My good friend Vani Hari (who also lives here in Charlotte, NC) is celebrating the release of her brand new book today! Vani has been blogging as the “Food Babe” since 2011 and has done an incredible job of drawing attention to the unwanted additives commonly found in our food. While my blogging style is quite different from Vani’s, our mission is actually similar in the fact that we’ve both embraced real, wholesome, homemade, organic food and kicked the highly processed stuff to the curb.
What I can tell you about Vani is that she’s one of the most passionate, driven, and courageous people I know. I first met her at the beginning of 2012 after she got my attention with one of her very first investigations. We got together for lunch and discovered we had much more than just our real food blogs in common – and we’ve been great friends ever since. Here we are below with our husbands (Jason and Finley) at my book launch party last August. And now I’m excited to be able to help support Vani with the launch of her very own book today!
The Food Babe Way
I love how Vani’s new book not only tells you what food additives and products to avoid, but also leaves you with a solid plan of what you can eat (recipes included). The Food Babe Way is broken down into these sections:
- Introduction
Here is where you learn why Vani does what she does and how she got here in the first place. Once plagued by sickness, skin issues, and excessive weight gain, she did an incredible amount of research to figure out how to turn her life around. Naturally, her friends and family wanted to know how she pulled off such a transformation (including losing 30 pounds), which spawned the birth of her blog. The catchy moniker is all thanks to her husband. - Part I: Those Tricky Sons of…
This section includes an overview of some of Vani’s most notable food investigations as well as her list of “The Sickening 15” additives and chemicals that should be avoided at all costs. I think anyone who’s never read her blog before might fall off their rocker when reading this section. Also included (and my favorite part of this section) is a list of 10 common “diets” and why Vani thinks they’re flawed. While Vani might be a little more regimented with her eating than me, we’re definitely on the same page that neither of us follow a specific “diet” and instead embrace a lifestyle of eating a variety of whole foods. - Part II: 21 Days of Good Food and Good Habits
In this section Vani walks you through the habits that helped her transform her health (some of which are thanks to her Indian heritage). You follow along by making a series of changes and commitments and come out on the other side with this checklist:
- Part III: The 21-Day Food Babe Way Eating Plan and Recipes
This section is a day-by-day plan of what to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if you want to be a Food Babe – dozens of recipes included. You’ll find that the recipes are light on the meat and heavy on the veggies. I’m constantly reminding myself I could be eating more vegetables so I love Vani’s focus on that one!
What I Think of the Book
The Food Babe Way is very well written and thorough – complete with 9 pages of references in the back! Vani calls herself a consumer investigator and citizen journalist, and she communicates her findings with an impeccable level of detail. For that reason, I do think Part I could be a lot to absorb for those who are just getting started, but the overall message (to not trust Big Food) is not lost. They’re pretty much in it for the bottom line after all, and I love how Vani reinforces what I already know to be true – you must be the one to take charge of your own health. And she gives you the resources to do just that.
As with other leaders who’ve had the courage to stand up to the status quo, along with it come the critics of course. I’ve read many of the (not so tactful, I might add) rebuttals and to be honest I just don’t get it. Nowhere in my mind can I come to terms with all the unnecessary, questionable additives that these multi-billion dollar companies are putting in our food. I think the key word here is “unnecessary” – i.e. added solely to extend shelf life or make a product neon yellow, for example, not to provide any nutritional value whatsoever or make you healthier. And when it comes to my health and the health of my family I’m a girl who likes to exercise caution whenever possible. Not to mention, for me, it’s honestly more about the fact that something like Azodicarbonamide is not a necessary additive when it comes to making bread (because I know I can make it at home with 4 simple ingredients – whole-wheat flour, yeast, salt, and water) than it is about what particular issues may or may not occur when it’s consumed (or in what other products you may find said additive). I don’t think anyone needs a degree in biology or chemistry to figure that one out.
Speaking of additives, I was floored to learn in The Food Babe Way that back in 1958 there were approximately 800 food additives, and today that number has grown to 10,000! And not only that, the FDA has never reviewed the safety of more than 3,000 of these food chemicals and instead allows the manufacturers to do their own testing (whaaat?), not to mention the countless untested combinations of these additives. I’ve seen first hand how some of the food additives used here in the U.S. require warning labels or are outright banned in other countries overseas. So once again, in my desire to exercise caution, these highly processed packaged and fast foods that don’t have my health top of mind are simply not something I’m comfortable consuming – especially because I don’t have to.
