Medical outside thinker and potato lover, Dr. John McDougall has spent decades showing people how a change in diet can change their life. His passion even got him a seat at the Great Nutrition Debate 2000 presented by the USDA.
His continued passion and effort have won him a Lifetime Achievement award from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, created multiple scientific publications, 13 books, and many healthy McDougallers from the health programs he co-founded.
Experience
A graduate of Michigan State University and holding medical licenses in five different states, Dr. McDougall has worked in the medical field and academics throughout his career. Whether it’s working as an Assistant Clinical Professor at John Burn’s School of Medicine or working closely with patients in his private practice—proper patient care has always been at the core of his work.
University Work
- Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at John Burn’s School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI (1980–1986)
- Assistant Clinical Professor at Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR (2013–2019)
- Assistant Clinical Professor at the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Touro University, Vallejo, CA (2009–present)
Medical Work
- Private practice in Hawaii and California (1973–2023)
- Medical Director of Advanced Prevention Technologies in Minneapolis, MN (1998–2005)
Scientific Publications
- “Preliminary Study of Diet as an Adjuvant Therapy for Breast Cancer Published”: Breast, Diseases of the Breast, 1984.
- “Reduction of Risk Factors in an Intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation and Lifestyle Modification Program in High Risk and Cardiovascularly Diseased Patients.” Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehab, 1989.
- “Rapid Reduction of Serum Cholesterol and Blood Pressure by a Twelve Day, Very Low Fat, Strictly Vegetarian Diet” Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 1995.
- “Effects of a very low-fat vegan diet in subjects with rheumatoid arthritis.” (abstract) Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 1998.
- Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2002. (article)
- McDougall J. “Dairy and type 2 diabetes mellitus: wrong conclusions.” Arch Intern Med., 2005
- McDougall J. “Effects of a low-carbohydrate diet.” Mayo Clin Proc., 2004
- McDougall J. “Optimal diets to prevent heart disease.” JAMA, 2003
- McDougall J. “Misinformation on plant proteins.” Circulation., 2002
- McDougall J. “Plant foods have a complete amino acid composition.” Circulation, 2002
- McDougall, J, et al. “Effects of 7 days on an ad libitum low-fat vegan diet: the McDougall Program cohort. Nutr J., 2014
- Yadav V, et. al. “-fat, plant-based diet in multiple sclerosis: A randomized controlled trial.” Mult Scler Relat Disord., 2016.
- Wright N, et. al. “The BROAD study: A randomised controlled trial using a whole food plant-based diet in the community for obesity, ischaemic heart disease or diabetes.” Nutr Diabetes., 2017
Books
- The McDougall Plan, New Win Publ. 1983.
- McDougall’s Medicine–A Challenging Second Opinion, New Century Publ. 1985.
- The McDougall Health–Supporting Cookbooks Vol I & II, New Win Publ. 1985, 1986.
- The McDougall Program–12 Days to Dynamic Health, Penguin USA Publ. 1990.
- The New McDougall Cookbook, Penguin USA Publ. 1993.
- The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss, Penguin USA Publ. 1994.
- The McDougall Program for a Healthy Heart, Penguin USA, Publ. 1996.
- The McDougall Quick & Easy Cookbook, Penguin USA, Publ. 1997.
- The McDougall Program for Women, Dutton, Publ. 1999.
- Dr. McDougall’s Digestive Tune-Up, Book Publishing Co. 2006
- The Starch Solution, Rodale 2012
- The Healthiest Diet on the Planet, Harper One. 2015
Memberships
- American College of Physicians (1980–present)
- American College of Nutrition (1996–present)
- American College of Lifestyle Medicine (2006–present)
- Scientific Advisory Board, Whole Foods Market (2009–2013)