All Videos for Plant-Based Diets

Plants vs. Pesticides

Phytonutrients found in certain foods may protect against the toxic effects of industrial pollutants such as dioxin and DDT, suggesting a dual role for plant-based diets to reduce both exposure and subsequent damage.



Eating Green to Prevent Cancer

Chlorophyll, the most ubiquitous plant pigment in the world, may protect our DNA against mutation by intercepting carcinogens.



Paleolithic Lessons

An evolutionary argument for a plant-based diet is presented, in contrast to “Paleo” fad diets.



Plant-Based Bodybuilding

Lower levels of the cancer-promoting growth hormone IGF-1 in those eating vegan is not expected to affect their accumulation of muscle mass.



Too Much Soy May Neutralize Benefits

Vegans consuming 7 to 18 servings of soy foods a day may end up with circulating IGF-1 levels comparable to those who eat meat.



Animalistic Plant Proteins

While animal proteins increase levels of the cancer-promoting growth hormone IGF-1, and most plant proteins bring levels down, “high quality” plant proteins, such as soy, may not significantly affect levels in either direction. This, however, may depend on the quantity consumed.



How Plant-Based to Lower IGF-1?

Those eating vegan had significantly lower IGF-1 levels and higher IGF-binding proteins than those just eating vegetarian, suggesting that the more plant-based one’s diet becomes, the lower one’s risk of fueling growth hormone-dependent cancer growth.



The Answer to the Pritikin Puzzle

Lower cancer rates among those eating a plant-based diet may be a result of reduced blood levels of IGF-1, and enhanced production of IGF-1 binding protein.



Prostate vs. a Plant-Based Diet

Eating a plant-based diet may protect against BPH (benign prostatic hypertrophy, an enlarged prostate).



Prostate vs. Plants

All men should consider eating a prostate-healthy diet, which includes legumes (beans, peas, lentils, soy); certain vegetables (like garlic and onions); certain seeds (flax seeds); and the avoidance of refined grains, eggs, and poultry.



Is It the Diet, the Exercise, or Both?

Whose blood is better at killing cancer cells? People who eat a standard diet and exercise strenuously, or those who eat a plant-based diet and just exercise moderately?



Ex Vivo Cancer Proliferation Bioassay

Two weeks on a plant-based diet appears to significantly enhance cancer defenses against breast cancer and colon cancer cells. The blood of those eating a vegan diet for a year suppresses cancer cell growth nearly eight times better.



Engineering a Cure

Lifestyle medicine pioneer Nathan Pritikin, who reversed his own heart disease through diet and went on to help millions of others, wasn’t a doctor or dietician, but an engineer.



Slimming the Gecko

A workplace dietary intervention study at GEICO corporate headquarters demonstrates the power of plant-based eating.



Diet Pills Do Fat a Lot of Good

Common slimming supplements are found to be ineffective, whereas a diet centered on whole plant foods is described as perhaps the safest approach to weight control.



Biblical Daniel Fast Put to the Test

Within a matter of weeks, participants placed on the vegan diet outlined by the prophet Daniel experienced improvements in blood pressure, cholesterol and insulin levels, insulin resistance, and C-reactive protein levels, a marker of inflammation within the body.



Tightening the Bible Belt

Researchers set out to replicate the “Daniel Fast”—the biblical nutrition trial outlined in Daniel 1:8-16.



Meat and Weight Gain in the PANACEA Study

In one of the largest nutrition studies ever, total meat consumption was significantly associated with weight gain in men and women—and the link remained even after controlling for calories.



The Ice Diet

The water content of plant foods may help explain why those eating plant-based diets are, on average, so slim. Can ice be thought of as having even “fewer” calories than water, since the body has to warm it up?



Tipping Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes

Certain phytonutrients may tip the balance of healthy gut bacteria in favor of flora associated with improved weight control.



Boosting Good Bacteria in the Colon Without Probiotics

Certain good bacteria in our gut can turn the fiber we eat into an anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer compound—called butyrate—that we absorb back into our system. We may be able to boost the number of butyrate-producing bacteria by eating a plant-based diet.



Fawning over Flora

The good bacteria in our gut can digest the fiber we eat, and turn it into an anti-obesity compound—called propionate—that we absorb back into our system.



