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Summary: Ornish has the answer to better health
Review: Like Dr. John Mcdougall, Dean Ornish proves that the diet, we as humans have eaten for millions of years in the key to good health. We have only eaten a high fat, high protien diet for the last 100 years. These food were limited to the wealthy and they paid the price with things like, breast, postate, colon cancers. These diseases are unknown in those cultures that follow all low fat, low protien, dairy free diet. He proves that most all cronic illnesses are related to the rich American Diet. A great book and a life savor for many.
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Summary: Ornish has the answer to better health
Review: Like Dr. John Mcdougall, Dean Ornish proves that the diet, we as humans have eaten for millions of years in the key to good health. We have only eaten a high fat, high protien diet for the last 100 years. These food were limited to the wealthy and they paid the price with things like, breast, postate, colon cancers. These diseases are unknown in those cultures that follow all low fat, low protien, dairy free diet. He proves that most all cronic illnesses are related to the rich American Diet. A great book and a life savor for many.
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Summary: I like the program but I'm concerned and confused.
Review: My husband, who is a physician, and has a family history of heart disease, and I, an RN, began diligently following the reversal diet of the Ornish program in January, incorporating the recommended supplements, exercise and meditation. Since then, in a period of two months, he has lost 30 pounds, his cholesterol, and LDL have significantly improved, his HDL has not, and his already high Triglycerides have risen significantly by 30%. The previous post by the Ornish group states: "HDL and Triglycerides are only potential risk factors for heart disease, they are not diseases" If they are potential risk factors..then my concern is that my husband may still be high risk since he still has the potential risk factors. The Ornish group also states in it's post, "It is true that one can eat an unhealthful low-fat diet if it is high in simple carbohydrates.... Such a diet may cause a shift to the more harmful pattern B LDL subclass that Mr. Bayan mentions" We have been following the Ornish reversal diet/program diligently and have seen " a shift to the more harmful pattern B LDL subclass that Mr. Bayan mentions" They also state that "Patients whose triglycerides increase are counseled to be even more mindful in reducing their intake of simple carbohydrates and increasing their exercise." We have not been eating simple carbohydrates, "such as sugar, white flour, alcohol, and many popular fat-free desserts", and my husband has been exercising almost every day. They also state: "Also, for many years we have recommended that patients take 3 grams/day of fish oil, which also helps to lower triglycerides" We have been taking 3 grams/day of fish oil, along with the other recommended supplements, and his triglycerides rose 30%. I must confess I am confused, and while I do believe the Ornish program may work for some people, I am concerned about the safety of this program for my husband specifically. We are going to pursue the cholesterol subclass testing mentioned by Mr. Bayan. I have also posted several questions to the Ornish website about my concerns...but have not received any feedback n this phenomenon as of yet, or reassurance that these test results are not something to be concerned about. We plan to work with our cardiologist on exploring what we can do to lower his triglycerides and raise his HDL, since poor levels of both are still considered "potential risk factors" I do not wish to "discourage some people from making changes in diet and lifestyle that we have proven to be lifesaving", because I do believe for some folks the Ornish program may be just the ticket. My question, until I do more reading and have more information, is whether it could be risky for some who may not respond the same way. Until I have more information and answers to my questions, I cannot whole-heartedly know if it's for everyone. And I would certainly advise folks who are interested in trying this program, to do so with medical supervision, as is advised by the Ornish group. Just as a side note..I have really enjoyed eating the Ornish reversal diet. We have both very much enjoyed the recipes, the meditation, yoga and exercise. I like the total comprehensive approach dealing with the whole person. I've also lost 25 pounds on this program..and for that reason alone, would very much like to continue with it, as I have more to lose. I have not yet had my cholesterol re-tested but plan to soon. Still..we have some home-work to do to figure out why my husbands triglycerides and HDL are not responding, what we can do about it, and to figure out whether it's even a problem that they're not. As we have both been otherwise delighted with this program, we are both very disappointed to get caught on this snag.
