Dr. Dean Ornish gave this presentation at a TED conference in February 2004. He discusses the importance of lifestyle including diet as well as exercise and stress reduction in maintaining or regaining good health. His program has had proven success in reversing heart disease and cancer. He and his colleagues have shown that the more a person is willing to move to the healthy end of his Spectrum of lifestyle choices, the more positive results they will obtain.
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Dr. Ornish's latest book is "The Spectrum". In addition to advice on exercise and stress reduction, it includes recipes created by Chef Art Smith with ingredient variations for different levels of The Spectrum of healthy diets. These are some of the chapters:
Chapter 9 - Lowering Your Cholesterol Level Using the Spectrum
Chapter 10 - Losing Weight Using the Spectrum
Chapter 11 - Lowering Your Blood Pressure Using the Spectrum
Chapter 12 - Preventing and Reversing Type 2 Diabetes Using the Spectrum
Chapter 13 - Preventing and Reversing Cardiovascular Disease Using the Spectrum
Chapter 14 - Preventing and Treating Prostate Cancer and Breast Cancer Using the Spectrum
In Chapter 5 - The Nutrition Spectrum, he includes a table with 5 groups of foods, ranking them from the healthiest (Group 1) to the least healthy (Group 5). His Reversal Diet, which has been shown to actually reverse heart disease and cancer, contains foods only from Group 1. His Prevention Diet is for people who are not actively trying to reverse disease, but rather are interested in maintaining good health and preventing disease. In additon to the Group 1 foods, his Prevention Diet also includes food from the other groups. His research has shown that the more your diet consists of Group 1 and 2 foods, the healthier you will be.
Dr. Ornish has also published several other books. In these books, he includes hundreds of recipes, most created by professional chefs and dietitians. In addition to other book sellers, you can buy his books at Amazon.com.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Dr. Dean Ornish: Healing and other natural wonders
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Eating Right for Cancer Survival -- Neal Barnard, MD
In Dr. Neal Barnard’s “The Cancer Project” web site, he offers a video, “Eating Right for Cancer Survival”, which is designed to be used along with his “Survivor’s Handbook”. It includes several presentations describing how the right food choices can help in cancer prevention and survival and bring major changes in your health and well being. They are available to purchase and on-line.
Dr. Neal Barnard is one of Foodie and Friends' Nutrition and Medical Experts and has several excellent web sites covering topics related to nutrition and chronic diseases including cancer and diabetes.
The data in his video presentations and handbook explain how and why the food we eat affects our health. Links to this very valuable information and Dr. Neal Barnard’s web sites are provided after the jump:
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Dr. Neal Barnard’s Survival Handbook can be used in conjunction with the video lecture series or by itself. Here is the link to download it in sections as Adobe files.
Survival Handbook
Dr. Barnard’s “Eating Right for Cancer Survival” lecture series is available in 8 individual QuickTime videos through the following links:
Introduction
Fueling Up on Low-Fat Foods
Favoring Fiber
Discovering Dairy Alternatives
Replacing Meat
Planning Healthy Meals
Antioxidants and Phytochemicals
Immune-Boosting Foods
Maintaining a Healthy Weight
Here is a link to download a QuickTime Player.
Here are links to related Neal Barnard MD web sites. In addition to nutrition and medical research articles, they include an extensive list of recipes including meal ideas. The NutritionMD site has an extremely easy recipe search tool and the ability to create and print out a shopping list for the recipes you have chosen. The individual recipes include a nutrition analysis. It’s very nice resource.
PCRM
The Cancer Project
Atkins Diet Alert
Healthy School Lunches
Humane Charity Seal
Kids Get Healthy
Neal Barnard, MD
NutritionCME
NutritionMD
Strong Bones
(For ease of navigation and to include future sites, there are links to Dr. Barnard’s PCRM related web sites in a drop down window on the individual web sites.)
