Welcome to "Reverse
Heart Disease Naturally."
00:00:28.76\00:00:31.26
I'm Doctor David DeRose,
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president of
Compass Health Consulting,
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and your guide on this
journey into how you can
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obtain better
health. The year was 1990,
00:00:38.73\00:00:43.51
the date: July 21st.
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The medical journal in
question: the British Journal
00:00:46.64\00:00:50.85
The Lancet, an internationally
acclaimed journal.
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In that journal on
that particular day,
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there was a
provocative question raised:
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can lifestyle changes
00:01:01.46\00:01:04.96
reverse coronary heart disease?
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I'm sure if you ask
the average physician,
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before that
article was published,
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they would have said, "No way!"
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Coronary heart
disease-- that's the cause of
00:01:15.77\00:01:18.84
heart attacks. That
progressive disease process
00:01:18.87\00:01:22.71
could only be treated with
things like medications and
00:01:22.74\00:01:26.45
coronary artery
bypass grafting. But the
00:01:26.48\00:01:31.12
study revealed
something remarkable.
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Doctor Dean
Ornish and colleagues
00:01:33.22\00:01:36.12
published the results, the
00:01:36.16\00:01:37.76
one-year results of what
they called the Lifestyle Heart
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Trial. What they demonstrated
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is that, in over 80
percent of the subjects
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in this study, there was
00:01:47.17\00:01:49.07
blockage
regression. In other words,
00:01:49.10\00:01:51.51
the blockages were going in the
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reverse direction. The
arteries were opening up!
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This was amazing and
the medical community
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took note. Now it's true--
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there were
smaller centers throughout
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the world, and here
in the United States,
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that were
already suggesting that
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coronary artery
disease was reversible.
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But this was the first iron-clad
study that documented it.
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They did
before-and-after angiograms,
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those dye studies of
the heart blood vessels,
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actually showing
that the blockages were
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going in the opposite direction,
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as everyone had
expected. What did Ornish
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and his team do? What
was the lifestyle program
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that was involved?
Before we look at it,
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let me tell you--this is
just one in an episode of
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presentations from
the LifeStart Seminars.
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It might come as no surprise to
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you that
LifeStart is an acronym,
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a memory device that points to 9
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essential lifestyle
practices that can reverse
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or prevent a host of diseases.
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You'll see, as we go
through Doctor Ornish's program,
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some amazing resonance with the
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LifeStart mnemonic. 
If it's your first time
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listening to one
these presentations,
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let me quickly walk you through
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those 9 elements in
LifeStart. The "L" stands for
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Liquids, the proper
beverages. The "I" stands for
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Inter-personal Relations,
or Interpersonal Relationships.
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the "F" stands for Foods--
dietary choices, that is.
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"E" stands for
Exercise. "S" for Sunlight.
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"T" for Temperance--
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that's the idea using things
that are good in moderation
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and totally avoiding
things that are harmful.
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The "A" in LifeStart refers to
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Air--fresh air. The
"R" stands for Rest.
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The "T" stands for
trust in divine power.
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If you're not familiar with that
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mnemonic, then I encourage you
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to go to our Website,
lifestartsseminars.com,
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and pick up our
free e-book on LifeStart.
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It will walk you through
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and give you more information
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about those
essential elements. With that
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background now,
let's go back to 1990,
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and to Doctor
Ornish and his team. What
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did they do to
reverse heart disease?
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Well, first of all,
they did focus on that
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"F" in LifeStart. They
focused on foods, on diet.
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No animal products
were allowed except for
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egg whites and non-fat dairy.
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We'll talk perhaps a
little bit more about
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that as we go along.
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But one aside is
is worth mentioning at
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this point. Doctor
Ornish has continued
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to do cutting-edge
lifestyle research,
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moving his focus to
cancer. Now Ornish is using
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an exclusively vegetarian diet,
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sometimes referred
to as a vegan diet,
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in his interventions. Back then,
in the lifestyle heart trial,
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they did allow some egg
whites and non-fat dairy.
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What did the diet look like as
far as its nutrient composition?
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It was 70 to 75
percent carbohydrates. Yes,
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a very
high-carb diet, but it was
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primarily what we call
"complex carbohydrates."
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That's the kind of carbohydrates
you find in whole grains--
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the kind of
carbohydrates you find in beans.
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It's not the current
kind of carbohydrates
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you find in candy, which
is simple carbohydrate sugar,
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for example. The dye was about
10 to 15 percent protein, so
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you could see it
was very low in fat.
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There was basically
no cholesterol--less
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than 5 milligrams of
cholesterol--which is really an
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infinitesimal amount.
They did have some other
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restrictions
that we would say are
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dietary restrictions,
in the broadest sense.
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Under the LifeStart acronym,
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it comes under the
heading of Liquids.
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No caffeinated
beverages were allowed.
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Alcohol use was restricted.
