Helping Troubled Teens with Veganism: The Link Between Food and Behaviour

June 20, 2006

The Bay Point School for Boys in Miami, Florida

Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, certain cancers — we've all heard how eating meat and dairy can affect our physical health. But what about our mental health? Especially in developing children, can veganism be the answer to perceived behavioural disorders and even low grades in school? One of the only people to have studied this topic, Antonia Demas, PhD, will discuss the surprising results of her month-long study at a school for troubled young males from the streets, and give us the details on her Food is Elementary curriculum that teaches children about food, nutrition, culture, and healthy living, and The Food Studies Institute, devoted to changing the health destinies of children through proper nutrition and education.

Click here to read more about the Bay Point study and journal excerpts from the students.

More about Dr. Demas:
After graduating from Godard College with a B.A. in Community Nutrition, Antonia Demas worked for 20 years in food education before completing a Ph.D. at Cornell University. In 1999, in cooperation with distinguished colleagues dedicated to the improvement of the long-term health and education of children, she founded the Food Studies Institute. Dr. Demas has received national recognition for her research in food studies. In 1994, her food education curriculum won national awards for the Most Creative Implementation of the Dietary Guidelines from the US Department of Agriculture and Excellence in Nutrition Education from the Society for Nutrition Education. In 1999, the curriculum was published as Food is Elementary. Articles by Dr. Demas on the topic of achieving acceptance of healthy, low-fat, meals in schools have been published in New Century Nutrition and the American Journal of Cardiology among others. As a consultant and speaker, Dr. Demas works with schools, non-profit organizations, vegetarian societies, and corporations across the country.

Download mp3s of the interview: part 1 (3.56 MB) and part 2 (2.75 MB)

Tags: Nutrition | Youth

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Dear AV Crew and

Submitted by Breeze Harper (not verified) on Thu, 2006-06-29 11:13.

Dear AV Crew and Antonia,

Thank you so much for doing this! This is a conversation that SO needed to happen. My focus is on food activism in the Black Community. I'm always looking for logical arguments on why "my people" need to seriously consider changing their food habits- eventually towards whole foods or raw food veganism. Antonia, thank you!!!! Also, Laura, thanks for bringing up the question of why Antonia's project is having difficulty finding funding. When you mentioned the Industrial Prison complex as possibly having so much power that they would make it difficult for the FoodProject to find funding, I thought, "Right on, sister! Exactly! You're connecting the dots!" It also made me think of whether Angela Davis, a proponent against prisons, would find Antonia's work interesting- especially since it's so connected to keeping my brown and black brothas out of the judicial system. Perhaps Antonia can somehow contact Angela Davis with her work, and see if Angela can give her project exposure and possible ideas for more funding. Thank you so much for this inspiring interview. I work at www.youthbuild.org and we help youths "find their way" as well. I definitely will ask my organization about the the possibility of me doing a workship with our youths about food and behavior and physical and emotional liberation.

hugs,
Breeze Harper
The Sistah Vegan Project
www.sistahveganproject.com
breezeharper@gmail.com