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World's "poorest president" gives 90% of his salary to charities

Wednesday, December 18, 2013 by: Antonia

(NaturalNews.com) In a world often caught up in brand names and an obsession for luxurious excess, you'd think that a man earning approximately 12,500 U.S. dollars per month would be in his glory. Such a man does exist, yet he's not emerging from imported cars while wearing tailored suits as he talks about his elaborate vacation. Instead, he favors a 1987 Volkswagen, lives in a one-bedroom farmhouse with his wife, owns a three-legged dog and enjoys donating about 90% of his hefty salary to local charities. Rather than live in the three-story palace that is rightfully his, he prefers it to be used as a homeless shelter.

Oh, and he's also the president of Uruguay, where the government establishes set pricing for essentials, such as certain foods, and also gives free education and computers to all children.

About Jose Mujica, president of "an island of refugees in a world of crazy people"

Jose Mujica, dubbed the "world's poorest president" for his significant contributions to the needy, considers himself anything but. "I'm not the poorest president. The poorest is the one who needs a lot to live," he said.

Mujica knows about hard times. He was once a member of a guerrilla "Robin Hood" group, known for its robberies and giving stolen food to the poor. He was shot a half dozen times and has spent almost 15 years behind bars. But since becoming the president of Uruguay in 2010, he's won people over worldwide.

These days, he's applauded for highly sensible thoughts and actions in a world that tends to embrace just the opposite. In fact, he refers to Urugay as "an island of refugees in a world of crazy people." His low-key lifestyle, environmental efforts, same-sex marriage beliefs and charitable tendencies invigorate him and the people. Adding to his popularity is the fact that, under his leadership, cannabis has been legalized in Uruguay.

A president "opposed to waste - of energy, or resources, or time"

Regarding the environment, he says, "I am trying to expand consumption but to diminish unnecessary consumption" adding that he is "opposed to waste - of energy, or resources, or time. We need to build things that last. That's an ideal, but it may not be realistic because we live in an age of accumulation."

He draws parallels to ways of living, wealth and the environment, saying, "We can almost recycle everything now. If we lived within our means, by being prudent, the 7 billion people in the world could have everything they needed. Global politics should be moving in that direction," he said. "But we think as people and countries, not as a species."

In a world of greed and corruption, he may be on to something big. In other parts of the world, ahem, presidents are known for lavish, lengthy family vacations costing upwards of $8 million, in addition to the cost of reserving nearly 100 rooms (at several hundred dollars a pop) for Secret Service.

After reading stories about Mujica online, Elsa Lopez of Chandler, Arizona, said it best in the "comments" section. "Can we get this guy to rule the U.S.?" Lopez asks. In response, another reader replied more enthusiastically, saying, "Can we get this guy to rule the world?"


About the author:
A science enthusiast with a keen interest in health nutrition, Antonia has been intensely researching various dieting routines for several years now, weighing their highs and their lows, to bring readers the most interesting info and news in the field. While she is very excited about a high raw diet, she likes to keep a fair and balanced approach towards non-raw methods of food preparation as well.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #12
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Warning! Soup Alert! You are Entering The Comfort Zone By Kurma Dasa                   C from Ohio USA writes: "Do you have a recipe for a barley vegetable soup?" My reply: "Not exactly. But I do have this one that has an assortment of dried beans, including barley. It's one of the first recipes I ever wrote and tested, way back in the late '80's. I also like to add a tiny handful of rice or risoni pasta towards the end of cooking, or some broken vermicelli. It's very adaptable. Add any vegetables you like. Sliced pepperoncini is nice. If I was having this now I would add a big handful of fresh basil leaves and drizzle some rich green extra virgin olive oil over the top. Oh, and gratings of my kosher parmesan. The photo above has fresh baby broadbeans as well. Where's that crusty bread?" Vegetable Soup This traditional homestyle soup is a nutritious meal in itself. The whole grains are rich in iron, B vitamins, and protein; the vegetables are rich in A and C vitamins. Serve the soup with bread and salad. Serves 4 - 6 persons. 1/4 cup kidney beans 1/4 cup yellow split peas 1/4 cup split mung beans 1/4 cup pearl barley 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, or olive oil 3/4 teaspoon yellow asafoetida powder 1 medium carrot, diced 1 medium celery stalk (with leaves), diced 1 medium potato, scrubbed and diced 1/2 medium turnip, diced 1 medium tomato, peeled and diced 2 litres/8 cups water 1/2 teaspoon mixed dried herbs, or fresh herbs of your choice 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 2 teaspoons salt 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley, or any fresh herbs of choice Soak the beans, split peas and barley in water for minimum 4 hours, preferably overnight. Melt the butter in a 6-litre/quart saucepan over moderate heat. Add the asafoetida and fry momentarily. Add the carrots, celery, potatoes and turnips and saute for 5 minutes. Add the water, the drained pre-soaked beans, the herbs, and the pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer for at least 1 hour or until all ingredients are tender. Add the tomatoes, cook 15 minutes more, season with salt, pepper and parsley and serve in pre-warmed soup bowls.

