DR NANDIT A SHAH

REVERSING DIABETES IN 21 DAYS

A nutrition-based appr oach to diabetes and related problems

Founder-Director, Sharan India

PENGUIN BOOKS
 Contents

Introduction
How to Read This Book

PART I: DIABETES IS REVERSIBLE

1. What Is Diabetes?
2. The Body’s Remarkable Power to Heal
3. Why It’s Important to Reverse Diabetes: The Dreaded
Complications
4. If Diabetes Can Really Be Reversed, Why Isn’t Everyone Doing It?

PART II: CAUSES AND EVIDENCES

5. The Real Causes of Diabetes

6. The Evidence: Scientific Studies

PART III: NUTRITION FACTS

7. Why the Foods We Eat Are Making Us Sick

8. The Natural Diet for Human Beings: The Logic of Plant Foods and
Whole Foods
9. Nutrition Facts

PART IV: DIETARY CHANGES AND CHALLENGES

10. Dairy
11. Meat, Fish, Chicken, Eggs
12. Oil, Ghee and Other Fats
13. Sugar
14. Refined and Processed Foods
15. Tea and Coffee
16. Hormone Disruptors
17. Alcohol, Smoking, Drugs
18. How to Sustain This Lifestyle: Overcoming the Challenges

PART V: PRACTICAL PROCESSES

19. Setting Goals

20. Preparing the Kitchen
21. Planning a Menu
22. Cooking Techniques and Sample Recipes
23. Handling Stress
24. Exercise
25. Winning Social Support

PART VI: MEDICAL CONSIDERATIONS

26. Laboratory Tests

27. Regular Glucometer Checks
28. Reducing Medications
29. Associated Diseases and Medications
30. Troubleshooting
Epilogue
Notes
SHARAN and How We Can Support You
A Note on the Author
Acknowledgements
Follow Penguin
Copyright
To the people with diabetes in India and all over the world, whose health is
in their hands whether they know it yet or not. May this book change their
lives for the better.
 Introduction

64.5 million.

That’s the number of people with diabetes in India as of today, according to

a recent Lancet study.1 Shocking, isn’t it? In fact, India is only second to
China in the ranking for the highest number of diabetics in the world.
In 1981, the year I became a doctor, diabetes affected 5 per cent of the
adult population in India. By the time I completed thirty-four years of
practice, this figure had soared to over 30 per cent! As a young doctor, I
would see patients getting diabetes at the age of fifty or older and
complications came much later. But now, being diagnosed with diabetes in
the teens is not rare, and diabetes-related problems such as metabolic
syndrome, hypertension, hypothyroidism, polycystic ovarian disease,
weight gain—and dreaded ones like kidney failure and retinopathy—are
more common than ever before.
Even doctors are not exempt from it. After my graduation, I volunteered
with our family doctor, who was my teacher and mentor––my inspiration.
Both he and his wife had diabetes and, as time went by, both suffered from
serious complications as a result of it. The doctor finally died from the
dreadful disease and his wife developed gangrene and lost some fingers. I
saw them avoiding rice and sugar but eating plenty of fried foods like sev,
erroneously believing that these foods were high in protein. This was
despite the fact that they were under the care of the best diabetologist in
Mumbai. But at that time, no one seemed to know better.
Today there are many doctors who suffer from diabetes. This is ironic.
We are getting treatment from people who are sick themselves!
Most diabetics find themselves on the road to gradual weight gain,
slowly rising blood sugar levels and higher doses of medication. Going to
the doctor usually means bad news because the number of prescribed
medicines keeps increasing with every visit. It often looks as if there is no
way out. Despite controlling blood sugar levels with diet and medication,
most of them end up suffering from a variety of dreaded complications like
neuropathy, loss of vision, kidney failure, heart attack and gangrene.
Contrary to what you hear, there is a cure for diabetes. But to solve any
problem, we must first understand the cause—and then remove it. The
cause of diabetes is not lack of medication. The cause of diabetes is not
sugar and carbohydrates. The cause of diabetes is insulin resistance and/or
lack of insulin. Hence, the usual advice that most diabetics follow of cutting
down carbohydrates and sugar and taking more medication does not work.
We need to address the cause, first and foremost.
If we can put our finger on the cause of insulin resistance and lack of
insulin, diabetes can be prevented and reversed. This book aims to assist
you with this by identifying the causes of the disease. And the good news is
that anyone can do it.
Reversing diabetes and related lifestyle diseases means freedom from
medications and repeated visits to the lab. Blood glucose values that would
keep rising month after month begin to fall within days or weeks. Spiralling
doses of medication come down too. Reducing medications as the body
heals, one at a time, can result in perfect lab reports and near-perfect health
in a short time. Depending on the age of the patient, duration of the illness,
level of control and number of medications, this could take anywhere from
a few days to a year in most cases.
Over years of clinical practice, it became clear to me that every single
case of diabetes (whether type 1 or type 2) has the potential to improve. The
methodology in this book is not new and is based on scientific evidence. It
has been used and tested by doctors all over the world who have been
teaching their patients to reverse diabetes.
I have conducted to date 150 seminars where more than 5000 participants
have learnt that they can be free of the disease. I have trained fourteen
doctors and nine health coaches and nutritionists who are now teaching
others. In every case where the guidelines are put into practice, positive
results ensue. I have also conducted eight twenty-one-day disease-reversal
retreats, residential programmes where participants experience the magical
healing powers of their own bodies and see the evidence through repeated
lab tests.
The idea to do a diabetes reversal programme arose out of a desire to
challenge the common myth propagated by doctors that diabetes cannot be
cured. So when I was invited by C.B. Ramkumar in May 2010 to conduct
my very first twenty-one-day diabetes reversal programme at his beautiful
Our Native Village eco resort in Bengaluru, I jumped at the idea. This
programme was based on Dr Neal Barnard’s book, Dr Neal Barnard’s
Program for Reversing Diabetes, which in turn is based on research
evidence and clinical trials. My team and I designed a programme for
diabetics of both genders to show them how quickly their blood sugar levels
could be brought down if they embarked upon a whole-food, plant-based
diet for twenty-one days.
We had twenty-one men and women—aged between twenty-nine and
seventy-two—participating in the retreat. The youngest participant was a
twenty-nine-year-old type 1 diabetic. The oldest was a seventy-two-year-old
type 2 diabetic. With the exception of two participants who had type 1
diabetes, the rest of the group had type 2. Apart from diabetes, most of them
also suffered from other health issues such as high blood pressure, obesity,
depression, sleeplessness, migraine, acidity and constipation. All the
participants were on medication for many or all of their problems. They
were people from different parts of India, with varied backgrounds. They
were yoga teachers, professionals, people who led sedentary lifestyles and
those who exercised regularly.
On the very first day of the programme, we conducted an array of
laboratory investigations, including tests for the heart, kidneys, liver,
thyroid, and a check for vitamin B12 and vitamin D.
The logic of the twenty-one-day programme was that these are lifestyle
diseases and it takes at least twenty-one days to change a habit. Our taste
buds change every twenty-one days. So if we can keep off something we
love, which is bad for us, for three weeks, the chances are that it will be
easier to break the habit.
This process was made easy because we served delicious buffet meals
with no calorie counting. Since the food was good, and plentiful, any
scepticism or apprehension that the participants had before starting the
programme vanished as they all got better.
Two of our participants had been walking 10 km a day as a daily habit,
and another two were yoga teachers, despite which they had diabetes. All of
them had their blood sugar levels brought down during the course of our
programme, and, to a large extent, their medications. Besides feeling better,
the patients could see concrete results in the lab tests done at the end of the
programme.
This helped me understand that almost anyone can be helped through this
method; diabetes and its associated health problems can be reversed in a
short time. There was no going back after this.
While some of these people managed to sustain their lifestyle changes,
others did not. Lifestyle changes are difficult because we always feel the
need to be like others. Over the years I have learnt more about helping
people maintain their lifestyle change. I believe it’s easier today than ever
with so many alternatives available and with more and more people doing it
all over India and the world. I will share with you ways to motivate yourself
to stay on track. It’s almost like starting to exercise. There is a chance that
after several weeks, months or years you may give up. It can always be
done again, and the knowledge of how to do it will not go away. However,
we always tend to procrastinate when it comes to starting again, till it’s too
late. It’s better to do as much as you can in a sustainable way and always
keep on improving it.
Although many books have been written about reversing diabetes before,
notably Dr Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes and There Is a
Cure for Diabetes by Gabriel Cousens, this book aims to help the average
Indian succeed in this journey by taking into account Indian customs, tastes
and thought processes, with a comprehensive step-by-step approach that is
easy to follow. And while any lifestyle change is difficult, here I attempt to
make it as simple as possible.
As it takes twenty-one days to change a habit, if you stick to the
programme for at least three weeks or better still, a month, you, like many
others before you, may be reluctant to go back to your old, disease-causing
lifestyle. You will feel so good and will find the new food even more
delicious than what you have been used to.
This book covers:

The cause of the rise in diabetes in India and the world.

How to get rid of diabetes and related illnesses.
How to cook in a way that heals.
How to manage social situations, while travelling or while eating
out, and stick to your healing foods when others eat differently.
How to test and reduce medications when required with the help of
doctors.
How to supplement, if needed.
How to make the changes in a sustainable way to keep the results
for a lifetime.
How to handle stress, one of the major causes of diabetes.
How to eat and live mindfully.

It’s interspersed with testimonials, stories and real-life experiences of past

participants to bring the process to life. This book will be of help to
patients, nutritionists and doctors alike.
It is my wish that my country, India, becomes diabetes-free. Every person
that reverses diabetes will most likely inspire others to heal themselves too.
You, dear reader, have an important role to play, first in changing your own
health destiny and, finally, that of our society.
This book offers you a safe space where all the challenges you are likely
to face on your journey to reverse diabetes will be addressed. Reaching here
is the first step on that road to recovery.
 How to Read This Book

Part I is a general introduction to diabetes where you will not only learn
about the disease, its kinds and causes but also the complications that arise
from it and certain common myths associated with it.
In Chapter 1, you will learn what diabetes really is, as well as the
difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Chapter 2 shows you how your body is your own best doctor most of the
time. It will take you through some of the most common myths that are
responsible for making us sick.
Chapter 3 helps you understand why it’s important to reverse diabetes
and the complications that arise from it.
Chapter 4 attempts to answer two basic questions—one, if diabetes is
reversible, then why isn’t everyone doing it? Two, and more importantly, if
it can be easily prevented, why is it growing at such an alarming rate?

Part II focuses on causes and evidences that will help in understanding

diabetes better.
Chapter 5 divulges the real causes of the disease and how seriously they
affect our body.
Chapter 6 looks at scientific evidences from around the world to show
you that diabetes can indeed be reversed.

Part III looks at nutrition facts.

Chapter 7 makes us pause and think about why the foods we eat are
making us sick. It explains how we are drifting far from what nature meant
us to eat and happily eating processed and chemically grown foods
designed to tempt us and make us eat more.
Chapter 8 explains the logic of plant foods and whole foods. Here, we
take a look at some of the anatomical and physiological characteristics and
habits of our species to understand why a plant-based diet is most
appropriate for us humans.
Chapter 9 will arm you with all the answers to satisfy yourself and to also
explain to your friends and relatives––maybe even your doctor––when they
ask you questions like, ‘Where will I get my proteins on a plant-based
diet?’, ‘If I don’t have milk, will I be calcium deficient?’ and so on.

In Part IV, you will learn how to slowly bring about changes in your diet.
Chapter 10 will debunk the whole dairy myth once and for all. In this
chapter, you will learn how dairy is the biggest contributor to type 1 and
type 2 diabetes.
Chapter 11 will give you enough reasons to avoid animal products for
health and environmental reasons.
Chapter 12 explains fats and how they are the main cause of type 2
diabetes, second only to dairy.
In Chapter 13, you will learn why sugar is bad for you and how it is
actually a chemical and not a food.
Chapter 14 shows you why we should avoid all refined and processed
foods and what the healthier alternatives to it are.
Chapter 15 explains why beverages like tea and coffee need to be
avoided and what you can do to free yourself from these addictions.
Insulin is a hormone, making diabetes a hormonal problem. Chapter 16
will take you through the biggest hormone disruptors, the causes of all
hormonal problems.
Chapter 17 lays emphasis on temperance, the ill effects of the
consumption of alcohol, drugs and tobacco and how you can let go of habits
that are not serving your best interests.
Chapter 18 helps you overcome the challenges of changing habits and
shows you how you can sustainably adopt this lifestyle in a way that you
will never want to go back to your previous ways of living and eating.

Part V involves practical processes.

Chapter 19 will help you set realistic goals and targets.
 In Chapter 20, learn how to prepare the kitchen and make your cooking
and dining experience at home more enjoyable.
Chapter 21 helps you plan a menu by giving you a set of guidelines.
Chapter 22 gives you oil-free cooking techniques and delicious sample
recipes that you can try yourself.
Chapter 23 shows the connection between stress and diet and how to
reduce it so that you can get rid of diabetes and other health problems.
Chapter 24 shows why exercise is important not just to reduce blood
sugar levels but also for general well-being.
Chapter 25 explains how you can win social support during your journey
to health.

Part VI highlights certain medical considerations you have to keep in mind.

Chapter 26 explains the importance of laboratory tests and gives you a
list of essential tests that has to be done before you start this plan.
Chapter 27 will show you why regular glucometer checks are important
to reduce medications and free yourself from the disease.
Chapter 28 talks about medications and how they can be reduced as you
follow our programme.
Chapter 29 takes you through associated diseases, which will also be
addressed by this programme. After all, all these illnesses are connected.
Finally, if you have reached a plateau or are not getting the results you
desire, Chapter 30 on troubleshooting will show you how you can improve
to get the desired results.
Turn the page, and let the healing begin!
 PART I
DIABETES IS REVERSIBLE
 1
What Is Diabetes?

Before embarking on an action plan, let’s first understand what diabetes

really is. It is a disease that affects the body’s ability to produce or use the
hormone insulin. When your body turns the food you eat into energy (also
called sugar or glucose), insulin acts as a ‘key’ to help transport this to the
cells. If you produce little or no insulin, or are insulin-resistant, too much
sugar remains in your blood.
A diabetic person’s blood sugar level will be higher than that of a
relatively healthy person. Ideally, the fasting blood sugar should be around
80 mg/dL (4.4 mmol/L) and the blood sugar two hours after a meal should
be around 120 mg/dL (6.7 mmol/L). Milligrams per decilitre is a unit of
measure that shows the concentration of a substance in a specific amount of
fluid. For our purposes, let us say that if the blood sugar is less than or
equal to120 mg/dL at any given time during the day, diabetes does not exist.

Sugar Metabolism

The carbohydrates we eat are broken down into simple sugars like glucose
through the process of digestion. This glucose can then enter the
bloodstream. Under normal conditions, whenever the sugar levels in our
blood rise, a signal is sent to the pancreas to release insulin. This hormone
acts like a key that triggers the insulin receptors in the cells, allowing sugar
to enter the cell. The higher the level of sugar in the blood, the higher will
be the amount of insulin released by the pancreas.
Sugar (glucose) is the form of energy that our cells can use. It is the food
for the cell, without which the cells cannot function. As you can imagine,
our muscle cells need plenty of energy for day-to-day movements. In case
the sugar is not fully utilized by the cell, the cell converts it into fat, which
can then be stored for a ‘rainy day’, i.e., a day of starvation.
Understanding diabetes starts with knowing the difference between type
1 and type 2 diabetes. Currently 85–90 per cent of diabetics are type 2
diabetics. In these cases, the treatment is usually started with medicines
rather than insulin.

Type 2 Diabetes

If the amount of fat increases within the cells, it stands to reason that the
cells do not require any more sugar, because it already has plenty of energy
stored. Therefore, the fat within the muscle cells prevent more sugar from
entering by making the cells insulin-resistant.
If we continue to eat sugar, or carbohydrates (which break down into
sugar), this excess sugar now remains in the bloodstream, causing a rise in
the blood sugar levels. In order to remove this excess glucose, our thirst
increases, so that the water we drink can dilute the glucose. This is then
filtered by the kidneys and thrown out.
In order to use the accumulated fat in the muscle cells, the cell must
spend some energy to reconvert the fat back to sugar so that it can be used.
The only form of energy that a cell can use is sugar or, to be precise,
glucose.
So when fat in the muscle cell rises, it becomes resistant to insulin,
thereby causing the blood sugar level to rise. This is called type 2 diabetes.
Whenever we eat simple refined sugars or carbohydrates, such as sugar,
white flour, jaggery or even fruit juice, the glucose easily goes straight into
the bloodstream, causing the blood sugar level to rise. This in turn causes a
spike in the insulin level. The insulin now causes the sugar to enter the cells
and the blood sugar level falls suddenly. When the blood sugar is low, we
feel hungry. Therefore, sugar is an appetizer and increases hunger. Sugars or
refined carbohydrates are considered high glycaemic index foods because
they cause a spike in the blood sugar level.
 Whenever we eat complex carbohydrates, such as fruit, dried fruits like
dates, whole wheat, whole rice or vegetables, it takes time to digest––the
fibre holds the sugars and so the sugar enters the bloodstream slowly. Foods
like these are called low glycaemic index foods. Interestingly, fruit and
dried fruits such as dates and raisins, despite being sweet, don’t cause such
spikes in the blood sugar levels because they are filled with fibre!
To sum up, type 2 diabetes is mainly the result of insulin resistance. And
the cause of this is largely the fat inside the muscle cell.
It follows that in this type of diabetes blood sugars can be controlled, at
least initially, with medicines that stimulate the pancreas to produce more
insulin, making up for the insulin resistance, or with those that reduce the
insulin resistance, decrease absorption of carbs or help excrete more sugar.
But in the long term, because of increased accumulation of fat in the cells
through this very process, medicines fail to cure!

Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes, on the other hand, is caused by a lack of insulin. If the

pancreas fails to produce insulin, then the sugar or carbohydrate consumed
ends up as glucose in the bloodstream. This glucose cannot enter the cells
because insulin is lacking, resulting in high blood sugar. The cells in the
body, as a result, lack the energy they need.
Type 1 diabetes is, therefore, treated with insulin.

Symptoms of Diabetes

The classical symptoms of diabetes are:

Weakness, primarily because glucose is not being used by the cells,

resulting in lack of energy.
Increased thirst, because water is required to dilute the excess
glucose in the bloodstream.
 Increased urination, because all the excess water has to be thrown
out.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of diabetes is simple. Along with the symptoms listed above,
non-healing wounds, frequent infections and sudden weight loss are tell-tale
signs. High blood sugar levels, both fasting and two hours after a meal
when not on medications, give the diagnosis away. HbA1c––or
glycosylated insulin—gives us an indicator of the control over a period of
three months.
The reason we are so concerned about reversing diabetes is its dreaded
complications. We will see more about these in later chapters. But the good
news is that type 2 diabetes can be reversed by understanding the cause and
removing it. Most people with type 1 diabetes will be able to reduce their
insulin doses, improve their overall health and over a period of time, many,
but not all, will be able to stop their insulin intake as the pancreas heals.
Now that we have understood the basics of diabetes and its cause, let’s
look at the healing power of the body.
 2
The Body’s Remarkable Power to Heal

How often do you notice a wall clock that ticks away? It is something we
take for granted, until of course, it malfunctions and stops working
properly.
It’s the same case with our body. Since it’s so good at healing itself, we
seldom notice it working round the clock. The only time we become aware
of it is when it ‘fails’ and we fall sick. Then, instead of being grateful that it
has kept us healthy all this while, we start to complain that it is sick and
rush to take medicines to fix it.
In reality, our body is a master healer that constantly fights diseases. It’s
really our own best doctor most of the time. It is the first to tell us when
something is wrong through discomfort or symptoms. But we have been
conditioned to think that sickness and symptoms are bad. We try to get rid
of them. We don’t realize that it’s just our body telling us to change
something so that it can function correctly.
Let’s take the simple example of a fever. When we have an infection, our
body raises its temperature so that the bacteria cannot multiply––just as we
boil water to destroy the germs in it. Fever is a sign of your immune system
working properly. At this stage our body usually tells us what to do to get
well. We feel tired and sometimes thirsty and our appetite decreases. The
best remedy is to listen to the instructions––rest in bed and drink plenty of
water. Most fevers will go away on their own in a day or two with proper
rest. What we often do, though, is take medicines to bring down the fever.
The result? The bacteria multiplies and then we need an antibiotic!
Healing requires a shift in consciousness, from listening to the outer
world to listening to our body. From wanting to eat and live the way our
society tends to, to eating and living the way we were designed to. Animals
in nature do not suffer the huge pandemics of lifestyle diseases that we do
because they eat and live the way they were designed to. We humans eat
anything that is made to look good or taste good. We are taught to eat by a
food industry whose only motive is to sell more. A lie repeated often
enough becomes accepted as truth. Yet if we stop to think or even look at
parallels in the animal kingdom, we would understand where we are going
wrong.
Let us begin by looking at some myths that may be making us sick.

Myth #1 Bacteria Are Bad

Fact: We often think of bacteria or germs as harmful. No wonder we want

to get rid of them! This view is further solidified by all the advertisements
selling us products to fight those bacteria and germs. We are so convinced
that they are bad that it is easy to overlook their importance in keeping us
healthy.
In our misguided rush to sanitize our environment, we have become
consumers of products that wage a war against microbes. We prefer
drinking water where all the microbes have been destroyed by chlorination
or irradiation. Although chlorine may get rid of harmful bacteria, it also
prevents us from developing immunity towards them. If a lack of immunity
was our only concern, it may be a small matter. But chlorine is also a
known carcinogen (a substance that causes cancer). So while chlorine may
save us from curable infections, we might be making ourselves vulnerable
to serious, perhaps incurable, problems like cancer in the future. Today
most urban tap water is chlorinated.
In reality, we live in symbiosis with bacteria. After a course of antibiotics
you may have noticed weakness, lack of energy and indigestion. This is
because although the antibiotic kills the bad bacteria, it also kills the good
ones that reside in the intestine and help digestion and assimilation. We
need to use these much more judiciously.
 Bleaches, disinfectants, phenyls, toilet cleaners, pesticides, detergents
and other chemicals that we routinely use at home may be acting against us.
We will see later how these are one of the causes of diabetes too. It’s hard to
imagine life, even survival, without these everyday substances. However
we must remember that the entire animal kingdom has survived for
centuries without them and they are clearly healthier than us.

Myth #2 We Need Medical Help to Heal

Fact: When we get wounded, all that is really required is to clean the wound
and leave it alone. At the most, we need a bandage to hold the two sides
together and prevent anything from entering the wound. In most cases the
body will heal on its own. Excessive use of antibiotic and disinfectant
ointments can interfere with the healing process because they kill the newly
forming cells and can slow the healing process. What is important is to
realize that if the body is capable of healing by itself, we should not
interfere with that process. In a healthy individual, the body requires little
help to heal. And in case healing does not occur on its own, we should look
for the cause of this obstruction. In the case of diabetes, it’s high blood
sugar which promotes the growth of bacteria.
Let us now take a look at a more serious injury, a fracture. When we get a
simple fracture, the body gets into its healing mode. The first thing that
happens is swelling and intense pain in the region. This is the body’s own
plaster. The swelling and pain prevent movement, allowing the bones to set
and heal. The pain keeps us in touch with the fact that the part is broken and
fragile. It allows us to track our healing. Once healing has taken place, the
pain disappears. When we go to a doctor with a fracture, we are given anti-
inflammatories, which reduce the swelling and pain. And a plaster cast is
put to immobilize the area. This certainly helps but avoiding the anti-
inflammatories may help in healing even faster because the increased blood
supply caused by the inflammation brings in more nutrients and oxygen––
factors that help in healing.
 Our body has the perfect response to heal a fracture. If the two bones are
placed together in the right position and prevented from moving against
each other, they will heal.
This does not mean assistance is never required. Assistance is required to
put the bones in the correct position for healing, or surgery could be
required to bring together bones in the case of multiple fractures. However,
in many cases, the body’s own healing power is very often underrated.
Let’s take another example. Teeth are bones and we now know that bones
heal. But when we get a cavity, a small hole in our tooth, we go to a dentist
who drills and fills. We would never do that to our bones, but when it
comes to our teeth, we accept it without question. Cavities, too, can be
prevented and under the right conditions, they can heal too. Teeth are a little
different from covered bones in that they are covered by enamel. The
enamel does not reappear, but the tooth can heal. I have been teaching my
patients to prevent and heal their cavities too.
We often think that we need more calcium to prevent cavities, to have
strong teeth and bones and to heal fractures quickly. But nothing could be
further from the truth. While, thanks to our modern lifestyles, it is not
uncommon to get vitamin D deficiency, a deficiency of calcium intake is
not even known. This is why all those calcium tablets never cure
osteoporosis or prevent anything. The only thing they cause is kidney
stones and calcification of the arteries. If we stayed away from the
pharmacy more, perhaps we would be healthier!

My Personal Experience with Healing Teeth

Having always taken good care of my teeth and health, I was surprised when I got my
first cavity after the age of fifty. I had made it a point not to see dentists till this
happened. Despite not having my teeth polished and scaled over the years, my dentist
told me that I did not need it. I did not have plaque! I was surprised, but learnt that plaque
occurs because of our habit of drinking tea, coffee, colas or consuming acidic and
processed foods. Since I don’t consume any of these, my teeth did not require polishing
and scaling. So then why did I get a cavity?
My dentist pointed out that the position of my cavity––at the junction of the gums––
was very unusual, and was probably caused due to over brushing. I did brush my teeth
 vigorously from gums downward with a hard toothbrush, as I had been taught, and in so
doing had eroded the tooth at the top. He advised me to switch to a softer brush. It then
occurred to me that animals neither brush their teeth nor go to dentists, yet their teeth last
a lifetime. So then why do we?
It took some time to put this idea into practice because it is difficult to let go of habits
formed since childhood, but finally I gave up brushing my teeth. I now only do it when I
feel like it, perhaps once a week or less. But I am able to do this because my diet has no
processed food and is full of fibre. If we ate the food we were meant to, there would be
no need to brush. The causes of cavities are consuming acidic foods, lack of vitamin D
and vigorous brushing. In later chapters we will see that lack of vitamin D has an
important role in causing diabetes as well.

Myth #3 Diabetes, Hypertension and Other Lifestyle Diseases Are

Hereditary

Fact: Many diabetics also suffer from hypertension (also called high blood
pressure), high cholesterol and heart disease. This is because the cause of
diabetes and hypertension is the same, as you will learn in later chapters.
The primary cause is our unnatural lifestyle. If we change our perspective
and live the way nature intended us to, these problems will disappear.
Despite all our wrongdoings, our body has immense reserves and keeps
healing itself. If one artery starts getting blocked, our body develops
collateral arteries, like new branches on a tree. Until our arteries are 70 per
cent blocked, we are hardly affected!
Like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, cancer too is a
lifestyle disease. As we rid ourselves of diabetes, our likelihood to develop
cancer will also drop manifold. We all have cancer cells in our body, but
their numbers are kept in check when the body is relatively healthy. When
we get sick, under certain conditions that will be discussed later, we
unknowingly invite the cancer cells to grow. The corollary is also true.
Living and eating the way nature designed us to can cure cancer.
Dr Ruth Heidrich, a PhD in health management, and Dr Lorraine Day, an
orthopaedic surgeon, are two of the many people who bear testimony to this
fact. Dr Heidrich regained her strength and vitality enough to run and win
marathons in her seventies after recovering from cancer and Dr Day helps
others reverse their cancers. If cancers can be reversed, it is not difficult to
believe that adopting a correct lifestyle can prevent them. If so, diabetes
reversal should be easier! We only need to tap into the body’s healing
ability.
With the onset of diabetes, the body tries to recover by excreting sugar
out through urine and forcing the muscles to use up the fat stores, resulting
in loss of weight. If we were to listen to our body, we would be given clues
on what to eat to recover. Taking medications or insulin (except in the case
of type 1 diabetes) interferes with this healing process and prevents
reversal. In fact, over a period of time, the dosage of medicines only spirals
upwards.
This does not mean that you should now stop taking medicines all of a
sudden. You will learn in this book how to heal yourself. As the blood sugar
levels drop, medications or insulin must be reduced too. What is important
to note at this stage is that dropping medicines suddenly is dangerous but
not releasing medicines at the earliest opportunity is dangerous too and
interferes with the body’s healing process.
As we have seen, our body is always working to heal. In this book you
will learn the steps that you can take to assist in the healing. Disease is
always a path to personal growth. You will further learn to listen to your
body and understand its language of symptoms rather than silence them
with medicines.
 3
Why It’s Important to Reverse Diabetes: The
Dreaded Complications

With the kind of busy lifestyles we lead today, it’s easy to simply pop a pill
to control blood sugar levels and continue as if nothing’s wrong. Changing
lifestyles and changing consciousness requires effort, something that many
of us have little time for. ‘Why then is it important to reverse diabetes?’ you
may ask. The answer is simple. Over the years, the dosage of medications
increases, and so do the dreaded complications that come with the disease.
Ever-growing lifelong prescriptions, doctors’ bills and regular
hospitalizations add to the costs, but the real costs are the days when you
feel unwell and have low energy levels and the disabilities. All the money
earned over years of hard work suddenly becomes meaningless when one
suffers from diabetic complications.

Complications Caused by Diabetes

There is hardly any part or system of the body that does not get affected by
diabetes. Understanding the damage it can do throughout the body will
strengthen your resolve to get rid of it as soon as possible.

Diabetic Eye Disease

There are a number of eye conditions that result from diabetes. Chronically
high blood sugar damages the tiny blood vessels in the retina, leading to
diabetic retinopathy and loss of vision. Adults with diabetes are 2–5 times
more likely to develop cataract, especially at a younger age, than those
without diabetes, and have twice the risk of glaucoma.
My very first patient to reverse diabetes through nutritional advice came
to me because he was losing his vision to diabetic retinopathy. Despite
medications, his blood sugar level was not coming down, but this was not
what was worrying him. He was distraught because he was losing his sight!
The good news is that he completely reversed his diabetes and his vision
improved considerably. Over the years, several patients have told me that
the most upsetting part of diabetes was the loss of vision. I can absolutely
understand their plight. Although it’s not as life threatening a complication
as, say, kidney disease, its effect on the quality of life is intense.

Blood Sugar Drops by Stopping Dairy

‘I love food. I cannot resist it. Despite taking several medicines, I could not bring my
blood sugar level under control. This led to loss of vision and frequent visits to the eye
doctor. But whenever I saw my favourite foods, I would forget all about this. I was forced
into changing my diet by my daughter. The first step was complete avoidance of all dairy
products as advised by Dr Nandita Shah. As a vegetarian, it was difficult, but within just
two weeks my blood sugar level dropped from 222 to 88! This was the first time it was
under control. This inspired me to continue and as I did, my eyesight improved! Over the
years many other health problems got better as well.’

––Mr D, a seventy-year-old diabetic

With fluctuations in blood sugar levels, vision does tend to vary and
optometrists will often ask if you have diabetes while checking your vision
for glasses. Once you are cured of diabetes, these fluctuations will no
longer be a problem and vision usually improves.

Neuropathy

Diabetes causes damage to the nerves (peripheral neuropathy), which can

affect the perception of heat, cold and pain, making one more susceptible to
injury. This also makes it easier to ignore an injury, especially if it’s in a
place difficult to see, such as between your toes, on your heels or the
bottoms of your feet. Tingling or pain in the hands, feet and/or legs can also
be experienced.
In some cases, lack of sensation changes the gait of the person, leading to
Charcot feet as the feet get deformed.
One of the worst pitfalls of a lack of sensation is a silent heart attack, one
that goes unnoticed because the pain is not felt!
Some popularly used medicines for diabetes like metformin can also
bring about a lack of vitamin B12, leading to neuropathy. It’s important to
note that all medicines have side effects.

Gangrene and Amputation

High blood sugar invites bacteria and infection sets in. Because of the lack
of sensation, you may not even notice it, resulting in further deterioration,
leading to gangrene and loss of a finger, toe and, in serious cases, even an
entire limb. Sometimes the only way out is an amputation.

Arterial Blockages

High blood glucose levels can contribute to the formation of fatty deposits
in the blood vessel walls. These can restrict blood flow and increase the risk
of hardening of the blood vessels (atherosclerosis) and high blood pressure.
Cardiopathy, angina, heart attacks and strokes are four times more
common amongst diabetics than the normal population. Since the body has
reserves, those with diabetes do not even feel the pinch until their arteries
are more than 70 per cent blocked. Because their sensations may be lost due
to neuropathy, they can suffer a massive heart attack and not even feel it.
However, this can be prevented. No one need ever suffer from a heart attack
or lose their life to it. No one need ever lead a subnormal existence due to a
stroke. Guidelines in this book, if followed carefully, will help prevent these
killer diseases.

Kidney Failure

The amount of free dietary fat we consume today is increasing due to fast
food, processed food and the ‘eating out’ culture. Animal products add fuel
to the fire with their high cholesterol levels. Together these lead to a
narrowing of the blood vessels in every part of the body. Just as narrowing
blood vessels in the teeth lead to cavities, narrowing blood vessels in the
kidneys lead to chronic kidney disease, which, if left unaddressed,
eventually leads to kidney failure and dialysis. Dialysis destroys the kidneys
and eventually necessitates a kidney transplant. Finding a donor is very
difficult and the costs are prohibitive.
If these were the only complications, this problem would not be so
serious, but very few realize the huge cost in terms of time and well-being
that kidney disease brings with it. Doctors advise strict diet restrictions.
Dialysis involves half a day lost thrice a week. An organ transplant is
fraught with its own set of severe complications and can also fail. This is
why catching diabetes at the beginning and starting the process of reversal
is important. Some cases of chronic kidney disease can be reversed. It takes
time and patience but it’s worth it.

Skin, Fungal Infections and Slow-Healing Wounds

Due to the high content of sugar in the blood, bacteria are attracted and
multiply easily, leading to non-healing infections. That’s why one of the
symptoms of diabetes is skin infections and slow-healing wounds.
Fungal infections are also very common because fungus grows when
there’s not enough oxygen. With the arteries narrowed, circulation is
compromised and oxygen levels fall, creating an ideal situation for fungal
growth.
 Lack of moisture can cause the skin on the feet to dry and crack.
Diabetics may also be more prone to boils, infection of the hair follicles
(folliculitis), styes and infected nails. They also have a higher incidence of
bacterial infections. Moist, warm folds in the skin, i.e., between the fingers
and toes, groin, armpits or in the corners of the mouth are susceptible to
fungal or yeast infections. Symptoms include redness, blistering and
itchiness.
A condition called diabetic dermopathy can cause brown patches on the
skin. Eruptive xanthomatosis, another skin problem commonly associated
with diabetes, causes hard yellow bumps with a red ring. Digital sclerosis
causes thick skin, most often on the hands or feet. These skin conditions
usually clear up when the blood sugar is brought under control.

Male Impotency and Sexual Dysfunction

One of the first signs of diabetes and hypertension is often male impotency.
Is it any wonder that Viagra and similar potency-increasing drugs are
being marketed so rampantly? Diabetes and its medications also lead to a
lessening of the libido in many cases. But there is no need to be
disheartened. A normal sex life can be restored with dietary intervention!

Hair Loss

Often diabetes causes partial or total body hair loss. In fact, the latter is an
important symptom to look out for. I remember the case of a medical
doctor––who reversed his diabetes through our programme––telling me that
he had found out about his disease because of a chance remark. ‘Are you
waxing your legs or something?’ his daughter had asked him. Being a
doctor he realized that hair loss might be a symptom of diabetes, so he went
and got himself checked and had his worst fears confirmed.

Digestive Problems
High blood glucose levels can make it hard for the stomach to completely
empty itself of food. This condition is called gastroparesis. In turn, the
delay causes blood glucose levels to rise. Diabetes is the leading cause of
gastroparesis. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, bloating and heartburn.

Weakness and Exhaustion

Diabetics often feel lethargic, tired and unable to manage their tasks. Many
of them have to resort to naps after meals because of extreme drowsiness.
This is because the cells do not receive the energy they need, as the sugar in
the blood cannot get into them. Reshma, who attended one of my seminars
and decided to change her diet, was able to reverse diabetes and get her
energy back. ‘All the while I had diabetes I just assumed that feeling tired
and drowsy after lunch was due to my constitution. I needed to take an
afternoon nap to feel better. For me the most shocking revelation was that
this was due to diabetes. Now I have so much energy to spare.’

Gestational Diabetes

Sometimes, women develop high levels of blood sugar during pregnancy.

This is known as gestational diabetes and is dangerous to both the mother
and the child. The expectant mother can contract infections that don’t heal
easily and this can affect the child as well. Babies of diabetic mothers often
have higher birth weight, making the delivery difficult. C-sections are
usually required in such cases.

This is not an exhaustive list by any means but it should give you an idea of
the serious but preventable complications of diabetes. The good news is that
diabetes, and the complications that come with it, are reversible. The
purpose of this book is to show you exactly how to achieve that, and reduce
the financial, physical and psychological burden of this dreaded disease.

The Huge Cost of Diabetes

Diabetes can be kind of deceptive. I have heard people who have diabetes
say, ‘I am fine now. My sugars are totally in control.’ But if you are on
medication for diabetes, it means that you still have the disease! One who
has reversed diabetes will have normal blood sugar levels, absence of
symptoms, a great sense of well-being and no medications. I have met
several people who take two tablets of metformin daily, thanks to their
doctor’s prescription, but they do not even know that they have been
diagnosed with diabetes. Sometimes we do not question the doctor on what
the medications are for. We would rather not know.

Medical Costs

Several years ago, a surgeon came to one of my seminars because he

wanted to reverse his diabetes and high blood pressure and also lose weight.
A month later he came back to a follow-up meeting and said that his
medicines had cost him Rs 3500 per month and after following the
guidance from the seminar, he no longer had to bear this burden! Prices of
medicines have gone up since then. Imagine how much he has saved overs
the years!
The medications for diabetes usually increase over a period of time. The
doctor looks at the lab reports every six months or annually and pronounces
that he is changing the medicine. The new medicine may be double the
dose, but because it has a new name and is still a single tablet, most patients
do not realize the significance of this change.
Pharmaceutical companies are even more ingenious––they have now
made tablets which are a combination of drugs. So the patient takes two or
even three different medicines at the same time, but because it’s still just
one tablet, the change looks benign. Needless to say, these medicines are
not cheap. The cost can run into several thousands of rupees every month.
And since diabetes is considered a progressive disease and because you are
expected to take these medicines for life every day, the total cost is
astronomical.
 Add to this the cost of the appointments with the diabetologist, the eye
doctor and other specialists for the complications and the cost of the
glucometer, strips and laboratory tests. The list is endless.

Loss of Productivity

Diabetes affects productivity, as so much time is lost for a patient. Many

find their energy levels dropping. Naps after lunch become a necessity.
Memory begins to fail and there is even documentation linking diabetes to
Alzheimer’s. Hospital visits for the various complications result in time
away from work. And as I mentioned earlier, in the case of kidney failure,
dialysis can take away half a day, thrice a week!

Loss of Well-Being

Often people become depressed on learning that they have diabetes because
it is perceived as an irreversible, progressive disease––a slow death
sentence. The daily intake of medicines, the frequent lab visits to check
blood sugar levels, the need to constantly watch the diet and regular doctor
visits all affect the sense of well-being and can be overwhelming.
As complications set in, interventions may be needed—a bypass surgery,
bariatric surgery, dialysis, kidney transplant or amputation. This can be a
huge setback to the patients.

Cost to the Family

When we get diabetes, we are not the only ones who suffer. The cost to the
family should not be forgotten. They are the ones who wait at the doctor’s
clinics, buy the medications, accompany the patient to the hospital and look
after him or her. I have seen young diabetics with kidney failure.
Sometimes the brother takes the patient to various doctors to understand his
or her condition, the father is forced to earn more to pay the bills, the sister
donates a kidney for the transplant, which may or may not be successful,
and the mother and children live in a state of anxiety.

Cost of Life

Diabetes causes premature aging and reduces one’s lifespan. Many patients
who are unable to control or reverse their condition succumb to it at a
younger age. A silent heart attack can rob life in an instant. Kidney failure
can result in death.
I know that I am painting a very grim picture but that’s the way I feel
about the patients I see. It is important to fully understand the seriousness of
this disease and also to realize that all this is avoidable. We are the cause of
our disease and we also have the power to turn it around. We just need to
take responsibility for our health. I am here to show you how to do just that.
 4
If Diabetes Can Really Be Reversed, Why Isn’t
Everyone Doing It?

Look around you. How many people do you know who have been cured of
diabetes with medication alone? In most cases, even with medications,
diabetes progressively becomes worse. Diabetics invariably need more and
more medications over time and later start suffering from both the
complications of the disease as well as the side effects of these drugs.
Despite knowing that medicines do not cure, almost every diabetic goes to a
doctor for advice. We do this out of habit, or because everyone else does it,
or just because we do not know what else to do.
I remember the case of a highly accomplished gentleman, an Indian
living abroad, who had severe diabetes. He would regularly visit an
Ayurvedic hospital in India, stay there for weeks in a simple room with his
helper and follow the prescribed regimen. He would then return home and
slowly fall back into his old lifestyle. This was a man who had been a
brilliant businessman, created an empire and owned a fortune but was
brought to his knees by diabetes. Years later his condition grew worse and
he began suffering from dementia as well. Despite being under the care of
the world’s best doctors, no amount of resources spent on medication and
treatment could stop the progress of the disease and its resultant
complications. It is a tragic story. He could have had anything money could
buy but no amount of money can buy health!
In order to reverse any disease, we have to first understand the cause and
remove it. If pills could do the job, wouldn’t we have been able to buy our
way to good health by now? No matter which system they belong to,
whether allopathy, Ayurveda or homeopathy, medicines can at the most give
relief from symptoms, not nip it in the bud.

Healing by Removing the Cause

It’s logical that in order to get rid of any problem we must first remove the
cause. The same is true with diabetes too, but we often fail to see this. Let
me give you an example. Many of you may have seen the oil lamp flashing
while driving your car. When this happens, we need to look for the cause––
in this case, the oil level has dropped and needs to be refilled. This is the
most logical way to stop the lamp from flashing. When you address the
cause, the symptom vanishes. However, there is another way to stop the
lamp flashing––by cutting off the wire to the lamp. Needless to say, nobody
would ever do this with their car. Yet we routinely do this with our bodies!
Taking medicines without addressing the cause is akin to cutting off the
wire.
People often make the mistake of thinking the real cause of diabetes is
sugar or carbs. The truth is, no amount of cutting down sugar or
carbohydrates can cure diabetes. The cause of diabetes, as mentioned
before, is insulin resistance or lack of insulin. If we understand the cause of
insulin resistance or lack of insulin and remove it, diabetes will naturally
lose its hold.
But before we delve into the nitty-gritty of this, two questions beg to be
answered:

If diabetes is reversible, then why isn’t everyone doing it?

More importantly, if it can be easily prevented, why is it growing at
such an alarming rate?

Because Most Doctors Are Not Taught about Nutrition

It is a well-documented fact that nutrition as a subject occupies a minuscule

place in the curriculum of most medical colleges. Doctors are taught to treat
diseases through medicine and not nutrition or lifestyle. It’s not wrong to
say that the focus of medical education is ‘disease-care’ not ‘health-care’.
This is no wonder because around the world, pharmaceutical companies
are involved in the writing of medical textbooks and subsidizing higher
education in the medical field. Would it then be logical for them to support
a system of treatment that did not involve the products they manufacture?
Though nutritional guidelines are given to diabetics, it is as
supplementary information provided by nutritionists and not doctors.
Although these guidelines may help control blood sugar levels, they never
help reverse them because they do not address the cause of the problem––
lack of insulin or insulin resistance.
I have innumerable case studies of patients who have reversed the disease
by switching to a whole-food, plant-based diet that is described in this
book. This list includes medical doctors as well! I have also seen that many
doctors who have seen the results on themselves then want to share it with
their patients.

Because of the Myths about Nutrients

In recent years there has been a huge misunderstanding about carbohydrates

and sugar amongst the general public.
When you get diabetes, your blood sugar levels rise. This has led to the
belief that consuming carbohydrates and sugar causes diabetes. Nothing
could be further from the truth. We need carbohydrates for energy, but in
order to be healthy we need them in the whole form.
In nature, carbohydrates are available in plant foods and are always
accompanied by fibre. Fibre prevents us from consuming too much as it
gives a feeling of fullness. It also adds bulk to the stools, preventing
constipation. Natural carbohydrates are good for us. In their natural form,
they are not the cause of diabetes or any other illness.
However, today, carbohydrates are refined and processed, and the fibre is
removed. Rice is polished into white rice, sugar cane and beets are refined
into sugar and wheat is polished into white flour. Vegetables are peeled and
fruits are juiced. Fibre is discarded. These processed carbs that are stripped
of the beneficial fibre become the cause of diseases.
The misinformation about carbohydrates has been perpetuated further by
weight-loss authors, physical trainers, dieticians and even doctors
promoting low-carb diets.

Because of Medical Myths

A major stumbling block in our road to recovery from diabetes is our

propensity to do what ‘everyone else’ is doing. Whether it is the wrongly
held popular belief that sugar causes diabetes and carbs are bad for you or
the myth perpetuated by the medical community that diabetes cannot be
cured, we hold on to these because everyone else does.
We don’t stop to question or look at evidence to the contrary around us.
How many people have got better by giving up carbs and sugar?
How come so many people have reversed their diabetes, despite it being
declared an incurable disease that becomes progressively worse?
To reverse the disease, we need to stop following the herd and start
questioning everything. We need to move from a culture where everyone is
getting sick to a culture of health.

Because We Are Creatures of Habit

We are creatures of habit. Even when we know something is bad for us, we
are often unable to change because of force of habit. Everyone knows that
having tea and biscuits is not healthy. You can read more about why tea is
bad for you in the chapter ‘Tea and Coffee’ on page 148. We don’t give tea
to our kids and we restrict their consumption of biscuits. Yet many of us
start our day with these! To break this early morning ritual is difficult.
But habits that no longer serve us or make us sick must be changed. We
cannot solve a problem by continuing the lifestyle that caused it in the first
place.
 Change is always difficult, whether it’s a new job, house, city, school or
even a place at the table. But in a short time the new paradigm becomes
natural. It takes only 21–30 days to change a habit, and anyone can do it.

Because of Cultural and Social Conditioning

What we eat is largely a function of our culture and partly what society
dictates. Often we do things unthinkingly because of our conditioning.
In parts of north India, drinking milk is considered necessary and
wrongly recommended even for many diabetics. Likewise, in most parts of
south India, curd is absolutely essential with meals and incorrectly included
in the diabetic diet. But the fact is that both milk and curd are detrimental
for diabetics. This is very difficult to understand since it’s so ingrained in
our culture.
Currently, the consumption of processed dairy products such as flavoured
butter and different kinds of cheese is on the rise. When I tell people of the
hazards of consuming these, the resistance is huge! So strong is our
conditioning. The reasoning is that milk and milk products have been
consumed for generations and our forefathers lived long, healthy lives. It is
important to understand that their consumption was not on a similar scale.
With refrigeration and processing, dairy products find themselves in one to
several dishes of almost every meal in India today (you can read more about
this in the chapter ‘Dairy’ on page 107).
Our conditioning is so strong that we follow the codes sanctioned by
society without questioning them and thinking how they affect us.
In urban society, eating out in restaurants for fun has become part of the
accepted culture. Visiting the latest restaurant in the city to sample the menu
is a popular social engagement. You just have to look at the number of
cooking shows on television to see how food has turned into a source of
entertainment. We are no longer eating for hunger. We are eating for
pleasure.
To reverse diabetes, we need to change from living, eating and thinking
the way society dictates us, to the way that is natural to our species––the
way ‘God’ or nature designed us to be.