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I've never understood why Ornish
did not allow the caffeine.
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By the way, I'm
totally in harmony with
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that recommendation,
and so is the entire
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LifeStart approach.
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I don't know if he
avoided it because caffeine
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in some studies
has been linked to
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higher cholesterol levels.
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I don't know if his main
motivation was that caffeine
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destabilizes the
heart. It leaves you
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more susceptible to
heart rhythm problems.
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By the way, this is a great
time for an aside on this topic.
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If you have
heart rhythm problems,
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if you have atrial
fibrillation intermittently,
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if you have a
condition called Paroxysmal
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Atrial
Tachycardia. What is that?
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If you've never heard
of it before, I know it's
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that's quite a
mouthful. "Paroxysmal"
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means it comes and goes.
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"Atrial" refers to the
upper chambers of the heart.
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"Tachycardia" is a
fast heart rate. So PAT, or
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Paroxysmal Atrial Tachycardia,
sometimes called Paroxysmal
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Supraventricular
Tachycardia. Again,
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"supraventricular"
because it's from structures
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above the ventricles, which
are the main pumping chambers.
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This condition is fairly
common in healthy people.
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One other things
that can trigger it, or
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make you more predisposed to it,
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is caffeine. Although
we're talking about reversing
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heart disease (we
usually talk about that in
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terms of reversing blockages in
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heart arteries),
you can also reverse
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heart rhythm problems by paying
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attention to our
beverage choices.
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Caffeine is a big
one. So is alcohol.
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One of the things that can
trigger atrial fibrillation
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is heavy alcohol use,
then coming off the alcohol.
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This can trigger
atrial fibrillation,
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which is a quivering
of the upper chambers
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of the heart. By the
way, if you do have atrial
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fibrillation,
it's very important
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that you keep on top of that.
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When those upper
chambers are quivering,
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they're not pumping
in a physiologic way.
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Because of that, blood
can stagnate in the atria.
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Then, if they do go back to a
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normal rhythm, or
even if they don't,
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those clots--remember,
stagnating blood can clot.
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Those clots that
could form in that setting
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can break loose and then go
to the body or to the brain,
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cause a stroke or
other problems. So,
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heart rhythm
problems can be serious.
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Heart rhythm
problems affecting the
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lower chambers of the heart,
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the ventricles,
often cause death.
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You've heard of
Ventricular Tachycardia perhaps,
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or Ventricular Fibrillation.
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If your ventricles, the main
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pumping chambers,
are just quivering,
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you actually will
die because you're not
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pumping blood through your body.
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You've got to rapidly
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get out of that
rhythm. That's why
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we use those electric paddles,
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or the defibrillators, that are
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more contained and that
even a lay person can use. Why?
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To try to shock the heart
out of that abnormal rhythm.
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Simple point: Ornish avoided
both caffeine and alcohol.
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I'm just telling you, there's
00:09:02.04\00:09:03.61
all these
relationships with those
00:09:03.64\00:09:05.44
drugs--that's what they really
are, caffeine and alcohol,
00:09:05.47\00:09:09.11
that can adversely affect
cardiac performance. Again,
00:09:09.14\00:09:12.91
I don't know why
Doctor Ornish and his
00:09:12.95\00:09:14.95
team excluded some
of those things, or
00:09:14.98\00:09:16.75
restricted them, in
the case of alcohol.
00:09:16.79\00:09:18.69
I do know this:
caffeine has been dubbed
00:09:18.72\00:09:22.72
"bad habit glue." Many
00:09:22.76\00:09:24.89
psychological
researchers feel that
00:09:24.93\00:09:28.36
if you giving someone caffeine,
or allowing them to use it,
00:09:28.40\00:09:31.70
it makes it more
difficult for them to break
00:09:31.73\00:09:34.74
bad habits. So, whatever
the motivation was, no caffeine,
00:09:34.77\00:09:38.77
restricted alcohol
use. By the way, the
00:09:38.81\00:09:41.48
LifeStart program,
in my own practice,
00:09:41.51\00:09:43.58
over the past 30 years,
00:09:43.61\00:09:44.81
I have
recommended that my patients
00:09:44.85\00:09:46.88
totally
discontinue the use of alcohol.
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It does not give any
benefit for the heart
00:09:49.18\00:09:52.99
if you're
already on an excellent
00:09:53.02\00:09:54.62
lifestyle. That
means doing the kind of
00:09:54.66\00:09:56.52
things that Doctor Ornish
00:09:56.56\00:09:57.86
and his team recommended:
eating lots of plant products
00:09:57.89\00:10:00.76
and little, if
any, animal products.
00:10:00.80\00:10:03.06
One interesting
thing that I should let you
00:10:03.10\00:10:05.23
know is that, if this
sounds like too austere a diet,
00:10:05.27\00:10:07.37
Doctor Ornish's
team did not restrict
00:10:07.40\00:10:10.37
calories at all. People
could eat all they wanted,
00:10:10.41\00:10:13.04
as long as they followed those
specific dietary guidelines.
