Duke University Eliminates Animal Labs in Medical Teaching PCRM

Transcription

Good Medicine
From the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine / Summer 2007 / Vol. XVI, No. 3
Duke University
Eliminates Animal
Labs in Medical
Teaching
PCRM
Complaint Halts
Misleading Dairy
Advertisements
European Union
Approves New Tests,
Spares More Than
250,000 Animals
Don’t Forget Your
Vitamin B12
Help End Dissection
in Local Schools
PCRM Celebrates the
Art of Compassion
®
Editorial
Drug Dependency
A
nother medication is suspected of having life-threatening side effects and may soon be pulled from the
market. Avandia, the trade name for GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug rosiglitazone, was reported in the
New England Journal of Medicine to increase heart attack risk by 43 percent. The analysis was conducted by
Steven Nissen and Kathy Wolski of the Cleveland Clinic and compiled the results of 42 prior studies.
In its defense, the manufacturer cited other studies that showed no increased risk. And no one has yet
nailed down the mechanism by which Avandia would damage the heart, although possibilities include its
tendency to boost low density lipoprotein (“bad”) cholesterol (by an average of 19 percent), precipitate
congestive heart failure, and reduce blood counts. For now, Avandia remains on the market.
Avandia is the latest in a long series of drugs that have turned out to present serious potential risks. Just last
December, Pfizer pulled the plug on torcetrapib, a drug that was supposed to raise high density lipoprotein
(“good”) cholesterol, but was associated with unexpected deaths in human tests. Premarin, used for “hormone
replacement,” increases the risk of heart disease, cancer, and stroke. The painkiller Vioxx caused thousands
of deaths from heart attacks and strokes.
All these cases have left public health officials and journalists wringing their hands, wondering what we
can do if drugs let us down.
The first answer, of course, is to focus on the causes of illness. No clinician believes that type 2 diabetes is
caused by a rosiglitazone deficiency. Rather, it is largely the result of diet and lifestyle. Although genes play a
role in susceptibility, the meaty, fatty Western diet is strongly associated with whether the disease manifests
or not. Similarly, genes influence heart disease risk one way or another. A person who avoids tobacco and
animal products and remains physically active has a strong measure of protection.
Some doctors are pessimistic about the benefits of diet changes, because conventional diets have been disappointing. However, going a step further—eliminating
Avandia is the latest in a
animal products, minimizing oils, and avoiding sugar and other high-glycemic-index
foods—is dramatically more effective. Moreover, the “side effects” of vegetarian and
long series of drugs that
vegan diets are all good ones. In addition to helping control diabetes, they also trim
have turned out to present waistlines, cut cholesterol, and lower blood pressure.
serious potential risks.
This does not mean that there is no role for medication. But most patients treated
with medications have never had the benefit of a really good diet that might have
prevented their condition or made it more manageable.
So why are blockbuster drugs presenting unforeseen risks? Two reasons:
First, drug companies now focus on products for long-term use. Rather than
eking out profits from antibiotics used for a week or two or vaccines administered just once, they are investing in drugs designed to become a permanent
part of your life. So toxicities that might not show up over the short run may
well add up as the years go by.
Second, drug companies continue to rely on animal tests, which often
fail to show the dangers faced by human patients. Newer test methods that
can more accurately predict the results in patients will mean safer medications. And when diet changes are used to their full effect, medications may
be needed much less frequently.
GOOD MEDICINE Summer
Summer 2007
2007
Harry Giglio
Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
President of PCRM
Good Medicine®
From the Physicians Committee
for Responsible Medicine
Summer 2007
Vol. XVI, No. 3
Contents
Contents
Editor in Chief Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
Managing Editor/Designer Doug Hall
Editor Margaret Southern
Associate Editor Patrick Sullivan
Contributing Writer Sarah Farr
Production Manager Lynne Crane
Web Designer Lisa Schulz
aDVISORY bOARD
T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. Cornell University
Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., M.D. The Cleveland Clinic
Suzanne Havala Hobbs, Dr.P.H., M.S., R.D.
University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill
Henry J. Heimlich, M.D., Sc.D. The Heimlich Institute
Lawrence Kushi, Sc.D. Kaiser Permanente
John McDougall, M.D. McDougall Program
Virginia Messina, M.P.H., R.D. Nutrition Matters, Inc.
Milton Mills, M.D. Gilead Medical Group
Myriam Parham, R.D., L.D., C.D.E. East Pasco Medical Center
William Roberts, M.D. Baylor Cardiovascular Institute
Andrew Weil, M.D. University of Arizona
Affiliations are listed for identification only.
PCRM STAFF • Aysha Akhtar, M.D., M.P.H. Senior Medical and Research Adviser
• Kyle Ash Legislative Coordinator • Jonathan Balcombe, Ph.D. Senior Research
Scientist • Nancy Beck, Ph.D. Research Analyst • Robin Bernstein Legal Fellow •
Simon Chaitowitz Senior Communications Specialist • Cael Croft Associate Designer
• Claudia Delman, M.P.H. Outreach Manager • Jill Eckart Assistant to the President
• Tara Failey Communications Coordinator • Sarah Farr Writer/Information Officer
• Allison George Research Program Coordinator • Claire Gregory, Esq. Associate
General Counsel • Patricia Howard Advertising and PSA Manager • Mark Kennedy,
Esq. Attorney • Dan Kinburn, Esq. General Counsel • Susan Levin, M.S., R.D.
