I followed Jeff Novick over to the McDougall program from when he was the Nutritional director at "The Pritikin Program" in Florida. By the time Jeff left Pritikin, their program had devolved from Nathan's original plan and started to include animal protein and non fat dairy into the eating plan. I believe that way of eating caused me to have an heart attack. I had never heard of Dr. McDougall or Esselstyn before then, although I knew of Dr. Ornish's works.
J