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Summary: Great book
Review: One of the few books I have that I keep going back to. I am reading it for the second time thru and plan to follow the program, as I have MVP. Great information on diet, excercise and healthy living in general.
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Summary: I Bought The Book When it First Came Out About 1990.
Review: Please do not be offended but only a fool would disregard what is in this book. Most people spend more time looking after their car than their health. I bought this book more than ten years ago. I am just an average Amazon.com reader (bought pre-Amazon). I thought then and I do now that the book was just outstanding. I am a scientist and I guess one can be fairly certain that the book is not 100% correct. Also it is virtually impossible to follow all the recommendations in the book. Having said that I think that any intelligent person after reading this book would change their lifestyle. To be honest, I have re-read the book once but is impossible to remember every detail. But it did cause me to (permanently) stop smoking about 14 years ago. When I am in a stressful situation I do remember (suprisingly) some of the passages in the book and I think that in dealing with any potential stress in a positive way to reduce the stress it helps health and the heart. Finally, I still eat my share of McDonald's Big Macs but overall I did change my diet. So I would recommend this book highly. It is a cheap investment in your health and life. Jack in Toronto
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Summary: Where There's Hope There's Life!
Review: Real hope of reversing heart desease for those who have had invasive surgery but have found their cardiac problems returning. The reversal plan is based upon diet, exercise, stress management, and the support of loving relationships - with fellow humankind and also with what are described as 'higher forces'. The Christian reader will likely view the latter as being exclusively Divinity, as revealed in God's Word, etc, rather than simply including Divinity. Such a reader will also want to substitute other stress management techniques for those in the book that are based upon yoga and the like. However, this should prove to be an improvement to Dr.Ornish's plan rather than a weakening of it. What a relief that medical practioners such as Dr.Ornish have had the courage an inquisitiveness to look beyond (but, in appropriate circumstances, not discount) conventional medical wisdom on the treatment of heart desease despite the skepticism with which the remedies outlined in this book were initially (and, to an extent, still may be) greeted. Thank you Dr.Ornish!
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Summary: Use English !
Review: The word is UNHEALTHY .... NOT unhealthful. In no dictionary can I find this word 'unhealthful'. So WHY USE IT when a perfectly good word already exists? CNN is great at inventing words. Let's at least keep these stupidities off this website. Thank You
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Summary: This book can change your life in a very positive way!
Review: This book (after reading three times) changed my life! My total cholesterol has dropped from 240 to 130-170. I have more energy then I did twenty years ago. I have started a Dean Ornish support group in Portland, Or and have dedicated my life to preventive medicine.
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Summary: Could save your life...read it, a revelation
Review: This book has saved many lives. It covers everything from stress to diet and exercise. My only concern is that it doesn't include all of the freightening research about the dangers of dairy products, for that topic read Robert Cohen's "Milk the Deadly Poison". Otherwise, a well-documented book. For those trying to maintain their present weight, a slightly higher fat intake may be desirable. After this book was published, a lot of very impressive research came out on nuts...I also disagree with his view of olive oil, which has been shown to prevent many diseases...unfortunately many people use olive oil for cooking and damage the fats and phytochemicals...In any case, even if Ornish's fat recommendation turns out to be too low for some, the general direction of the book is definitely on the right track. Buy this book before you get a heart attack, don't wait until you develop heart disease. Prevent heart disease and cancer before they start. If you have any concerns about nutrients, a multivitamin is an easy solution.
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Summary: You Can Be What You Eat
Review: This book is good news for everyone who believes that bad habits doom your health. Instead, the book says that you can change your eating and exercise habits now, and have much better health regardless of the past. I recently read an update on the research described in this book, which says that the long-term results are even better than before. This book reminds me of The 2,000 Percent Solution, which talks about how false beliefs cause us to miss big opportunities. I wonder how many times we miss the best things in life with bad thinking habits? Be sure to read and follow the lessons of REVERSING HEART DISEASE so you'll have a long happy life to find better opportunities!
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