00:10:13.07\00:10:16.98
Well, it wasn't
just a diet program.
00:10:17.01\00:10:19.61
Remember, it was the LifeStyle
00:10:19.65\00:10:21.92
Heart Program. They included
other components as well.
00:10:21.95\00:10:25.59
There was stress
management training.
00:10:25.62\00:10:28.16
There was social
and emotional support.
00:10:28.19\00:10:30.86
Are you listening? From
the standpoint of LifeStart--
00:10:30.89\00:10:34.36
remember, "L" stands for
Liquids. We've talked about
00:10:34.40\00:10:37.23
those already. The
"I" stands for what?
00:10:37.27\00:10:40.30
Interpersonal Relationships.
Ornish focused directly on that.
00:10:40.34\00:10:44.77
Actually, in
subsequent writing that Ornish
00:10:44.81\00:10:47.71
has done for the lay press,
00:10:47.74\00:10:49.18
he has suggested that perhaps
the very most important thing
00:10:49.21\00:10:52.91
was the social
support, the love, the
00:10:52.95\00:10:55.25
emotional support
that people received
00:10:55.28\00:10:57.85
in that context.
Let's go on, though.
00:10:57.89\00:11:01.19
Other elements of the LifeStyle
heart trial: smoking cessation.
00:11:01.22\00:11:05.06
No smoking
allowed. Listen, if you
00:11:05.09\00:11:08.16
haven't heard enough about
the reasons to stop smoking.
00:11:08.20\00:11:11.50
By the way, the
minute you stop smoking--
00:11:11.53\00:11:16.04
I'm exaggerating a
little bit-- but within
00:11:16.07\00:11:18.21
hours to days of
stopping smoking, your
00:11:18.24\00:11:20.48
risk of dying
from a heart attack
00:11:20.51\00:11:22.14
drops by
something like 50 percent.
00:11:22.18\00:11:24.65
The reason for it
is nicotine itself.
00:11:24.68\00:11:26.95
Just like caffeine and
alcohol that we talked about,
00:11:26.98\00:11:29.98
nicotine, I'm not saying in an
equal manner, perhaps even more
00:11:30.02\00:11:34.09
seriously,
destabilizes the heart rhythm.
00:11:34.12\00:11:37.76
So, if you have a
heart attack as a smoker,
00:11:37.79\00:11:41.00
with that nicotine on board,
you are more likely to die
00:11:41.03\00:11:44.80
of a fatal heart rhythm
problem. So, smoking cessation
00:11:44.83\00:11:48.07
was on the list. By
the way, cigarette smoking,
00:11:48.10\00:11:50.04
with its ingredients
like carbon monoxide,
00:11:50.07\00:11:52.91
damage the lining cells
00:11:52.94\00:11:55.04
of the arteries in your body.
We call it the endothelium.
00:11:55.08\00:11:59.05
So, that carbon
monoxide is damaging the lining,
00:11:59.08\00:12:02.35
making it easier
for the blockage that
00:12:02.38\00:12:04.75
we call atherosclerosis
to build up. Remember,
00:12:04.79\00:12:08.19
Lifestyle Heart
Trials showed a reversal of
00:12:08.22\00:12:10.59
blockage. If you're going
to reverse blockage, you have
00:12:10.63\00:12:12.79
to stop all the things
contributing to the blockage in
00:12:12.83\00:12:15.26
the first place, which
includes cigarette smoking.
00:12:15.30\00:12:18.13
So no smoking in
Ornish's program.
00:12:18.17\00:12:19.90
Another element
that you shouldn't be
00:12:19.93\00:12:22.24
surprised by that
was in the program was
00:12:22.27\00:12:24.17
moderate exercise.
00:12:24.21\00:12:25.74
What did that look
like? Ornish's team
00:12:25.77\00:12:29.54
required the
participants to walk at
00:12:29.58\00:12:32.28
least 3 hours
per week in at least
00:12:32.31\00:12:34.22
30 minutes per session.
00:12:34.25\00:12:35.62
It was moderate
exercise, though.
00:12:35.65\00:12:37.79
It wasn't severe,
strenuous exercise.
00:12:37.82\00:12:41.22
Now, at this point, I
should tell you a story that I
00:12:41.26\00:12:43.39
heard from from
one of Doctor Ornish's
00:12:43.43\00:12:45.16
collegues, one of the
co-authors of that paper,
00:12:45.19\00:12:47.30
Doctor
Sherwoods. Doctor Sherwoods,
00:12:47.36\00:12:49.46
shortly after the
study came out, was
00:12:49.50\00:12:51.33
speaking to a group of health
00:12:51.37\00:12:52.63
professionals. I
was in that audience.
