Jeff & Glo’s Testimony
Sometime in 2014 some friends had lunch with us at our home. We talked a bit about how we are now eating. They were very interested and emailed us after they returned home asking for more information. Gloria responded and I added a bit. This got me thinking that maybe I should put together a letter giving an overview of what we have learned in the last few years. (Since initially writing this letter I have edited and added to it again and again.
How We Started Our New Nutritional Plan
Several years ago (2012) Gloria and I watched a very interesting video, “Forks over Knives.” The video showed the evidence (the science) of why staying away from meat, dairy, eggs, oils, and processed foods and switching to a “Whole Food, Plant-Based Nutritional Plan” would improve our health. This was a month before Gloria was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer.
Amazingly, we both agreed that night to make the switch because the science was so convincing. The next day Gloria gave away over 20 pounds of meat from our freezer to a single friend with three children. We also stopped eating dairy (cow’s milk, cheeses, ice cream, etc.), eggs, and refined and processed foods. Gloria also stopped cooking with oil.
The impact was immediate. We started feeling better and had more energy. One major life-long problem of mine, constipation, was solved immediately. Gloria lost 30 pounds without even trying and has kept it off all these years. As an adult, she has always struggled with her weight. She also saw several other improvements in her health, one being high cholesterol. She dropped 71 points in just four months, and is continually going down. I lost some weight too. And regarding her cancer, her oncologist was amazed at how effective the medication was and told her, “Whatever you are doing, just keep on doing it.”
We Are Not Vegetarian nor Vegan
We are not vegetarians (they may eat dairy products) nor vegan (a person can live off of potato chips and Dr. Pepper and pass as a vegan). Instead we follow a “Whole-food, Plant-based” Nutritional Plan. This means if the food was made in a “plant” (factory) it is not a “plant,” and we avoid it. If it had a mama, we don’t eat it.
If someone called us “vegan,” they would be close to the mark, but we are more than a vegan. We eat only those foods that are grown naturally from God’s good earth. We also stay away from refined white flour, white rice, white pasta, etc., and eat whole grain breads, brown rice, and whole wheat pasta, etc. It was a very easy switch for us!
Are We Quirky?
I thought that maybe I was becoming a weird, quirky food nerd. I always thought vegans were new-agers. Anyway, while talking with my primary care physician, I told him what we were doing. He said something like this, “Jeff, I am changing my whole practice and the name of my practice. Every time I go to a medical conference, I hear more and more evidence, more and more statistics about how bad nutrition in the USA is destroying our health. I just have to change the way I do things in my practice. The healthiest patients I have are 18-year-old women who are vegan.”
There is no question that the science now completely supports the value of moving from the SAD (Standard American Diet) to a “Whole-food, Plant-based” Nutrition.
Follow the Science
For me, the science is key! Where does the science lead? What does the science say? And I don’t mean just quoting some “research” paper that can’t be documented. Have there been double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trials on a sizeable group of people? How big was the participant pool, the control group? How many such trials? Who is evaluating these trials — a company selling a product or a neutral observer? If the answers to these questions are unsatisfactory, the outcomes are questionable. Also, is the individual selling products? (Be very suspicious of people touting scientific studies that support their products!)
What is the “scientific” evidence/proof that your nutrition plan is the right one? You need to ask yourself that. Always follow the science!!!
What Changes Can You Expect?
I don’t know. Everyone is different. If you are older, you will probably spot some changes right away. If you are younger, changes might not be so evident, although changes in your body certainly will be happening. (Remember cancer, atherosclerosis, and other diseases can start decades prior to symptoms appearing. They can now spot plaque in the arteries of children ten years old.) It is usually ten years before a cancer can be detected, as it has usually taken that long for it to show its ugly head. Beyond the above, you will certainly have a new sense of well-being.
I know now that my taste buds have changed (it takes about six weeks for this to happen) so that things I liked before don’t taste good now. Also, I have a hard time eating some rich foods now, and generally feel sick afterwards.
Books I Would Encourage You to Read
As you know, we love to read. Over the past nine years we have read many books on nutrition and health. I [Jeff] never looked for them. They just kind of came under my radar in one way or another. Some are quite helpful. We recommend you consider reading them. To really understand the power of “Whole-Food, Plant-Based Nutrition” you need to immerse yourself in the science.
The books we have read can all be purchased on Amazon.com, and also are available on Kindle and some on audio.
We are putting ***** above the books we think are best. It will help you gain perspective, if you read some of them. We have highlighted the best books.
How Not to Die***** (Dr. Michael Greger)
Of all the books above, this is by far the best one on nutrition. He claims that over 25,000 scholarly papers are written every year on nutrition. Dr. Greger set up his own non-profit to peruse those papers and make the findings available to the general public. (Who can peruse 70 research papers each day, 25,000 in a year?)
This book is a summary of those papers. (There are 150 pages of “Notes” listing the research papers, articles, etc., he has referenced–in all, 2,394 citations from scholarly papers.) Yet the book is light reading and very interesting. And the science! He says nothing that doesn’t have science behind it. Dr. Greger draws his conclusions from scientific research that is based on the “Gold-Standard” for reliable scientific research: Double-blind, randomized, placebo-based studies done on a significant cohort of humans. He has also uploaded 1,000 short videos on his website: www.nutritionfacts.org.