Reminiscent of the once “no harm to our health” cigarette industry, I think this movement of getting back to the basics and eating the way our ancestors ate for centuries before us is here to stay, and I thank the Food Babe for playing an important role in helping to get us there!
Where to Buy
You can purchase The Food Babe Way at the following websites and stores:
- For a regular copy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or just about anywhere books are sold
- For a signed copy: Park Road Books
Some Extras…
Quick update added 2/16: I just got word that Vani is extending her preorder bonus for her free Healthy Grocery Guide through this Saturday, February 21st for all purchases! All you have to do is enter your book retailer & order confirmation number on this form. Also, in case you missed it – be sure to check out her video below summarizing her new book. It includes some must-see before pictures before she became the Food Babe. Enjoy!
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Hi and Thank You for all that you do for all of us.
I have a question.
In light of what you have exposed and revealed about the deceit and deception of the food processing and corporate dishonesty displayed,…
How about the KOSHER certification industry? How can you have all of the terrible stuff in the foods and get a pass that a terrible poisonous so called food is Kosher? I know Kosher pertains to clean and unclean animals, but at the same time those “Kosher People” are saying this food so called has “our blessing on it”? Aren’t they to blame just as much as the food processors or more because they are basically saying , “You can trust us because we are more moral than the other bad guys.”
I LOVE your blogging style and your website. I also bought your book and think it is amazing. While I am not a huge fan of food babe, I have learned so much from her. I appreciate that she ( and you) are empowering people to think for themselves and to take a closer look at what is in our food.
Thank you for sticking to your guns Lisa and promoting Vani’s book. Don’t listen to the haters. Some bloggers have a hard time doing just that. I applaud you.
Thank you for that Pamela
I don’t know much about her, but I’ve heard SO MANY bad reviews about her that I think I’ll just stick to your blog. :)
I am so disgusted that you are pushing this voodoo peddler. That’s really the only word I can think of that describes her. I have enjoyed your realistic approach to food – not all or nothing and not preachy -but by hawking this nutjob’s books without realizing how incredibly dangerous she is serious damages any credibility you have.
How is she “dangerous”?
Telling people to watch what they eat OH NO!
LOL!
I read the intro to her book. She is over the top and acts like anyone who disagrees with her view on food is out to kill you.
I agree that Vani’s style is a little more “hard core” than mine, but calling her names, saying she is “dangerous,” and that she thinks those who disagree with her are out to kill you is way over the top.
I am really so disappointed that you continue to promote The Food Babe despite having had so many instances of her misinformation brought to your attention. I love your recipes and your reasonable approach to eating–I was thrilled to find a food blogger who wasn’t advocating something extreme and restrictive and pseudoscientific! I think continuing to promote the Food Babe will really damage your credibility with readers like me, and though it may gain you more followers who are following the fads of pseudoscience in the short term, I had hoped you had more integrity than that.
Kayla – I appreciate your feedback, but I’m not trying to gain or lose followers by promoting Food Babe. I simply agree with her mission to help change the Food Industry for the better. It’s that simple.
I used to follow Vani but slowly she became so over the top and some of her info was obviously false or misrepresented. I politely posted during the time when she was going after Starbucks that Starbucks is a large employer across the country and they are choosing to use additives that the FDA and scientists say are safe. If they are truly not safe then go after the FDA not the employer as it can take away jobs for many people in this country if sales decline. Then she banned me and I lost all respect for her. Frankly I am hugely disappointed you are still pushing her.
The chemical additives ARE over the top.
That’s why the information is so unbelievable.
Being torn out of you comfort zone seems to disturb you…
I’m sorry you were banned Heather, but I do want to share that it’s MUCH harder to get the FDA to make a big change than it is to get a food company to change one ingredient or one additive. Baby steps in the right direction is the only thing that’s working right now and Food Babe has done a good job of drawing attention to these small, realistic changes for the better. She is not trying to make Starbucks go out of business so people lose jobs – she just wants them to clean up their ingredients. It’s really that simple.