Love that Laksa! By Kurma Dasa                 Frankie from Syracuse NY USA writes: "Hiya Kurma, I've been up all night reading your blog and website. Awesome stuff! I was wondering if you have a vegi laksa in your collection. I tasted a laksa the other day and it was aweful. I am sure you can do better. Love, Frankie." My reply: "Hello Frankie, thanks for your encouraging words! Yes I do have a laksa recipe. It's a magnificent one. There's a bit of work involved, but it's worth the effort. Here it is:                 Curried Malay Noodles (Laksa) Laksa is a taste sensation—a delicious one-pot soupy combination of mild, chili-hot, rich, aromatic and delicate flavours, and a tantalising combination of crunchy, soft and milky textures. There are many versions of laksa served throughout the Malaysian peninsula. This is my hearty vegetarian version. Serves 6-8 persons. The curry 1 cup liquid tamarind puree 1 cup stringless beans or snake beans cut 2.5cm lengths 400g fried small tofu pouches 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 1 tablespoon coriander seeds 5 or 6 large dried red chilies 3 tablespoons oil one 5cm cube fresh peeled ginger one 2.5cm cube fresh peeled galangal finely sliced white inner stems of 2 or 3 stalks of lemon grass 1½ teaspoons yellow asafetida powder 5-6 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped 2 tablespoons Malay curry powder 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 cups potatoes, cubed 1½ cups carrots, sliced 2 cups rich vegetable stock 2-3 tablespoons palm sugar 2 teaspoons salt 4 cups coconut milk or coconut cream The noodles 1kg fresh rice noodles, or 350g dried rice vermicelli The garnish 2 cups bean sprouts 2 small seedless green cucumbers, unpeeled, cut into matchstick strips 1 small bunch laksa leaves (Vietnamese Mint) finely shredded coarsely ground black pepper lime or lemon wedges sambal oelek (optional) To prepare the curry: Place the beans and a little water in a small saucepan and steam the beans for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain and set the beans aside. Dry-roast the cumin seeds, coriander seeds and dried chilies in a small saucepan or non-stick frying pan over moderately low heat for 5 minutes or until fragrant and slightly dark. Place the spices in a spice mill or coffee grinder and grind them to a powder. Set the powder aside. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over moderate heat. When hot, add the shredded ginger and galangal. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until opaque and fragrant. Add the sliced lemon grass, fry for another minute, or until fragrant. Sprinkle in the yellow asafetida powder, fry momentarily then add the tomatoes. Stirring occasionally, cook the tomatoes for 5 to 10 minutes, or until they are soft and broken down, and the oil is visible. Add the dry-roasted powdered spices, the curry powder, black pepper, potato, carrot and vegetable stock. Stir to combine. Cover with the lid, bring to the boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 to 15minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. While the curry is cooking, cook the noodles briefly in lightly salted boiling water, or according to directions. Drain and keep hot. Add the tamarind puree to the simmering curry, then add the cooked beans, the sugar, salt, fried tofu, and the coconut milk. Allow the mixture to almost return to the boil, then remove the saucepan from the heat. To assemble the laksa: Scoop a large handful of hot noodles into each individual pre-warmed serving bowl. Ladle on the curry. Garnish with bean sprouts, cucumber, shredded laksa leaves, and black pepper. Serve with wedges of lime and optional sambal oelek.