Dietitian • Lynn Maurer Associate Designer • Jeanne Stuart McVey Media Relations
Manager • Ryan Merkley Research Program Coordinator • April Meyer Legal Assistant
• Melanie Miller Research Program Assistant • John Pippin, M.D. Senior Medical and
Research Adviser • Deborah Press Legal Intern • Chad Sandusky, Ph.D. Director of
Toxicology and Research • Ximena Savitch Nutrition and Research Assistant • Edith
Sodolo Communications Coordinator • Patty Slowik Nutrition Program Coordinator
and Physician Liaison • Margaret Southern Web Editor/Staff Writer • Kristie Stoick,
M.P.H. Scientific and Policy Advisor • Patrick Sullivan Director of Communications •
Caroline Trapp, M.S.N., C.N.P., B.C.-ADM, C.D.E. Director of Diabetes Education and
Care • Marie Warner Communications Assistant • Laura Yin Research Program Coordinator • Boris Zdravkovic Administrative Assistant • THE CANCER PROJECT • Jennifer
Anthony Nutrition Intern • Njambi Gibson Marketing Intern • Kathy Glisson Director
of Marketing • Chelsea Lenge, R.D. Dietitian • Lauray MacElhern Managing Director
• Michelle Rohner Outreach Program Coordinator • PCRM FOUNDATION • Nabila
Abdulwahab Data Processor • Milosz Banbor Accounting Manager • Melinda Beard
Receptionist • Mary Brumfield Accounts Payable Accountant • Deniz Corcoran Data
Entry Manager • Sossena Dagne Data Processor • George Dawson Web Developer •
Joey Doubek Accounting Assistant • Will Flores Technology Specialist • Brian Halprin
Membership Coordinator • Katerina Herodotou Development Assistant • Stephen
Kane Finance Director • JohnR Llewellyn Internet Marketing Manager • Debbi
Miller Special Events Manager • Leroy Perez Director of Technology • Tekola Pettis
Literature Manager • Bethany Richmond Human Resources Coordinator • Betsy
Wason, C.F.R.E. Director of Development • Rod Weaver Data Manager • Gregory
Wright Facilities Manager • Stacey Ziegenhein Human Resources Manager • Craig
Ziskin Associate Director of Annual Giving • WASHINGTON CENTER FOR CLINICAL
RESEARCH • Hope Ferdowsian, M.D., M.P.H. Director of Clinical Research • Valerie
Hoover Clinical Research Coordinator • Lady Ung Clinical Research and Nutrition Intern
• CONSULTANTS • Jarrod Bailey, Ph.D. • Shawna Benston • Susan Berkow, M.D. • Shawna
Broida • Megha Even, M.S. • Amber Green, R.D. • Peggy Hilden • Brent Jaster, M.D. • Amy
Lanou, Ph.D. • Paul Marcone • David Nash, M.D. • Tim Radak, Dr.P.H., M.P.H. • Jennifer
Raymond • Jennifer Reilly, R.D. • Garrett Strang • Dulcie Ward, R.D.
Good Medicine is published quarterly by the Physicians Committee for
Responsible Medicine,5100 Wisconsin Ave.,NW,Suite 400,Washington,
DC 20016, tel 202-686-2210, fax 202-686-2216. It is distributed as a
membership benefit to PCRM members. Basic annual membership
in PCRM is $20 (tax-deductible). PCRM promotes good nutrition,
preventive medicine, ethical research practices, and compassionate medical policy.
Readers are welcome to reprint articles without additional permission. Please include
the credit line: Reprinted from Good Medicine, Summer 2007, Physicians Committee for
Responsible Medicine. Articles are not to be reprinted for resale. Please contact PCRM
at [email protected] regarding other permissions. ©PCRM 2007.
Good Medicine is not intended as individual medical advice. Persons with medical
conditions or who are taking medications should discuss any diet and lifestyle changes
with their health professional.
“Good Medicine” is a registered trademark of the Physicians Committee for
Responsible Medicine.“Physicans Committee for Responsible Medicine,”“PCRM,”“The
Cancer Project,” “Humane Charity Seal,” and “The Gold Plan” are trademarks of PCRM,
federal registration pending.
www.PCRM.org
printed on recycled paper
6
10
11
14
23
Art of Compassion Weekend
6 PCRM Celebrates the Art of Compassion
7 Gala-Goers Treated to a Full Day of Good Health
8 PCRM Recognizes Compassion and Innovation in Awards Ceremony
Research Issues
9 Duke University Eliminates Animal Labs in Medical Teaching
6
Pushing the March of Dimes Toward Compassionate Research
10 New Approved Tests to Spare More Than 250,000 Animals in
European Union
Send a Free Dissection E-Card
Action Alert: Help End Dissection in Local Schools
Nutrition and Prevention
11 Success Stories: Tackling Diabetes with Simple Diet Changes
14 Meet Caroline Trapp, M.S.N., A.P.R.N., B.C.-ADM, C.D.E.
Don’t Forget Your Vitamin B12
15 PCRM’s Complaint Halts Misleading Dairy Advertisements
The Cancer Project
16 The Cancer Project Update
17 The News You Need
Departments
4 The Latest in...
18 Member Support The Art of Compassion Gala / Kim Howe—A Strong Voice for PCRM
20 PCRM Marketplace
23 Just the Facts
24 Physician Profile Gordon Saxe, M.D., Ph.D.: Innovative Research on Diet and Prostate Cancer
Cover Background: istockPHOTO
PCRM Phone Extensions 202-686-2210
Health Charities and Research Issues..........................................ext. 335
Literature Requests....................................................................ext. 306
........................................................................................ext. 316
Media.