Lisa, Vani was asking Starbucks to carry organic milk. Of course, they didn’t give in (that change would cost them a FORTUNE) but they did announce that they were phasing out caramel coloring. AFAIK, removing caramel coloring wasn’t part of Vani’s petition, but she took credit for it anyway.
It is sort of sad that Critical Reader couldn’t share his or her name with us when dumping so heavily on Vani.
I am not dumping cluelessly on Vani Hari. All (or at least most) I am doing is presenting facts.
Fact is, BHT as a food additive and as an additive in food packaging is not banned in the EU and several other countries. Fact is, BHT used in packaging does not have to be listed as an ingredient in the EU. Fact is, we do not know whether the European version of the cereals at question differ from the US versions. Fact is, Vani Hari deleted a post of mine with the above information – I did not take a screen shot, so you have to take my word for that – which I interpret the following: she does not want her readers to know those facts and thousands of people signed an online petition based on Vani Hari’s misleading statements.
Vani Hari’s blog acquires more than enough money to afford lab testing. She could have sent boxes from the US and boxes from the EU to an independent lab for testing before writing the article. That way her readers could have been provided with the following information: (1) is BHT also used in Europe or only in the US and – more importantly – (2) how much BHT is actually leaching from the packaging into the cereals.
Fact is, Vani Hari promoted cosmetics that contain BHT. Details can be found here: https://badscidebunked.wordpress.com/2015/02/06/why-is-food-babe-selling-a-product-with-bht/
Fact is, Lisa Leake is on the advisory board of Applegate and she recommends their “naturally cured” meats. Fact is also, that naturally cured meats are banned in Europe due to the precautionary principle. Fact is, Vani Hari promotes chia Seeds. Fact is, that due to the precautionary principle chia seeds need to carry a warning sign in Europe. Fact is, neither Lisa Leake nor Vani Hari have ever told you readers about the concerns the Europeans have with these products. I personally consider both products as safe, I just wanted to point out that some additive/food being banned somewhere does not say too much and that food activists tend to use the ‘its-banned-in-Europe-argument” at their convenience.
I don’t care what your personal believes are. If you believe that micro-waved water forms Hitler-crystals and airlines are cheating on you by not pumping 100 % oxygen in the cabin, that GMOs and additives are responsible for all the evils of this world – that is all fine for me. Do what ever makes you happy. But I have a problem when somebody wants to install his own believes on others. And I have even more so of a problem if somebody uses lies and distorted facts to convince people. And for that very reason Vani Hari has gotten under attack by large parts of the science community and lay people with common sense.
BTW, I am speaking here as an ordinary private person; I am not paid by the food or any other industry. I don’t want to convince people, I just want people to start thinking and ask questions.
As a EU citizen and a former lobbyist, I can only say dear “Critical Reader” that you are sadly misinformed.
Attack the messenger all day if you want.
No person is perfect – or are you perfect?
Eat up if you want to believe Vani and others like her are just lying.
No one is stopping you.
But ad hominem attacks reveal you for all to see.
Have a nice life!
I am by no means perfect ;-) I do not attack the messenger, I attack the message. I accuse Ms Vani Hari of lying and distorting facts, that is true. Besides that, I do not have a problem with her having no official training in nutrition, medicine, biology, toxicology, food sciences, or any other area she is frequently writing about.
And I am always eager to learn – please tell me where I am wrong.
I actually consider the work of activists an important one to keep food companies in bay. But Vani Hari’s strategy of singling out scary sounding ingredients is only good for her bank account but not for the average consumer.
Critical Reader – This is where you have Vani so wrong. I’ve known her since (almost) the beginning and fully understand her strategy of singling out ingredients and her true passion behind her work. You can’t go in and ask huge companies to make dramatic changes and expect to get anywhere. But you can start small by asking them to remove 1 or 2 additives and go from there. Change has to start somewhere, and I do believe this is the best strategy.
It also frustrates me that Vani’s critics constantly talk about how much money her site must be making. Money is not what’s driving Vani’s work (I know her well and this is a FACT), but she should not be penalized for having a smart head on her shoulders and knowing a good business idea when she sees one. I commend her – rather than fault her – for turning her passion into a lucrative business. And again, because I know her personally, I can assure you her heart is most definitely in the right place.