Top 10 ways to Boost Energy Throughout the Day (Without Resorting to Caffeine or Sugar)

By: Carolanne Wright Natural News on Dec. 2, 2013

Photo Credits: www.freefever.com

Sunshine is one of the best energy boosters.

We seem to be suffering from an extreme energy crisis in the West, namely, day-to-day chronic fatigue. With fast-paced lifestyles, sometimes it appears that coffee and sugar are an absolute necessity just to get though the day. But there's hope. We can ditch the artificial stimulants and instead cultivate true vitality with a few easy (and free) methods.

Simple tips for more zest

Do you ever dream of having plenty of energy? The reality for most is that we drag ourselves around, collapsing into bed at the end of the day for a fitful night of poor sleep. If this scenario sounds familiar, have a look at the following recommendations. Adopting one or more might just help break the fatigue cycle once and for all.
Humor - Laughter really is the best medicine when it comes to boosting energy. Blood pressure and oxygen utilization are improved with a hearty belly laugh, which in turn perks up your day.
Gratitude - Upon waking, focus for a few minutes on all the good things in life. This positive infusion will start the day on the right foot and reduce fatigue-promoting stress.
Sunlight - While most of us tend to spend much of our lives under artificial lighting, 10 minutes or so of natural sunlight can make a world of difference in energy levels. Even sitting by a sunny window will help.
Warm up - When we are cold, the body takes this as a signal to sleep. If you are feeling chilly, throw on extra clothing or increase the heat.
Get moving - Exercise is one of the finest ways to avoid fatigue. Studies have shown that brisk movement in the morning maintains energy levels throughout the day - for up to nine hours.
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/043095_boost_energy_chronic_fatigue_caffeine.html#ixzz2mK33SLZh

Paul McCartney tells Dalai Lama he’s wrong to eat meat

December 16, 2008, By Celebitchy

Paul McCartney has written a personal letter to His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the spiritual and political leader of Tibetan Buddhism, urging him not to eat meat. Buddhists believe in reincarnation and in compassion for all living beings. One of the five precepts of Buddhism is “do not kill,” which is explained “One must not deliberately kill any living creatures, either by committing the act oneself, instructing others to kill, or approving of or participating in act of killing.” Buddhism does allow for personal choice and exceptions when it comes to the precepts, and they are not set in stone, but many Buddhists interpret that precept as a call to vegetarianism.

The Dalai Lama, however, continues to eat meat at the insistence of his doctors. Paul McCartney told him that they’re wrong and he doesn’t need meat, which inevitably causes suffering:

SIR PAUL MCCARTNEY tried to turn the DALAI LAMA vegetarian, insisting the famed Buddhist was “wrong” to eat meat.
The Beatles legend wrote to the spiritual leader to point out that meat-eaters contribute to the suffering of animals, contradicting his statement that Buddhists “believe in not causing suffering to any sentient beings”.
And the Hey Jude hitmaker even disagreed when the Dalai Lama insisted he ate meat for health reasons.
In an interview with Prospect magazine, McCartney says, “I found out he was not a vegetarian, so I wrote to him saying ‘Forgive me for pointing this out, but if you eat animals then there is some suffering somewhere along the line’.
“He replied saying that his doctors had told him he needed it, so I wrote back saying they were wrong.”

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #11
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #10
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Discover The `Super Food Power` of Turmeric

By: Dr. David Jockers Natural News on Feb. 25, 2011

Photo Credits: healthmad.com

Foods that have an incredible array of health benefits that go well beyond just their nutrient value are considered `super-foods.` Turmeric is an herb native to Southeast Asia that is a true super-food shown to have remarkable healing and anti-inflammatory properties that are just now being discovered.

