Mailbag:

Ryan Carr says President Obama is making veterans pay for their insurance (“Taxes are the root of our economic problems,” Mailbag, April 2). This is not true. It’s an idea he was considering to save the government $500 million per year. However, after meeting with veterans groups, he heeded their concerns that it might become more difficult for some of their members to obtain care.

“The president has instructed that its consideration be dropped,” said Robert Gibbs, White House press secretary, March 19.

Glen M. Gardner Jr., national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, said Obama told veterans he would listen to their concerns.

“The president kept to his word and made the right decision.”

Michele Burgess

Huntington Beach

Animal products are killing us

A massive National Cancer Institute study in a recent Archives of Internal Medicine corroborates dozens of earlier findings linking meat consumption with premature deaths and reaffirms the role of lifestyle in determining our life expectancy.

The 10-year study of 545,653 Americans found that those consuming the equivalent of a small hamburger were 33% more likely to die, mostly from heart disease and cancer, than those who ate the least meat.

In October, a study of 16,000 people in 52 countries, published by the American Heart Assn., found that a “western” diet of meat, fried foods and salty snacks raised the risk of heart attacks by 35%. Conversely, a diet rich in fruits and vegetables reduced heart attack risk by 30%. A 24-year study of 88,517 female nurses, published in last April’s Archives of Internal Medicine found that those who ate lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, reduced their risk of heart attack and stroke by 24% and 18%, respectively. A landmark review of 7,000 diet and health reports, released in fall 2007 by the World Cancer Research Fund, found a “convincing” link between consumption of meat and an elevated risk of colon cancer, as well as a “likely” link with cancers of the lung, stomach, pancreas, esophagus, prostate and uterus.

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly we condemn regulatory authorities for traces of toxins in our food or water, while ignoring the much larger dietary health threat of animal products.

Harold Undell