Reflections From Plant Stock 2016
This past weekend I attended Plant Stock 2016 at the Esselstyn Farm in Claverack, NY. Among the 400-plus attendees included four regular participants of the monthly Plantastic Life pot luck dinners which was a wonderful bonus for me.
I wore my Plantastic Life shirt that I wore to last year’s Plant Stock and brought five more shirts along with me that my sister Terri Rinchick made for me a few nights prior. One of the shirts was meant for Engine 2 Blogger and Health Coach Char Nolan who worked the welcoming table last year and who told me how much she liked the shirt. Unfortunately, I didn’t see Char at this year’s event. We’ll have to mail her one.
It didn’t take very long before an attendee a few tables away came up to me and asked where she could buy my shirt. I wore the same shirt on Sunday (a clean one), and over the two days, there must have been 10 to 15 people who asked me about the shirt. Kudos to Terri for her shirt making skills and to my niece Lindsay for coming up with the logo design.
Here are some of my thoughts about Plant Stock 2016.
Rip Esselstyn’s Presentation on Strong Food vs. Weak Food
Rip reviewed the reasons why fruits, veggies, whole grains and legumes are strong foods and why animal products and highly processed junk are weak foods. He explained that the weak food-filled Standard American Diet is the primary cause of chronic diseases that result in premature death, unnecessary suffering and an annual expenditure of over three trillion dollars on health care costs.
He finished his talk with a suggestion that we should tweak Michael Pollan’s famous guidance: “Eat Food,. Not too much. Mostly plants” to: “Eat Whole Food. As much as you want. Only plants.” I hope this saying catches on.
T. Colin Campbell – Whole: Rethinking The Science of Nutrition
Dr. Campbell’s iconic status in the whole food plant-based (WFPB) world was evident by the tremendous ovations he received prior to and after his presentation. He discussed his many years of research on nutrition and cancer. He focused on the importance of looking at nutrition as the (w)holistic phenomenon that it is. He lamented that there is still no Institute of Nutrition among the 27 Institutes of Health (NIH) and he reminded us that nutrition receives very little research funding from the NIH. He admitted that the majority of his research was funded by the NIH, not as nutrition research, but cancer research.
Dr. Campbell states that nutrition research must take into account the infinite complexity of nutrition and human metabolism. This complexity requires an overall wholistic (The Whole Is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts) approach to nutrition research. We need more nutrition studies that examine multiple nutrients, multiple mechanisms, multiple diseases and multiple health outcomes. Far too few of these types of studies are being funded by the NIH.
Dr. Campbell has also seen the food industry’s role in nutrition research increase over the last two decades. The types of studies that are funded by food industries tend to study single nutrients that happen to be found in ample amounts in the food product(s) that the industry represents. These studies are much more likely to result in findings favorable to foods provided by the funder compared to independently funded studies.
There isn’t a bigger champion for the science of nutrition than Dr. Campbell. No dietitian I’ve met has come close. I’ve also never heard a dietitian call for an Institute of Nutrition.
Dr. Esselstyn spoke on both days of the conference. He shared his research experience on the effect of a low fat WFPB diet on preventing and reversing heart disease. He constantly emphasized the importance of maintaining arterial endothelial cells. Based on Framingham Heart Study data, Dr. Esselstyn likes to see total cholesterol under 150. However, he is beginning to think that cardiac patients with total cholesterol levels slightly above 150 may be fine as long as they are following his plant-perfect diet.
Dr. Esselstyn’s plant-perfect diet includes six generous servings of cooked leafy greens per day as their Nitric Oxide producing effects make our arterial endothelial cells happy.
One case study Dr. Esselstyn shared was particularly enlightening. He showed a picture of a narrowed artery of a patient suffering from serious angina pain. After transitioning to Dr. Esselstyn’s low fat WFPB diet, symptoms soon disappeared. Eventually, the patient fully recovered and resumed an active lifestyle for years. When they took a follow-up picture of the narrowed artery, they discovered that it hadn’t changed in appearance. This suggests that despite the artery’s narrowing, it was functioning very well because the patient was now eating a TRULY heart healthy diet. This is exciting news.
It explains why Dr. McDougall has put a tattoo on his chest with the words “Do Not Cath, I Will Sue”. His concern is that if he ever becomes unconscious in a hospital and tests are completed that discover narrowed arteries, physicians will decide to insert stents unnecessarily. Most physicians understandably assume that their patient is eating the Standard American Diet and see a narrowed artery as an imminent cardiac event. They are unaware that there are some people who have been eating a low-fat WFPB diet for years and that their narrowed arteries are working just fine.
Dr. Esselstyn likes to point out that his low fat plant-perfect diet turns heart disease into a toothless paper tiger. The evidence supporting his claim continues to grow.
Paul Chatlin is a plant-based success story who, after regaining his health, started the Plant Based Nutrition Support Group (PBNSG) near Detroit Michigan. He shared his personal story along with the growing success of PBNSG. His group works with restaurants to help them create plant-based menus. The group is educating medical students and has worked with State Representatives to teach mothers how to prepare healthy plant-based lunches for their children. The PBNSG is doing great things and is a tremendous model for other communities to follow.
Adam explained how a plant based diet was an important factor in his recovery from obesity, type II diabetes, Adderall addiction and depression. Adam’s been through a lot in his young life, but with the support of his family and friends, he has his life back on track.
