A Cardiologist Speaks

Joel Kahn is an interventional cardiologist, professor at Wayne State University in Detroit who actively advocates plant based eating to prevent and treat heart disease. He has his own restaurant for patients and the public where only healthy whole plant foods are served. Kahn's presentation consisted of a review of scientific studies supporting the importance of this diet in heart disease. They included:

   Ridler's work on hsCRP (heart sensitive C reactive protein)-- CRP is the basis of a blood test measuring inflammation; hs is the fraction of CRP which best reflects the form of inflammation which effects the heart and blood vessels. Chronic inflammation is critical in the progression of dangerous atherosclerotic plaques, the kind that lead to heart attacks. hsCRP is increased greatly with obesity, mainly proportional to visceral fat, the cause of a pot belly. A meat based diet and elevated blood sugar are also associated with elevated hsCRP.
  A recent study from NYU which compared a WFPB diet with the recommended American Heart Association diet showing much lower hsCRP with WFPB plus better patient compliance- it's a tastier, more satiating diet.
  Valter Longo's research on longevity conclusions- a low calorie "Mediterranean" diet with very little meat and processed carbs, especially sugars prolongs life. Cancer promoting IGF-1 levels are very low on this diet with improvement in diabetes, multiple sclerosis and response to cancer chemotherapy.
  Saturated fats and vegetable oils damage bowel lining with resultant "leaky gut" and subsequent chronic inflammation.
  A long term high animal protein ketotic diet has been examined in nine published studies all of which showed much higher mortality. This is one of the worst, perhaps the worst, diets ever studied.