00:12:52.67\00:12:54.30
He told a
fascinating story about
00:12:54.34\00:12:57.11
their work with
lifestyle interventions,
00:12:57.14\00:12:59.17
prior to the
Lifestyle Heart Trial.
00:12:59.21\00:13:02.14
They were on the
mindset that many
00:13:02.18\00:13:04.31
people were on
back then. By the way,
00:13:04.35\00:13:06.11
some still are.
"It's best for your heart
00:13:06.15\00:13:09.25
to work as hard as you
can! Get your money's worth!"
00:13:09.28\00:13:11.65
"If you're going to
the health club, you've
00:13:11.69\00:13:13.36
got to just work as hard
as you can! You've got to
00:13:13.39\00:13:15.86
be there 30
minutes. Get all you can!"
00:13:15.89\00:13:18.06
"It's expensive to have
a health club membership."
00:13:18.09\00:13:20.20
Listen, I've had many patients
00:13:20.23\00:13:22.03
over the years
who had that attitude.
00:13:22.06\00:13:23.53
Let me just tell you what
Doctor Sherwoods and his team
00:13:23.57\00:13:26.40
found in their
experience. One day
00:13:26.43\00:13:29.17
they were
working with patients--
00:13:29.20\00:13:31.34
heart patients with
that very philosophy.
00:13:31.37\00:13:34.91
"Get as much as you
can! Do as much as you can!"
00:13:34.94\00:13:38.11
One of the
participants who had really
00:13:38.15\00:13:40.18
caught that spirit
was just going at it.
00:13:40.22\00:13:41.95
He was on the rowing
machine. He was going.
00:13:41.98\00:13:45.32
It was what was considered a
very high-tech rowing machine.
00:13:45.35\00:13:48.69
This was back in the '80s,
00:13:48.72\00:13:50.09
and these
high-tech rowing machines.
00:13:50.13\00:13:51.83
He was looking
right in front of him
00:13:51.86\00:13:53.86
at a monitor. On
that monitor were
00:13:53.90\00:13:56.10
other rowers. As he was rowing,
00:13:56.13\00:13:58.00
he was passing one
rower, and then another rower.
00:13:58.03\00:14:02.04
He was just going for
it. He finally, at the
00:14:02.07\00:14:04.61
end of his
workout, got up he said,
00:14:04.64\00:14:06.37
"I just beat 100 rowers!"
00:14:06.41\00:14:11.48
And he dropped dead.
That's right, he droped dead.
00:14:11.51\00:14:17.29
They couldn't resussitate him.
00:14:17.32\00:14:20.86
You could see why this
dampened the enthusiasm
00:14:20.89\00:14:24.09
of the Ornish team
when it came to vigorous,
00:14:24.13\00:14:27.73
maximal exercise.
You get the point?
00:14:27.76\00:14:30.80
I am NOT an advocate of it
for a number number of reasons.
00:14:30.83\00:14:34.17
If you've seen my
series on longevity,
00:14:34.20\00:14:37.51
plus where I speak
about blood fluidity,
00:14:37.54\00:14:39.71
you do excessive
exercise, it makes
00:14:39.74\00:14:43.08
the blood less
fluid. Maybe you've
00:14:43.11\00:14:47.58
seen my book, Evading Ebola.
00:14:47.62\00:14:50.55
You've heard my
presentations about
00:14:50.59\00:14:52.99
improving the immune system,
like addressing colds and flu.
00:14:53.02\00:14:56.39
In there I talk
about the same phenomenon.
00:14:56.42\00:14:59.09
Do excessive exercise,
00:14:59.13\00:15:01.13
it suppresses the immune
system. Moderate exercise
00:15:01.16\00:15:04.37
improves it. By the
way, while we're speaking
00:15:04.40\00:15:08.30
about some of
those other resources,
00:15:08.34\00:15:10.17
if you haven't been to the
00:15:10.21\00:15:12.01
LifeStart
Website, we've got a lot of
00:15:12.04\00:15:15.78
resources there for
you--many of them free.
00:15:15.81\00:15:18.98
We also have some that there's
a fee attached to--some of the
00:15:19.01\00:15:22.18
video series in books.
"lifestartseminars.com"
00:15:22.22\00:15:27.09
Back to the
point about exercise.
00:15:27.12\00:15:30.63
Exercise in moderation is great
00:15:30.66\00:15:33.70
from the standpoint of just
about everything we look at.
00:15:33.73\00:15:37.23
When you push it too
hard, you lose the benefits
00:15:37.27\00:15:41.04
So Ornish should recognize that.
Fortunately, by the time of the
00:15:41.07\00:15:44.61
LiffeStyle Heart
Trial, and as a result,
00:15:44.64\00:15:47.08
moderate exercise was the rule.
00:15:47.11\00:15:49.21
Well, I already
told you what happened.
00:15:49.24\00:15:51.25
We saw reverses of
blockages, but there were
00:15:51.28\00:15:53.62
some other exciting
things that happened.
