Rating: 
Summary: UNREALIZED HEART DISEASE CAN CRIPPLE
Review: Although Dr. Ornish documents amazing successes with reversing
heart damage through diet and exercise, some may remain
doubtful that this program will work for them. It certainly
can be an awakening and may unlock some of the scientific
mysteries which surround heart activity, but true recovery
may not be one hundred percent attainable in all cases.
If someone wants to use this book as a stepping stone towards
a better understanding of anatomy and regeneration then that
is certainly a worthwhile pursuit.
Part of this program involves weight loss. And although
weight loss is not a primary or secondary reason to follow
his guidelines it is something that deserves full examination
and reconciliation with past practices. For some weight loss
may not even be right -- some never let themselves get weighted
down in the first place. But for those who do healing the
heart first (or at least striving toward that goal) would be
beneficial. It is a good book for the whole family because all
can be affected by the diseased heart of one amongst them.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: Before starting this program, I had Stage 1 hypertension, cholesterol of 288, and was 50 pounds overweight. I also had a cardiac scan and got a calcium score of 27. Since I am only 38 years old, and have a strong family history of early heart disease, I was a bit overwhelmed with the direction of my health. The Cardiologist suggested the Ornish program. Within 6 months, I lost 54 pounds, my cholesterol is down to 119, my BP averages 109/70, and my cholesterol/HDL ratio is now 3.7. I look better, and feel better too. The "diet" does take some adjustment, but not as much as I thought. I also thought I'd never be able to eat out, but that didn't happen either. I still eat out 3X/week, but just feel better that I am making smart choices. While no "diet" is 100%, and while some things others have said in their reviews tend to concern me, no other program has ever helped me get my BP, cholesterol and weight under control as well as Ornish. They can say what they want, but I know I am healthier and will be less likely to "go" from a heart attack at 42 like my father.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Before starting this program, I had Stage 1 hypertension, cholesterol of 288, and was 50 pounds overweight. I also had a cardiac scan and got a calcium score of 27. Since I am only 38 years old, and have a strong family history of early heart disease, I was a bit overwhelmed with the direction of my health. The Cardiologist suggested the Ornish program. Within 6 months, I lost 54 pounds, my cholesterol is down to 119, my BP averages 109/70, and my cholesterol/HDL ratio is now 3.7. I look better, and feel better too. The "diet" does take some adjustment, but not as much as I thought. I also thought I'd never be able to eat out, but that didn't happen either. I still eat out 3X/week, but just feel better that I am making smart choices. While no "diet" is 100%, and while some things others have said in their reviews tend to concern me, no other program has ever helped me get my BP, cholesterol and weight under control as well as Ornish. They can say what they want, but I know I am healthier and will be less likely to "go" from a heart attack at 42 like my father.
Rating:
Summary: A change in the way of thinking about things
Review: Dean Ornish's (1995) clinical medical research, for example, shows that heart disease, the biggest cause of death presently in the United States and in many developed countries, and potentially many other conditions - e.g. he's doing clinical trials presently on prostate cancer with positive results so far - are reversible through lifestyle changes, especially a nutritionally-sound, low-fat, grain-, vegetable-, bean- (including soy bean products) and fruit-centered diet; exercise, e.g. 30 minutes of walking per day; relaxation; and community. His work originates from a yoga perspective. People in the U.S. consume 30% of their calories in the form of fat, which contributes to putting a significant part of the population at risk for heart disease. By contrast, a heart disease-reversing diet involves consuming about 10% of one's daily calories in the form of fat, - aim for very, very little fat intake using the very useful Food and Drug Administration labels on all U.S. food (labels in the UK are not nearly as informative), get exercise and have fun with friends. In general, try to eat less than 3 grams of fat per serving.
Rating:
Summary: A great accomplishment and resource
Review: Dr. Ornish builds a strong case for his diet and stress reduction plan, both in his review of the research that preceeded his study and in regard to the results of his clinical trial. I think the reason his work is often misunderstood is that he calls for major dietary and life style changes in order to REVERSE cardiovascular disease, something that had not been demonstrated prior to his research.
I am cooking a soup inspired by one of his recipes right now in my kitchen: chick peas, leeks, and tomato juice soup seasoned with sage and thyme.
As I read some of the negative reviews of his book I began to realize that many readers may have confused the mediators for cardiovascular disease with the actual disease process. Thus his diet does cause weight loss, does reduce cholesterol, does reduce high blood pressure but these are all mediators for cardiovascular disease. A person might try other diets for weight loss or to lower blood pressure, but reversing cardiovascular disease requires more effort. The amazing accomplishment was that he actually demonstrated a reduction in cardiovascular disease in his patients with this approach.
I can not immagine a single heart attack victim in this country not going on this diet immediately. I was convinced by his data and the logical consistency of his approach.