Because of Media Advertisements

Today we are taught by advertisements. We spend most of our time in front

of the TV or reading newspapers and magazines. We see advertisements all
the way to work. Because of their sheer number, these messages are hard to
dismiss. It’s hard to stop eating all the products in the market when they are
made to look so enticing. We often don’t read the ingredients listed on a
packet before consuming its contents. And before we know it, we are
hooked. The food industry spends a good amount of money to create
formulas that make their foods addictive and keep you coming back for
more.
Diabetics are lured to use artificial sweeteners and special products like
diabetic biscuits. We tend to believe the written word. But these products
are not good, as we will see later in Chapter 13.

Because of Our Mindset

Many people believe that diabetes is genetic or hereditary and hence

inevitable. This makes us believe that it’s not our fault, that we are victims
with no choice. It also absolves us of the responsibility to get well.
Another thing that I have heard people say is that after the age of fifty or
sixty, getting sick is normal and we naturally need doctors and medicines.
Our beliefs help perpetuate diseases. Once we understand the true cause
of diabetes and reverse it, we will be able to help many others do the same.
The mind is such a powerful instrument that we make things happen by first
thinking about them and then acting on it. Reversing diabetes involves
making significant changes. To get changes that last a lifetime, you need to
change your mindset first and then, your habits.
 PART II
CAUSES AND EVIDENCES
 5
The Real Causes of Diabetes

Most people find out they have diabetes inadvertently, when they go to a
doctor because they do not feel well, when a wound does not heal or when
there is sudden loss of weight. Others find out just by a routine blood sugar
check. When it is diagnosed, almost everyone goes back to the doctor who
suggests some tests and prescribes medications or insulin, depending on the
need. The diet prescribed invariably has less of sugar and carbs. At best
these measures control diabetes in the short run but with time, most people
see their blood sugar levels and number of medications spiral upwards.
Everyone knows that nobody gets better with this approach, but they all feel
compelled to follow it like it’s written in gold. There is comfort in doing
what others do.
As I said before, the reason that medicines and a low-carb diet do nothing
to reverse diabetes is because it does not address its real cause. The cause
of diabetes is not sugar or carbohydrates, so removing them from the diet
will not solve the problem. Nor is it the lack of medicines! These measures
can at best only control the sugar levels. Conventional treatment only works
to control the disease.
Reversing diabetes means getting back to normal blood sugar levels
without any medications. This is possible if we remove the cause of
diabetes and then wait for our body to heal. In order to do so, we have to
first understand the cause. Reversing diabetes needs a shift in our thinking.

So What Causes Diabetes?

We labour under the misunderstanding that sugar and starchy carbohydrates

cause diabetes, simply because we correlate elevated blood sugar levels
with sugar in our food. Your blood sugar goes up after you eat because it is
supposed to. Sugar is not the cause of diabetes. This is not to say that it is
good for you, but it is not the cause.
So here I will list some of the most important causes of diabetes in the
order of how seriously they affect our body.

Dairy

It’s hard to believe that milk, which enjoys an almost sacred status in Indian
culture, can be harmful for us, and yet it is.
Do you remember Mr D from Chapter 3? He was one of my first
patients––a diabetic for thirty years, he had high blood sugar levels which
could not be controlled with the usual medications. With fasting sugars
above 220 mg/dl (12 mmol/L), the real issue was that he was losing his
vision! He was a vegetarian. I asked him to stop all dairy products. Within
just two weeks, his fasting sugar level came down to 88 mg/dl (4.8
mmol/L). Just by giving up dairy!
Another patient, himself a medical doctor, was keen to follow my
regimen but was unable to do so because he was shifting his house and
could not have home-cooked meals as a result. He, too, completely
removed dairy from his diet. Sure enough his sugars came down
considerably.
I have seen numerous cases wherein blood sugars fell after simply
removing dairy from the diet, even without making the other changes.
This is not to say that the other things are not important. They are. But
dairy is largely regarded as healthy when it is really not. Besides there
doesn’t seem to be any escape from it. It seems to be everywhere today, in
every single Indian meal, starting with tea and toast (bread may have milk
as an ingredient and butter is a dairy product) or biscuits (milk powder is an
ingredient) in the morning. Breakfast is usually parathas (with ghee or
butter) and curd or cereal or porridge with milk; lunch includes curd, paneer
or buttermilk; snacks consumed are cheese and biscuits; and dinner
comprises rotis with ghee and desserts using milk or cream.
 It might sound impossible to give up dairy, especially if you have grown
up in India. But once you understand how it is actually one of the causes of
diabetes, you will want to give it up voluntarily.
Dairy has several components, which make it very harmful to human
beings. These are fat, milk proteins, hormones, chemicals and adulterants.

Fat

A major cause of type 2 diabetes is fat. We will soon see how fat in the
muscle cells causes type 2 diabetes.
Forty-nine per cent of the calories from whole milk come from fat. In 2
per cent reduced fat or skimmed milk, it is still 35 per cent. Whichever way
you cut it, it is still a lot of fat. Milk products contain even more.
1 cc of cheese is made from approximately 16 cc of milk! Cheese is 70
per cent fat. It takes 12 cc of milk to make 1 cc of paneer, a favourite of
vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. Milk sweets, khoya, pedas, etc. are
all concentrated forms of milk and full of fat.

Cow’s Milk Proteins

Every animal produces milk for its offspring and so it is with cows. Cow’s
milk is a foreign protein in our body. Foreign proteins naturally stimulate
antibody production against them. It turns out that cow’s milk proteins are
similar to the pancreatic proteins and so these antibodies actually destroy
the body’s own pancreatic cells. This is particularly implicated in type 1
diabetes, a type that is still relatively rare but has been on the rise both in
India and all over the world. Studies have shown that this is more common
in people who have been given cow’s milk at an early age as babies. Since
the cow’s milk proteins can also transfer over to the baby from the mother’s
breast milk, mothers who consume dairy may also have a role to play in
their children getting type 1 diabetes. Author and consultant paediatrician
Ragnar Hanas says in his book Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents
and Young Adults, ‘In the Samoan Islands where children do not drink milk
at all, there is essentially no childhood diabetes.’1
In contrast, Finland, a country with the highest per capita consumption of
milk, has the highest rate of type 1 diabetes according to Diabetic
Medicine: A Journal of the British Diabetic Association.2
In India, pregnant and lactating mothers are actually advised more dairy
and this is extremely harmful. Many lactating mothers think that they need
to drink more milk to produce more milk for their baby. Nothing could be
further from the truth. Cows don’t need to drink milk to produce more milk,
nor does a human. The highly nutritious diet, which I will be discussing in
this book to reverse diabetes, will be perfect for any nursing mother. A diet
that can heal a sick person can definitely help a healthy person too.

Krishna, the Butter Thief

In Indian culture, where we have so many tales about milk, it can be difficult to digest
that milk is actually harmful to health. I often hear the comment, ‘Krishna ke zamaane
me bhi doodh peethe the (Even in Krishna’s time people used to drink milk).’ Let us step
back and think about this for a moment.
Lord Krishna was a cowherd who had hundreds or, perhaps, even thousands of cows.
Yet he was known to steal curd and butter. This is significant. How much milk and milk
products would anyone need to steal if they had so many cows? Since every mammal
produces milk only for its young, if the cow feeds her own baby, there will be little or no
milk left for humans. Naturally! In Krishna’s time, the calves stayed with the cows. As a
result, there was very little milk left, which is why Krishna stole it for fun.

Traditionally, all of South East Asia never consumed dairy. There is no milk
in traditional Japanese, Chinese, Malaysian, Burmese or any South East
Asian cuisine. Even in India, there was no organized dairy sector till the late
1950s. There was no widespread refrigeration either. The White Revolution
brought what we see today––milk and milk products that can be freely
bought everywhere. It also brought an exponential increase in the number
of people with diabetes. Today, India has one of the largest population of
diabetics in the world, second only to China, where dairy was not
traditional but has been introduced in the last thirty years or so.
Hormones

Diabetes is a hormonal disorder. Hormone secretions in our body are

orchestrated by the pituitary gland. When one hormone is out of balance,
others also go out of synch. This is why diabetes, hypothyroid, polycystic
ovarian disease (PCOD or PCOS) and obesity are often seen together.
Steroids (also hormones) given for therapeutic reasons can induce diabetes.
Prostate and breast cancer are also not uncommon in diabetics. When the
hormones are in imbalance, everything can be affected.
Milk, the secretion of a female mammal, is loaded with hormones—
oestrogen, progesterone, prolactin, powerful growth hormones and
oxytocin. Despite a government ban on the use of oxytocin in dairy, it is
being used with impunity and Indian cows are routinely given oxytocin
injections to make them produce more milk. This, in turn, affects our own
hormone levels. The milk of a pregnant cow has up to thirty-three times the
hormones as a non-pregnant cow, but in order to keep the milk flowing,
cows are routinely made pregnant within a mere two months of their
delivery. Thus the cow is pregnant and lactating at the same time. As a
result, cow’s milk is flooded with hormones. These hormones create
hormonal imbalances in the human body.
I have seen that stopping the intake of dairy relieves my female patients
of menstrual pain and distress. It also prevents and reduces menopausal
symptoms, besides a host of other symptoms. The hormones present in milk
may also lead to hormone-dependant cancers like breast, prostate and
ovarian cancers.

Chemicals

Chemicals are hormone disruptors and there are four different categories
found in milk.

Pesticides: A cow consumes around 12 kg of food to produce a litre of milk.

All the pesticides in the food are concentrated in the milk. A study by the
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on the topic was presented in
1993. They researched milk for seven years taking 50,000 samples from
across India. It was found that there was 5.7 mg/kg of HCH
(hexachlorocyclohexane, a residual pesticide) in milk on an average.3 Under
the Food Adulteration Act, only 0.01 mg/kg of HCH is allowed. This
means, on an average, milk in India in 1993 contained 570 times the
permissible levels of pesticides. As the years have gone by, this has only
become worse. The samples were also tested for DDT
(dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, a synthetic insecticide), which too was
found to be above tolerance levels.
Although fruits and vegetables are regulated for their pesticide levels,
meat and milk are not. This makes no sense except that if these were, there
would hardly be any of these products in the market because being higher
up on the food chain, their pesticide levels are naturally very high.

PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and other pollutants: Most cows in urban

India graze in garbage dumps for a good part of their day. This means they
consume anything from sanitary waste to lead batteries and a lot of plastic.
A study cited in the film The Plastic Cow in 2012 found high levels of
PCBs (a by-product of plastic) in Indian milk.4

Urea: Urea is a fertilizer that is routinely added to Indian milk by farmers to

prevent spoilage while transporting it without refrigeration in the hot
climate. It is extremely toxic for the kidneys, which are already fragile
because of diabetes. This is just one of the causes of the ever-increasing
number of patients with kidney failure, a condition often associated with
diabetes.

Antibiotics: Cows are routinely given antibiotics in their feed to control

infections and these find their way into the milk too.

Adulterants
Newspapers and TV channels regularly broadcast that 65 per cent of Indian
milk is adulterated. These programmes explain how adulteration is done or
how artificial milk is made with detergents and caustic soda. Especially
during festivals when the demand for milk is more––even all through the
year––this ‘milk’ finds its way to the market. Since more than half the milk
in the market is adulterated, it is very likely that the tea, biscuits, butter,
ghee, khoya, paneer, pastries, sweets and various other processed foods that
contain milk will contain these adulterants.
Nowadays there are advertisements about organic milk. Please note that
even though this may not contain pesticides or adulterants, it will naturally
contain hormones and fats and will still not be healthful for diabetics (or
others). There is also a lot of discussion today about A1 or A2 milk (A1 is
the milk of Jersey or Western cows and A2 of Indian breeds). It is important
to recognize that A1 milk is best for A1 calves and A2 for A2 calves but
none of this is good for the human species. Moreover, anyone who
consumes this organic milk is still likely to consume tea, biscuits, sweets
and other dairy products while visiting friends, travelling or while eating
out, and so are likely to be affected by the additives and adulterants.
I hope by now you have a better understanding of why dairy is bad for
you. The very first and most important step to prevent or reverse diabetes
(both type 1 and type 2) is to get all kinds of dairy products out of our diet.
Only when we become really conscious of dairy as an ingredient can we
become careful. This is a crucial step to get rid of diabetes. If you are
wondering how you will survive without your milk, curd, buttermilk, butter,
ghee, paneer, ice cream or milk sweets and all the other foods made out of
them, fear not. Later in this book I will share amazing alternatives. You will
also be surprised and delighted to find that though you have to give up
dairy, you will be able to eat some of the things that you may have been
avoiding because of diabetes. I promise you that life will be sweet again!

Fat
Remember how we talked about the fat in dairy being a cause of diabetes?
Here’s how fat causes diabetes:

This diagram shows a muscle cell with insulin receptors. When the insulin lodges in the insulin
receptor, it allows glucose to enter the cell through intracellular signalling. Intramyocellular lipid (fat
inside the muscle cell) acts as a deterrent to insulin action (insulin resistance). Mitochondria burn
nutrients in the cell to create energy.

Effects of Fat

Our muscles need glucose to power them, and the blood constantly supplies
them with this important fuel. Insulin receptors are like little locked
gateways on the muscle cell which can be opened by insulin––the key.
When insulin engages with the insulin receptor, it opens the gates to allow
glucose in, from the blood into the muscle cell where it can be used.
When fat accumulates inside the muscle cells, it jams up the insulin
receptors, which results in insulin resistance. This means that even though
there is enough insulin, perhaps even more than normal, it’s not able to do
its job. Now the glucose remains in the bloodstream, raising the blood sugar
levels while the muscle cells that need it cannot use it. As a result we feel
lethargic and drained of all energy. The cells also contain mitochondria,
which are like little furnaces that burn fat. But when fat accumulates, the
mitochondria work less. Thus regular consumption of fat actually causes
insulin resistance. But taking fat out of the diet works to reduce this insulin
resistance and allows glucose to enter the cells again. This translates in
human terms to a feeling of more energy, less lethargy and drowsiness,
symptoms which are very common in people with diabetes.
The point to remember is that this can happen to anyone who consumes
fat in their diet, including thin people.
Most of us consume fat without realizing it. All our meals are cooked in
ghee, butter or oil. All of this is fat. Animal products too are full of fat, be it
milk, eggs, meat, fish, chicken or anything else. Fat swims on top when you
boil these items.

Animal Foods vs Plant Foods––Cholesterol and Fat Content5

Just take a simple look at the chart on page 39––there really is no contest.
First and foremost, plant foods have zero cholesterol. This is only found in
animal products. Secondly, the amount of fat found in whole plant foods
does not even come close to that found in animal foods.
I can imagine you thinking that this lifestyle is really challenging! First,
no dairy and now, cooking without oil! Believe me, most people who try it
say it is much easier than they thought it would be. And tastier too! I can
think of four people offhand who have written cookbooks after attending
my courses because they realized that this new way of cooking is easy and
delicious. But many do hesitate to try it. If you feel so, please hold on. In
the practical section (Part V), I will help you out with this.

Stress

Over and over again, I have heard diabetics say that they got the disease
during a stressful time in their life. This is not uncommon. It could have
been caused by difficulties in personal life, divorce, death of a loved one,
loss of a job or work-related stress. It could be physical stress like working
too hard and staying up late or dealing with sickness. It could be gestational
diabetes because pregnancy can be a physical stress on the body too. It
could also be stress that we are not aware of.
One of my patients once told me that he and his family were threatened
by thugs when they were living in Africa. The situation was so grave that he
had to suddenly leave the continent and relocate with his family. It was
during this extremely stressful period that he got diabetes.
Another friend who had a very busy job had to begin looking after his
mother who was ill. Though he tried his best to cope, this ended up as
diabetes and it did not go away.

Blood Sugar Rises Due to Stress

‘When I removed animal products and switched to the whole plant-based diet after
attending your seminar, I immediately saw my sugars normalize and was able to give up
my medication.
‘In the next month, I had to visit my family back home. This is usually stressful for
me. Though I stuck by my diet, I found that my sugar levels had gone up. This holds true
 even now. When I follow my diet strictly and I find my sugar levels go up, it is almost
like a wake-up call––to see whether I am unknowingly stressing about something.’

––Mr M, a forty-six-year-old diabetic

It is important to recognize stress as a trigger even after you get diabetes.

Stress hormones in our body directly affect the glucose levels. Notice that
whenever you experience emotional or physical stress, the blood sugar
levels most likely go up. For example, during an operation or a medical
intervention, fever or even a visit to the dentist, the blood sugar levels rise.
It’s clear that in today’s day and age it’s hard to be completely stress-free.
In later chapters we will talk about how to reduce stress and also how a
plant-based diet helps reduce stress levels. Being aware of stress as a cause
and being aware that you are stressed when you are is the first step in
reducing this.
The mind and body are inextricably linked. This is why it’s very
important to look at our mindset and become conscious of our own
behaviour patterns. You can begin by looking at what stresses you and the
ways in which you can address it. Accept the things you cannot change and
find solutions for those you can. Make a conscious effort to reduce stress. It
is one of the things making you sick.

Refined Foods

Our body needs nutrient-dense foods to help it heal and boost the immune
system. In plant foods, the maximum amount of nutrients are found just
under the skin. When we remove the skin or outer covering from our fruits,
vegetables, beans and grains, we lose a lot of nutrients and fibre. Fibre
bonds with sugar and fat in the food and prevents it from being absorbed
too quickly.
Fibre also makes you feel full longer so you consume only as much food
as your body needs, reducing empty calories.
 When we consume refined foods, which have no fibre, we end up
consuming more calories and our blood sugar levels rise. For example, if
you eat whole rice, you’ll find that you eat only half the amount as you feel
full faster as opposed to when you eat refined rice.

Processed Foods

One of the fallouts of our fast-paced modern lifestyle is the increasing

consumption of packaged and processed foods. The more processes a food
has gone through, the less nutrition it provides and the more addictive it
often becomes. Most of the foods that are found in the middle aisles of the
supermarket are preserved ready-made foods that have very little
resemblance to its original ingredients. The food industry has a little secret
to make foods irresistible. It combines fat, salt, sugar and sometimes dairy.
Since fat, sugar, dairy and the lack of fibre contribute to diabetes, processed
foods are extremely harmful. On top of this they also contain chemicals that
increase their shelf life and add to the flavour. We see this in the form of so
many different flavours of potato chips, biscuits, noodles, pastries and other
snack items.
What we don’t realize is that most of these ‘foods’ are made in
centralized factories and shipped to various outlets. They hardly have any
nutritional value and are full of calories and chemicals. Although the foods
are made to have a long shelf life, they don’t do much for our own shelf
life.

Lack of Exercise

Many a diabetic has seen blood sugars drop as a result of exercise. A

regular morning walk definitely brings down blood sugar levels. A
sedentary lifestyle along with a faulty diet is one of the key causes of
diabetes. One of the banes of modern existence is that we have created a
highly mechanized, artificial environment that has reduced physical
exertion to a minimum. We don’t walk even short distances, preferring to
take cars instead. We don’t climb stairs, but take elevators. We have
electronic gadgets to prepare and cook our food. And by cooking our food,
we have even given our jaws a rest. In India, many people have house help
and men are often dependent on their wives or family members to do their
personal chores.
If we lived in a natural environment, we would have to be physically
active for survival and may not need supplementary exercise. Since we
don’t, it is important to consciously become physically active. Incorporating
physical activity in your daily routine is key. It’s not necessary to join a
fancy gym or have plenty of time. Just use what is available to move your
body. Climb stairs instead of using a lift, don’t take vehicles for short
distances, walk instead, get up and stretch or dance during commercial
breaks while watching TV, walk around while talking on the phone. Start
small and steadily build your stamina to increase your physical activity.
What is important is movement, if possible, in nature. I have talked about
the importance of exercise at length in Chapter 24.

Lack of Vitamin D

People with low levels of vitamin D have an increased risk of developing

diabetes. An article titled ‘Vitamin D and Diabetes’ published in the journal
Rheumatic Diseases Clinics of North America emphasize this.6 Vitamin D is
a hormone made by the body when the sun comes in direct contact with the
skin.
Once again thanks to our artificial lifestyle, vitamin D deficiency has
become rampant. In India, with a premium put on fairer skin, people avoid
being exposed to the sun for fear of becoming dark. So even in the sun we
take umbrellas, cover ourselves and wear sunscreen––and the result is a
lack of vitamin D. In addition, the increasing levels of pollution do not
allow the sun’s UV rays to reach us. Trying to catch the sun through
windows in the privacy of our homes is also not the solution since glass
blocks the UV rays. It’s vital to check vitamin D levels and to take
supplements if they are low.
You can read more about the importance of vitamin D in Chapter 9.

Hormonal Disruptors

Diabetes is primarily a hormonal disorder. One fact that often seems to be

overlooked is how rampant hormone disruptors are in our daily lives.
Plastics and chemicals fall in this category and we have created an
environment where they are everywhere.

Plastic

Plastics find their way into landfills and pollute the land and water. In many
places they are just burnt, polluting the air, water and soil.
They find their way into the sea as well––fish in the oceans have a very
high concentration of plastics and mercury. More than half the fish caught
in the world are rendered and fed to the animals in our food chain. Animal
products hence have a high concentration of plastics and mercury. In fact,
PCBs have been found in human breast milk samples too. Therefore, it’s
important to avoid all animal products because that is where the highest
concentrations of PCBs are found.
Avoid bottled water, microwaving and freezing in plastic too.

Reduce the Use of Plastic in Your Life

It is important and entirely possible to avoid using plastic. Firstly, remove the use of
plastic bags in the house. Take a cloth bag when you go shopping for groceries.
Segregating garbage is the next step. But here we must be careful to not discard our
garbage in plastic bags. When we do this, we are putting the cows and other animals that
eat from garbage dumps at risk because they end up consuming plastic in order to get to
the food. Before you say, ‘What’s that got to do with me?’ stop to consider that the milk
given by these cows is probably sold to a cooperative and ends up in your house.
In Goa, they have come up with a great solution where they leave the waste in metal
tubs or give them to the cows directly. This might appear a little cumbersome to begin
 with, but once you make a habit of it, it becomes easy. You could pioneer this practice in
your society or colony.
Rwanda has banned plastic bags in the entire country, and Kenya has followed its
example! This is something India could take inspiration from, but till that happens we
could all do our bit to save ourselves.

Chemicals

Chemicals, too, are everywhere. The food that we consume is grown using
pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Packaged and processed foods also
contain chemicals.
We further get exposed to chemicals through air fresheners, detergents,
mosquito repellents, polishes and cleaning products. They are even found in
personal care products such as toothpastes, shampoos, soaps, lotions,
shaving creams, hair dyes, deodorants, perfumes, cosmetics, medications,
supplements––the list is endless. The next time you use any of these, take a
look at the ingredients.
As a result our body and skin are in constant touch with chemicals. It
seems hard to imagine life without them because we have been conditioned
to using these products. So what can we do? The answer is simple. Most of
these products can be replaced with natural alternatives. Perhaps we will
also find that we don’t need some of them at all!

Medications and Vaccinations

I have treated many patients taking multiple medications. Once the diet
improves, it’s easy to reduce some of them, one by one.
There is ample evidence that the statins commonly prescribed for
lowering cholesterol raise blood sugars and actually do not do anything
concrete for cholesterol. The cholesterol levels you get in your blood test
are not a real measure of the problem. It’s the cholesterol which lines the
arteries and which cannot be measured in the blood test that causes the
trouble. I will be talking more about fats and cholesterol in a later chapter.
 Since only animals produce cholesterol, if our food is free of animal
products (including dairy), there will be no cholesterol intake, which allows
us to drop cholesterol medications easily. Similarly, as we improve the fuel
we put in our body, other medications too will become unnecessary. For
example, blood pressure will reduce, blood will become thinner and blood
thinners may not be required.
I have seen that only by reducing the medication burden on the body does
the diabetes burden go down. This cannot be stressed enough. Medicines,
which are not vital, must be reduced. At the same time, reducing medicines
too quickly can be dangerous, so it is advisable that you reduce it following
tests and check-ups.
Antidepressants and steroids can increase weight and cause diabetes.
Antipsychotic drugs, too, can be a cause.
The point I am trying to make is that we take a lot of medicines
unquestioningly and sometimes believe that it can only do us good. The
converse can also be true.

Obesity

Obesity is recognized as a major risk factor that predisposes one to diabetes.

The irony is that the conventional medical treatment for diabetes often leads
to weight gain. Patients, once diagnosed and treated with medicines, often
enter the vicious circle of weight gain, which worsens the condition.

Tea, Coffee, Colas, Alcohol and Tobacco

Tea, coffee and colas contain caffeine and like alcohol and tobacco, they are
acidic, highly addictive and have an adverse effect on health, raising both
blood sugar and blood pressure. Tea and coffee can be replaced with herbal
teas (not green tea, which also contains caffeine). Even diet colas are
harmful.
 Tobacco is a known cause for cancer and makes your blood sugars rise.
You know you should not smoke, but if you have diabetes, then giving it up
will also help you get the results faster.
You needn’t worry. I understand that this is a big hurdle and I will help
you get rid of these habits. If you are ready to reclaim your health, this will
be less difficult than it sounds.

Cultural Factors

I want to list some cultural factors that promote diabetes. Some, or all, of
these may resonate with you. Only once we are aware that our habits are
unhealthy can we change them.

Cooked Food

We in India hardly have any raw food. Salads rarely exist and are served
occasionally in measly amounts as accompaniments to food. Green chutney
culture is all but gone. In order to get rid of diabetes, we should eat in a way
that is as close as possible to what nature expected of us. Fire is man-made.
While you will not be asked to stop cooked foods altogether since we are so
habituated to them, you will be asked to eat more raw foods. Infants and
children often instinctively take to it. I have heard mothers complaining that
their kids do not eat at all when all they eat is fruits and raw vegetables.
They do not consider raw foods to be real foods! But raw foods are higher
in nutrition and help the healing process. It exercises your jaws,
automatically cleans your teeth and you will feel like eating less. Most
importantly, if a little trouble is taken in preparation, it’s delicious too!

Eating Out

In India, eating at restaurants was rare in the past. In fact, restaurants

themselves were rare. Now new eating outlets are opening up almost daily
and eating out is the norm. Food has become entertainment.
We eat out to socialize or because we are bored. We order in because we
are too busy or too tired to cook or don’t know how to. Either way, we are
eating food that is cooked to feed commercial interests rather than to
nourish.

Corporate Culture

Many corporate offices have canteens that are open the whole day so that
people work longer hours and there’s less incentive to go out.
Once, when I was to do a seminar with a corporate firm, I offered to train
their kitchen staff so they could learn to serve healthy food. When they
realized how serious I was about changing the food, they decided against
the seminar. The food served there, like in many corporate canteens these
days, was from a centralized kitchen that catered to different corporate
organizations. They were able to provide food at a low cost and did not
want to make changes to what was being served. Cheap food causes
expensive diseases though!

Wedding Culture

Earlier, weddings were simple affairs where people sat in a line and were
served the same traditional meal. Now they have become elaborate events
serving every kind of cuisine in buffet stations. Over and above this, the
number of guests has become a determiner for one’s status. Weddings have
become like huge parties that are so tempting they are hard to refuse. This is
symptomatic of the kind of lifestyle we have adopted without realizing that
it is making us sick.

Hospital Tourism
Earlier, when someone was admitted to the hospital, the doctor would
provide guidelines for the patient’s diet––on what food to bring for him or
her from home. Now hospitals have food courts that could match those in
trendy malls. Hospital ‘tourism’ is a real thing and it has become a status
symbol to get the patient hospitalized in not just the best-equipped hospital
but also one with the widest array of restaurants to order food from, for both
the patient and the visitors alike.

Fast-Food Culture

We live in a culture of instant gratification. So fast food is attractive and

desirable. What’s more, it tickles the palate at a low price. Whether it is
instant noodles, chips, biscuits, baked treats or desserts, these are available
everywhere. Millions are spent on marketing them and we are bombarded
and brainwashed with advertisements where celebrities endorse them. So
how can we resist?

Mindset

The most insidious thing is the belief system we adopt without questioning,
such as the belief that diabetes is genetic. This fatalistic mindset that
‘everyone in my family has diabetes, so I too will get it’, makes us resigned
to our fate and not take responsibility for our health. What we don’t stop to
think is that genetics only makes you prone to certain diseases. But if you
alter your diet and lifestyle, you can keep diseases at bay, including
diabetes.
We are prone to blaming the state of our health on someone else and not
taking responsibility for it.
I remember a couple from the Middle East who had come for our twenty-
one-day health retreat. Even though they enjoyed eating all the whole,
plant-based, zero-oil, zero-sugar food served in our programme, they would
still not eat fruit because they could not change their mindset. They
believed that as diabetics if they ate fruit, it would raise their blood sugars.
Fortunately, they gave in by the last week after seeing some of their fellow
diabetics having several fruit meals a day, only to find that this was not true.
Many of us believe that diabetes cannot be reversed, and as long as we
believe this, it becomes the reality. Let us now change our mindset and
question all our beliefs. Once we believe that we can be rid of this disease,
it will reflect in our actions and become a reality.

Subsidies

So far I have described the direct causes of diabetes. But there are indirect
causes that support the very systems and conditions that make it easier to
adopt unhealthy diets and practices.
All the foods that may directly cause diabetes are available at cheap rates
such as chemically grown foods, refined foods and fried foods. This is
made possible in part due to the huge subsidies given for fertilizers and
pesticides that make it cheaper to grow chemical-ridden food. Compare this
to organic food, which is more expensive because the farmers do not enjoy
subsidies and have to spend a lot of money to get certified as organic. In
fact, organic food is normal, natural food and the food we consider natural,
which is grown with pesticides and fertilizers, should be called ‘chemical
food’. Similarly, dairy, meat and tobacco enjoy subsidies making it cheaper
to buy these, whereas fruits and vegetables do not.

Insurance

The only insurance is lifestyle. An insurance company can only pay for
treatment. But I have found that when people have health insurance, they
stop taking care of their health because they are lulled into a false sense of
security that now they don’t have to pay for their medicines. Doctors, too,
are more liberal with prescribing medications or tests.
 In different countries this works in different ways. For example, in the
UK, if someone was diagnosed with diabetes, they would receive medicines
free of cost for the rest of their life. If they reversed their diabetes, they
would have to pay for medicines in the future. Does this really incentivize
people to get better?
In a way, health insurance takes away the responsibility of staying
healthy from the patient and is deceptive. Until serious complications occur,
there may be no incentive to get well. In India, certain insurances only pay
when there is hospitalization. I’ve seen patients choosing to get hospitalized
to get tests done which could easily be done by a visit to the lab, just so that
the insurance will pay for it. The hospital gets revenue, the patient’s bill is
paid and everyone is happy. Ignorance is bliss until invasive procedures that
were not required are done too in the name of money.
I know that what has been articulated here is quite a lot to take in. I can
definitely relate to it. Sometimes the problems are so big that we don’t
know where to start, so we don’t change anything. The purpose here is to
equip you and empower you with knowledge. This will guide you to make
the right choices and take your health in your own hands. Don’t do nothing
if you cannot do everything. Do as much as you can. The rest will follow.
As we go forward in this book, I will show you new ways of eating and
living, which promote health and work towards getting rid of disease.
 6
The Evidence: Scientific Studies

Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, said, ‘Let food be thy

medicine.’ Over the years, commercialization has infiltrated medicine too.
In ancient China, doctors were paid according to the number of days their
patients were well. Today sickness makes money. Medical colleges are
often funded by the pharmaceutical industry, and doctors are taught very
little about nutrition. They know which drugs can be used for different
ailments but they do not know what to do to prevent these same ailments
and often suffer from them too.
Medicines, in turn, are being tested on animals in research laboratories in
lethal doses. This means little because the anatomy and physiology of
humans are different from animals and so reactions on them do not translate
into the same in humans. This is why so many drugs come to the market
only to be taken off in a few years. There is the classic case of Thalidomide
which, when prescribed to pregnant women, resulted in serious deformities
in their children.
More recently, the Indian government banned a diabetic drug
Pioglitazone that was believed to have caused heart failure and an increased
risk of bladder cancer in patients. I have met so many patients who have
been on this drug. Medicines are chemicals and have adverse reactions
because our body is not designed to metabolize them.
However, our body is always working to heal and instead of getting into
health problems, if we could think about how to prevent diseases, wouldn’t
we be much better off?
Today medical students take the Hippocratic oath but the culture of our
society, which is so strongly based on economic security, changes the way
they think. Nowadays students join medical colleges not because they want
to relieve suffering, but because they want a lucrative career. Their medical
college fees too have to be recovered. Times have changed.
It stands to logic that if we eat and live the way we were designed to, we
would not suffer from lifestyle diseases. And if we have abused our bodies,
then we always have a chance to heal them, provided we start soon enough
and do the right things.
As early as 1920, Max Gerson, a German-born American physician,
healed his patient Dr Albert Schweitzer of diabetes through a raw plant-
based diet. It stands to reason that our bodies were designed to eat raw food
and, if we had a totally natural existence, this would be the case. What we
could eat raw are mainly plants and perhaps some insects and animals that
are small enough to eat raw. Therefore, a raw diet is by default mainly
plant-based.
Dr Thomas Cleave’s book, published in the year 1975, The Saccharine
Disease: Conditions Caused by Taking Refined Carbohydrates Such as
Sugar and White Flour showed that within twenty years after processed
foods such as sugar and white flour were introduced into a culture, there
would be an outbreak of diabetes. Fat and processed foods are undoubtedly
the biggest cause of the disease.
The sugar addiction starts when we are very young, because it is used by
our parents to push unpalatable things down our throats––medicines, milk
or even certain foods. White flour and refined carbohydrates become sugar
after digestion. They often become comfort foods because of the connection
with our parents, past or even parties and fun food.
Dr Neal Barnard in his book Dr Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing
Diabetes notes that cultures that move from their traditional, high-complex-
carbohydrate diet to a more Western diet, rich in fat-fried foods, animal
products and oils, succumb to an epidemic of diabetes.
This is being seen all over the world. As cultures move from traditional
foods to supermarket foods, disease ensues.
 In 1972, researchers at the University of Kentucky studied twenty men with type 2 diabetes who
were on an average of 26 units of insulin a day. They were on a high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet. In
just sixteen days, only eleven were still on insulin and the average was only 11 units!
 This is the result of a study conducted at UCLA with 197 type 2 diabetics on oral medications.
They were on a three-week diet change plus exercise programme. In just twenty-six days, 140 of
them had discontinued their medicines altogether! Since they had changed their diet and increased
their exercise, this study did not show the effect of diet alone.

To understand the effect of nutritional interventions alone, Dr Barnard

conducted a twelve-week study. Participants were asked to eat whole, plant-
based foods without any animal products or added fats and not change their
exercise regimen. This study showed that on an average, a person on a
plant-based, low-fat, high-complex-carbohydrate and moderate-to-low
protein diet lost 16 pounds and their blood sugars dropped 28 per cent! All
this occurred without any limits on portion size or calorie control!
 Another study took fifty-nine overweight people and divided them into two groups––one was on a
low-fat, plant-based diet and the other on a typical diet usually recommended by doctors. They were
studied over fourteen weeks with no change in their exercise regimen. It was found that the low-fat,
plant-based group had lost on an average 5.8 kg whereas the other group lost only 3.8 kg in fourteen
weeks. More importantly, there was a significant increase in insulin sensitivity in the vegan group but
very little in the other group.

My own experience has been the same. In our twenty-one-day residential

programme where all the food is under my control, despite large delicious
buffets at every meal where participants are spoilt for choice, every single
participant gets results in the same time period and many are off all
medicines altogether in three weeks’ time.
Despite evidence and written documentation that diabetes can be
reversed, many doctors are not aware of this and patients are repeatedly told
that it is progressive, it comes with age and nothing really can be done. This
is to assure you that if you are committed and have type 2 diabetes, it can
almost certainly be reversed. If you have type 1, it can possibly be reversed
too and the dosage of insulin will almost certainly drop.
 PART III
NUTRITION FACTS
 7
Why the Foods We Eat Are Making Us Sick

We look after our cars better than ourselves!

If you had a car, what kind of fuel would you put in it? Definitely the one
on the manufacturer’s manual. If it is petrol, you would never use diesel or
vice versa. That stands to logic.
Every species in the wild instinctively knows what food to eat. A lion
cub instinctively goes for meat and a calf for grass. You would never give a
lion grass or a cow, meat.
We humans do too, but our conditioning battles with our instincts and
usually wins when it comes to food. We eat anything that is made to look
and taste appetizing. In the process, we have stopped eating according to
our instincts.

Get in Touch with Your Instincts

For a moment, let me put you in touch with your instincts. Imagine that you
are in a farm or an orchard and you see vegetables and fruit ripe and ready
to be plucked. What would you feel like doing? Picking and possibly eating
them, right? This is instinct. We enjoy eating freshly plucked fruit and
vegetables. But your dog wouldn’t be interested in eating these.
Now what would you feel like doing when you see a chicken running
across the road or in the village? You certainly don’t feel the urge to pounce
on it and devour it. Your mouth does not water. But if your dog sees a
chicken run, his instinct may be different. If you take your dog through the
chicken coop, you would have feathers everywhere!
Similarly, if you see a goat, pig or cow, you wouldn’t salivate but a lion
would, because that is his natural food. Your dog won’t, because these are
not his natural foods either. However, we do feed the meat of cows, pigs
and goats to dogs. This is harmful. Think about it. If you saw a dead
chicken on the road, would you feel like consuming it? Only when a
chicken has been cooked and presented on a plate do some of us salivate
and feel like consuming it. This is conditioning, not instinct.
Manufacturers know about our instincts all too well and tap into them to
maximize the sale of their products. When you go shopping, you are
attracted by herbal products, shampoos, soaps and toiletries that claim to
contain ‘natural’ ingredients and have the fragrance of all kinds of fruit and
flowers, not to mention their images on the packaging. Can you imagine
buying toiletries that smell of chicken, beef or fish instead? Instinctually,
we are attracted to plants and their smells, not to animal flesh and the smell
of death and decay.
But culturally it’s different. Due to our conditioning we might find the
smell of a barbecue or cooked fish inviting. It is because we have grown up
with these foods and associate them with festivity and comfort. The
important thing to remember is that conditioning can be reversed. It is
entirely possible to give up these foods and not miss them. We cannot do
the same with plants. That would be going against instinct. Sometimes
when I ask people whether their mouths salivate when they see a chicken or
a goat, some of them say ‘yes’. This is conditioning, and should not be
mistaken for instinct.
Let us take this a step further––you may have seen lush green fields of
wheat or rice growing in the countryside. What do you feel like doing when
you see these? You may answer that you enjoy the greenery or wish to walk
through the fields or that it relaxes you. These are the answers that I have
heard. No one ever says that they salivate on seeing green fields. That’s
because grass is cow food and grains are bird food.
Human beings have now learnt to eat dog food (chicken), cow and bird
food (wheat and rice), lion food (goats, sheep, cows and pigs) and calf food
(milk). Each animal thrives when it eats food suited to its anatomy and so
should we. No wonder we are sick! We are very careful about what we feed
to the animals in our care but not so when it comes to ourselves.
 Part of the reason for this is that we don’t think much about what we eat.
One of the first things that parents teach us is what to eat, even before we
learn to think. And they were taught these habits by their own parents––it
has become a culture. These habits are further reinforced by society and
advertisements and no one gives it much thought. As adults, we continue to
consume food that is detrimental to our health and unnatural for our species,
because we have internalized what we were fed as children. By the time we
start thinking about it, we are, in most cases, habituated to food that is not
good for us. It is not our parents’ fault either because as a society we are
heavily influenced by advertisements that promote foods, rather than by
instinct.
Our instincts are still intact when we are children. How many of you
have had trouble getting young children to drink milk? Children usually
refuse to drink animal milk because they know instinctively that it’s not the
best food for them, but we cajole and coax them, then add sugar and other
malt-based substances to make it palatable. But then they become addicted.
If I tell you to give up dairy now, you would probably want to resist.

Natural Foods Lead to Health, Processed Foods to Disease

We eat refined and processed foods that don’t resemble the natural
substances that they came from. For example, oil from oilseeds or sugar
from beet or sugar cane. Real food has a finite shelf life but many of these
extracts last for many years. This may be because they are full of chemicals
or because they have become chemical substances themselves.
We need to pause and think about foods that are instinctual to us. These
should form the bulk of your diet. The others should be kept to a bare
minimum or ideally removed altogether from your diet, especially if you’re
serious about reversing diabetes.

Diabetes Belongs to Everyone

Although diabetes has been mentioned in ancient medical texts, it was a
very rare illness in the early 1900s. In India, it was a disease of the rich
because they consumed high caloric, refined foods. Then with the easy
availability of processed foods it became a disease of the middle class. Now
it has become a disease of the poor as well, because refined and processed
foods are the cheapest foods available.
Our bodies are designed to crave high calories in the form of sweets and
fat because these can be stored for use in times of scarcity. In nature, they
are always accompanied by fibre, so overeating is impossible. But now
refined foods give us high calories every day and because of the
mushrooming of supermarkets, there is no scarcity of these foods. As a
result, we as a society are growing fatter.

Industrialized Farming

My grandmother always used to say, ‘The food today doesn’t taste like it
used to in our time.’ Almost everyone I talk to has heard this from their
parents or grandparents. So what has changed?
When our grandparents were young, food grew naturally, the way nature
meant for it to be grown. Many foods were seasonal. In each season, they
would have their fill of the best and then they would move on to what was
available in the next season. Now many things are available all year round!
Foods are grown with special chemicals, which hasten maturing or slow
down the process. Not to mention fertilizers and pesticides. Pesticides are
poisons that keep animals and insects away from the food so that we can eat
them! Farmers in India are told that they are medicines their plants need.
This is only so that the farmers can keep a good conscience. Most of them
have a special plot where they plant the food they eat. This plot is never
sprayed. Once you grow artificially, the soil gets depleted and then
fertilizers become a necessity. Real soil is alive and full of organisms, just
like our bodies, but in industrialized farms the soil is dead. It’s just a bunch
of chemicals. Organisms cannot survive in it and plants, too, need help.
 From the Farmer’s Mouth
I once met a farmer who had switched to organic farming. I asked him what had made
him change. He said that when he saw birds drop down dead when the crops are sprayed
with pesticides, he realized that it must be poison. He had seen crops grown naturally for
years but everything changed when government agents started telling them to buy
fertilizers and pesticides. Once these chemicals are used, nothing grows without them.
But it is possible to revive the soil again and bring back its life.

Punjab, considered the grain bowl of the country, has the highest incidence
of pesticide and fertilizer usage. The fallout has been the alarming rise in
cancer cases, especially in the Malwa region. So much so that there is a
train nicknamed ‘Cancer Express’ because it carries farmers with cancer
from this region of Punjab to neighbouring Rajasthan where the poorest
among them can get free and subsidized treatment.
We are eating, drinking and breathing poisonous chemicals. Chemicals
are hormone disruptors, known to cause diabetes.
In our culture of mass production and consumption, we have access to a
huge variety of food with a dwindling quality. If you go to a restaurant, you
may find the menu spread out over several pages. This is because of
different sauces and seasonings. For example, there may be numerous
chicken dishes to select from according to the flavouring. We are selecting
the flavour more than the food! The reason why we need so much
flavouring in our food is because the original food doesn’t taste so good any
more.
We are drifting far from what nature meant us to eat. We have lost touch
with our instincts and happily eat processed and chemically grown foods
designed to tempt us and make us eat more. We have forgotten that real
food––the food our great-grandparents ate––is even more delicious and will
not make us sick!
 8
The Natural Diet for Human Beings: The Logic of
Plant Foods and Whole Foods

In the last chapter we looked at our instincts. Here we will look at further
evidence of our need to eat differently in order to be disease-free.

The Logic of Eating Only Plants

It stands to reason that if we eat only the foods most suitable to our species,
we are less likely to get sick and if we do fall sick, we are more likely to
heal. In this chapter we take a look at some of the anatomical and
physiological characteristics and habits of our species to understand why a
plant-based diet is most appropriate for us humans.
Since childhood we’ve been told that we are omnivores. We believe this,
often without questioning it. But if we were to compare our anatomy with
that of carnivores, herbivores and other omnivores, it would give us a
different perspective. Our instincts and our anatomy co-relate. Every animal
has an anatomy and physiology that is suitable for its biological needs.

Teeth/Dentition

Let us compare the teeth of a herbivore, a carnivore and those of other

omnivores with our own teeth. The differences are evident.
Carnivores have sharp, pointed canines so they can attack their prey, tear
it apart and devour it. They don’t have grinders (molars) because they do
not masticate the food in their mouths; they swallow the pieces since most
of the digestion occurs in the stomach. Their jaws open wide, enabling them
to grip their prey. Carnivores can only move their jaws vertically.
Herbivores, on the other hand, have a lot of grinders. They masticate
their food in the mouth. Their jaws move both vertically and horizontally to
enable this.
An omnivore’s teeth vary, depending on whether it is mainly carnivorous
or herbivorous. The monkey and the bear are both omnivores and have
different teeth, suited for different diets. Even the teeth of the brown bear, a
true omnivore, whose diet is 95 per cent plant-based, is quite different from
our own.
By comparison, it becomes clear that our teeth resemble that of a
herbivore. Though we have teeth that we call canines, they are very unlike
those of carnivores. They are neither sharp enough nor long enough to
attack an animal, kill it and tear it apart. But our jaws and molars are similar
to those of herbivores, enabling us to chew our food before swallowing it.
Teeth of carnivores Teeth of herbivores

Teeth of omnivores Compare with our teeth

Drinking Water

Herbivores drink by sipping and carnivores drink by lapping. We, like

herbivores, sip.

Lapping Sipping

Digesting the Food

Our salivary glands produce enzymes to digest complex carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates are found in plants and their digestion begins in the mouth.
Carnivores, on the other hand, don’t have an enzyme in their mouths, but
instead have a lot of acid in their stomachs. This acid serves to destroy all
the germs in their prey, and then helps dissolve and digest its skin, bones
and flesh. Unlike carnivores, we cannot eat the flesh of animals uncooked.
Human stomachs have less acid, therefore we easily contract food-borne
diseases through improperly cooked meat and animal secretions like milk
and eggs. Carnivores don’t face this problem because the copious amount of
acid in their stomachs kills these disease-causing microorganisms.
 Acid is also required to digest protein. It is clear that the human stomach,
with its much lower levels of acid, is not designed to digest a large amount
of protein. When we do eat a high-protein diet, we force our stomachs to
produce a lot of acid. This is one of the causes of acidity.
Since we don’t have a lot of acid in our stomachs, when we eat a high-
protein meal, we most often throw in a bit of acid to help digestion. Think
about it. If you were to order a burger at a fast-food restaurant, what do you
order to drink? Most likely it’s cola or an aerated drink. These are highly
acidic drinks, which helps digest the high-protein content of the food. If you
order a steak in a nice French restaurant, you would most likely order wine
to go with it. Alcohol, too, is acidic. It is interesting that in India, non-
vegetarian restaurants serve alcohol but vegetarian restaurants generally
don’t. Traditionally, it was only the non-vegetarians who needed to
consume something acidic to aid digestion. Today vegetarian food has
changed a lot because of the high levels of dairy products in it. The
vegetarian appetite for paneer and cheese puts them in the same boat as
non-vegetarians; both could be equally struggling with their digestion, but
the convention hasn’t changed yet. Of course, this is no problem because
colas are available everywhere and they serve the same purpose.
When we finish a heavy meal, we often drink coffee or tea, both acidic
drinks. All this acid may aid digestion, but it destroys our health in different
ways––we will see this in greater detail in the next chapter.
After eating a meal of flesh or cheese, we typically feel full and groggy.
The coffee helps a bit but we may desire a nap. This is because all our
energy goes towards digesting these foods that are not natural to our diet.
The opposite is usually true when we eat fruits or a fresh vegetable salad.
We feel invigorated and energized because these foods are easy to digest
and pass through the stomach quickly.