Monday, October 20, 2008
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
This delicious and healthy recipe is easy to prepare. The original recipe is available in Dr. Neal Barnard’s NutritionMD web site, www.nutritionMD.com. It is a recipe submitted by the Millennium Restaurant in San Francisco, which is recognized as one of the finest gourmet vegetarian restaurants in the world.
This creamy and spicy pasta recipe is low in calories and total fat content, high in fiber, and high in vitamins and minerals.
Total calories = 250; Fat calories = 34; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 12% (3.8 g), Protein = 18% (13 g); Carbohydrates = 70% (50 g)
With more than 20% of the RDA, it is an excellent source of Vitamin A, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, Iron, Magnesium, and Niacin; and with between 10% and 20% of the RDA, it is a good source of Calcium, Folic Acid, Pantothenic Acid, and Selenium.
It fits the nutrition guidelines recommended for a low fat, whole foods, mostly plant based diet strategy. These nutrition guidelines are included in the “Nutrition Analysis - by the numbers ... ” post on the Foodie and Friends blog (www.FoodieandFriends.com). Its ingredients are high in nutrient density and fiber and are in Dr. Dean Ornish’s classification of healthiest ingredients, which can be found in his books, including “The Spectrum”.
The goal of a low fat diet is to keep fat content below 20% and preferably closer to 10% of total daily calories. For a 2000 calorie diet, a Fat content of 33 grams to 44 grams, represents 15% to 20% of total calories. With 3.8 grams of total fat, this is a suitable recipe to be included in a daily low fat menu.
Preparation demonstration and nutrition analysis after the jump:
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4 cloves - Raw Garlic
1 cup – Vegetable Broth (low sodium, organic) Pacific Natural Foods
0.5 tsp - leaves Dried Thyme
1 tsp - Fresh Rosemary
Cut the top off Each head of garlic, about ½ inch from the top.
Place the garlic heads in a small baking dish, and add the vegetable broth and spices.
Dry white wine or non- alcoholic wine could be used in pace of the vegetable broth.
I really like buying spices in small quantities from markets that sell them in bulk.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
I cut the top off a sweet yellow onion and paced it in the baking dish to braise at the same time. I’ll use it in another recipe.
Bake them for 1 ½ hours – until the heads are soft and slightly browned.
Set them aside to cool. Then squeeze the soft garlic cloves out of open tops.
3 cups - soy milk - plain Silk
2 tbsps - Nutritional Yeast Flakes Red Star
2 tbsps – Miso (white)
1 tsp - leaves Dried Oregano
0.5 tsp - Black Pepper
0.5 tsp - Ground Nutmeg
1 tsp - Fennel Seed
2 tsps – Paprika (Spanish)
0.33 tsp - Cayenne Pepper
1 recipe - Millennium Braised Garlic 
Blend all these ingredients together.
Be careful with how much Paprika and Cayenne Pepper you use. With too much, the recipe could become too “spicy”.
12 oz - Penne (Whole Wheat) Davinci
While cooking the Whole Wheat Penne Pasta, keep the sauce warm in a 150 degree oven.
Spoon the sauce over the pasta.
The original recipe does not call for adding any cheese topping. I chose to add hard parmesan cheese.
If 1 oz of hard parmesan cheese is added to the entire recipe, it adds 19 calories to the total, increasing it to 268 calories, with an additional 11 Fat calories, increasing it to 46 Fat calories, raising the Fat content by 1.2 grams to a total 5.1 grams.
If a low fat Parmesan cheese is used, it increases the fat content by 0.24 grams to a total of 4.1 grams.
This delicious recipe could be served alone, or with a salad, or topped with grilled shrimp or salmon, or with a side of vegetables, or topped with a skewer of grilled vegetables – or any of these kinds of variations.
How would you serve it?
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There are small variations in fat content caused by changing ingredients. The original recipe specifies light soy milk. But, it also could be made with whole soy milk or skim milk. And, different toppings could be added.