Rating:
Summary: Great Information that helps. He includes stress reduction
Review: Dr. Ornish is great. His book(s) have lots of information to help improve heart conditions and overall health in the process. He was on Oprah talking about meditation the other day and did a nice job, but I want to tell everyone that the BEST book I have ever used to reduce stress and learn what is called meditation (though this book is very non-mystical) is EFFORTLESS WELLBEING by Evan Finer. Not only does it cover how to calm your mind and relax your body and breathe properly, but also tells other profound and super simple exercises to do while performing "meditation"! Simply the best and a SUPER compliment to any and all of Dr. Ornish's books. Don't miss this one! A Gem!
Rating: 
Summary: Some Good Advice, but Lots of Dietary Errors
Review: Dr. Ornish's book claims to be based on "the only scientifically-proven plan for reversing heart disease." While several of his suggestions are sound and probably account for the improvements in some of his patients, the dietary advice in the book is abysmal and should not be followed.
The first section of the book concerns itself with several case histories and is quite interesting--everyone loves a story. The second section deals with the lifestyle changes Ornish believes will prevent and reverse heart disease. Chapters 7, 8, and 9 concern themselves with getting in touch with your emotions, your interpersonal relationships, and your relationship to a Higher Power. Chapters 11 and 12 deal with quitting smoking and exercising more. All of these things are certainly helpful in regaining and maintaining one's health. It is in chapter 10 where the advice goes bad. This chapter concerns itself with diet. There are so many errors in it that it is difficult to know where to begin but a brief synopsis will be attempted. Dr. Ornish says that there are two diets presented in the chapter: the Reversal Diet and the Prevention Diet. The Reversal Diet is for treating and reversing heart disease, while the Prevention Diet is for, well, prevention of heart disease. Ornish says that, "Both diets will substantially reduce your risk of developing other degenerative diseases, including obesity, high blood pressure, stroke, osteoporosis, diabetes, gallstones, and cancers of the colon, breast, and prostate." (P. 254) Ornish also claims that the diets will help you "to enjoy life more." Of course, the diet he recommends is an ultra-low-fat regime that is almost 100% vegan. On page 256, he says that the Reversal Diet is "very low in fat and cholesterol," containing less than 10% calories from fat. The diet also excludes foods high in saturated fats such as "avocados, nuts, and seeds." Egg whites and nonfat dairy products are allowed. The bulk of the diet is made up of complex carbohydrates, fruits, and vegetables. Dr. Ornish's advice shows his lack of knowledge about lipids (fats and oils) and research has not borne out his claims about low-fat diets being good for heart disease. In the first place, avocados, nuts, and seeds are not "high in saturated fats" as he claims. Their fat content is mostly from oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid, and linoleic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid. Very little of the fat content of nuts, seeds, and avocados comes from saturated fatty acids (see MG Enig "Know Your Fats," Bethesda Press, 2001, 291-2). Additionally, a comprehensive review of the available trials has shown the ineffectiveness of low-fat/cholesterol diets in both treating and preventing heart disease (L Corr and M Oliver. Eur Heart J, 1997, 18:18-22; (b) G Taubes. Science 2001 Mar 30 291:5513 2536-45). In fact, such diets actually INCREASE risk factors for heart disease (DM Dreon and others. Amer J Clin Nutr, 1999, 69:411-8; F. Jeppesen and others. Am Jnl Clin Nutr, 1997; 65:1027-1033). Furthermore, vegetarian diets do not protect against heart disease. A study of vegans showed that vegan females had higher rates of heart disease than non-vegan females (Ellis, Path, Montegriffo. Amer J Clin Nutr, 1970, 32:249-255). Vegetarians in India suffer from high rates of coronary artery disease--higher than meat-eating Indians (EA Enas. J Indian Med Assoc 2000 Nov;98(11):694-5, 697-702; SL Malhotra. Brit Hrt J, 29:895-905, 1967). Some studies have also shown that vegetarians have higher homocysteine levels than non-vegetarians and homocysteine is a known cause of heart disease ((a) Herrmann, Schorr, Purschwitz, Rassoul, Richter. Clin Chem, 2001, 47(6):1094-10; (b) D Mazzano and others. Thromb Res 2000 Nov 100:153-60). The high carbohydrate diet Ornish recommends will drive insulin levels up and keep them elevated. Hyperinsulinemia is also another probable cause of heart disease (I. Zavaroni and others. New Eng J Med, 1989, Mar 16, 320:11:702-6). Ornish makes a lot of other bizarre claims in this chapter--all without any supporting documentation. For example, he mistakenly says that, "Sugar is not very strongly linked with coronary heart disease; the real culprits are saturated fats and cholesterol." (P. 257). This statement directly contradicts meticulous research on sugar and heart disease (J Yudkin. Lancet 1:296-297, 1971). Additionally, careful reviews have shown that saturated fats and cholesterol