Membership (change of address, duplicate
mailings, renewal questions)..................................................ext. 304
Nutrition....................................................................................ext. 395
PCRM
Doctors and laypersons working
together for compassionate
and effective medical practice, research, and
health promotion.
Summer 2007 GOOD MEDICINE
The Latest in…
The Latest in…
Research Ethics
By Kristie Stoick, M.P.H., and John J. Pippin, M.D., F.A.C.C.
ALTERNATIVES TO ANIMAL RESEARCH
Relief on the Way for Chronic
Wound Healing Research
P
P
harmaceutical companies often use
animals not only to test new drugs
but also to test the inactive ingredients
that go into their products. Excipients, as
they are called, are often the same from
one company to the next. But because
competing companies do not share their
test data, the same compounds are tested
on animals again and again.
This spring, however, a major initiative has been launched to create
a proprietary data repository for the
test results of excipients. U.K.-based
simulation organization Lhasa Ltd.
has brought together 10 pharmaceutical companies and devised a way to
safeguard each company’s data while
constructing a searchable, referable toxicity database that can be used instead
of animal tests.
Lhasa Limited in collaboration project to drive further reduction in
the need for animal testing. Available at: http://www.lhasalimited.
org/index.php?cat=6&sub_cat=6#15. Accessed May 14, 2007.
Progress in Hepatic Modeling: A Pioneering Initiative
ore than a dozen experts at the University College London have pooled
their expertise in computer sciences,
physiology, child health, and chemical
engineering to work on a monumental
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE Winter
Summer
2007
GOOD
2006
UCL Beacon Project Web site. Available at: http://grid.ucl.ac.uk/biobeacon/php/index.php?id=frontpage. Accessed May 11, 2007.
Dr Hadwen Trust Press Release. March 12, 2007.
Animal experimenters often use pigs
for wound healing research.
© istockphoto
M
project: a working computer
model of the human liver. The
UCL Beacon project seeks to
allow the study of important
liver diseases, such as diabetes
or cirrhosis, as well as other liver
functions, such as the metabolism of chemicals or drugs. The
project is extraordinarily complex, but it is a promising step
toward more ethical and effective
research, especially when combined with
the latest news about in vitro liver tissue
models (see Good Medicine, “The Latest
In” column, Spring 2007).
© istockphoto
Groundbreaking
Database Project Set
to Cut Animal Testing
CRM has often spoken out against
wound research using animals. This
research usually involves the intentional infliction of severe or catastrophic
wounds on animals in order to test a potential therapy, or deliberately infecting
an animal’s wounds to prevent healing.
Now, scientists, led by Dr. Phil Stephens
of Cardiff University in the United Kingdom, are developing a research model
that can help determine factors behind
chronic wound diseases without the use
of animals.
Funded by the Dr Hadwen Trust,
Dr. Stephens uses tissues donated by
human patients and genetic techniques
to determine molecular factors behind
differences between healthy and ulcerated tissue. Dr. Stephens said, “We hope
that the development of this laboratory
model will be an important and unique
resource for wound healing researchers
worldwide.”
Nutrition
The Latest in…
By Dulcie Ward, R.D., and Susan Levin, M.S., R.D.
FERTILITY
Low-Fat Dairy Products Linked
to Increased Infertility Risk
© istockphoto
A
new study found low-fat dairy
product consumption is linked to
an increased risk of infertility. A total of
18,555 premenopausal women from the
Nurses’ Health Study II who attempted a
pregnancy or became pregnant between
1991 and 1999 were evaluated for the
association between dairy products and
infertility. Women who consumed two
or more servings per day of low-fat dairy
products had 1.85 times the risk for infertility. While total dairy product intake
was not associated with an increased
risk of infertility, the majority of fat in
dairy products is saturated fat, which is
linked to increased cholesterol, insulin
resistance, overweight and obesity, and
other health problems.
Chavarro JE, Rich-Edwards JW, Rosner B, Willet WC. A prospective
study of dairy foods intake and anovulatory infertility. Hum Reprod.
2007;22(5):1340-1347.
Meat-Eating Moms Have
Less-Fertile Sons
countries to compensate for the bone
loss resulting from diets high in animal
protein, sodium, and other calcium
wasters. The World Health Organization
acknowledges that less dietary calcium is
needed when animal protein consumption is low.
habits of their mothers from the Study
for Future Families. The more beef a
mother consumed, the lower her son’s
sperm concentration. Sperm count was
24 percent higher in men whose mothers consumed less beef. The difference
may be due to steroid hormones found
in animal products. Six hormones are
commonly used in the United States to
induce increased growth and development in cows, and measurable levels are
routinely present in the animals’ muscle,
fat, liver, kidneys, and other organs.
Cattle raised without extra hormones still
have significant hormone levels in their
tissues because of endogenous hormone
production, and the nutrient profile of
animal products tends to elevate hormone levels in the human body.
Payne ME, Anderson JJB, Steffens DC. Calcium and vitamin D intakes
are positively associated with brain lesions in depressed and nondepressed elders. Presentation at the meeting of American Society for
Nutrition: Experimental Biology 2007. May 1, 2007, Washington, DC.
