Unleashing the Power of Plant-Based Diets - Brenda Davis, RD

According to the World Health Organization noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are responsible from 74% of all deaths globally. Yet, an estimated 90% of type 2 diabetes, 80-90% of heart disease and 40-70% of cancers are considered entirely preventable. The lowest rates of NCDs are in populations living healthy lifestyles and eating unprocessed, plant-based diets. In this presentation, Brenda Davis, RD, plant-based pioneer, author, and internationally acclaimed speaker, will review the evidence supporting the use of plant-based diets for the prevention and treatment of NCDs. She will share her experiences in using a plant-based diet and lifestyle protocol in a type 2 diabetes clinical trial in the Marshall Islands, and in a lifestyle medicine demonstration project in Lithuania. Brenda will discuss the reasons why plant-based diets afford protection and provide practical guidelines for designing an optimal plant-based diet for disease prevention, treatment, and reversal. Some of the downsides of low-carb, ketogenic diets will also be discussed.
Learning Objectives:
1. Participants will be able to list 3 research groups that have followed similar, health-conscious individuals with different dietary patterns and reported on their health status and disease risk.
2. Participants will be able to cite the percent risk reduction for heart disease, cancer, and diabetes experienced by vegans and vegetarians compared to similar, health-conscious meat eaters in these health-conscious cohorts.
3. Participants will be able to list at least 3 key features of dietary patterns that have been demonstrated to reduce chronic disease risk.
4. Participants will be able to list 2 reasons why ketogenic diets are not optimal choices for chronic disease risk reduction