Cellular inflammation is a common day epidemic that is it is the fundamental cause of degenerative disease in our society. Turmeric has been shown to reduce inflammation & oxidative stress as well as any herbal medicinal ever studied.

Turmeric root is extraordinarily rich in curcuminoid polyphenol anti-oxidants that give it a classic yellow-orange color. The principal crucuminoid is curcumin which is responsible for much of the health benefits attributed to turmeric. The other 2 curcuminoids are desmethoxycurcumin and bis-desmethoxycurcumin.

Blood sugar imbalances and insulin resistant cell membranes are critical factors that promote inflammatory conditions in the body. Curcumin has been shown to stabilize blood sugar and reverse cellular insulin resistance by increasing the number of insulin receptors and improving the receptor binding capacity to insulin.

Curcumin has been shown to activate PPAR (peroxisome proliferator-activator receptor), which is a group of nuclear receptor proteins that regulate gene expression and modulate sugar uptake and utilization from the blood. Curcumin also acts on the liver to decrease the activity of enzymes that release sugar into the blood while increasing activity of enzymes that store sugar. Through these mechanisms, curcumin has been shown to significantly reduce blood glucose and triglyceride levels in diabetic rats.

When blood sugar imbalances occur without sufficient regulation, glucose cross-links are formed with functional proteins. These new molecules are called Advanced Glycolytic Enzymes (AGE`S) that damage cell membranes, vital enzyme systems, and perpetuate inflammatory conditions in the body. Curcumin has been shown to inhibit the formation of these dangerous substances and turn off the inflammatory fires.

Turmeric is the 4th highest anti-oxidant rich herb with an extraordinarily impressive ORAC score of 159,277. These anti-oxidants such as curcumin are very powerful modulators of oxidative stress.

Turmeric also boosts levels of natural cellular anti-oxidants such as glutathione, superoxide dismutase, and catalase. These molecules are critical for the body to limit oxidative stress all day long. The greater the surplus of cellular anti-oxidants the less stress and damage occurs to vital organ systems.

Turmeric`s powerful curcuminoids have been shown to reduce the inflammatory mediating prostaglandins, cytokines and other molecules such as interleukin-6 & tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). This tips the scales; it pulls the body out of an inflammatory cascade and promotes anti-inflammatory behavior at the cellular level.


Learn more: http://www.NaturalNews.com/031461_turmeric_superfood.html#ixzz1F0WTlc9h

 

Disclaimer

The articles and information are responsible by the author and don’t represent the views, statements and opinions of Food for Peace, and such  information is intended only as a general reference for further exploration, and is not a replacement for professional health advice. Accordingly, only use this information under the direct supervision of a qualified health practitioner such as a naturopathic physician.

Food for Peace Directors.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #9
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #8
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

PLEASE DONATE 

Please send your donation, cheque or money order to

Food for Peace Society of Calgary

P.O. Box 90008 Madigan RPO

Calgary, Alberta, T2A 7Y8

We will send a receipt for taxes purposes for donation of $20.00 or greater.

If you want to sponsor or donate one meal please contact us at

foodforpeace-calgary@hotmail.com

Please visit us on facebook/foodforpeace-calgary or at

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Fresh Mango Chutney by Kurma Das

Fresh Mango Chutney This simple fresh uncooked chutney takes just minutes to prepare, and less time than that to eat. The lime juice brings out all that mango sweetness, with a little bite of chili. The curry leaves add an elusive savoury hint. Kaffir lime leaves and Vietnamese mint adds yet another intriguing flavour dimension. Serves 4 – 6 as a condiment. 2 ripe mangoes (about 600g) peeled, pitted and coarsely chopped, 2 tablespoons minced green cayenne chillies, or 3 minced Jalapeno chilies, 6 or 8 fresh curry leaves, ¼ teaspoon asafetida powder, ½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste, 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh coriander leaves, 2 teaspoons chopped aromatic mint leaves (spearmint works well), 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or more to taste, 2 very finely-sliced kaffir lime leaves and a few sliced Vietnamese mint leaves, optional, for ‘Southeast Asian’ notes. Combine the mangoes and chilies in a medium bowl and stir to mix. Heat the oil in a small heavy pan. Add the curry leaves, and fry until aromaric, just momentarily. Sprinkle in the asafetida powder and fry for a second or two. Add the mangoes, stir to mix, and remove from the heat. If making a larger quantity, pour the flavoured oil into the mangoes. Stir-in the salt, coriander, optional sliced kaffir lime leaf, and the lime juice. Serve immediately, or set aside for the flavours to combine.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #7
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #6
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Upma by Kurma Das

