Thanks to the research of Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn Jr., we’ve known for some time that a low fat whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet can reverse coronary heart disease. Reversal involves the reduction of fatty deposits and plaque inside the coronary arteries. Dr. Ornish’s evidence is so strong that his heart disease reversal program has been approved as an Intensive Cardiac Rehab Program (ICR) that is covered by Medicare and a growing number health insurance companies. Ornish ICRs can now be found in 19 states. This is a wonderful development as coronary heart disease is our number one killer. I hope that it won’t be too long before an Ornish ICR is established in a medical center in the capital district region of upstate NY.
Can a WFPB Diet Treat Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)?
Heart Failure is a term used to describe a heart that cannot keep up with its workload. The body may not get the oxygen it needs. According to the American Heart Association: “Heart failure is a serious condition, and usually there’s no cure. But many people with heart failure lead a full, enjoyable life when the condition is managed with heart failure medications and healthy lifestyle changes. It’s also helpful to have the support of family and friends who understand your condition.”
Up until recently, there hasn’t been any research on a WFPB diet’s effect on CHF. In June of 2019, cardiologist Robert Ostfeld MD and colleagues published a case report in the Frontiers in Nutrition Journal. The case involved an obese 54 year woman with type 2 diabetes who was diagnosed with heart failure with reduced left-ventricular ejection fraction (25%). Her heart did not show any significant valve damage. She was started on a beta blocker, ACE Inhibitor and a statin.
The Diet Change
She also decided to switch from what she considered a “healthy western” diet to a whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet. Her dietary change is described in the table below:
| “Healthy Western” Diet | Plant Based Diet (daily) |
| Chicken without the skin | No animal products |
| Fish | At least 3 servings of dark leafy greens |
| Turkey | At least 3 servings of vegetables |
| Eggs | At least 3 servings of fruit |
| Lean Cuts of Meat | 1 – 3 servings of beans/legumes |
| Small Amounts of Processed Meats | 1-3 servings of whole grains |
| Diet Soft Drinks | 1 Tablespoon herbs/spice |
| Processed Foods (e.g. chips, cake) | 1 serving of raw, unsalted nuts or seeds |
| 1-2 servings of vegetables or fruit | 2 Tablespoon of hemp seeds/chia seeds/ground flax seed |
| At least one cup of tea per day and limit packaged/processed foods | |
Regarding the plant-based diet, patients are not given caloric or macronutrient goals and are invited to consume freely within these parameters.
Results After 5-1/2 Months
Health parameters at baseline and after five and a half months on a plant-based diet.
| Parameter | Baseline | After 5-1/2 Months |
| Body Mass Index (BMI) | 45.2 kg/m2 | 35.1 kg/m2 |
| Hemoglobin A1c | 8.1 % | 5.7%* |
| Ejection fraction | 25% | 55% |
*Patient’s type 2 diabetes resolved without the use of medications
The authors made it very clear that the report cannot establish causality. However, they do believe that the report highlights the potential role of plant-based diets in helping to reverse systolic dysfunction, or heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.
In this short video Dr. Michael Greger shares his hope that future randomized control trials will be conducted to help give us a better idea on how effective a WFPB diet can be in treating different types of CHF.
Click here to read about Chef Jeff Doucette’s remarkable reversal of CHF.
E Excerpt from Laurie Endicott Thomas’s amazing book Thin Diabetes – Fat Diabetes by clicking here!
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