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Light Soy Milk
Total calories = 235; Fat calories = 27; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 10% (3 g), Protein = 17% (12 g); Carbohydrates = 73% (50 g)
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Soy Milk
Total calories = 250; Fat calories = 34; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 12% (3.8 g), Protein = 18% (13 g); Carbohydrates = 70% (50 g)
Some people might prefer to use skim milk. This would reduce the fat content, but introduce animal protein, casein, into the recipe.
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Skim Milk
Total calories = 243; Fat calories = 19; Fiber = 6.7 grams
Fat = 7% (2.1 g), Protein = 19% (13 g); Carbohydrates = 75% (52 g)
The original recipe does not specify any toppings. If 1 oz of hard parmesan cheese is added to the entire recipe, it adds 19 calories to the total, increasing it to 268 calories, with an additional 11 Fat calories, increasing it to 46 Fat calories, raising the Fat content by 1.2 grams to a total 5.1 grams.
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Whole Soy Milk and Hard Parmesan Cheese Topping
Total calories = 268; Fat calories = 46; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 15% (5.1 g), Protein = 19% (14 g); Carbohydrates = 66% (50 g)
If a low fat Parmesan cheese is used, it increases the fat content by 0.24 grams to a total of 4.1 grams.
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Whole Soy Milk and Fat Free Parmesan Cheese Topping
Total calories = 267; Fat calories = 37; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 12% (4.1 g), Protein = 20% (15 g); Carbohydrates = 68% (52 g)
If 3 medium shrimp per serving are added to the basic whole soy milk recipe, it adds 0.26 grams fat per serving and raises the cholesterol from 5 mg to 25 mg.
Millennium Pasta Carbonara
With Whole Soy Milk and 3 Medium Shrimp per Serving
Total calories = 264; Fat calories = 37; Fiber = 7.2 grams
Fat = 12% (4.1 g), Protein = 20% (15 g); Carbohydrates = 67% (50 g)
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Thursday, October 16, 2008
Carrot Cream Soup with Basil Mint Swirl
This easy to prepare, very delicious and healthy recipe is available in Dr. John McDougall’s February 2008 newsletter (www.drmcdougall.com).
Carrot Cream with Basil-Mint Swirl with Carrot Cream with Basil-Mint Swirl Carrot Cream with Basil-Mint Swirl Basil Mint Swirl
This recipe is low in calories and total fat content, high in fiber, and high in vitamins and minerals.
Total calories = 202; Fat calories = 44; Fiber = 12 grams
Fat = 19% (4.9 g), Protein = 13% (7.5 g); Carbohydrates = 68% (39 g)
With more than 20% of the RDA, it is an excellent source of Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, and Niacin; and with between 10% and 20% of the RDA, it is a good source of Riboflavin, Vitamin B12, Panthothenic Acid, and Phosporous.
There is an additional 5 grams of fat added when a tofu sour cream topping is included.
It fits the nutrition guidelines recommended for a low fat, whole foods, mostly plant based diet strategy, which are included in the “Nutrition Analysis - by the numbers ... ” post on the Foodie and Friends blog (www.FoodieandFriends.com).
The goal of a low fat diet is to keep fat content below 20% and preferably closer to 10% of total daily calories. For a 2000 calorie diet, a Fat content of 33 grams to 44 grams, represents 15% to 20% of total calories. With 4.9 grams of total fat, this is a suitable recipe to be included in a daily low fat menu.
This recipe can be made with no animal protein. Its ingredients are high in nutrient density and fiber and are in Dr. Dean Ornish’s Group 1 classification of healthiest ingredients, which can be found in his books, including ‘The Spectrum”.
A preparation demonstration and additional nutrition data are included after the jump.
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Carrot Cream Soup
Assemble the ingredients:
2 large cloves garlic, sliced
2 ribs celery, sliced
4 or 5 carrots
1 sweet potato (1/2 pound)
1 red bell pepper
2 cups water
¾ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp white pepper
1 cup soymilk
Slice and chop the
sweet potato,
carrots,
red bell pepper, and
garlic.