Swan SH, Liu F, Overstreet JW, Brazil C, Skakkebaek NE. Semen quality
of fertile US males in relation to their mothers’ beef consumption
during pregnancy. Hum Reprod. Advance access published on March
28, 2007.
A
new study in Human Reproduction
finds that a pregnant woman’s meat
consumption can reduce her future son’s
sperm count. Researchers at the University of Rochester in New York analyzed
the relationship between various sperm
parameters of 387 men and the eating
BRAIN HEALTH
© istockphoto
High Calcium and Vitamin D Intake May Lead to Cognitive Impairment
© istockphoto
D
uke University researchers recently
found an association between a high
dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D
and brain lesion volume in elderly men
and women. Researchers believe that
the problem may be due to the effects
of calcification and bonelike formations
in blood vessels. Vitamin D enhances
calcium absorption and may accelerate
this process.
Investigator Martha Payne designed
this study after finding a similar association between high-fat dairy products and
brain lesions. Current dietary calcium
and Vitamin D recommendations for
adults over 50 years of age are 1,200 mg
and 400 to 600 I.U., respectively. The
findings suggest that these recommendations may be too high for portions
of the general population. Calcium recommendations are set high in Western
PARKINSON’S DISEASE
Dairy Products Linked to Parkinson’s Disease
A
new study from the American Journal
of Epidemiology links the consumption of dairy products to an increased
risk for Parkinson’s disease. Researchers
studied this association among 388 men
and women with Parkinson’s disease
participating in the American Cancer
Society’s Cancer Prevention Study II.
Those who consumed the most dairy
milk had a 70 percent greater risk for
the disease.
Chen H, O’Reilly E, McCullough ML, Rodriguez C, et al. Consumption
of dairy products and risk of Parkinson’s disease. Am J Epidemiol.
2007;165:998-1006.
Summer
2007 GOOD
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE
Winter 2006
PCRM Celebrates
O
n April 14, Washington, D.C.’s historic Mellon
Auditorium was transformed into a glamorous setting for hundreds of PCRM supporters
who traveled from across the country and as far away
as Europe to celebrate the organization’s successes and
look forward to the future. The event included plenty
of star power, with Alec Baldwin serving as the evening’s
master of ceremonies. He was joined by Marilu Henner,
House’s Lisa Edelstein, Persia White of TV’s Girlfriends,
musician Moby, and daytime drama stars Peggy McCay
and Grant Aleksander. International music star Shani
Rigsbee performed during the program.
Sublime in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., provided a caramelized onion tart as the first course; San Francisco’s
Millennium served an entrée of seared polenta nera
presented over a bed of spring vegetable ragout, fennel
Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones (Ohio)
Master of ceremonies Alec Baldwin
Singer Shani Rigsbee
2005 Art of Compassion Award winner
Nanci Alexander
Summer 2007
2007
Henry Heimlich, M.D., and actress Lisa Edelstein
Mike Wilkinson
Front row: Neal D. Barnard, M.D., and Alec Baldwin. Back row: actress Persia White, musician
Moby, Shani Rigsbee, actress Marilu Henner, Michael Brown, Lisa Edelstein
PCRM president Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
seitan sausage, and porcini mushrooms; New York’s
Candle 79 treated guests to hors d’oeuvres; and famed
macrobiotic chef Eric Lachasseur created an incredible
dessert buffet.
Participants bid on silent auction items such as
vacation getaways, celebrity-autographed scrubs, and
gift packages to raise critical funding for PCRM’s programs. Artist Peter Max donated a rare chance to have
him paint a personalized portrait, and Alec Baldwin
Gala-Goers
Treated to a
Full Day of
Good Health
Professional Athletes
Lead Fun Run, Provide
Nutrition Tips
Mike Wilkinson
P
and Moby donated a private dinner and concert. The incredible
enthusiasm and generous support
of PCRM members made the gala
an extraordinary event. You can
view more gala images at www.pcrm.
org/gala2007.
Actor Grant Aleksander and
actress Peggy McCay
Marilu Henner and Chef
Sualua Show How It’s Done
M
arilu Henner, who became America’s
darling on the hit shows Taxi and
Evening Shade, was joined by leading chef
Sualua Tupolo to show gala attendees how
to create dishes that are both healthful
and full of flavor. The first class took attendees on a culinary tour of Washington,
including mock crab cakes (in honor of
Maryland, our neighbor to the north),
Senate Bean Soup, and White House
Butternut Squash Salsa. Although Marilu
continues a vigorous acting career, her
passion is fitness and nutrition through
her Total Health Makeover® and her Web
site, Marilu.com.
rofessional Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier, who won the Canadian
50K Ultramarathon in 2003 and 2006,
when he also set the course record, led
an early-morning four-mile run around
the National Mall. The approximately
20 participants got an up-close view of
the Washington Monument, the World
War II Memorial, the Capitol, and the
Lincoln Memorial. Afterward, Brazier,
who created a health food supplement
and has written two books, was joined
by professional bodybuilder Kenneth
Williams to give the runners nutrition PCRM and The George
and training tips. Brazier explained how Washington University
a vegan diet helped him trim his recovery times and dramatically improve his Present Nutrition in
athletic performance and Williams, who Clinical Practice
is America’s first vegan bodybuilding
edical professionals had a full day of
champion, served as living proof that a
detailed instruction on using nutriplant-based diet provides super strength
tion in clinical practice. PCRM partnered
and exceptional health.
with The George Washington University
to present the continuing medical education program for health care professionals.