The Digestive Tract

There are huge differences between the digestive systems of carnivores and
herbivores. The carnivores’ stomach capacity is 60–70 per cent of their total
digestive system. Their intestines are relatively shorter because they eat
infrequent large meals and most of the digestion is done in the stomach.
And also because they consume animal flesh, which decays fast and needs
to pass out of the system quickly.
In the case of herbivores, including humans, the intestines are longer
because most of the digestion and absorption is done here. An herbivore’s
digestive tract is almost 12–16 times the length of its spine, while a
carnivore’s is just three times the length of its spine. Our own digestive
system is twelve times the length of our spine. If decaying animal flesh or
secretions has to make its way through this long tube, toxins released from
it are unfortunately absorbed too, predisposing us to colon and other
cancers.

Beyond the Digestive System

Our Sweet Tooth

One of the reservations people have about eating healthy is about having to
give up cakes and pastries. We humans have a decidedly sweet tooth. This
was not created by nature in a wicked attempt to tempt us and make us sick,
but rather in order to attract us to the foods that are best for us—fruits.
Today we have learnt to artificially sweeten everything so that it tastes
good. This, of course, is very unhealthy. When we renounce refined sugar,
our taste buds sharpen. We are then able to taste the sweetness in vegetables
like carrots, peas and even onions and potatoes. Food becomes much more
enjoyable. Carnivores do not have taste buds for the sweet taste, simply
because nature did not intend for them to be attracted to sweet foods.
Rather, they have attributes like a stronger sense of smell that enable them
to hunt their prey.
In nature, nutrition and palatability go hand in hand. The sweeter and
tastier the apple you’re eating, the more nutritious it is likely to be. Organic
fruits and vegetables taste better. So does fresh produce when compared to
old produce. It goes without saying that it is better to eat fresh organic
produce rather than chemically grown food from cold storage.

Multicoloured Vision

We humans have multicoloured vision, a feature that most other animals

don’t have. We can see all the colours of the rainbow, and this serves us
because the best foods for us are those that span the colours of the rainbow.
We are naturally attracted to vibrant colours. When we are at a farmers’
market with lots of differently coloured fruit and vegetables, we are tempted
to buy them. When we go to a good restaurant, no matter what we order, the
food is made to look more attractive by garnishing it with colourful
vegetables. We have a multicoloured vision so that we are tempted to eat
foods of different colours in order to get a variety of nutrients.
Manufacturers of packaged foods know this and use this trick to entice us
to buy their products. Think about the different flavours of potato chips, all
wrapped in differently coloured packets. When we look at the display of
these products, we naturally want to try them all! Needless to say, these are
not natural foods and should not be a part of our diet at all.

Claws and Tools

Animals that eat other animals have the necessary physical attributes to kill,
tear apart and digest the prey with their own anatomy. Unlike carnivores
and most omnivores, we are not endowed with claws or talons to attack
another animals. Our jaws cannot open wide enough to bite into them.
Night vision, common in predators, is lacking in humans. Without any
bodily appendage to kill, we need tools to attack and kill the animals that
we have learnt to eat, and whose flesh we have learnt to savour. Hence,
eating animals is not what nature designed for us but something that we
have learnt to do.
Most animals that eat other animals are able to eat them almost whole. A
cat that eats a mouse or squirrel will eat the animal whole––from head to
tail, leaving behind nothing––no skin, hair or bones. When a lion eats a
zebra or an antelope, it too is capable of eating every part of it. That is to
say that although the animal may be shared by the entire pride, almost every
part of it can be consumed by the predators.
If this were not so, imagine the skeletons and pelts of mice and rats that
we would see every morning in the streets after stray cats and dogs have
feasted during the night. It’s only when a large animal dies and is eaten by
smaller scavengers like vultures and hyena that the skeleton may remain.
When we eat an animal, we usually have to take off the skin, feathers or
scales and the bones, hack it with a knife, clean its insides and then cook it
in order to make it edible and so that we may not get sick. To make it more
suitable to our palates, we season it with materials from the plant
kingdom––onions and garlic, mustard and tomato ketchup, oil, herbs and
spices, to name a few. Then we eat it with more plant-based foods––rice,
bread or even vegetables. No true omnivore or carnivore needs to disguise
its natural food to such a degree.
 Not only are we conditioned to eat food that is unsuitable for us, we also
often feed our domestic animals food that is not meant for them. For
example, pet dogs and cats may be fed beef. What number of these dogs
and cats are natural predators of cows and buffaloes? Even though cats and
dogs are carnivores, they have their own niche. Feeding them outside this
niche may not be healthy for them. I remember one of my patients from the
US proudly telling me that they raised wild bison to commercially produce
high-quality dog and cat food. This is a mistake because in the first place,
bison is not natural dog or cat food. Dogs and cats cannot kill this
magnificent animal on their own in the wild. But since few of us stop to
think about this, bison meat will easily sell as dog food for a premium.
In our modern-day society, we have distanced ourselves from nature and
are disconnected from our food source. We rarely think about what we eat
and what we are doing. Today we have made even the originally
herbivorous animals that we raise for our food omnivores and, sometimes,
even cannibals. Let me explain. In order to make them grow faster, to save
money and make more profit, cows, pigs, chicken and other animals in our
food chain are fed slaughterhouse by-products and fishmeal. The
slaughterhouse by-products and by-catch are routinely sent to rendering
plants where they are converted into dry food and then added to domestic
animal feed. The sad results of this are being witnessed today. Mad Cow
disease and its human form, Creutzfeld Jacob Syndrome, are just some
effects of feeding animals in our food chain foods that are not suited for
them. (For more information on this, and to learn more about our current
practices, you can refer to two books by American meat-and-dairy-farmer-
turned-activist Howard Lyman titled Mad Cowboy and No More Bull.)

Our Herbivorous Instincts and Habits

Herds and Groups

Like other herbivores, we are herd animals. We like doing what everyone
else does, whether it’s fashion or our eating habits. We live in clusters,
towns and cities. Carnivores usually live alone or in small packs. One of the
biggest obstacles in changing our eating habits is our society. If everyone
were to change, it would be easy, but to be different from the rest poses a
challenge to many. A major reason why it is difficult to make India
diabetes-free is that most people resist change in their food habits. We
follow the herd most of the time.

Frequency of Eating

If you leave a horse or a cow in a pasture, they can graze all day long. We
are similar in this regard. Like herbivores, we eat all day. Breakfast, lunch,
dinner, a few snacks. Carnivores, on the other hand, don’t. They kill, eat
their prey and then rest, sometimes for days before the next kill. If we eat
the foods suitable for a carnivore, but then eat as often as a herbivore does,
don’t you think it would cause problems?

Changing Lifestyles

I live in Auroville, in rural Tamil Nadu. Here, until as recently as fifteen

years ago, chicken and goat butchers appeared only on Sundays. This was
true of many places in India as well. Forty years ago, processed cheese was
relatively new and most people disliked it because of its smell. Go back a
little further in time and about sixty years ago, India did not have an
organized dairy sector. When I was growing up in Mumbai, toned milk
(milk reconstituted from imported milk powder) was available, but that was
only at ration booths, where it was given according to the quota. At the time
most people did not have a fridge, and hardly consumed animal products.
Most people in their seventies will say that they hardly had any milk while
growing up unless they lived in a village and had their own cow. Our diet is
changing rapidly, more rapidly than we can even imagine! Now meat and
chicken have become a part of our regular diet and are no longer served on
special occasions. Milk and cheese are staple foods in most homes and it’s
hard to find a restaurant that does not serve cheese. In fact, now it’s hard to
find a meal in an Indian restaurant that is free from dairy products.
The West is facing an even bigger challenge. Just forty years ago, most
hotels in Europe served a continental breakfast. This included tea and coffee
and fruit juice or fruit. Additionally, there would be bread rolls or toast
served with butter and jam. Today, these very same hotels have a breakfast
buffet, which includes all kinds of dairy products from yoghurt to cheese,
all kinds of meat products from sausages to cold cuts and all kinds of
eggs––boiled, scrambled and omelettes. Indian hotels are similar. The way
we eat has changed considerably. Many Europeans over the age of fifty will
tell you that when they were young, they had fish on Fridays and meat on
Sundays and that was it. Now there’s meat for every meal, starting with
breakfast.
We are facing the biggest epidemic of heart disease, diabetes and cancer
in the history of mankind––which is reversible if we just look at what has
changed since then. Could there be a possible correlation with the change in
our diet?

Our Instincts

Unlike other animals, we do not eat by instinct any more. Our parents and
society teach us what to eat. Advertising plays a huge role in creating and
propagating these myths. Once we recognize this, we will think before
putting anything into our mouths and check whether it’s worthy of our
bodies or not.
Many thinkers from the past—from Plutarch and Socrates to Thomas
Edison, Albert Einstein, George Bernard Shaw, Dr Albert Schweitzer and
Dr Benjamin Spock—have shunned animal products. But the herd chose to
move in the opposite direction!

The Logic of Whole Foods

Most animals in nature are healthy because they eat the food most suited to
their anatomy. Man is innovative. We saw birds in the sky and we wanted to
fly, and today we have planes. We saw aquatic animals and now with ships
we have conquered the seas. We saw carnivores, and we wanted to kill. So
far, so good. Today we are the biggest predators on the planet and this is
killing us, literally. Heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer––today’s
number-one killers are all linked to our food habits. What can we do about
it? We could begin by looking at our ‘cousins’, the other primates, and what
they eat!

Eat Like a Monkey

Human beings are the only species that systematically renders their food
less nutritious before eating it. We do this for several reasons, but mainly to
make the food tastier and last longer, as in the case of sugar, oil or white
flour. We have become so used to these non-foods that we often do not
know how to live without them. Eating whole means no white flour, no
white rice, no oil or sugar. It also means no peeling of fruits and vegetables
wherever it is not required. What does this mean? Here’s where we have to
watch the monkeys. Monkeys, like us, have hands and fingers. They peel
bananas, but cannot peel apples, carrots or cucumbers. A monkey in its
natural habitat will not have access to oil or sugar. So ‘eat like a monkey’
means eat your food whole as far as possible. Discard only that part of the
food a monkey would throw away.

What Happens When We Refine Foods?

There are many ways in which we refine foods. In all the cases, the fibre is
removed to make the food softer, smoother and tastier, sort of like baby
food. Much of the fibre of the plant is located on the skin outside and a very
large proportion of the nutrients are located just below it.
Most of the Nutrition Is Lost

Take the example of this chart from Food Revolution by John Robbins,1
which shows the percentage of nutrients lost when whole-wheat flour is
refined into white flour. During this process that removes the outer skin, we
lose 25 per cent of protein and 90 per cent of fibre, but also more than 50
per cent of most other nutrients.

Remember that nutrients help in healing, while fibre cleanses. In the case of
diabetes, we are trying to heal the pancreas. Eating whole foods helps keeps
the nutrition in our body intact. The fibre helps us feel satiated longer and
cleans the digestive tract. When we refine our food, we strip it of nutrients
and fibre. As a result, we are forced to consume more.

No Fibre and Hence Less Filling

Have you noticed that when you eat whole foods you feel full faster? For
example, two slices of real whole-wheat bread may fill you as much as four
slices of white bread, though each of the slices contain the same amount of
calories. So you end up consuming more calories when you eat white bread
because you need to eat twice the amount to feel full. The same is true of
rice. A bowl of whole rice is about as filling as two bowls of white rice. But
one bowl of whole rice contains almost the same amount of calories as a
bowl of white rice.
For manufacturers, this spells profits, because you are consuming twice
the amount of food when it is refined or processed. For you, it translates
into calories and weight gain without the benefit of good health. It’s also
important to note that when you eat whole foods, say whole rice instead of
white rice, you stay full longer. This translates into reducing your urge to
snack, making your daily caloric intake even lower.
Fibre provides bulk without calories. In our bodies, fibre also has a
specific function. It creates bulk in the intestines, preventing constipation
and maintaining smooth movements of the bowels. Constipation is very
common today because of the high consumption of refined and animal-
based foods, but it’s almost impossible to be constipated on a whole-food,
plant-based diet.
Sometimes we refine food in ways that may not be as damaging, but
these are not as healthy as the whole food from which they are derived. For
example, fruit juice. It has a distinct flavour, which means many nutrients
are still available, and it’s tasty. But the problem is that we may be able to
drink large amounts of it, because the fibre is removed and it is now easier
to consume. Thus we get more calories than we would if we stuck to eating
the whole fruit. This may be useful in a situation where it’s difficult to eat
or when we need a large amount of nutrients quickly, as in the case of
cancer, but is especially detrimental for diabetics because of its high caloric
values.

Refined Foods Become Tasteless

Nutrition and palatability go hand-in-hand. Nutrients have flavours of their

own. Whole rice, whole wheat, beetroot, sugar cane and fruit and oilseeds
like peanuts, sesame and coconut have their own distinct flavours. The
refined products that come from them are stripped of these flavours. This is
also one of the reasons they are so popular. White rice provides a good
base, because it hardly has a taste of its own, so it doesn’t alter the taste of
the gravy that it is served with. Compare this with the rich wholesome taste
of brown rice. Similarly, white bread serves as a packaging for the filling of
the sandwich. Unlike whole bread, it hardly has a flavour. Sugar added to
anything only increases the sweetness and does not change the taste. But
dates, raisins or beetroot have their own flavours. Foods fried in refined oil
bear no resemblance to the oilseeds from which the oil was derived. You
cannot tell which oil a food has been fried in just by tasting it. You cannot
even differentiate one refined oil from another by its taste.

Refined Foods Last Longer

Sugar, oil, white flour and white rice have a much longer shelf life than do
the plants from which they have been manufactured. But we should not be
interested in this. We should rather be interested in increasing our own
lifespan, which these foods do not help with because of their high caloric
content and lack of nutrients.
In nature, no animal will eat stale food. Even insects are not interested in
food without nutritional value. But for businesses, this means additional
profit because stocks can be preserved much longer.
The implications of eating whole foods are twofold:

Until our body’s nutritional needs are met, we will remain hungry.
If we eat nutrient-dense foods, we need to eat less to get satiated.
Our stomachs have a fixed capacity. If we consume more fibre, we
will feel full while consuming fewer calories.

Think about it. There may have been a time when you had a bag of potato
chips for lunch. Although these give you a large number of calories, when
you finished one bag, you may have opened another. But if on another day
you had a large salad for lunch, it is highly unlikely that you would order a
second one. Although the salad may give you less calories than the bag of
potato chips, it gives you many more nutrients and fibre and so it’s more
satisfying. It’s also not addictive like fried food.
In south India, I often see people eating large quantities of white rice
accompanied by small amounts of sambhar or vegetables. Because white
rice is nutritionally deficient, they make up for it by eating it in large
quantities. But if they were to increase their intake of vegetables and lentils
while substituting white rice with whole rice (i.e., unpolished rice), the
quantity needed by the body would reduce considerably.

Peeling

One of the most difficult things to change is the habit of peeling fruits and
vegetables even though we lose a lot of nutrients when we do so. Almost no
vegetable, except perhaps onions and garlic, should be peeled. Rather,
nothing that needs a tool to peel should be peeled (remember the monkey
rule?). Vegetables like knol knol (gaanth gobi), where the skin is thick and
fibrous and sometimes not edible, can be peeled with our teeth and fingers.
Our body does have the tools to peel even these. Pineapple is one fruit we
have that the monkey cannot easily eat. It does need peeling. Jackfruit may
be another. Interestingly, both these fruits have a higher glycaemic index
than most fruits. This means, for diabetics, any other fruit is fine but too
much pineapple or jackfruit is not recommended.

What if the Produce Is Not Organic?

A question that often arises when we talk about peeling is, ‘What if the
fruits and vegetables are not organic? Should they be peeled then?’ There is
a misconception that pesticides only reside in the skin of the produce when,
in fact, the opposite is true. For example, when pesticides are sprayed at the
bottom of a coconut tree, you will find it in the water of the coconuts as
well. You are not escaping the pesticides by peeling, but you may just be
under the false perception that you are. Although it’s much better to use
organic produce, in case you don’t, it’s still better to not peel and wash it
well instead.

Wash Before You Chop

Another important rule is to wash the produce well before chopping in order
to not lose nutrients. Chopping followed by washing leaches nutrients out.
Here is an experiment that demonstrates this well. Take a fresh organic
carrot and wash it well. Divide it into three parts. Now grate the first part
without peeling. Taste it. Now peel the second part, grate it and taste it.
Finally peel the last part, grate it and drop it into a glass of drinking water.
Leave it there for a minute and take it out and taste it. You will find that the
taste and therefore, the nutritional value, reduces at every step.

The Truth about Sugar

It’s Everywhere

As diabetics we must avoid all refined products, including sugar. We are so

used to ready-made foods that sometimes we don’t even think about how
they are made. A large number of them contain sugar. When I speak to
patients, they often tell me that they hardly have any sugar. But
unknowingly, they are still consuming it because it can be found in
everything.
Apart from the obvious foods such as jams, juices, ice creams, biscuits,
sweets, pastries and chocolates, sugar also sneaks its way into many foods
we wouldn’t normally associate with it such as salad dressings, bread,
flavoured potato chips, tomato ketchup, flavoured yoghurt, tinned fruit,
carbonated drinks, energy bars, peanut butter and breakfast cereals, to name
a few.
As people became more conscious of their sugar consumption and started
reading labels, the manufacturers moved one step ahead. They now use
alternate names for sugar in the ingredients list such as invert sugar, corn
sugar, dextrose, sucrose and fructose, and even more deceiving names such
as evaporated cane juice, brown rice syrup and nectar, among many others.
Do not be deceived. Sugar is found in nearly all packaged foods. It makes
food more attractive, and it also acts as a preservative. We have to
understand that what helps to preserve foods does little to preserve our
health and must be avoided.
If you have seen the documentary film Supersize Me by Morgan
Spurlock, you know that there is sugar in everything that McDonald’s
serves, except the fries. And if you have those with ketchup, you’ve got
sugar there too. One 330 ml can of Coca Cola contains seven teaspoons of
sugar, according to Coke. Today, an average American consumes twenty-
two teaspoons of sugar a day.2 India is on a similar path since we have
readily adopted the American diet and culture in our cities.

Sugar Is Addictive

We have a natural sweet tooth to encourage us to consume foods that are

good for us, such as fruit. But we have artificially learnt to sweeten
everything to make it tastier. Children love to eat out because restaurants
put sugar in everything. Even pizza has sugar in it, both in the sauce and the
crust. Sugar makes children hyperactive and may even cause mood swings.
The fact is that it is addictive. When we eat sugar, the neurotransmitter
dopamine that helps control the brain’s reward and pleasure centres is
released in the brain, giving us a feeling of pleasure––this is exactly what
narcotic drugs do to an addict. Our brain is hardwired to seek out activities
that release dopamine. This is the basis of any addiction. And like all
addictions, the consumption has to keep increasing for the same pleasure to
be felt again and again. This is how we fall into the spiral of eating sugar
and other junk foods without realizing it.

Artificial Sweeteners Are Worse

Sugar, naturally, should not be replaced with artificial sweeteners which are
just chemicals. Many of them are also potent cancer-causing agents and do
nothing to reduce diabetes. Sweeteners also raise our threshold for sweet
taste and do little to reduce our addiction or dependence on them.
When we stop eating sugar, our threshold for the sweet taste goes down.
Now we can taste the sweetness in fruits and even vegetables. Peas, carrots
and even onions begin to taste sweet. Desserts can be made with dried
fruits. Real food becomes a lot more enjoyable. Nature is very wise because
whenever there is high sugar or fat content in fruits and vegetables, it is
accompanied with a lot of fibre. Let us take the example of sugar cane.
Eating sugar cane is not harmful and even diabetics can enjoy it. This is
because the high fibre content of sugar cane demands that you chew a lot to
get to the sweet nectar. Although we discard the fibre after chewing, it
ensures that the sugar enters the bloodstream slowly. This is not the case,
though, when we consume sugar cane juice or jaggery. These items, though
not as refined as sugar, are still refined. It may be hard to chew on even half
a stem of sugar cane and it would take a long time to do so. But it’s easy to
drink a glass of sugar cane juice made from 2–3 stems of sugarcane in a
matter of minutes!

Fats

Like sugar, refined fats are found in almost all food products. Like sugar,
they too act as preservatives, and add to the addictive nature of the product,
making it a win for manufacturers. Some amount of fat is found in virtually
every natural food too, but accompanied by fibre, it’s perfect for our bodies.
I am often asked whether coconut is saturated fat and if it is harmful,
especially for high blood pressure and heart patients. There are various
kinds of coconut, one of which is tender coconut. This does not have much
fat and neither does it have too much fibre. The mature coconuts that are
used for cooking have a higher fat content. The fibre content in these is
proportionately higher. Whenever there is a high amount of fat in plants,
nature provides a proportionate amount of fibre so that it does not pose a
danger to us. Coconut is, therefore, not harmful, but taking out the fibre––
for coconut milk or coconut oil––can render it harmful. Nowadays, coconut
sugars are also available. Naturally, these refined products should be
avoided.
Next, let us take the case of peanut butter made solely from peanuts (not
the commercial kinds which contain oil, sugar and more). When I suggest
this as a substitute for butter, patients are afraid that this may be too heavy.
It’s more filling, that is true, but it’s not as harmful as butter. It contains a
lot of fibre as opposed to butter.
But peanut oil, like all other oils, should be avoided. One tablespoonful
of peanut oil is made from a handful of peanuts. In regular Indian diets,
often unknowingly, this much or more is consumed in a day. Though a
handful of peanuts is quite filling, when reduced to oil, we can easily
consume more because there is no fibre and in this form, it is pure fat.
In Chapter 12, we will discuss more about fats and later in the book I will
show you how to cook without oil.

Milk Is Baby Food

Although milk is not a plant-based food, it’s so widespread in our diet that I
am addressing it separately for the sake of clarity.
What’s wrong with milk anyway? As Indians, we have been so
conditioned to drink milk that this deserves a whole chapter by itself. I will
talk in detail about what’s wrong with milk and milk products and what the
alternatives are later in the book.
For now, I just want to remind you again about our instincts. Every baby,
when he or she is first given cow’s milk, refuses it vehemently. Mothers
may spend hours chasing their children to drink milk. They add sugar,
cocoa powder and a myriad of other flavourings available in the market,
none of which can really be considered healthy, to the milk and coax the
kids into consuming it. Children who still refuse to drink milk are given
paneer, cheese, curd or some other form of dairy product so that the mother
feels satisfied.
 My experience of dealing with diabetes patients for nearly two decades
has proved beyond a doubt that milk and dairy products are the major cause
of diabetes. Later, we will talk about studies showing that an early
introduction to cow’s milk may predispose some people to type 1 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetics show a marked drop in blood sugar levels simply by
stopping the intake of dairy.

Taking Small Steps . . .

Dr Sharma was shifting to another house and this necessitated eating out. As you can
imagine, to be completely on a whole-food diet was close to impossible. He did the next
best thing––he eliminated all animal products in his diet. Being a vegetarian, this meant
dairy. Just by making this change, he saw a considerable drop in his blood sugar levels.
Later, he was able to apply all the principles of healing and get complete results. This
two-step transitional approach can also be used when needed.

All this information may seem overwhelming at first, but a little reflection
will help bring the point home. By consuming only foods meant for our
species, it is possible to stop damaging our bodies. Only when we stop the
damage can the body begin to heal. I like to compare this with an injury to
some part of the body, say a finger. The finger will naturally heal because
our body is always working to heal. But if we start injuring the finger
repeatedly with a hammer, the healing may not happen. It’s the same with
the pancreas. In order to let it heal, we have to stop injuring it, and we can
do this by eating only the foods that are natural to our species.
 9
Nutrition Facts

It is amazing how when you change to a plant-based diet, all your friends
and relatives become nutritionists! Though they were never interested in the
nutritional content of your food before, they now begin asking questions
like, ‘Where do you get your protein or calcium from?’ We have been so
conditioned to think that we need to consume animal products like meat for
protein and milk for calcium that we do not stop to think if it is true. It is a
myth constantly perpetuated by an industry that wants to sell its products. I
want to arm you with all the answers not just to satisfy yourself but also to
enable you to explain to your friends and relatives and maybe even your
doctor. Use this chapter as a reference whenever someone fires such
questions at you.

Where Will I Get My Proteins on a Plant-Based Diet?

We have been so conditioned to believe the Great Protein Myth that eating
more protein is better for health that it is hard to shake it off. Mothers mix
soya flour into the atta (dough for rotis) and force their children to eat more
eggs and milk, while doctors and personal trainers recommend consumption
of protein supplements.
I have often seen that we are so obsessed with proteins without even
having a clue as to why we should consume them. So let us pause and think
for a moment. I would like you to answer these questions for yourself
before you proceed.

What is protein good for?

 How many people do you know who suffer from protein
deficiency?
If you do know someone who has protein deficiency, what are the
symptoms they suffer from?
Can we ever consume too much protein?
What happens if you do consume too much protein?
From where do other herbivores such as cows, elephants, horses,
zebras and gorillas get protein?

Many people realize that they know very little about proteins! Let’s discuss
more about it in detail now.

What Is Protein Good For?

Whenever I ask this question to a group of people, very few seem to know
the answer. ‘To develop muscles,’ some say, thanks to all the gyms,
bodybuilders and personal trainers. The real answer is protein is a building
block. It is the food for growth and repair.

How Much Protein Do We Really Need?

The human growth rate is the highest in the first year of life. The human
baby doubles its birthweight in six months, and triples it in one year. After
this, the rate of growth slows down. Proteins are essential for growth and
especially crucial early in the infant’s life. Human milk, the ideal food at
this age, contains all the protein a human baby requires.
Infancy, for every mammal, is the time of highest protein requirement.
The amount of protein needed by any animal depends on the rate of growth
of that animal. Let us take a look at the percentage of protein in the milk of
different animals.1
 Mammal Percentage of Protein in Milk
Man 1.25–2.7
Monkey 2.3
Cow 3.3–4
Goat 4.1
Guinea Pig 8.55
Rat 8.7
Dog 10.11
Cat 11.1

Here you can see that the milk of cats and dogs has the highest percentage
of protein and human milk has the lowest in comparison. This is because
the rate of growth of these animals is fast. A cat can become a mother at the
age of nine months. Compare that to a calf or a human infant. A calf grows
to its full size in eighteen months and a cow can conceive at the age of two
years, whereas a human grows to full size in eighteen years. A calf naturally
needs more protein than a human does but not as much as a puppy or a
kitten because its rate of growth is lower.
If cow’s milk is to be given to an infant, it has to be diluted three times
because it has too much protein, which is difficult to digest. Hence the
infant formulas, which are made of cow’s milk, are formulated to have
lower protein content like that of breast milk.
From this it’s obvious that we don’t need more protein than we needed
when we were babies because our rate of growth decreases as we age. If we
have even 5 per cent of our calories coming from protein, we have more
than enough, more than double of what we really need. Fruit juice is said to
have the same amount of protein as human milk. Even on a solely fruit diet
we would not be short of it!

On a Plant-Based Diet, Where Will We Get the Proteins?

Protein is found in every single cell. DNA and RNA are proteins. Even if
we don’t eat animals or drink their secretions, we will still get ample
proteins from plants, the same place from which all the other herbivores get
theirs. Beans and green leafy vegetables are full of proteins. You may have
noticed that despite all the hype about proteins, you may not know anyone,
not one single person, with a protein deficiency. In fact, if I were to ask you
whether or not protein deficiency exists, you may not know the answer.
Protein deficiency does exist. It even has a name: Kwashiorkor or protein
calorie malnutrition. It only affects those people who do not get enough
calories or suffer from starvation. Except in the case of rare kidney diseases,
protein deficiency in the absence of starvation is virtually unknown.
However, there are various issues that are caused as a result of excessive
protein consumption—osteoporosis, kidney disease, gout, acidity and
cancer. Protein, after all, is a food for growth and cancer is a growth that
cannot be contained. (For more information on the effects of high protein
on our body, I highly recommend The China Study by T. Colin Campbell).

Can We Ever Consume Too Much Protein?

Unwittingly, most people end up consuming too much protein since they eat
animal products. There are several harmful effects of this.

Animal proteins do not have any fibre and therefore can be eaten in
excess.
They are hard to digest. Think of a time when you ate too much
protein, say chicken, paneer, a steak or a big cheese pizza and ice
cream. How did you feel? Drowsy? This is because these are not
our natural foods and therefore need a lot of energy to digest. Since
most of the body’s energy goes in digestion, there is less energy to
spare and we feel tired. In India, people used to eat meat on
Sundays at lunchtime since that was a day of rest. They could go
back to sleep in the afternoon and have a light dinner before going
back to bed at night. Now we eat animal proteins much more often
 in the form of eggs, chicken, cheese, paneer or milk sweets,
sometimes several times a day. If we change to a plant-based diet,
our energy levels will naturally improve.
Since our body cannot store proteins, excess protein is used for
energy. Converting proteins to calories takes effort and consumes
energy and is an inefficient way of utilizing the body’s resources.
Proteins are acidic and lead to another set of problems, as we will
see later in this chapter. Calcium and magnesium are drawn from
our bones to neutralize the acid and are excreted. This calcium
leaching can give rise to osteoporosis and the deposits in the
kidneys can result in stone formations.
The breakdown of proteins produces uric acid, causing gout.
The excess acid secreted in our stomachs may result in acidity or
ulcers. You may have noticed that all those who consume milk to
neutralize the acidity in the stomach never really get permanently
cured of the problem.
Animal proteins are toxic to our kidneys, which, in the case of
diabetics, are often already compromised.

Who Created the Myth about Protein Then?

The answer is simple. Industries that thrive on the sale of meat, chicken,
dairy and eggs do so by keeping the myth alive. Advertising propagates the
myth further. When a lie is repeated often enough, it begins to sound like
the truth.
Advertising is a multi-billion dollar industry employing specialists who
design ads to make us buy things we do not need. Imagine, if you wanted to
give bones to dogs, how much would you spend on advertising? Nothing, of
course! All you have to do is stand on the street with the bones and the dogs
will find you! Whatever we really need never needs an advertisement. This
is why you don’t see advertisements for apples, oranges, cucumbers, or
carrots. But the dairy lobby and the egg and chicken lobby have to keep
spending to make us think we need their foods. And they have succeeded.
Most people now believe that they have to eat more protein.
I often say that if you want to eat correctly, make a list of all the foods
advertised on TV, in newspapers and magazines, or anywhere else and then
simply don’t eat what’s on that list. Let’s face it: what we really need
doesn’t have to be advertised. In India, vegetables and fruit are sold in carts
on the street. Most small vegetable shops have no name or signboard. But
that is not the case with a small chicken or milk shop. This signifies
something!

Milk, Calcium and Osteoporosis

‘If I don’t drink milk, where will I get my calcium from?’ is a commonly
asked question. The dairy industry advertises milk as a good source of
calcium. And this is stuck in our heads. Once again we need to answer
some questions for ourselves.

How much calcium do we really need?

Where does it come from?
Which are the best sources of calcium?
Where do all the herbivores get it from?
Why do people who have consumed milk all their lives get
osteoporosis or cavities?

It’s interesting that whenever a patient suffers from osteoporosis (brittle

bones) or osteopenia (lack of calcium in the bones), the doctor usually
advises calcium supplements and more dairy. Have you noticed that most of
these patients never get better? Even if they take it for the rest of their lives,
their condition rarely improves and most likely worsens with time. Many
post-menopausal women also get the same advice––to take calcium tablets
daily.
Let’s take a look at this chart, which shows the calcium content of
various foods:
 Calcium Content of Foods (per 100-g Portion)2

Here we see that the calcium content of human milk is just 33 mg per 100 g.
A human newborn has no teeth and hardly any bones; it is just cartilage.
(This is the reason why babies don’t get fractures if you drop them.)
After birth, bit by bit, teeth and bone formation occurs. The calcium
requirement at this time is, like in the case of proteins, at its highest. And
the calcium in human milk is enough to provide us all that we need at a
time when it is most needed.
A careful look at this chart will show that the calcium content of most
green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds is way more than that of human milk.
Even potato chips have more calcium than human milk. Cow’s milk does
contain a fair amount of calcium at 120 mg per 100 g but then it is not more
than many other foods. In fact, sesame seeds contain a whopping 1160 mg
in every 100 g. Dietary calcium insufficiency is unknown. Therefore, taking
calcium supplements never helps. Unfortunately, doctors are not taught
nutrition and get their information from the same place the rest of us do, the
media. This is why they continue to recommend milk and dairy as a source
of calcium.
Dr John McDougall says that the myth that osteoporosis is caused by a
lack of calcium in the diet was created to sell dairy products and calcium
supplements. ‘On a nation-by-nation basis, people who consume the most
dairy have the weakest bones and the highest rates of osteoporosis . . . Only
in those places where calcium and protein are eaten in relatively high
quantities does a deficiency of bone calcium exist, due to an excess of
animal protein.’3

More Milk, More Osteoporosis

Researchers at Harvard University concluded from a study of the diets of 78,000 women
over a twelve-year period that participants whose primary source of calcium was dairy
actually doubled their risk of hip fractures.4 Calcium, an integral part of every cell, is
found in all fruits, vegetables, grains and especially in seeds and nuts. Cows produce
calcium-rich milk from the grass they eat! Societies with little or no consumption of
dairy products and animal protein show a low incidence of osteoporosis. The converse is
also true. Cultures with the highest dairy consumption per capita also have the highest
rates of osteoporosis.
Researchers at Yale University found that countries with the highest rates of
osteoporosis are those in which people consume the highest amounts of meat, milk and
other animal foods. Their study showed that African–Americans, who consume, on
average, more than 1000 mg of calcium per day, are nine times more likely to experience
hip fractures than are South African blacks, whose daily calcium intake is only 196 mg.
American women, among the biggest consumers of calcium in the world, have one of the
highest levels of osteoporosis in the world.5

Osteoporosis causes a variety of symptoms like recurring back pain, loss of

height, spinal deformities and brittle bones resulting in easy fractures. If we
have enough calcium, why does osteoporosis exist? Because we are unable
to utilize it because of the lack of vitamin D or because we eat acid-yielding
foods that leaches most of it out. Acid-yielding foods, as we will see later,
result in calcium loss through the kidneys, often resulting in kidney stones.
Two ways to get enough calcium is by increasing the vitamin D levels
and by consuming alkaline foods.

The Importance of Vitamin D

Vitamin D has several important functions. We just saw that it is very

important for calcium absorption. A deficiency of vitamin D can result in
high blood sugars. I have seen patients’ blood sugar levels drop when they
received supplements for their low vitamin D levels.
Besides diabetes and osteoporosis, low vitamin D can cause problems
like high blood pressure, autoimmune diseases, muscle aches, depression
and sleep disturbances.

Types of Vitamin D

There are two types of vitamin D––ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) and

cholecalciferol (vitamin D3). Compared to vitamin D2, which is
manufactured by fungi like mushrooms, vitamin D3 is said to be more
effective and is found in a few foods like fatty fish. It is difficult to get
enough vitamin D through food sources alone. In some countries, fruit
juices, milk and cereals are often fortified with this vitamin. Cholecalciferol
is also produced by the body when the skin is exposed to sunlight.

How to Get Vitamin D

The best way to get vitamin D is from the sun but this is effective only
when the sunshine reaches the skin directly. Clothes, sunscreen, windows
and smog between the sun’s rays and the skin prevent absorption.
Sunglasses may also prevent effective absorption as receptors near the eyes
give the skin signals to absorb vitamin D when it’s available.
 Spend 15–20 minutes a day in direct sunlight to absorb vitamin D. The
more your skin is exposed, the more you can absorb. Lighter skins absorb
more. Washing, especially with soap, after sunbathing may reduce the
vitamin D absorbed. In Indian metropolitan and big cities, it’s difficult to
get vitamin D naturally because of the smog. Supplements should be taken
only as prescribed and after blood tests to check the levels.

Urban Woes
Despite religiously sunbathing every day from her high-rise sea-facing flat in Mumbai, a
nutritionist friend continued to have low serum levels of vitamin D. This was probably
because of the smog in Mumbai and also because of the windows of her flat, although I
am sure she had them opened.
It’s important to remember that vitamin D is formed on the skin only through direct
exposure. It’s easy to imagine that our ancestors, who lived in nature, foraging for foods,
had no problem getting this vitamin. Neither do animals. But the animals used for food
these days are raised in confined environments and suffer vitamin D deficiency as well.

Vitamin D is actually a hormone. Taking excess of it through supplements

can result in a harmful condition called hypervitaminosis D. However, it’s
impossible to get too much vitamin D from the sun because the body
regulates it. I have been asked about skin cancers due to exposure to the
sun. High antioxidants in raw fruits and vegetables help prevent sunburn
and also reduce the risk of skin and other cancers.
Because vitamin D is stored in the body, exposure to sun in the summer
months can see you through the winter or monsoon. In places with long
winters or cloudy or smoggy weather, it’s very important to get vitamin D
levels checked. In my opinion, everyone should get it checked regularly and
take supplements, if necessary. It takes some time to build up these levels if
they are very low.
It is easy to get enough calcium on a plant-based diet, and calcium
supplements are never recommended, but we need to make sure that there is
enough vitamin D in the body to absorb it.
 Since low vitamin D can cause diabetes, it’s imperative for diabetics who
want to reverse the disease to take sufficient supplements under supervision
(to prevent excess intake).

Acid and Alkaline Foods

Our body is alkaline. When we consume foods that are acidic, our body
needs to neutralize them in order to maintain the body’s pH levels. This is
done by breaking down the bones and teeth for calcium and magnesium and
the muscles for ammonia to neutralize the acid. That’s why acidic foods are
so dangerous and alkaline foods are so good for us.

Alkaline Foods

Fruits are the most alkaline foods––even citrus fruits, which may taste sour
to the tongue. This is because they are rich in potassium. Vegetables, too,
are alkaline. Some of them may become acidic by cooking but for our
practical purposes, let us remember all fruits and vegetables as alkaline.
Grains and beans are less alkaline because they are rich in proteins.

Acidic Foods

All animal products are highly acidic. This means all kinds of meat, fish,
poultry and dairy.
Most processed foods are acidic and any items that I call ‘non-foods’ are
acidic too, such as:

Sugar
Salt
Alcohol
Vinegar
All of these are also used as preservatives since most bacteria tend to not
grow in acidic media. Most packaged foods have acids added to them to
preserve them. You will see that their ingredient list has citric acid, tartaric
acid, acid regulators and so on. This is another reason why packaged foods
should be avoided. Not only do they often contain oil, sugar, white flour,
milk solids and other ingredients that are not good for you, they also
contain ingredients that you don’t know anything about or perhaps cannot
even pronounce. It’s always good to look at the ingredient list before you
buy or eat anything and it’s important to learn to read and understand this.
But a simple rule is, if you don’t know what it is or don’t understand it or
cannot pronounce it, then don’t eat it.
Unfortunately, some of our favourite beverages are also acidic:

Tea
Coffee
Aerated beverages like colas and other sodas
Wine and alcoholic beverages

As explained in the previous chapter, this is why we consume these drinks,

especially after a heavy meal that is rich in protein and fat. Our stomachs
lack the amount of acid required to digest high-protein foods since we were
never meant to eat them in the first place.
It’s interesting that most foods that are acidic are addictive or habit-
forming and so it may feel as though it’s difficult to give them up. However,
when we switch to a plant-based diet, we often see that we do not need
these any more and it’s easier than expected. You will learn more on tea and
coffee later in this book.
The main ingredients in drinks like Pepsi and Coke are sugar, phosphoric
acid and caffeine. All of these are highly acidic. If you were to cut your
fingernails and put them in a glass of cola and look for them the next
morning, they would have disappeared. So can you imagine what happens
to your bones when you drink this highly acidic drink? But we instinctively
choose it to help us digest heavy foods like burgers, cheese pizzas and fries.
Switching to a whole-food, plant-based diet automatically helps us get over
this addiction.
Switching to a healthy diet also reduces the need for alcohol. An
occasional drink may not be terribly harmful to health per se, but it raises
the blood sugar levels. Because alcohol is addictive, it’s advised to avoid it
altogether.
Here is a list of common acidic foods:

Flesh and Animal Secretions Plant-Based Products

Cheese Sugar
Meat Coffee
Processed Meats Tea
Eggs Wine
Chicken Alcohol
Fish Vinegar
All Dairy Products Salt
Colas

Here is an easy-to-remember scale to give a rough idea of acid and alkaline

foods with water in the middle as neutral.

Some Health Benefits of an Alkaline Diet

We have seen that an acid-yielding diet can thin our bones and break down
our muscles to yield ammonia and magnesium to neutralize the acid.
Switching to an alkaline diet has a large number of benefits on many
systems of our body. Here are just a few examples.

Bodybuilding

Owing to the recent craze for bodybuilding, many diabetics ask me about
whey protein, eggs and other high-protein foods that are usually
recommended by trainers. Since protein is used for growth and repair, it is
also the building block of muscles. But excess protein can result in breaking
down of muscles. A healthy way to build muscles is by maintaining a
balance between what is broken down and what is built. It does not require
an excessively high protein diet with whey supplements. Nor does it require
any animal proteins. Think about horses and gazelles or elephants and
buffalo; these animals are strong and have powerful muscles, all achieved
through an exclusively plant-based diet. Human beings, too, can get more
than enough protein for healthy bodybuilding on a plant-based diet full of
beans and lentils. These foods are fibre champions that do not clog up the
arteries when they build muscles.

Protection against Kidney Disease and a Cure for Urinary Tract

Infections

The process of trying to digest acidic food causes the breakdown of bones
and muscles and leaches calcium out of the body, which puts excess load on
the kidneys. Some of the calcium may be deposited as stones in the kidneys,
causing further problems.
People with urinary tract infections are usually given medication to make
their urine alkaline to control the infection. Bacteria that cause this infection
are partial to acidic medium. By making the urine alkaline, these bacteria
cease to thrive. We can easily do this without taking any medicines, by just
avoiding acidic foods.
Protection from Cancer

Cancer cells can thrive and multiply in areas that are too acidic for normal
cells. Keeping our body alkaline goes a long way in protecting it from
cancer.

Formula for Healthy Bones and Teeth

Get enough vitamin D––if not from the sun, then with the help of prescribed
supplements.
Eliminate animal protein from your diet.
Avoid acidic beverages like tea, coffee, sodas of all kinds and alcohol.
Avoid sugar and iodized table salt.
Avoid smoking or other addictive habits.
Get plenty of exercise.

Fibre

One of the most important components of our diet is fibre. It serves several
functions. Here are some of the most important ones:

It gives a feeling of fullness. When you eat foods with fibre, you
will eat less.
It slows the entry of sugar and fat into our bloodstream. Eating
whole foods keeps the blood sugar levels low.
It adds bulk to the stool and avoids constipation.

All plant foods contain fibre. All animal foods are devoid of fibre. Peeling,
juicing or refining whole ingredients to make white rice, white flour, sugar,
oil, etc. removes fibre. Therefore, it’s absolutely important that we always
use whole foods.
A whole-food, plant-based diet meets almost all our dietary needs except
maybe vitamins B12 and D (and perhaps iodine for people living in areas
that are deficient in this element) and helps prevent and reverse all lifestyle
diseases.

Don’t I Need Red Meat to Get Iron?

Iron, like calcium, is a mineral. All minerals come from the soil. Cows have
iron because they eat plants that grow in the soil and so can we. Just as in
the case of calcium, on a whole-food, plant-based diet we should not have
any iron deficiency, even without the consumption of red meat.
Yet, anaemia and iron deficiency are not uncommon in India. Why is this
so? The answer, as in the case of calcium deficiency, lies in our wrong food
habits. Just as acidic foods cause leaching of calcium, resulting in bone loss,
milk impedes the absorption of iron and other nutrients in the body. When
doctors prescribe iron supplements, they will usually tell you not to have
them with milk. This may help, but casein, a glue-like substance that makes
up about 80 per cent of the proteins in cow’s milk, remains in our intestines
for years after consumption and impedes the absorption of several nutrients
and also some harmful substances. Casein is often used to make paint and
glue. It sticks to the walls of the intestines and, if dairy products are
regularly consumed, affects the absorption of iron. Milk, coffee, tea and
calcium supplements are known to impede the absorption of iron.
Iron deficiency may also be caused by loss of iron––through blood loss
in any form. In India, parasitic infections (worms) are not uncommon and
can also result in anaemia. It’s always good to find out what the cause of
any problem is and treat it, rather than just treating symptoms like anaemia
with iron supplements and the like.

Haemoglobin Rises after Stopping Meat

I recall the case of a young Muslim girl in Hyderabad who came to my cooking class.
She had attended one of my seminars previously and had changed to a vegan diet. She
said that her haemoglobin had always been low––in the range of 8––but after changing
her diet and stopping meat consumption it had reached 12 for the first time!
Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 is produced only by bacteria and microorganisms. Meat and

milk are full of bacteria because they are decaying substances and so these
foods have plenty of this vitamin. However, many non-vegetarians and
vegetarians, especially those aged thirty-five and above, are deficient in
B12.

Symptoms of Vitamin B12 Deficiency

There can be a wide range of symptoms because vitamin B12 is required by

all cells of the body. Some of the common symptoms are weakness, apathy,
memory loss, acidity, loss of weight, nausea and vomiting, anaemia, mental
confusion, delusions, paranoia, respiratory symptoms, hives and other
symptoms of allergy. A long-term deficiency can lead to heart attacks and
stroke––the very problems that a healthy vegan diet can prevent. It can also
cause irreversible damage to the brain and the nervous system.
In a random test on twenty-one diabetics conducted by us, we found that
approximately half had B12 deficiency, and none of them were vegan. Of
those who were not deficient, some were on B-complex supplements, which
included vitamin B12.
Vitamin B12 is absorbed by the intrinsic factor in the stomach. High
protein from meat and milk force the stomach to produce more acid to
enable digestion. This high acid secretion not only causes acidity but also
destroys the lining of the stomach. This affects the intrinsic factor and
vitamin B12 is not absorbed. Non-vegetarians and vegetarians who become
vitamin B12 deficient, and cannot absorb enough of it, need to take
injections. Vegans may be able to absorb the vitamin but are unlikely to get
enough of it on a plant-based diet in our modern, artificial world.
I am often asked, ‘If a plant-based diet is so natural, how does someone
on this diet lack vitamin B12?’
The answer is, in a more natural world, we could get vitamin B12
through organic fruits and vegetables straight off the farm or through water
from ponds, rivers or other natural sources of drinking water. Nature always
made provisions for us to get enough of vitamin B12. Animals never have
an issue with this since they get enough microbes through food, water or
even by just licking their own bodies.
Today, we have ‘germ phobia’ and we use chemicals to get rid of bacteria
everywhere. Tap water is chlorinated and bottled water is purified. There
are no organisms left there and there is no access to natural water for most
of us. Water of rivers and streams that used to flow with life is no longer
safe to drink because of contaminants.

