A growing number of Americans are moving away from meat and more toward plant-based foods, a development that comes with the promise of glowing health and expanding culinary horizons. Writer April Thompson shares the secrets of making this a seamless transition in “The Roots of Good Health: Thriving on a Plant-Based Diet.”

I am always incredulous when I encounter a vegetarian who doesn’t eat vegetables. I do see how easy it is to lapse into a diet lacking in vegetables and sometimes have to make a conscious effort to get my daily fruits and vegetables, being mindful of how much better it makes me feel.

Thompson takes this concept a step further with “Meatless Makeover: A Plant-Based Spin on Classic Dishes,” complete with recipes for Vegan Popcorn “Chicken”, Walnut Meat Tacos and a mouth-watering Mushroom and Sage Wellington.

Plants also play a starring role in other important aspects of our lives: Writer Marlaina Donato’s “Vegan Fitness: A Healthy Choice for Body and Planet” explains how eating lower on the food chain benefits body, soul and the environment; meantime, Julie Marshall reveals the healing powers of a popular hemp-based oil in “CBD’s New Frontier: Help for Mental Health.”

CBD. Wasn’t it just a few years ago that we approached it with caution, uncertain if we should go near it? Today, after coming full circle, it’s readily available and a hot new profit center. Now we must approach it with caution for different reasons, being sure to purchase it from reputable distributors.

But that’s not all there is to say about how hemp, a crop that was illegal in U.S. soil for about 50 years, is now reaching for the sun as this no-buzz cousin to marijuana fuels high hopes among farmers, agricultural researchers, manufacturers and consumers for its use in a host of fiber-based products and its potential to combat climate change. Don’t miss Julie Peterson’s enlightening article, “Hemp Gets Hot: Meet the Hardest Working Plant on the Planet.”

Be sure to check out all that Natural Awakenings has to offer this month, from pointers on pet diets to inspiring words from Meg Lundstrom about “synchronicity” and how we can encourage the sometimes life-changing “coincidences” that can have a profound influence on our lives, as well as the Wise Words of author Ronnie Cummins, founder of the Organic Consumers Association, on the future of regenerative agriculture in sequestering greenhouse gases and the power of growing a movement.

Max, my golden retriever, was a vegetarian. He ate carrots and apples and homemade biscuits. When he was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 13, I took a hard look at the ingredients in his meatless kibble. Even though it was 1999, I had already eliminated processed foods from my diet and was appalled when I realized what I was feeding my beloved family dog. We got through that bump in the road and he lived another two years, but that was truly an eye opener for me.

I love the topic of synchronicity and strive to find the reasons why a particular sequence happened, which is sometimes obvious, sometimes not. I am always grateful for those special ones that give me another opportunity to grow!

To conscious living,

Pamela Gallina, Publisher