00:15:53.65\00:15:55.65
Those exciting things
actually help us understand why
00:15:55.68\00:15:59.62
lifestyle is so powerful. Before
we go there, lest you think
00:15:59.65\00:16:03.66
this was just a one-year study,
00:16:03.69\00:16:05.96
and after that
everyone just deteriorated,
00:16:05.99\00:16:08.43
Doctor Ornish
subsequently published research
00:16:08.46\00:16:11.50
5 years after the
intervention. It showed the same
00:16:11.53\00:16:15.34
thing was happening.
Reversal was continuing to occur
00:16:15.37\00:16:19.37
over time as people
stuck with a healthy
00:16:19.41\00:16:22.78
lifestyle. So why the benefits?
00:16:22.81\00:16:25.88
What happened? One of
the things that was so
00:16:25.91\00:16:29.12
powerful about the LifeStyle
Heart Trial was what happened
00:16:29.15\00:16:32.95
to cholestrol. If
you are listening to
00:16:32.99\00:16:35.99
this presentation--you have high
00:16:36.02\00:16:37.39
cholesterol, you're
on medications . . .
00:16:37.43\00:16:39.09
Without any medication at all,
00:16:39.13\00:16:41.80
they were able to
drop the cholesterol
00:16:41.83\00:16:44.27
in the range--the bad
cholesterol--in the range of
00:16:44.30\00:16:46.94
40 percent. 40 percent!
00:16:46.97\00:16:51.07
in one year. Do you
realize how much that is?
00:16:51.11\00:16:53.21
That's a huge
reduction in cholesterol.
00:16:53.24\00:16:55.51
So if you start
with a cholesterol of 300
00:16:55.54\00:16:58.58
do you know what 40 percent is?
00:16:58.61\00:17:00.82
That's a 120 points!
That's going from 300 to 180.
00:17:00.85\00:17:05.89
That would be
if if we're talking
00:17:05.92\00:17:07.69
about a change in
total cholesterol.
00:17:07.72\00:17:09.26
The biggest
changes were in the bad
00:17:09.29\00:17:11.29
cholesterol, the LDL
cholesterol. That was
00:17:11.33\00:17:13.56
where they were
approaching 40 percent,
00:17:13.60\00:17:15.26
the total cholesterol
dropping about 25 percent.
00:17:15.30\00:17:17.93
Body weight
dropped. Blood pressure
00:17:17.97\00:17:21.20
fell, which was good because
00:17:21.24\00:17:23.30
high blood pressure
accelerates blockages
00:17:23.34\00:17:25.84
in heart arteries.
Just amazing benefits,
00:17:25.87\00:17:29.64
and it was occurring
all, remember, with lifestyle
00:17:29.68\00:17:33.55
processes. While we
talk to you about LifeStart,
00:17:33.58\00:17:38.12
or you hear about the LifeStyle
00:17:38.15\00:17:40.46
Heart Program
with Doctor Ornish,
00:17:40.49\00:17:42.02
it's the same big picture.
00:17:42.06\00:17:44.29
you can change the
future of your heart health
00:17:44.33\00:17:46.80
by changing your
lifestyle. "Well," you say.
00:17:46.83\00:17:51.60
"Yeah, Doctor DeRose, I
could change my lifestyle.
00:17:51.63\00:17:53.80
But if I got on a
lifestyle like that,
00:17:53.84\00:17:55.97
I would be miserable
for the rest of my life.
00:17:56.00\00:17:57.91
Why would I want to do that?
00:17:57.94\00:17:59.27
I'd rather die a little bit
sooner, or even a lot sooner,
00:17:59.31\00:18:02.44
rather then have
to be a vegetarian,
00:18:02.48\00:18:04.25
exercise every
day, stop smoking,
00:18:04.28\00:18:06.15
get rid of my caffeine." Well,
let me ask you the question.
00:18:06.18\00:18:10.15
Doctor Ornish and his
team actually looked at the
00:18:10.19\00:18:13.36
quality of life
00:18:13.39\00:18:14.59
of the participants in
this study. If you're right
00:18:14.62\00:18:17.73
about leaving off
all your enjoyable
00:18:17.76\00:18:20.83
habits making life miserable.
Is that what they found?
00:18:20.86\00:18:23.20
Actually, they found
just the opposite. They
00:18:23.23\00:18:27.04
found that those in
the conventional group--
00:18:27.07\00:18:29.27
their sense of
well-being actually
00:18:29.30\00:18:32.47
deteriorated over
time, because there was
00:18:32.51\00:18:34.54
a control group for this study.
00:18:34.58\00:18:36.21
The interventional
group-- they actually improved.
00:18:36.24\00:18:44.05
Now, I like to be real precise
00:18:44.09\00:18:49.52
in what I
communicate. I think if you
00:18:49.56\00:18:52.29
actually looked
at what we call the
00:18:52.33\00:18:53.86
statistical
significance of those changes,
00:18:53.90\00:18:56.50
the group that
was the control group
00:18:56.53\00:18:58.77
didn't change
significantly, okay?