My Narmada Experience
A few years ago I got the chance to swim in the Narmada river in Madhya Pradesh. I
could taste and smell detergents in the water despite it being a gigantic river. I assume
this is the result of so many people washing clothes on its banks every day. Even the
water in the nearby well smelt of detergents.

Pesticides, as we all know, are extensively used in farming. Fruits and

vegetables are often irradiated so that all surface bacteria are destroyed.
This helps the produce to last longer on the shelves. We then wash the
produce well before eating it. Similarly, preservatives in packaged foods
prevent the growth of bacteria so that the foods have a long shelf life.
As if that was not enough, modern-day toothpastes and mouthwashes
with Triclosan and antiseptics destroy oral bacteria. And to put the nail on
the coffin, the use of microwaves and the consumption of alcohol destroy
any vitamin B12 that may have found its way into our bodies. Since the
advent of the mobile phone and mobile phone towers, which also emit
microwaves, I have seen that vitamin B12 levels are at an all-time low.
Our bodies are designed to handle the bacteria, but not the chemicals. We
will see in Chapter 16 that these chemicals act as hormone disruptors and
actually cause diabetes.

Natural Sources of Vitamin B12

In the past, almost all cultures used fermented foods, which are good
sources of vitamin B12. We have idli and dosa (India), miso and natto
(Japan), kimchi (Korea), sauerkraut (Germany), tempeh (Indonesia), etc.
Today, despite eating these foods, vitamin B12 deficiency is common
because of the reasons mentioned above.

Vitamin B12 Can Be Stored

When you first switch to a plant-based diet, you may or may not have
vitamin B12 deficiency. This can be determined by a simple blood test. This
vitamin can be stored in our bodies for up to three years. I shifted to an
almost plant-based diet in 1985, long before mobile phones invaded our
lives. It was several years before I detected a severe vitamin B12 deficiency
in myself. But times have changed and now it’s vital to keep a check on
these levels or take supplements regularly to ensure that you do not suffer
from its deficiency.

Fortification of Foods in the West

This problem may be less common in the West than it is in India. In the
West, especially USA, soya milk and other ready-made foods eaten by
vegans are often fortified with vitamin B12. I have seen people who have
come back to India or are visiting from the West develop symptoms of
vitamin B12 deficiency after a few months of being in India.

How to Take Vitamin B12

Oral vitamin B12 supplements: If the deficiency is not severe and

the absorption of the vitamin has not yet been affected, one can opt
for this. There are many preparations available in India. Any
methylcobalamin 500 mcg tablet without other ingredients is
recommended. Higher doses are not recommended.
 Cyanocobalamin (another form of vitamin B12) is also not
recommended. Once the levels are normal, a long-term strategy
should be put in place so that the levels never fall again. This could
be done by taking half a tablet every day or one tablet on alternate
days.
Injectable vitamin B12: If the deficiency is very severe or
absorption is low, i.e., it remains low even after taking oral
supplements, you should take injections. This deficiency is so
common that all doctors know what the required dosage is.

It is important to note that spirulina, chlorella, etc. should not be taken as a

supplement for vitamin B12 because they contain cyanocobalmin, which
cannot be absorbed by our bodies. It’s best to take methylcobalamin. This
does not mean that the former cannot be had, but just that they are not a
good source of B12.

Supplements

This brings us to the topic of supplements. I always advise a minimum

number of supplements––only when it is really required––because nature
always provides us nutrients in the perfect balance. Too much of a good
thing can often be bad for you. For example, calcium supplements impede
the absorption of iron and strong vitamin C supplements may reduce the
vitamin B levels.
Moreover, when we get nutrients in their whole form, they are much
more valuable. This is because in nature, everything we need is provided
together and in balance. When isolated, the same nutrients may even be
dangerous. For example, in his book Whole, author T. Colin Campbell
states that eating carrots reduces the risk of cancer.6 When carotene was
isolated as a supplement, it was found that it could actually raise the risk of
cancer. Carotene alone is harmful but carrots are highly beneficial!
If you look at the bottle of supplements, it says how many times RDA of
the supplement it contains. For example, it may say 200xRDA or 20xRDA.
Because most of us don’t know what RDA means, we often think the more
of it, the better. But this is not so. Strangely enough, a substance with higher
RDA may even be less expensive, which provides another incentive to buy
it.
RDA stands for Recommended Dietary Allowance. What would we do
with a high RDA of any substance? It’s just an added burden on our kidneys
and liver to throw out. A wiser way would be to see what is lacking and eat
right. If our diet is as natural as possible, we will instinctively have a
craving for whatever we need. Once we have cleaned up, it’s always good
to listen and give in to cravings. We may not know what we need but our
body does. If you are craving cucumber or garlic or radish, this must
contain something that your body needs.

Nature Is Abundant

To sum up, if we eat right and if we eat foods of the highest quality, a
whole-food, plant-based diet should more than adequately meet all of our
nutritional needs. It’s only because of our modern lifestyle that
supplementation of vitamins B12 and D has become a necessity.
 PART IV
DIETARY CHANGES AND CHALLENGES
 10
Dairy

We already saw in earlier chapters that dairy is one of the biggest

contributors to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Since it is such an important
part of Indian culture, it’s so difficult to acknowledge this. But because it’s
so important to leave dairy, it deserves a whole chapter to itself.

Vegetarians and Non-vegetarians Get the Same Diseases

In India, we see that vegetarians and non-vegetarians get the same diseases.
Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer, thyroid, kidney failure
. . . you name it, vegetarians get it too. Meat and milk have a similar
composition, i.e., high protein, high fat and no fibre. What vegetarians
avoid by not eating meat, they more than make up with all the concentrated
dairy products that they eat––paneer, cheese, ice cream and sweets. One
ounce of any of these is made up of 12–16 ounces of milk.
The reason it’s so hard to give up dairy is because we were conditioned
to consume it even before we learnt to think. It’s one of the first foods that
our parents fed us, so it is rarely questioned.
When I talk about milk here, I mean animal milk of any kind—cow’s
milk, buffalo milk, goat’s milk, camel milk, yak milk or any other animal
milk that you consume. We do not need any milk except our mother’s milk
during infancy. As our need for it decreases, our mothers automatically
produce less and when we do not need it any more, they stop producing it
altogether. Isn’t nature amazing? Everything is clear if only we would listen
to her!
No animal in nature drinks the milk of another species, except for
humans (and the animals that we may feed). We continue to consume milk
all our lives in all kinds of forms––tea, curd, butter, ghee, cheese, paneer,
cream, ice cream and more.

Nature’s Argument

We already saw that female mammals secrete milk only when they give
birth. Every mammal’s milk is of a different composition, depending on the
needs of its young. If the animal needs to grow fast, the milk would contain
more proteins. If the brain needs to develop, the milk would contain more
vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.

The Dairy Industry Today

In order to reap the highest profits––which is the goal of any business––the dairy
industry subjects an ever-greater number of cows to confinement. They are artificially
inseminated when they are just two years old, which is the age at which they can first
conceive. Just like humans, the duration of pregnancy for a cow is nine months. When
her calf is born, she becomes extremely attached to it. But the dairy industry is in a hurry
to reap profits. If the calf is male, the cow’s first milk, the colostrum, is sold as a delicacy
and the calf is killed to make calf leather. This causes the cow extreme grief; they have
been seen with tears and heard crying out in agony for days. They have been known to
run for kilometres to keep up with the truck that takes their calves for slaughter. If the
young one is female, the calf is given the last drops of milk and raised as a milk machine
like her mother.
The cow is then artificially inseminated within two months of her delivery so that her
dry period is minimized. The repeated pregnancies and lactation while they are pregnant
takes its toll and after 2–4 such deliveries, they are sent for slaughter. In many cases, they
cannot even stand. This is at the young age of six years. A cow can live up to twenty-six
years.
In order to force the cow to produce more milk, they are given oxytocin injections.
Though oxytocin is banned, it is used with impunity all over India. The situation in other
parts of the world is not very different and a quick Internet search will yield dairy videos
full of pain and suffering from almost any part of the world. There is no way for a cow to
produce milk without giving birth and there is no way to sell the milk without sacrificing
her baby.
In India, we like to think that ‘goshalas’ protect cows but most of them are just like
dairies, operating the same way but benefitting from the donations of guilty milk drinkers
who prefer to think that the animals, whose exploitation they are a party to, are being
treated well.
 The effects of this industry is manifold––today India has the largest population of
cattle in the world. It is also one of the largest producers of leather, an extremely
polluting industry, and the largest exporter of beef, a by-product of the dairy industry.
This is an ecological disaster. In a country where there is not enough food for humans,
fodder is being grown for cows so that some lucky humans higher up on the food chain
can consume beef and dairy. This leads to starvation. We produce enough protein in the
form of soya to eradicate malnutrition but it’s being fed to cattle instead. The farm
animals need water and we are facing a shortage of it. Livestock also need space. The
large numbers of these animals are now displacing our wildlife and our forests have
dwindled to make space for grazing.
The largest contributor to climate change is greenhouse gases produced by livestock.
The export of meat from India represents the destruction of our ecology for commercial
purposes. It is far more ecological to grow grains, fruits and vegetables than raise
animals.
The argument that cow dung is an invaluable fertilizer and urine a bio-pesticide loses
its value when we realize that the biomass consumed by cattle is not only an excellent
fertilizer but also a ground cover, which prevents water evaporation. We resort to cow
dung because with our population of livestock, hardly any biomass is left to spare.
There are many reasons to stop consuming dairy besides the health aspect. When we
are aware of all these reasons, it becomes difficult to continue consuming milk. Let me
put it another way. If you are willing to know and understand the whole story, giving up
milk will become a wish rather than something you are forced to do just to reverse
diabetes.

Bad Effects of Milk

We already saw that milk contains not just excess protein and fat but also
hormones, pesticides, chemicals, plastic, urea and adulterants. We also saw
that the glue-like protein, casein, interferes with the absorption of iron.
There are a few more contaminants, which I had not discussed earlier,
mainly because they did not affect diabetics directly. However, my purpose
here is to help you choose to give up dairy once and for all, and so I would
like to mention a few more issues. Since I personally never had diabetes, I
chose to quit dairy for these other reasons, but mainly because of
compassion for cows and their calves. The health benefits that I reaped
were just a bonus.

Pus
A cow’s delicate udders are designed to be sucked on only by her calf. For
the milk industry, these udders are pumped by humans or even milk
machines to make sure that every drop is extracted as quickly as possible,
resulting in injuries and inflammation. This is made even worse by the
unhygienic conditions in which the cow is forced to live, often having to sit
in her own excreta. Hybrid cows bred to produce ten times more milk than
normal suffer worse mastitis. Although these breeds do not survive well in
India, there are repeated attempts to introduce them and cross them with our
own cows. Their inflamed udders result in even more pus in the milk.

Antibiotics

Antibiotics needed to keep the mastitis under control are a part of all the
ready-made cattle feed. Just as a human mother secretes the medications
that she takes in her milk, a cow does too. These antibiotics come back to us
through the milk. This results in antibiotic resistance in human beings,
which is the reason doctors now have to use higher-generation antibiotics.
Antibiotics also make animals grow more. Today 70–80 per cent of all the
antibiotics produced in the world are fed to animals used for food. All this
comes back to us through them.

Pathogens

No matter what precautions are taken, milk is always contaminated with

faecal matter from the cow. E. coli is abundant. If the milk is not
pasteurized, infections are not uncommon. Food poisoning due to dairy in
India is widely reported by the media.
Today we are facing another challenge––tuberculosis. This disease is
spread through cows kept in close proximity in dairies without access to
fresh air. This is very common in Indian cities and in large-scale dairies.
The tubercle bacilli are not always destroyed by pasteurization, leading to
its spread through dairy to consumers with weak immune systems.
What’s Preventing You from Ditching Dairy?

When I describe all this, I find that many people are enthusiastic to leave
dairy and some even vow to do so. But their resolve breaks the very
moment it’s time for their next cup of tea or someone offers them a cheese
sandwich or ice cream. Why so?
If you are an average person and have been consuming dairy most of
your life, the prospect of ditching it could be very daunting. All the
arguments sound logical. But dairy has a comfort factor––a warm glass of
milk, chocolate milk, tea, curd or buttermilk is a familiar comfort food.
How does it feel when we talk about leaving dairy? Does it sound scary?
Daunting? Can you see that your feeling is much the same as a smoker who
is asked to quit smoking or a drinker who is asked to give up alcohol?
Actually, milk contains casomorphins, protein fragments derived from
the digestion of the milk protein casein, that are addictive and make the calf
addicted to its mother. We, too, get addicted. Cheese is even more addictive
because it’s a concentration of milk.
I suggest giving up the habit by making a conscious decision. Learn
everything about dairy and make the decision that you do not want it to be a
part of your future. Make no exceptions. This is very important. Milk is just
like smoking. If you have just one cigarette, only once, there is a big chance
that you will become a smoker again.

Avoid Falling Off the Wagon

There was a woman who came to our twenty-one-day residential retreat and reaped
enormous benefits. But she still had tea on her mind and decided that she would have just
one last cup at the airport before going home. That was the downfall because it’s easy to
get back to the addiction. Today, she still suffers from the disease. Invariably, little
exceptions lead to more exceptions.
One of our participants who had diabetes for years and also suffered some of the
complications was off insulin by the end of the programme and had good blood sugar
levels. He was religious by nature and allowed himself milk as a prasad during pujas.
After all, how could prasad be bad? Unfortunately, the insulin doses rose.
I have seen this happen again and again in the name of religion. Please keep in mind
that religious rites are man-made, not God-made. Nature never designed us to consume
 some of the foods that are served as prasad. If we live according to God’s (nature’s)
design, we will rarely get sick.
A man got his reports done and found that his creatinine, which had gone down during
our twenty-one-day health retreat, had risen again and both he and his wife were highly
concerned that this could lead to kidney disease. They contacted their doctor who added
some more medicines. The next reports were even worse (We all know that medicines do
not cure diseases but it’s still hard to resist the doctor. The medicines themselves are a
load on the kidneys). He told me that he was following all my instructions but on deeper
probing it was found that there were exceptions that his family knew about.
This problem, too, is of common occurrence. We take a few liberties at social
functions. Little by little, they add up and the results show.
When we realize that we are not progressing, it’s important to take responsibility and
see where we are going wrong. Our body is always working to heal and it’s we who get
in the way. It’s OK to make mistakes. It’s not OK to not realize them if our intent is to
reverse diabetes. When we make exceptions, it’s easy to make more exceptions until we
are back to square one.

If you leave dairy completely, you will see a few physical benefits within
days or months:

Acidity disappears (provided it’s not caused by some drugs in your

prescription!).
Indigestion and gas disappears. Milk is not easily digestible by
adults (because of the lack of enzymes in the stomach), resulting in
gas, abdominal discomfort, constipation or diarrhoea. In general,
about 70 per cent of adults are lactose-intolerant, although many do
not know it.
In women, menstrual pains or discomfort reduces and later
disappears. Menopausal problems reduce and disappear. Women
who change their diet before menopause may never get hot flashes
and other symptoms of menopause.
Migraines, acne and some allergies disappear.
Stiffness in the joints disappear.
Cold, cough, sinus problems and chances of infections reduce
considerably.
Asthma, allergies and eczemas reduce over a period of time.
Joint pains and body aches decrease, and flexibility improves.
 Weight loss and flab reduction ensues.
Acne disappears, skin looks younger.
Energy levels improve.

Questions

Because consuming milk is a part of our culture, even with all the facts in
front of us, we still have a difficult time giving up milk. Here are some
questions about the subject that I am asked regularly.

What if I have only organic milk?

Organic milk has been sold as the solution to all these problems, but it’s not.
Though organic milk may not contain pesticides, antibiotics and other
contaminants, it still contains cholesterol, fat and hormones (a natural
constituent of milk) which upset the balance of hormones in our body and
can trigger diabetes.

What if I have my own cow and treat it well? Could I have milk then?

This question is most often asked by people who don’t have a cow––those
who live in cities. I do know several people though who had their own
cows. They closed down their dairies after attending my seminar and gave
up milk. Sometimes when we’re doing something every day, we don’t
question it. In the process of unlearning, these people were brave enough to
question their actions and change.
Even when we consume our own cow’s milk, it will result in diabetes.
More importantly, the taste for dairy products will remain. It will be hard to
refuse them when you go out––be it the sweets or the chocolates brought to
you by your friends. Because you’re not conscious about your consumption
of milk, you are likely to consume it in a variety of ways. People who had
their own cows recognized this.

Don’t cows give us milk?

Now is the time to question this myth. If we have to tie a cow, tie its baby,
artificially inseminate it and deprive it of its young, could it be that we are
forcibly extracting milk from cows rather than just being happy recipients
of her benevolence?

Can I have curd? Curd is good for us!

Curd has been sold as the ideal food, full of probiotics. Milk is hard to
digest but curd is said to be a predigested form of milk. Many Indians are
accustomed to consuming it. However, preparing curd from milk does not
rob it of all the pus, hormones, antibiotics and other contaminants. And
unless we are on a diet that destroys our abdominal flora or on antibiotics,
we do not need probiotics. And in the rare case that we do need it, it’s easy
to get it from the local chemist.

What about children? Since they are growing, don’t they need milk?

Human milk is ideal for human infants because it contains the perfect ratio
of elements required during an infant’s crucial growth phase. After infancy,
not only is milk not required but it also results in a multitude of ailments.
Apart from the Indian subcontinent, Asian countries have been traditionally
dairy-free. Dairy has been introduced to them only in the recent years. A
look at the cookbooks and cuisine of all these countries will confirm the
absence of dairy in these cultures. Even India’s nearest neighbours, Sri
Lanka and Myanmar, did not have a dairy industry until very recently. Most
indigenous tribes worldwide do not consume milk. Bringing up children
without animal milk is not a problem. In fact, they’ll be healthier. Breast
and prostate cancer and juvenile diabetes is rare in cultures that do not
consume dairy.
More importantly, children brought up without milk products may
instinctively reject them, securing their own health. Children who are
brought up with dairy will find it difficult to give up if and when they
choose to. Contrary to popular beliefs, children do not need cow’s milk and
are actually healthier when dairy is withdrawn from their diets.
 According to Benjamin Spock, a famous paediatrician, ‘Cow’s milk in
the past has always been oversold as the perfect food, but we are now
seeing that it isn’t the perfect food at all and the government really
shouldn’t be behind any efforts to promote it as such.
‘Cow’s milk has become a point of controversy among doctors and
nutritionists. There was a time when it was considered very desirable, but
research has forced us to rethink this recommendation . . . dairy products
contribute to a surprising number of health problems . . .’1

What if I have just two teaspoons of milk daily in my tea?

You have no idea how many times I have heard this question. It’s only
because we are so scared to give up tea (or coffee)! A little bit of milk will
keep you addicted and you will not be able to resist occasional temptations
of biscuits, sweets and other dishes made with dairy products. A little bit of
milk will also not help in keeping diseases caused by dairy at bay.

What are the alternatives?

Soya milk is commercially available. Rice milk, oat milk, almond milk,
groundnut milk, sesame milk and banana milk are yet other alternatives that
can be made at home. In the recipe section, we will see how to make curd,
cheese, paneer, etc. from plant-based alternatives. All of these are organic,
cholesterol-free, good sources of calcium, contain fibre and antioxidants
that are lacking in cow’s milk, take very little time to prepare and save a lot
of money. Most importantly, they help you remain dairy-free to reverse
diabetes.

Ayurveda and Milk

Ancient Ayurveda lists cow’s milk as a medicine, and not as a food, which is only
recommended in certain cases. It lists cow’s milk as mucous-forming. Milk can cause
cold, cough, asthma, allergies and dysentery. Some Ayurveda doctors today may
recommend dairy. This is because they have been subject to the same conditioning as the
 rest of our society. Some of their medicines today contain heavy metals that are toxic to
our body. Milk retards the absorption of these dangerous substances.
Naturopathy and natural hygiene also consider milk as harmful and modern science
has proved this. There is hardly any evidence in medical literature that points to the
goodness of milk––only to the pus, blood, antibiotics and carcinogens in milk, and the
chronic fatigue, anaemia, asthma and autoimmune disorders milk consumption causes.

Jainism and Milk

Today Jains are some of the biggest consumers of dairy products. Yet Jain shastras
consider milk, curd, ghee and butter vigai and mahavigai (foods that adversely affect the
mind and body). They recognize that dairy is harmful but in the present day avoid it only
during important religious days like Ambil.

Although leaving dairy may seem scary now, this is only because milk is
addictive. Remember that no child appreciates cow’s milk the first time it’s
given to him or her. Instinctually, we should not consume milk. But we
have been conditioned to consume it. Reversing diabetes requires
reconditioning!
Like many urban Indians, I too was brought up as a vegetarian and made
to consume a lot of milk products. I was happy to drink my three glasses of
milk a day and fair amounts of curd, buttermilk, butter, ghee, cheese, paneer
and other milk products like ice cream and sweets were an integral part of
my diet.
From an early age, compassion was important to me and I could not
understand how others could kill and eat dead parts of animals. The thought
always made me a little sick. It was only in the early 1980s that I began to
learn the implications of dairy to the animals and our own health. And
despite this knowledge, it still took me some time to make positive changes
in my diet.
I realized that as long as I had dairy occasionally, it was harder to leave
it. One day I decided to stop it and I have never looked back. The health
benefits have been a bonus. Stopping dairy allows me to live according to
my own values of compassion for all living beings and this has given me
both peace and strength.
 11
Meat, Fish, Chicken, Eggs

Meat, fish, chicken and eggs have become a part of our culture. From a
young age we are taught that we are omnivores. Even many of those
amongst us who are vegetarians are so by conditioning. It’s the way we
have been brought up. Conditioning plays such an important role in our
lives!
As we saw earlier, these foods are not the natural foods for human
beings. If you saw a chicken or goat, your mouth would not water, but ripe
fruits hanging on the trees would more likely draw you.
Many people have told me that it’s easy for me to be vegan because I was
brought up as a vegetarian. This is not true. Vegetarians are as accustomed
to their dairy products as non-vegetarians are to their non-vegetarian foods.
We are all in the same boat.

Why We Should Avoid Animal Products

Let’s start with the health reasons. These are the most important since our
goal is to reverse diabetes.

Animal products contain high amounts of fat. Fat is one of the main
causes of diabetes. This fat cannot be separated from the rest of the
food because it’s an integral part of every animal cell.
Animal products contain cholesterol. Because diabetes and heart
disease go hand in hand, doctors tend to prescribe cholesterol-
reducing medications. These raise blood sugar levels and prevent
the reversal of diabetes.
 Animal products contain no fibre. We need fibre to detox our body,
reduce the clogging of arteries and increase blood flow, which, in
turn, helps in healing.
They do not contain antioxidants and phytonutrients that promote
healing and lower inflammatory response like plants do.
They are acidic in our body and create a temptation for other
addictive substances such as tea, coffee, alcohol, tobacco and even
drugs.
They increase stress levels that further increase blood sugar levels.
We will learn more about this in a later chapter.
Because the oceans are polluted with plastic, mercury and even
high levels of radiation, these are present in fish too. As a result,
fish are highly toxic and full of hormone-disrupting chemicals.
Since by-catch, which is not eaten by humans, along with
slaughterhouse waste, is sent to rendering plants and fed back to
animals in our food chain, we are affected by this pollution no
matter which animal product we consume.

In short, they do not help the healing process.

Once understood, these are very compelling reasons as no one wants to
deliberately harm themselves. Yet, I do understand that these may or may
not be enough reason to quit meat altogether. Humans are known to cheat
on health. If not, no one would smoke, drink alcohol or tea or coffee or take
drugs. We all know they are bad for health. We do it because we enjoy
them. We are pleasure-seekers. That is why it’s important that we know all
the other reasons for giving up animal products, which could prove to be
more convincing once they are fully understood.

Pain and Pleasure

Just as we seek pleasure, so does every living being. In order that we may
eat them, animals that want to live and lead lives according to their needs
are bred forcefully in large numbers. When, as a vegetarian, I found out
about the traumatic lives of cows and calves, I chose to give up all forms of
dairy. I did it because I did not want to be the cause of this suffering. My
reward? I began to understand what the natural diet for the human species
was. I began to read articles about the benefits of a plant-based diet. I lost
weight, stopped getting colds and coughs, a long-standing fungal skin
infection vanished, besides many other health benefits. I did not do it for
health. I had no idea that my health would improve at that time. I did it for
the other fellow sentient beings.

Animals in Our Food Chain

If you are like me, this part of the book may be an eye-opener, and could be
your reason to stop consuming animals or their secretions. The short life
stories of each of these animals are worth hearing. Whatever your reason,
your reward will be reversing diabetes and reclaiming your health!

Chickens

There are two types of chickens: those bred for meat (broilers) and those
bred for their eggs (egg layers).

Broilers: They are bred to grow quickly and develop a high body
mass. These are the white birds seen in cages in shops all over
India.
As a species, birds are even more sensitive than mammals in
many ways. Hens speak to their babies even before they hatch. If
you have watched a mother hen take her chicks under her wing and
teach them the ways of the world, you may have marvelled at the
beauty of their bond and how ably they teach their young
everything they need to know. Yet broiler chicks never get to see
their moms. They are placed in cages as soon as they hatch and
remain there for their entire short lives. This cage is not cleaned
until the day they go for slaughter, so they end up living in inches
of their own excreta, which pollutes the air in it with ammonia. If
you were to walk even close by, you would find it difficult to
breathe.
These baby chicks are made to grow to full size in just six weeks,
twice as fast as a normal chicken would. Their breasts grow so
disproportionately heavy that they find it difficult to support their
own weight. They are slaughtered at the young age of six weeks. If
these birds are allowed to live just a little bit longer, they would
most likely die of a heart attack while walking due to their excess
weight. Once we are aware of the intense trauma that we put these
birds through, it’s difficult to partake of their flesh. And imagine
what eating such sick animals could do to our own health!

Chicken 65
Chicken 65 is a common menu item in Indian restaurants, yet it’s made in so
many different ways that it’s difficult to guess what it’s going to taste like. The
term Chicken 65 refers to the age of the chicken––just sixty-five days old––
alluding to the tenderness of the flesh. In nature, chickens take twelve weeks
or eighty-four days to reach maturity. But now even Chicken 65 is made from
broilers that are just forty-two days or six weeks old. Yet they are as large as a
mature chicken. If you have seen the broilers, you may have noticed that they
are large and round compared to the slender village chickens. This is because
they are bred for their flesh and are made to put on weight fast.

Egg Layers: The egg industry has a dark secret. Since males do not
lay eggs, the male chicks of this variety are separated soon after
birth and ground up and fed back to their sisters! The egg industry
has no incentive to keep them. Female chicks have the most
sensitive parts of their bodies—their beaks and claws—trimmed
without anaesthesia soon after birth. Many die as a result of this
cruel procedure, but this is considered a natural loss by an industry
that regards these sensitive birds only as commodities.
 As many as five hens are then kept in a wired cage that is hardly
20 inches wide, with no place to stretch their wings, move or even
walk. Without a floor, their feet never rest and slowly they become
deformed. Like their broiler counterparts, they too live in their own
excreta, and since the cages are often stacked vertically, the acidic
excreta of the ones above burn the skins of those below. They are
also kept in the dark for most of their lives to reduce the aggression
and undergo ‘forced moulting’ to make them lay more eggs. These
chickens have been bred to lay about 250 eggs a year, a tenfold
increase from what they would produce in nature. As a result of the
ensuing calcium depletion, their bones become brittle. When their
egg production decreases, in about a year to eighteen months, they
are taken to slaughter and used for chicken soup or pot pies, where
their depleted bodies are ground or otherwise dismembered so that
their bruises go unnoticed. Rural India is now dotted with
‘poultries’, factory farms for chicken.

Since these are industry standards for raising these birds, the conditions are
similar all over the world.

Goats

Like cows, female goats too are repeatedly made pregnant for both milk and
flesh. Like all mammals, goats produce milk for their kids. Baby goats are
cute and affectionate and love to play just like puppies. They are
slaughtered at 3–5 months of age, often at roadside shops, with blunt
knives. They are often tied in front of each other and made to watch the
other animals being slaughtered.

Other Animals in Our Food Chain

The short life stories of pigs, sheep, ostriches, rabbits and other land
animals used for human consumption are equally disturbing. It’s only
because we are able to buy the flesh of these young animals neatly packed
without seeing the slaughter that we are able to eat them.

The Awakening
People often share their vegan stories with me. Since veganism is not as common in India
as it is in the West as yet, I often ask them about the reason for their choice. I have heard
all kinds of stories. I remember many telling me that they grew up on farms and saw
animals being slaughtered at a young age. The sight of the animal fighting to the end for
its life was a turning point in their own lives. And they decided not to eat any animal
flesh. As they realized that the dairy industry also traumatizes animals, they felt the need
to drop these out of their diets too. I remember one person who didn’t want to tell me
why he had turned vegan. The memory was just too disturbing. He once saw a cow being
slaughtered as he was walking through a lane.
I also know someone who runs a restaurant, and had grown up near a slaughterhouse.
He recalls seeing a cow scream in pain for several hours because she did not die
immediately. However, he is able to relish ‘delicacies’ like the tongue (of a cow) which
are served in his restaurant. Many of us have learnt to live in denial of the cruelty we
contribute to, because it’s just too painful to acknowledge it. We find a justification in our
minds to accept our behaviour towards these animals. We can also get used to it as it
happens in the case of a slaughterhouse worker or even a vivisector (one who
experiments on animals).

Fish Are Animals Too

Billions of fish are caught each year. All too often unwanted species are
also caught and left to die without reason. Fish are sentient creatures and
feel pain. They die by suffocation, which is extremely painful, and it can
sometimes take many minutes. If you have ever seen a fish brought out of
the water struggle, you can imagine the pain they go through.
Commercial fishing has decimated the aquatic environment. Shrimp nets
kill countless sea turtles. Dragging trawlers kill all life including the plant
life that fish thrive on, at the bottom of the ocean. Overfishing is causing
extinction of the species that are fished, as well as those that depend on
these fish for food.
Today, fish are also victims of the factory farming system. They are often
farmed in floating cages or in artificial ponds. Because of the large numbers
involved, and the restricted movement, they too live in their own excreta
and disease spreads rapidly.
Because we are so far removed from them, being land animals ourselves,
it’s difficult to appreciate their pain. Research shows that fish are aware of
events and have the ability to learn from the predicament of other fish. They
rapidly learn to avoid painful experiences, sometimes performing elaborate
processes like depriving themselves of food for extended periods of time.

Fish Intelligence
I live on the beach in Tamil Nadu and during the tsunami I had 4 feet of water in my
house! Although the sea had come in, not a single dead fish could be found. The fish had
obviously sensed the tsunami and escaped getting killed!

Our Relationship with Death

Slaughterhouses are some of the worst workplaces for humans. Most

animals are slaughtered in front of each other with no stunning. In many
states in India, cow slaughter is forbidden but keeping an animal that is
non-productive is unaffordable. These animals are clandestinely slaughtered
without stunning or are transported under abysmal conditions to distant
slaughterhouses and often killed in front of the others. The workers are
poor, often illiterate, and sometimes children. They are treated almost as
callously as the animals dying by the billions in those same facilities. The
pay is low, turnover is high, and injuries and illnesses are frequent and often
severe. Not to mention the fact that it’s highly demoralizing to be living
with death every day.
Sir Paul McCartney said, ‘If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone
would be vegetarian.’ Living in India, I know that this is not true. Every
second road has a small slaughterhouse on it. Many more ‘slaughterhouses’
open up on Sundays. More than 70 billion land animals are killed every
year in the world only for food to feed our over 7 billion. We are so
conditioned to seeing animals being slaughtered or led to slaughter that we
have become blind to them. It’s time to awaken and put ourselves in the
place of these fellow living beings. When we feel pain, we often panic, call
the doctor and demand medications. When someone is sick, we do not
hesitate to do everything possible to save their life. Yet we willingly allow
our fellow beings to be subject to pain, torture and death!

The Environmental Reasons for Avoiding Animal Products

I know many people who are worried about the future of the planet. More
and more people are opting to be child-free because they know they cannot
ensure a future for their children. Environmental degradation, climate
change and shortage of resources make them think before increasing their
environmental footprint by having a child. We can also make positive
changes by consuming less, and living more naturally in order to secure a
future for others.
Not only does India have a large population of humans but we also have
the largest population of cattle in the world! We have 14 per cent of the
world’s cattle! All these animals raised by us need water, land, air and food.
While we are experiencing a shortage of all of these for the human
population, we are raising animals! If we consumed less or no animal
products as humans, the results would be as follows.

Less Water Shortages

On an average, it takes 500 litres of water to produce 1 kg of potatoes, 600

for 1 kg of wheat, 2000 for 1 kg of rice, but up to 1,00,000 for 1 kg of beef!
Livestock consume 80 per cent of our water resources. Eating a plant-based
diet saves a lot of water!

More Trees, Forests, Greenery

Our diminishing forests are seriously threatened by our need to graze

animals. A large proportion of our land is used to grow animals raised for
food. It takes approximately 12 kg of grain to produce 1 litre of milk or 1 kg
of beef. A vegan needs 0.5 acres of land for sustenance, a non-vegetarian
thirty times this amount! Eating a plant-based diet frees up a lot of land
under cultivation.

More Wildlife

Less land under cultivation means more wildlife habitat means more
wildlife! Today, biodiversity is being threatened because the world has
become overcrowded with our species and the few species on our food
chain in favour of all other species. This is the main cause of the human–
wildlife conflict.

More Available Energy

It is said that the world’s petroleum reserves would last for only thirteen
years if all humans were meat-eaters, but 260 years if all humans were
vegan. The production of meat is energy-intensive––growing food for feed,
transporting it to the farm animals (this currently happens across
continents), transferring animals to stockyards, then slaughterhouses,
packaging units and stores and finally into the consumer’s fridge or freezer
till its eaten takes a lot of energy. We could reduce our power cuts
considerably if we used less power. A good reason to reduce the
consumption of animals!

Less Global Warming and Climate Change

The WHO and FAO released a joint 400-page document called ‘Livestock’s
Long Shadow’ which notes that livestock produce more greenhouse gases
than all the vehicles combined! We can actually reverse climate change if
we changed our eating habits.
Less Pollution of Land, Air and Water

Arsenic from poultry pollutes the water around. Ammonia pollutes the air.
Concentration of manure from animals raised for food pollutes our land, air
and water supply. Fish farming pollutes the waters. Cows produce methane
gas, which is four times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide!

For People

Many of us contribute to a cause to help others. Yet we often don’t realize

that the single way to make the biggest contribution to others is to be more
conscious about what we put in our mouths.

Eradicating Starvation

Today more than 40 per cent of all the grain grown is fed to animals. All
this food could be made available to starving human beings. Eating lower
on the food chain gives us more food per acre.

Better Health, Less Money Spent on Healthcare

Heart disease and hypertension are the largest causes of death on the planet.
Only animals produce cholesterol and animal products are full of saturated
fats. Heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer and obesity are all linked
to excess animal protein consumption. We are killing ourselves with our
forks. Healthcare costs would drop dramatically if we change the way we
eat.
I believe that all of us share a compassion for fellow beings. If you have
lived in denial for many years, or have been justifying cruelty as a cultural
tradition, it’s not too late to become fully aware. For a moment of pleasure,
we subject many animals to a lifetime of torture.
Nowadays, with the help of the Internet, it’s easy to see videos of our
treatment of the animals in our food chain. Although disturbing, they bring
home the facts and can be useful if you find it difficult to make the change.
It’s clear that eating the food that we were meant to eat could change the
world around us for the better and give our children a better future. By the
end of this book, hopefully you will realize that this new lifestyle will be
delicious too! And to be free of disease and medicines is, needless to say,
liberating!
 12
Oil, Ghee and Other Fats

By now we know that the main cause of type 2 diabetes, along with dairy, is
fat (without fibre), i.e., oil, butter, ghee, vanaspati or margarine and fats in
animal products, since they too are free of fibre.
Many people thus reduce fat while cooking, instead of eliminating it all
together. This is not what should be done! When we have a house on fire
we should not even add a teaspoon of fuel. Diabetes is the result of years of
eating and living in a wrong way. It does not happen overnight. Conversely,
the cure is not brought about by single meals. While a single meal rich in
any refined product can cause the blood sugar to rise, it takes years to create
the insulin resistance of type 2 diabetes or injure the pancreas, resulting in
type 1 diabetes (type 1 diabetes can occur suddenly, too, due to certain
medications or chemotherapy than harm the pancreas). The body is always
working to heal itself but we have to remove the cause. And so it’s essential
to avoid all free fats and animal products since both are rich in fat.
Fat inside the muscle cells causes insulin resistance and that in the
bloodstream reduces the circulation to the pancreas, delaying healing. Every
time we eat fat in the free form or without fibre, it enters the bloodstream
quickly and makes the blood thick and more viscid, affecting the flow of
blood in the body. To facilitate any healing, we need to increase the blood
flow in order to bring nutrients to the injured part. When we remove fat
from the diet completely, our blood becomes thin and can easily transport
nutrients to all parts of the body. At the same time, if we increase the intake
of nutrients by improving the quality of our food, we have the ideal
condition for healing!
 Blood thickened with fat is viscous and injures the artery walls. These
injured walls are then ‘bandaged’ with cholesterol. Over a period of time
the artery walls thicken, resulting in arteriosclerosis and high blood
pressure, further reducing the blood flow. In this way, it’s possible to have
lower cholesterol in the bloodstream, resulting in normal or near normal
laboratory tests, while the arteries remain blocked. This is because a large
part of the cholesterol is stuck on the artery walls, rather than being in the
blood.
Once we stop consuming fat, the blood becomes thinner, starts dissolving
the cholesterol lining the artery walls and the blood flow improves. Thus,
with dietary changes, it’s possible that this accumulated cholesterol
dissolves, raising the cholesterol levels in the lab tests and lowering the
blood pressure! This, of course, is desirable and should not cause alarm.

In this illustration we see cross sections of arteries. The one on the upper left is a healthy artery
with no deposits of fat and cholesterol. The next image shows progressive damage, with the lower
right showing an artery that has been narrowed and is now blocked by a blood clot.
To explain this better let me give you an example. Imagine the kitchen sink
where you wash utensils. Over a period of time the pipe of the sink will get
clogged as oil and other debris get accumulated. If you test the water
passing through the pipe, it will not contain too much oil. But if you pour
hot water or some other solvent to dissolve the deposits in the pipe and then
test the water, the percentage of fat and oil in the water would have
increased, as it gets flushed out.
Cholesterol levels in the blood as shown in lab reports are therefore not
good indicators of the status of the arteries or one’s predisposition to heart
disease. The blood pressure is actually a better indicator. When the arteries
are clogged, the heart has to pump harder (raising the blood pressure) so
that the blood reaches everywhere.

Fat Facts

Only Animals Produce Cholesterol

Plants do not produce cholesterol. There is no cholesterol in cashews or

coconut or any other plant product, including oil. We are animals and we
need cholesterol. However, most people who consume animal products
have higher levels of cholesterol than they require. If you want to lower
these levels, the very first thing to do is remove all the animal fats from
your diet. Remember that cholesterol is needed; a really low level of it is
not good either. I have some patients with very low levels of cholesterol
thanks to statins and other cholesterol-lowering drugs. This is extremely
harmful and, to top it all, these drugs raise blood sugar levels.

All Fats Contribute to Triglycerides

We have been made to believe that olive oil is much better than other oils.
This is the result of good marketing. Like all other fats, olive oil too
contains nine calories per gram. There was a time when people in the
Mediterranean region got fewer heart attacks than their North European
counterparts. This was attributed to the use of olive oil, but it was really
because their diet was more centred on plants. Today people in the
Mediterranean countries consume more olive oil than ever and as much
meat as elsewhere in Europe. Naturally, heart attack rates have risen.

Animal Fats and Plant Fats Are Different

Animal fats are solid at room temperature, while plant fats are usually
liquid. Coconut oil is liquid but can be solid when put in the fridge or at
cooler temperatures. Sometimes, plant fats are solidified by a process of
hydrogenation as in the case of vanaspati or margarine. It’s easy to imagine
that solid fats would make the blood thicker than liquid fats. This is why if
we must have some fat, we should opt for plant fats. In India, there is a
misconception that ghee is good for health. This is not true. Ghee is 100 per
cent fat. It is solid at room temperature, and affects the blood flow and
slows down healing.
I am often asked why Ayurvedic doctors recommend ghee. As I
understand, Ayurvedic medications often use heavy metals that can be
extremely toxic to the body. Ghee (as well as the casein from the dairy,
which they may also recommend) lines the intestines and reduces the
absorption of these toxic substances. Unfortunately, both ghee and casein
also prevent the absorption of useful minerals such as iron and calcium.
When we are on a healthy and nutritious diet, ghee is not recommended at
all. Besides, it is not at all a natural food for human beings!

Reasons Why Oil, Ghee, Butter and Other Fats Are Bad for Us
When fat accumulates in the muscle cells, it renders them insulin-resistant. If we stop
consuming fat, the accumulated fat reduces, helping to reverse diabetes.
Fats thicken the blood, raising the blood pressure and reducing the blood flow to the
body and pancreas, thus slowing healing.
Refined oil is processed with solvents to extract all the oil from the oilseeds. These
chemicals are hormone disruptors and adversely affect the production of insulin.
 Refined oil is actually more of a chemical substance than a food substance. It has an
exceptionally long shelf life, much longer than the substance it’s made from, but no
longer has the nutrients that real food has.
Refined oil raises omega-6 levels, upsetting the balance between omega-3 and omega-
6. People who consume refined oils may require omega-3 supplements, whereas
people who do not consume it are unlikely to require these supplements.
Fats are calorie-dense foods, delivering nine calories with every gram. Both proteins
and carbohydrates deliver only four calories per gram. Fats may thus cause weight
gain. Refined fats are high in calories and lack nutrients.
Fats raise the cooking temperatures, rendering the food less nutritious.

Once we change our diet and stop the intake of cholesterol, the cholesterol
lining the arteries begins to dissolve. A healthier diet lowers the blood
pressure, but may raise the cholesterol levels in the blood as the body
begins flushing out the excess cholesterol, as explained above. This is not to
be feared. Upon changing your diet and lifestyle, if the blood pressure drops
—and it will—we are on the right track. Because of years of cholesterol
accumulation it may take a while for these levels to come to normal.
Even for the committed amongst us, it’s hard to avoid oil completely,
living in the society we do today. I’m not suggesting that you never
consume anything containing oil again. What I am suggesting is that as long
as we want to reverse the disease completely, oil should be eliminated as far
as possible. Once the healing has taken place, rather than being on our
reversal diet, we need to be on a maintenance diet. In this situation, small
digressions are acceptable. After all, our body does have plenty of reserves.
Here is a strategy I suggest. Spend some time to learn and plan and
prepare to continue this lifestyle. Learn the techniques of cooking without
oil or teach them to the person who cooks for you.
When you feel ready, commit to a trial of thirty days and do it as
thoroughly as possible. Take a complete blood test before you start, so that
you know the exact level at which you are starting. At the end of the thirty
days, do another blood test so that you see the results of your efforts. This is
very encouraging. After this, if a situation arises where you are tempted to
digress, and you do, see how you feel. You may find one of the following:
 You really enjoyed the food. Later you find that your body did not
appreciate it as much as you did. Appreciate how your body feels
and remember that feeling. Remembering this will help you avoid
that food the next time you feel tempted.
You are really tempted, but it didn’t taste as great as you thought it
would. In thirty days, our taste buds change. There is a chance that
you’re no longer tempted to eat the foods that are not good for you.
You ate just a little and it didn’t affect you much.

When you are generally healthy, and have reversed your diseases, you may
want to occasionally indulge in a little oil, maybe for a salad dressing or an
extra special meal. What oil will you choose? Your best choice would be an
organic cold-pressed oil.

Refined Oils versus Cold-pressed Oils

Heating oil twice produces acrylamides, which are carcinogenic. In the process of
refining, oil is heated. So when you cook with it, it’s the second time that it is being
heated, making it even more harmful. Cold-pressed oil is one that is pressed from the
oilseeds at room temperature. Extra virgin olive oil is almost always cold-pressed. This
kind of oil retains its flavour. All refined oils taste alike––they become chemical
compounds like white sugar. Cold-pressed oils get spoilt easily and cannot be stored for
years.

Frying is really harmful, not only because fried foods carry a lot of oil, but
also because the oil is heated to really high temperatures and reheated too.
If you have made fried foods, it’s best not to keep the oil that remains after
frying for later use because of the acrylamides.
Since most of us are likely to eat out sometimes and will be confronted
with choices, none of which are perfect, it’s best to use no oil in the kitchen
at home.

Questions
Here are some of the questions commonly asked about fat.

Don’t we need some oil?

I am often asked whether the human body needs oil. Our body requires no
more oil than a horse or a monkey or an elephant does. Do you get the
picture? There is fat in fruits and vegetables. When you peel an orange or
lime, you may have felt it. Nuts, seeds and beans have even more. We are
getting enough oil from just our foods. There is no need to add more.
If we are working on reversing diseases, we should not consume too
many oilseeds and nuts either. But if we are eating to maintain good health,
then we can enjoy a little more of sunflower or sesame seeds, nuts and nut
butters.

Don’t I need some amount of oil to lubricate my joints? I have joint pain
and arthritis.

As you may have noticed, most people who complain of joint pains and
arthritis have been consuming oil or fat all their lives. So how is it that they
have these problems in the first place if fat is supposed to protect them?
Please don’t be under the impression that we need refined fats to lubricate
our joints. What we need is an excellent blood supply that can be achieved
by minimizing the fat and improving the nutrient content. Horses and other
animals known for their agility never need to consume oil. Their joints
work perfectly fine without it.

What about fish and fish oil? Where will I get the essential fatty acids or
omega-3s?

Clever marketing has informed us that we need fish oil for essential fatty
acids. About fifteen years ago, no one was talking about these. Why were
they not such a problem then?
Firstly, omega-3s are considered essential fatty acids (EFAs) because our
body cannot make them. So we need to get them through our foods. They
have several essential functions:

They are a part of phospholipids in all animal cellular

membranes––a deficiency of EFA results in the formation of faulty
membranes.
They are needed for the transportation and oxidation of cholesterol;
EFAs tend to lower plasma cholesterol.
They are precursors of tiny, but powerful, hormones, eicosanoids
(prostaglandins, leukotrienes and thromboxanes), which are only
formed from EFAs.

Omega-3 and omega-6 fats need to be in balance. Refined oils, animal

products and hydrogenated oils contain high amounts of omega-6 fats,
causing a relative deficiency of omega 3s. With our intake of animal
products and refined foods increasing year by year, we are now faced with
EFA deficiencies, which were rare just two decades ago. The more bad fats
you eat, the more you need essential fatty acids. On a whole-food, plant-
based diet, even flaxseed is not required. We get all the essential fatty acids
from a normal diet.
Few people realize that essential fatty acids (omega-3s) are only made by
plants. Fish have them because they eat plants. We, too, can get them
through plants. EFA deficiency is not found in people whose diets are high
in whole plant foods, whether they consume flaxseeds or not.
Foods rich in EFAs include safflower, sunflower, hempseed, soya beans,
walnut, pumpkin, sesame, flax, canola (rapeseed) and green leafy
vegetables.

We Really Don’t Need Any Free Fats!