The course provided an overview of how
to put nutritional interventions to work
and focused on the most recent evidence
that links nutrition to the management of
common medical conditions.
The seminar covered a variety of topics,
including cardiovascular health, diabetes
management, cholesterol control, women’s
health, cancer prevention and survival, and
other topics. The speakers were Neal D.
Barnard, M.D.; Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr.,
M.D.; Hope Ferdowsian, M.D., M.P.H.;
David J.A. Jenkins, M.D., Ph.D., Sc.D.;
Gordon Saxe, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H.; and
Caroline Trapp, M.S.N., A.P.R.N., B.C.ADM, C.D.E.
More than 200 primary care physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, dietitians, subspecialists, and
others interested in nutrition and chronic
disease management attended the event.
PCRM hopes that this is just the first of
many continuing education programs
jointly sponsored with The George Washington University.
M
Summer 2007
2007 GOOD
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE
Summer
PCRM Recognizes Compassion and
Innovation in Awards Ceremony
T
Summer 2007
2007
Congressman Jim Moran (Virginia)
Photographer
Medicine winner
To help researchers
make the transition Dr. Daran Haber, Art of Compassion
to human-based tis- Award winner
sues, Charlton founded Asterand. With exacting quality-control methods for tissue collection at participating
hospitals, the company now supplies human tissues for
research on Alzheimer’s disease, breast cancer, and many
other conditions. Asterand was named Michigan’s hightechnology company of the year in 2005.
Daran Haber, M.D., received from Nanci Alexander
and Alec Baldwin the Art of Compassion Award, which
recognizes an individual who exemplifies compassion to
an extraordinary degree and works to extend this value as
broadly as possible. Dr. Haber, a board-certified anesthesiologist and pain management specialist at Riverview
Medical Center in Red Bank, N.J., testified before the
New Jersey State Assembly Education Committee on
behalf of a successful bill guaranteeing a student’s right
not to dissect animals and spoke out on behalf of 300
neurologists and neurosurgeons against a class at Ohio
State University that inflicts severe damage to the spinal
cords of mice and rats. Dr. Haber, a longtime PCRM
member, has also appeared in several of PCRM’s television public service announcements, helping to spread
the word about diet, health, and cancer prevention.
PCRM also presented certificates to two members of
Congress for their contributions to health and compassion. Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones of Ohio
was recognized for her ongoing promotion of good
nutrition, and Congressman Jim Moran of Virginia was
honored for his commitment to the welfare of animals
in laboratories.
Mike Wilkinson
he Art of Compassion gala honored three individuals for their outstanding contributions to science
and PCRM’s mission.
The Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in
Medicine was presented by Dr. Spock’s widow, Mary
Morgan, and musical superstar Moby to David J.A.
Jenkins, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc., of the University of
Toronto and St. Michael’s Hospital. Dr. Jenkins has
provided the scientific basis for an all-out assault on
unhealthy eating patterns that take root in childhood.
First, he developed
the glycemic index,
which revolutionized the nutrition
world by quickly
and easily demonstrating how various foods affect
the body, and then
he developed the
Dr. David J.A. Jenkins, Benjamin Spock Award for Compassion in most rapid and
Medicine winner, and Mary Morgan
powerful dietary
method to lower cholesterol: a vegetarian diet incorporating a portfolio of cholesterol-lowering foods. Dr.
Jenkins is a visionary who insists on an awareness of
the broad effects of our diet choices, for ourselves and
for generations to come.
Randal Charlton, founder and CEO of Asterand,
received the Henry J. Heimlich Award for Innovative Medicine from Dr. Heimlich himself along with
House actress Lisa Edelstein. Like Dr. Heimlich,
Charlton is the embodiment of innovation and
compassion. Charlton
recognized that pharmaceutical manufacturers
needed to go beyond
research with animals
and animal tissues, which
often led to results that
Randal Charlton, Henry J. Heimlich Award for Innovative failed to apply to humans.
Research Issues
Duke University
Eliminates Animal Labs
in Medical Teaching
Duke University
T
he number of medical schools using live animals for
student training is dwindling quickly. After years
of encouragement from PCRM, Duke University has
finally joined the nearly 90 percent of U.S. medical
schools that have completely eliminated live animals
from their undergraduate medical education curricula.
The school’s live pig lab was replaced with modern nonanimal teaching methods.
This shift at Duke brings the number of U.S. medical schools that still use live animal labs to only 13.
Twenty years ago, live dogs and pigs were commonly
used in physiology, pharmacology, and surgery courses.
A standard laboratory exercise involved anesthetizing
the animal, followed by injecting pharmaceuticals or
practicing surgical techniques. The animals were typically killed after the laboratory.
In many top-ranked medical schools, surgery instruction is now focused on the use of simulators such
as Simulab’s TraumaMan™ and laparoscopic surgery
trainers, as well as didactic teaching, class
and small-group case
discussions, interactive computer-based
methods such as virtual reality programs,
and hands-on mentorship opportunities
with faculty in anesthesiology, surgery,
emergency medicine,
and other clinical
disciplines.
Pushing the March of Dimes Toward Compassionate Research
PCRM
P
articipants at March of Dimes WalkAmerica events
seek to support the organization’s research and services. Most have no idea that the charity funds animal
experiments, some of which have been extraordinarily
cruel. So PCRM helped educate them with mobile
billboards and volunteers at WalkAmerica events across
the country.
