Month: June 2021

Plant-Based Diets and Your Cholesterol

Susan S. Johnson 5 hours ago

A plant-based diet could benefit your heart in a big way. It might help bring your cholesterol numbers down, along with your chances of getting heart disease someday.

“What’s really cool is that the more plant-based you go, and the more you’re able to embrace vegetarian-style eating, you’re going to get those positive impacts a little bit sooner,” says Libby Mills, a registered dietitian and a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

A plant-based diet can mean you mainly fill up on foods that come from plants but still eat a few foods that come from animals. You

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A Vegetarian’s Guide to Westwood’s Food Scene and Beyond

Susan S. Johnson 23 hours ago

Coming to UCLA as a vegetarian I was not too concerned with the food options available to me. What I wasn’t expecting was the variety of restaurants that offered vegetarian options. These places cover a multitude of cuisines and cultures, giving a picky vegetarian like me the opportunity to diversify my diet. Westwood Village has a lot to offer, but outside the limits of our college town, the West LA vegetarian cuisine is calling your name!

To get more opinions from fellow Bruins, I asked my plant-based Instagram followers to give me some recommendations of restaurants in Westwood or in

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Keep it simple, cheap and healthy with beans — and these recipes

Susan S. Johnson 1 day ago

When I was younger, I never appreciated how lucky I was to spend time with many of my great-grandparents. One of them stands out.

Even in his old age, my great-grandfather Edwin was a bundle of energy. He was healthier than average and lived to be 99. 

I remember how much he aggravated my grandmother, because, just like most people, he wanted to maintain control of his life even as he aged and needed some help. Edwin was no longer driving and my grandmother was buying his groceries. But he insisted on going to the grocery store with her so

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COLUMN: Are plant-based diets a better way to eat? | Free

Susan S. Johnson 2 days ago

Whether it is out of concern for the environment, the treatment of animals or for health reasons, plant-based diets have become increasingly popular. Is it a better way to eat? Some research shows that plant-focused diets like the Mediterranean and vegetarian diets are associated with lowered risk of coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and increased longevity.



Danette Peterson

Danette Peterson


While eliminating animal products from your diet may be more environmentally sustainable and may ease your concerns around cruelty to animals, it does not automatically equal a healthy diet. Here are some things to consider before you embark on

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