Since we are so used to cooking with oil, it’s hard to believe that oil is not
needed and even harder to take it out of the kitchen. But all fats are a big
contributor to diabetes and so many other lifestyle diseases and once you
learn how to cook without fat, you will be wondering why you even used it
all these years! Remember that high triglycerides come from fats and high
cholesterol levels come from animal products, including dairy.
It is best to eat food cooked without any external fats, just like our
ancestors as well as all the other animals on the planet. In Chapter 22, you
will learn simple techniques to cook delicious food without a drop of oil.
 13
Sugar

Not a Food, Just an Addictive Chemical

Just like oil, sugar is a highly addictive product. It is, in fact, a chemical
rather than a food and could last in your kitchen for years! I remember
when I first bought a home, I went shopping to stock my shelves with basic
necessities. At that time sugar was one of them, even though I did not
consume it. I thought I would have visitors who would ask for it. The
smallest quantity that I could find was a 1 kg package. I remember that this
container of sugar remained on my shelf for ten years, until I moved out. It
didn’t change or spoil! In fact, a shocking 73 per cent of packaged foods
contain sugar, which acts both as a preservative and an addictive, raising the
market value of the product.

Hidden Sugar

Most of the sugar we eat is hidden. Food manufacturers and restaurants add
sugar to almost everything. This is one reason why children love to eat out.
In the food industry, sugar has various names—high fructose corn syrup,
dextrose, maltose, rice syrup and so on. Since it is present in various forms,
it doesn’t show up on top of the ingredient list. This is a trick that food
manufacturers use to prevent us from recognizing how much sugar is in
their product. A large hot drink in a coffee shop may contain as much as
twenty-five spoons of sugar! It’s estimated that an average urban Indian
consumes about twenty-five teaspoons of sugar a day!1 Take into account
cereals, desserts, ice creams, chocolate, jam, fruit juice, tea, coffee, biscuits,
ketchup and even flavoured potato chips. We’re eating sugar all the time
without knowing it. This is why it’s essential to read and understand the
ingredients of every single thing that’s bought ready-made. If you can’t,
don’t eat it.

Why Is Sugar Bad for Us

Sugar is an appetizer, an addictive agent, a stimulant and a storehouse of

empty (devoid of nutrition) calories.

Bad Effects of Sugar

Destroys the digestive enzymes in the mouth, stomach, small intestines and pancreas.
Reduces the hydrochloric acid in the stomach. Food is thus not properly digested and
absorbed, leading to constipation.
Robs the body of almost all nutrients, especially chromium, zinc and calcium, and
vitamins C and B-complex.
Increases the appetite.
Results in swings in the blood sugar levels.
Causes hyperactivity in children.
Is made with acid and is acid-yielding in our body, resulting in the leaching out of
calcium from bones. It causes cavities and osteoporosis.
It has no nutrients––only empty calories––and causes weight gain.
Excess sugar is converted into fat and can cause fatty liver disease.
It causes the release of dopamine (as do drugs) and is highly addictive.

Sugar versus Fruit

As a diabetic, I am sure you try not to consume sugar. Consuming sugar in

the free form, or as an additive, or even in the form of juice, syrup, honey,
molasses, jaggery, etc. will raise the blood sugar levels. Sugar goes straight
into the bloodstream. But naturally sweet foods, such as fruit, sweet potato,
beetroot, dates and even whole sugar cane, etc. will not cause a problem.
The fibre in these whole foods prevents the sugar from going straight into
the bloodstream. I have seen many diabetics overjoyed with our meal plans
because they can eat as much fruit as they like. There is absolutely no
restriction on the kind of fruit. Mangoes, bananas, grapes, sapodillas
(chikoo/sapota) and custard apples can be relished again.

Artificial Sweeteners

Sweeteners such as saccharin, sucralose and aspartame are never

recommended. Some of these are extremely harmful, can promote diabetes
and even cancer, and do not help in reducing the blood sugar levels. As you
know, no diabetic gets better by consuming these sweeteners. Even natural
ones like stevia, agave, maple syrup and honey are not recommended. They
too stimulate the sweet taste buds, keeping us addicted to the sweet taste.
As you may have seen, sweets are highly addictive, but fruit is generally
not. When we completely stop consuming sugar and other sweeteners, we
find that our taste buds have changed. Sugar can become too sweet and
undesirable as we start experiencing the sweetness of vegetables like peas,
carrots and onions. And we stop craving sweets.
The advantage of never consuming sugar or sweeteners is that a day will
come when you will be able to refuse a cake or walk past the dessert section
of a buffet without ever having a pang of desire. I know that may sound
absurd to some of you now, but I have seen it happen over and over again.
I have seen some diabetics––who have completely stopped consuming
sugar and don’t take additives––feel the same way. They can detect
artificial sweetness in anything!
Then there are others who decide to have this tantalizing substance only
on rare occasions (weddings, birthdays, parties, etc.). The only problem
with this is that sugar is a highly addictive substance. If we go back to
consuming it, we can get addicted again, just like a smoker who has quit
smoking can get addicted to tobacco again.

The Complex Carbohydrate Advantage

Complex carbohydrates like fruit, potatoes and other starches are slowly
broken down by our body into sugar. This sugar enters our muscle cells to
provide us with energy. In diabetes, because of insulin resistance or a lack
of insulin, the sugar is not able to enter the muscle cells, resulting in
weakness and high blood sugar levels. With a change in diet, we can
increase our energy levels and lower our blood sugars.
Any excess sugar that we do not use for our energy needs is converted
into fat and stored in our body. This is the real cause of diabetes. This is
why it’s very important to consume sugar only as complex carbohydrates.
The fibre in them gives us the feeling of fullness and keeps us feeling full
for a longer time. It prevents us from overeating. On the other hand, eating
refined ready-made products forces us to eat more. We also become hungry
faster. When we consume this refined sugar, it goes straight into the
bloodstream, causing a surge in the blood sugar levels. This, in turn, signals
the pancreas to release a large quantity of insulin. This takes the sugar and
deposits it inside the muscle cells, causing the blood sugar to drop equally
suddenly, leading to an urgent desire to eat more. We can prevent this
vicious cycle of hunger and sugar-eating just by avoiding refined products.

The Alternatives

The alternatives to sugar are fruit, dried fruit or even root vegetables. Dates
and date paste can be used to sweeten many dishes. In the recipe section,
you will see how to make delicious desserts that satisfy the sweet tooth, yet
keep our blood sugars under control!
 14
Refined and Processed Foods

When I was a young girl, there were hardly any restaurants in India.
Refrigerators were uncommon. Plastic was not even available. In Mumbai,
milk was available in reusable milk bottles at ration booths and was limited.
Cheese was unknown except to people who had travelled abroad. The food
at home was delicious, and mothers knew how to cook. How things have
changed!
Today, processed foods, fast foods and packaged foods have become the
urban norm. Many people have no idea how to cook beyond a cup of tea.
There are children and many young men and women who do not know
whether carrots grow on trees or in the ground, and they would never be
able to recognize a walnut in its shell. This is not surprising. They have
never really gone shopping or stepped into the kitchen. There is no reason
for them to do so. Ready-made foods are always available. We have grown
so disconnected from our food—how it’s grown and what it looks like in
the raw form. Most of us will never need all the history, geometry or
algebra lessons taught in school. But we are often not taught the skills that
our life depends on.
How amazing it would be if we were taught how to cook in school! I
believe that both men and women should know the basics of cooking––it is
actually so simple that anyone can learn it. Our health––actually our life––
depends on it. It’s very important to know what we are putting into our
bodies and be in control of it. It appears like a difficult task for many only
because they have never tried it. I’m proud to say that I have seen many
people––who had previously never liked to cook––say that they have begun
enjoying it after attending our seminars/cooking classes. I even know a few
people, who have graduated from catering colleges, yet hated cooking, have
a complete turnaround after going on a whole, plant-based diet.

Common Refined and Processed Foods

Since almost everyone eats white rice, white flour, sugar, oil and other
refined foods, it’s difficult to understand how bad they are. But now that we
know, we surely want to use healthy whole alternatives. Some other
examples of processed foods that we commonly use are:

Breakfast cereals
Biscuits
Rava (this is polished wheat and has the same composition as
maida)
Poha (made of polished rice)
Cheese
Tinned foods
Bread
Savoury snacks
Meat products
‘Convenience foods’, such as microwave meals, ready-to-eat meals
and two-minute noodles
Drinks, such as milk or soft drinks or juices

This list could go on. The reason we want to avoid all processed foods is
because they are often rich in fat, sugar, salt and low in fibre and nutrients.
Processed foods contain many non-food elements, which promote shelf life.
These come in four categories:

Preservatives: Chemicals that prevent the food from rotting.

Colourants: Chemicals that are used to give it a specific colour.
Flavour: Chemicals that give the food a particular flavour.
Texturants: Chemicals that give it a particular texture.
If it has a long shelf life, it means that it is difficult for any kind of bacteria
to destroy it. As you can imagine, these chemicals don’t make it easier for
our body to digest them. When we start eating real foods, digestion
becomes simpler, constipation goes away and acidity and bloating
disappear. Most people feel much better. Chemicals are hormone disruptors,
as we will see in Chapter 16, and diabetes is a hormonal problem. It’s
essential that we keep chemicals away.

Read Before You Bite!

Don’t be fooled by the claims on the front of the package. Most pre-packed
food products also have a list of ingredients on the packaging or an attached
label. If you do buy packaged foods, it’s important to read the ingredient
list. If there are ingredients that you do not cook with, don’t buy it!
Ingredients are listed in order of weight, so the main ingredients in the
packaged food always come first. That means if the first few items are high-
fat ingredients, such as cream, butter or oil, then the eatable in question is a
high-fat food.
An energy bar is an example of a processed food that is marketed as a
healthy, low-carb food.

INGREDIENTS: CHOCOLATE FLAVORED COATING (POLYDEXTROSE, PALM

KERNEL AND PALM OIL, WHEY PROTEIN ISOLATE, COCOA POWDER
(PROCESSED WITH ALKALI), SOY LECITHIN, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR,
SUCRALOSE, ACESULFAME POTASSIUM), PEANUT BUTTER FLAVORED
LAYER (MALTITOL, PALM KERNEL AND PALM OIL, PEANUT BUTTER,
PARTIALLY DEFATTED PEANUT FLOUR, NONFAT DRY MILK, WHEY
POWDER, PEANUTS, SALT, SOY LECITHIN, ANHYDROUS MILK FAT, COCOA
POWDER [PROCESSED WITH ALKALI]), GLYCERIN, PROTEIN BLEND (SOY
PROTEIN ISOLATE, WHEY PROTEIN ISOLATE, SODIUM CASEINATE),
PEANUTS, HYDROLYZED GELATIN, WATER, POLYDEXTROSE, PEANUT
BUTTER (GROUND, ROASTED PEANUTS), CELLULOSE, NATURAL AND
ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, PALM KERNEL OIL, OLIVE OIL, CLARIFIED BUTTER,
SOY LECITHIN, GUAR GUM, VITAMIN MINERAL MIX (DICALCIUM
PHOSPHATE, MAGNESIUM OXIDE, ASCORBIC ACID [VITAMIN C], SODIUM
ASCORBATE, VITAMIN E ACETATE, NIACINAMIDE, ZINC OXIDE, D-CALICUM
PANTOTHENATE, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE [VITAMIN B6], THIAMIN
 MONONITRATE [VITAMIN BI], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], VITAMIN A
PALMITATE, FOLIC ACID, BIOTIN, CHROMIUM AMINO ACID CHELATE,
SODIUM SELENITE, PHYLLOQUINONE [VITAMIN K1], CYANOCOBALAMIN
[VITAMIN B12]), SALT, MALTODEXTRIN, CITRIC ACID, SUCRALOSE, MONO
AND DIGLYCERIDES, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE. FR02 CONTAINS PEANUTS,
SOY AND MILK. THIS PRODUCT IS MANUFACTURED IN A FACILITY THAT
USES OTHER NUTS, SEEDS AND WHEAT.

If you have read its ingredients list, you will realize that there are a number
of refined products, things you have never heard of before or that you
cannot even read and pronounce. This is far from healthy, and far from
food. But without reading the ingredients, a healthy energy bar sounds like
a superfood!
I suggest that if there is something on the label that is not clear, that you
cannot pronounce or that you do not recognize as food, do not put it in your
mouth! Of course, if it does not have ingredients written on it, it should not
even be found in the stores. Be suspicious rather than sorry. Look at the
labels on packages that you have in your house already so that you become
aware of what you have been eating. It’s always best to buy individual
ingredients and make your own food!

Reading Labels
The front labels can be quite deceptive! The only place where we can really learn what
the ingredients are is in the ingredients section. For example, a bread label may claim that
it ‘contains whole wheat’, but if you read the list of ingredients, you will realize that only
20 per cent of this may be whole wheat. The rest could be wheat flour (which is maida or
white flour).
A box of biscuits may say ‘diabetes biscuits’ or ‘suitable for diabetics’. But one look at
the ingredients will tell us that it contains white flour, milk powder, oil and chemicals
like aspartame instead of sugar! In reality, all of these ingredients have to be avoided. Or
you may find ‘baked snacks’, which leave you feeling good as they are not fried. But the
ingredient list will reveal the truth. They have oil, sugar and other ingredients that are to
be avoided.
Here are some tips on how to read these labels:
 If you cannot read, pronounce or have never heard the word,
don’t buy it.
If ingredients are numbers, avoid them.
Avoid artificial flavouring or ‘nature-like’ substances.
Sugar comes in many forms and has at least fifty-six names––
cane sugar, jaggery, high fructose corn syrup, glucose,
maltose, lactose, fructose, caramel, honey, corn syrup, maple
syrup, rice syrup are just a few of them.
Wheat flour means maida. Whole-wheat flour means it’s
really whole.
MSG is all over the place and has many different names. Here
are just some of the common ones––glutamic acid (E 620),
glutamate (E 620), yeast extract, hydrolyzed protein,
ajinomoto.
Artificial colours, like flavours, are chemicals.
Milk may be in the form of milk, casein, sodium caseinate,
milk powder, etc.
Avoid preservatives like sulfites and BHT.
Avoid hydrogenated fats.

Avoiding packaged foods makes our life simpler. You don’t need to go
through all the isles of the supermarket. Just buy fruits, vegetables, beans
and grains. Since packaged foods are expensive too, you will be saving a lot
of money that can now be spent on higher quality nutritious foods.
 15
Tea and Coffee

As a plant-based diet usually makes you feel much more energetic, the need
for tea and coffee soon disappears. We usually choose these beverages
either out of habit, or because we’re tired, or because it helps us digest a
heavy meal. Those heavy meals also deplete us of energy. Since our food
now gives us energy rather than take it away, these beverages are no longer
required!

Stopping Tea and Coffee

To many, this may sound like the most daunting task of all! Tea and coffee
have such a control on us! These two are socially acceptable addictions that
almost all adults indulge in several times a day. They are served in homes,
offices and even schools and colleges.
Let’s list all the reasons why these two are unhealthy so that we can
understand just how important it is to leave these out of our diets.

Caffeine Raises Blood Sugar and Blood Pressure

Coffee, tea and colas contain caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant that works by
taking energy out of your cells so that your body can utilize it. After
sometime, when this stimulant action is over, there is a kind of depression,
which is when we get the urge to down another cup. This is why caffeine is
addictive.
We often use these drugs to energize us––to wake us up in the morning or
to stay up late at night or to work long hours. Later, we become so addicted
to it that we do not have any energy left until we have another mug of tea or
coffee. Coffee does not really improve our overall energy levels. Remember
that children have much more energy than most adults and they usually do
not consume either of these drinks.
Caffeine also raises blood sugars, giving more energy, but leaving you
drained out when the effect wears off. And then the blood sugars fall. Since
diabetics do not want to raise their blood sugar levels, they should stop
consuming these drinks.
Caffeine also acts on the blood vessels, constricting them and thereby
raising the blood pressure. Later, the blood vessels dilate again and you
need more caffeine. This can also cause migraines.

Tea and Coffee Are Acidic

Both tea and coffee are acidic and lead to acidity, cavities, leaching out of
calcium from the bones and a host of other health problems in our alkaline
bodies. As cancer cells survive better in acidic environments than do
normal cells, these drinks also predispose one to cancer. Tea and coffee also
prevent the absorption of iron and calcium, contributing to anaemia and
osteoporosis. They can cause constipation and even dehydration.

Mood Alterations

Caffeine alters your moods––it makes you irritable and anxious. Its absence
can cause severe discomfort, headaches and uneasiness to one who is
addicted. It also disturbs sleep patterns.

Releasing the Addictions

If you have been a tea or coffee drinker all your life, don’t worry. I promise
you that it’s much easier to give them up than it seems! And if you do, you
will be in control rather than being controlled by these beverages!
Earlier, during our twenty-one-day health retreats, participants could
choose between black tea, coffee and herbal teas during the first four days.
Sugar and milk were not available, not only to make these drinks less
attractive, but also because we were serving only whole, plant-based foods.
It was up to each one to reduce the consumption of these beverages and
give it up altogether during those four days. After this period, only herbal
teas were served. Some of the participants were accustomed to drinking as
many as ten cups of tea a day before they joined us. So having to quit in a
mere four days was, needless to add, challenging.
However, not many suffered from withdrawal symptoms because of the
high quality of the food. Some of them experienced headaches for a few
days. But this was a small price to pay for the incredible benefits that they
were experiencing. Many were able to sleep better, others said their acidity
disappeared. I later decided to stop providing tea and coffee from day one
of the twenty-one-day programme. By the end of three weeks, only a few
participants still had the desire for it and this was only because of the smell,
taste, habit or social implications and not because of any withdrawal
symptoms.
After having consultations with a very large number of patients, I have
realized that everyone can give up tea and coffee if they choose to.
Physically, it is difficult only for the first three or four days. The real
difficulty is in our mind. It’s a habit, and one that gives comfort. Because
tea and coffee are so addictive, it’s important to remember not to make
exceptions. These two are actually drugs. In fact, there are authorities who
consider coffee even more harmful than marijuana. Since drinking tea and
coffee is a part of our culture, we fail to recognize this.

Green Teas, Decaffeinated Coffee

I’m often asked whether green tea is bad for health. Green tea is just less
processed black tea.
Tea and coffee grow in acidic soils, unsuitable for growing most fruits,
vegetables and grains. They are inherently acidic. To add to this, the process
of tea manufacturing makes use of many harmful chemicals.
 Green tea does have antioxidant properties and has been highly
advertised for this. But remember, we do not need anything that is
advertised. All fruits and vegetables are full of antioxidants. If you’re on a
whole-food, plant-based diet with plenty of raw food, you’re getting enough
antioxidants and you don’t need to drink green tea. Herbal teas too are a
good source of antioxidants.
It’s the same for decaffeinated coffee. Caffeine is never removed
completely, there are new chemicals in the beverage and its acidic.

Replace Tea and Coffee

Tea and coffee are also mostly taken with milk and sugar in India and these
are things that we would like to avoid. Therefore, it’s best to get rid of the
habit altogether!
If you are ready for it, I advise you to do this together with your spouse
or a friend. Spend the next four days together trying to give up the habit. It
will help overcome the withdrawal symptoms and finally you will be free of
the clutches of this socially accepted drug. Replace these beverages with
herbal teas and infusions.
In case you are unable to completely give these up, switch to green tea
and then slowly reduce the strength of the tea till you can give it up all
together. Or switch to decaffeinated coffee to start with. Later, switch to
herbal teas and infusions so that you have a hot drink to relax with, only
that now it’s not harmful. We will see recipes for herbal teas in the recipe
section.
 16
Hormone Disruptors

Today, more than ever before, we are facing a huge epidemic of hormonal
problems. By now you know that insulin is a hormone, making diabetes a
hormonal problem. We often see this problem along with hypothyroidism,
polycystic ovarian disease, menstrual problems or irregularities, breast
cancer, prostate cancer, prostate enlargement, infertility and even
impotency. These are all largely hormonal issues.
Why do we have so many hormonal diseases these days? Today, most of
us live in a toxic chemical environment. Since most of this has already been
covered, I will be brief here. My goal is to summarize and emphasize the
sheer extent of this problem.

Chemicals Are Hormonal Disruptors

Chemicals are everywhere and may be categorized as follows:

Foods Sprayed with Chemicals

This is why organic foods are highly recommended. I’ve seen many people
who are sceptical about it. But the importance of organic foods can’t be
overemphasized. It’s very, very important. Pesticides are poisons. I
remember the case of a patient with severe diabetes. When I told him about
organic foods, he told me that he was from a farming family and that he
didn’t believe anything was actually organic. This could be the case. Yet it’s
better to have something which is 80 or 90 per cent organic rather than 100
per cent full of chemicals. I also know many farmers who value their land
even more than their own bodies and would never pollute it with pesticides
and fertilizers. They pride themselves on their organic produce.

Animal Products in Our Diet

Animals concentrate plant foods to form their tissues. They also concentrate
chemicals in their environment––in the air, water and food. Dairy contains
five times as many pesticides as commercial fruits and vegetables and flesh
foods such as fish and chicken contain fifteen times the amount. In India, on
an average, dairy contains 570 times the acceptable levels of HCH, a
residual pesticide, besides other adulterants. Animals in our food chain are
also fed/injected with hormones, antibiotics and chemicals to make them
grow faster or produce more.
People often tell me that they eat only fish (and not chicken or meat).
Remember that fish are dangerous because the seas and rivers are full of
pollutants. They can accumulate up to 9 million times the PCBs in water
and therefore are a very concentrated source of contaminants. Since half of
the world’s fish catch is fed to livestock, animals in our food chain are also
a threat.
PCBs cause sterility, hormonal disruption, including diabetes, and cancer.
Mercury harms the brain and causes neurological damage. There are
studies which show that mercury also affects the insulin-producing
pancreatic cells.

Chemicals in Our Lives

These include medicines, soaps, shampoos, hair dyes, perfumes, breath

fresheners, deodorants, lipsticks, toothpaste and all kinds of personal-care
products, household pesticides, paints, detergents, air fresheners and, of
course, pollutants. Our lives are full of chemicals. The best we can do is
minimize these to the extent possible. It took me some time to understand
that I could live without bathing with soap, without brushing my teeth and
without any perfumes or other chemicals. We have been conditioned by
society to think that we need these products. To reiterate, if it’s advertised,
we most likely don’t need it and could be better off without it. The
decisions you make every day can have a huge impact on your health.
Although it may be difficult for you to drop all these products at once, just
being aware of the extent of the damage caused by them may help you
reduce their usage.

Plastics in Our Lives

Today plastics have become ubiquitous. Even if you can avoid using them,
you’ll find them everywhere––in the waterways, in the sea, in landfills and
also outside them. They pollute our water, our air, our land, everything.
Plastic is a hormone disruptor. The best you can do is minimize your own
usage of plastics and avoid bottled water, plastic carry bags and wrappings.
Avoid buying anything in plastic if you can. If each person does his bit, we
can prevent untold misery to future generations. And, of course, what you
do for others always comes back to benefit you.

Hormonal Medications

Steroids, oral contraceptives, medications for infertility and hormones that

are fed to the animals in our food chain all come back to us and affect us
profoundly. All hormones are interconnected. Our hormonal balance is
affected by those that we take in, and this results in hormonal issues like
diabetes.
Once we become aware of all the possible ways in which our body and
environment are being harmed, and with a little bit of extra reading and
effort, it is possible to become alert to the chemical onslaught that our
bodies are subjected to on a daily basis. As we clean up from the inside, our
bodies will stop giving off a bad smell and we will require less perfume,
soap and deodorant, and eventually feel fresher and more energetic than
ever before!
 17
Alcohol, Smoking, Drugs

Although this chapter isn’t really required because everyone knows that
alcohol, tobacco and drugs are not to be had, and although we have
mentioned these topics before, I did feel the need to emphasize this. This is
because I am often asked at seminars whether alcohol can be had since it’s
plant-based. First of all, alcohol is a refined product, just like oil and sugar,
without any fibre, and full of empty calories. It has absolutely no nutritional
value. This is true even of red wine. We would never give it to our children
because we know it’s harmful. Sometimes even doctors advise their patients
to drink a little red wine. They are most often not in a position to forbid
alcohol because they themselves consume it. We need to be aware that
consumption of alcohol will definitely raise our blood sugar levels.
Smoking is also dangerous, even though tobacco is plant-based. It will
raise both blood sugar and blood pressure. Others drugs like marijuana, or
anything else that is addictive, is unhealthy.
We consume drugs for a variety of reasons––social acceptability,
entertainment and to overcome feelings of lack, depression, grief,
inadequacy and so on. If you are addicted to any of these, or if you are
using these as tools to deal with unpleasant emotions, it would be good to
examine them more closely. I’ve found that many people are addicted to
tea, coffee and sugar just because they’ve been conditioned to consume
them. These are ‘normal’ in our society. By making a decision to not
consume these and by eating and living healthy for a few days, we can rid
our body of the withdrawal effects. High-quality plant-based food actually
helps us get rid of addictions. It only takes a little willpower to stop
ourselves from consuming the drugs we take occasionally for pleasure. The
trouble is when we are using these substances as a replacement for
something when we feel something is missing.
My patients have often told me that the reason they drink or take drugs is
because it makes them happy, lets them feel connected or helps them relax.
I see that they often fear to let go of these crutches. They fail to realize that
these drugs prevent us from taking life’s challenges head on and ruin our
health.
Today, we are living with the expectations put on us by our society. We
often don’t have time to think about what we really want from life. Even
more distant in our minds is our spiritual purpose, the reason for being on
this planet.
When we are not in touch with this, there is a void that cannot be filled
by anything else. We sometimes fill this or try to do so with recreational
drugs, or various forms of entertainment such as shopping and travelling
(which can also be addictive). We look for pleasure instead of focusing on
happiness.
Once we accept or understand what we are missing, we may be able to
fill this gap. For this purpose, I highly recommend a spiritual path. I believe
that this may be different for each individual and that each one would have
to find his or her own path. I do not believe that this should become a cult
or a following. Once we find our spiritual path and grow from it, we should
be independent of any organization or person. But in order to reach there,
we may have to depend on books, gurus or organizations. The end goal
must be to find our own spiritual purpose. Until we learn the lessons that we
are here to learn and until we find our path, challenges will present
themselves in order to teach us and show us the way. We have to recognize
and be grateful for these.
If you find yourself drawn to something, be it alcohol, tobacco or drugs
of any kind, I invite you to look deeper into the issues that may be keeping
you addicted. I have some good news for you. Most things that are
addictive are acidic. We already saw some of this in Chapter 9. These
substances cause cravings for more acidic substances. The converse is also
true. Giving up acidic foods reduces the cravings for other acidic
substances. I have seen many patients change their diet and find that their
desire for alcohol or smoking or even tea and coffee is gone.
One of the barriers that prevent us from letting go of an addiction is our
mind. Our mind is very resistant to habit changes, and will tell us that it’s
not possible to completely give up an addiction. It may suggest leaving the
way open for an occasional drink or smoke. But we all know that one leads
to another and it’s easy to get back to square one. I suggest being careful
about what your mind tells you as far as addictions go. If needed, stay away
from friends or parties till you know that you are in complete control.
Sometimes solitude can help us find our spiritual path and may be
something to be cherished rather than feared. You could perhaps replace
these social events with a game of tennis or some other sport, where the
people you meet are likely to be more health conscious. Exercise will help
reduce sugar levels and cause the release of endorphins, which help relieve
pain and increase feelings of pleasure.
If you are willing to let go of these addictions, the journey will be easier
than you imagine! Don’t forget to appreciate and compliment yourself when
you let go of habits that are not serving your best interests. It’s a difficult
journey but it’s well worth the effort!
 18
How to Sustain This Lifestyle: Overcoming the
Challenges

What you need to know to get healthy can be summarized in just one
chapter. But it’s the path that I am aiming to address, hence this long book. I
believe that awareness is cure. If we genuinely become aware that we are
the cause of our illnesses, and accept this, we have the perfect situation for
change.
I also believe that understanding the suffering other living beings
undergo in order to feed us helps us renounce meat and all kinds of animal
products. If we can make the connection that they too have eyes, ears,
feelings and a desire to live and be happy, and most importantly they are,
just like ourselves, a species on this planet, it’s easy to stop exploiting them
for our momentary pleasure of taste. No one wants to cause suffering and if
we have ever suffered pain, we can empathize with them. Moreover, since
we are collectively facing the threat of climate change, we need to act more
responsibly now than ever. With so many grounds for change, all we need is
awareness to be on the right path.
Since you have arrived at this chapter, I believe you are ready to make
the change. Here is what I suggest:

Plan to do it for thirty days to start with. After this period, you can
decide whether it’s something that you would like to do lifelong, or
whether you prefer to keep your old lifestyle (and disease).
Plan to eat only home food as far as possible during this period. In
case you are travelling or have to eat out, we will discuss how to
handle this too.
 Even if you’re not going to prepare the food yourself, learn a little
bit about how your food must be cooked so that you can instruct
those who cook for you. I suggest following the recipes in this book
on weekends or whenever you have free time so that you
understand the basics. You would then be able to instruct even a
chef in a restaurant. Even if you have never cooked in your life, it’s
worth learning. Anyone can learn to cook, just as anyone can learn
basic math. You may not be an expert, but you will be self-
sufficient.
Learn and understand what exactly whole, plant-based food is. Ask
your family or people whom you may be living with for support
without demanding that they too follow your regime.
Find a good organic supplier in your area. You may even require
several. Dry ingredients are easily available. If not, you can
purchase them online. Fresh ingredients may require a little more
effort in certain places. Rest assured, if you persist, you are likely to
find what you need. Things are changing fast. Just four years ago
there were hardly any organic shops in a city like Hyderabad, but
that is not the case now.

These few steps will prepare you for the thirty-day challenge. You will be
required to check your blood sugar and blood pressure regularly, and
medication must be reduced as you improve. Taking medications that are
not needed is highly hazardous. Your doctor may not recognize that it is
possible to improve. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to keep a chart of
your values on a daily basis so that you do not get caught off guard. Low
blood sugar and blood pressure can be more dangerous than the higher
values.

Overcoming the Challenges of Changing Your Diet

We are creatures of habit. We love routine. Many of us think that we don’t,

but most of us have special ways of doing things and it’s hard to change.
It’s hard to change our jobs, move to a new house or even change our place
at the table. Sometimes it’s even hard to change a partner though it may be
obvious that the relationship isn’t working. This is because all too often the
known devil seems better than the unknown one. But change is growth. In
the case of a child, it is obvious. Growth implies change. You change
classes every year. You change shoes and clothes. Even friends. But as we
grow we get stuck in our patterns, and it becomes harder to change.
If we understand that the very first thing that we are taught by our parents
is how to eat, it becomes obvious why this is so difficult to change. It’s
something that we have been taught and patterns have been formed even
before we could think. Even if we know that what we’re eating is wrong,
it’s difficult to change. Over and above that, food is addictive. Of course we
eat for nutrition, but we also eat for a whole range of other reasons. We eat
for comfort, for taste, for pleasure or to socialize. We eat out of habit at
certain times, and sometimes it’s just because there’s food in front of us.
These eating patterns have often become habits.
Familiarity is what we seek, even though we may not like it. Many
people complain about their jobs or their bosses, but are reluctant to change.
How many people are stuck in unhappy marriages? Yet we become
accustomed to the old patterns.
To be honest, the outer situation is often a reflection of ourselves. If we
change, the outer situation also changes. Let me give you an example. An
employee always complains about his boss. The boss rebukes him for
arriving late to work, or for answering his personal calls and messages at
work. He tells him to switch off his mobile phone at work and not a day
goes by when he doesn’t point out his mistakes. It’s not a good environment
to work in but the employee does not look for a new job. He complains. The
role of the boss is to get the work done in the best possible way. However,
there is another perspective—the boss is also tolerating the status quo. If the
employee were to look at the situation from the boss’s perspective, he may
change his behaviour and the situation would improve. The workplace
could be a better place to be in. But it’s really hard to see things from
another person’s perspective.
 The situation is not very different from changing your diet. Maybe it’s
even more daunting because you will be different from everyone else. Many
people would say eating a whole, plant-based diet is extreme. But it’s only a
matter of perspective. From my perspective, and maybe from yours too,
bypass surgery, bariatric surgery, dialysis, kidney transplants, loss of vision,
lethargy and brain fog––all possible effects of diabetes––are extreme.
Granted, there are more people who have bypass surgeries these days as
compared to those who follow a whole, plant-based diet. Yet cutting open
the chest bone and reaching inside the chest is something I as a doctor
would think about 100 times before I subject myself to it. Today bypass
surgery has become almost a status symbol in India, and patients enjoy
talking about how many surgeries they have had and who their surgeon
was. Cardiac surgeons are also not exempt from this operation.
I once visited the cardiac rehabilitation centre at the Asian Heart Hospital
in Mumbai to conduct a seminar on reversing heart disease and
hypertension. I was introduced to a patient who had recently undergone a
bypass. I told him the seminar would benefit him immensely and that it was
very important to understand the cause of the disease. He earnestly replied
that he could not afford to come to the seminar, the cost of which was Rs
3500, since he had just spent Rs 10 lakh on hospitalization and the bypass!
For a minute fraction of the price, you can be free of diabetes and all its
complications. Reversing diabetes thus requires a shift in consciousness.
So how can we make this shift? One of the arguments that I frequently
hear is that it’s very hard to adopt a whole-food, plant-based diet. I will
admit that if you are eating out most of the time, it can be difficult to eat the
highest quality food. It’s just not available. It may be hard to bypass refined
products––oil, sugar, white flour and white rice are everywhere, and so is
dairy. If this is your dilemma, don’t do nothing because you cannot do
everything. Take the first step. Dairy is the very first in the list of causes of
diabetes, and for a good reason. So plan your meals such that it is 100 per
cent plant-based. Look for a vegetarian restaurant if possible. These are
found virtually everywhere in India, and almost everywhere in the world
these days. If you cannot find one, look at the vegetarian section of the
menu. Explain to the waiter that you need food that is low in oil, and free of
butter, ghee and dairy products.
Dairy is so ubiquitous in India that many waiters cannot make a
distinction. I once asked for a dosa a high-end south Indian restaurant in
Pondicherry and specified that it be made free of ghee or butter. When my
dosa arrived, I found a sprinkling of cheese on top! When I asked the waiter
about it, he rightly responded that I had requested for no butter or ghee.
Always be ready for the unexpected!
Now my practice in restaurants is to explain that I am a vegan, but if they
do not understand, then I say I’m a vegetarian who is highly allergic to all
dairy products and if some does get into my food, I could face severe health
consequences. I also let them know that dairy products include ghee, butter,
curd, buttermilk, cheese, milk powder and so on. This usually puts the
waiter on his guard and he will make sure that he conveys this to the chef.
It also helps to know a little about cooking. I have seen people who are
trying to avoid dairy but are just not conscious of ingredients. Gujarati
delicacies like khandvi and dhokla are likely to contain curd (dairy
yoghurt). Naan usually contains both dairy and eggs. Eggless mayonnaise
and cakes contain dairy and cream. Chutneys contain yoghurt and south
Indian coconut chutney, which is usually plant-based, has curd added to it
in Gujarat. The famous fried chillies of south India are marinated in
buttermilk. Vegetable soups may be made with butter and cream. Although
this may seem a little daunting at first, you will get better at it as you go
along. Remember that there are plenty of lactose-intolerant people who are
doing this all the time.
I think it’s very important to realize that this is all about mindset. I have
heard people say that it’s too hard to be a vegan (consuming no animal
products, not even milk, eggs or honey) in India. If this is what you believe,
it will be so. However, I always like to give the example of vegetarians.
India has a lot of vegetarians and even if you are not one, you surely know
one. No matter where these people go, they always find vegetarian food.
 Popular Food Items That You May Not Know Contain Dairy
Naan
Bread
Powder milk
Coconut powder milk
Dhokla
North Indian vegetarian dishes, including dal; they often contain cream
Some chutneys in north India and Gujarat
Sambhar; it usually contains ghee
Most Indian sweets
Smoothies in restaurants
Cakes, biscuits and cookies, including ‘diabetic cookies’
Potato chips; milk powder is a common flavouring in snacks
Eggless mayonnaise

When they are travelling in predominantly meat-eating countries, they stick

to vegetarian food. Even when they migrate abroad, many of them continue
to be vegetarians. So much so that almost all flights to and from India offer
vegetarian meals as a choice! If you ask them how they do it, they will tell
you it’s easy; vegetarian options are always available. It’s the same for
vegans. It’s just a different mindset. Once you change the way you think,
vegan options can be found everywhere. A Jain man once attended one of
our seminars on reversing diabetes. Forty days later we had a follow-up
meeting where this gentleman spoke about the enormous changes in his
blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure levels brought about by a shift
in diet. He travelled a lot and he said he was a strict Jain. He did not even
eat root vegetables (onions, potatoes, carrots, beetroot, radish, among
others). Yet he easily found his kind of food. This is just because his mind
was set on Jain food. When we are vegetarian, we don’t even notice the
non-vegetarian section of the menu. When your mind is set only on plant-
based foods, you will find them everywhere. Remember that markets
always have an abundance of fruits and vegetables. Dried fruits, nuts and
seeds are easy to carry. And yes, there is no limit on fruits and dried fruits,
even for diabetics! (Although fruit juice is not allowed since the fibre is
removed and we have a quota for nuts.)
Here is some good news for travellers. Vegan meal options are available
on most leading airlines. More restaurants in India now serve vegan food.
Soya milk is now easily available in large supermarkets and is convenient to
carry around. I like to make my own muesli, so when I don’t find the food
that I need, I have muesli with soya milk, which becomes a meal in itself.
Many feel that plant-based food without oil will not taste good. This is
not true. This is also about conditioning. As I mentioned before, I have at
least four participants who have written their own cookbooks just because
they felt that the food that they now eat was tastier than what they had had
in the past and they wanted to share it with others.
What we like is also based on habit––on what we have been brought up
on. If we grew up in a culture that eats a sweet breakfast, we will prefer
something sweet for breakfast. It could be bread with jam, cereals, pancakes
or waffles. Others might have grown up in a culture where breakfast was
salty––in China it could be rice, in India it could be parathas, idlis or dosas.
When you are used to something, an occasional change may be nice, but it
will be comforting to go back to our routine again. So when someone talks
about changing our dietary habits, we resist. It’s our culture that often
dictates our dietary habits, and this culture is changing very fast today. It’s
not just our parents who are teaching us what to eat but also a whole range
of media and advertisements that are constantly bombarding us with ideas.
We often don’t even realize how much they are influencing us.
Here is an example that you may be able to relate to. While in India most
people prefer whole milk, in Europe and the US skimmed milk is more
commonly used. Many of us have the experience of visiting friends and
relatives abroad and tasting their skimmed milk. How does it taste? If you
give skimmed milk to someone who is used to whole milk, he or she will
probably say that it tastes awful and it is too watery. Many of them may
have been brought up like you on whole milk but now they have become
accustomed to skimmed milk. They start liking it too. Similarly, if you give
whole milk to someone who is used to skimmed milk, he or she will
probably say it tastes like paint—too thick and creamy. It’s just a matter of
conditioning.

Changing Habits: The Challenges Ahead

When you are confronted with the choice of changing your lifestyle and
being free of diseases, your mind can play games with you to resist change.
All kinds of excuses come up at this point.
One of the biggest excuses that we use is that our family will not agree.
This is true if we are trying to force them to eat the way we do. If this is
your problem, I don’t blame you. The arguments to eat right are pretty
compelling. No father would want to see his son smoke even if he smokes
himself. But a father who smokes cannot tell his son not to do it! It’s the
same with food. I suggest not trying to convince your family but allowing
them to make their own choices. During my seminars, I often tell the
participants how to break the news to their families. I suggest that you
speak to your family and tell them that you would like to try this new
lifestyle for thirty days, and request them to support you. Never suggest that
they do it too. If this is your request, you will most probably have their
support. I had one participant, a surgeon, who had both diabetes and high
blood pressure. He wanted to undertake the trek to Mount Kailash, but for
this one needs to be physically fit. He thus decided to reverse his disease.
His wife and daughter were not motivated to change so he began to cook
for himself. Later, he subscribed to a healthy vegan tiffin service in
Mumbai. He eventually got rid of both his diseases and was able to
successfully complete the trek.
If any excuses are coming to your mind, think about why you want to be
free of diabetes in the first place. It could be because you want to avoid the
complications that a relative suffered, or to live to see your grandchildren,
or to not become a burden to your children. I once had a seminar participant
who was a marathoner. After he had suffered a knee injury, he had put on
weight, got diabetes and high blood pressure and had given up running. He
wanted to be able to run again. Another participant in his late thirties was
shocked when he discovered he had diabetes and could not imagine a
lifetime of medications. He was not willing to even start the course of
medicines.
Whatever your motivation, bring it to the forefront of your mind. You
could even remind yourself by putting up a sign somewhere or a note to
yourself in the mirror. Whenever you are tempted to eat unhealthy,
remember this goal. This will help you stick to your plan.

Difficulties in Making Changes and Solutions

I have often heard people use their family as an excuse not to start this
regimen. Here are some of the excuses women may have:

My in-laws/parents will not allow this: I grant that this could be genuine in
a few cases. This would require thinking through whether you are willing to
remain sick or not. It would also require thinking about the best way to
approach them, knowing their nature. Most elderly people are resistant to
change. Economic reasons could be another factor; they may feel that
organic food is more expensive.
One way to approach the situation is to sit down with them and discuss
the true cost of sickness and explain that this approach could benefit their
health as well. Tell them that you would cook for yourself and also for other
family members if they wished. Reassure them that it’s not necessary for
them to change and that only your meals would be different. Let them know
that this is only a trial for thirty days, after which the situation can be
reconsidered.
Give yourself some time and be determined to find a solution. It’s usually
we who tell ourselves that there is no way out. If you cannot do it
completely, start by giving up all animal products and adopt a vegan diet.
Try to make it as whole as possible.

My children/husband will not eat this: As long as the food is tasty, children
and husbands don’t even need to know how it has been cooked. I start my
seminars with a breakfast buffet after which I tell my participants that the
food served was cooked without any oil and that it was all whole foods.
They are usually surprised to hear this because it was delicious and they did
not even notice the absence of oil or sugar. If you tell your family that you
have stopped using oil, they may protest. But if you don’t, they may not
even notice! If you switch to organics, the food will actually taste better.
I have heard women say that their children would never eat this way.
Children actually love green smoothies and prefer them to milk. They rarely
find fault with the food and if they do, they can always continue to eat what
they were eating before. For example, if the family does not agree to eat
whole rice or whole-rice idlis or dosas, it’s easy to have both options
available. However, it’s important to recognize that we are responsible for
the way our children eat today, and they are likely to get the same diseases
we have if they eat the way we do.

And this is the excuse that men may have:

My wife will not cook separately for me and it will be too much work for
her: This can be true in some cases. I have known some men to take up
cooking for themselves. Another solution could be to ask your wife to cook
one dish that is suitable for you. The others can eat what they want. Perhaps
men can also lend a hand by making a delicious salad from one of our
recipes that everyone can enjoy as well. The family may be surprised!

And these are excuses that both of them may have:

I don’t have a kitchen/live in a hostel/must eat out/office serves free food/I

hate cooking: All of these are similar excuses. It looks like there is no way
out considering the external circumstances. First you have to remember that
we cannot solve a problem by continuing the same lifestyle that caused it. If
this is the case, imagine the worst thing that could happen to you. Your
diabetes gets worse. You have complications like heart attack and kidney
failure, and there is no return. Imagine the time lost in sickness and
hospitals. Does that give you an incentive to find a solution? The solution
could be taking two weeks off from whatever you are doing and learning to
cook or finding a healthy tiffin service or finding a maid and teaching her to
cook according to your needs. Or it could be shifting to a place that has a
small kitchenette if you do not have one. Or sharing meals with someone
else who wants to reverse diabetes too.
If you have been eating in the office canteen, one solution could be
taking leftovers from dinner for lunch. Or even preparing your own lunch to
take to office. A chaat made with sprouts/chickpea/sweet potato/potato can
be quickly made from ingredients that have been prepared the night before.
This could be taken to work, and they make for a filling meal. In some
cities, plant-based tiffin services are available now.
If you have a problem there is always a solution. The only thing that may
come in the way of the solution is you. It may take you some time to solve
the problem but it is possible.

I’m always travelling and need to eat in restaurants: While I fully grant that
organic foods may not be available in restaurants, it is possible to eat
healthy. If the same restaurant is frequented often, it could be possible to
explain to the chef exactly what you need, give them a few recipes and let
them know in advance when you are coming. If the place of travel changes
constantly, it may be possible to carry some food to work and rely on fruits
as snacks. It may also be possible to order in a restaurant carefully. For
example, one could order a vegetable dish without oil, dal and whole-wheat
rotis––these are usually available everywhere. In a Chinese restaurant, one
could order a tofu and vegetable dish stir-fried in soya sauce, making sure
no oil was used. A salad and hummus meal could be had in a Middle
Eastern restaurant. Or one could settle for the humble idli (not ideal because
white rice is used)–chutney–sambhar meal almost anywhere.

I have a very hectic social life: For every situation, solutions will have to be
found. I know a couple in Israel who once invited their friends over for a
meal. The food was so good that everyone wanted to know how it was
prepared, especially since the couple had reversed their disease. Soon they
all began eating their way because the food was so good and also promoted
healing. These days everyone needs it! Now they say they have a sangha of
healthy eating in their village.
I know another couple who would meet with their friends every
weekend. Once they changed to a whole-food, plant-based diet, they invited
them all to their house so that their friends could understand what kind of
food was needed and also see that it was delicious.
Young people who are always eating out at parties, drinking, smoking or
even taking drugs may find this difficult. The reality is that when we change
so drastically, we may lose a few friends. But the chances are that we may
find new friends who are on our wavelength. If we are willing to make
changes and meet the right people, it will happen. There are so many people
in this world who want to be healthy.
If you are invited to eat at a friend’s place, always offer to bring a dish
for the meal. This way there will always be something for you to eat, and
your friends will have a chance to understand what you are doing. When
they ask questions, tell them that you are trying this regimen for a month.
State the benefits that you have already experienced. Only ask for their
support and do not try to convince them. Chances are that when they see the
benefit, they will be inclined to ask you how they can do it themselves and
you will have company. If you are invited to a wedding, eat and go. This
way you will not be hungry when you arrive, and if there is something
available which is suitable for you, you can have it too.

I travel abroad a lot: Luckily for you, vegan restaurants are sprouting up
everywhere. An Internet search, especially on happycow.net, will help you
locate such restaurants almost anywhere in the world. But they may not
serve whole foods. While eating out, make sure that all the food is plant-
based and that most of it is whole. It’s becoming easier by the year to find
vegan food. Today there are plant-based medicine conferences being held in
the US on a regular basis. Cities in China and Hungary, countries that
traditionally are non-vegetarian, are dotted with vegan restaurants.
How do I manage holidays?: You’d be surprised how many healthy vegan
holidays take place all over the world. It’s almost as if you can have your
cake and eat it too if you plan in advance and search for what you need.
What’s even more important is that you will meet like-minded people, and
this will help you keep your resolve.

I don’t like the food: Don’t worry, you will. Learn to cook and try some of
our recipes. The reason all our programmes provide food for the
participants is because everyone believes that they will not enjoy the new
food. When they taste it, they soften. It’s edible, even delicious. But who
will cook that way? Learning something new always takes time, but
cooking our way takes less time than usual. Using the highest quality
ingredients always helps. A time will come when you no longer like the
food that you used to eat before!

My doctor! How can I do something totally different from what he told me

to do?: I have seen doctors telling their patients that it is not possible to
follow this diet or that it’s dangerous to stop dairy. The best way to
overcome this is by saying that you are on a one-month trial. Don’t forget to
get your tests done before you start and keep a check on your blood sugar
levels. The good news is that you can always change your doctor. More and
more doctors are learning about plant-based nutrition. SHARAN, too, has a
team of doctors. And once you learn the lifestyle, you will have little need
for a doctor.