I strongly suggest you subscribe to the daily NutritionFacts.org blog. It comes out weekdays. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday the blog is a video. Just by spending 5-7 minutes a day reading/viewing you will gather a tremendous lot of key information that will help you keep up with the science and help you help your friends.
The China Study****** (T. Colin Campbell, PhD & Thomas M. Campbell II, MD)
This awesome book is the foundation for the whole-food, plant-based movement across America. After his heart attack and reading this book many years ago, President Clinton began his whole-food, plant-based diet. It is the most comprehensive study on nutrition ever conducted, and is a very interesting read. Dr. T. Colin Campbell was featured in the “Forks Over Knives” video that started us on our new eating plan.
The Starch Solution***** (Dr. John McDougall)
This is Gloria’s favorite, and I found it very good too. It has been so long since I read it that I forget a lot of the content. Dr. McDougall pushes a starch-based nutritional plan which is basically whole-food and plant-based.
Eat, Move, Sleep***** (Tom Rath)
This is a small and fascinating book that I read two times and am reading for the third time. Gloria asked me why I keep reading it. I tell her that there are so many pointers and suggestions that I need to keep reading it so I can implement more things. One thing that I did implement was making a stand-up desk that I use every day. This book is just not about nutrition, but also about exercise and sleep.
Healthy at 100 ***** (John Robbins)
An excellent book, similar in some ways to the Blue Zones (see below). Very well written and very interesting. It spells out very clearly how to “live until you die.” How you can be active, strong and with a clear mind until you pass away. All of us should read this book.
Super Immunity **** (Joel Fuhrman, M.D.
He does a good job on showing how “whole-food, plant-based” nutrition strengthens your immune system. This book really helps you appreciate one benefit of unprocessed plant-food nutrition that is rarely talked about.
Blue Zones**** (Dan Buettner)
An analysis of the five places in the world that have the most centenarians. The goal of these books is not to push a certain nutritional plan. Instead, they studied in depth five areas of the world (areas that have been studied for the last 50 years) to discover why people lived so long and why they were healthier than people in other places. They summarized their findings and made some suggestions. You will read about a Greek island, a mountain village in Sardinia, an area in Central America, the Seventh Day Adventists, and an island near Okinawa. There are two books in this series. I read them both.
Younger Next Year**** (Chris Crowley)
There are several books in this series. The main focus is on exercise. Mr. Crowley is a good writer, and funny. The book is written in partnership with a medical doctor and sets forth some interesting science. From what I can gather in other readings, the science in this book is becoming more widely accepted.
How Not to Diet*** (Dr. Michael Greger)
If you want to learn about dieting, this is the book. I think it references about 5,000 scientific papers on dieting. Even though I am not dieting, I am learning a tremendous lot about the human body and how to care for myself. I am presently reading and enjoying this book.
Digestive Tune-Up*** (Dr. John McDougall)
This cute book is a primer on how the digestive system works. We knew a lot of this information, but I found it informative and helpful. It is also a fun read.
My Beef with Meat *** Rip Esselstyn
This is the author of “The Engine 2 Diet” which was a New York Times bestseller.
Salt, Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us*** (Michael Moss)
This book is scary to read on how the “Food Giants” are hooking Americans (and the world) on unhealthy food. I think this was a New York Times best seller.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma”***; “In Defense of Food”*** (Michael Pollan)
Pollan is a very good writer and has written numerous books about food. I think I read “In Defense of Food” before we switched to a “Whole Food, Plant-Based” eating plan. Anyway, these two books were very good, especially showing the value of organically grown food.
The World According to Monsanto*** (Marie-Monique Robin)
This was an absolutely frightening book. It made me conclude that Monsanto may be the most evil company in the world. Again, I think I started reading this before we switched to our new nutritional plan. It certainly shows you the possible danger of eating GMO foods and the way large companies manipulate the world’s food supply and population.
Drop Dead Healthy: One Man’s Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection*** (A.J. Jacobs)
Jacobs is a great author. He also wrote “The Year of Living Biblically” and “Know It All.” This was a fun read, and had some interesting information. I also read this before we decided on a “Whole Food, Plant-Based” nutrition plan.
An Edible History of Humanity** (Tom Standage)
He talks about how food spread throughout the world. An interesting read.
The Body** (Bill Bryson)
This is a fun read and an interesting book about the body. Bill Bryson is a very interesting and successful writer. You will find the book both entertaining and informative. It was a fun read
This is My Body: From Obesity to Ironman* (Ragan Sutterfield)
An interesting story about an individual Christian’s struggle with obesity.
Some Key Videos (I suggest you watch them all!)
(1) Cowspiracy
(2) Forks Over Knives (This video got us started in 2012)
(3) Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead
(4) In Defense of Food
(5) Food, Inc.
(6) What the Health!
(7) The Game-Changers (Athletes and Nutrition – Amazing!!)
Some Key Websites
There are many more than just these few sites, but these are good ones.
http://www.forksoverknives.com/ (Also has recipes)
https://www.drmcdougall.com/ (Also has recipes)
www.StraightUpFood.com: (more than 100 recipes)
www.HappyHealthyLongLife.com :The tagline, “A medical librarian’s adventures in evidence-based living.”
Some Good Cookbooks / Sources for Recipes
The McDougall Quick & Easy Cookbook (300 recipes)
Forks Over Knives (125 recipes)
Engine 2 Diet (100 pages of recipes)
My Beef with Meat (120 pages of recipes)