do NOT cause heart disease (U Ravnskov. The Cholesterol Myths. New Trends Publishing, 2001). Ornish claims that excess dietary protein causes osteoporosis when actually such notions have been shown to be false--when protein is consumed as real meat as opposed to isolated amino acids ((a) H Spencer and L Kramer. J Nutr, 1986, 116:316-319; (b) Amer J Clin Nutr, 1983, 924-929; (c) J Nutr, 1988, 118(6):657-60). On page 267, Ornish says that, "Many anthropologists believe that our ancestor's were primarily vegetarian." No supporting references to the "many anthropologists" are given. This statement also flies in the face of accepted nutritional anthropological data which clearly shows that humans evolved as omnivores and that meat and animal foods made up a significant part of our forebears' diet (HL Abrams. J Appl Nutr, 1979, 31:1,2:43-59). On page 268, Ornish claims that "as early as 1900 two thrids of the protein in the typical American diet came from plant foods." Again, no supporting references are made for this untrue statement. Did he look at any cookbooks from that time? If he did, he'd see lots of recipes for meat, fish, shellfish, and wild game. Recipes invariably included butter, cream, or lard as well--at a time when heart disease was rare! And on and on it goes. If you'd like to read what dietary factors figure into heart disease, you should look into my book "Diet & Heart Disease: Its NOT What You Think," Kilmer McCully's "The Heart Revolution," and Christian Allan's "Life Without Bread." For a thorough debunking of Dr. Ornish's dubious claims, see Uffe Ravnskov's "The Cholesterol Myths." All of these book are available off of amazon.com and would be better investments of your money.
Rating:
Summary: No Program is 100% effective.
Review: Dr. Ornish's program just like any other program or treatment out there is not 100% effective in reversing or preveting heart disease. The truth is that it works. For a few people that might develop the so called subclass B LDL phenomenon it is adivisable to supplement with other treatment modalities such as low dose cholesterol lowering drugs(please consult your cardiologist). But in my view it would be utterly dangerous to abandon this program just because of the B LDL controversy. For those with family history and other risk factors the diet and life style changes recommended in this book with few individualised modifications may well make the difference between long life and sudden death. Disregard the negative view of some self-serving individuals hoping to promote their unpopular books and sundry unproven formulae. It is downright irresponsible for anyone to cite some stupid studies that has proven that vegan women die more from heart disease than meat eaters. If you want to make more sense out of Dr. Ornish's program purchase the book "Fit For Life" by Harvey & Marilyn Diamond. Just remember that anything that would lower your risk of dying from any disease by even 1 percentage point is worthwhile.
Rating: 
Summary: The hysteria over dietary fat gone too far!
Review: Ever consider the pitfalls of self treatment? I wish I had.
WARNING: Pregnant or nursing women, infants, children or the elderly, and those with insulin dependent diabetes should not use this diet. For many of us baby boomers our first experience in fat reduction was in high school. We never worried about heart disease. We woke up every morning only too find we had another big pimple on our face. Back then one of the recommendations to clear up acne was the avoidance of high fat foods such as French fries, hamburgers and milk shakes, the staples of the teenage diet. But the home medical guides at the time (and our parents and doctors) cautioned not to completely eliminate or severely reduce fat intake. Back then, when common sense prevailed; fat was recognized as an essential nutrient, needed for the assimilation of fat-soluble vitamins. But now the nearly complete elimination of fat is the latest health fad. But is this fad safe? If you have diagnosed heart disease or unusually high cholesterol you may want to try this program, but only with the approval and close supervision of your physician. To be safe and effective you must follow the program exactly as outlined including exercise.
If you only have some weight to lose, have slightly elevated cholesterol or slightly elevated blood pressure this program may actually not be safe for you, especially if you put off the exercise. When you give up fat and a major portion of protein you have a heavily carbohydrate-laden diet. If you are overweight and carry most of your fat in your belly - typically called beer belly - have high blood pressure and high triglycerides, you may have a condition called Metabolic Syndrome, sometimes referred to as Syndrome-X. Often times a high carbohydrate diet makes this condition worse. It has been shown to increase triglycerides as much as 70 percent.
As Rebecca Donaldson points out in her review, she is still concerned about her husband. This diet can cause a significant lowering of HDL good cholesterol along with a significant rise in triglycerides. Although the LDL is also lowered, in some people the LDL shifts to a smaller more dangerous pattern B LDL. (If you are in an HMO you will probably never have cholesterol sub class testing).
