The WFPB Diet, Medication Myths & You
Jeff Novick, MS, RDN
There seems to be a myth in the WFPB world that if you follow the WFPB diet & lifestyle, you will eliminate the need for any and all medication 100%. If not, you must not be following the program completely and/or have somehow failed the program or not implementing it correctly.
I am not a medical doctor and so cannot recommend, prescribe, reduce or adjust medication in anyway. However, I have been fortunate to work side-by-side with many health conscious medical doctors implementing a health supporting Whole Food, Plant-Based (WFPB) diet over the years and have seen firsthand the impact of the WFPB diet on the need for medication. This experience includes...
- 4 years (1995-1998) with a team of medical doctors and residents at a Family Practice Center in Indiana seeing patients in an Family Practice clinic and hospital setting,
- 10 years (1998-2007) as the Director of Nutrition at the residential Pritikin Center with a team of medical doctors with decades of experience in this area,
- 13 years (2008- 2020) at the 10-day medically supervised residential programs with Dr McDougall who also has decades of experience in this area
- my work with a few other programs (CHIP, WFM Wellness Clubs, E2 Medical Retreats, EHE International, etc) & health supporting medical doctors along the way.
Before this, I had an additional 7 years (1987-1993) seeing patients on my own in an outpatient office setting, at a wholistic health medical center and from teaching community classes. All together, it is over 30+ years of experience being involved in the medical care of over 20,000 patients in a residential clinical setting. During this time, I have witnessed first hand the impact of the WFPB diet and lifestyle on the disease process and the need for medication.
So, let's put this "medication myth" in perspective..
Many people who come to this way of life will do fine if they follow the program, adjust as needed to bring their health & numbers in line and stick with it over time.
The real problem is the person who is doing everything they can and their biomarkers/numbers are not just a little out of line, but a good deal out of line. The questions that comes up are, do they have disease or not; should they continue with any of their medications; if so, which ones and how much; and how do they go about navigating all of this with their traditional doctor?
In the USA, we are fairly fortunate as you can get many, if not most tests done with or without your doctors permission. The problem is, how to interpret it all correctly and now how it impacts the need for medications.
Numbers are helpful but as we know, not always accurate.
https://www.drmcdougall.com/forums/view ... 22&t=21177
It is possible that someone may have excellent numbers and still have disease and conversely, someone may have fair numbers but not have any disease. I have seen those with higher then ideal cholesterols and LDL's who are doing everything they can and have no sign of disease. I have also seen those with higher than ideal cholesterols and LDL's who are doing everything they can but do have disease.
There are some ways to test to see if, regardless of the numbers, whether there is any existing disease and/or if it is progressing or reversing, or not. Some of these tests are invasive and some are not, so not everyone wants to do them and the invasive ones have some risks associated with them.
As with many diseases, there is often a point someone may progress to, where they may need some medication along with the healthiest diet. One such examples include a Type 2 Diabetic who has progressed to a point where they may not be making enough insulin anymore.
So, while we may wish it to be so, not everyone gets off all medication, nor can they. This is a myth in the WFPB world. As a result of this myth, some will self doctor themselves and take themselves off all medication when that may not be the wisest choice (based on risk/benefit). Not all damage is reversible and not everyone still has their full healing potential.
If someone has truly done all they can, and it is determined between them and their healthcare professional that some medication may be of some benefit (over any risk), they should not feel like a failure. In addition, if it is determined that they may benefit from some medication, they should still do all they can in regard to diet and lifestyle because in doing so, they will most likely lessen the dose of the medication needed and minimize any potential risks.
Sometimes, the online forums and social media outlets may seem a little unbalanced in this areas as many who end up in such a position wondering what to do, end up here looking for the answers. This was just posted and is a perfect example.
https://www.drmcdougall.com/forums/view ... =1&t=44059
Now, as you can see here, even in a controlled residential program, it's never 100% that eliminate all medications.
http://sharan-india.org/dr-nandita-shah ... y-program/
The results of this program are very similar to the results published by Pritikin, PCRM, Ornish, CHIP, McDougall, Kempner, Esselstyn, etc.
Pritkin has published over 120 studies over the last few decades and on average about 70-80% of those subjects, were able to dramatically reduce or eliminate their medications.
Dr Esselstyn's, in his published study on the 12 year follow up of his ~20 patients, said...
http://www.heartattackproof.com/reversal01.htm
"Combining a plant-based diet with medication achieves better long-term results than changing diet alone or combining modest diet changes and medication."
http://www.dresselstyn.com/site/study01/
"Methods. The study included 22 patients with angiographically documented, severe coronary artery disease that was not immediately life threatening. These patients took cholesterol-lowering drugs and followed a diet that derived no more than 10% of its calories from fat."
http://www.dresselstyn.com/site/study02/
"In a small group of my own patients, a 12-year follow-up shows prospective data confirming that a low-fat diet and lipid- lowering medication causes disease to halt or regress. "
http://dresselstyn.com/JFP_06307_Article1.pdf
"Exercise was encouraged but not required. The plan also did not require the practice of meditation, relaxation, yoga, or other psychosocial support approaches. Patients continued to use cardiac medications as prescribed, monitored by their (other) physicians"
Dr McDougall, on his website discussing the 10-day program and medication...
https://www.drmcdougall.com/health/prog ... y-program/
"Over 90% of participants are able to stop their medications for hypertension, type-2 diabetes, arthritis, indigestion, and constipation. Those who must stay on medications are often able to switch to simpler, safer, more effective, and less expensive ones."
In addition, Dr McDougall has several written several articles discussing if and when he feels medication may be of benefit.
Drugs I Occasionally Prescribe (scroll down)
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2004nl ... ugfree.htm
Medication Changes I Usually Recommend: (scroll down): Hypertension; Type 2 Diabetes; Cholesterol; Coumadin; Indigestion; Laxatives; Thyroid; Antidepressants; Pain
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2012nl/may/aword.htm
How I Treat Patients with Elevated Blood Pressure
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2009nl/nov/bp.htm
Over-treat Your Blood Pressure and You Could Die Sooner
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2004nl/040700pubp.htm
So, as we can see, not everyone gets off all their medication 100%.
Dr Esselstyn and I wrote the following article on how to work closely with your doctor, which is especially important if you are on medication. If you feel your doctor is not being supportive or responsive to your new lifestyle, then it may be time to find another doctor who is.
http://www.dresselstyn.com/site/plant-based-doctor/
Hopefully, in the future, we will see more and more doctors experienced in this area of reducing and eliminating medications, even if they are not interested in our approach 100%, but are interested in reducing the use of medication and their costs.
In Health
Jeff
