Let’s look back for a moment.  We can start with Alzheimer’s disease. This barely existed before 1990 but now almost 6 million Americans have it.  It is projected to be over 7 million by 2025.  Type 2 diabetes was once rare and only occurred in adults over 50 years old.  It was called mature onset diabetes then.  Now, we see it in children, adolescents, and adults of all ages. The rate of increase per year over the last 20 years is just shy of 5% per year.  2/3 of Americans are obese and if you put the “just overweight” category in with that, it is around 80% of the population that are not at a normal weight.  The War on Cancer was waged 40+ years ago by President Nixon, but more and more people are getting cancer and it is the leading cause of death in many countries.  While in some cases we have been able to extend some people’s lives, we are pretty much in the same place as we were 40 years ago in regard to a cure.  Autoimmune conditions continue to grow at the rate of 3% to 9% per year.  So what has changed so much since the 1970’s when all of these diseases were rare?  There’s yet another study that was released last month that confirms what so many other studies have shown.  Let’s take a look.

A new study published in the Public Library of Science Journal examined the effect of dietary changes on longevity. What happens to people who change from a standard American diet to a healthy, plant strong diet, which has a focus on eating less meat, more fruits and vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and nuts? The results of the study are shocking!

• People who made changes by age 20 added 10-13 years to their lives. 
• People who made changes at age 60 still add 8-9 years to their lives!
• People age 80+ still added 3.5 years to their lives!

With added longevity and added health, the quality of life also goes up. The instance of disease drops substantially.  And this is all with diet alone!  Add in the other lifestyle factors like activity and exercise, good sleep hygiene, not smoking, not drinking alcohol, no other substance abuse and stress management, and we can reduce the chance of all of the these chronic and autoimmune diseases by more than 80%.  Dr. David Katz, M.D. the founder of The True Health Initiative and formerly of Yale University’s Griffin Center for Prevention likes to put it like this;

“If there was a new drug and the drug is stunningly effective, and shockingly free of side effects. It is astoundingly safe - safe enough for newborns and octogenarians alike. It is available in bountiful supply, and remarkably inexpensive. In fact, you might be able to get it without spending any extra money at all - maybe even save money by taking it. And, here’s the punch line. If you take this pill - which everyone else in your family can take along with you - once daily for the rest of your life, it would reduce your risk of EVER getting ANY major chronic disease - heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, dementia, etc. - by 80%.”  You would take the pill and you might even invest in the company.  We know that no such pill exists, but we do know that if you practice the healthy precepts of lifestyle medicine that is exactly what happens.  I state this with great certainty. Aside from this particular new study, this has been proven many times over.

If one looks at the North Karelia Project, the Adventist study and Adventist Study 2, the Framingham Study, (now looking at its fourth generation of participants), or the study done in Potsdam, Germany as part of the ongoing EPIC study, one comes to the same conclusions.  Dr. Dean Ornish has not only shown in his randomized trials that you can prevent chronic conditions, he has shown the ability to reverse heart disease, reverse early stage prostate cancer and is about to do the same with Alzheimer’s.  He has even proven, together with Nobel Prize winning professor Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn that cellular aging can be slowed based on the condition of your Telomeres on the end of your DNA strands.

So, the question come down to this; if we have the prevention and we can even reverse many conditions fully or partially, and we can extend both the years of our life and add tremendous quality to that life, what is holding us back?  Maybe we are so ingrained in the current medical system that we can’t fathom that there are things more effective and cheaper than pharmaceuticals, surgeries, procedures and radiation.  Maybe business interests are more important than attaining real health.  But as Dr. Katz stated, the only side effects to these lifestyle changes are positive. 

Currently, in the United States (and these statistics are similar but not quite as bad throughout the West), 63% of the standard diet consist of processed foods—what author Michael Pollin refers to as food-like eatable substances.  Not only are they nutrition deficient, that cause harm and are highly addictive.  25% of the diet are animal proteins like meat, chicken, fish, dairy and eggs.  We know the connection between an abundance of animal proteins and diseases including cancers and heart disease.  6% are processed plant foods, mostly added oils.  Only 6% of the standard American diet (SAD), is made up of whole plant foods.  Hippocrates said “Let food be they medicine”.   Maimonides wrote in the 4^th Chapter of Deot, "Because for the body to be healthy and wholesome is among the ways of G-d... therefore a person must distance himself from those things that cause his body damage...”.  Lifestyle medicine has been around for a long time!

Here in Israel and for The Jewish People throughout the world we are entering a period of time that is associated with weight gain and illness, especially heart disease.  An instructor from Magen David Adom emergency services once told me that in Israel, from the week before the Passover (Pesach) holiday through the week of the holiday itself is the 2 week period with the highest amount of heart attacks in the calendar year.  We see the direct correlation between what we eat Vis a Vis our health and quality of life.  Let’s make this year a little different.  Let’s NOT ignore the studies, the research and the facts for what they are.  Our health is in our hands!  When you eat a diet of mostly whole plant foods, keep the junky processed foods and added oils out of the diet, and lower the intake of animal proteins to a minimum, it is quite clear what the results will be.  Add exercise, sleep, and stress management and don’t abuse substances like cigarettes and alcohol!  The end result will “add hours to your day, days to your year and years to your life.” 

Alan Freishtat is a HEALTH and WELLNESS COACH and PERSONAL TRAINER with 23 years of professional experience. He is a graduate of the eCornell University Certificate course on Plant Based Nutrition for preventing and reversing illness. Alan is director of The Wellness Clinic He can be reached at 02-651-8502 or 050-555-7175, or by email at alan@alanfitness.com www.alanfitness.com US Line: 516-568-5027