High triglycerides are an important risk factor for heart disease. They are just as significant as high cholesterol. The Ornish group points out low HDL and high triglycerides are only potential risk factors for heart disease, they are not diseases. But that is true of high cholesterol. Why is one risk factor important if their program lowers it but not important if their program raises it? What do others have to say? Why does the American Heart Association specifically caution against very low fat diets? According to a study reported in 1997 in the journal Circulation, triglyceride levels alone could predict the risk of heart attack as well as more commonly used LDL and HDL cholesterol levels. Those with high triglycerides alone had a 3-fold increase in risk for heart attack. People with the highest ratio of Triglycerides / HDL had a 16 times the risk of heart attack as those with the lowest ratio. The report by the Harvard lead author showed the HDL/Triglycerides ratio was a more accurate predictor of heart attack risk than standard HDL/LDL cholesterol tests. (If your triglycerides are more than twice your HDL cholestererol or a ratio of 2.0 you are at increased risk for heart attack irregardless of your total cholesterol level). Another report in the March 1998 issue of Circulation showed that high triglycerides alone were a strong risk factor for heart attack among middle-aged and elderly men, independent of other factors such as total cholesterol levels. Another report in the December 11, 2001 issue of Circulation shows that high triglycerides, above 200 mg/dl, increased the risk for stroke by 30%.
The Ornish group says: "for many years we have recommended that patients take 3 grams a day of fish oil, which also helps to lower triglycerides." (I thought they weren't concerned about triglycerides). An entire book on the diligent avoidance of all fat, but then the suggestion to take 3 grams of fish oil a day. What would you rather have the fish oil capsules or a nice salmon dinner? What about the dangers of cholesterol too low? We have been led to believe that the lower the cholesterol the better. But other studies have shown men with low cholesterol are much more prone to depression, suicide and death by all other causes including accidents. The truth is that low fat diets have never been shown to lower the over all rate of death. You may lower your risk of heart disease but at the same time increase your risk of death from other causes at the same or higher rate. Despite the claims of the link between high fat intake and cancer, very low fat diets have been shown to significantly increase the risk of breast cancer in women. Most experts who have reviewed the studies published by Ornish, point out the study was not double blind, used a very small sampling of individuals hand picked by Ornish, and addressed multiple risk factors, including fat and cholesterol intake, exercise, weight reduction, stress reduction, meditation and cessation of smoking. Which one of these factors actually produced the results? The severe reduction in total fat intake also severely reduces intake of saturated fat, trans fat, and polyunsaturated vegetable oils. But there is growing evidence that trans fat and too much polyunsaturated fat causes heart disease and may even be worse than saturated fat. To avoid heart disease, exercise, lose weight and eat sensibly. Use a moderate amount of fat such as olive oil. Include fish; nuts, especially walnuts and almonds and avocados in your diet every week. Don't be too afraid of a little butter occasionally. Don't fry at high heat. Don't fry using polyunsaturated vegetable oils such as corn oil or safflower oil. If you are over 40 you will remember these oils were highly promoted 25 years ago, about as much or more than olive oil is now. But now the current recommendation is to keep these oils at less than 10% of calories. I would avoid them completely. The only links between fat and cancer has been frying with these highly polyunsaturated vegetable oils. Olive oil has been used for 5,000 years. Corn oil is a recent invention. Avoid trans fatty acids (anything were the label says partially hydrogenated); avoid deep fried foods, and limit sugar and simple carbohydrates. Too many people think that a low fat muffin is healthy. But too much sugar is also bad for your heart. There is little difference between muffins and cake except if it is for breakfast you call it a muffin. I don't have any of those fancy abbreviations at the end of my name. I am a victim of low fat diets, which caused high triglycerides and high fasting glucose. I suspect it was the high fasting glucose combined with the inability to assimilate and use vitamin A that caused near blindness from cataracts in both eyes by age 46 which had to be surgically repaired. (Cataracts before age 70 are extremely rare). I also developed severe acid reflux during this time even though low fat diets are claimed as a treatment for acid reflux. Since giving up on this approach I have lowered my blood pressure, lowered my risk factors for heart disease, lowered my weight without hunger, lowered my triglycerides to 63, raised my HDL to over 40 for the first time in years. Although my total cholesterol has increased the ratio has improved to what is considered a very low risk ratio. When my total cholesterol was below 160 my ratio was in the high-risk range. And most important I am in a much better mood now. I might actually keep my job.
Rating:
Summary: This program really works! Read this testimonial!
Review: First of all, one thing I have noticed is that some people seem to hate this book and base their judgment on the fact that this promotes a vegetarian diet; like that's a bad thing! Please, check the latest literature about vegetarian diets before [deciding] I have friends who believe in high protein diets and since I have known them, they believe it is working, but they are not losing weight. At any rate, this book contains a much more complex program than just diet. It is simple to read and even more simple to follow. This time I will follow through with it despite my busy schedule. A busy schedule is no excuse for not eating healthy and exercising.
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