These very colorful ingredients are high in nutrient density with lots of vitamins, minerals, and anti-oxidants.
Add the vegetables with water, salt and pepper to a pot. Bring to boil and cook for about 15 minutes in the pot.
Puree the ingredients with an immersion or regular blender until they are smooth.
Add the soymilk.
And heat through.
Basil Mint Swirl
Assemble the ingredients for the basil mint swirl:
4 oz basil leaves
2 oz mint leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp water
mint sprigs for garnish
and tofu sour cream for a topping
Puree the ingredients
and prepare for plating.
Plating Options
The basic soup without any toppings is a delicious and healthy recipe.
The basic sweet and creamy soup is made from very colorful vegetables which are nutrient dense and provide lots of vitamins, minerals, beta-carotene and anti-oxidants.
The recipe calls for swirling the basil mint puree in the center of the carrot soup.
My attempts at swirling did not produce an attractive plate. So, I just placed a dollop of the Basil-Mint puree in the center of the bowl, and added sprigs of mint.
When adding a sour cream topping, I simply placed a dollop of sour cream next to a dollop of the basil mint puree, and placed a mint sprig on top.
This combination produces a very interesting mix of tastes and textures with the sweetness of the soup, the tangy basil mint swirl and the creamy sour cream.
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Nutrition Analysis
By keeping the ingredients completely vegan, the fat content is slightly higher than if dairy products are used, particularly when the optional sour cream topping is included.
There is only a 0.9 gram (8 calories) difference in Fat content in the basic soup recipe between including soy milk or skim milk. However, there is a larger difference of 5 grams of Fat when 2 tablespoons per serving (my estimate for a dollop) of tofu sour cream is used instead of non-fat dairy sour cream.
Would you prefer a lower fat content or a non-dairy recipe?
You can see the complete nutrition analyses on www.FoodieandFriends.com.
Here are the summaries for each alternative:
Carrot Cream Soup with Basil Mint Swirl
With Soy Milk
Total calories = 202; Fat calories = 44; Fiber = 12 grams
Fat = 19% (4.9 g), Protein = 13% (7.5 g); Carbohydrates = 68% (39 g)
Carrot Cream Soup with Basil Mint Swirl
With Soy Milk and a Tofu Sour Cream Topping
Total calories = 287; Fat calories = 89; Fiber = 12 grams
Fat = 28% (9.9 g), Protein = 11% (8.5 g); Carbohydrates = 61% (48 g)
Carrot Cream Soup with Basil Mint Swirl
With Skim Milk
Total calories = 198; Fat calories = 36; Fiber = 12 grams
Fat = 16% (4 g), Protein = 13% (7.6 g); Carbohydrates = 71% (40 g)
Carrot Cream Soup with Basil Mint Swirl
With Skim Milk and a Non Fat Dairy Sour Cream Topping
Total calories = 223; Fat calories = 36; Fiber = 12 grams
Fat = 15% (4 g), Protein = 16% (9.6 g); Carbohydrates = 70% (43 g)
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This recipe produces 4 cups of soup. If you would like 4 bowls of soup, you’ll have to increase the recipe.
This is very healthy and delicious recipe that can easily be part of an elegant dinner.
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Carrot Cream with Basil-Mint Swirl
with Soy Milk
Soy Milk and Tofu Sour Cream
with Skim Milk
with Skim Milk and Non-Fat Sour Cream
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
The Experts Speak – A Lecture Series
I’m including links to videos of lectures by Nutrition and Medical Experts covering topics appropriate for answering questions related to a low fat, whole food, mostly plant based diet; including why it is a very healthy diet, perhaps the healthiest diet strategy in the world.
After the jump, there is a topic index. Sometimes the links go to posts I’ve made on this blog. Sometimes they go directly to videos on the net that cover topics I will include in future posts. The posts on this blog include a brief description of the lecture, and, frequently, a timeline for different topics within the lecture.
Learn from these Nutrition and Medical Experts in their own words.
The data are overwhelming!
