We try—though sometimes we forget—to keep up a Meatless Monday posting tradition, and part of the inspiration to do it is this book: The China Study. We’ve been talking about it for some time now, but given that it’s a pretty dense read, we think it’s brill that our friends at Well+Good have put together a cheat sheet. Have you read it yet? If not, it’s your lucky day…

The China Study is one of those weighty, groundbreaking books that is perhaps more talked about than actually read.

We understand why: At 417 pages, with lots of nutrition facts and stats, it’s a lot to digest.

So we read it cover-to-cover for you, taking notes along the way. Understanding the book’s thesis has incredible implications for your health—like meat and dairy are way worse for you than you or your doctor could have known.

Here is your 10-step cheat sheet to everything in The China Study you need to know, plus a summary.

And if you’ve read it yourself, please add to our Cliff’s Notes in the Comments section below!

Summary: What is The China Study? It’s the largest comprehensive study of human nutrition ever conducted. It was launched via a partnership between Cornell University, Oxford University, and the Chinese Academy of Preventative Medicine. The groundbreaking results from the study (and other influential nutrition research) recommend the best diet for long-term health.

1. American health statistics are scary. You may feel fit as a fiddle, but the country is unwell. Almost a third of adults over 20 are obese; one out of thirteen people have diabetes; and heart disease kills one out of every three Americans. We also pay more for our health care than any other country, and we don’t have better health to show for it.

2. Animal protein promotes the growth of cancer. The book author T. Colin Campbell, PhD., grew up on a dairy farm, so he regularly enjoyed a wholesome glass of milk. Not anymore.

In multiple, peer-reviewed animal studies, researchers discovered that they could actually turn the growth of cancer cells on and off by raising and lowering doses of casein, the main protein found in cow’s milk.

3. Pesticides are gross, but none switch on cancer like poor nutrition. The food you eat affects the way your cells interact with carcinogens, making them more or less dangerous. “The results of these, and many other studies, showed nutrition to be far more important in controlling cancer promotion than the dose of the initiating carcinogen.”

4. The study findings are bulletproof. After years of controversial lab results on animals, the researchers had to see how they played out in humans. The study they created included 367 variables, 65 counties in China, and 6,500 adults (who completed questionnaires, blood tests, etc.). “When we were done, we had more than 8,000 statistically significant associations between lifestyle, diet, and disease variables.” In other words, there’s no arguing with the findings, Meat Council of America. Sorry.

5. The results are simple: Eat plants for health. “People who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease. People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest.”

Read the last five points over here, and let us know your thoughts in the comments.

This post comes via our friends over at Well+Good. Tell us what you think about this research in the comments! Have you seen a link between dairy, sugar and your skin?

Turns out, if you’re following the USDA nutrition guidelines of MyPlate and getting your 3 servings of dairy a day, you’re inviting a face full of pimples.

Confirming the long-suspected link between dairy products and acne is a systematic review of 21 observational studies and six clinical trials conducted over 2009 and 2010.

While the link between dairy and acne isn’t news to the holistic community—or most facialists—it is to the medical one, which has come up with drug after zit-fighting drug to treat something that’s not about the skin at all.

Keep reading the post here.

Siobhan here! Below is a post from our friends at Well+Good and I couldn’t be more happy to read it. I’ve long suspected arnica would be great for undereyes, where the capillaries and skin are so delicate, because it’s terrific on bruises. I use arnica gel on my frequent leg bruises, and feel it works wonders to speed healing. I have even joked to friends that arnica is my magic bruise eraser. It doesn’t work immediately, but I find I heal more quickly than if I were to leave the sucker alone. In any case, try it on your booboos, and without further ado:

Magic-sounding ingredients abound in eye creams that promise to de-puff, unwrinkle, and lighten dark circles.

One simple ingredient that may actually do something for these skin-care woes? Arnica montana, a decidedly low-profile botanical that’s widely used in homeopathic medicine for bruising and massage oil for sore muscles.

How it works? “Anti-inflammatory arnica is one of the best known herbs for dispersing trapped fluids, which is why we use it in our Restorative Eye Creme,” explains Tata Harper, the formulator-founder of the luxury natural line, who also grows the herb on her Vermont farm. “It works by stimulating the activity of white blood cells to relieve congestion, thereby reducing under-eye bags,” says Harper.

Mmmm. We love Tata’s eye cream. Read the rest, and Melisse’s product recommendations here.

Have you ever tried arnica?

Image via

Because the search for great natch deodorants is ongoing—and because not everyone has had success with our favorites—we thought we’d share this new review from Well+Good:

When we tested four natural deodorants this past March to see if they would be there for us (and our neighbors) as we sweat our way through power yoga and boot camps, we discovered both stellar options and serious stinkers.

Now, a new deodorant, Pure Pitz, has entered the market just in time for 90-degree outdoor yoga in New York City. We took it for a test run (well, several runs, and to a July 4 BBQ).
Keep reading here. Have any of you tried this brand?

Hilarious image via an earlier post

Those who abide by a monthly beauty budget that’s less than a cellphone bill can find department store counters pretty disappointing. But the solution isn’t necessarily found at Sephora or Duane Reade, especially if you like natural and organic ingredients.

So we’ve pulled together a list of nine natural and organic beauty brands from sources that won’t break the bank. These clean skin-care picks don’t skimp on quality, and cost less than $45 for a moisturizer or serum.

That’s half the cost of a cell-phone bill—and most of these will last you a couple months. Hear your new products calling?

