"You are what you eat. Choose fruits and vegetables to nourish your body and fuel your energy." ~ Hippocrates
Mom goes in for knee surgery on Monday, so we thought we should talk about a great way to protect your health. Mom has been eating really healthy to be sure she’s strong as she prepares for surgery.
We all have something to say about eating fruits and vegetables, but as usual, we’ll let Ella start.
Ella
I know what you’re thinking – that this is an odd topic for a dog. Many people think dogs are carnivores, but that’s cats. Dogs are omnivores. We eat all kinds of things…including, in my case, things that I really shouldn’t. But, I did know that fruits and vegetables are good for you (there are a few things that dogs really shouldn’t eat, like grapes for example).
Mom made green juice most weekday mornings. She would go into the kitchen and pull out a bunch of vegetables, an apple, and a lime, rinse them, cut them up, and run them through her juicer. As she was prepping everything, she would give me bites of each thing. I liked carrots the most. I would eat celery and sometimes the apple that she gave me (although I preferred the red ones and she always used green apples for making juice). I usually turned down the kale, but later in life, I realized that was pretty good too. When Mala came into the family, she started joining me for this morning ritual. She seemed to like almost all vegetables, except for plain lettuce. Mom called Mala her “veggie girl.” That made me a little jealous, so I started accepting even more vegetables (even those green apples and kale).
Mom, being someone who thinks what you eat is the most important factor for your health, is a big proponent of eating more vegetables. She always says that leafy greens are the vegetable that most people don’t eat enough of and that everyone can use more fiber in their diet. Mom was extra passionate about eating healthy after her heart attack. The doctors wanted her to take pharmaceuticals for the rest of her life to keep her cholesterol extra low to help prevent another heart attack, but she didn’t like that idea. After she read a lot about plant-based diets, she started transitioning away from eating any animal products.
Mom eating more plants meant I also ate more plants. She even put me on vegan dog food for a bit, but I didn’t love it, so she switched me back to regular food. But, she kept eating less and less animal products and eventually was about 99% vegan. She loved the Italian dessert tiramisu, so she would have that every once in a while. I can’t blame her – Italians have the best foods! She stopped taking prescription medicine and managed to keep her cholesterol low enough to be in the least-risk category of having another heart event. I was proud of her for taking care of her body because I wanted her to stick around.
Mala and Tessie
Mom still makes green juice on weekday mornings, and we both like to help. In the summer, Mom composts all of the scraps that come as a result of putting the fruits and veggies through the juicer, but in the winter, she gives most of it to us. We’re good composters. Kale is always the thing that has the most leftover after the juicing process, and we love it! She fills both of our bowls with what she calls the “clippings,” but is technically the fiber.
Mom is still vegan and is always sure to give us bites of the things we like the most - like blueberries and carrots. She thinks it’s funny that one of our favorite things is kale stems. We get Farmers Dog food for our meals now, and while that does have chicken and turkey, it also has vegetables. Mom buys it because she believes it’s healthier for us, but we love it because it tastes good. We both lick our bowls clean at every meal.
We agree with Mom that everyone can benefit from eating more fruits and vegetables. They have a lot of nutrients that your body needs to stay healthy and strong. Fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients, fiber, potassium, and antioxidants that can help you fend off inflammation, lower your blood pressure, and protect your eyes, skin, and most importantly, your heart. It’s best to get nutrients from an actual whole food rather than trying to supplement (that’s what Mom told us). So, our advice – include things like berries, kale, and carrots in your meals. Your body will thank you.
We wish Mom good luck with her surgery and can’t wait until she’s back to doing fun things with us!