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Epedimiologic, Migration, Intervention, and Laboratory Research Studies
The China Study -- Lecture by T Colin Campbell, Ph.D.
Dr Fuhrman -- Eat To Live
Marketing Milk and Disease -- John McDougall, MD
Coronary Heart Disease, Cancer, and Diabetes
Make Yourself Heart Attack Proof – by Caldwell Esselstyn MD
Dean Ornish, MD Interview With Charlie Rose
Mark Hyman MD Talks About Dean Ornish's The Spectrum
Eating Right for Cancer Survival -- Neal Barnard, MD
Dr. Dean Ornish: Healing and other natural wonders
Obesity and Diabetes
Cause and Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus - lecture by Jerold Olefsky, M.D.
Effectiveness of Vegan vs ADA Diet for Controlling Diabetes – Study by Neal Barnard, MD
Joel Fuhrman MD – Diabetes and Drug Companies
Dr Ornish - On the Dangers of the Atkins Diet
Olive Oil and the Mediterranean Diet
Make Yourself Heart Attack Proof – by Caldwell Esselstyn MD
Olive Oil is Not Good for Your Heart - Jeff Novick RD
Value of High Fat Foods -- Joel Fuhrman MD
Good Genes vs Bad Genes
Dean Ornish, MD - Your Genes Are Not Your Fate
Dean Ornish, MD Interview With Charlie Rose
The New Science of Nutrigenomics -- Mark Hyman, MD
The China Study -- Lecture by T Colin Campbell, Ph.D.
Implementing The Diet Strategy
What's the Healthiest Diet? -- Dr Fuhrman and Dr McDougall
Physically Addictive Foods (chocolate, cheese, meat, and sugar) - by Neal Barnard, MD
Cooking Up Great Health - Joel Fuhrman MD
Eating Right for Cancer Survival -- Neal Barnard, MD
Dr. Dean Ornish: Healing and other natural wonders
Diets, Medical, Pharmaceutical, Insurance and Food Industries
ACLM Presentation - John McDougall, MD
Dr. Fuhrman Cures Diabetes - But Drug Companies Object
Dean Ornish, MD Interview With Charlie Rose
The China Study -- Lecture by T Colin Campbell, Ph.D.
Make Yourself Heart Attack Proof – by Caldwell Esselstyn MD
Monday, October 13, 2008
Contact Me
If you wish to contact me, please send me an email at
FoodieandFriendsMail@gmail.com
Thanks,
Gary
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Make Yourself Heart Attack Proof – by Caldwell Esselstyn MD
This is a lecture presented by Dr. Caldwell, a prominent surgeon and medical researcher from the Cleveland Clinic, one of the leading coronary care institutions in the world. Dr. Caldwell describes the mechanism for a heart attack and the results of a long term research study he conducted with patients with severe coronary disease. His study participants had 49 coronary events in the 8 years preceding his intervention program, and none in the nearly 20 subsequent years when they adhered to his program. He has shown his program actually reverses coronary disease, and therefore reduces or eliminates the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Dr. T Colin Campbell speaks briefly about Dr. Esselstyn and his study at timeline 15:10 in the second part of The China Study lecture included on this blog here.
Dr. Dean Ornish also has shown coronary disease can be reversed. You can hear a discussion of his program and results in his interview with Charlie Rose on this blog here.
You can buy Dr. Caldwell’s book, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, here.
After the jump, I’ve included approximate timelines for discussion topics in Dr. Caldwell’s lecture. His description of how a heart attack develops is near 11:45. He discusses his study and results near 44:53. And he discusses strokes, heart attacks of the brain, around 45:09, and neurological side effects of conventional coronary surgical intervention around 48:00. He explains why improvement happens so rapidly around 53:21.
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1:30 – 50% of men and 33% of women are affected by coronary heart disease
more recent data show females are catching up to males
3:00 – autopsy results show even adolescents in the US have signs of coronary heart disease.