Breakfast-time Cashew-Studded UpmaUpma is a traditional grain dish much loved all over India. It consists of roasted semolina (sooji) and sauteed spices, with added vegetables and nuts combined with water to form a moist, savoury pudding. Though upma's texture resembles Italian polenta or North African couscous, its flavour is unique. Served with fresh lemon juice and a little yogurt, it makes a delicious breakfast. Serves 6 - 8 persons. 1½ cups coarse-grain semolina, ¼ cup ghee or oil, 1½ teaspoons black mustard seeds, 2 teaspoons split urad dal, 1½ teaspoons cumin seeds, 2 hot green chilies, seeded and minced, 2 cups cabbage, finely shredded, 1 red pepper, seeded and diced, 1 cup peeled potatoes, cubed, 1 cup orange-fleshed sweet potato, ½ teaspoon turmeric, 3 cups hot water, 1 cup green peas, cooked if fresh, thawed if frozen, 1½ teaspoons salt, 1 cup roasted cashew pieces, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, Toast, yogurt, lemon wedges, or chutney to accompany (optional). Dry-roast the semolina in a large, heavy dry frying pan over moderate heat for 6 - 8 minutes or until the grains darken a few shades. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Heat the ghee or oil in a heavy 4 or 5-litre/quart saucepan over moderately high heat. Saute the black mustard seeds in the hot oil until they crackle. Add the urad dal and cumin seeds and saute them until they darken; add the chilies and, stirring, add the cabbage, peppers, zucchini, potatoes, and turmeric. Stir-fry for 2 or 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to moderate and continue to cook for another 4 or 5 minutes or until the vegetables are limp and partly cooked. Carefully add the hot water and bring to the boil. Add the cooked fresh peas or thawed frozen peas. Add the semolina, stirring continuously. Add the salt; reduce the heat to very low, and half-cover with a lid, stirring often until the upma becomes a light, fluffy pudding (about 5 minutes). If the upma appears too dry, add a little warm water. Remove the upma from the heat, stir in the cashew nuts, lemon juice and fresh coriander leaves, and serve hot with suggested accompaniments.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #5
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #4
From The American Vedic Association

 A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

PLEASE DONATE

 

Please send your donation, cheque or money order to

Food for Peace Society of Calgary

P.O. Box 90008 Madigan RPO

Calgary, Alberta, T2A 7Y8

We will send a receipt for taxes purposes for donation of $20.00 or greater.

If you want to sponsor or donate one meal please contact us at

foodforpeace-calgary@hotmail.com

Please visit us on facebook/foodforpeace-calgary or at

our blog foodforpeace-calgary.blogspot.ca

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #3
From The American Vedic Association

A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #2
From The American Vedic Association

A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

 

Inconvenient Culinary Truth #1
From The American Vedic Association

A series of 42 slides illustrating the relationship between our food choices and a healthy environment.

 

GIVE LOVE

http://youtu.be/1qp7nPQ6xFg

Bill Clinton Explains Why He Became a Vegan

The 42nd president of the United States explains how we can — and for our health must — learn to love eating vegetables, too

by Joe Conason, AARP The Magazine, August/September 2013

Bill Clinton shows off an all-veggie lunch spread representing the foods he now eats, and enjoys. — Ben Baker

When Bill Clinton invited me to lunch in May, I knew better than to expect fried catfish or barbecued ribs. The former president is now a devoted vegan, meaning no meat, fish or dairy products, and he has pursued a healthier way of life for more than three years. While I figured our lunch menu might be bland, that would be a small price to pay for private time with a world leader who is anything but.

