Top 10 Plant-Based Doctors to Follow
Are you’re new to the plant-based movement or you’re just interested in who else is out there sharing the message of health? Well, here are some of the top plant-based doctors leading the movement.
These are certainly not the only plant-based professionals (doctors, nutritionists, dietitians, and other health care providers) dedicated to making this a healthier world, but they’re definitely 10 of the top individuals in the plant-based health movement that you’re going to want to follow.
1. T. Colin Campbell, PhD
Dr. Campbell is the Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry at Cornell University who has spent the last few decades focusing on long-term health and nutrition through a plant-based diet. He has conducted extensive research on health. His expertise is in the relationship of diet and diseases, especially cancer. Dr. Campbell is a co-author of The China Study, a book the summarizes findings from over two decades of research in China on plant-based diets and disease. Dr. Campbell is also the author of Whole, and he’s the individual who coined the term “whole food, plant-based.” His most recent book is The Low-Carb Fraud.
The T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies offers a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition through eCornell, with courses taught by a number of plant-based professionals. Dr. Campbell is also featured in health-based documentaries including: Vegucated, Forks Over Knives, and the most recent PlantPure Nation.
Visit the Nutrition Studies website and follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
2. John McDougall, MD
A long time plant-based advocate, Dr. McDougall is the author of The Starch Solution. He promotes a starch-based approach to a whole food, plant-based diet. Dr. McDougall emphasizes starches to make sure that people eat enough calories and don’t wither away on lettuce, thinking that a plant-based diet doesn’t work. The starch solution allows you to eat the foods you love, just keep it low fat. Potatoes, rice, corn, and beans make up the staples.
He has written various books over the years including the The McDougall Program. And, along with his wife Mary the McDougall’s have a number of other books and cookbooks helping people with the lifestyle. From The New McDougall Cookbook: 300 Delicious Ultra-Low-Fat Recipes to The McDougall Quick and Easy Cookbook to The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight loss, you’ll likely find something to help you get started. Become a “Starchivore” and get healthy by keeping it simple and enjoying your food. Dr. McDougall was also featured in the documentary Forks Over Knives.
You can visit the Dr. McDougall’s Health & Medical Center website to learn more, as well as following them on Facebook and Twitter.
3. Caldwell Esselstyn, MD
Dr. Esselstyn brings the clinical side of plant-based diet research, and he shares his program for health through the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. He has conducted long-term studies on heart disease, helping his patients to overcome heart disease through diet and lifestyle.
For people who want to reverse their heart disease, Dr. Caldwell advocates a very low fat, OIL-FREE, plant-based diet. Seriously though, no oils. Especially if people are interested in reversing their disease, they need to be strict. Positive results are definitely there to be had, but you have to be committed. Dr. Caldwell was featured in Forks Over Knives, is the author of Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease: The Revolutionary, Scientifically Proven, Nutrition-Based Cure, and his wife and daughter co-authored the cookbook, providing a number of healthy recipes.
Dr. Caldwell is also the father of Rip Esselstyn, of The Engine 2 Diet which follows a very similar approach to Dr. Esselstyn’s guidelines, but with an emphasis on preventing heart disease by starting those diet and lifestyle recommendations younger, before disease sets in.
The Esselstyns also host an event called Plant Stock every year in New York. The event is comprised of a couple of plant-filled days with guest speakers; healthy, plant based meals; and like-minded people all in one place. Visit the Engine 2 website to find out who will be speaking at this year’s event; they’ve got quite the line-up!
You can learn more about preventing and reversing heart disease on Dr. Esselstyn’s Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Program website and follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
4. Neal Barnard, MD
Dr. Barnard is the founder and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). He is also the president of the newly opened Barnard Medical Center. Dr. Barnard’s focus is on preventing and reversing diabetes through a plant-based diet and lifestyle. He has written various books and was featured in Forks Over Knives.
Some of his books include: Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes, 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart, Power Foods for the Brain, and he is the co-author of The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook. Dr. Barnard’s work shows that diabetes isn’t a lifelong diagnosis, or at least it doesn’t have to be. You can take control of your health through a low fat, plant-based lifestyle. Follow Dr. Barnard on Facebook and Twitter.
5. Michael Greger, MD
Dr. Greger puts out free daily videos and articles on his non-profit website NutritionFacts.org, where he provides nutrition advice on various aspects of a plant-based diet and healthy living in general.