Mobile billboards were placed at WalkAmerica
events in Washington, D.C., Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Dallas, Houston, Tucson, Ariz., and Atlanta. Walkers in
Peoria, Ariz., received PCRM’s message from an aerial
banner circling overhead. Many PCRM members and
volunteers across the country helped pass out more than
40,000 leaflets in April alone and answer questions at
their local WalkAmerica events.
Over the years, the March of Dimes has funded a
series of controversial experiments, including sewing
shut the eyelids of newborn kittens; injecting pregnant
animals with cocaine, nicotine, and alcohol; tethering
pregnant monkeys to cages with monitoring cables
running through the mothers’ uteruses and into their
fetuses’ bodies; and deliberately injuring the lungs of
newborn lambs. Not only are these experiments cruel
but they have also failed to lead to advances in preventing or understanding birth defects.
The rates of almost all birth defects have either
remained steady or increased in this country. The
number of preterm births has risen steadily since 1969,
and the rate of maternal mortality has not improved
since the 1980s.
While the March of Dimes does not reveal the exact
amount spent on animal experiments, estimates go up
to $30 million. PCRM is encouraging the organization
to devote this money to worthwhile services, including
prenatal care, education, social programs, and humanbased research.
To find out how you can help reform the March of
Dimes, visit www.ReformtheMarchofDimes.org.
Research Issues
New Approved Tests to Spare
More Than 250,000 Animals in
European Union
T
he European Union has announced that non-animal
methods will likely soon replace rabbits for testing
chemicals that could be irritating to the skin or eye.
Another new method will halve the number of mice
used in skin allergen testing. These advances will save
almost 20,000 rabbits every year and a total of about
240,000 mice.
Under EU law, animal tests for drugs, chemicals,
and personal products cannot be used if an alternative
non-animal method has been validated by the Scientific Advisory Committee of the European Centre
for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM)
and implemented by the European Commission. This
April, ECVAM approved five tests that obviate the use
of rabbits and mice for certain assessments.
Two of the new tests use laboratory-grown human
skin to predict whether chemicals could irritate the
skin. These methods are much more reliable than the
Draize skin irritation test, in which chemicals are tested
on the skin of rabbits. Two other tests use animal tissues
obtained from slaughterhouses rather than live rabbits
to assess the severity of eye irritants. Finally, half of the
mice to be used in skin allergen testing under new EU
chemicals legislation will be saved by a new reduction
procedure.
The EU is far ahead of ECVAM’s U.S. counterpart,
the Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM), a government
agency charged with assessing alternative methods for
U.S. agencies. ECVAM has approved more than 23
methods, while ICCVAM has approved only six.
Send a Free Dissection E-Card
T
ACTION ALERT
Help End Animal Dissection in Local Schools
D
o you—or does your child—attend a school that still uses animals
for dissection? If so, you can encourage teachers and school
administrators to implement humane alternatives. Research shows
that cruelty-free alternatives teach concepts of anatomy and biology
as well as or better than traditional dissection—all without sacrificing
compassion for animals.
Contact your superintendent and express your concern about
animal dissection. Ask him or her to begin using humane and costefficient non-animal teaching tools in the new school year. You’ll find a
sample letter and more information at www.DissectionAlternatives.org.
10
Summer 2007
2007
hink classroom dissection should become a
thing of the past? Encourage the students, teachers,
and parents in your life
to learn about dissection
alternatives by sending
them a free e-card.
Besides the concerns
about animal welfare, environmental damage, and
chemical exposures, there is simply no educational
advantage to dissection. Study after study has shown
that students who learned with interactive CD-ROMs,
videos, and even simple lectures performed as well or
better than their peers who performed dissection. And
as educational technology advances, new alternatives
are becoming extremely detailed and lifelike, and they
allow students to perform “dissections” as many times
as they need to master the concepts.
Four different e-cards are available, each featuring a commonly dissected creature. To send an
e-card or get a free copy of Digital Frog 2, visit www.
DissectionAlternatives.org.
Nutrition & Prevention
Success Stories
iSTOCKPHOTO
Tackling Diabetes with Simple
Diet Changes
T
he calls and e-mails have been pouring in to PCRM since Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes hit bookstores in January. Individuals with diabetes
from all over the United States are contacting us to share their success with Dr.
Barnard’s program.
We’ve heard from people who began the program the week they were diagnosed with
diabetes and people who sought a change after battling the disease for 10 years or more.
Some people were already eating fairly healthfully, and some people had never before
heard the word “vegan.” But one person after another has shared a story of weight loss,
improved health, reduction of medications, and a renewed faith in the power of nutrition.
Following are the stories of four very different people who all experienced powerful
improvements in their health with simple diet and lifestyle changes.
IRA GOLDBERG
I
ra Goldberg never imagined the difference a healthy
diet could make. In fact, when the 41-year-old high
school history teacher first heard the word “vegan”
mentioned in the diabetes class he had enrolled in, he
turned to his wife and said, “I don’t think so.” That
was one year and 65 pounds ago, and today Goldberg
proclaims that having become a vegan is one of the
things he is proudest of in his life.
Goldberg enrolled in Caroline Trapp’s Food for Life
to Prevent and Reverse Diabetes, a PCRM-sponsored
pilot program in the Detroit area, five years after he was
diagnosed with diabetes. His A1c (a commonly used
index of blood glucose control) was through the roof at
10.8. Trapp told him about a lifestyle he could take on
Ira Goldberg
Age: 41
Location: West Bloomfield, Mich.