What about Our Children?

Never force your children to eat according to your needs or values.

However, children are intelligent, often more than adults, and if you explain
things to them well, they will want to change. This is especially true if the
food at home is delicious. I have many clients whose children are vocal
about being vegan in their schools. When children learn the truth about
animals, they naturally want to change their diet to a plant-based one. They
are more connected to nature and are often even stronger in their resolve
than adults. But they should never be pushed.

Never Make Excuses for Your Diet

You have the right to choose what you put into your body and you have the
right to complete health. Never let somebody make you feel that you are an
exception. There are many people who avoid certain kinds of food because
they do not like them or are allergic or intolerant to them or because of their
cultural practices. You can too.
In short, if you decide you want to be healthy again, it’s only getting
easier everywhere and every year to do this. If you start doing it, it is also
going to make it easier for the next person to do it! I always suggest that we
take the effort to make our food delicious. This is the real key to
sustainability! Everyone loves delicious food.
Disease is a path to personal growth. The changes that we have to make
to cure ourselves will lead to personal growth. Many have found a profound
shift at the levels of both mind and body. You will too. Don’t let disease and
medicines or even social conditioning stop you from reaching your true
potential.
 PART V
PRACTICAL PROCESSES
 19
Setting Goals

Before we embark on a new journey, we have to gather all the information

we possibly can and understand what the journey entails, and why. The next
step is to set realistic goals and targets. Just as in any business, job or
enterprise, we will be successful if we set realistic goals, and work towards
achieving them.
In this case setting the goal is quite easy because it’s rather obvious. You
are here because you want to reverse diabetes. But let me state it more
clearly.
You want to get rid of the medicines that help keep your diseases under
control by changing your lifestyle, getting your tests done regularly and
reducing the dosage whenever possible. Your goal should be for the body to
heal in the shortest time possible. We must recognize that the body is
always working to heal but years of living the wrong way will take time to
undo. The welcome side effects of this journey will be increased energy,
weight loss, reduction in related problems like high blood pressure,
arteriosclerosis and hypothyroidism, as well as a reversal or reduction in the
complications of diabetes. What you will achieve is an overall feeling of
well-being, and the new understanding of what it means to be healthy.
Now that it’s clear what we want, I would like you to write down why
you would like to achieve this. Since reversal involves changing habits, we
should consider whether or not it will be worth the effort. Please write down
all the reasons why you would like to be diabetes-free. The more precise
your reasons are, the easier it will be to achieve this goal.
Your reason could be one of these or any other:

I want to live to see my grandchildren.

 I don’t want to be dependent on anyone.
I want to travel and see the world.
I want to go on a trek to Mount Kailash.
I want to live till the age of ninety without any health issues.
I want to be available to support my daughter who is going through
a divorce.
I want to be well so that my son does not have to pay for my
hospitalization fees as he is already struggling.
I don’t want to end up in an old people’s home.
I want to be able to drive my car myself.
I should be able to look after myself.
My father suffered terribly due to diabetes and eventually died from
it. I don’t want to go through the same situation.

The reasons that I would like to get rid of my diabetes are:

1. ____________________________________________________________

2. ____________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________

Now that you have done this, read and reflect on this so that you are sure
it’s true for you. If not, please modify it.
Now make it as concise as possible so that it fits into one or maximum,
two sentences. Once you are completely sure that you have written
something that you can personally connect with, please write this down on a
little piece of paper that is the size of a business card. Keep this in your
wallet or purse so that you can refer to it at any time you want.
Consider this card very precious. Whenever you are overcome with
temptation to live and eat in a way like you did before––in the way that got
you sick in the first place––please take out this paper, read it and reflect on
whether these outcomes are still important to you. If they are, you may be
inspired to get back on track and avoid the temptation.
 Next, write down five ways your life would change if you were
completely healthy, energetic and did not need any medications. What
would you do with your new-found free time? What would you do with the
money that you would otherwise have spent on doctor’s bills and
medications? What would you like to do that you haven’t been able to
because of your illness?

How my life would change if I were free of disease:

1. ____________________________________________________________

2. ____________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________

4. ____________________________________________________________

5. ____________________________________________________________

Visualization

Now, close your eyes and imagine that you are completely disease-free. You
no longer have to take any kind of medicines, and are doing what you have
always wanted to do. Imagine this in as much detail as possible. Savour
every minute of this beautiful feeling. I want you to know that whatever
you have imagined can come true if you are willing to put in a little effort to
make your food delicious and to adopt a new lifestyle that will serve you
rather than make you sick. Although you will have to give up some of the
things you may currently enjoy, it will be well worth the effort.
Practise this visualization every day for one or two minutes to draw you
towards your health goals—it is a very powerful tool!
When we visualize and vocalize something repeatedly, we are likely to
actualize it. Whenever you have negative thoughts about your body or
illness, come back to this chapter, thank your body for supporting you all
through your life and assure it that you will help it heal.
 In the next few chapters we shall consider all the practical processes to
help you achieve this.
 20
Preparing the Kitchen

Since the kitchen is our new pharmacy, let’s get it organized to serve us
best. We can start by taking out the items that we will no longer need and
making space for new things that we are going to use.
These are the things you should avoid:

All animal-based, refined and processed/packaged products. These

include eggs, meat, all kinds of seafood, honey and dairy products
(milk, milk powder, cream, buttermilk, butter, ghee, curd/yoghurt,
cheese, paneer and ice cream).
Refined products including white flour (maida), white rice, white
poha, refined flour vermicelli, sugar, jaggery, oil and rava (sooji).
Processed/packaged products including biscuits, baked items,
noodles, snacks, sweets, sauces, jams, candy, tea, coffee, alcohol
and anything that comes in a bottle, can or packet and contains a
number of chemical ingredients.

There are certain utensils which should not be used:

Aluminium vessels––these are harmful and can cause Parkinson’s

or Alzheimer’s since these diseases are caused by heavy metal
poisoning.
Non-stick cookware, especially those which are scratched––this can
cause cancer. Teflon is a known carcinogen.
The microwave––this changes the structure of food molecules and
reduces their nutritive values.
Now let’s talk about the new things that you will need.

Foods

Organic Dry Provisions

This includes whole grains, dal, beans, spices. When you go shopping for
these, make sure that they are not just organic but also whole. For example,
organic basmati rice will not do; we need unpolished organic basmati rice.
These items are easily available at online stores in case you do not find
them at a shop close to you. For the time being, buy the whole and organic
versions of the items you are consuming regularly.
For example, your list could look something like this:

Organic whole-wheat atta

Organic whole rice
Organic millets
Organic millet flours
Organic dal
Organic red rice or brown rice poha
Organic dalia
Organic whole oats (don’t buy white oats or quick cooking oats)
Organic spices

Here are some additional items that you want to make sure you have:

Dates
Dried fruits like raisins and apricots
Nuts––raw cashews as well as other nuts
Peanuts (these are actually legumes and not real nuts)
Seeds like sesame, sunflower, pumpkin and watermelon seeds
Coconut––dried, desiccated or fresh (only if you like the taste)
If you are allergic or do not like any of these, you can just omit that item.

Organic Fruits and Vegetables

Find a vendor for organic fruits and vegetables. In smaller places this may
prove more difficult. However, a rigorous search usually yields good results
because organic farmers can be found almost everywhere. Do an Internet
search for organic shops and organic farmers’ markets in your area. Speak
to local farmers or organic farming groups. Look for Facebook groups of
organic providers and growers. Arrange home deliveries if needed.

Utensils

Essential Utensils

A steamer or colander that fits perfectly into another pot you

already have so that you can cover it tightly while steaming.
A good domestic high-power blender.
A good lunch box if you eat lunch in the office since you will now
want to take your food with you.
Steel/ceramic/wrought iron or glass cookware.

You may already have some of these, but if not, you should buy them.

Optional Utensils

You may wish to start this plan and then buy some of these if and when you
require them. These are arranged in order of how valuable they are likely to
be for you.

Food processor––one that serves both as a food processor and a

blender
A convection oven
 An air fryer
A nut milk maker
An RO water filter––this can be expensive and difficult to install
but in the long run it’s worth the effort, especially if the tap water in
your area is not of high quality

Make Your Kitchen Inviting

Since the kitchen is our new pharmacy, and because we may be spending
more time in it in the beginning, I recommend making it as user-friendly as
possible. It’s worth making the kitchen the most inviting room in your
house. A few simple things can do the trick––beautifully painted walls, new
curtains, tablecloths, tea towels and glass or clear plastic jars that enable
you to see what is in it at a glance. If you are new to the kitchen, labelling
these jars may be helpful.
And while we are at it, let’s work on the dining room too! It’s always
good to have nice tableware. The reason we love to eat in restaurants is
because of the ambience. Now you will be cooking food that tastes much
better, and once you become accustomed to this, restaurant food per se will
not be so inviting. If you can make the atmosphere in your kitchen and
dining room as special as you possibly can, you will savour the experience
of eating at home and you will want to invite your friends over.

Romance with Yourself!

I have a friend who always sets her table with the nicest tablecloth and her best dining
ware, even when she is eating alone. She also lights candles and puts flowers on the
table. This is an act of love to herself and her body. We can all do this. Getting healthy
again can be romantic too. This time the loved one is your body, one who has always
been by your side but has been neglected for far too long!

A little time and effort spent in making your cooking and dining experience
at home more enjoyable will go a long way in helping you get well.
 21
Planning a Menu

When we are doing something new, everything looks like a challenge, but
the more we plan, the easier it becomes. You just need to make a few simple
changes. Our new menu is going to look very similar to the old one. Take a
look at the chart on page 184. You will notice that there are only minor
differences in items and cooking techniques. No matter what your menu is,
I assure you that the new one can be made very similar.
Many of us have been told by doctors that we should eat something every
two hours. This is not true. Our body will tell us when we should eat. Since
we are now letting our body do the healing, we should listen to it carefully
and do whatever it advises. We should eat only when we are hungry. When
we start eating high-quality food, we will not feel hungry as often since we
are getting large amounts of nutrients. A whole-food, plant-based diet will
also give us a lot more fibre. Fibre fills us up.
It’s also very important never to starve. Do not count calories or how
much you eat. Eat according to hunger. The reason we need to plan is so
that the right kind of food is always available. This will prevent us from
eating the wrong thing when we are hungry.
Let’s make a menu plan now.

Early Morning/Breakfast

When you wake up, drink some water, or if you prefer a hot drink, some
herbal tea. Skip the tea and coffee.

Switch to Herbal Teas

 Herbal teas are just infusions. All you need to do is boil water, dip in the herbal teabag
and wait for five minutes. Your tea is ready! You can instead infuse hot water with herbs
like tulsi, ginger, cinnamon stick, clove, cardamom, fennel, liquorice, mint and
lemongrass. You can combine these or have the same one every day. Organic herbal
teabags are also available now.

There is no need to eat until you are hungry. Unless, of course, you need to
have breakfast and leave the house. In this case you could eat less if you are
not hungry. I highly recommend starting the day with a fruit––the most
ideal food for humans. The first meal of the day should be the best, the most
nutritive and the most energizing. Since we often don’t have much time in
the mornings, this meal should be easy, and filling. Start your day with
green smoothies, made from only green leaves and fruit. The recipe for this
is given on page 195.
This smoothie is quite filling and you can have as many glasses of it as
you like. It will not raise your blood sugar. Drink it slowly and do not gulp
it down. Savour every sip. The only important thing is that the fruit should
be fresh, frozen or dried, but with no sugar added. Fruit juices should not be
used and this blend should never be sieved.
If you like you can have some fruit along with your green smoothie. This
meal can be quite filling and breakfast may or may not be required.
However, if you feel hungry after some time, you can have your breakfast
after at least half an hour. If you’re not, you can have your breakfast as a
mid-morning snack. And if you are not hungry until lunchtime, there’s
absolutely no need to eat again before lunch.

Breakfast/Mid-morning Snack

This could be any whole, plant-based food. See the table given on page 184
and the recipes in the recipe section. You may also use the whole and plant-
based versions of your favourite breakfast items. Try to add more
vegetables to your breakfast or snack. This will help increase its nutrition
value and crowd out the grains (which, as you know, are not ideal for us).
 Meal Current New
After Tea/coffee, biscuits Herbal tea, green smoothie, fruits
waking
up
Breakfast Poha, idli, dosa, cereal, eggs, Whole-rice poha, red rice and whole urad dal idlis or
toast, sandwich, parathas dosa, muesli, tofu scramble, chillas, wraps, stuffed
parathas
Snack Tea/coffee, biscuits Herbal tea, fruit/peanuts
Lunch Chapatti, sabji, dal, rice, curd, Salad, chapatti, sabji, dal, whole rice
buttermilk
Snack Fried namkeens Sprouts/aloo/sweet potato/chole chaat or fruit/green
smoothie
Dinner Chapatti, sabji, dal, rice, curd, Salad, chapatti, sabji, dal, whole rice/wraps/whole
buttermilk/pasta/soup and pasta/soup and salad
salad

Lunch

In order to increase both the vegetable component and the raw component it
would be best to start the meal with a salad. By this I mean a really
delicious combination of vegetables along with other ingredients put
together. In India we often ignore salads or sometimes consider them as a
few sticks of vegetables that can be forgotten on the side of the plate. What
I mean by salad is a gourmet combination of at least some raw vegetables,
covering a few colours of the rainbow. It’s something that is visually
appealing as well as tasty. If you try some of our salad recipes, the chances
are that you will be looking forward to adding more raw food to your meals.
After the salad, you can have any combination of cooked foods that you
enjoy, made according to our guidelines. It could be vegetables, dal and a
rice/wheat preparation or millets. If you are really fond of curd (yoghurt) or
buttermilk, make sure that you add a plant-based (non-dairy) version of this
to your meal. It’s best not to have dessert, but if you can’t do without one,
try a couple of dates, perhaps with a nut stuffed inside. For special
occasions I have also included some dessert recipes that are both healthy
and delicious.
 If you carry your lunch with you, you could have a vegetable wrap or a
sandwich made with wholegrain bread (made at home or bought with
care!).

Snacks

We must always be prepared for snack time because this time leads to the
downfall of many. You could have another green smoothie or fruit or if you
would like something more filling, I suggest a sprout chaat, chickpea chaat,
potato chaat or a sweet potato chaat, with date tamarind chutney and lots of
chopped veggies––tomatoes, onions, coriander leaves, green chillies,
potatoes and even cucumber. Or you could have one of the breakfast items.
This has to be planned for in advance so that when you are really hungry,
it’s available. Even peanuts and roasted chickpeas could be a snack.

Dinner

This could be similar to lunch or lighter, depending on your needs. It could

be just a hearty soup, a meal-replacer salad or any whole, plant-based dish
of your choice. You will find some ideas in our recipe section.
I’m often asked for a day-to-day menu, one for every day of the week. I
avoid giving this because I want you to start listening to your body and eat
according to its needs. Also not everything is available everywhere and in
every season. We have to learn to eat seasonally if we are going to eat
organic food. And even within India our tastes are very different from north
to south and east to west. Try to eat according to the needs of your body and
according to the availability of the produce in your area. Recipes are just
ideas and can be modified according to your needs. With a little bit of
practice you will be able to make your own menu and change them
seasonally according to the availability of foods. After all, you have
probably already been doing this till now.
I can’t stress enough that it’s very important to make your meals
delicious and satisfying. If not, this whole plan will not be sustainable!
 I suggest no more than five meals a day (three main meals and two
snacks). We do not want to be eating all the time. If you can reduce the
number of meals down to three, that would be even better. However, there
is no need to count calories or the amount of food you are eating. Eat
according to hunger!

I Can’t Do Everything!

If this is how you are feeling right now, don’t worry. Do whatever you can
that can be sustained for thirty days. As soon as you feel in control, improve
further. It’s important to do this sustainably, and to do whatever you can.
Don’t do nothing if you cannot do everything. We have to start somewhere!
 22
Cooking Techniques and Sample Recipes

Our new cooking methods are not very different from the old, except that
we do not use oil and replace refined foods with whole foods and sugar
with dates, date paste or raisins. We need replacements for dairy, meat and
egg too. With a little practice this food should take less time to make and
should be delicious too. Although for some it may take a little time to get
used to it, if your food is not delicious, you are not doing it correctly. It pays
to put in a little practice at the beginning to get amazing results lifelong!

Eliminating the Dairy

In Indian cooking, we find dairy almost everywhere. However, it’s easy to

eliminate it and still have dishes that taste great.

Ghee

Most Indian vegetable dishes and dal can be cooked without ghee or butter.
A small amount of cashew butter, say, in a carrot halwa or dal makhani, can
give the flavour of ghee. For that extra flavour in chapattis, you can add
vegan ghee made from desiccated coconut.

Cream

If the recipe calls for cream, use cashew nut paste instead––made by
grinding raw soaked cashews and adding a little water. Cashew butter and
water can also be blended to get the desired consistency of a cream. The
advantage of a nut butter over cream or oil is that it is made of the whole
substance and so also contains fibre. It adds flavour with lower calories for
the same volume. Cashew butter and cream give the exact flavour of dairy
cream.

Paneer

Paneer is an all-time favourite. To replace this, take firm tofu and keep it
pressed under some weight (say, a heavy pot) in a colander for about an
hour to drain all the water out. The tofu then becomes like a sponge. Then
marinate it for an hour or more in cashew cream. It’s best to keep the tofu
refrigerated at all times to prevent it from spoiling. Now your ‘paneer’ is
ready. You can add it to vegetables now or bake it (instead of frying) for a
short time before adding it.

Curd

If the recipe makes use of curd, you can replace it with peanut or soy curd
or even coconut milk. For example, curd rice is easily made with peanut
curd. Both raita and kadhi can be made using coconut milk or peanut curd.
The latter can be used to make buttermilk too. These days plant-based curd
(yoghurt) can often be bought in cities both in India and abroad. If you buy
it, be sure to check the ingredients!

Milk

This can be easily replaced with a plant-based milk.

Eliminating Sugar

In most Indian cooking, dates can easily replace sugar. One can make kheer
with raisins, dates and other dried fruits chopped in. Or dried dates (kharek)
can be ground to make a dry powdery sweetener like jaggery.

Eliminating Oil

When I first heard about oil-free cooking I was shocked. Although I knew
that oil was harmful, I thought that consuming tiny amounts of it would not
be too bad. After all everyone around me was eating it in much higher
proportions. Today, thanks to the work of Dr John McDougall, Dr Neal
Barnard, Dr Caldwell Esselstyn, Dr Dean Ornish and many others, as well
as the film Forks over Knives, there are plenty of cookbooks that teach you
how to cook without oil. However, there are very few such Indian
cookbooks at the moment. I was lucky to have met Vijaya Venkat of the
Health Awareness Centre in Mumbai and to have been able to taste the
delicious oil-free food that was prepared there regularly. After cooking
without oil for many years now, I can only say that it tastes much better, and
it is easy.
At first it might seem daunting because we have grown so used to a
particular way of cooking. Oil adds flavour and fried food is hard to resist.
But food that is equally good, if not better, can be made without oil just by
learning a few simple techniques! Oil-free food is healthy for another
reason too. Oil raises the temperature of the food being cooked. But it is
cooking at lower temperatures that will help preserve nutrients––the
substances that help us heal. Oil is just empty calories with no nutrients.

Tempering

Tempering can also be done with no oil! Just heat the pot or pan, put in the
mustard seeds and cumin seeds and they will pop in a few seconds. If you
are doing the tempering with larger ingredients like split Bengal gram, split
black gram, whole dried chillies, cinnamon or cloves, then roast them
before putting in smaller items like mustard seeds and cumin. Once the
mustard pops, turn off the stove and add the dry spices and roast lightly to
bring out the flavour. It’s important to turn off the stove, otherwise the dry
spices could burn. Masalas can be roasted over a slow flame on a thick iron
pan or tawa, while stirring it gently with a wooden spoon till its colour
changes. This will bring out its flavours. Dry spice mixes or roasted
masalas can be made in larger quantities and stored in an airtight container
and used throughout the week to shorten cooking time. Wet masalas can
also be roasted slowly in the pan.

Frying Onions and Garlic

Onions, too, can be fried without oil. Chop them and add salt to release the
water. Heat a thick-bottomed pan. Add the onions and stir till they brown. If
they begin to stick to the pan, just add a few drops of water and continue to
stir till they are done. Oil is not needed at all. Because we are cooking at
lower temperatures, when we don’t use oil this does take a wee bit longer.
But it’s worth it!
Another method is to roast onions and garlic in the oven instead of
‘frying’ them. To do this, place them whole, without peeling, in the oven at
a low temperature, say, 120–150 degrees Celsius. They roast slowly, taking
about an hour. Large quantities can be done together and they can be stored
in the fridge till needed, for about ten days. Remove the outer crispy layer
and chop to use only as needed. Garlic cooks a little faster than onions.
Whenever you read ‘fry onions till golden’, you may replace them with the
roasted ones.

Replacing the Oil

To give the flavour of oil, grated coconut, roasted and crushed peanuts or
roasted and crushed sesame can be added to the dish.

Non-fried Versions of Fried Snacks

Nowadays we see many ‘healthy snacks’––made crisp in the oven––in food
stores. We find baked sev, baked dal, baked puri and baked chakli instead of
its fried versions. We also have roasted snacks like chana jor garam and
spicy peanuts.
It’s in fact possible to make ‘fried’ foods in the oven. Tikkis can be
placed on a lightly greased tray and turned instead of frying. Peanut or
sesame powder used as a coating can help brown it and make it crisp due to
its oil content.
If you want to make south-Indian-style vada, you could use the same
batter and then steam it in a mini idli steamer or any another steamer till it
is cooked. Then put the nicely steamed vadas in the oven and bake them.
Now you have them crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Delicious!
Koftas and pakoras can be made in a similar manner too. Mix all the
ingredients according to your favourite recipe, keeping the water content
low. For vegetable pakoras, avoid water all together and bind the dough
with the water released from the vegetables. Then steam them in the mini
idli maker. When cooked, place them on an oven tray and bake. Turn over
once to cook both sides evenly. Steaming them makes them soft and well-
cooked on the inside and baking makes them crispy on the outside. If you
want crispy bhajjias, you could prepare the batter in a dough-like
consistency and place it flat on a baking tray without steaming at all to get
the crispy effect.
Nowadays air fryers are also helpful in achieving similar results.

Steaming for Health

Cooking Vegetables

Vegetables should be cooked by steaming. For this only a small quantity of

water should be put in the steamer so that it can be utilized later and not
thrown away. (This is the reason we do not want to boil. We never want to
discard nutrients.) The process is very quick. Wash the vegetables, never
peel, chop as desired and steam. Vegetables should not be overcooked, but
left a little crunchy. While steaming, lemon juice, garlic, onions and herbs
can be added to the water or in the steamer to impart a delicate flavour to
the vegetables being steamed. Never use a pressure cooker to cook
vegetables because this makes them lose nutrients. It may be used for dal if
you want to save time.

Making Indian Vegetable Dishes

For gravies, you can fry the onions and garlic, and then add the tomatoes
and other ingredients. Oil is not necessary at all.
For south or west Indian dry vegetable dishes, steam the chopped
vegetables. Now heat a pan and put in ingredients like mustard seeds or
cumin seeds when it is hot, just as if there was oil in it. Once the mustard
seeds pop, turn off the flame and then add the dry spices and roast it. Dry-
roasted spices have a lovely flavour and aroma. Now add the steamed
veggies and any paste (i.e. ginger-garlic or ginger-chilli paste). Then add
your oil replacer (grated coconut or roasted and crushed peanuts or sesame
seeds). Stir it on a low flame and serve.
If you are making north-Indian dishes that are generally rich in cream, a
little cashew cream or butter can be added to the gravy.

Cooking Rice

Whole rice should be washed and soaked in 2.5 times the amount of water
for two hours or even overnight. Then this can be steamed till the water
disappears. Never add so much water that it needs to be poured out.

Flavouring Rice or Other Grains

Since we often make pulao and other rice dishes or even upma with oil, we
can use this technique of steaming in a broth to add flavour to these dishes
instead of the oil.
 For this one can keep an onion broth or vegetable stock ready in the
fridge or freezer. An onion stock can be made by chopping six onions and
putting them in a pot with fifteen cups of water and some peppercorns, a
bay leaf or two and a couple of cloves. This is boiled and simmered till the
liquid is reduced to half. It can be strained or used as is. When rice, millets
or other grains are steamed in stock, they become fragrant and flavourful.

Meat Alternatives

Both seitan and soy protein have a high protein content and the texture of
meat, which is essential to some during the transition. Protein is like an
addiction––our body does not need as much as we take and it is in fact
harmful in excess. Seitan is made from wheat gluten, the protein of wheat.
Soy protein can be had in the form of tofu, tempeh, soy nuggets, soy milk
and curd. In the West they are easily available as more and more people are
becoming health conscious. Here in India, we can buy soya milk, tofu and
nuggets in most cities, but other products may be difficult to find. What is
not available, we can easily make ourselves. However, it will not be long
before many of these foods will also be available in our markets as healthful
eating becomes more and more popular.

Exotic Cooking

Besides the Indian subcontinent, all of Asia never used dairy traditionally,
not even our closest neighbours like Sri Lanka and Myanmar. Once you
have got something vegetarian in the Asian menu, it is, by default, vegan. It
is easy to change oriental recipes using the techniques mentioned above.
One usually identifies Western cooking with a lot of non-vegetarian food
and dairy, but this is not always the case. You will see several Western
recipes with alternatives.
Nutritional yeast can now more easily be found in India but it is widely
available in the West. This is a good substitute for the cheesy taste, and
several such recipes have been included in this book. One of the best brands
is Red Star Nutritional Yeast. This ingredient is light, easy to carry and easy
to store, so you can always try to get some and store it in the refrigerator.
To a novice, all this may seem very complicated but in reality most
households have seven to nine favourite dishes that they make over and
over again. These recipes here are just to give you ideas. You do not have to
follow them exactly. You are encouraged to play with your ideas and make
dishes suitable for your own palate. Cooking is an art, and not everyone can
be a chef, but just as all of us can doodle even though we are not artists, all
of us can cook food that is fun, healthy and appetizing! You don’t have to
be a professional. It just requires the will to spend a bit more time to look
after your own well-being and that of your family.
It is important that your food is delicious—only then will it be
sustainable. Take some time to prepare your food for yourself or teach
someone who can cook for you. If your food does not taste well, you may
be tempted to go back to the previous lifestyle that got you sick.

Recipes

These are some sample recipes that will help you put to use the basics of the
new cooking method that you have just learnt. Once mastered, it will help
you convert many of your current recipes into healthy ones. You can find
more recipes on SHARAN’s website or recipe books.

Herbal Tea

Makes 2 cups

These are actually infusions. Here is a list of possible ingredients:

lemongrass, mint leaves, tulsi leaves, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom,
saffron, dried apple, lemon or orange peels, liquorice, dried chamomile
flowers, anise seeds (saunf) . . . the list is endless and you can use these as
single flavours or in combinations. Cinnamon is good for diabetics and it
also lends a sweet taste.
Here are a few combinations:
 Mint leaves, grated ginger, lemongrass, crushed black pepper
Cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, anise seeds, liquorice
Tulsi, ginger
Tulsi, ginger, turmeric
Saffron strands, cinnamon sticks, cardamom
Dried orange, cinnamon

Ingredient

1 tablespoon of your preferred ingredient

Method

Put 1 tablespoon of the ingredient/combination into a teapot. Pour 2 cups of

boiling water into it. Wait for 5–7 minutes, strain and serve.

Green Smoothie

Makes 1–1.5 glass

Ingredients

1 big handful of washed raw greens of your choice––spinach or

other cooking greens, beetroot greens, kale, lettuce, microgreens
like alfa alfa, or herbs like mint, coriander, dill, basil, curry leaves.
(Herbs may be used in smaller quantities because of their stronger
taste.) Leaves should be rotated (the same leaves should not be used
every day)
1 large or 2–4 small bananas (depending on the size) or frozen
bananas, chopped

Method

Blend the ingredients with ¼ cup water till you get a homogenous green
thick drink. Pour into a glass and sip.
Variations

Add other pulpy fruits along with the banana, like strawberry, blueberry,
raspberry, mango, peach, papaya, pineapple, sapodilla or passion fruit
Add flavours—for example, grated ginger or orange/lemon zest.
Add sweeteners––dates or raisins.
Add black salt or sea salt and black pepper if desired.
It is important that this drink is irresistibly delicious, otherwise you have
not made it correctly. Try again.

DAIRY ALTERNATIVES

Plant-based Milks

Plant-based milks can be made with a whole range of ingredients or

combinations. For example, soaked cashews, soaked almonds, soaked raw
peanuts, grated mature coconut, soaked raw whole rice, soaked oats, cooked
soya beans, bananas, soaked whole sesame. All the ingredients should be
soaked for 4–8 hours. It’s best to soak overnight, i.e. for 8 hours.

Ingredients

1 cup of chosen ingredient(s)

1–2 dates (optional)

Method

Put 1 cup of the ingredient in the blender, add a cup of warm water and
blend to a smooth paste. Sieve the mixture using a sifter with a slightly
large mesh or cheesecloth or nut milk bag. Repeat the procedure with half a
cup of warm water if anything is left. With more and more high-quality
blenders, sieving may not be necessary. Add more water to get the desired
consistency. (Note: in most normal blenders, coconut fibres may have to be
removed to make the milk, but high-end blenders can pulverize even these.)
 Because each plant-based milk has a distinct flavour, different milks are
suitable for different recipes:

To drink directly––banana milk, almond milk, almond-sesame

milk, coconut milk.
To make curd that is to be had directly––cashew milk, almond milk.
To make curd for raita, kadhi, curd rice, buttermilk and for cooking
or for any dish that has other flavourings––peanut-rice curd.
To make ice creams––coconut milk, almond milk, cashew milk,
banana milk (or just frozen bananas).

Nut and Seed Butters

Makes a little less than ½ cup

These can be made by grinding the raw or roasted nuts into a butter. You
can make peanut, almond, raw cashew, sesame or sunflower butters. Except
for cashew, all the others should be roasted on a low flame to remove the
water content. Skins of peanuts or almonds should not be removed.

Ingredient

½ cup peanuts, almonds, raw cashews, sesame seeds or sunflower

seeds

Method

Place the nuts or seeds or a combination of the two in the grinder up to a

height of one inch or in a high-quality blender, keeping in mind that it’s
easier to grind smaller quantities because of the viscosity of the butter.
Grind until it turns to a powder. Scrape the sides and put it all back in and
grind again till you get a butter. Never add water. Store in a jar.
Refrigeration is optional.

Ghee
Makes about ½ cup

This is an excellent ghee replacer and can be used in small quantities to

give the aroma of ghee in food.

Ingredient

200 g desiccated coconut

Method

Place the desiccated coconut in the grinder till the grinder jar is completely
full. Grind until it turns to butter, scraping the sides at regular intervals to
make sure all of it gets blended.

Peanut-rice Curd

Makes about 1 litre of curd

Because we should not consume more than ten nuts a day, when curd has to
be used as an ingredient, we prefer to make it either with soya or peanut and
rice. Peanuts lend creaminess to the milk. They have a strong flavour
though, which can be reduced by mixing in rice. Rice also helps to thicken
the milk and curd.

Ingredients

1 cup raw peanuts, soaked for 2–8 hours

½ cup brown rice, soaked for 2–8 hours
1 tablespoon curd (for the first time, use a curd starter made with
cow’s milk if you do not have any other; later use this curd as a
starter)

Method
Make a thick peanut milk and rice milk and keep them separate. Boil the
peanut milk on low heat while stirring. Once it starts to thicken, start adding
the rice milk slowly while stirring to prevent clumping. Let the milk fully
boil and thicken. Cool to body temperature. Set the curd by using the
starter. Once the curd is set, don’t forget to keep some aside as a starter for
the next batch. This can be stored in the freezer too.
If you want a thick-set curd, then use six cups of water for making the
milk or if you prefer it runny, use eight cups.
Peanut-rice curd can be used to make buttermilk, raita, curd rice, kadhi,
dahi vada, etc.

Tender Coconut Buttermilk

Serves 1–2

Ingredients

1 tender coconut
6–8 drops of lemon juice
Flavourings such as jeera powder, ginger-chilli paste, mint,
coriander, curry leaf paste, black salt or any flavourings that you
usually add to buttermilk. You can even temper mustard seeds and
asafoetida (hing).

Method

Remove the flesh of the coconut. Blend into a thick cream with as little
water as possible. Add lemon juice, 2½ cups water and flavourings
according to your taste. Stir well. Serve chilled.

BREAKFAST

Vegetable Poha
Serves 2

Ingredients

1 cup red-rice poha

1 cup grated or diced steamed vegetables
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
Green chillies to taste
Ginger paste to taste (optional)
¼ teaspoon turmeric
½ cup water
Salt to taste
¼ cup roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons grated coconut (optional)
Chopped fresh coriander for garnish

Method

Put the poha in a big strainer and wash it. Let it sit for about 5 minutes till
the grains swell up. Meanwhile, put a pan on a low flame and add the
mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add the green chillies, ginger and
vegetables. Add salt and turmeric. Sprinkle some water if it’s too dry. After
about 3–4 minutes, add the soaked poha and toss it around till it is fully
coated with the turmeric. Add in the peanuts and take it off the stove.
Garnish with grated coconut and coriander. Serve hot.

Idli/Dosa

Serves 8–12

These pretty pink idlis and dosas are surprisingly tasty, filling and healthy,
being made of whole ingredients. Once you get hooked on these, the white
ones will not appeal to you any more.

Ingredients
 4 cups unpolished red rice
1 cup whole black gram (urad dal)
1 teaspoon fenugreek (methi) seeds
Salt to taste

Method

Separately soak the red rice and the dal for 6–8 hours. Soak 1 teaspoon of
fenugreek seeds either with the rice or dal. Add salt to taste.
Grind the soaked rice in the blender (or idli grinder) till you get a slightly
coarse (but almost smooth) paste. Pour into a large bowl. Grind the soaked
urad dal in the blender till very smooth and mix with the rice paste.
Allow this mixture to ferment for 8–12 hours depending on the room
temperature. In summer, 8 hours is sufficient, but on cooler days it takes
longer. You can smell it to tell whether it is ready or not. It should have a
slightly sour, fermented smell (I like it a bit more sour so I always keep it
out for 14 hours).
Pour into an idli steamer to make idlis. Add water to achieve the
consistency of dosa batter (somewhat similar to pancake batter) to make
dosas.
Dosas can be made on a thick iron tawa without any oil by rubbing it
with a chopped potato or onion before pouring the batter. Placing the lid of
another vessel over the dosa will hold the steam inside, which will help us
lift the dosa once its ready. If all else fails, put a drop of oil on the tawa.
Spray water over it to scatter it. Make your first dosa, but do not have it.
After this dosas can be made on the same tawa without oil.
This mixture can be stored in the fridge for up to a week and can be used
as needed.

Variations

An equal volume or less of finely grated bottle gourd (lauki) or pumpkin

can be added to the mixture along with ginger-chilli paste to taste. This
makes tasty, slightly thicker dosas that are a big hit with children. It is also a
good way to feed them the vegetables they don’t otherwise eat.
Serve with sambhar and coconut chutney.

Ragi Porridge

Serves 1

Ingredients

4 tablespoons ragi flour (nachni)

2 tablespoons date paste
1 teaspoon ginger
¼ cup fresh grated coconut or ½ cup coconut milk or 2 tablespoons
desiccated coconut

Method

Mix the ragi with 1 cup cold water till there are no lumps and cook for
about 5 minutes on a medium flame till the ragi is cooked. Stir briskly
throughout because ragi flour tends to form lumps. You will know it’s done
when its colour changes to a deep brown. Add the date paste and ginger and
turn off the flame. Top with coconut milk or coconut and serve.

Variations

Ragi can be replaced with cracked wheat or whole or rolled oats. Cinnamon
and cardamom can be used in place of ginger and soy, nut or rice milk
instead of coconut milk. You can also add dried fruits, nuts or seeds while
serving.

Dalia

Serves 3–4
Ingredients

¼ cup raw cashews

1 cup uncooked broken cereal (dalia)
2 cups almond milk
1–2 saffron threads, soaked in 2 tablespoons almond milk
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
½ cup golden raisins, soaked in water
Date paste to taste

Method

In a small skillet, toast cashews. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, toast the dalia on medium heat until it turns just a
couple of shades darker and becomes nutty. Transfer it to a dish and set
aside.
In the same saucepan, combine almond milk, saffron and cardamom and
bring to a boil. Add the dalia, stirring constantly to prevent any lumps from
forming. It will take 4–5 minutes before the dalia absorbs most of the
almond milk and becomes quite thick. Before taking it off the heat, add the
toasted cashews and raisins. The raisins bring a lot of sweetness to this dish,
so taste before you add the date paste––you may not need it!

Variations

Replace the dalia with millets, broken millets or oats. Water can be used in
place of almond milk and ½–1 teaspoon of sesame or cashew butter can be
added for creaminess.
Note: Semolina or cream of wheat (rava) is a refined product and not
recommended.

Moong Dal Chilla/Pesarrattu

Serves 4–6
Ingredients

1 cup whole green gram (moong dal), soaked overnight, or 1 cup

whole chickpeas (chana), soaked overnight
2 tablespoons grated cabbage
2 tablespoons grated carrot
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped tomato
2 tablespoons finely chopped coriander
1–2 green chillies, finely cut
Salt to taste
½ cup green chutney

Method

Grind moong dal or chana to a fine paste. Add salt to taste. Make it like a
dosa batter; there is no need for fermentation. Mix vegetables into the batter
or after the chilla is made, spread green chutney on it and add the
vegetables. Roll and cut into pieces. Serve as stuffed chilla.
Dhoklas can also be made with the same batter. For this, add the
vegetables into the batter and pour it on to plate. Steam and cut into
cuboids. Serve with chutney.

Variations

Different kinds of vegetables like grated pumpkin, radish, gourds and

sprouts can be used for the stuffing or to add to the batter.

Aloo Paratha

Serves 2–3

Ingredients

For the stuffing

 3 large potatoes, boiled
½ teaspoon ginger-chilli paste
½ medium onion, minced and if preferred, lightly sautéed without
oil
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh coriander
4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
Salt to taste
Turmeric (optional)
Lime juice to taste

For the paratha

Make dough with 1 cup flour, water and salt

Method

Mash the potatoes and mix in the other ingredients, keeping the mixture
slightly soft by adding water or soya milk. It should be softer than usual so
that the parathas remain soft even without any oil. Roll out the parathas and
cook on a tawa as usual, but without oil.

Variations

You can use any flour such as whole wheat, bajra, jowar or other millets.
For the stuffing you can use vegetables such as sweet potato, cabbage,
cauliflower or cooked and spiced moong dal or chana dal.

Tofu Scramble

Serves 2–4

This is an excellent replacement for scrambled egg, akuri, paneer bhurjee or

egg bhurjee.

Ingredients
 300 g firm tofu
½ cup minced onion
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin (½–1 tablespoon)
1 medium tomato, finely chopped
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon finely chopped green chillies
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander

Method

Drain the tofu and crumble it. Sauté the garlic, onion and green chillies in a
saucepan on medium heat, for about 2 minutes. Add the tomato. Cook. Stir
in the crumbled tofu first, then add turmeric and salt. Garnish with
coriander. Serve hot.

Variations

Skip the vegetables or add other vegetables of your choice like mushrooms,
chopped zucchini and capsicums.
Add herbs like oregano instead of turmeric.

SALADS

Kosumbri

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 cup grated carrot

1 cup grated cabbage
1 cup soaked yellow moong dal
¼ teaspoon salt
 ½ teaspoon lime juice
¼ cup grated coconut
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
A few curry leaves
A pinch of asafoetida
Finely chopped green chillies or whole dried red chillies as per
taste (optional)
Coriander leaves for garnish (optional)

Method

Dry-roast the mustard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies (if you are using
them). Once the mustard seeds pop, turn off the stove and add the
asafoetida. Add it to the rest of the ingredients and serve.

Variation

You can add steamed corn kernels to this dish.

Cucumber Salad with Peanut and Coconut

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

4 cups unpeeled cucumbers, chopped into tiny cubes

¼ cup grated coconut
¼ cup roasted crushed peanuts
Juice of 1 lime
Salt to taste
Green chillies, finely chopped to taste
Chopped fresh coriander for garnish

Method
Mix all the ingredients together. Adjust the salt and lime juice to taste.
Garnish with coriander and serve.

Indian Carrot Salad

Serves 2–4

Ingredients

5 medium carrots, washed and grated

½ teaspoon mustard seeds
A pinch of asafoetida
8–10 curry leaves
½ green chilli, split longitudinally and seeds removed
½ teaspoon salt
Juice of ½ a lime
Finely chopped coriander for garnish
Grated coconut (optional)

Method

Heat a pan on a medium flame. When it is hot, add the mustard seeds.
When they start to sputter, lower the flame to the minimum and add the
asafoetida, curry leaves and chilli. Turn off the flame within seconds. Add
the carrots, salt, lime juice and coriander. Grated coconut may be added.
Mix and serve.

Variation

You can replace the carrots with grated cabbage, beetroot, pumpkin,
cucumber, radish or tomato.

Raita

Serves 5–7
Ingredients

5 cups peanut or peanut-rice curd

1 cup grated beetroot
½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
Chopped coriander leaves for garnish
Black salt to taste
1 tablespoon lime juice (optional)

Method

Whip the peanut curd in a blender till it becomes smooth and pourable. Mix
in all the remaining ingredients to make a pretty pink raita, keeping some
coriander aside for the garnish. Garnish with coriander on top. Add lime
juice if the curd is not sour enough.

Variations

You can replace the beetroot with grated cucumber, steamed pumpkin,
steamed potato or finely chopped tomato, cucumber or onion.
Mint leaves can also be incorporated for added flavour.

Sprout Chaat

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 cups baby moong sprouts (sprouts made at home or small

sprouts)
½ cup chopped tomatoes
¼ cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped steamed potatoes with the peel
½ cup chopped coriander
Juice of ½ lime
 ¼ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon black salt
Chaat masala (optional and as desired)
½ teaspoon grated ginger
½ teaspoon minced green chillies or to taste
Date and tamarind chutney to taste

Method

Steam the moong sprouts with a little turmeric so that they are cooked but
crunchy. Mix with the onions, tomatoes, potatoes, coriander and lime juice.
Mix in the black salt, date chutney, chaat masala, ginger and green chillies
to taste.

Variations

This chaat can be made with chickpeas like chole or tuber vegetables like
potato, sweet potato, purple yam or yam instead of the sprouts.
You can also replace moong sprouts with other kinds of sprouts.

Millet and Mixed Vegetable Salad

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 cups foxtail millet

2½ cups boiled water
¼ cup black raisins
½ cup red and green bell peppers
¼ cup white onion, minced
½ cup boiled green peas
¼ cup celery, finely chopped (optional)
¼ cup chopped fresh mint leaves
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
 1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
Salt to taste
50 g romaine lettuce for garnishing on serving plate (optional)
2 spring onions or shallots for garnishing on serving plate

Method

Soak the millet for 2–8 hours. Drain. Cook in 4 cups of water in a pot or
pressure cooker. It should not be mushy. Mix all other ingredients and fluff
with a fork. Add the cooked millet. Garnish with romaine lettuce and spring
onions or shallots on a serving plate.

Variation

Any millet can be used in place of foxtail like barnyard, kodo, proso or little
millet.

DRESSINGS

Make your own mixed salads and try different dressings. Mixing and
matching them will help you make different delicious salads every day.

Mayonnaise

Makes about ¾ cup

Ingredients

½ cup soaked cashews

2 tablespoons onion, chopped
Juice of ½ lime
1 small clove garlic
¼ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
Pepper to taste
 ¼ teaspoon mustard (or to taste)

Method

Blend the ingredients together. Add ¼ cup water a little at a time to make a
smooth paste.

Variation

Flavour the mayonnaise with any herbs, celery or red pepper while
blending.

Cumin-Curd Dressing

Makes about ½ cup

Ingredients

½ cup peanut curd

½ teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt to taste

Method

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl along with 1 tablespoon water.

Gomasio

Makes about ¾ cup

This can be sprinkled on grated vegetables like carrots or beetroot or even

sliced tomatoes to make a delicious salad.

Ingredients
 1 cup sesame seeds
¼ teaspoon salt or to taste

Method

Dry-roast the sesame seeds in a frying pan or tawa on medium-low heat so

that it does not burn. It can take 10–15 minutes. When completely cooled,
grind it coarsely together with some salt to taste. Use the ‘pulse’ function so
as not to completely powder it. Your gomasio is now ready!
It can be stored without refrigeration for 15–20 days.

Ginger–Lime Dressing

Makes about ¼ cup

Ingredients

Juice of 2 limes
¼ teaspoon salt
2 dates
¼-inch piece of ginger
Herbs of your choice (optional)

Method

Blend all the ingredients together with 2–4 tablespoons of water. Add to the
salad vegetables of your choice.

Peanut Butter Dressing

Makes about ½ cup

Ingredients

¼ cup peanut butter

2 tablespoons lime juice
 A small piece of ginger
2 garlic cloves
3 dates
1 dried red chilli (optional)

Method

Blend all the ingredients together with ¼ cup water. Add the vegetables of
your choice to the salad.

SOUPS

Tomato-Mint Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 teaspoons cumin (jeera) seeds

2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 teaspoons chopped green chillies (or as per your taste)
2 teaspoons chopped mint leaves
8 medium tomatoes, roughly chopped
4 cups vegetable stock or dal water
Salt to taste

Method

In a pan, add the cumin seeds and roast till fragrant. Add the chopped garlic
and sauté till light brown. Then add the chopped green chillies and sauté.
Next add the chopped tomatoes. Sauté again. Add the vegetable stock or dal
water and bring to a boil. Add the salt and simmer until the tomatoes are
cooked. Garnish with chopped mint leaves. Serve hot.

Mixed Vegetable Clear Soup

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

2 cups finely chopped mixed vegetables of your choice like carrot,

beans, cauliflower, broccoli, celery
¼ cup chopped dill
½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
Pepper to taste

Method

Bring 5–6 cups water to boil. Add the chopped vegetables and let it cook.
Add the dill, salt and pepper to taste once the vegetables are cooked. Serve
hot.

Pumpkin and Fenugreek Soup

Serves 3

In this recipe, fenugreek seeds are used, not fenugreek leaves. Do not puree
the fenugreek or you will have a bitter soup. The seeds add an amazing
flavour but if you do not like them you can leave them out.

Ingredients

3 cups steamed pumpkin puree (do not peel the pumpkin when you
make the puree)
2 teaspoons fenugreek seeds
1 dried red chilli (or to taste)
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
1 medium onion, chopped (optional)
½ cup soy milk/coconut milk

Method
Soak the fenugreek seeds in some water for about an hour. In a saucepan,
add the chopped onion and red chilli and sauté with 1 teaspoon of water.
Keep adding water and stirring in intervals till the onions are translucent.
Add the fenugreek seeds and pumpkin puree and bring to a boil. Add salt,
and the soy or coconut milk and serve hot.