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As it happens, the fit, trim and sharply attired Clinton, whom I've come to know well during more than two decades covering his career, is his usual gregarious, charismatic self. But a bland menu? Not even close.

As we enter a private room overlooking Manhattan's busy Rockefeller Center, I'm struck with a dazzling kaleidoscope of a dozen delicious dishes: including roasted cauliflower and cherry tomatoes, spiced and herbed quinoa with green onions, shredded red beets in vinaigrette, garlicky hummus with raw vegetable batons, Asian-inspired snow pea salad, an assortment of fresh roasted nuts, plates of sliced melon and strawberries, and rich, toothsome gigante beans tossed with onions in extra-virgin olive oil.

The luncheon banquet gives a whole new meaning to the dreaded cliché "Eat your vegetables." And this is exactly what Clinton, who is taking on America's obesity epidemic with the same passionate commitment he brought to the presidency, wants.

As I gawk, he smiles. "This looks pretty good, doesn't it?" Clinton asks. It looks better than good. We sit down and with great relish start passing plates back and forth. He favored the quinoa; I loved the roasted cauliflower and snow peas; and we both liked the beans.

The road to a healthier diet

At age 66, Bill Clinton still travels and works at a pace that completely exhausts staffers who are two or three decades younger. Yet, while coping with heart disease and the usual complaints of aging, he has managed to change his diet drastically, lose more than 30 pounds and keep the weight off. If he can do all that, then maybe there's hope for the rest of us baby boomers — and Americans of all ages — whose eating and exercise habits (and medical expenses) worry him a lot.

I first noticed a change in Clinton's eating habits when we were in Capetown, South Africa, back in July 2010. (I have been covering his extraordinary postpresidential career since 2005, interviewing him frequently and traveling with him across Africa, Europe and the Mideast, as well as the United States.) We were all preparing to dig into a tempting dinner sent up to the former president's suite from a very fine restaurant in the hotel. Sitting down next to him, I glanced at his plate and saw none of the steak, shrimp, fish or chicken on the buffet — just a tangle of green lo mein noodles and a pile of broccoli.

"Is that all you're eating?" I blurted.

"That's right," he replied. "I've stopped eating meat, cheese, milk, even fish. No dairy at all." He smiled and yanked on his waistband. "I've lost more than 20 pounds so far, aiming for about 30 before Chelsea's wedding. And I have so much more energy now! I feel great." (He achieved his ideal weight in time for his daughter's marriage to Marc Mezvinsky on July 31, 2010.)

Clinton traces his decision to change back to the morning in February 2010 when he woke up looking pale and feeling tired. His cardiologist quickly brought him into New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery to insert a pair of stents. One of his veins had given out, a frequent complication following the quadruple-bypass surgery he had undergone in 2004.

At a subsequent press conference, Clinton recalls, his doctors tried "to reassure the public that I wasn't on the verge of death, and so they said, you know, this is actually fairly normal." Soon after, he received a "blistering" email from Dean Ornish, M.D., the renowned diet and heart disease expert.

"Yeah, it's normal," wrote Ornish, an old friend, "because fools like you don't eat like you should."

"I just decided that I was the high-risk person, and I didn't want to fool with this anymore. And I wanted to live to be a grandfather. So I decided to pick the diet that I thought would maximize my chances of long-term survival."

Prodded into action, Clinton started by rereading Dr. Dean Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart Disease, which urges a strict, low-fat, plant-based regimen, along with two books that were, if possible, even more militantly vegan: Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, by Caldwell Esselstyn, M.D., and The China Study, by Cornell biochemist T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. (When I suffered a heart attack in late November 2010, Clinton sent me all three books.)

"I just decided that I was the high-risk person, and I didn't want to fool with this anymore. And I wanted to live to be a grandfather," says Clinton. "So I decided to pick the diet that I thought would maximize my chances of long-term survival."