Optimal Phytosterol Source

Whole food sources of phytosterols, such as seeds and nuts, are likely superior to supplements, or phytosterol-fortified spreads and beverages.



Optimal Phytosterol Dose

Those eating plant-based diets get the most phytosterols, but there’s still room for improvement to maximize cholesterol reduction.



How Fiber Lowers Cholesterol

Fiber bulks, speeds, and dilutes the intestinal waste stream to facilitate the removal of excess cholesterol from the body.



The Best Way to Boost Serotonin

The secret to naturally boosting serotonin levels in the brain may include eating foods such as pumpkin seeds, with a high tryptophan-to-total protein ratio. This may help explain why studies show that those eating plant-based diets have superior mood states.



A Better Way to Boost Serotonin

Contrary to popular belief, the consumption of animal foods may actually decrease tryptophan levels in the brain. Carbohydrates, on the other hand, can boost transport across the blood-brain barrier, which has been used to explain premenstrual cravings.



The Wrong Way to Boost Serotonin

Tryptophan is the precursor to the “happiness hormone” serotonin, so why not take tryptophan supplements to improve mood and relieve symptoms of depression?



Human Neurotransmitters in Plants

The consumption of certain fruits is suggested as a potential treatment for depression, given the presence of psychoactive neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and melatonin in many plant foods.



Mineral of the Year—Magnesium

Despite promising autopsy and population data suggesting that inadequate magnesium intake is a risk factor for sudden cardiac death, it wasn’t until recently that this was demonstrated in prospective studies.



Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

Death in America is largely a foodborne illness. Focusing on studies published just over the last year in peer-reviewed scientific medical journals, Dr. Greger offers practical advice on how best to feed ourselves and our families to prevent, treat, and even reverse many of the top 15 killers in the United States.



The Benefits of Caloric Restriction Without the Actual Restricting

One mechanism by which caloric restriction may extend one’s lifespan is by upregulating dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), the most abundant steroid hormone in the human body. DHEA supplements are discouraged, but there may be a natural way to conserve levels as we age.



Plant-Based Diets and Cellular Stress Defenses

Measuring the effects of a plant-based diet on the expression of hundreds of different genes at a time, a research group found that an antioxidant-rich portfolio of plant foods such as berries, pomegranates, purple grapes, red cabbage, oregano, and walnuts was able to significantly modify the regulation of genes in the blood of volunteers.



Kiwifruit and DNA Repair

Plant-based diets help prevent cancer not only by blocking DNA damage, but by increasing our DNA repair enzymes’ ability to repair any damage that gets by our first line of antioxidant defense.



Treating Kidney Failure Through Diet

Not only do plant-based diets appear to prevent kidney function decline, they may also be used to treat kidney failure. Even at the same protein loads, the body is able to better handle phosphorus excretion from plant-based diets, reducing the risk of metastatic calcification.



Preventing Kidney Failure Through Diet

Given how vascular our kidneys are, it should comes as no surprise that animal protein, animal fat, and cholesterol are associated with declining kidney function (microalbuminurea—loss of protein in the urine), which can be an early warning sign not only for kidney failure, but also for heart disease and a shortened lifespan.



Dead Meat Bacteria Endotoxemia

The high bacteria load in raw or cooked animal foods and fermented foods may trigger an endotoxemic surge of inflammation, which may be exacerbated by the presence of saturated animal fat.



The Leaky Gut Theory of Why Animal Products Cause Inflammation

A single meal of meats, eggs, and dairy can cause a spike of inflammation within hours that can stiffen one’s arteries. Originally, this was thought to be the result of saturated animal fat causing our gut lining to leak bacterial toxins into our bloodstream, leading to endotoxemia.



Dietary Treatment of Crohn’s Disease

Meat (including fish), cheese, and animal protein intake in general have been associated with an increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). In the meantime, plant-based diets may not only help prevent such conditions, but treat them as well, resulting in the longest recorded remission rates for Crohn’s disease.



Fighting Inflammation in a Nut Shell

The equivalent of eating a single walnut half per day appeared to cut the risk of dying from inflammatory disease about in half, whereas fish did not appear to play a protective role. That may be why those eating vegetarian foods have lower levels of inflammation and chronic disease risk.