The prestigious NIH panel estimates that 65 million Americans should reduce their dietary cholesterol intake by cutting back on consumption of animal fat and meat. More than 60 million Americans suffer from heart disease and nearly 500,000 die each year. On the same day, Harvard University released a study of 15,000 children indicating that those nursed on cow's milk are 50 percent more likely to become overweight than breast-fed infants. A recent USDA study found that overweight children were twice as likely to suffer from heart disease in later years. An American Cancer Society survey of 1 million people found that overweight people run a higher risk of premature death from heart disease or cancer.
Obesity also increases the risk of stroke, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
Collectively, diseases associated with consumption of animal fat and meat account for 1.37 million U.S. deaths annually, or nearly 60 percent of the total. The painstaking efforts of our health research institutions have revealed to us the secret of a long, healthy life. All we need is the will. My wife and I are retired and live in Dallas, Texas. We are ex-Nebraskans, and my wife's brother and his wife live in Grand Island.