The tireless Dr. Greger is the founder of the spectacular website “nutritionfacts.org” and the author of the blockbuster book “How Not To Die”. The book title was also the title of his presentation. .A version of this presentation can be found on the nutritionfacts.org web site.
A regular at Plant Stock, Psychologist Dr.Doug Lisle was his usual excellent self on both days. On Saturday, he presented “The Willpower Paradox” and it turns out that willpower is very much determined by our environment and our biology. This enlightening talk is available on DVD.
On Sunday, his crowd-pleasing presentation entitled “Getting Along Without Going Along” gave newbies ideas on how they can maintain their WFPB lifestyle without losing friends. Dr. Lisle was at his comedic best as he combined education and entertainment as well as anyone I’ve seen. This presentation can be watched for free on his website.
James Lightning Wilks is a former MMA fighter who decided that a documentary film needed to be made that included highly successful vegan male athletes. Why is this important? James thinks that it is the best way to get young males to consider a WFPB lifestyle. He decided that the title of the film should be “The Game Changers”.
Young males are notorious meat eaters and consume 80% of the fast food sold in the US. This explains why fast food chains heavily promote meat-based food items. Most young males equate meat with manliness and are not swayed by the scientific research supporting the health and environmental benefits of WFPB diets. Maybe their attitudes towards meat will change after viewing a film that profiles a diverse group of thriving vegan male athletes.
Wilks explained how his film project has progressed over the past three years. It began on a shoe-string budget of which he was the sole funder. He credited Rip Esselstyn for being a big supporter of his idea and for arranging a meeting with director James Cameron with whom Rip had worked on a previous project. The meeting went well. Cameron is now part of Team Game Changers. Another team member is Oscar winning documentary film maker Louie Psihoyos. With the addition of these two industry giants, the budget for the film has moved from just about zero dollars up into the millions.
Wilks reluctantly showed some footage that was filmed in 2013. Rip told the audience that Wilks was a little ashamed of the quality of the footage and did not want the audience to think that it represented the quality they should expect when the film comes out in mid 2017. Rip convinced Wilks that the audience would be impressed with the 2013 footage. I agree with Rip that the footage was worth showing. I think The Game Changers is going to build on the WFPB revolution that the film Forks Over Knives started.
Dr. Oppenlander’s presentation was titled “Food Choice and Sustainability: Why “Buying Local”, “Eating Less Meat”, and “Taking Baby Steps” Won’t Work”. Dr. Oppenlander argues that from a population perspective, eliminating or drastically reducing all animal agriculture, not just factory farms, is necessary for a sustainable food system. He defines a sustainable food system as one that must not substantially or irreversibly deplete nonrenewable resources and he believes animal agriculture fails on nearly all fronts.
Dr Oppenlander must have had a great impact on the audience judging from the large amount of people who were in line for him to sign his book.
Jane and Ann provided a cooking demonstration on day two. They shared simple fat-free cooking tips and made some of their favorite dishes. They made such a variety of dishes, I’d be surprised if each audience member wasn’t able to pick a dish to try at home. There was this one oat muffin-like thing that was made in a pot. It’s something I’ll try at some point because I don’t bake.
Raising Plant-Strong Kids
The Esselstyn siblings and their spouses shared their approaches to raising plant-based kids. The advice ranged from very specific tips on food preparation and planning to overall philosophies. Prior to the panel session, Rip asked his son Cole to prove what plant-strong kids can do. Cole then proceeded to climb one of the tent poles all the way to the top – a pretty impressive feat.
Dr. Davis is a bariatric surgeon and the primary author of the book “Proteinaholic”. In addition to being a surgeon, Dr. Davis has the ability to meticulously evaluate nutrition research with the mind of a scientist. He explained to the audience how America’s obsession with meat is killing us.
He has emerged as a thorn in the side of “bro” scientists who claim that meat-laden diets are ideal for athletes and for overall health. Dr. Davis is not afraid to debate them on stage or with the written word. He also isn’t afraid take on Hospital administrators.
He got fed up that bacon is served in the hospital cafeteria and went to a top official and told him that if bacon wasn’t eliminated from the menu, then he would cease performing bariatric surgeries. He said that the official assured him that he would address the situation. Dr. Davis joked that if bacon remained on the menu, we may be seeing him on CNN picketing in front of the hospital. This guy has a McDougall-like swagger to him.
Scott Jurek, the legendary endurance runner and author of “Eat and Run”, was a great choice as the last presenter at Plant Stock 2016. He showed some footage of his record-breaking Appalachian Trail adventure. Some of the footage will appear in “The Game Changers” film. When he reached the summit of Mount Katahdin in Maine to complete his journey, the crowd erupted. This alone would be a reason to see the Game Changers in 2017.
In addition to the presenters, I was able to meet quite a number of people on the same plant-based path that I’m on. The Plant Stock crowd is as diverse as America. Being at Plant Stock reminds me that a WFPB lifestyle crosses all political and cultural boundaries. It’s also refreshing to be around people who appreciate how great it is to be able to be served food without worrying about its ingredients.
I’m already looking forward to Plant Stock 2017. If you’re there, I’ll be the guy wearing the Plantastic Life t-shirt.
Stay healthy and strong!.
E Excerpt from Laurie Endicott Thomas’s amazing book Thin Diabetes – Fat Diabetes by clicking here!
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