A1c:
June 2006: 10.8
Feb. 2007: 5.3
Total Cholesterol:
June 2006: 249
Feb. 2007: 179
Medications: Has stopped cholesterol
medication. Taking one-fourth the
amount of diabetes medication
(metformin); hopes to be off
medication completely.
Pounds lost: 65
Summer
Summer 2007
2007 GOOD
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE
11
that didn’t involve counting calories or limiting portion sizes. With his wife’s support, Goldberg decided
to jump in.
After the first few weeks, Goldberg realized that the
diet was something he could do. As someone who eats
out several times a week, realizing that he could easily
find something to eat at restaurants was a turning point.
“I never came close to not finding something to eat at
restaurants,” Goldberg said.
Goldberg counts cooking at home, finding the
perfect tofu, and making sure that everything he eats
is truly low-fat as among the most challenging parts
of the diet. “But I have the vegan part down, no problem,” Goldberg said. In fact, he says that eating animal
products now seems foreign to him.
“This journey started off as a way of fulfilling a
health need, but has really evolved into a personal
awakening that has left me a more well-rounded person, and I really feel good about what I’m doing for
other living beings,” Goldberg said.
ANNE HERNDON
Anne Herndon
Age: 61
Location: Winston-Salem, N.C.
A1c: Nov. 2006: 6.3
June 2007: 5.7
Medications: Never began diabetes
medications
Pounds lost: 35 (in one year); now at
healthy weight
Latest update: Anne is now putting
together a packet of recipes and
pantry staples for her doctor to hand
out to her other patients.
W
hen Anne Herndon was diagnosed with diabetes
in June 2006, her doctor gave her three months
to lower her A1c. The 61-year-old retired psychologist
started making changes right away: She followed the
dietary guidelines of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and cut out “white” processed foods, cut
out wine, and began exercising every day. By October,
her weight had dropped but her other numbers hadn’t
budged. Impressed by Herndon’s weight loss, her doc12
12
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE Summer
GOOD
Summer 2007
2007
tor gave her three more months to get her numbers down
before turning to medication.
Herndon wasn’t really sure what else to do besides
continuing to follow the ADA dietary guidelines and
keep exercising. In November—two months before Dr.
Barnard’s book appeared—her friend pointed her to Dr.
Barnard’s research about a low-fat vegan diet. Figuring
she had nothing to lose, she began the new diet right
away.
Herndon was already eating plenty of fresh and
seasonal fruits and vegetables and only had meat (usually fish) a few times a week, so the transition for her
was quite simple. She cut out the meat, began putting
soymilk on her breakfast oatmeal instead of skim milk,
and continued to eat an abundance of produce from
her local farmers’ market.
When Herndon went back for testing in January,
not only had her weight dropped but this time her
A1c had fallen to 5.8. Both Herndon and her doctor
were impressed.
Herndon has been enjoying every aspect of the diet
and is “thrilled with what’s in the refrigerator.” She’s
so enthusiastic that she has offered herself as a guide
for anyone wanting to make the transition to a low-fat
vegan diet. “I would love for someone to say to me ‘I
want to change to a vegan diet, will you help me?’”
Herndon said.
JOHN BEALE
J
ohn Beale was already taking medication for high
blood pressure and high cholesterol. So when he was
diagnosed with diabetes this past January, Beale was not
thrilled with the thought of taking more pills. A dietitian who looked at his already fairly healthy diet and
active lifestyle felt that medication was essential. Beale
was frustrated, and he knew there must be something
else he could do. He went home, got on the Internet,
and began educating himself about diabetes. Within
48 hours, Beale had read Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program
for Reversing Diabetes cover to cover.
He took Dr. Barnard’s advice and began the program without compromise: The first day he and his
wife replaced all the “no” foods in the kitchen with
“yes” foods. After one week on the program, his blood
sugar and weight began coming down. After eight
weeks, his blood pressure was below normal, he’d lost
32 pounds, and his doctor cut his cholesterol medication by half. In the class he participated in at the
was very surprised and incredibly relieved,” Peters said of her
Age: 59
immediate improvements. “I just
Location: Madison, Wis.
didn’t think that for someone
A1c:
Jan. 2007: 7.0
who hadn’t eaten meat in a very
April 2007: 6.0
long time that just cutting out the
Fasting glucose
cheese and the eggs could have
Jan. 2007: in the 250s
such an effect.” Peters’ physi April 2007: in the 80s
cian was so impressed by Peters’
Cholesterol:
Jan. 2007: 143
improvement that she’s “going
April 2007: 42
to read Dr. Barnard’s book from
Medications: Went off blood pressure
cover to cover,” Peters said.
medication, cholesterol medication
Peters has cut out dairy
has been cut in half, never on diabetes
products, cut back on refined
medications
carbohydrates, and is eating
Pounds lost: 32
many more fruits and vegetables.
clinic for all newly diagnosed diabetics, two-thirds of She’s also discovering foods like quinoa and ethnic
his classmates ended up buying the book after talking foods that she probably would not have found before.
An added bonus: Her 53-pound weight loss has given
with Beale about his progress.
Beale’s biggest challenge was learning to read labels her renewed energy and a new wardrobe. “I never ever
and shop for food, “but in hindsight it was a wonderful thought I’d feel this good again,” Peters said.
education,” he said. Beale begins his day with oatmeal “As discouraging and as frustrating as it can be
and fruit, has a salad for lunch, and has anything from to be newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, people
pasta to homemade soups to cheeseless pizza for dinner. should realize there is a very simple way back to a
He and his wife are even making their own homemade healthy life,” Peters said. “For the payoff you get, it’s
not that hard.”
veggie burgers.
