August 31, 2025
Did you know that what we eat has EVERYTHING to do with prevention, treatment, and even reversal of heart disease (still this nation’s #1 killer) along with several other HORRIBLE diseases like type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure? Yet most doctors get little, if any, formal nutrition training in medical school. (I personally know a Harvard-educated Internist who says he was only offered one OPTIONAL 2-week nutrition course during his entire medical school experience.)
Thank goodness for Dr Michael Greger, one of the most highly respected medical professionals who first hit the scene in the 1990’s as one of the leading authorities on the causes and ramifications of Mad Cow Disease. Then in 2000 Dr Greger launched NUTRITIONFACTS.org, a strictly non-commercial, 501c3 nonprofit charity, with the sole purpose of providing the public with science-based FREE updates on the latest nutrition research. Dr Greger’s website presents only the results of peer-reviewed nutrition and health research in formats that are easy to understand … I’ve been recommending Dr Greger on my website’s PEOPLE I LIKE page for years and if you haven’t already done so, you really should check out the hundreds of bite-sized videos Dr Greger has posted on more than a thousand topics (with new videos and articles uploaded every day!)
His amazing website isn’t the only public health service Dr Greger has to offer, however … in 2015 his book How Not to Die hit the New York Times best seller list (where it’s been hanging out ever since.)
In his book, Dr. Greger examines the fifteen top causes of death in America (heart disease, various cancers, diabetes, Parkinson’s, high blood pressure, and more) and asserts that THE VAST MAJORITY of premature deaths in this country can be prevented through simple diet and lifestyle changes. Dr Greger also goes into great detail about how nutritional and lifestyle interventions can trump prescription pills, various surgical approaches, and even genetics, freeing us to live longer healthier lives.
And although Dr Greger is sometimes described as a conspiracy theorist (especially on the subject of Big Pharma), his book definitely takes the high road when describing how we most likely arrived at this particular place in human history: generally speaking, western medical doctors are WELL trained to treat acute illnesses but have little or no training in chronic disease prevention. Think of it this way (and this is Jessica’s analogy, not Dr Greger’s): the human body is like a Maserati and food is like fuel … you simply can’t fill such a high-end vehicle with crappy leaded gas from the 1970’s and expect it to purr like a kitten, right? And remember my friend the Harvard-grad Internist? We can’t entirely fault the doctors when most have never even been exposed to information on nutrition … for a majority of all western medical professionals, the impact of nutrition on human health is simply a blind spot (in other words, stuff they don’t even know they don’t know.)
FYI here’s my favorite quote from the book: “if just half of the U.S. population were to increase fruit and vegetable consumption by a single serving per day, an estimated twenty thousand cancer cases might be avoided each year."
AMAZING STATISTIC, right?
Even more amazing, if I were to boil the entire book down into a simple thesis statement it would be this: adhering to a whole-food plant-based diet has repeatedly proven to not just prevent pretty much all major disease, but arrest and even reverse existing disease.
WOW!!!
And these days I’m happy to see that Dr Greger is no longer spending most of his time imitating John the Baptist (in other words, I’m REALLY excited to see that FINALLY Dr Greger isn’t the only voice of medical reason crying in the wilderness) … many well-known Functional, Holistic, and Integrative Medicine professionals are now citing boatloads of hard science pointing directly to veganism as the best way to not only reduce disease symptoms but even reduce risk for developing every major disease. But here’s the only problem I see with that picture: FOR MOST FOLKS IN THIS COUNTRY (where we have a unique constellation of health concerns plus physical and emotional stressors unparalleled in the entire history of human development) a vegan lifestyle is simply unsustainable.
So here's where Dr Greger’s slightly flexible stance on diet, my own opinions, and ALL the current research overlap perfectly: the fact that long healthy lives are almost 100% dependent upon consumption of LOTS of vegetables each and every day.
“OK … just how many servings of veggies a day are we talking about here?” I’m sure many of you may be wondering.
Well I’m sure anyone who’s ever taken any of my nutrition classes could easily answer that question (because the following is something I say literally ALL THE TIME): EVERY major world health organization (including THE World Health Organization) is now in agreement we should be eating somewhere between 9 and 13 servings of fresh whole produce EVERY DAY just to MAINTAIN our health. In fact, there’s actually a growing body of evidence to suggest that consuming MORE than the daily recommendation of vegetables and fruits improves health WITHOUT LIMIT … in other words, THE MORE VEGETABLES AND FRUITS YOU EAT, THE HEALTHIER YOU WILL BE (end of subject!!!)
So now I can practically hear many of you thinking “WOW that’s a lot of veggies! How the heck can anyone expect me to eat all those veggies every day WITHOUT going vegan?”
Well I do have good news for you, my I-really-wanna-eat-more-veggies-but-not-sure-how-to-fit-‘em-all-in friends.
You REALLY should consider smoothies.
Why?
Because modern life makes fast, processed food the easy choice. It’s everywhere, it’s convenient, and it feels like LOTS less work than cooking from scratch. The good news, tho, is that taking a step towards a WILDLY healthier life doesn’t have to be overwhelming. In fact, it can be as easy as pressing “Blend.”
Simply by tossing a few fresh veggies, fruits, and superfoods into a blender, it’ll take you MERE MINUTES to create a nutrient-packed snack or meal.
And smoothies aren’t just both delicious plus nature’s first / best “fast food,” they can also help you:
Sounds GREAT, right? But here’s the challenge: most people don’t even know where to start, much less what to add, which blender to buy, or how to make a smoothie that actually tastes great (or even just smooth.)
That’s why I created my Detox Smoothies Workshop, a fun, hands-on session where I’ll guide you step by step. You’ll leave with recipes, tips, and the confidence to make smoothies a daily habit which will also TRULY DEEPLY support your long-term health.
So what are you waiting for? SIGN UP TODAY!
(And if smoothies simply aren’t your veggie-eatin’ thing then stay tuned … my next Whole 30 DONE RIGHT! class is right around the corner as well … click here for more details.)