Lisa, I think the main issue ppl. have with Vani is that she shuts down opportunity for dialogue by banning ppl. from her facebook page or deleting comments that disagree with her blog posts instead of addressing them. Vani claims that anyone who disagrees with her is a paid shill (while she was on her starbucks campaign she claimed ppl. were being paid 60 cents per post to post against her campaign- I mean really??? Does she think she can say stuff like that and get away with it??) It also bothers me that when Vani goes on a campaign, she frames whatever ingredient she wants removed as dangerous/deadly when it usually isn’t (azodicarbonamide is banned due to danger to factory workers handling large amounts of it, not because it’s dangerous, there is no anti-freeze in beer, it’s a different similar sounding chemical). This leads to ppl. mocking her campaigns because some of them are really silly. The fact that she made some really silly mistakes on some of her blog posts (her traveling one immediately comes to mind) and just tried to delete it instead of owning up to it and saying I made a mistake, just makes her look more ridiculous (after a huge backlash, she recently said she would add a corrections feature on her site, I haven’t seen that it’s up to date).
I did read the intro to her book in Target and the way she frames the food industry as the devil who is out to kill you is just over the top. If she wants her message to get out to the mainstream world, she has to stop attacking or banning ppl. who disagree with her and instead address their questions and concerns.
I really don’t think that it’s a good idea that she’s posting against drinking the glucose drink before the GD test and touting raw formula. This type of advice can endanger others and when she’s giving dangerous advice on a public platform, ppl. will speak up. (I understand that some doctors are okay with moms drinking or eating something sugary instead of the glucose drink and Vani could have advised that pregnant women ask their doctor about an alternative instead of posting how toxic the glucose drink is).
I think voting with your dollars and your feet will force companies to change more than any petition Nestle just announced they’re removing artificial dyes due to consumer interest. Many companies are phasing out high fructose corn syrup. This is being done because food companies are out for their bottom line. If clean ingredient lists are what sells, that’s what food companies will produce.
Many companies have begun manufacturing and touting products with short, clean ingredients. I’m sure that your blog had something to do with that new trend.
Anyway, I LOVE your blog Lisa. Can you write another book?
It is true, in my opinion a food activist should not accept money from the same industry she is supposed to keep an eye. But the financial aspect was not a major point of my posts above. The problem I have with Vani Hari is, that she does not hesitate to lie to sell her case and that she bans everybody not in agreement with her activities.
Lisa, I would really like to have a civilized conversation about an issue I think is very important and I would also like to invite Vani Hari to that conversation – I can’t have that conversation on Vani Hari’s page because I am banned. Even if I assume that Vani Hari has her heart at the right place and that she is convinced of doing the right thing for the greater good, does that justify lying and cheating? It is clear, that BHT in the amounts used as a food additive is not dangerous, it is not banned in Europe and many other countries and that most likely it is also used in European cereal boxes (let me know if you don’t agree with me and I’ll provide you some further explanations and references). Vani Hari knows that, but nonetheless she tells that lie to her readers. You helped spreading those lies on you Facebook page and jumped to Vani Hari’s defense with the argument that US Americans deserve what other countries already have. I don’t know whether you knew about Vani Hari’s lies or if you were her pawn too.
So again, Vani Hari, why did you lie to your readers? Lisa, why did you help to spread the lie? To both of you, why did posts of mine trying to explain the above got deleted? To all, is it okay to lie to readers and blackmail companies to achieve the removal of an ingredient?
This new post from Vani might help answer some of your questions: http://foodbabe.com/2015/03/15/response-to-ny-times/ and this one as well http://foodbabe.com/2014/12/06/food-babe-critics/
Thanks for the links, but they did not answer my questions.
Food Babe writes that she only removes comments which are sexist, from organized campaigns to harass her etc. She writes. My comment about BHT not being banned in Europe was removed. Why? Was that sexist? Or does it fall under the category “organized harassment”? Did 6000+ people all post abusive comments?
Her writing also does not explain why she is lying. BHT, silly putty chemical, beaver butt, caramel coloring, artificial food dyes – those additives are all perfectly legal to be used in the EU. Food Babe knows that, but she prefers to bend the truth a little bit to sell her case. And nobody (expect the 6000+ banned people on Facebook and many academics) take the time to check facts. But we are the evil ones? And we are all part of an organized scheme to harass her?