Pangea Organics

A unisex favorite in plantable boxes.
Average cost of a moisturizer: $36
Fave: Moroccan Argan with Willow & Rosemary Facial Cream
Buy it at Whole Foods or www.pangeaorganics.com

Weleda

A 90-year-old line of biodynamic skin-soothers made in Germany.
Moisturizer: $18–$33
Fave: Pomegranate Firming Day Cream
Buy it at C.O. Bigelow or www.usa.weleda.com

John Masters Organics

Skin care from the famed eco-friendly hair stylist.
Moisturizer: $28–$44
Fave: Pomegranate Facial Nourishing Oil
Buy it at Whole Foods or www.johnmasters.com

Keep reading here! And tell us: What’s your favorite natural moisturizer?

After all that lead talk, it’s no wonder that our friends at Well+Good went on a natural lipstick hunt. We’ve had lipstick on the brain too. Below is their post “7 natural red lipsticks that perform”—got any to add to the list? (Note: Not all of these are truly clean—we’re looking at you Korres—but the author says as much.)

There’s nothing more classic than a strong, crimson pout. (At least in my beauty world.) But many vibrant-hued lipsticks are packed with lip-drying chemicals, “accidental ingredients” like lead, and mineral-oil bases meant to lubricate bike chains not your lips. I get that pigments are still primarily chemical- and insect-derived, but what about the other 98 percent of my lipstick?

Is it possible to find a red lipstick that’s both highly natural and high-performance? We put seven reds to the test:

Vapour Organic Beauty Lipstick, $22, www.vapourbeauty.com

Shade we tried: Siren Tryst 412

Best for: Creating a matte, bee-stung look.
This red weighs in somewhere between a lip balm and a stain, but the color lasts for hours and fades naturally and evenly. Even better, it comes in sixteen shades.

What’s in it: 70 percent certified organic ingredients, wildcrafted botanicals, no chemicals, and beeswax and jojoba for base ingredients. Made with wind power, and sold in sleek yet biodegradable packaging.

Christopher Drummond Beauty Creamy Lip Stain, $22.50, www.christopherdrummond.com

Shade we tried: Arouse

Best for: Those who want a true, bold red with wet-look color. The first application goes on sheer, but it layers to desired (smoking hot) intensity, and is surprisingly long wearing. It comes in a small compact with mirror and mini brush.

What’s in it: For a killer color, it’s a pretty simple ingredient list of mostly organic jojoba seed oil, aloe leaf gel, beeswax, pomegranate, and grape seed extracts, and vitamin E.

Korres Raspberry Liquid Lipstick, $22, www.korresusa.com

Shade we tried: 56 Red

Best for: Liquid-gloss lovers.
It slicks on like a liquid gloss with a wand and quickly dries to a lush lipstick finish, making it a good day or night lip product. Though its prone to feathering at the lip line, it keeps lips soft for hours.

What’s in it: Korres’ marquee ingredients are antioxidant raspberry and pomegranate extracts and certified organic acai oil. The product is also free of parabens, mineral oil, and propylene glycol. But if you consult the list of ingredients, you’ll see it’s not a chemical-free or a truly all-natural choice.

Keep reading at Well+Good

This just in from our friends at Well+Good via our old hometown newspaper, the Montreal Gazette…

You won’t see heavy metals like arsenic, lead, and mercury listed on your beauty product labels. But that doesn’t mean your skin care and makeup is free of them. In fact, your best-selling Sephora lip gloss looks to be loaded with arsenic and other known toxins.

A Canadian environmental group recently had 49 popular beauty products tested for heavy metals, and was surprised to find just how many traditional beauty products (ie: chemically formulated ones) contained these “unintentional” ingredients.

Lead was detected in 96 percent of the products, arsenic in 20 percent, and cadmium in 51 percent, according to the Montreal Gazette, which published the report findings.

If these concentrations were found in milk, there would be a nationwide uproar if not a product recall. So why are these toxins tolerated in skin care?

Keep reading at Well+Good

Below is a post from Well+GoodNYC, a web site devoted to beauty, health, wellness in its many forms that we absolutely love. We had no idea that agave contained so much fructose—did you?

Agave syrup has been touted as a miracle sweetener, one you can use worry-free thanks to its status as a low-glycemic food. But now a debate is brewing over just how healthy the sweetener is, in part because of what nets its low-glycemic ranking: its high fructose content.

Agave syrups can have a fructose content of 90 percent. (Refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup are half fructose and half sucrose.)

And according to some in the wellness community, like Sugar Shock! author Connie Bennett, agave fructose is highly refined. “This makes agave worse than high fructose corn syrup,” says Bennett.
Keep reading.

What sweeteners do YOU use?

Below is a post from Well+GoodNYC, a web site devoted to beauty, health, wellness in its many forms that we absolutely love. Founded by journalists Melisse Gelula and Alexia Brue, W+G has become a go-to for us, and we hope it will be for you, too. You’ll see them around these parts every week, and we’re thrilled to have them!

Cetaphil probably has the best PR of any facial soap. Beauty magazines gush over it as a no-frills $8 must-have. Dermatologists love to recommend it as a mild and non-irritating facial cleanser for two reasons: it doesn’t contain fragrance and, more tellingly, because MDs have a big Pharma love affair with the manufacturer, Galderma, the offspring of Nestlé and L’Oréal, which also makes acne drugs like Differin.

And yet there’s nothing healthy about this face-washing prescription.