4:00 – coronary heart disease is not disease of elderly
autopsy results on young soldiers – average age of 20 years – show 80% have signs of coronary heart disease
civilian population shows same statistics
Type 2 diabetes in adolescents suggest the current generation may not outlive their parents
5:58 – when meat and dairy was restricted during war years—cardiovascular disease decreased
When consumption of meat and dairy resumed after war years, coronary heart disease resumed
7:10 – absence of coronary heart disease in different population groups
Papua Highlanders how high mortality rates to lung disease because of smoking
autopsy results of people over 60 show arteries are clean
they have a vegetarian diet
9:00 – pictures showing clogged arteries
10:28 – clear coronary angiogram does not imply healthy arteries
11:45 --- discussion of how a heart attack occurs
15:42 – how you can make yourself heart attack proof
moderation; statin in drug studies
coronary heart disease is not like cancer – it is a benign disease – why do you have to die from it
17:20 – conventional treatments for coronary heart disease and risks
benefits erode with passage of time
treatment moderation does not work
20:05 – blood flow measurements show even a single meal can damage cells
this little bit won’t hurt; really?
Must want to actually reverse the disease
22:10 – studies of three diets; 34% fat, 20% fat, 11%-12% fat – only 11%-12% fat diet lost craving for fat
22:51 – Study to Arrest and Reverse Coronary Heart Disease
breast cancer and migration effects
prostate cancer
coronary disease had similar epidemilogic statistics
participants had triple vessel disease
25:46 – patient compliance
27:45 – study goals
eat plant based diet with about 11% fat
get blood cholesterol levels below 150
exercise was not part of study
30:15 – Diet includes – NO OIL!!!
olive oil studies
good results short term in blood cholesterol levels
longer term results are negative for actual progression of disease
32:48 – heart healthy oils? No oil!
34:00 – compliance
patient and spouse
physician leader participation
35:12 - cholesterol results of study participants
35:42 – angiograms in program participants show actual improvements – not just improvement in blood test risk factors
40:25 – how did study participants do?
Of 6 in group who chose not to participate in study
4 had by passes
1 had angioplasty
1 died
Of 18 who participated in study
In 8 years prior to beginning study, they had 49 coronary events
17 of them followed diet guideline had no further coronary events
1 participant started eating “Fat-Free” foods and suffered problems. (He subsequently returned to the diet guidelines and had no further problems.)
“Fat Free” labels are misleading.
Need to learn to read actual ingredient list on food labels – not just nutrition summary
44:53 – Arrest and Reversal Diet Study Results
no mortality from diet
no morbidity from diet
benefits improved with time
added benefit for patient and family – remove fear of another heart attack
45:09 – coronary disease and problems in other organ systems
dementia
small strokes cause memory loss; then cognition goes
MRI and other studies show damage to brain
48:00 – a side effect of coronary bypass is brain damage; reduced cognition
49:20 – improvement in circulation in limbs with cholesterol reduction
50:16 – why chest pain improves –
actual measurements of blood flow in heart muscle in 10 –14 days
effect of lowering cholesterol significantly in 10 –14 days
continued improvement in blood flow with time
53:21 – Explanation of why it is happening
heal yourself in 3 weeks
make yourself heart attack proof
cardiac CT slides show coronary arteries and can show coronary disease
56:12 – emphasizes "No Oil" again! -- shows mortality rates for heart disease by country -- UK, US, Greece, Italy, and China.
Look at how low the coronary heart disease rates are in China compared to the Mediterranean region. The diets in these regions are very similar except the Mediterranean diet consumes more olive oil than the China diet.
American Heart Association and National Cholesterol Education Program recommendations of 30% fat in diet guarantee millions of Americans will perish
57:27 - Compliance is the problem – that’s why they recommend 30% fat content – it is more likely to be adopted by the public
Tell the public the truth; let them decide what to do
58:47 – studies “Blow Away” Bad Gene Myth
disease is cured by lifestyle changes
1:01:15 – just being a vegan is not the solution; need to also be careful of fat content
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