I wanted to post a few words on how great I felt that the Food Revolution Summit was this past year. John and Ocean Robbins hosted the event as a docuseries this year and it was fantastic. As usual they had expert speakers on every day live and then they left the recordings up for 24 hours. This past weekend I relistened to most of the lectures again. They are promoting a plant based whole foods diet and the experts speak of all the evidence for it and how it can help you feel better and get rid of chronic disease in your life. I feel much better eating more whole plant foods in my diet. I am mostly vegan; I occasionally eat seafood which is promoted by the OMS plan. They posted fantastic recipes from the summit as well. I made the lentil patties tonight for dinner. It is so exciting for me to be inspired by these events. Let me tell you! I have had MS since I was 21 and I manage it with diet and lifestyle. I am grateful to consider myself to be a good cook with a lot of recipes in my repertoire. Eating plant based diets are not just good for us but they are good for our environment as well.
I loved the talk by Kristi Funk, MD on Kicking Cancer to the Curb. She talked about telling her patients to avoid soy for years until she did a deep dive into the research and discovered that it is good food for people that have breast cancer and is important to help prevent cancer. Be sure and eat the organic non-gmo sources of soy, edemame, tofu. Flax seeds are important sources of anticancer lignans. Aim to have 2 tbsp ground flaxseed daily in your diet. Eat plenty of cruciferous vegetables- start with at least one serving daily like kale or broccoli. Eating one serving of cruciferous vegetables daily can reduce cancer risk by 42%. White button mushrooms are a great anti-cancer food. Combine cooked mushrooms with green tea to up your anti-cancer quotient in your diet. Drinking 3 cups of green tea daily is what she recommends for its anti-cancer power. Kristi wrote Breasts, The Owner’s Manual if you are interested in reading a great resource promoting optimal women’s health.
There was a great talk by Brenda Davis, RD on eating a vegan diet and what nutrients you need to be aware of. She talks about the importance of taking a B12 supplement daily if you are strictly eating plants. The importance of eating 1/4 tsp of iodized salt daily to get iodine when you are eating a plant based diet. Seaweed sources are not consistent enough to be sure you are getting enough iodine. That being said nori sheets (2 sheets daily) equals about 150mcg iodine if you do not want to take iodized salt. Brenda Davis has written many best selling books on plant based diets. One I want to read is Becoming Vegan. Be sure and check out all her resources on plant based living.
There was a great talk by Dean Sherzai, MD and Ayesha Sherzai, MD on brain health. They emphasized good sleep, the importance of fostering community, exercising daily, reducing your stress, eating a whole foods, plant based diet with plenty of polyphenols, herbs, spices like rosemary, ginger, turmeric. They spoke about the gut brain axis and the importance of the microbiome for optimal brain health and how important fiber is to maintain optimal physiology-at least 30 grams of fiber daily. It is important to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables daily to optimize your mood- very important! Staying away from a diet high in saturated fat to avoid insulin resistance and brain fog, avoiding refined carbohydrates, sugar, table salt and artificial sweeteners. These are just a few of the tips I took home from listening to the Food Revolution Summit this year. Please go to their website if you want to purchase an empowerment package or be sure and tune in next year when they hold the summit again. Until next time, be sure and book in with me if you want to talk more about eating a plant based diet. Call Parallel Wellness at 4032321283. Dr. Robin Vinge, ND