Pass the quinoa

As we talk, Clinton is clearly enjoying every virtuous bite, helping himself to seconds of both the quinoa and the beans. He still has a hearty appetite, but what he loves to eat now is obviously good for him.

It's a testament to his discipline that he pulled off a 180-degree pivot overnight — motivated not only by his own urge to live but by the goals he has set for his foundation. Worried by the increasing prevalence of diet-related disease among Americans of all ages, he and the Clinton Foundation are committed to promoting healthier lifestyles, with what he sees as far-reaching effects on the nation's finances, quality of life and even climate change, which is exacerbated by meat production. "I wanted to do it because this health and wellness work I've been doing is increasingly important to me," he says.

To most Americans of Clinton's generation — especially those, like him, who grew up in places like Arkansas, where barbecued pork and cornmeal-crusted catfish dominate the local cuisine — cutting out meat, fish and dairy would seem a radical deprivation. But Clinton quickly adapted. "The main thing that was hard for me actually — much harder than giving up meat, turkey, chicken and fish — was giving up yogurt and hard cheese," he says. "I love that stuff, but it really made a big difference when I did it."

He no longer craves steaks, but bread is a potential pitfall. "Heavily processed carbs, you really have to control that," he says. When Caldwell Esselstyn spotted a picture of him on the Internet, eating a dinner roll at a banquet, the renowned doctor dispatched a sharply worded email message: "I'll remind you one more time, I've treated a lot of vegans for heart disease."

Clinton's daily menu

These days at the Clinton residence in suburban Chappaqua, New York, house manager Oscar Flores prepares simple meals for Clinton and Hillary, who vowed to start eating healthier after she stopped globe-trotting as President Obama's secretary of state.

For Bill Clinton, breakfast is almost always an almond-milk smoothie, blended with fresh berries, nondairy protein powder and a chunk of ice. Lunch is usually some combo of green salad and beans. He snacks on nuts — "those are good fats" — or hummus with raw vegetables, while dinner often includes quinoa, the Incan super-grain, or sometimes a veggie burger.

The former president has a tip for those who crave starchy food: "You can make whipped cauliflower as a substitute for mashed potatoes, and it's great." Once a week or so, he will have a helping of organic salmon or an omelet made with omega-3-fortified eggs, to maintain iron, zinc and muscle mass.

The former president has a tip for those who crave starchy food: "You can make whipped cauliflower as a substitute for mashed potatoes, and it's great."

In addition to his dietary changes, Clinton also walks two or three miles a day, outdoors whenever possible; plus, he works out with weights and uses an exercise ball for balance drills. And, of course, he continues to play golf, always walking the course without a cart.

Wherever he goes, Clinton finds signs that vegetarian and vegan alternatives are winning wider acceptance. During a recent visit to South America, the Peruvian president and his wife invited Clinton to dinner. "They made a whole vegan meal for me, and they ate it too." They'd obviously done their homework: The centerpiece, Clinton recalls, was this "unbelievable quinoa dish."

As we finish our hearty lunch, the new Role Model in Chief takes a helping of fruit for dessert. And he offers some final, practical advice to America's struggling yo-yo dieters: For anyone who wants to change, he says, "I would keep a record of everything I ate every day — what, when and how much. That's easy for everybody to do. Just go write it down. And then I'd start looking at it and say, what am I going to give up and what am I going to substitute?"

If you don't have the willpower to do it for yourself, he adds, do it for your loved ones. "A lot of people who are busy and stressed feel that eating and being comfortable is their reward," he says. But particularly for those who, like him, have children, he says "you have a responsibility to try to be as healthy as possible."

Sounding the themes that still drive him every day, Clinton wraps up our meeting with a message, reminding me that "the way we consume food and what we consume" are driving the unsustainable level of health care spending in America. To truly change the conditions that lead to bad habits and poor health, he warns, "we have to demand it by changing the way we live. You have to make a conscious decision to change for your own well-being, and that of your family and your country."

Joe Conason is a freelance journalist who writes about politics.