00:18:58.80\00:19:01.30
In a year there was a suggestion
maybe they were worse,
00:19:01.34\00:19:04.74
but statistically, probably--
we'll just call it the same.
00:19:04.77\00:19:08.14
We have to do that
in research, and in
00:19:08.18\00:19:10.51
fairness, I'll just
put that out there for you.
00:19:10.55\00:19:13.08
The point was,
00:19:13.11\00:19:14.42
that when it came to things
like anxiety and depression
00:19:14.45\00:19:17.85
and insomnia and
lack of pleasure in life--
00:19:17.89\00:19:20.96
all of those things
got better in those that
00:19:20.99\00:19:24.96
embraced the
comprehensive lifestyle program.
00:19:24.99\00:19:28.53
Here's the point:
although we get attached
00:19:28.56\00:19:32.43
to the lifestyles
that we grew up with,
00:19:32.47\00:19:34.57
the lifestyles that
we've adopted over the years,
00:19:34.60\00:19:37.04
we can change our lifestyle
and develop new enjoyments,
00:19:37.07\00:19:41.68
plus get the benefits
of that new lifestyle.
00:19:41.71\00:19:44.35
If you've seen
my presentation in
00:19:44.38\00:19:46.31
this series on addictions,
00:19:46.35\00:19:47.92
you've heard
that concept before.
00:19:47.95\00:19:50.05
If you've seen my series,
my miniseries, on changing
00:19:50.09\00:19:52.85
bad habits for good,
00:19:52.89\00:19:54.09
that's we talk
about. You don't need
00:19:54.12\00:19:57.19
to go to any those resources to
00:19:57.23\00:19:59.03
catch this point
because I really want you
00:19:59.06\00:20:00.90
to hear this. You can develop
00:20:00.93\00:20:04.93
new enjoyments. The
things that you enjoy
00:20:04.97\00:20:08.64
today do not have
to be the things you
00:20:08.67\00:20:10.81
enjoy ten years from now.
00:20:10.84\00:20:13.51
You can develop an
enjoyment for plant foods.
00:20:13.54\00:20:16.81
Listen, I know this personally.
I was not raised a vegetarian.
00:20:16.85\00:20:21.98
In fact, never
even knew a vegetarian
00:20:22.02\00:20:24.15
growing up. For
over 30 years, I've
00:20:24.19\00:20:26.86
been on that
diet and experiencing
00:20:26.89\00:20:28.49
the benefits
from it. I don't miss
00:20:28.52\00:20:30.49
all those
hamburgers I used to ate,
00:20:30.53\00:20:33.26
even if i cant
use proper English.
00:20:33.29\00:20:35.83
"All those hamburgers I
used to eat." You've got it.
00:20:35.86\00:20:39.13
You've got the message,
right? The point is simply this:
00:20:39.17\00:20:42.74
we can develop new enjoyments.
00:20:42.77\00:20:46.21
Let's take a
closer look at food,
00:20:46.24\00:20:49.51
since we're
speaking about those.
00:20:49.54\00:20:50.98
After Ornish published a
study, a very interesting paper
00:20:51.01\00:20:55.02
appeared in the American Heart
Journal about five years later.
00:20:55.05\00:20:58.55
The author was
William C. Roberts,
00:20:58.59\00:21:02.02
a prolific cardiologist, author,
00:21:02.06\00:21:05.63
editor. One of
the real pioneers,
00:21:05.66\00:21:08.80
one of the real
leaders, in the cardiology
00:21:08.83\00:21:10.50
community. Let me read
you something that Doctor
00:21:10.53\00:21:14.50
Roberts wrote. You may
want to follow along with me:
00:21:14.54\00:21:38.39
Standard Cardiology Journal.
00:21:38.43\00:21:40.50
What is this
prestigious author saying?
00:21:40.53\00:21:43.33
Based on research like that of
00:21:43.37\00:21:45.70
Doctor Ornish
and his colleagues,
00:21:45.73\00:21:47.00
he's saying that
we should focus our
00:21:47.04\00:21:49.20
attention on being vegetarians.
00:21:49.24\00:21:51.37
Roberts didn't
stop there in the paper.
00:21:51.41\00:21:54.04
I can remember reading this,
00:21:54.08\00:21:55.51
some years ago, and he he
took some pretty bold positions
00:21:55.54\00:22:01.18
Put put it this
way--he said that human beings
00:22:01.22\00:22:04.49
clearly have more
characteristics of
00:22:04.52\00:22:06.96
herbivores then carnivores.
