Quitting Meat Is at the Heart of 2009's Health Zeitgeist, And Author Kathy Freston Is Leading the Debate

Author Kathy Freston promotes a body/mind/spirit approach to health and happiness that includes a concentration on healthy diet, emotional introspection, spiritual practice, and loving relationships. Over a dozen of her most popular articles for AlterNet this year concern the health benefits of a meat-free or vegan diet. Freston is a New York Times best-selling author, and her latest book is The Quantum Wellness Cleanse: A 21 Day Essential Guide to Healing Your Body, Mind and Spirit. You can find more of her work at kathyfreston.com.

Each of Freston's essays were read by tens of thousands of people on AlterNet. Here are 10 of her most popular from 2009:

1. 10 Signs Vegetarianism Is Catching On

Martha Stewart promotes a vegetarian Thanksgiving? Recently, much attention has been lavished on the horrors of factory farming and the advantages of a meatless diet.

2. Jonathan Safran Foer's 'Eating Animals' Book Will Fundamentally Change the Way You Think About Food

"He is the Michael Pollan of a younger generation: grittier and more daring, more insightful and decisive."

3. There Is a Way to Help Avoid Heart Disease and Diabetes: You Are What You Eat!

A plant-based diet is both preventative and healing, whereas a diet high in animal protein is destructive to our health.

4. A Solution For Diabetes: A Vegan Diet

More Doctors and nutritional scientists are saying that a diet high meat is disastrous to our health, while a plant-based (vegan) diet prevents disease and is restorative to it.

5. Is Eating a Plant-Based Diet a Cure for Cancer?

Experts are saying a plant-based diet is not only good for our health, but it's also curative of the very serious diseases we face.

6. Meatless Mondays: Do Something Good for the Earth and Your Health

A new campaign is focused on convincing the world not to eat chickens, pigs, and other animals -- just one day per week.

7. Eating Meat Is Not Natural

Eating meat is a relatively recent phenomenon in human evolution. And our bodies have never adapted to it.

8. Will We Still Eat Meat, Drink Milk, and Fry Eggs in 2109?

The world will be a much better place in 100 years if we rethink the way we eat.

9. Our Appetite for Animals Is Taking Us Toward Apocalypse

Cutting your meat-eating habits is one of the most impactful ways you can prevent drastic changes to our climate.

10. Are We So Addicted to Meat That We Can't See Where the Swine Flu Came From?

A virus like swine flu is a completely predictable outcome of our cruel and appallingly filthy factory farming systems.