She claims that all of the prominent scientists criticizing her have a conflict of interest. I don’t know all the people she mentions in her recent post, but I follow Kevin Folta’s blog. He is a tenure-tracked professor at the University of Florida. He gets a salary from the state of Florida and does not have to acquire income from blogging or giving talks. For that reason, I consider him an independent source of information. He is a great science communicator, and his worst offense in terms of industry connection is that he was writing an article for an industry funded webpage. His industry connection is currently investigated by an activist group in California (for details see his blog). I hope that Food Babe & Co are going to publish the results of this investigation.
So, again I have the same questions to Vani Hari: Why did you ban me? And why are you lying? And most importantly, why do you avoid conversations and discussions like the plague?
Why would a name make a difference in her message? Her comment and subsequent response to you is spot on. I looked at her blog occasionally. I remember a blog that contained a citation from a doctor’s publication. In the comments that doctor asked her to remove any reference to her work as she was taking information out of context and her article didn’t support Hari’s claims. I looked the following day to see if it was corrected. Not only was the citation taken out (with no comment that it was ever there…which legitimately should be noted at the end of the publication), but the doctor’s comment was also removed. No evidence that she misrepresented a scientific study. Ethical?
@Katherine Bates… I think you misunderstood the email Food Babe sent out. She wants readers to go back and give an HONEST review AFTER you’ve read the book. I’m sure she can respect an HONEST negative review but the negative reviews that were being posted on the SAME DAY it was released were not true honest reviews, they were made up without reading the book by people that are against her, their only objective being to discredit her. She was just asking that you post honest reviews after you read the book to detract from the haters.
If you look at the 5 star reviews, most don’t appear to be honest (I haven’t seen an honest negative review so far either). Most of the reviewers seem to have not even bought/read the book.
I really hate how Vani is acting like Big Food is paying pp. to write negative reviews. The negative reviews, even the dishonest ones, are coming from people who are tired of the dishonest tactics she uses in her “fight” against “big food”.
Thanks Yvonne – I didn’t get that intent in her email. I was just amazed that over 1100 people read her book on the first day it was released and gave it 5 stars. Maybe she gave out that many books beforehand. I rely heavily on reviews for the books I read and products I buy. Thanks!
While I appreciate some of Vani Hari’s information (the Kraft Mac and Cheese was a good one), I find her somewhat sanctimonious and not living in the real world of working, having kids and a life outside of food. That being said, up until today, I received her emails and followed her on FB. I just requested to be taken off as I was totally offended by her email request to post an honest review of her book because others were posting negative reviews. Toughen up, it comes with the territory and as someone who truly values reviews, especially book reviews, don’t ask people to post an honest review on the day your book comes out. Skewing reviews does not make you look like you are a purveyor of honest information. It should stand alone and make the negative reviewers look bad. I will continue to follow you (and LOVE your cookbook – but haven’t posted a review!)
I agree with you 100% Lisa. Her book really empowers you to take control of your own health. It inspires you to do your own research. If we have learned anything from Vani’s investigations it should be that companies and corporations are in business to make money, not to take care of your health. Only YOU are in charge of that.
That’s right Frank – you got it! :)
I am not a fan of Vani Hari. Vani Hari is misleading her readers and she is actively lying to them. Let’s take her latest “investigation” about BHT in breakfast cereals, in which she claims the following:
1. BHT is banned in other countries (she does not tell in which country, but implies it is Europe) and therefore it should also been banned in the US.
2. Companies like Kellogg’s and General Mills do not use this ingredient in cereals in other countries.
3. BHT is not proven safe.
My response to the above statements:
1. BHT is not banned in the European Union. Food additives are regulated in EU regulation No. 1133/2008 and allowed food additives are listed in Annex III . That regulation applies to the 28 EU member states, as well as Norway and Iceland. I have also checked Switzerland, Australia, Japan and Canada – BHT is not banned there either.
2. It is unknown whether BHT is used in the European versions of the cereals. BHT used in packaging liners is considered a processing aid and not an ingredient. Processing aids do not need to be listed (Art. 6 Nr. 4 c ii Directive 2000/13/EC).
3. In 2012, the EFSA reevaluated the safety of BHT and came to the conclusion that in the amounts used there are no safety concerns.
