Advancing the science of chronic disease treatment and prevention through plant-based whole foods.
The Vitamix Foundation periodically contributes funding to support medical research that aims to assess the health impact of a plant-based lifestyle on the prevention of a range of illnesses, including heart disease, and cancer.
Further evidence-based medical research is needed to understand and demonstrate the impact of plant-based whole foods on the prevention and treatment of chronic disease.
While the body of scientific evidence continues to grow regarding the impact of dietary patterns, and specifically the impact of a plant-based whole-food dietary pattern, more research is needed. Evidence-based research is a cornerstone of clinical care and essential to wide spread adoption.
Nutritarian Women's Health Study (NWHS) Sub-Study on Pregnant Women
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, Arizona
$10,000 grant
The Nutritarian Women's Health Study (NWHS) is a long term observational study on the effect of the Nutritarian diet on overall health plus the occurrence, recurrence, and progression of chronic diseases (including all forms of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke). This grant funds a sub-study that focuses on pregnant women.
IJDRP (International Journal of Disease Reversal and Prevention)
$5,000 as a founding funder
This new journal will document the science of nutrition and lifestyle to prevent, suspend and reverse disease.
A question many are asking with the ongoing introduction of plant-based meat alternatives is –“Are they healthy?”. The best review to date on this complex issue was an article published online by JAMA on August 26, 2019. The article can be found at https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2749260. While a simple yes or no answer would be very helpful – it all depends – as the article explains. This is a good read on an evolving topic that needs more research.
The Commission has delivered and published in The Lancet the first full scientific review of what constitutes a healthy diet from a sustainable food system, and which actions can support and speed up food system transformation. To learn more about this report and find a link to The Lancet article go to this link https://eatforum.org/eat-lancet-commission/.
“Malnutrition and unhealthy diets are important risk factors for non-communicable diseases. Francesco Branca and colleagues call for changes in both what and how food is produced, marketed, and consumed.
Cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes are responsible for 71% of global deaths (41 million) each year. Around 85% of premature deaths from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) now occur in low and middle income countries, where people also bear the greater burden of undernutrition and infectious disease. In wealthier countries, NCDs disproportionately affect vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.
Malnutrition is a key risk factor for NCDs. Globally, nearly one in three people has at least one form of malnutrition, and this will reach one in two by 2025, based on current trends. Malnutrition includes nutritional disorders caused by deficient intake of energy or nutrients, such as stunting, wasting, and micronutrient deficiencies. It also includes excessive and imbalanced intake, leading to overweight, obesity, and diet related NCDs. Both categories of malnutrition are caused by unhealthy, poor quality diets, and they can be linked. Undernutrition in childhood, in addition to affecting survival, growth, development, health, and educational or economic outcomes, is a risk factor for overweight and NCDs in later life. Around 151 million children whose stunted growth is caused by undernutrition and 38 million children under five who are currently overweight are at increased risk of NCDs in adulthood.”
Plant-Based Research
PlantBasedResearch.org aggregates peer-reviewed, scientific research papers and educational resources that are relevant to plant-based nutrition. Links to abstracts and even full articles are made available when possible.
The goal of the website is to "present the growing body of evidence supporting the theory that whole food, plant-based diets offer the best chance for avoiding chronic disease, and in some cases, reversing it."