LUNCH/DINNER

Dal

Serves 3–4

Ingredients

For the dal

1 cup lentils of your choice––yellow dal (split moong), orange dal

(masoor dal), whole masoor, tur dal, split unpeeled green moong
dal or spilt unpeeled black urad dal
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 teaspoons lemon juice
¼–½ teaspoon turmeric powder
Fresh coriander to garnish
Salt to taste

For the tempering

Choose any 3–5 of the following ingredients:

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon mustard seeds
¼ teaspoon asafoetida
1–3 cloves
1 small stick cinnamon
 A few curry leaves
¼ teaspoon red chilli powder or 1 dried whole red chilli
1 green chilli, chopped
¼ inch grated ginger
2 medium tomatoes
½ medium onion

Method

Cook the lentils of your choice until they are well done and blend in a
blender till smooth in consistency. In a separate pot, temper the ingredients
of your choice from the following––mustard seeds, cumin seeds, cloves,
cinnamon stick, curry leaves, red chilli and asafoetida.
Add your choice of chopped onion, tomatoes, garlic and ginger along
with curry powder and cook a little. Add the liquid lentils, salt to taste and
turmeric powder. Bring to a boil. Add the lemon juice and garnish with
coriander. Serve hot, alone or with whole rice.

Vegetable Makhanwala

Serves 2–3

Ingredients

6–8 large tomatoes, steamed and pureed

1½ cups mixed vegetables cubed and steamed (carrots, potatoes,
peas, cauliflower and French beans)
1 green chilli, slit lengthwise
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ cup cashew cream (made from 2 tablespoons cashews and water)
1 teaspoon kasoori methi, roasted and then powdered by hand
3 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander

Method
Dry-roast the cumin seeds. First add the green chilli and then the tomato
puree. Cook for a few minutes. Keep 1 teaspoon of cream for garnish and
add the rest to the tomato puree. Cook for a few minutes. Add the veggies
and the kasoori methi powder. Add 2 tablespoons of coriander and mix.
Garnish with the remaining cream and coriander. Serve hot.

Stuffed Lady’s Fingers (Bhindi) or Bitter Gourd (Karela)

Serves 5–6

Ingredients

½ kg lady’s finger/bitter gourd

1 cup grated coconut
¼ cup chickpea flour
2 teaspoons cumin powder
½ teaspoon red chilli powder
2 teaspoons dried dates powder
1 cup chopped coriander
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
A pinch of asafoetida
A pinch of mango powder

Method

For the lady’s fingers: Wash and dry the vegetable. Slit lengthwise.
For the bitter gourd: Wash it, slit lengthwise and remove the seeds.
Mix all the other ingredients to make the stuffing. The more you stuff the
better. Place the stuffed vegetables in a steamer and steam till cooked. In the
case of the bitter gourd, slice into 1-cm round discs after steaming. Serve
hot.

Variation
Vegetables like small potatoes, brinjals, small onions and tomatoes too can
be stuffed and steamed in the same method.

Dry Vegetable Dish

Serves 6–8

Ingredients

For the vegetables

½ kg mixed vegetables finely chopped into cubes of 1 cm (you can

use carrots, French beans, potatoes, onions, cauliflower or peas in
any combination)
2–4 tablespoons grated fresh coconut

For the tempering

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

A pinch of asafoetida
Ginger-chilli paste to taste
1 dried red chilli
2–3 curry leaves
½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
½ teaspoon turmeric powder

Method

Steam the mixed vegetables so that they are just done (not overcooked) and
the colours are vibrant. In a heated pan, add the mustard seeds and the dried
red chilli. When the mustard seeds splutter, turn off the flame and add the
asafoetida and then turmeric and dry-roast. When the smell permeates, add
the curry leaves and finally mix in the steamed vegetables, ginger-chilli
paste, salt and fresh coconut. Mix well and serve hot.
Variations

You can use one vegetable instead of mixed veggies of your choice. They
can also be grated instead of chopped.
You can also add crushed peanuts or roasted crushed sesame seeds
instead of the grated coconut or in addition to it.

Chinese Stir-fry

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

½ pack tofu (100–150 g)

1 cup cauliflower florets
1 cup broccoli florets
3 medium carrots, sliced obliquely
1 medium onion, sliced thick
1 green pepper, cut in ½-inch pieces
1 cup snow peas (optional)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 green onions, chopped
2 cups cooked whole rice

For the marinade

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup lemon juice
1–2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger root

Method

Mix together the soy sauce, lemon juice and ginger for a marinade for the
tofu.
 Drain and cut the tofu into 1/2-inch chunks and place in the marinade.
Let it marinate for 45 minutes. Drain the tofu, saving the marinade. Heat a
large wok and add the cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, onion, green pepper
and tofu. Stir frequently, cooking evenly. Add the snow peas, mushrooms
and green onions. Continue to stir frequently until the vegetables are
cooked but still crunchy. Serve over rice, topped with the marinade.

Variations

Before cooking the vegetables, finely chop or grate thickly 5 cloves garlic
and an equal amount of peeled fresh ginger. In a small pan, fry the garlic
and ginger separately till brown and store in a bowl together. Put 1
tablespoon of date paste in the pan and cook for a minute to caramelize.
Add the fried ginger-garlic mix and remove from the fire. Sprinkle this
mixture over the rice and veggies.
Roasted sesame seeds or roasted black sesame seeds can also be used as a
topping.
Stir-fry only Chinese greens and spinach or the different kinds of
mushroom instead of all the vegetables in the recipe and then use the
ginger–garlic topping or the sesame seeds topping or both.

Vegetable Lasagna

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 medium carrots, thinly sliced (3–4 mm) lengthwise with a slicer,

steamed
2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced (3–4 mm) lengthwise with a slicer,
steamed
2 unpeeled medium potatoes, thinly sliced (3–4 mm) with a slicer,
steamed
A pinch of nutritional yeast (optional)
For the tomato sauce

1 kg tomatoes, chopped
2 cups onions, chopped
10 olives, sliced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
Oregano and salt to taste

For the cashew cream

250 g cashew nuts, soaked

4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon mixed herbs
A pinch of crushed black pepper

Method

Dry-fry the onion and garlic until the flavours come out. Cook all the other
ingredients for the sauce in a pan till the water evaporates to make the
sauce.
For the cream, blend all the ingredients to a creamy consistency.
To assemble, layer the sliced vegetables, tomato sauce and cashew cream
in a baking dish and bake for an hour at 200° Celsius. Top with nutritional
yeast.

DESSERTS

Date and Nut Laddoo

Serves 3–4

Ingredients

1 cup dates
½ cup mixed nuts
 ½ inch ginger piece
1 pinch salt

Method

Deseed the dates. In a food processor, blend the dates with the nuts and
ginger. Add a pinch of salt. Make a smooth paste. Make balls of 1-inch
diameter and serve.

Kheer/Payasam

Serves 6

This recipe makes use of coconut milk, which is not whole. It can be used
for special occasions.

Ingredients

1 cup ragi/whole-wheat vermicelli/unpolished rice

Milk of 1 coconut
½ cup chopped dates/raisins
1 teaspoon cardamom powder
3 tablespoons cashews/raisins/almonds (roasted)

Method

Cook the vermicelli or rice. Mix the dates or raisins with coconut milk.
Heat the coconut milk and add it to the noodles or rice. Flavour with
cardamom and nuts.

Variations

This dish can be made with different varieties of vermicelli (such as ragi or
jowar). Or the vermicelli can be replaced with cooked dals like moong dal
or chana dal.
Raw Carrot Halwa

Serves 2–3

Ingredients

1 cup carrot, unpeeled and grated

½ cup grated fresh coconut
½ cup chopped dates
2 tablespoons raisins (optional)
½ teaspoon cardamom powder (optional)
Slivered almonds for garnish

Method

Mix the grated carrots and coconut together. Add the cardamom powder
and raisins if required. Then add the dates and knead the mixture using your
fingers. Serve garnished with slivered almonds.

Date and Nut Seed Shake

Makes 1 glass

This is a great replacement for that morning glass of milk given to children.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons sesame seeds––raw, organic and unpolished

6–8 almonds (optional)
4–6 dates––seedless or deseeded from the whole
1 cardamom/a pinch of cinnamon/a pinch of saffron for flavour

Method

In a small blender, blend the sesame seeds, almonds and the flavouring
together till it becomes a powder. Then add the dates and blend till pasty.
Add a little bit of water, if needed, to make it smoother and to make it of
shake consistency. Pour the shake into a tall glass and serve.

Raw Chocolate Brownie

Serves 10

Ingredients

2 cups walnut
1 cup cocoa powder
A pinch of salt
1½ cups dates, deseeded

Method

Blend the walnuts in a food processor until coarse and sticky. Add the
cocoa powder and salt to this mixture. Add the dates, a little at a time, and
keep blending until the consistency of cake crumbs is achieved. Finally, the
dates should be holding the brownie together.
Transfer to a plate and set to desired shape. Freeze for an hour. Cut into
squares and serve or store in the fridge.

Banana Ice Cream

Serves 2–4

This is an unbelievably creamy ice cream and one that is so easy to make!

Ingredients

4 (or more) ripe bananas, peeled and frozen for at least two days
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup chopped walnuts

Method
Place the frozen bananas in a food processor or blender till you get a
smooth creamy ice cream.
Sprinkle some cinnamon and walnuts on top. Serve immediately. This ice
cream cannot be stored.

Variations

You can garnish with berries, raisins or a chopped fruit of your choice
instead of cinnamon and walnuts.
The cinnamon and walnuts can be replaced with the zest of a ¼ of an
orange and 1 tablespoon grated ginger.
You can also use vanilla extract or vanilla powder in place of cinnamon
for vanilla ice cream. Or add cocoa powder for chocolate ice cream. These
should be added to the bananas before blending.
Mix in frozen berries, strawberries or other fruit with the bananas to
make differently flavoured ice creams.
 23
Handling Stress

We saw in Chapter 5 that stress is one of the leading causes of diabetes and
so it’s important that we discuss this.
You may wonder what the connection between diet and stress is, but they
are strongly related. Many of us, when stressed, reach out to ‘comfort
foods’, foods that are addictive and unhealthy. Once you are on a plant-
based diet, you may notice a huge change in your state of mind. Others may
notice this as well. This may motivate them to embrace this lifestyle, and
support you even more.
I have personally experienced the huge emotional benefits of switching
to a plant-based diet and I have also seen this in many of my patients. Ever
since I was a child, I remember waking up with fear and stress. But
removing animal products from my diet has removed this sensation
completely. If I inadvertently happened to consume animal products, I will
know it the next morning because of the way I feel when I wake up. It’s so
amazing how sensitive our bodies are!
Let’s now see how food and stress are connected.

Eating Animals or Their Secretions Causes Stress

When we are stressed, we produce adrenaline, a stress hormone. The same

is the case with animals. When we eat animals or animal products, our
stress level increases just because of the adrenaline that we have consumed
through our food. People on a plant-based diet are often more calm and
self-confident and less angry, anxious, depressed and fearful. You may
begin to notice these changes in yourself after switching to such a diet. In
addition, a plant-based diet may also help alleviate psychological problems
like depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.
Animals experience stress just like humans do. Despite ample evidence
that animals can emotionally and physically relate to their world in much
the same way as humans do, we continue to treat them as mere
commodities and exploit them for our benefit. It is the desire to maximize
profit and fill supermarket shelves that has led to such inhumane treatment
of farm animals.
Dr Neil Nedley in his book Depression, The Way Out says that when he
found out that a lot more of his patients were on antidepressants than he
could have ever imagined, he started studying this issue deeply, and this
resulted in this very special book. Today Dr Nedley runs a clinic as well as
residential recovery programmes for depression, anxiety and other disorders
with plant-based nutrition as the focus.1

Bipolar Disorder Disappears

Mr D came to me because he was losing his eyesight to diabetes. He had had diabetes for
thirty years and was seventy years old. In just two weeks of stopping dairy, his blood
sugar normalized and in a couple of years, he was able to stop all his diabetic
medications. He had been suffering from severe manic depressive disorder (bipolar
disorder) for years too, and this suddenly disappeared. It’s difficult to say whether this
happened because of the change in diet or because the medications were stopped or
because diabetes was cured. Whatever be the reason, this was a huge relief to the family!
They felt they had the person they loved back after so many years!

Although changing your diet may not completely relieve stress because of
the other causes involved, it will go a long way towards it. After treating
patients for so many years, I want to share with you a few other ways that
will help you in relieving stress.

Embrace Challenges
Many a time, you will be faced with unwanted circumstances in life. This
could be an unwell family member, a broken relationship, an unhappy
marriage, an unsuitable job and so on. These are things that nobody can
change. However, what we can change is our relationship to the
circumstances. If we view them as something unfortunate, we will be
victims of these situations. If we start viewing these with the different
perspective, from the point of view of the other person if there is someone
else involved, with the complete willingness to understand this new
perspective, there is a chance to turn this stress around to our advantage and
learn from it.
Everybody has encountered unwanted circumstances in their lives. These
usually come with a silver lining that we cannot see until we have overcome
and grown from it. For example, a disease helps us learn about the
incredible workings of the body. If you had not got diabetes, you may have
never read this book, and never understood so many facts about health, your
body and lifestyle. Your lack of knowledge could have led you to develop
cancer. So, in a way, diabetes was a gift, because it gave you the chance to
mould your future for the better. All these situations help us better
understand others and their problems. If we take each of these
circumstances as an opportunity to learn and grow, we are likely to do just
that. Consciously focus on what is right in your life and what you are
thankful for. Embrace your challenges as opportunities for personal growth.

Start Your Day with Gratitude

We often take the good things that we have for granted and don’t even
recognize them. But when something bad happens, we think about it a lot
and it often gets exaggerated in our minds. How can we do the opposite
instead? Play up the good things and play down the unhappy incidents?
When you were perfectly healthy, how often did you thank the universe for
the gift of health? It’s only when we get sick that we realize how great it
was to be healthy! Instead, let’s start counting everything that we need to be
thankful for. One way to do this is to start every morning with five minutes
for your gratitude journal. In this journal write down five things that you are
truly grateful for. Do this every day, making sure you write something
different every day. If this is easy for you, write down ten things instead.
The more you write, the more you will be counting your blessings. This will
help you have a more positive outlook every day.
We can start with gratitude right now, even before you get the journal.

Write down five things that you are grateful for today:
1. ____________________________________________________________

2. ____________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________

4. ____________________________________________________________

5. ____________________________________________________________

How do you feel after thinking about this and writing it? Has it changed the
way you feel even a little bit? If it did, please practise this on a daily basis.

Be Aware of Your Thoughts and Self-talk

One of my teachers, homeopath Dr Rajan Sankaran, says, ‘Disease is

delusion. Awareness is cure.’ Sometimes when something happens, the
thoughts grow in our mind. We inadvertently add our own masala to it.
Whenever we have a thought it’s good to ask ourselves––‘Is it true?’
Sometimes we can catch our own exaggeration. If your answer to this
question is ‘Yes’, the next question to ask yourself is, ‘Are you absolutely
sure that this is true?’ At this point we can often figure out that it is not.
Facts are facts. The stories that we create around them are often
exaggerations and trigger unnecessary emotional turmoil. Let’s try this out
now.
 Is It True?
What do you feel is the biggest problem you are facing today? Write down the whole
story exactly as you believe it.
Now re-read what you have written and ask yourself––is this true?
If the answer to the above question is ‘No’, you have caught yourself exaggerating the
story. If it’s a ‘Yes’, ask yourself again––‘Are you absolutely sure every bit of this is
true?’
If the answer is ‘No’, think about what is perhaps not true and only your perception.

Perhaps this exercise helped you catch the stories that you have been telling
yourself. Remember that awareness is cure. We are victims of the stories
that we tell ourselves. Use this exercise to get the right perspective as often
as you can.

Positive Self-talk and Affirmations

Your thoughts or what you say to yourself in your own mind—or self-talk
—can influence your body chemistry very powerfully. Negative and
stressful thoughts and words can trigger stress hormones, while peaceful
and positive thoughts and words—or affirmations—can be healing for your
body. Your body is a living being that responds positively to kind words,
and negatively to negative thoughts and words. Become aware of the way
you approach yourself and your body.
Our thoughts create our beliefs, which then translate into words. Words
become feelings. Feelings translate into action, actions into habits, and our
habits ultimately become our life. If you keep believing and thinking that a
plant-based diet is not possible to follow, this will become your reality. If,
on the other hand, you keep saying that it’s easy and delicious, this will
become your reality. Our words have so much power! To change your
reality, change your words from negative and critical to positive and
empowering.
Affirmations are the positive words that you say to yourself.
Examples of affirmations include:
 I can do this.
My family loves me and will support me.
I choose to eat healthy food.
All will be well.

You can magnetize the reality you want to create for yourself by using your
imagination and creativity to write a powerful affirmation. Do this for your
own health journey. Connect with it and repeat it often in visuals or pictures
in your mind and words till you believe it completely and it becomes yours.

How to Write an Affirmation

Choose the most debilitating negative thought you have about yourself and your
circumstances and write down the positive opposite in the present tense.
Make it one sentence, as concise and easy to remember as possible.
Make sure everything is positive. Do not use negatives like ‘no’, ‘never’, ‘can’t’,
‘won’t’ and ‘don’t’. Avoid words that imply loss like ‘give up’, ‘lose’, ‘quit’ and
‘stop’ and verbs that imply lack like ‘I wish’ and ‘I want’. Also avoid mentioning the
problem that you wish to change like ‘diabetes’, ‘hypertension’, ‘medicines’ and so
on.
Keep them personal. You can only change yourself.
Use affirmations that feel right for you.
Be precise.
Use emotive words like ‘incredible, ‘passionately’, ‘joyfully’.
Keep them realistic.

For example, an affirmation could be ‘I love the food that makes me energetic and
healthy’ or ‘I am healthy, happy and love my life.’
Write down an affirmation that will serve you. Once you have written it, repeat it to
yourself whenever you have the time, like a mantra.

I have seen patients who cannot imagine that they will be well. Sometimes
we even use our illness to gain attention. See if you are doing any of this. If
you are, it can come in the way of your healing. In order to get cured, you
have to trust the healing power of your body. I have seen patients who were
reluctant to let go of their medications because their belief in medicines or
their doctor was so strong. We have to let go of our beliefs and try to look at
the reality. No diabetic has been cured with medicines. Yet sometimes it’s
difficult for us to let go of it even when we don’t need them. Medicines and
doctors seem to be a security blanket for many. (Remember that we will not
give up medicines that we need.)

You Can Create Your Life

Sometimes we are unhappy because we are living in a way that we don’t

want to live. This is a challenge and every challenge needs to be met
constructively. If you are not happy with your current situation, are you
actively doing anything to change this? Do you know what you really want?
Instead of focusing on what is wrong, focus on what you really want—
visualize and really feel it. Remember, what you vocalize, visualize and
emotionalize, you actualize. This visualization has to be done repeatedly.
For example, if you want a promotion, do everything you would if you are
already promoted. Take on greater responsibility. Be more accountable. If
you do this, the chances are that the promotion will be yours. It’s the same
for diabetes. If you start being responsible for your health, and follow all
the guidelines in this book, diabetes will become a thing of the past! You
have to live like someone who would never get the disease.

Let Go of the Past and Be in the Moment

Examine a situation that is causing you stress and evaluate what exactly the
threat is in your mind. Relive and experience the emotions. Allow yourself
to fully feel whatever you are thinking. Notice what exactly causes the
stress. Once you fully experience it, shift to the present moment and check
if it’s still relevant.
We have often faced situations where someone speaks to us angrily or
rudely or tells us something that hurts. It’s fine to be hurt and experience the
pain. But change is a part of life. The person may have hurt you because of
some other incident in their life, which has nothing to do with you. Or it
could have been because they perceived something you did in a certain way.
Whatever it was, it’s over. You have the choice to let go of it or keep
thinking about it.
Never hold on to something that is of the past. Once you have fully
experienced it, recognize that it is no longer relevant. Situations change,
people change, people make mistakes. We have to move on. Sometimes our
perception of the situation is worse than the reality. Harbouring grudges
hurts us and never serves us.

Don’t Take Things Personally

I understood this a long time ago, and this has served me well. People
behave according to their own circumstances and feelings or according to
their perception of us. Our duty when a clash arises is to check if we are
responsible in some way and, if we are, to correct our faults and apologize
for them. It’s not up to us to figure out what the other should do or not do. If
they are unreasonable, impolite or rude, it’s their story. Do not take this
personally. It’s not even your job to correct them. I see some people so busy
criticizing and correcting others that they forget to look at their own faults
and improve. The only person that you can change is you. So allow
everyone else to do whatever they want and don’t take it personally.

Understand Your Spiritual Purpose

We all have a spiritual purpose on this planet and when we don’t follow this
we feel uneasy and unhappy. You may have heard about famous and well-
loved celebrities ending their lives. They have all the money and fame but
they are not happy. Why? They may not understand their spiritual purpose
on this planet or are unable to act accordingly. This makes us sad. Each one
of us is special and is here for a special purpose. Our life on earth is to
understand this purpose and fulfil it.
Most people spend years living according to societal norms—i.e. going
to work, looking after children, cooking, cleaning and so on. These are
necessities and must be done to the best of our abilities, but we should also
recognize that these are not the only reason we are here on the planet. This
is why in ancient Hindu culture a person is supposed to go through different
phases in their lives––the phase of learning, the phase of a householder and
finally, the spiritual phase. The purpose of the earlier phases is to help us
learn enough to get in touch with our spiritual purpose.
These days there are more and more people who don’t know what they
want. Societal demands on us are high, and even if we are fulfilling them,
we still feel that this is not what we are looking for. This is partially because
we live in a consumerist society where things that we don’t need are being
advertised all the time. (Keep in mind that what we really need is rarely
advertised because no one needs to pay money to tell you what you should
already know.) So much is on offer and we are often in pursuit of pleasure
rather than happiness. Examples of these are new clothes, cars, holidays,
eating at restaurants, among others. None of these bring real happiness,
because despite all of these, you may still not like your job or other
circumstances.
If this resonates with you, take some time off to read and understand
what your purpose is. Try different experiences. If needed, quit whatever
you are doing to pursue your goal. It may mean less money, but money
cannot buy happiness! Almost all of us know someone who has a lot less
than us, but is happier.
As we have already seen, diabetes is caused by stress and therefore, it’s
vital that we spend time with ourselves, understand our own spiritual
purpose and needs and seek happiness rather than pleasure.
 24
Exercise

Everyone knows that exercise is important. Every time we exercise, we

utilize calories, build our muscles, reduce our stress levels and improve our
immunity. Many diabetics in our programmes find that a morning walk
helps keep their blood sugar levels low. This means exercise is definitely
important not just to keep your blood sugars under control but also for
general well-being.
During our very first twenty-one-day health retreat, we had two
participants who habitually walked 10 km daily even before the retreat. We
also had two participants who were yoga teachers. All of them had diabetes.
You, too, may have found that despite all the exercise you have been doing,
your diabetes hasn’t disappeared, nor have you lost weight. Exercise alone
may not reverse the disease, nor help you lose weight. We would need to
exercise far too much to start losing sufficient calories.
I’ve also seen people joining gyms and losing a lot of weight and gaining
muscle, only to put it on again once their gym subscription is over. That’s a
shame. That’s why I highly recommend that everyone find an exercise that
they really enjoy. Otherwise you may be tempted to drop it after a while. It
could be dance, aerobics, swimming, tennis, gym, walking, hiking . . .
anything that you already know that you enjoy. It’s much better to plan this
with a companion so that the two of you can motivate each other.
I know different people who have chosen different forms of exercise.
One of them loves to run and now participates in marathons. Another loves
hiking. Yet another loves bicycling and believes that if we can motivate
more people to bicycle it would be a great way to reduce pollution and get
to work quickly. I live in a hot area in south India, and so I personally love
swimming. The swimming pool is just a five-minute walk from our office
and I feel that there’s no better way to cool down in the evening and get
motivated to work than this. Whatever you love should be what you aim for.
In case you don’t love exercise at all, my suggestion to you is to start
taking the stairs. If you make this a habit, and just stop taking lifts, perhaps
if you live in a big city you could get all the exercise you need. The good
thing about stairs is that it’s a high-intensity exercise and you will
immediately know how good your stamina is by counting the number of
flights of stairs you can take without getting tired. Most likely this will not
take you more than 5–7 minutes a day, and if you can do it twice a day, this
would be ideal. It’s a great way to build your stamina. Once you find that
you can easily climb a certain number of flights of stairs, keep increasing it
one at a time. I don’t live in the city, but I make it a point when I visit cities
to take the stairs as often as I can. If the number of flights is just too many, I
can always take a lift in between. This keeps me aware of my stamina. It’s
like taking a stress test every day by yourself. Your body will let you know
about its stamina and endurance.
It’s highly recommended if you live in a city to go to the park for a walk.
It may be your only contact with nature daily. I personally prefer to get
exercise by doing work. For example, I walk to a store close by, cycle to the
swimming pool, step out to meet someone instead of phoning them if they
live nearby and do a fair bit of my own housework.
You could also do gardening or take your dog out for a walk. Take up a
daily chore that is fun so that you can’t get away from it. This kind of
exercise serves a double purpose. The reason that we need to plan for
exercise is because our daily lives have become so automated. Instead of
walking or bicycling to work, we often go by car or public transport.
Instead of doing our own housework, we often have machines or house
helps. We don’t even have to fetch our own water because everyone has
taps. Modern life is a health hazard! In the past, one would have had to do
some amount of movement a day just to survive. Today we can do
everything by just pressing a button!
 I have seen that many people in New York, London, Paris and San
Francisco––places where people largely depend on public transport––walk
faster and are much slimmer, just because they have to walk, climb stairs
and move a fair amount on a daily basis.
The great side effect of exercise is that it lowers stress levels and causes
the production of hormones like serotonin, which make us feel happy. If
you have a tendency to depression, a good dose of exercise can be better
than medication. If you can find a partner to exercise with regularly,
someone whose company you really enjoy, then you may find yourself
looking forward to that hour of the day when you meet and share some time
together.
What if you have knee problems or some other such disability? You can
choose swimming or yoga instead so that you don’t put pressure on your
knees. If you don’t know how to swim, you don’t have to! More and more
pools are now offering water exercise classes. A good yoga teacher can also
show you asanas which will not put pressure on the knees. Or you could
work out in a gym where the instructor can guide you on the exercises you
can do. Where there is a will, there is a way. I have heard patients come up
with excuses to avoid all of these because they wouldn’t be seen in a
bathing suit or the timing of the yoga class does not suit them. These are
excuses we tell ourselves and we end up actually believing them.
I recently spoke to a patient who realized what the problems were and
changed his schedule. He started leaving for work at 6 a.m. so that he could
be home by 5 p.m. and miss the rush hour each way. This saved him two
hours per day in the car. He ended up less stressed, had more time for
exercise and his family and was able to sleep on time. He did carry a bit of
work home but it was worth it.
I had another patient, a doctor, with diabetes. She had to devote a lot of
time for her practice and also had her family to look after. Plus her children
had their exams coming up. During this time, she started taking the stairs
and climbed up to twenty-three flights a day! Incredible, right? All the
exercise needed was done and no time or money was wasted on gyms.
 Whichever way you decide to get your exercise, pick something that will
be sustainable––so that you will not feel like skipping it. If possible, choose
something that you have to do (like housework and shopping) or you cannot
resist doing (like swimming). I highly suggest putting exercise as a column
on your chart so that you can monitor the amount of exercise you have done
daily and can link it to your blood sugar levels. This will also motivate you
to keep exercising.
Remember, when it comes to exercise, whatever you decide to do is
good. Just do it!
 25
Winning Social Support

Today many people are on a plant-based diet for reasons related to health,
environment or even compassion towards animals. Even celebrities all over
the world are moving towards plant-based nutrition. There is no choice. We,
as a species, are getting sick.
When I changed my diet before 1985, the situation was quite different.
Very few people practised plant-based nutrition. Yet almost everyone would
agree with it when the reasons were given. But talking about something and
actually following it are two different things. Today, just because of the
sheer number of people who have made the change, things are much easier.
Yet, it would be naive to say that it’s not difficult. We are social beings and
we care very much about what other people think and say and what others
are doing. Therefore, if we are to embark on this voyage, and we hope to
keep afloat, we have to win social support.

The Difficulties

When you start to eat and live in a way different from others, you are likely
to be the butt of comments and jokes. But only for a little while! Initially,
when you have not experienced the results for yourself, it might be wise to
speak as little about it as possible. It’s always advised never to tell other
people what to do. The less you speak about it, and the less of a scene you
create, the easier it will be for you. However, making exceptions will not
make it easier in the long run. Therefore, it’s wise to be very clear about
your goal and your commitment towards it. We will take situations one by
one and find solutions. Remember, you are not limited to the solutions
presented in this book. Be creative.
Understanding Others’ Points of View

It’s very important to put yourself in the place of the person in front of you
and understand how you would feel in their place. After all, a few months
ago you may have been in the same situation as them!
No one likes to be told that they are wrong, or that they don’t know
what’s best, or that you are in some ways superior. When communicating,
be careful to never make anyone feel this way.
If people ask you awkward questions, or engage you in a debate or
discussion, even in a critical way, it is only because they too are questioning
their own behaviour or ability or inability to change. Your change may be
perceived as a threat to them or a need for them to question their own
behaviour. They may have to look at something they never wanted to and
it’s not easy!
It is possible that parents, relatives, teachers or doctors were the ones
who advised you differently before. When you make dietary changes, they
may feel bad––you are indirectly suggesting that they were wrong.
Remember, whatever they did for you up to now was out of love, and their
limited knowledge. Appreciate them for thinking and caring about you,
while being firm about what you wish to do.
Sometimes people may attack your choices. It’s important not to take
what they say personally. Think about times when you said something that
sounded offensive when you really did not mean it that way.
Remember that when someone engages you in a conversation or
discussion, it’s usually because they are interested in you, even though they
may not understand why you have made these changes.
It’s often wise not to tell others what to eat. Or to teach them whatever
you have learnt in this book. Inspire others by letting your own amazing
results and delicious food speak for you. Let them ask you questions, and
when they do, answer as briefly as possible, preferably in a single sentence.
This will force them to be the one asking the questions if they really want to
know more and you will be sure not to be talking too much about
something which is of no interest to them.
Now, let us look at individual situations and how to handle them.

Your friend invites you to their home for dinner: Here you may
want to let them know that you have changed your way of eating
and, very briefly, state the reasons for it, including why it’s
important to you. No more than three sentences! You may then
suggest something that they could make which you would be happy
to eat, or offer to bring one dish that everyone could share. This
way you can be certain that you will have something that is
appropriate for you. Always go out of your way to think about the
convenience and abilities of others.
You go out for dinner with your friends: If you know the restaurant
where you will be going to in advance, you can perhaps look at the
menu and see if something suitable for your needs is available.
Keeping in mind that most restaurants will not serve organic or
whole foods, some compromises may be necessary in a restaurant.
If you are going to a high-end restaurant, it’s possible to call the
chef in advance, inform him of your needs and ask to make suitable
preparations. In most cases, chefs are interested in taking on
challenges since it brings some novelty into their work. Appreciate
their efforts if they do something special for you! Alternatively, you
may have a few favourite restaurants where the chefs already know
you. You can suggest these restaurants to your friends. If you feel
that there’s not much you will get to eat in a restaurant, you might
want to eat something before you go. This will avoid creating a fuss
at the dinner table and increase comfort levels on both ends. After
all, you are going to meet your friends and not for the food!
Your relatives make your (ex)-favourite food especially for you:
Keep in mind that they are doing this only to show their love for
you. They want to do something special for you. It’s really
important to acknowledge their love with a sincere and heartfelt
thanks first. You can then tell them that you are not consuming this
food any more. And, very quickly, before they can coax you into
having a small bite, offer them an alternative. For example, you
might let them know about another family member who may enjoy
it, or suggest that you will make a similar item with ingredients that
you both can eat.
You all eat together at office: Make sure that you always take a
little extra food along to offer to your colleagues. Be firm about not
taking tasters of their food if it’s not suitable for you and let them
know why. You may find that after some time they may ask you
how they could make food suitable for you or start bringing things
that you would eat.

Eating in Meetings
I worked at a healing centre where initially people joked about my dietary
preferences. When we had meetings with coffee and dessert, there was
nothing I would eat. After some time, they started having vegan desserts at
meetings so that I could have some too, and now several of them follow my
dietary preferences or at least, respect it!

People put food in front of you and say, ‘Oh, sorry, you can’t eat
this!’: Reply, ‘I can eat whatever I like, but I choose not to eat this
because I want to reverse my diabetes. Will you support me?’ Once
you have requested their support, they are unlikely to behave in an
offensive manner.
You are offered prasad: Accept it gracefully and do not put it in
your mouth. Instead, give it to someone who would appreciate it.
There is no need to explain why you would not consume it.
You are invited to a wedding: Eat and go. When asked to eat, say
that you have already eaten. If it is a buffet, no one will know
whether you have taken a plate or not. Or you can always take a
plate to nibble on anything that is suitable for you. If the food is
being served at a table, tell them that you would not be able to eat
as you are not well, or that you are fasting. One can always use the
 excuse that one is not well, since this is true. You do have diabetes
and that’s why you are not eating the food!

Eating differently may make you awkward in some social circles. But
eventually, friends, if they are real friends, will understand your wishes and
stop intruding. An even better result could be that they too will start
following you. Remember, a large percentage of the population has
diabetes, and this is becoming common among youngsters too. Perhaps
some of your friends will be interested in this book too!
Remember that you can always use the excuse of being unwell, having
diarrhoea, not being hungry, or being instructed so by your doctor whenever
appropriate!

Each Digression Is a Setback

I recently spoke to one of our earlier participants, Mr BD, who had had a good recovery.
This man is an ardent food lover and his wife, an excellent cook. She has mastered the art
of making delicious and healthy whole, plant-based food, and I honestly wish that she
was one of our cooking instructors. Mr BD said, ‘I have been travelling and as you know,
it’s very difficult to follow a whole-food diet while travelling. I came back ten days ago
and since then I have been doing everything right, but my blood sugar level is still 7.
Why is this?’
I told him, ‘Diabetes is not the result of what you have eaten in the last ten days.
Diabetes is the result of the damage done to the pancreas because of a wrong lifestyle
over a long period of time. It takes time for the pancreas to heal, and not just during the
healing period, but even after that, we need to handle our body, and pancreas, with love.’
I would suggest to anybody who wants to get results not to digress from their diet as
far as possible until they have completely healed. This means having normal blood sugar
values every day without any medicines and normal health in general without medicines.
Until then it’s wise to be on a strict reversal diet. After this, it is okay to be on a
maintenance diet, which means small digressions will not harm the body. However,
repeated small digressions do add up and will injure the pancreas and bring back the
disease. Complete healing takes time. Initially, when we start eating and living according
to the needs of the body, the body responds enthusiastically. After this, a plateau is
reached where everything is in a kind of balance but no further improvement is taking
place. At this point all we need is patience and persistence, and the recognition that
complete healing takes time.
Remember that most of us have abused our bodies our entire lives. How can complete
recovery happen in a matter of just a few months? It’s not possible to switch gears from a
healing diet to a non-healing diet, and back to a healing diet, and expect the body to
 switch gears equally quickly. When we go back to our old ways, it’s a setback for the
healing process. Let me give you a simple example. You get an injury. You clean it, dress
it and leave it alone. Healing occurs. Yet one day you remove the bandage and while
removing it you accidentally peel off the healing skin. Now the healing suffers a setback
and it will actually take more time to reach the final goal than it would have if you had
not peeled off the skin. The very same thing happens with the pancreas. Each digression
is a setback, not necessarily in proportion to the extent of the digression.

Since food is such an integral part of our culture, it may be wise to start this
journey with a few friends. This way, you will have support in many
situations, and you can always discuss the different kinds of situations you
have encountered with each other. Doing a one-month challenge with a
group of people at office may also prove useful.
If you lose a few friends during this journey, rest assured, you are not
alone! Remember that if you are firm, you will win many more friends, and
those on the same wavelength. Once you have reversed your diabetes, many
others may come to learn from you too!
 PART VI
MEDICAL CONSIDERATIONS
 26
Laboratory Tests

Laboratory tests are absolutely essential. They help you track your progress
and make sure that you are on the right track. Since diabetes has such far-
reaching consequences, and since people who have diabetes are also likely
to have high blood pressure, high lipid levels, kidney problems, liver
problems, among others, here is the minimum list of essential tests that
should be done before you start this plan.

HbA1c
Complete blood count (CBC) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate
(ESR)
Liver function tests (LFTs)
Kidney function tests
Lipid profile
Thyroid function tests (TFTs)
Vitamin D, vitamin B12 and homocysteine
Urine microalbumin test
C-peptide or antibody tests (for insulin-dependent diabetes)

HbA1c

This shows the average blood sugar levels over a three-month period.
Therefore it is not accurately indicative of the current situation (which can
be measured by the glucometer), but it does give a fair idea of whether there
have been ups and downs. HbA1c of less than 6 per cent shows good blood
sugar control. But a level of 6 or more means that it has not always been in
good control during the past three months. (Note: We have discussed this
section generally using units familiar in India. Please always refer to the
units and normal (or average) values shown in your reports.)

CBC and ESR

CBC shows the ratios of various blood cells as well as the haemoglobin
level. A low haemoglobin level is indicative of anaemia which could be
caused by the lack of iron, vitamin B12 or folic acid. Chronically low
haemoglobin could be indicative of an associated kidney disease.
A high ESR is indicative of some infection. Diabetics whose blood sugar
is not in control are more prone to infections.

LFTs

Metformin and other medications are metabolized by the liver and may
damage it, leading to fatty liver disease. In these cases, the LFTs would be
elevated. Fortunately, in most cases, after changing the diet and reducing
the medications, the LFTs revert to normal.

Kidney Function Tests

Both diabetes and high blood pressure can adversely affect the kidneys.
A high creatinine level indicates that the kidneys may be compromised or
failing. Animal products, including dairy, are toxic to the kidneys. If the
creatinine levels are high, it is essential to be under the regular care of a
doctor. Kidney problems too are likely to reverse with a closely monitored
and strict regimen as outlined in this book. Reversing kidney diseases is
well worth the trouble because uncontrolled kidney problems eventually
lead to dialysis and kidney transplants. These procedures have detrimental
effects on health and should be considered a last resort. Once dialysis starts
it is almost impossible for the kidneys to recover except during the very
early stages.
 A high uric acid level could signify gout or kidney disease. Eliminating
animal products completely from your diet will help lower your uric acid
level.
A high blood urea nitrogen (BUN) level also signifies kidney disease and
can be remedied by a whole-food, plant-based diet in some cases.

Lipid Profile

Only animals produce cholesterol. Since we too are animals we also

produce cholesterol––all that we need. The excess cholesterol often comes
from the animal products in our diet, including dairy and eggs. This may
then accumulate inside the arteries, thickening them and raising the blood
pressure. This cholesterol is not measured when we measure the serum
cholesterol in a blood test. This means that the cholesterol levels can be
low, yet a person can be at risk of heart disease if the arteries are blocked.
Similarly, cholesterol levels can be high with no risk at all if the arteries are
not blocked. If you are on a whole-food, plant-based diet, cholesterol levels
will come down in time. Sometimes patients are on statins and other
cholesterol-lowering medications and the cholesterol levels are abnormally
low. This is harmful too! If you are on a plant-based diet, I generally
recommend no such drugs since you are not consuming any cholesterol.
Continuing cholesterol-lowering drugs can prevent blood sugars from
reducing as they should. If you are on a whole-food, plant-based diet, the
HDL and LDL ratios will normalize. This can take quite a long time
though.
On the other hand, triglycerides are the result of fat in our diet and also
excess sugar, which in our bodies gets converted into fat. An oil-free whole,
plant-based diet will definitely reduce triglyceride levels.

TFTs

Like insulin, thyroxine is also a hormone. Hypothyroidism is often found

hand in hand with diabetes. However, switching to an organic, whole, plant-
based regimen improves this condition, lowers the thyroid-stimulating
hormone levels, and thyroid medications can slowly be reduced. This must
be done only with the help of a doctor and regular blood tests.

Vitamin D, Vitamin B12 and Homocysteine

A low vitamin D level can be one of the causes of diabetes and, conversely,
adequate vitamin D levels can help reverse diabetes. When vitamin D is
low, serum alkaline phosphatase is often raised.
Low vitamin B12 is very common, and is detrimental to our health as
seen in Chapter 9. Vitamin B12 supplements are almost always required. In
diabetics, metformin can reduce vitamin B12 levels and neuropathy can be
one of the consequences. In some people, oral supplements may not be
absorbed, in which case they may not see improvements in their health. In
these cases injections may be required.
Homocysteine levels can be high if vitamin B12 is not being utilized or
unavailable.

Urine Microalbumin Test

The presence of microalbumin in the urine signifies kidney dysfunction.

This can be seen even before kidney function tests show abnormalities.

C-peptide or Antibody Tests (for Insulin-dependent Diabetes)

This test measures the amount of C-peptide in your blood. Because these
levels generally match the insulin levels produced in the body, the test can
indicate how much insulin your body is producing. Low levels of C-peptide
and insulin usually point to type 1 diabetes.
Antibody tests check the levels of antibodies in the blood. Because type 1
diabetes is an autoimmune disease, these levels will be high. Switching to a
whole, plant-based diet generally causes these antibodies to reduce over
time.
 Depending on the severity of the disease, blood tests may be required
once a year, once in six months, or even more frequently as in the case of
kidney failure or other complications. Because diabetes can result in so
many complications, detailed medical check-ups are advised periodically.
Finally, blood sugar levels should be tested regularly with the help of a
glucometer and blood pressure levels should be checked with the help of a
home blood-pressure machine, especially in the case of high blood pressure.
Since the cause of diabetes and high blood pressure is the same, the same
dietary changes can improve both these conditions. Blood pressure
medication should also be reduced as needed.
Regular blood tests are absolutely essential. I have seen that when
patients get better and see that their blood sugar levels are under control,
they stop getting their tests done. This can be dangerous because regular
tests help us monitor our condition. They can also detect whether we are
cheating or not. I have seen patients avoid laboratory tests, especially when
they know they have been cheating. They feel that it is better to do the tests
once they get back to their regular regimen so that they get good results.
But this gets indefinitely postponed. Our mind plays tricks on us. I have
seen people get into severe complications just because they didn’t want to
get their tests done while they were not following the prescribed regimen.
Tests should be done at regular intervals, no matter what!
 27
Regular Glucometer Checks

If you are on medications for diabetes, and the objective is to get free of
them, then the glucometer is a very important part of your arsenal. It’s
important to check your blood sugar levels—both fasting and exactly two
hours after a meal—to get an idea of your progress.
If you are on insulin, the blood sugar level should ideally be measured
before every insulin dose. And at least one fasting and one postprandial
blood sugar test must be done daily. The reason it should be measured
before the insulin dose is because our nutritional method is a very powerful
way to reduce the blood sugars, and insulin doses may have to be reduced
earlier than you imagined. As you already know, hypoglycaemia (or low
blood sugar) is more dangerous than hyperglycaemia (or high blood sugar).
The levels should be tracked on a chart that would look something like
this for someone on medication, tracking each meal as well. Rows could be
added according to your individual needs. This could help in monitoring
your progress and even reducing medications. I have filled in the first
column to give you an idea.
It is wise to put in all parameters, including anything that may have
happened or anything wrong that you could have done so that you can
actually see the connection between your blood sugar levels and what you
eat, your exercise, your stress level and so on. In case you forgot to take the
medicine, or had another health problem, say, a fever, this should be
mentioned in the comments box so that at a glance, your doctor can
correlate and understand your progress. In case you find the blood sugar
levels higher on any one day, it will be worth pondering over the cause of
the change, and even writing down your thoughts. This will help you
understand your own body and how you can get better faster. You can even
add your bedtime, stress factors and other details relevant to you.
When using the glucometer, it’s important to follow the instructions
carefully and take good care of the strips by keeping the box closed while
not in use. You should always be sure that the glucometer is working
properly.
It’s also worth carrying the glucometer around with you when you are
reducing the medications or insulin. Most people can tell when their blood
sugar levels are too high or too low. When your body gives you signals that
it is too low––for example, you feel weak, faint and uneasy––check your
blood sugar levels. If you know that the levels are low or going down, you
can eat dates, raisins or some fruits before it falls too low. When it is really
low, it’s best to take pure sugar. But it would be much better to avoid such
incidents altogether.
If you find that your blood sugar levels are consistently under 140
mg/dL, or any one level is under 80–90 mg/dL, it’s probably time to reduce
your dosage of medications or insulin.
Important reminders:

Check your blood sugar level with a glucometer every day.

Make a list of all the medications that you are taking, including its
dosage and what exactly they are for. Be aware of your complete
medical profile.
 If you are injecting insulin on a regular basis and your blood sugar
levels are already under control, you will have to reduce your
insulin intake little by little—two or more units at a time—as your
blood sugar level drops.

Hypoglycaemia Warning
A whole-food, plant-based diet is a very powerful and effective remedy for diabetes and
other related diseases. You may be surprised how fast it can start working for you—and
how fast your blood sugar levels can drop—if you follow the diet 100 per cent!
Hypoglycaemia, or low blood sugar, is far more dangerous than hyperglycaemia, or
high blood sugar. Symptoms of the former include trembling, feeling shaky, increased
heart rate, irritability, headache, confusion, perspiration, restlessness, dizziness and
feeling faint.
If you suspect that your blood sugar level is low, check it with your glucometer. If it is
less than 80 mg/dL, or you have symptoms of hypoglycaemia, immediately eat
something sweet like dates or raisins or even pure sugar as required. Always carry
something sweet to eat in case of an emergency.

Since diabetes can affect all parts of the body, it’s best to be aware of all the
possible side effects. It’s also best to have check-ups for eyes and general
health at least twice a year, if not more often.
 28
Reducing Medications

I see two kinds of patients––those who are anxious to reduce their

medications and those who are so used to taking them for so many years
that they almost fear giving them up. Medications are neither good nor bad.
They are bad if we do not need them and good if we need them.
Over the years, I have seen many diabetics who are on medication for
both diabetes as well as other health problems. Eating foods suitable to our
body will help in healing both diabetes as well as the other diseases that
may be present.
The body has a much greater intelligence than what we attribute to it. I
can’t emphasize enough that our body knows how to heal. We have to get
out of the way! Most medicines are in the way because they control or hide
the symptoms from us, preventing us from taking the necessary measures to
permanently get rid of the symptoms. Moreover, the body has to work hard
to metabolize them and throw them out. Medicines actually distract the
body from doing its real work, which is healing or preventing disease.

A Healing Story
‘It’s been slightly more than a month since we first met at the SHARAN twenty-one-day
health retreat.
‘While the camp per se ended a couple of weeks ago and the results were nothing short
of amazing, I wanted to update you on the journey since then.
‘It’s been only two weeks but I am seeing major changes physically, mentally and
spiritually.
‘Physically I am getting lighter every day and have lost a total of 11.5 kg (in five
weeks!) My trousers are getting loose and the only reason I am not shopping is that I feel
confident that another 5 kg will be released over the next six months.
 ‘My BP is now in the 120/80 range and I am taking half a tablet, which I should
probably stop taking!
‘The body has started healing itself. I had an attack of cold and fever last week, which
got cured on its own without any medication.
‘Physically I feel energetic and look forward to walking and doing
yoga every day. The long walks at Mumbai Airport are no longer a
challenge.
‘I like my face in the mirror, and have been complimented by my friends for its
radiance. Overall, I feel younger.
‘Mentally, I am calmer. I am more in the present and enjoy my old loves of music,
reading and photography.
‘One important thing I have experienced in the last two weeks is the complete absence
of attraction towards tea, coffee, alcohol, non-veg food, dairy products, fried food and
packaged food. It’s not a question of willpower. Willpower is needed when one has to
resist an attraction. Thanks to the knowledge, techniques and skills learnt at the twenty-
one-day workshop, I have come out of the retreat with a mental make-up where these are
no longer attractive.
‘In the past I had paid just a cursory attention to animals and to nature/environment.
WFPB (whole-food plant-based) diet is the centre stone to expand spiritually by
including all of God’s creatures in our compassion.
‘The food we eat makes us the person we are. WFPB diet is the way nature intended us
to live. I feel that I am getting more and more integrated with nature every day. This, for
me, is as much a spiritual journey as a mental and physical one.’