To summarize, all of Vani Hari’s claims are bogus. I posted on her homepage, that BHT is neither banned in the EU nor would require to be listed as an ingredient under the given circumstance – my comment was deleted. This proofs that she is willfully lying and does not want her army to know that important piece of information. The scary part is, that within a couple of days several thousand people signed an online petition – blindly following their leader without questioning her claims and without being given the chance to read the input of other people as any comment not in agreement with Vani Hari’s point of view falls victim to the ban hammer. And you, Lisa, also jumped into action on Facebook and supported the petition without ever questioning Vani Hari’s claims. You argue that you deserve the same as the Europeans without even knowing whether BHT is used over there or not.
Ironically, Vani Hari was shortly after caught for selling cosmetics containing the same evil ingredient she is now petitioning against. She first vehemently denied that BHT is in her promoted products and when the company confirmed the use BHT she quietly removed the products from her list – no explanation, no word of apology and more importantly, no word of warning to those people who have already bought it.
Do you need to be a trained food scientist, biologist, nutritionist, etc. to see what is wrong with our food supply? Yes and no. No, because with some basic scientific knowledge, curiosity and common sense you can learn a lot. Yes, because you can only get so far with “desktop research” and at some point it is crucial that you have been involved in that area for a while. Otherwise, any kind of education or training would be superfluous. I rather have an actual medical professional perform a surgery on me, a trained mechanic fix my car and so on. Food supply covers a wide area and no single person alone is an expert in every aspect. Whenever Vani Hari is writing about something I have some in depth knowledge about, I have to say that 80 % of her writing is junk and 20 % is true. And for the lay person it is very difficult so separate the junk from the truth.
“Eating the way our ancestors ate for centuries” – I doubt my ancestors started their day with lemon-cayenne-water, chewed green juices, indulged chia seeds and other super foods, knew what coconut water and coconut milk was. As middle-Europeans they did not have access to Asian fermented food, egg plants, sweet potatoes and so on. And yeast and baking powder was also not known until the mean biologists and chemists came along. With the exception of the last 60 years my ancestors most likely had a hard time to get enough food on the table to survive at all. I rather stick with our modern food supply.
A final word to the one argument you are using over an over again: if an ingredient/additive either needs a warning label or is outright banned in another country, it must be entirely dangerous. I understand, that it sounds scary at first sight and that US Americans want to be treated equally. However, you have to admit that both Vani Hari and you use that argument whenever it is convenient for you – otherwise you cast a veil of silence over it. Or have you ever told your readers that “naturally” cured meats are banned in Europe? Or did Vani Hari ever mention that the chia seeds she promotes and receives a commission from need to carry a warning sign in Europe?
Spot on post! Thank you for providing a thorough and educated post in response to what is being falsely fed to thousands of people. Thankfully there are not degrees in google research although you would think this was the case these days with so many “experts” out there. :/
I find value in Lisa’s blog here but I don’t with Vani’s preaching about topics she’s not familiar with, as they pertain to science and chemistry.
I am SO disappointed that you are standing by this post! Not taking in what smart people are saying is no different than the ignorance of those anti-vaxxers…
I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I most certainly don’t expect to please everyone 100% of the time. You can count on me to always be honest though in the information I share (even if it isn’t the most popular thing to do).
I recently watched Fed Up and they show clips of Big Tobacco back in the day claiming cigarettes are not harmful. Then they show the cola companies talking about how the human body needs X amount of liquid and how soda can help fulfill that need. Really? Who believes this stuff? Along with the misconception that the FDA protects us… Oy!
I agree – the Food Industry is on a very similar path! At one point one of the biggest cigarette companies (Philip Morris) even owned Kraft Foods so there’s another big red flag for us: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=88088
I respect Vani for all she does – trying to help Americans eat healthier. I respect you, Lisa, for standing your ground and supporting your friend and smth you truly believe in, most importantly. Coming from another country I first hand know myself how many unnecessary chemicals are in American food stream. So, I don’t need convincing. Lastly, haters always will be haters. Stand your ground and be true to who you are! As my blog grew I started to experience waves of very unpleasant emails and comments as soon as I express opinion about particular food item. Oh well, part of the deal I guess.:) I mentioned Vani’s book in today’s post on my blog with great pleasure!