00:22:06.99\00:22:09.12
He actually, I
believe, printed this graphic
00:22:09.16\00:22:15.13
that I've
reproduced for you here in the
00:22:15.16\00:22:16.83
paper. I think it
was actually published
00:22:16.87\00:22:19.47
as a table. It's been a
while since I've actually
00:22:19.50\00:22:22.04
looked at the
original. I know I've
00:22:22.07\00:22:23.44
used this table in
my lectures before.
00:22:23.47\00:22:25.57
Take a look with me at this
00:22:25.61\00:22:27.71
graphic that Doctor
Roberts constructed.
00:22:27.74\00:22:30.28
He's looking at similarities and
00:22:30.31\00:22:32.31
differences between
carnivores and herbivores.
00:22:32.35\00:22:35.08
He's making a case that
human beings are designed
00:22:35.12\00:22:39.02
to eat primarily plant
products. Do you see it?
00:22:39.05\00:22:42.46
The carnivores
typically have claws,
00:22:42.49\00:22:45.16
whereas herbivores have hands or
00:22:45.19\00:22:47.46
hooves. When it comes to teeth,
the carnivores have sharp teeth,
00:22:47.50\00:22:52.33
whereas the
herbivores have mainly
00:22:52.37\00:22:54.44
flat teeth for grinding. That's
00:22:54.47\00:22:56.17
like what we have as humans.
00:22:56.20\00:22:58.17
The intestinal tract of
carnivorous animals is short.
00:22:58.21\00:23:01.81
We, as you probably know, have
a very long intestinal tract,
00:23:01.84\00:23:06.28
like other herbivores. Then he
00:23:06.31\00:23:09.52
gives other examples--
you can see there on the
00:23:09.55\00:23:11.59
table--about but how we
drink water, how we cool our
00:23:11.62\00:23:14.36
bodies (sweating rather
than painting), etcetera,
00:23:14.39\00:23:16.73
and our need to get
vitamin C from our diet,
00:23:16.76\00:23:20.20
rather than being able to make
our own. Interesting, isn't it,
00:23:20.23\00:23:24.70
to see this in a cutting-edge
00:23:24.73\00:23:28.07
cardiology journal?
00:23:28.10\00:23:32.01
You say, "This is
all very interesting, but
00:23:32.04\00:23:35.74
it doesn't sound like
what my doctors have told me.
00:23:35.78\00:23:38.58
It doesn't sound like
what the dieticians told me.
00:23:38.61\00:23:40.62
By the way, more
and more doctors and
00:23:40.65\00:23:43.15
dietitians are recommending the
00:23:43.18\00:23:44.62
vegetarian diet for reversal
of coronary artery disease.
00:23:44.65\00:23:47.86
Many still say, "Oh, you know,
00:23:47.89\00:23:50.63
it's okay to
have the egg whites.
00:23:50.66\00:23:52.26
It's okay to have the skim milk.
00:23:52.29\00:23:54.23
You can have a little
bit of fish and chicken."
00:23:54.30\00:23:56.10
Let me just put things in
perspective for you, because
00:23:56.13\00:24:00.30
this is really old
data--and I'm speaking
00:24:00.34\00:24:04.07
'70s-'80s--where
00:24:04.11\00:24:06.04
people thought
there wasn't much problem
00:24:06.07\00:24:08.31
with things like
animal protein. You see,
00:24:08.34\00:24:11.55
if you're trying
to focus on lowering
00:24:11.58\00:24:13.48
your cholesterol,
00:24:13.52\00:24:14.88
it is not only important to get
the cholesterol out of your diet
00:24:14.92\00:24:19.39
(and that's found
only in animal products),
00:24:19.42\00:24:21.72
it's not only
important to get the
00:24:21.76\00:24:23.73
saturated fat as low
as possible in a diet
00:24:23.76\00:24:27.23
(and that is found
primarily in animal products),
00:24:27.23\00:24:30.73
but it is also important
to boost the dietary fiber,
00:24:30.77\00:24:35.67
and that is only
found in plant products.
00:24:35.70\00:24:38.97
You've got to eat those
plant foods for the fiber,
00:24:39.01\00:24:41.64
but we're just
going a step beyond now,
00:24:41.68\00:24:43.48
because animal protein raises
cholesterol. That's right.
00:24:43.51\00:24:48.08
Even if you take away all the
00:24:48.12\00:24:49.95
saturated fat,
all the cholesterol.
00:24:49.98\00:24:52.25
You take away the fact that
animal products have no fiber.
00:24:52.29\00:24:55.36
Skim milk is not an ideal
food for your cholesterol.
00:24:55.39\00:25:00.56
Yes, it's better than whole milk
00:25:00.60\00:25:03.10
Yes, it's better
than two percent milk.
00:25:03.13\00:25:05.73
Skim milk will
actually raise cholesterol,
00:25:05.77\00:25:08.90
based on its
animal protein content.
