE STOCK Use ice cubes to freeze the extra vegetable stock, and pour them into the individual cubes. When frozen, move them to freezer bags, which are great for sauteing.
HOMEMADE OAT MILK
• 1 cup of oats • 4 cups of water • 1-2 dates (optional to make it sweeter) Blend all ingredients for 30-40 seconds. Pour through a sieve, and you’re done! @PLANTBASEDECOWARRIOR
SPEND TIME IN NATURE
SAVE THOSE JARS If you love those gherkins, you will go through many jars. However, they can be a perfect uniform size for storing dried lentils, nuts, and beans. Once all the gherkins are gone, put them into your dishwasher, and then it will be easy to remove the label.
LED LIGHT BULBS LED bulbs use significantly less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs, which means you can save up to 75% on your energy bill! Not only that, but LED bulbs last up to 25 times longer, which means you won't have to replace them as often.
Are you working from home more? Think about how you can connect with nature from home. Can you bring some nature indoors? Put up pictures of maunga (mountains), whenua (land), moana (oceans), or awa (rivers) that have meaning to you. Listen to nature sounds - birdsong is a lovely background noise while you work. Open the windows as often as you can. Take time daily to feel the sun, the wind, or the rain on your skin. mentalhealth.org.nz
BIG ONION NO, NO!
Never store onions with potatoes. It makes the onions go off more quickly.
GOT SOME GREAT TIPS TO SHARE? CONTACT ME AT CATHERINE@WHOLEFOODLIVING.LIFE wholefoodliving.life | Winter 2023
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Recipe index
37
41
12
24 MAINS
STARTERS | IDEAS Vegan Mozzarella Sticks.............................21 Good For You Granola Bars.......................36
Miso Cabbage With Coconut Yogurt Tahini Dressing..........................................................12 Tofu Mac & Cheese......................................17 Turmeric Cauliflower With Chickpeas.....24 Potage.............................................................28 Toasted Veeze Sandwich.............................32 Chilli Cashew Tofu Larb...............................33 Tofu Crustless Quiche..................................37 Lentil Mushroom Loaf..................................40 Roast Pumpkin & Chickpea Moroccan Soup ...............................................................41 Chilli Cheese Fries........................................44 Potato, Butter Bean & Mushroom Casserole........................................................45 Simple Saag Aloo..........................................52
56 SAUCES | CHUTNEYS | DESSERTS No Egg Hollandaise.....................................49 Ranch Dressing.............................................49 Hot Yellow Mustard.....................................49 Air Fried Pineapple......................................53 Banana Bread Bliss Balls............................56 Sticky Lemon Muffins.................................57
Tried our Recipes? Show us your creation! Mention @wholefoodliving.life and tag #wholefoodliving.life
66 wholefoodliving.life | Winter 2023
WFPB's Food Groups Based on the guide developed by PCRM (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine) in 1991
FRUIT
3 or more servings a day
LEGUMES
2 or more servings a day
Full of vitamin C and beta carotene, fruit is also rich in fibre. You should include at least one serving of fruit per day. Fruits are full of flavour, make a welcome afternoon filler and are great as a night time desert. They're best eaten whole because your gut benefits from their soft fibre.
Beans, peas and lentils are your key source for good fibre, protein, iron, calcium, zinc and B vitamins. In this group you can also include items such as chickpeas, baked and refined beans, soy milk, tempeh and vegetable protein.
Serving sizes: 1 medium piece of fruit, 1/2 cup cooked fruit, 4 ounces juice.
Serving sizes: 1/2 cups cooked beans, 4 ounces tofu or tempeh, 8 ounces Soy Milk.
NUTS AND SEEDS 1 or more servings
Serving: 1/4 cup nuts or seeds
WHOLE GRAINS 5 or more servings a day
The wholegrain list is large. Here is a sample: barley, freekeh, whole rye, brown rice, oats, wheat, buckwheat, bulgur, quinoa, whole wheat couscous, corn, millet. Build meals around hearty grain dishes. They’re rich in essential fibre, complex carbohydrates, protein, B Vitamins and zinc. Great for breakfast. Serving sizes: 1/2 cup hot cereal, 1/4 cup dry cereal, 1 slice bread
VEGETABLES
4 or more servings a day Vegetables are your essential nutrient injection. Dark green leafy vegetables such as broccoli, collards, kale, mustard and turnip greens, chicory or bok choy are all good sources of important nutrients. They provide vitamin C, beta-carotene, riboflavin, iron, calcium, fibre and more. Extra beta-carotene comes from dark yellow and orange vegetables such as carrot, squash, sweet potatoes and pumpkin. Don’t be afraid to eat generous amounts. Load up your plate! Serving sizes: 1 cup raw vegetables, 1/2 cup cooked vegetables
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