Update: Some more Oprah-related news for you – if you didn’t get a chance to see Oprah’s puppy mill exposé last month, she’s running it again tonight. More on that here.

Author Kathy Freston's fantastic new book, Quantum Wellness, has been getting a ton of buzz lately, not least because it inspired Oprah Winfrey herself to try veganism for three weeks. Kathy also appeared on Ellen yesterday, and a lot of people have been asking about the book, so by way of an introduction, here's PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk with a quick review:

No matter where on the "wellness continuum" you may be, Kathy Freston's new book, Quantum Wellness, is an absolute must-read.

The concept is simple: You just have to make one small change, and before you know it, you're on the road to getting your spiritual, mental, and physical act—or "wellness," as Kathy likes to call it—together. This may sound like a tall order, but that's the point of the book—tall orders turn into small orders when you break them down into achievable goals. What could be easier?

My favorite parts of the book are the two chapters that Kathy devotes to "conscious eating." I challenge anyone to read these chapters and look at a package of ground beef or drumsticks the same way again. Chapter Five, in which she talks about the now-famous "21-day cleanse" that Oprah has embarked on, also deserves an honorable mention. Who knew that casein, an ingredient in dairy products, is also used to make industrial-strength glue? Try digesting that!

Best of all, Kathy devotes 55 pages to putting conscious eating into practice with mouthwatering recipes such as seared "chicken" strips with shitake mushrooms, stir-fried veggies, and teriyaki sauce over brown rice. Yum!

And in other important news, here's Oprah on Week 2 of the new diet.

-Jack

Photo Credit: Star Max

Which is, quite possibly, the best news in the history of news. It’s close, anyway. Inspired by the book Quantum Wellness, by Kathy Freston, Oprah’s going to be cutting all the meat, dairy, and eggs out of her diet in an effort to live a healthy, cruelty-free lifestyle. If you didn’t catch tonight’s show, be sure to look out for the reruns, but in the meantime, if you want to follow in Oprah’s footsteps, you can take a pledge to be vegan for 7 days. Oprah’s going to be giving up alcohol, wheat, and sugar as well – which, well, more power to her – but our pledge (for obvious reasons) is focusing on the veganism part. So you don’t need to worry about giving up your stiff gin and tonic after a hard day of work. Or is that just me who does that?

Anyway, according to Oprah’s website, the first day’s gone really well! Here’s what she says about her reasons for trying it out:

“How can you say you're trying to spiritually evolve, without even a thought about what happens to the animals whose lives are sacrificed in the name of gluttony?”

Thank you, Oprah! I can’t wait to hear how it goes.

After Oprah aired a hard-hitting exposé of puppy mills last week, the folks at the American Kennel Club had the audacity to publicly praise the show, while they were presumably maneuvering frantically behind the scenes to make sure that the breeders they’ve been vigorously defending for decades don’t take a hit as a result. PETA President Ingrid Newkirk wrote to Oprah yesterday to thank her for doing the show and to point out that the AKC is no friend of dogs and never has been. You can read her letter here.

Oprah Winfrey is going to be tackling puppy mills on her show today, so be sure to check it out (or Tivo it) if you get a chance. Puppy mills, which keep large quantities of purebred dogs in overcrowded, often shockingly inhumane conditions, are a well-kept secret of the pet-trade industry, and the animal protection community is extremely grateful to Oprah for exposing this major cause of pet overpopulation to a wide audience.

It’s standard practice for puppy mills—which supply animals to pet stores and purebred enthusiasts, without any concern for the millions who will die in shelters as a result—to keep animals in constant confinement, without proper veterinary care or socialization. It’s common to hear stories of puppy mills that are shut down on cruelty to animals charges (I posted about one a couple of weeks ago), but it’s nowhere near common enough—and these sordid operations will continue to thrive for as long as people support them by purchasing animals from pet stores or seeking out purebred animals from breeders.

You can find out what time the show will be airing where you live on Oprah’s site, and there’s more information about puppy mills, and you can learn more about PETA’s campaign to help companion animals here.