There is a lot of noise out there about about what is right for nutrition and health. We want to cut through that noise and bring you the science straight from the sources.
It’s important to be informed when it comes to your health; and if you’re a health professional, it’s even more important for those who rely on you.
We don’t think you’ll need much convincing that a whole-foods plant-based diet is the best for humans after reading some of these studies.
Peruse through this page and even our Other Recommended Media page for more information.
The Lifestyle Medicine site does a great job of cataloguing the evidence that supports the efficacy of Lifestyle Medicine. So go there for a more comprehensive list of studies and articles.
Well-Known Studies we have Found Helpful
The Esselstyn Plant-Based Diet for Coronary Heart Disease
- A strategy to arrest and reverse coronary artery disease: a 5-year longitudinal study of a single physician’s practice. (1995).
- A way to reverse CAD? (2014)
- Website with additional articles and studies written by Dr Esselstyn
- Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Book and Cookbook
Portfolio Diet
- Effects of a Dietary Portfolio of Cholesterol-Lowering Foods vs Lovastatin on Serum Lipids and C-Reactive Protein. (2003)
- The portfolio diet for cardiovascular risk reduction (2007)
- In Depth: Portfolio Diet PDF
- Infographic of Portfolio Diet
Ornish Diet
The Ornish Program for Reversing Heart Disease was approved by Medicare in 2011 and many private insurers have followed suit. They use all the tenets of Lifestyle Medicine in the program. References below.
- Ornish Lifestyle Medicine site
- Heart Disease: Dr Ornish has published a number of papers on this topic. Go back to his site to see all of his research listed.
- Telomerase: Increased telomerase activity and comprehensive lifestyle changes: a pilot study. (2008)
- Depression: Lifestyle changes are related to reductions in depression in persons with elevated coronary risk factors. (2010)
- Prostate: Intensive Lifestyle Changes and Prostate Cancer. (2005)
Dr T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. and The China Study
The China Project – explanation and some data
- Diet, lifestyle, and the etiology of coronary artery disease: the Cornell China Study. (1998)
- Diet and chronic degenerative diseases: perspectives from China. (1994)
- Associations between breast cancer, plasma triglycerides, and cholesterol. (1991)
The LYON Diet Heart Study
Vegetarian and Vegan Diets vs ADA Diet for Type 2 Diabetes by PCRM
- A low-fat vegan diet improves glycemic control and cardiovascular risk factors in a randomized clinical trial in individuals with type 2 diabetes. (2006)
- A low-fat vegan diet and a conventional diabetes diet in the treatment of type 2 diabetes: a randomized, controlled, 74-wk clinical trial. (2009)
- Vegetarian and vegan diets in type 2 diabetes management. (2009)
Nurse’s Health Study
- Diabetes: Diet, lifestyle, and genetic risk factors for type 2 diabetes: a review. (2014)
- Breast Cancer: Type 2 Diabetes and Subsequent Incidence of Breast Cancer in the Nurses’ Health Study. (2003)
- PDF of Key Research Findings
Adventist Health Study
- Vegetarian Dietary Patterns and Mortality in Adventist Health Study 2. (2013)
- Vegetarian diets and blood pressure among white subjects: results from the Adventist Health Study-2 (AHS-2). (2012)
EPIC Study
EPIC stands for: European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. It is a large cohort study in Europe, involving over half a million participants, that looks at the relationship between cancer and nutrition, in addition to other chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease.
There are many papers that have come from this work, below are a couple. If you type “EPIC” into a PubMed or Google Scholar search you’ll find more.