You are one tough cookie to be able to deal with the negative comments on FB. I’m certain you were expecting them since you withstand criticism every time you mention Vani. The fact that you stood your ground on what you believe and wrote the post anyway only makes me admire your integrity even more. I saw you mentioning your friendship as being transparent. Please keep in mind the minimal number of critics commenting compared to your total number of followers. Truth be told, you and Vani are both leaders, but you lead in different ways. You are a gentle hand holder who leads with kindness and sometimes Vani is more of the friend who tells it like it is and gives you the tough love when you need it. Everyone can hear your kindness because it allows them to feel good about any little change they make. It validates people. On the contrary, not everybody can take the tough love. It makes people look at the small changes they have made in the context of all the changes they should probably be working towards. I like both styles and since I don’t look for validation from either of you, but from myself, I can hear both styles without getting offended. It’s alarming to me that people could think that anyone could take on food companies without being assertive and blunt. Anyway, I appreciated your opinion of the book and will be putting it on reserve at my library. You two ladies are both a lot stronger than I would be with people hurling insults at me. I admire you!
I appreciate that a lot Missy. You are right – I expected the negativity, but decided that not posting about her book because of that potential feedback would be cowardly. And to be honest, the comments aren’t bothering me all that much this evening because I stand behind my post 100%. I always try to be completely honest here on my blog even if that means not appeasing everyone. I’m thankful that you can stand back and see how Vani and I go about our similar missions in different ways and that’s okay.
I think that what you do comes from a good place in BOTH of you and I’m glad you are able to brush it off… I was genuinely feeling hurt for you! And can I also just say that people often get intimidated when someone has the ability to stand their ground. Vani stands hers like a champ, so she always gets criticism. When you stood yours tonight, someone actually said you were being snarky to your followers. I think it is a reflection of something going on inside them, not a reflection of you. Keep up the good work :)
I agree! :) Very well said, both of you ladies (Missy and Lisa)
:-)
I too avoid any additives when possible, but I dislike how Vani uses fear to argue against an additive (ex. if you do research azodicarbonamide is banned in other countries because of danger to factory workers who would handle the product not because it’s dangerous to eat in small amounts in bread). I prefer Lisa’s style of just saying she avoids products that aren’t real food since we don’t know the long lasting effects of all additives and they aren’t necessary Vani’s way of writing really turns me off from healthy eating so I won’t be purchasing her book. I love your blog Lisa and hope you’ll write another cookbook :) You changed the way I eat through simple, logical baby steps.
Leila, you put it so well! I too try and eat healthy, whole foods and try and limit the amount of processed foods in my and my families diet. But when I would read Vani’s blog, it seemed like pretty much everything that isn’t organic or whatever is pure poison. I was sceptical at first but liked some of her recipes (though I didn’t bother with organic or grass-fed anything), however when I read her post encouraging pregnant women to skip their glucose test because of “chemicals” in the syrup that they need to take, I realized that her advice is completely misguided and stopped reading.
Yes, I too am turned off by her style of being overly dramatic and not entirely truthful in order to instill fear. When she started in on vaccines, I stopped reading her stuff. She has lost credibility with me.
Thank you Lisa for the review, it definitely gives me a good idea of what to expect from the book. Most of all, though, thank you for all that you do each and every day to inspire others to make positive changes in their lives. Very grateful for all that I have learned from you and I appreciate your realistic, balanced approach to real food – it keeps me sane when trying to keep up with the “real food world”!
You are so sweet – you are most welcome! :)
I see the trolls are out on Facebook. Lol. My copy is on its way can’t wait to read it. I’m thankful for both of you and your different styles of spreading the word about processed “food”.
My copy is coming today and I can’t wait, but darn it that I’m one of my UPS guy’s last stops of the day. Patience is a virtue. ;-)
Very well written, thank you! I order mine on Thursday and my daughter is looking forward to reading it as well. We remember how we used to be on antibiotics every other month (that was normal or us) and we are grateful for how real food has changed our lives.
Looking forward to reading her book… Lisa I too live in Charlotte and was wondering where you get your meats from?
We get most of it from Matthews Farmers’ Market! :)
wow, that list is really intimidating!!!!!!!
Each item comes with several pages of explanation. If it seems like too much I’d recommend taking 1 week (instead of 1 day) to adopt each new habit.