NutritionFacts.org takes a very science-based approach to health. On the site you’ll find updates of current findings studies and the latest scientific news regarding health. He is also the author of the new book How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease. Dr. Greger has garnered quite a following, and for good reason. His informative videos make it easier to understand and share the information with others. Setting the example for a healthy lifestyle, he also walks on his treadmill everyday to fit in his exercise while working and sharing the plant based message.
You can follow Dr. Greger on his personal website and on Facebook and Twitter.
6. Michael Klaper, MD
Dr. Klaper is a long time plant-based diet and nutrition advocate who recognized the link between diet and disease which led him to develop his own lifestyle programs. After following his own program he lost weight and considerably reduced his cholesterol levels. Dr. Klaper is at various conferences and speaking events throughout the year, including weekly talks at the TrueNorth Health Center in Santa Rosa, CA.
He has written Vegan Nutrition: Pure and Simple and Pregnancy, Children, and the Vegan Diet, and he features in a number of informative health videos including Sense and Nonsense in Nutrition: A Look at Today’s Most Common Health Myths. Along with a number of other plant-based educators he’ll be on the Holistic Holiday at Sea cruise this year from late February to March. Learn a bit more about Dr. Klaper on his website.
7. Joel Fuhrman, MD
Dr. Fuhrman has written several books including: Eat to Live, the Eat to Live Cookbook, and The End of Diabetes: The Eat to Live Plan to Prevent and Reverse Diabetes. His approach to health and a plant-based diet involves eating nutrient-rich foods: vegetables; fresh fruits; beans; nuts, seeds and avocados, starchy vegetables; and whole grains. Keeping other foods to a minimum, there’s also an emphasis on raw foods.
Dr. Fuhrman strongly promotes eating nutrient-dense foods, as he calls them “micronutrient-rich foods.” To explain his approach to health, he uses his “health equals nutrients divided by calories” (H = N/C) equation. And if you’re following his Nutritarian food pyramid, you should eat a variety of colourful foods, and lots of vegetables. The logic is simple: get healthy by eating healthy foods. Go to his website to learn more.
8. Alan Goldhamer, D.C.
Dr. Goldhamer is the co-author of The Pleasure Trap: Mastering the Hidden Force that Undermines Health & Happiness. He is also the director and co-founder of the TrueNorth Health Center in California, along with his wife, Dr. Jennifer Marano.
The center is a well-rounded facility that focuses on the different aspects of health, having medical, chiropractic, psychotherapy, counseling, massage, amongst other health-related services. The TrueNorth Health Center also specialises in, and is well-known for its’ therapeutic water fasting where you can heal under the supervision of medical professionals knowing that your health is their top priority.
You can learn more about Dr. Goldhamer and meet the rest of the TrueNorth staff by visiting their website.
Related: Top 5 Whole Food Plant Based Diet Cookbooks You Need to Have
9. Doug Lisle, PhD
Dr. Lisle, with Dr. Goldhamer, is a co-author of The Pleasure Trap: Mastering the Hidden Force that Undermines Health & Happiness. He is also the Director of Research at the TrueNorth Health Center. Dr. Lisle has a private practice in psychotherapy at TrueNorth, and he is a lecturer for the eCornell Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate Program. Watch a Tedx presentation on The Pleasure Trap by Dr. Lisle on his personal website, which can also take you to the TrueNorth site where you can learn more about him.
10. Matt Lederman, MD
Dr. Lederman seeks to treat patients with chronic illness by reversing disease through diet and lifestyle changes, eliminating the need for medication. He was featured in the Forks Over Knives documentary and is an eCornell Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate Program lecturer. He works at Transition To Health, a medical, nutrition, and wellness center where they take a holistic approach to health. And he is co-author of The Forks Over Knives Plan: How to Transition to the Life-Saving, Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet. Dr. Lederman is currently working with Whole Foods Market as a medical health and wellness expert.
Find a Plant-Based Doctors
There’s a growing list on Plant-Based Doctors. Just “Browse Our Database” to see if there’s a doctors in your area.
You can also find a plant-based professional in Australia or New Zealand on Whole Plant Based Health, which is a great resource for further plant-based info.
There may be some overlap with the above sources, but you can also check out Happy Herbivore’s Plant-Based Doctor List.
An excellent way to get started with the plant-based lifestyle is with vegan recipes that show you that being healthy can still taste great!