––Srinivas Kantheti, fifty-four years old

Reducing Medications Is Vital to Healing

As I have already mentioned, it is important to reduce medications at the

right time. It’s advisable to do this with the help of a doctor. Yet sometimes
doctors don’t understand the role food can play in healing, and it may be
necessary to do it yourself or find a doctor who is willing to help you with
this. This section is for both doctors and patients.
It’s necessary to note that medicines cannot be stopped all of a sudden.
But there are some medicines that can be stopped at the beginning, provided
you are fully committed to following this path. I suggest that you
dedicatedly follow this path, and when you have done so for at least one
week, and are sure of continuing it, you can reduce the following
medications.

Statins and Cholesterol Medication

Since you are on a completely plant-based diet, you will no longer have any
intake of cholesterol through food. Therefore, these medicines are
unnecessary. Keep in mind that when you stop this medicine, cholesterol
levels may start to rise. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. The
level of cholesterol in the blood has nothing to do with heart disease. As
said before, it’s the cholesterol that is lining the arteries, and narrowing
them, which is a problem, and this cannot even be measured by a blood test.
However, since we have all the fibre in our food, our blood naturally
becomes thin, and this thinner blood starts dissolving the cholesterol lining
the arteries. Therefore, while the cholesterol levels may go up, you will
know that you are healing, because the blood pressure goes down as the
arteries open up. If you are on a large dose of anti-cholesterol medication,
you may want to reduce it to half in the first week, and then stop it
altogether in the following week in order to give the body time to adjust to
the changes. If you are on a minimum dose, you can stop it right away. This
automatically brings us to the next topic of blood thinners.

Blood Thinners

Since the blood naturally becomes thinner on a whole-food, plant-based

diet, blood thinners too are no longer required. In fact, since you are using
your glucometer regularly, you will notice that when you prick your finger,
the blood flow is faster after 1–2 weeks on this diet. This is an indication
that your blood is thinner and that you are healing.
However, a word of caution is required here. In case any heart
interventions have been done, including the insertion of stents, please
reduce these slowly, and only with the help of a doctor. If no cardiovascular
procedures have been done, it’s safe to reduce the blood thinners.
Painkillers

Painkillers are not medicines that heal; they just block out the pain from
your consciousness. Often pain is the result of a lack of circulation to a
particular part of the body. As we heal, because the blood gets thinner,
circulation improves and the pain should reduce. It is not harmful to stop
painkillers since they play no part in healing anyway. The pain (or lack of
it) will indicate your progress.

Acidity Medications

You may be on antacids or any other medication for acidity because you
actually suffer from it or because the medicines you are taking potentially
cause it. Most cases of primary acidity reverse by just following a whole-
food, plant-based diet. If the acidity is caused by the medicines you are
taking, antacids should not be stopped until those medications are stopped.
Getting unnecessary medications out of the way paves the way for
healing. All the energy spent by the body in metabolizing and handling the
medications being taken can be used for healing instead.
At the same time medicines should not be stopped if they are needed.
Those for diabetes should be reduced slowly as the body heals.
It’s wise to reduce medications for diabetes (or other ailments like high
blood pressure, hypothyroidism and so on) with the help of a doctor and
after doing regular tests or checks. If you are on insulin, it’s a little easier.
Insulin can be reduced 1–2 units at a time depending on your improvement.
It’s important to check the blood sugar levels regularly in order to be certain
that your condition has improved.

The Case for Reducing Medicines

In my long practice of helping diabetics reverse their disease, I have seen many patients,
including those on multiple medications. My closest interactions with them have been
during our twenty-one-day health retreats where I monitor their health daily, and during
the period thereafter. I have also had patients who have consulted me for a longer period.
 I remember the case of a man who was on multiple medications for high blood
pressure and diabetes and was also taking blood thinners, cholesterol medication and
more. He also took insulin several times a day. During the health retreat, he lost 7 kg in
weight, and we were able to reduce several medications, including those for cholesterol.
His requirement of insulin reduced dramatically. When he went back home, he continued
with the lifestyle, except that he did not switch to organic foods. The initial improvement
was followed by a plateau, which is quite normal. Yet his physician put him back on the
cholesterol medication. Not only did his improvement stop but his condition began to
deteriorate. Experience has shown me that organic food is a very important part of this
regimen. I have observed in several cases that restarting medications because of a
doctor’s advice rather than actual need is harmful. Anti-cholesterol medications are
known to promote diabetes, and this has been seen in practice over and over again.
I remember the case of a doctor who came for our health retreat who did not have any
problems at all. He was taking statins for cholesterol and blood thinners as a
precautionary measure. However, when we did the lab tests, we found that his HbA1c
was marginally high at 6.4. He was not willing to stop his ‘precautionary medication’,
and as such, did not require treatment. Yet, when the second set of tests was done, we
found that his HbA1c had not improved considerably. This was the first time I had seen
such a lack of improvement in our twenty-one-day programme.
These two cases helped me recognize the effect of unnecessary medications, and I
have observed this time after time.
Another situation that I have observed is that when a patient goes to the doctor with
lab reports showing high blood sugar levels, the doctor naturally prescribes more
medications. Over a period of time the number of medications rise. It is possible that the
earlier medications are not working any more. Yet they are continued because it is
assumed that they are working but are not enough to control the blood sugar level
completely. I recently saw such a case.
A woman was on multiple medications for diabetes as well as on insulin in fairly large
doses. After changing her diet, the insulin doses naturally went down. At one point we
reduced some medications as well. Her blood sugar levels improved drastically. When
she saw me again she said that her medications were probably not working. Since she
was taking insulin, I suggested that she stop those medications and control her blood
sugar with the insulin alone and see what happens. Surprisingly, her blood sugar levels
fell during the next few days. Later on, we were able to reduce the insulin even further,
and did not have to increase it at all. Free from unnecessary medications, she continued
to make great strides towards good health.
This case showed me that after years of taking a medication, sometimes the drug stops
having an effect at all. I must say that this does not happen in every case. I usually prefer
to reduce the medications step by step as the patient’s condition improves. This is mainly
because doctors usually start with drugs that are least harmful and graduate to higher
medications with greater side effects. So reducing the higher level drugs is generally
better for the patient. But in case of those taking a large number of medications, it may be
advisable to try the other way around if some medicines are found to be not working at
all.
 One more case comes to mind. There was a man in our twenty-one-day health retreat
who held on to his blood pressure medications and was reluctant to leave them even
though his blood pressure was normal. One day he stood up and said that he did not
believe that others were experiencing higher energy levels. He wasn’t. The reason for this
was that his blood pressure was being overcorrected because he did not reduce the
medications. One always feels tired and weak when either the blood pressure or blood
sugar are lower than they should be.

During healing, it must be remembered that cleansing reactions do occur.

Headache, cold, diarrhoea, fever, phlegm, gas and weight loss are common.
Please do not add to the medicine load by taking medicines for these unless
absolutely necessary––which is very rare. Being in a culture where there is
a pill for every ill, this can be difficult to do. We are so used to reaching out
to the medicine cabinet whenever we have a small problem. We need to
realize that cleansing reactions aid healing and will disappear in time. Thus,
there is a need to shift our thinking and recognize the body’s immense
ability to heal itself.

Diabetic Medications in a Nutshell

There are six broad categories of diabetes medications:

Insulin sensitizers like metformin: These medicines work on insulin resistance. They
do not strain the pancreas and are usually the first line of treatment by doctors.
Pioglitazone: These, too, work on insulin resistance but have more severe risks of
cancer and weight gain.
Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors like Voglibose and Acarbose: These decrease the
absorption of carbohydrates and are to be given with the first bite of a major meal.
These can be helpful in the initial stages of diabetes. They do not strain the pancreas.
DPP4 inhibitors (Gliptins) like Linagliptin, Sitagliptin, Vildagliptin and Saxagliptin:
These work by pushing the pancreas to increase insulin secretions.
Sulphonylureas like Glyclazide, Glimepiride and Tolbutamide: These are the most
potent, and are reserved as a last resort. They stimulate the pancreas and can result in
a burnout of the gland. At this stage insulin may be required.
SGLT inhibitors like Canagliflozin and Dapagliflozin: This new group of medications
take glucose out of the body through the urine. These are not good for the kidneys.
Women may get urinary tract infections due to these.
In short, medications can be good or bad depending on whether they are
absolutely required or not. Remember, medicines always have side effects,
whether perceptible or not. Most people feel much better when they are
completely free of all medications. But healing takes time, and medicines
can be reduced only slowly as the body heals.
 29
Associated Diseases and Medications

The body always works to heal itself, and also to warn us about anything
that affects us adversely. If we learnt to listen to our bodies, we would
rarely be sick. But we are living in a society and culture where we are
taught what to do by the media, doctors and others.
Symptoms are the body’s way of telling us that we need to change
something. When we take medicines to temporarily remove the symptoms,
it’s like saying ‘shut up’ to our bodies. The body has a duty to inform us,
through symptoms. So now it has to produce a new set of symptoms and we
get another disease. Obesity, heart disease, hypertension, hypothyroidism
and PCOD are just some of the common diseases often associated with
diabetes. They could precede it, in which case controlling them could have
resulted in diabetes or they could manifest as a result of the diabetes being
controlled. At this point we are not discussing the multiple complications of
diabetes, since they have already been dealt with.
The good news is that as we work to reverse diabetes, the complications
of diabetes as well as these and other diseases will start to disappear. You
may find that you are getting headaches less often or colds and coughs less
frequently. Joint pains and backaches will also disappear. You will actually
get to witness the healing power of the body.
In this chapter we will talk about obesity, heart disease and hypertension,
hyperthyroidism and PCOD in a little more detail.

Obesity

The reason we have a lot of obese people in our society these days is
because we are overfed but undernourished. Let me explain. Nutrients are
the building blocks that our body needs to grow and heal. These are largely
proteins, minerals, vitamins and a host of phytonutrients. Carbohydrates, on
the other hand, are needed for energy, and fats are stores of energy for a
rainy day. Because we are eating more packaged food and refined food than
ever before, we are eating a lot of food that has been stripped of nutrients.
Although our energy needs are more than satisfied, and we have more than
enough fat stored in case of starvation (which never comes), what we lack
is high-quality nutrients. We get enough proteins because every cell
contains proteins, but we do not get other essential nutrients when we eat
refined or packaged food. The larger our body, the more insulin we need.
After years of eating unhealthy food, the body succumbs to diabetes. At this
point it tries to heal by throwing out sugar. In many cases the first sign of
diabetes is a loss of weight.
Instead of allowing the body to heal itself and help by providing high-
quality nutrients, we often go to the doctor who gives us medications. These
help assimilate the carbohydrates that the body was throwing out, and we
start putting on weight again. The problem becomes worse if insulin is
prescribed. A high dose of insulin in the blood means a drop in blood sugar,
and we become hungry. This means we end up eating more along with
injecting insulin into the body, resulting in obesity.
A whole-food, plant-based diet, being high in fibre and nutrition, and low
in fat, naturally helps you lose weight.

Heart Disease and Hypertension

Like diabetes, heart disease and hypertension are the result of years of
wrong eating. When we consume fat without fibre, as in refined plant fats,
or animal products, it goes straight into the bloodstream and thickens the
blood. The heart has to then pump harder to push the thicker blood all
through the body. This results in high blood pressure. The thicker blood
also injures the artery walls. These injuries are bandaged by cholesterol,
narrowing the arteries, year after year. Now the heart has to pump even
harder since the blood vessels have become narrower. The heart itself gets
an inadequate blood supply through these narrow vessels, leading to heart
disease.
It’s interesting that the cause of heart disease and hypertension is the
same as the cause of diabetes, namely, excess fat. The good news is that
high blood pressure usually comes back to normal on the same diet and
lifestyle that helps diabetes.
If you find that your blood pressure levels are dropping, it’s important to
reduce the medication for it. It should be done a little at a time with the help
of a doctor. Continuing this medicine when your blood pressure is low can
lead to a feeling of tiredness or exhaustion. Overcorrection is always bad.
Your body has to work against the medicine to keep the blood pressure at a
reasonable level. Remember that your body will heal even faster when
unneeded medications are stopped. In order to be able to reduce the
medication, frequent blood pressure checking is required, both before and
after reducing the medication. Do not submit your body to risks by
forgetting to check your blood pressure levels, or by neglecting to reduce
the medication when it should be done.

Hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism has become more common in the past 20–30 years than
ever before. Interestingly, like diabetes, hypothyroidism is a hormonal
problem. Our body’s normal functioning depends on a number of
hormones. The whole hormonal orchestra is conducted by the pituitary
gland. When one hormone goes out of balance, the others are often affected
too.
We have already discussed that chemicals and plastics are hormonal
disruptors. Hormones found in dairy and other animal products add to the
problem.
I have seen that an organic, whole-food, plant-based diet and a lifestyle
relatively free from chemicals bring down the TSH (thyroid-stimulating
hormone) levels, allowing for a reduction in thyroxin medication slowly
over a period of time. While getting the lab tests done, always get the
thyroid tests done as well. Thyroxine dosage has to be reduced by your
doctor, a little at a time, with regular monitoring.

Polycystic Ovarian Disease

Like hypothyroidism and diabetes, this disease too is linked to hormones.

Interestingly, metformin is often the drug of choice for PCOD (or PCOS as
it is often called, short for polycystic ovarian syndrome). This, too, can be
reversed, without medications and with the right lifestyle. So can other
menstrual or menopausal problems. The body is designed to heal.
The more we understand how our bodies heal, the easier it is to have trust
in the healing power of the body. It is our best doctor and we have to learn
to listen to it in order to get well. The cure is within, not outside.
 30
Troubleshooting

Over the years, and after doing a number of residential health retreats that
now get sold out each time, I have understood one thing. If we do
everything right, the body will heal. Every single person so far has seen
results within the twenty-one days. They may not be able to completely
reverse their disease because healing takes time, but they usually get more
results than they ever expected.
It has taken a lot of effort to ensure that in our health retreats that take
place in a remote resort in Gokarna, all the food is organic and prepared
according to our specifications. I believe that if this can be done there, it
can be done almost anywhere. I do understand that we live in locations that
are not pristine––there are only a few such places left on earth. We have to
do our best under the available circumstances. We also have to weigh what
our health is worth to us. I moved from Mumbai to a small town called
Auroville, close to Pondicherry. The move changed my life. I do believe
that living in a big city is draining. But I also know many people who have
continued to live in urban India, in the most polluted places in the world,
and yet managed to get well. Our bodies have remarkable reserves.
If you have reached a plateau or are not getting the results you desire,
check if you can improve further to get better results. Here is a list of
common mistakes:

Consuming foods that are not organic: I cannot overemphasize the

need for organic foods. We cannot expect to remove all the poison
and chemicals in our bodies when we keep adding to it.
Using household and personal-care products that contain
chemicals: These could be air fresheners, pest control products,
window cleaners, detergents, fabric softeners, deodorants, hair
dyes, lipsticks, perfumes or even toothpastes. Reduce these further.
Natural and home-made alternatives for almost everything can be
found with the help of an Internet search.
Peeling vegetables: This is a habit that’s so hard to change for
many.
Using just a little oil: This is already happening when you eat out.
Don’t let it happen in the house.
Eating pizza and paneer or drinking tea once in a while when you
go out: Once you stop eating unhealthy foods your body becomes
more sensitive to them and will indicate that they are bad for you.
Eating the wrong rice: Sometimes we get the rice that is closest to
white rice. This is semi-polished, hand-polished or parboiled rice.
That’s not what we should eat. Always use whole unpolished rice.
Consuming polished millets: Millets are healthier than rice or
wheat. But polished millets are sold everywhere nowadays. We
have to use unpolished millets.
Travelling too much and eating out too often.
Not doing regular check-ups: Check-ups must be done routinely,
especially when we are not following the proper diet. They can help
us get back on track.
Using aluminium pressure cookers and cooking in aluminium
vessels.
Using microwave now and then.
Using non-stick cookware: If you weigh the cost of cancer against
the cost of new cookware, you will do the right thing.
Not eating enough raw foods: Raw foods are the most nutritious
foods. Don’t forget those smoothies and delicious salads!
Not dropping medicines when they are no longer needed.
Stress: This is one of the biggest causes of the disease. It is
essential to learn ways to reduce stress as outlined in this book. I
want to make it clear here that I am not a fan of ‘stress
management’, which is similar to diabetes management. Disease
reversal requires a shift in consciousness—and this means change!
Not eating enough servings of fruits and vegetables and relying
more on whole grains, dals and nuts.
Counting calories and eating less: This invariably leads to eating
between meals when you are not counting, or eating the wrong
foods between meals. We want high nutrition. The higher the
nutritive value of our food, the less we need to eat and this happens
automatically. We should learn to eat according to hunger and never
count calories.
Getting into a routine of eating the same meals every day: I have
seen a few people learn some recipes and use them over and over
again––the same breakfast every day, the same salad at every meal,
etc. Most of us crave variety and flavour. Learn new recipes,
experiment and create. Teach the person who cooks for you a new
recipe every week. Eat a rainbow meal every day.
Eating multiple small meals every day: Doctors often recommend
this. But this is not ideal. Limit it to a maximum of five meals a
day, which includes snacks too. Three meals a day is even better.
Relying on home remedies, herbal remedies and alternative
therapies: Jamun, karela powder, methi seeds, aloe vera, warm
water with lime juice, Ayurvedic powders and so on are often used
as home remedies. Although there is no problem with most of
these, they can take up our time and resources and lead us to
believe that we are doing so many things to get well. We must
realize that the cause of the disease is not a lack of any these things.
We want to work at the level of cause.
Not checking your vitamins B12 and D levels and taking required
supplementation: I often hear people say that they have done
everything recommended, but when I ask about these tests, they
wouldn’t have done them. We all believe we would never have
these deficiencies. I have seen young children aged three and four
years with deficiencies of these vitamins. We are living in difficult
times, so let’s take simple measures and precautions to make life
healthier.
Not sleeping at the right time: Sleeping at the right time makes all
the difference! Healing takes place early in the night. Sleep earlier
and heal faster.
Not exercising: With so much talk about food, it’s easy to forget
exercise. If you live in a city, take the stairs wherever you can. If
you live in a town, use a bicycle. Never miss any opportunity to
move your body.
Absence of fresh air/sunshine: Fresh air/sunshine is becoming a
priceless commodity in our cities with grey smoggy skies. Do the
best you can. Outside air is better than air conditioning in most
cases.
Use of intoxicants: Avoid that occasional temptation of tea, coffee,
soft drinks, alcohol, cigarette or anything else that you know is not
healthy.
Use of ointments and other over-the-counter medications: When we
want our body to heal, we need to allow it to lead the way. It
usually chooses the right direction by going from more serious
symptoms to less serious ones. Everything does not heal at once.
Do not take medicines for simple fevers, colds, coughs or rashes.
Do not use ointments. Allow the body to heal in the best way.
Suppressing simple symptoms––the body’s indications to us about
progress––never helps us get better fast.
‘I have done it, I can do it any time I want’: Getting healthy again is
a bit like stopping smoking or drinking. Sometimes we do it for a
month and get amazing results and become confident. So when the
next party or wedding comes along, we indulge, thinking we can
get back on track any time! This is not true. Disease, especially
diabetes, is the cumulative result of years of wrong living, which
cannot be countered in a short time. It requires persistent effort.
When you have a house on fire, it’s best not to add even a spoonful
of fuel to it. It’s the same with this disease.
 I have realized this over the years. When we first change our diet
and get amazing results, it’s our body’s way of encouraging us to
get healthy again. When we go back and forth, we do not get the
required results since the healing is intermittent. It is similar to an
injury, as I have mentioned before. If we allow it to heal, we will be
well soon. But if we keep peeling off the scab, it gets bigger and
bigger and may never heal.
Remember, the more effort you take, the more likely that this
will become your new way of life and you will not want to make
any exceptions. Just as a cow would rather graze in green pastures
than eat dry hay, our body will also begin to choose only the best,
and the effort required from your side will become less eventually.
Not giving enough time to heal: A small injury may take only
twenty-four hours to heal, while a larger wound may take a couple
of weeks. A fracture may take six weeks to three months to heal
under ideal conditions. Your blood sugar level is not a reflection of
only your previous meal but of your entire life! If you are doing
everything to the best possible level, just give it some time and you
will see the results. The last changes often take the longest time.

In case you have been doing all of the above, and yet you have reached a
plateau, I highly recommend a day of juice feasting.

Juice Feasting
What Is It?

Juice feasting significantly helps heal and reset your body by cleansing, rebuilding,
rehydrating and alkalizing. It is one of the most powerful ways to consume a lot of
nutrients in one day in an absorbable form. The extra dose of nutrients is then available
for healing, cleaning and repair. Your digestive system also gets some rest as it doesn’t
have to spend a lot of energy digesting solid food.
For example, if you were to eat six carrots at one go it would be a huge task, but
drinking the juice (without the fibre) is easy. You can thus get the nutrients of six carrots
without the ache of digesting them. It’s a bit like pressing the reset button of your health.
When Should I Do It?

When you find that you have reached a plateau in your improvement despite following
all the guidelines, you can do juice feasting once a week or once a fortnight or even once
a month to accelerate the healing.

What Should I Do?

Prepare in advance by buying high-quality organic vegetables of different colours that

can be juiced. Select a day when you are at home to do the juice feasting. Make sure that
you have a good juicer. Slow juicers are the best, but since we will not be doing this often
any juicer will do. Whenever you’re hungry select a few vegetables that you could mix to
make a juice. You can mix and match as you please. It’s good to cover all the colours of
the rainbow in a day. For example, you might want to make a green juice (green leaves,
cucumber, zucchini, etc.), an orange juice (carrots, pumpkin), a red juice (tomatoes,
beetroot) or you may prefer to mix vegetables of different colours. It’s all your choice.
Make the juice delicious by adding herbs like parsley, celery, basil, mint, coriander and
so on and even condiments like black pepper, rock salt or herb salts, turmeric, ginger and
onion.
Make as much as you would like to drink. Drink slowly, roll every morsel in the mouth
and chew before gulping it down. Enjoy it thoroughly. Whenever you are hungry again,
just make another juice. Remember you are feasting, not fasting. Feed yourself
consistently as an act of love!

Other Instructions

It is possible to do your routine work on this day. It’s advisable not to plan strenuous
errands as you may feel tired. Rest aids healing. If you need rest, you should be able to
take it. Be gentle on your body. If you cannot do it for a full day, do it until the evening
and end the day with a light meal or fruit.
Blood sugar and blood pressure usually drop during juice feasting. It is advisable to
reduce your dose of medication for both diabetes and blood pressure on this day. It is
wise to take the help of a doctor to reduce the medications. If you are on multiple
medications, do not stop all of it on this day; just reduce the number a little to correct the
likely fall in blood sugar and blood pressure.

Some Juice Recipes

1) Red Juice 2) Green Juice
6 carrots 3 cucumbers
2 tomatoes ¼ cup coriander leaves
1 small slice of beetroot 2 cups spinach
1 celery stalk/handful of coriander ¼ cup mint leaves
½ inch fresh ginger
½ lemon, peeled and seeded
3) Carrot-Beetroot-Ginger 4) Carrot and Greens
4 carrots 4 carrots
1 beetroot 2 cups spinach, microgreens or other greens
2 celery/coriander/mint stalks Juice of ½ lime
¼–½ inch piece ginger
5) Tangy Juice 6) Mixed Vegetable Juice
1 small bottle gourd 2 tomatoes
2 green capsicums ¼ beetroot
6 tomatoes 1 carrot
A pinch of rock salt or black salt 1 stick celery
2 cups spinach
1 spring onion or a small piece of onion
1 cucumber
7) Ridge Gourd Juice
1–2 ridge gourds
1 tomato
A pinch of salt

These are just some ideas . . . you can modify/create your own. It’s important to have a
variety of vegetables and not just root vegetables like carrots and beetroot.
Some reactions may happen––light-headedness, headache, unexplainable discomfort,
mild diarrhoea, etc. It’s a part of the detoxification process and is impermanent. It will
disappear the next day.

If Juices Are So Good, Can I Have Them Every Day?

The difference between juices and whole foods is that juices don’t have much fibre. Fibre
fills us and cleans the body. This is why we recommend green smoothies and not any
fruit juices. Fruit juices would have too much sugar, which is not good. Juicing is not the
way nature designed us to eat vegetables. This should be done only as needed and
occasionally. We are doing this because we may have spent many years eating foods that
are not rich in nutrients. This is a way to make it up. Nutrients are the elements required
for healing. If you are already improving, there is no need to do a juice feast.
 Epilogue

I was born in Mumbai. My parents were well educated and wanted to give
their children the best education possible. This they did and I thank them
for that. Like many couples, they did not get along, and this brought its
share of troubles to our household. I grew up with a fair amount of
insecurity, loneliness and fear. Darkness always has a silver lining, and the
troubles in our family helped me become independent and made me think
about life deeply from an early age. I was lucky to have parents who did not
think conventionally and sent us to a school which taught us to think and
understand rather than learn by heart. I learnt a lot through EST (Erhard
Seminars Training), now called The Forum. I am also indebted to a lot of
my friends for teaching me so many invaluable lessons, especially my
friend and homeopathic teacher Rajan Sankaran, who is a deep thinker, and
my close friend Anne Schadde, a homeopath, trained psychotherapist and
original thinker. Above all, my patients taught me a lot. I realized that each
one of us, whether rich or poor, is born with a set of challenges that we need
to face. My troubled household was mine. The silver lining was that all of
us siblings lived through the same challenges and became very close.
My grandfather, a businessman, studied and practised homeopathy for his
friends and family. My mother always took the trouble to cook us healthy
food, and I grew up with the understanding that soft drinks, processed foods
and even medicines are chemicals that can harm our bodies. I chose to
study homeopathy, despite gaining an admission in a conventional medical
college, because I was clear that I was interested in holistic health and
would not want to prescribe unhealthy chemicals to anyone. Being a study
of the mind and body, homoeopathy forced me to understand my patients
deeply, and this was my study of life at a young age. I studied, practised and
taught homeopathy with passion. I worked very hard, and was very
successful.
 But life keeps giving us messages. It’s very important not to miss these
and to think deeply about why they are being given to us. And I got my
share of them. I had a series of illnesses, where I had to learn and have faith
in the principles of healing that I now teach.
I remember as a doctor I would get some serious illness every year. First
I had a fall and a fracture. I now understand that this fall was due to the
shock I got when I saw some acquaintances carving a slaughtered animal,
oblivious to the fact that they were responsible for and dealing with the
death of a living being that had just wanted to live. I handled the fracture
according to the principles I had learnt about healing––and with simple
homeopathic medicines––and found that it healed very quickly.
The very next year I developed pneumonia when I was alone and
travelling for work in a foreign country. I was lucky to have friends to help
and once again, I treated this with homeopathic medicines and rest. This
gave me the conviction that even serious illnesses could be cured without
conventional medicines. These incidents were vital to teach me about the
nature of disease and healing.
The year after I developed malaria, which threatened to be long and
drawn out and I gave in to allopathic anti-malarial medications. These
definitely cured me but it meant that I bypassed the lesson that I could have
learnt from the disease. I believe that the universe conspires to send us the
messages we need through such challenges.
The universe then had to send me a new message, and the year after I got
Guillain Barre, an acute autoimmune disease that paralysed my entire body.
From being independent, I became instantly dependent, again a learning
process to trust. This time I took care not to take any conventional
medications. I had to listen to the message my body was conveying through
the paralysis. I understood that my body was preventing me from moving
and travelling. It needed rest. I had been working too hard.
Since there was no way I could get away from a busy practice, when I
began to recover, I decided to move from Mumbai to rural India, Auroville,
where I now live. A cat moved into my house on the very first day, and later
on I had the good fortune to share my space with so many other animals
too.
The shift from a materialistic society to one more connected to nature
shifted my own thinking. A few other incidents changed everything for me.
I saw cows in rural India being artificially inseminated and being
slaughtered on the roadside. I saw them grieving when their babies were
taken away from them. This was an eye-opener. I switched to a 100 per cent
plant-based diet and then became aware of its huge health, emotional and
spiritual benefits.
During one of my work trips, I ended up in a Russian jail due to a
miscommunication. Although I was released in three days, solitary
confinement during this time made me realize how difficult it must be for
animals in cages of any kind. I now completely relate to their stress. I have
to be grateful for all these incidents (challenges) which led me to find my
spiritual purpose––which was to heal people, and help animals and nature at
the same time.
We are all connected. Helping one automatically helps the other. I now
see disease as a path to personal growth.
Having found my spiritual purpose, I no longer seek pleasures. True
happiness comes from connecting with our spiritual purpose. May all be
healed.
 A Note on the Author

Dr Nandita Shah is the founder of Sanctuary for Health and Reconnection

to Animals and Nature (SHARAN) and has thirty-six years of experience in
treating patients. She started her career as a homeopath in Mumbai and was
a part of the Sankaran group of homeopaths. As a homeopath, she
prescribed the minimum number of medications. She taught advanced-level
homeopathy internationally and was invited for seminars and international
conferences in USA, Europe, South America and the Middle East.
Over the years she has found that when patients made changes to their
diet, their illnesses reverse at a speed much faster than any medicine could
achieve––that the body is always working to heal. All too often we get in
the way of this healing because we do not understand what we need. Just as
a car runs smoothly with the correct fuel, or an animal thrives on its natural
diet, we too can be healthy lifelong by living and eating in accordance with
natural principles. We are instinctually programmed to be attracted to the
correct foods and to heal. Dr Shah believes each one of us can be our own
best doctor most of the time, just by understanding a few simple principles.
Dr Shah founded SHARAN in 2005 to guide people to heal themselves
through food. She regularly conducts seminars for reversing diabetes,
hypertension, osteoporosis and joint complaints as well as a general health
seminar called Peas vs Pills. She also conducts a twenty-one-day health
retreat, a residential programme where people reduce their medications
under close supervision with regular testing while enjoying an exceptional
learning holiday with other like-minded people. Dr Shah is the first person
to practise this approach in India and to spread its popularity in a systematic
way.
Being a homeopath, the mind and body connection has always been an
integral part of her work. With her work in health and nutrition she has seen
many participants make changes that have enabled them to reach their
highest potential, not just in their physical health but also in their emotional
and spiritual well-being. Dr Shah is the recipient of the Nari Shakti Award
2016 for her pioneering work in India on disease reversal through food.

For more details, log on to:

SHARAN’s website: www.sharan-india.org

Dr Nandita Shah’s website: www.nandita-shah.net
 Acknowledgements

India has one of the largest populations of diabetics. Interestingly, it is one

of the easiest diseases to reverse because results can be seen almost
immediately on the glucometer. It saddens me that many people don’t know
about this. So my first thanks goes to Gurveen Chadha of Penguin India
who contacted me to write a book at the time when I was thinking that the
best way to reach out to the maximum number of people would be through
a book.
There are countless people, too many to list, who have helped me in this
journey. But I want to start from the beginning. I thank my father, Surendra
Shah, for first bringing the thought of vegan living in my life. I will always
be grateful to my mother, who took the trouble to cook healthy food for us.
She did not believe in packaged foods or eating out. She taught us that we
are what we eat. Just by watching her, both my brothers and I became adept
in the kitchen. Her immense confidence in me empowered me to have
confidence in myself to live life unconventionally.
I am also grateful to Dr Neal Barnard, the author of Neal Barnard’s
Program for Reversing Diabetes, who came to India and conducted talks
and seminars in all the major metros and from whom I learnt a lot. I thank
Dr Neeta Dharamsey, who had seen the results in her own diabetic father
and who willingly accompanied me as an assistant on the first twenty-one-
day diabetes reversal retreat at Our Native Village resort. Seeing the quick
reversal of diabetes first-hand in each and every one of the participants has
had a lasting impression on me. Dr Rupa Shah, a very open-minded MBBS
doctor, was my right hand during the early days for the seminars and the
first health retreat at SwaSwara. Nandini Gulati was a co-facilitator in so
many of these retreats. She is a master presenter and has a deep knowledge
of the psychology of habit change, which is so essential to get the results. I
thank Nithya Shanti, who was a facilitator in our earlier programmes, for
his joyful spiritual approach that still continues to influence us.
My patients, from the time I started practice, taught me about life through
their journeys. They followed the required guidelines and got the results
that they were seeking. I thank them for investing their trust in me, and in
my seminars, programmes and consultations. I thank them for their
feedback from which I learnt so much. In fact it’s my patients who are
constantly teaching me, as disease reversal is not formally taught anywhere.
I am also indebted to my close friends at different periods of my life, too
many to list here, who taught me wisdom. Various incidents in my own life,
including my own illnesses, helped me learn more about maintaining health
without medicines. Numerous books by a variety of doctors who advocate a
plant-based diet inspired me to begin experimenting on myself first and
then on my patients. Auroville, where I now live, changed the way I
thought about many things and allowed me to always follow my passion.
There are many friends and colleagues who helped me organize various
seminars. I always felt that I was the one who learnt the most when I taught,
because I had to be aware of what participants were sceptical about or did
not understand. The entire SHARAN team, both past and present, has been
highly devoted to the cause, working tirelessly towards it and giving
constant feedback on what could have been done better. Melissa Burch,
who helped me transcribe cases earlier, patiently taught me the first things
about writing and candidly told me how I could improve. I will never forget
those times. She is a renowned writer now! Reshma Pritam Singh, a film-
maker who had diabetes, attended one of my seminars, saw results and
offered to volunteer. She helped me to start writing this book. Various
animal friends throughout my life have taught me that nature is a far wiser
healer than most doctors. At most times these animals knew exactly how to
heal themselves.
I can go on and on, my list of acknowledgements will never end. Life is a
constant learning process.
 SHARAN and How We Can Support You

Congratulations on completing this book. You have taken the first step of
taking your health into your own hands.
Over the years I have conducted different programmes for reversing
diabetes. Each one has had its own successes and failures since different
people require different kinds of support. The reason they are being
described here is for you, the reader, to know what kind of support could be
available to you lest you are unable to implement the plan that this book
offers. It’s also to allow you to think about the kind of person you are and
the kind of support you may require to get complete results. Keep in mind
that if complete lifestyle changes are not possible, you can implement them
in a step-by-step manner. Don’t do nothing if you cannot do everything. Do
as much as you can to start. I do hope that this book has given you enough
information to start getting results. After all, complete awareness of the
cause is the halfway to cure.
Disease reversal requires a shift in consciousness. Changing your
lifestyle is about living every moment consciously.
If you were inspired by the contents of this book and would like to learn
more or get more support, or want to help others heal, the following
offerings may help you.

Seminars

For years I mainly did individual consultations. I would see patients

through the day and listen to them. While I was happy to be able to help
them, I was limited to helping only a few. However, once I started
conducting seminars, I realized that it gave me the opportunity to share my
thoughts with a large number of people. The participants got to know each
other and since they were often from the same area, they could form their
own support group. Opening my emails each day became a pleasure
because so many people wrote to me saying that they were feeling better.
This soon became my favourite method of helping people make the shift. I
feel passionately about empowering people and helping them realize that
their health is in their hands.
Here’s why seminars work:

Within the short period of a day, you can learn everything you need
to know about getting rid of diabetes. Most people are able to make
this time commitment to fully understand how the disease works
and learn to reverse it.
My seminars are experiential. I always serve breakfast, lunch and
snacks cooked according to our guidelines. This allows people to
realize that modifying their diet is not difficult because the food
they should eat is very similar to what they already eat, is delicious
and not difficult to prepare. Many people have experienced lowered
blood sugar levels during the seminar itself, despite the three buffet
meals, and so were able to experience the direct and powerful result
of the food served.
Patients can attend the seminar with their spouses or family. Since
we eat as a family, it is important to have the support of our family
and partners when we are initiating a change in our diet and
lifestyle. The seminar helps the whole family overcome their
resistance to change, together, and enables them to understand the
plan and, in addition, benefit themselves by implementing it.
Tasting the food together as a family is always an eye-opener!
Almost every time, a few people who have previously attended a
seminar or done consultations participate in these again because
they want to learn more or help others. So new participants can
usually meet people who have already implemented the changes
and benefited from them. Directly meeting and talking to people
who are already on the path to recovery is very inspiring. It helps
overcome the fear of change and provides a platform for them to
 ask questions and learn personally from those who have already
made the shift.
For many people, one day is enough to get all the information that
they need to understand the method. They are then further
connected to a support group to keep them motivated and continue
their journey.
Seminars are relatively inexpensive and offer the possibility of live
interaction. I have often been told that the cost of the seminar was
equivalent to the cost of a single month’s medication and so within
a month or a few months it was possible to recover the whole cost
of the seminar just in the decreased cost of medicines! The gain in
health and knowledge is an added bonus.

Here’s why seminars may not work for some:

Although most people find the seminar interesting, some do not

have that long an attention span.
A lot of vital information is shared because I believe that we need
to be aware of all the facts when we want to heal ourselves.
However, different people need different facts. Since most of the
information may be new for some, it can be overwhelming to
assimilate it in one day.
An individualized diet plan and individual medications and cases
cannot be discussed.
If the medical condition does not allow you to sit a whole day, this
is not possible.

Seminars go well with an individual consultation where step-by-step

guidance into all the health problems is given, along with help in decreasing
medications and taking vitamins B12 and D.

Consultations
This method is very personalized and it allows me or other SHARAN
doctors to get to know individuals and their problems and supervise them
till they get results. It also allows me to coax and inspire the more resistant
ones. Their personal stories always teach me about the difficulties of
adopting change and challenge me to find suitable solutions. A lot of what I
share in this book is gathered from what I learnt from these consultations.
Sometimes people sign up for a consultation so they will be forced into a
new lifestyle just as we sometimes join a gym, to force ourselves to
exercise. And sometimes, despite spending the money, we do not do it! The
consultations are similar. Despite signing up for them, some people do not
do it. What is good about them though is that they are very individualized
and your personal problems and difficulties can be addressed. SHARAN
now has a team of doctors and health coaches to meet the entire demand.
And we are growing.
Consultations can be availed as a single consultation or support packages
for a month, two months, three months or more, depending on your need.
You can sign up for support till you get well.
Here’s why consultations work:

Some people require step-by-step guidance that caters to their

specific individual tastes, locations and customs. Consultations are
a great way to get this personalized attention.
A part of the protocol of consultations is to review patient data and
reports in detail and provide specific guidance not just for diabetes
but also for everything else that may be wrong.
When you get on the road to recovery, diseases begin to disappear
one by one. Regular check-ups and monitoring help keep track of
the progress. This is especially important when patients are on
medications and these need to be reduced as their condition
improves. Diabetes may not be the first disease to go in every case.
Other medications may have to be reduced before it can be on its
way out and this makes supervision a must. Individual
consultations provide for this.
 People who are on multiple medications can be guided on how to
reduce them one by one.
Individualized attention makes it possible to look at and find
solutions for individual problems of compliance.
Consultations can be done from anywhere in the world for a
relatively low cost.
The whole family can join for the consultation on Skype or in
person, understand the issue and support the patient. They can even
apply what they have learnt to themselves and benefit from it.
The support can be extended till as long as needed, even until
complete recovery.
A detailed written synopsis is given after the first consultation,
which can be reviewed by the patient at any time.

Here’s why consultations may not work for some:

The patient is left to follow the instructions on his/her own, which

can be daunting for some.
Some may be left thinking that the food is not great and may have
difficulty in getting started since they have not tasted and
experienced it first-hand like in the seminars.
There are differences between what non-SHARAN doctors advise
and what we recommend. Not having met others who have
benefited, as in the seminars, some people may be sceptical of the
new advice and may fear implementing it.
Some people may not be able to control their environment and end
up cheating in the face of multiple temptations.
When the consultation period is over, some people may slip back
since there is no support.

Twenty-one-day Health Retreat

Currently our health retreat is held in a beautiful twenty-six-acre resort,
SwaSwara, nestled between the sea and the hills in Gokarna, south of Goa.
We take up to thirty-five people during the retreat. Lab tests are done at the
beginning and at the end and regular check-ups enable us to reduce
medications as soon as possible. With check-ups, learning sessions and a
number of optional activities like nature walks, hikes, yoga, meditation,
swimming, art therapy and healthy cooking classes, participants enjoy a
fabulous holiday and get healthy and free of medicines at the same time.
Not to mention that the buffet meals served during the retreat offer
exceptional foods and choices.
If you need more reasons why the health retreats work, here they are:

If we don’t make time for our health now, sooner or later it will find
a way to get our attention and be on top of our agenda. Most people
end up spending more time and money than they had planned when
they are hospitalized––for bypass surgery, kidney failure and other
complications of diabetes––besides experiencing a lot of suffering.
The best insurance to prevent this kind of suffering is to take your
health in your own hands. This programme teaches you how to do
just that.
It takes twenty-one days to change a habit.
This is a result-oriented programme. All your lab reports are done
at the beginning and at the end so that you can see the extent of
change and improvement that occurs in just twenty-one days.
Daily check-ups and tests help us reduce medications as quickly as
possible.
Daily learning sessions help make the lifestyle changes permanent
and sustainable.
Cooking classes are offered daily so that even those who know
nothing about cooking can learn to help themselves.
Daily buffets make participants aware of the huge variety of foods
open to them. They may also be able to see the difference in taste
 between the organic foods offered there and the conventional foods
that they may be eating at home.
Getting healthy with a new group of friends is fun and most
participants describe this as the best possible holiday of their
lives––good health is restored and there is an extra bonus of having
made new friends.
There are many optional activities to choose from. The
environment is supportive and ideal for non-sporty first-timers too.
The conditions are optimal––the environment is clean, close to
nature and stress-free.
The extent of the change is so dramatic that the family members of
these participants often begin implementing them, creating more
support.

Here’s why the health retreats may not work for you:

Currently the retreats take place only twice a year at specified

times.
It is relatively expensive compared to our other offerings.
It may not be possible to take away twenty-one days from work
(although with the Internet and phone, it is possible to devote a few
hours to your work even from there).
Children are not allowed. This means you may have to stay away
from your family.
Only a small number of participants is accepted.
Some people may go back to their old ways even after the retreat.

Twenty-one-day Online Programme

Inspired by the success of the twenty-one-day health retreat and with the
desire to spread this information to as many people as possible at a much
more affordable price, we have launched a twenty-one-day online
programme. This is designed to give bits of information to be implemented
in a step-by-step process over twenty-one days (or longer) in a text and
video format. This would require about half an hour of attention each day
so that by the end of the programme, one is enabled to reach one’s highest
health potential. This has advantages and disadvantages similar to this book
but is especially for those who prefer audiovisual learning and can work
easily using their computers.
Here is why it is effective:

Since it’s an online programme, it can be done in the comfort of

your home, no matter where you are, and whenever you like.
It gives step-by-step advice, which, if properly implemented, can
help get the desired results.
This is suitable for those who do not like to read. They only need to
read little bits of text and most of the learning happens through
watching videos.
It can be done by a group, thus adding to the support.
It can be easily revised.
It can be complemented with online consultations.

It may not be effective for those who:

Don’t have an Internet connection, or are not computer savvy.

Don’t have the self-motivation and support or the discipline to do
the course daily.

SHARAN also conducts talks, cooking classes, weight loss programmes

and various other support activities in specified cities. We also regularly
conduct training programmes to help new people join us to spread the
message.
I am always meeting people who have got better just by reading a
newspaper article or by watching videos on YouTube. Others have learnt
these from their friends. For them to start, neither the book, seminar,
consultation nor the twenty-one-day retreat was necessary. Once we make
the choice, the information can easily be found. Reversing diabetes needs a
shift in consciousness. I am always happy to hear about success stories. If
you have benefited from reading this book and would like to share your
story, do write to me at nandita@sharan-india.org.
I wish you the best of health, and a deeper understanding of diseases and
the wonderful natural laws which aid us in our personal growth.
 Notes

Introduction
1. Teena Thacker, ‘World Health Day: India sees alarming rise in diabetic population’, Deccan
Chronicle, 7 April 2016, http://www.deccanchronicle.com/lifestyle/health-and-
wellbeing/070416/world-health-day-india-sees-alarming-rise-in-diabetic-population.html.

Chapter 5 The Real Causes of Diabetes

1. Dr Ragnar Hanas, Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young Adults: How to Become an
Expert on Your Own Diabetes (London: Class Publishing, 2006), p. 331.
2. Diabetic Medicine: A Journal of the British Diabetic Association 7–12 (1998): 731.
3. ‘Pesticide Pollution: Trends and Perspective’, ICMR Bulletin 9 (2001),
http://icmr.nic.in/busept01.pdf.
4. V. Vanitha et al., ‘Polychlorinatedbiphenyls in Milk and Rumen Liquor of Stray Cattle in Chennai’
Tamil Nadu Journal of Veterinary and Animal Sciences 6 (2010).
5. Table taken from the USDA Agricultural Research Service Nutrient Data Laboratory.
6. Tatiana Takiishi et al., ‘Vitamin D and Diabetes’, Rheumatic Diseases Clinics of North America 38
(2012): 179–206, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/224822422_Vitamin_D_and_Diabetes.

Chapter 8: The Natural Diet for Human Beings

1. Ann Pierce, ‘Flour: Whole Wheat vs. White’, Pierce Whole Nutrition,
http://piercewholenutrition.blogspot.in/2010/03/flour-whole-wheat-vs-white.html.
2. ‘How much sugar is in Coca-Cola Classic’, coca-cola.co.uk, http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/faq/how-
much-sugar-is-in-coca-cola and Alice G. Walton, ‘How Much Sugar Are Americans Eating?’,
Forbes, https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2012/08/30/how-much-sugar-are-americans-
eating-infographic/#5017a5924ee7.

Chapter 9: Nutrition Facts

1. ‘Milk Composition––Species Table’, Milk Composition and Synthesis Resource Library,
http://ansci.illinois.edu/static/ansc438/Milkcompsynth/milkcomp_table.html and V. Gantner et al.,
‘The overall and fat composition of milk of various species’, Mljekarstvo 65 (2015): 223–31.
2. ‘Calcium and bone Disease’, Notmilk.com, http://www.notmilk.com/deb/092098.txt.
3. John A. McDougall, The McDougall Program for Women (New York: Plume, 2000).
4. John Robbins, The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World
(Berkeley, CA: Conari Press, 2011).
5. Robert Cohen, ‘Milk and Dairy Products Said Prime Cause of Osteoporosis’, Rense.com,
http://rense.com/general10/ost.htm.
6. T. Colin Campbell, Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition (Dallas: BenBella Books, 2013).
Chapter 10: Dairy
1. Benjamin Spock MD, Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care (New York: Pocket Books; 7th edition,
2011).

Chapter 13: Sugar

1. Leon Watson, ‘Up to 25 spoons of sugar in coffee shop drinks’, The Telegraph,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/12160642/Up-to-25-spoons-of-sugar-in-coffee-shop-
drinks.html.

Chapter 23: Handling Stress

1. Neil Nedley, Depression: The Way Out (Oklahoma: Nedley Publishing, 2001).
 THE BEGINNING

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This collection published 2017

Copyright © Dr Nandita Shah 2017
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ISBN: 978-8-184-00708-0
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e-ISBN: 978-9-387-32638-5
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