Soul Vegetarian D.C. is Good to Go!!!!

Soul Vegetarian Cafe & Exodus Carryout

Joe Yonan

Washington Post

Food & Dining

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The best-selling item at this modest takeout joint is the mac and cheese, which at a vegan restaurant sounds like an oxymoron until you taste it. Sure, there's an unmistakable hint of soy, but it's also incredibly creamy and deeply flavored. Who cares what it's called when it's this good?

At Soul Vegetarian, vegan food represents more than just lunch or dinner. To the members of the African Hebrew Israelite community that owns the place (and a dozen sister restaurants worldwide), it is part of their way of life. The 80 or so members in the Washington area also operate a juice bar and deli inside a health-food store in Largo, says cafe manager Ben Ore Israel.

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"We're a small community, but we're focused on what we do," Israel said. "We don't cut any corners. We have a genuine love for our people."

The basis of many of the sandwiches and other dishes is vegetable protein, which for the popular Garvey Burger ($5) is combined with whole-wheat flour and seasonings that give it a slightly smoky taste. "I like to say 11 herbs and spices, although it's not quite 11," Israel said, laughing. "We hand-press it every morning and grill it to order. Most people can't even tell it's not meat."

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See: Soul Veg D.C. Good to GO

Cleveland health officials report syphilis outbreak

Tests urged for the sexually active
Angela Townsend - Reporter
Cleveland Plain Dealer





Local health officials are so concerned about what they've labeled a syphilis outbreak that they are asking medical providers to screen all sexually active patients -- particularly young people -- for the disease.

Today, top medical officials in Cleveland, Shaker Heights and Cuyahoga County are sending out a joint public health alert letter to hospitals and medical clinics in Cuyahoga County.

Physicians and other medical providers who conduct screenings for sexually transmitted diseases are urged to follow the Centers for Disease Control guidelines, which call for testing anyone for syphilis who tests positive for any other STD, and for testing all pregnant women at least twice during their pregnancy.

How bad is the outbreak?

From June 2006 through June 2007, 26 cases of active or early latent syphilis were reported in Cuyahoga County. That translates to an incidence rate - the number of new cases for a given period of time and a specified population - of 1.8 cases per 100,000 people, according to the Cleveland Department of Public Health.

For the next 17 months, through November 2008, the number of cases skyrocketed to 123. From April through November of last year, the 71 reported cases represented a incidence rate of 8.2 cases per 100,000 people.

Officials don't know why the current spike in numbers is happening now. But they do know that it is cyclical, said Dr. Ann Avery, medical director for the Cleveland Department of Public Health. "Syphilis tends to go in waves somewhere between seven and 10 years," she said.
The numbers could go up again before they go down.

See: Cleveland, Cuyahoga County health officials report syphilis outbreak

Economic Worries Keep 1/3 of Americans Up at Night

The number of sleep-deprived Americans has increased by 13 percent
The Cleveland Leader Magazine









Is the current state of the economy keeping you up late at night? If so, you're not alone. A new poll finds that nearly a third of all Americans are losing sleep over worries about the sagging economy and the prospects of losing their job.

Money is the top concern, far outweighing other problems such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, terrorist attacks, and global warming. Results of the annual poll by the National Sleep Foundation were released Monday.

Report co-author Michael Vitiello, a profess of psychiatry at the University of Washington said:

"What is very telling is that these Americans whose sleep is impacted by financial worries report that their sleep disturbance makes them much less likely to work efficiently, exercise, eat healthily, and have sex compared to their better-sleeping fellow Americans."

The survey also showed that in the past month, 27% had disturbed sleep due to money issues- 16% worried about personal finances, 15% the overall economy, and 10% worried about the prospect of losing their job.

Since 2001, the number of Americans who say they get eight hours of sleep on a regular basis has decreased 10 percent. The number of sleep-deprived Americans has increased by 13 percent.