00:25:08.94\00:25:13.27
Many studies have shown this,
00:25:13.31\00:25:14.71
both in animal models and in
00:25:14.74\00:25:18.28
human studies. If you want
00:25:18.31\00:25:22.12
some of the references,
we have those available,
00:25:22.15\00:25:24.92
in the free companion guide that
00:25:24.95\00:25:27.36
goes with this. We
have a little study guide
00:25:27.39\00:25:29.32
that goes along with this
00:25:29.36\00:25:30.43
presentation.
you can get that also
00:25:30.46\00:25:33.03
at lifestartseminars.com
00:25:33.06\00:25:37.30
lifestartseminars.com
00:25:37.33\00:25:38.90
Now we to hasten
on. We've talked about
00:25:38.93\00:25:41.44
some of these
cholesterol connections.
00:25:41.47\00:25:43.30
If you want to lower
cholesterol optimally,
00:25:43.34\00:25:45.11
you do want to be a vegetarian.
00:25:45.14\00:25:46.88
Maybe I should
just tell you this,
00:25:46.91\00:25:48.61
while we're speaking about it.
If you look at animal proteins,
00:25:48.64\00:25:51.61
and this has been
done, you will find that
00:25:51.65\00:25:55.88
some of the worst
proteins are fowl proteins,
00:25:55.92\00:26:01.39
skim milk
protein. That's right--
00:26:01.42\00:26:04.53
right there near the
top the list as far as
00:26:04.56\00:26:06.53
things calculated
00:26:06.56\00:26:07.73
to raise your blood
cholesterol. So, eat
00:26:07.76\00:26:10.43
more those plant
products. Get the animal
00:26:10.47\00:26:12.10
products as low as
possible in your diet.
00:26:12.13\00:26:14.47
One other bonus now, before we
00:26:14.50\00:26:16.47
finish up and
that has to do with
00:26:16.50\00:26:17.84
oxidized cholesterol.
Oxidized cholesterol
00:26:17.87\00:26:20.98
is something that's
especially damaging. We call it
00:26:21.01\00:26:23.61
Oxidized LDL. It's especially
damaging and adds to the
00:26:23.65\00:26:26.68
build-up of atherosclerosis.
00:26:26.72\00:26:28.38
Cholesterol could be
oxidized in the body,
00:26:28.42\00:26:31.39
but it can also
be oxidized in foods.
00:26:31.42\00:26:35.39
Anything that has
cholesterol in it and then
00:26:35.42\00:26:39.43
has a long shelf life is
00:26:39.46\00:26:42.53
especially predisposed to
having oxidized cholesterol.
00:26:42.56\00:26:47.27
For this reason,
I recommend that you
00:26:47.30\00:26:49.17
avoid things like custard mixes,
00:26:49.20\00:26:51.51
pancake mixes, Parmesan cheese,
00:26:51.54\00:26:56.04
lard. All these things
that sit it out for a long time
00:26:56.08\00:26:59.61
have cholesterol
in them. They are
00:26:59.65\00:27:01.68
rich sources of
oxidized cholesterol
00:27:01.72\00:27:03.89
that can damage
your arteries and add
00:27:03.92\00:27:06.35
to the build-up
of atherosclerosis.
00:27:06.39\00:27:08.26
Well, we haven't looked at every
00:27:08.29\00:27:10.36
single element in the LifeStart
00:27:10.39\00:27:12.56
paradigm, but I
think we've looked at
00:27:12.59\00:27:14.40
enough, based on
Doctor Ornish's work,
00:27:14.46\00:27:17.17
and on the
recommendations of others,
00:27:17.20\00:27:18.77
to help you see that heart
disease and high cholesterol
00:27:18.80\00:27:22.57
are indeed reversible processes.
00:27:22.60\00:27:25.41
If you're
carrying those diagnoses,
00:27:25.44\00:27:27.44
you are not forced to a life of
00:27:27.48\00:27:29.98
bypass surgery
after bypass surgery,
00:27:30.01\00:27:33.08
or angioplasty
after angioplasty.
00:27:33.11\00:27:35.75
You actually can stop
the disease in its tracks,
00:27:35.78\00:27:38.42
and do more than
that. Most people
00:27:38.45\00:27:40.62
can actually
reverse the blockages
00:27:40.66\00:27:42.46
with lifestyle. Again, it's
all embodied in that paradigm,
00:27:42.49\00:27:46.70
LifeStart. You want to learn
more? It's all there for you--
00:27:46.73\00:27:50.23
lifestartseminars.com
00:27:50.27\00:27:53.67
Take advantage of the free
study guide, the free e-book.
00:27:53.70\00:27:56.94
If you want even more,
we've got often, in many areas,
00:27:56.97\00:28:00.78
special personalized coaching
opportunities over the phone
00:28:00.81\00:28:04.65
or in-person. For all of
us at LifeStart seminars,
00:28:04.68\00:28:08.22
I'm doctor David DeRose,
wishing you the very best
00:28:08.25\00:28:11.85
of heart health.
00:28:11.89\00:28:26.87