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Last week, animal rights charity PETA launched a campaign asking generous vegans to donate their, ahem, poop.
According to the organization, fecal microbiota transplants are becoming more popular as a treatment for patients suffering from debilitating stomach ailments.
Saving lives
A spokesperson said: “Since fecal transplants from healthy vegan donors are considered the gold standard, PETA posted a call on its website this morning urging vegans to sign up to become ‘super fecal donors’ through stool banks OpenBiome and Advancing Bio.”
The charity hopes that by helping people beat serious stomach complaints, vegan fecal donations will help recipients see the value of going vegan themselves in order to save lives – those of animals and, potentially, their own.
But what is a fecal transplant?
PETA claims: “A relatively new medical treatment called a fecal microbiota transplant [FMT] – which involves taking the stool of a healthy person filled with ‘good bacteria’ and transplanting it into the colon of an unhealthy person with ‘bad bacteria – is becoming a more popular treatment for patients suffering from inflammatory colon diseases like C. difficile (C. diff) and Crohn’s disease.”
And PETA says you can actually make money from donating your stools: “According to OpenBiome, a nonprofit stool bank, some 30,000 people die from C. diff-related causes every year.
“The company is now seeking healthy donors to enable it to offer potentially lifesaving treatment for people with C. diff infections.
“Donors are paid $40 per stool donation. Yup, you don’t even have to give it away!”
Better poop
Medical professionals – like top plant-based physician Dr. Greger – say fecal transplants from vegan donors are often of a better quality and are more sought after than those from meat- and dairy product eaters, because vegans are more likely to have healthy bacteria.
PETA says: “Good bacteria thrives on fiber, but most Americans don’t meet even the minimum recommendations for fiber intake.
“However, fruits and vegetables are rich in fiber, and therefore are the best sources of nutrients for healthy gut flora.
“Specific high-fiber foods that are good for your gut bacteria include artichokes, beans, broccoli, chickpeas, green peas, lentils, raspberries, and whole grains.”
Whole foods
According to Gastroenterologist Dr. Angie Sadeghi, eating a whole food plant-based diet leads to the growth of good gut bacteria, which in turn leads to the improvement of overall health.
She said: “As a gastroenterologist, I love the idea of PETA calling on healthy vegans to extend their lifesaving work by donating fecal matter to humans suffering from C. Diff and other treatable ailments.”
Dr. Sadeghi claims gut flora can even have psychological effects. High-fiber plant-based foods such as vegetables, nuts, seeds, fruits, and legumes can increase the growth of beneficial bacteria in the colon and decrease inflammation, which has been linked to anxiety and depression.
PETA President Ingrid Newkirk adds: “Vegan kitchens save 100 animals a year, and now, vegan bathrooms can be used to save some of our fellow human beings.
“PETA is betting the farm that after meat-eaters experience the health and mood benefits of vegan stool, they’ll go vegan themselves.”