Beale has found people to be very inquisitive about
Dr. Barnard’s program, which Beale believes is the only
ard’s
hopeful message for diabetics out there.
k Dr. Neal Barn
iSTOCKPHOTO
John Beale
JANE PETERS
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1.
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Program for R
J
ane Peters has been a vegetarian for 15 years. So when
she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in September
2006 and her doctor said that vegetarians can’t control
their diabetes, she became frustrated. When a nurse at
the diabetes education center gave her the same news,
she felt dejected. That afternoon, the Autumn 2006
issue of Good Medicine arrived in her mailbox with a
“Targeting Diabetes” cover story detailing Dr. Barnard’s
findings that a low-fat vegan diet works to control
diabetes better than the traditional diabetes diet. “I felt
like someone had thrown me a lifeline,” Peters said. “I
started the diet that day.”
After Jane switched her diet, she also switched her
doctor. She found a doctor who was very supportive
of her new lifestyle. And after just four months on the
diet, Peters’ numbers were so low her doctor took her
off the metformin that she was initially prescribed. “I
Jane Peters
Age: 54
Location: Newtown, Penn.
A1c:
Sept. 2006: 8.9
April 2007: 4.7
Fasting glucose:
Sept. 2006: 385
April 2007:
between 80 and 95
Cholesterol:
Sept. 2006: 190
April 2007: 140
Medications: Stopped diabetes
medications.
Pounds lost: 53
13
Meet Caroline Trapp,
M.S.N., A.P.R.N., B.C.-ADM, C.D.E.
C
aroline Trapp recently joined PCRM
as the director of diabetes education
and care. Board-certified in adult primary
care, advanced diabetes management, and
diabetes education, she has worked with
people with diabetes for more than 20 years.
Her role at PCRM is to oversee
new diabetes prevention and reversal
initiatives. For professionals, she is cre-
P
anchero’s Mexican Grill has added
a lot of flavor to PCRM’s Food for
Life to Prevent & Reverse Diabetes
pilot classes, led by Caroline Trapp,
in the Detroit area. The chain has
provided participants in the class the
opportunity to learn to choose the
kinds of low-fat vegan foods that will
help them manage their diabetes in a
real-world setting.
Eliminating all animal products
from one’s diet can be intimidating to
some peole at first. However, the field
trip to Panchero’s Mexican Grill allows
participants to see that they can enjoy
generous portions of delicious foods
while managing their diabetes.
The Livonia, Mich., Panchero’s location treated class participants to a
choice of four vegan entrées from the
regular menu. Trapp’s students have
particularly enjoyed the vegetarian
burrito, which is a good-sized tortilla
handmade in front of customers, filled
with black or pinto beans, cilantro, rice,
roasted vegetables, corn, and salsa.
“The food at Panchero’s is delicious
and fresh,” said Dolores Stachura, a
student of Trapp’s. “I’ll be back!”
14
14
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE Summer
GOOD
Summer 2007
2007
Don’t Forget Your
Vitamin B12
A
vegan diet rich in fruits, vegetables,
whole grains, and legumes provides
plenty of protein and an abundance
of vitamins and minerals to meet
nutritional needs. You’ll find plenty of
calcium in green leafy vegetables and
legumes. However, there is one nutrient
that merits a bit of simple planning.
Vitamin B12, which is essential for
healthy nerves and healthy blood, is
STIRLING ELMENDORF
Panchero’s Serves Up
a Lesson in Nutrition
ating new continuing medical education programs and
patient education materials.
For individuals with diabetes,
she is continually updating
materials on www.pcrm.org/
diabetes, including acting as a
forum moderator for the GetHealthy Club, PCRM’s online
support group.
Trapp championed the
creation and implementation
of the pilot PCRM Food for
Life to Prevent & Reverse
Diabetes classes in the Detroit
area, the first site outside of
Washington, D.C., to host these classes.
This diabetes course was designed by
physicians, certified diabetes educators,
and other nutrition experts and is based
on Dr. Neal Barnard’s research showing that a low-fat vegan diet can help
individuals with diabetes cut their blood
sugars, reduce their medications, lose
weight, and trim their cholesterol levels.
The classes have already helped many individuals gain control over their diabetes
by teaching proper nutrition, behavioral
skills, and diabetes self-care methods.
As a nurse practitioner specializing in
diabetes, Trapp was successful in helping
her practice achieve Diabetes Provider
Recognition from the American Diabetes
Association/NCQA and also the (Michigan) Governor’s Award for Excellence
in Diabetes Care. Trapp is a volunteer
lecturer at the University of Michigan’s
School of Nursing.
not produced by animals or plants.
It is formed by bacteria and other
one-celled organisms. Animal products commonly contain B12 formed
by bacteria in animals’ intestinal
tracts. While B12 is also formed in
the human intestine, it occurs after
the point where the vitamin can be
readily absorbed.
Vitamin B12 needs can be met by
consuming a variety of supplemented
foods, including fortified breakfast
cereals, fortified soymilk, fortified
meat analogues, and some brands
of nutritional yeast. However, the
PCRM’s Complaint Halts
Misleading Dairy
Advertisements
T
wo national dairy advertising campaigns overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture will stop claiming
that dairy products cause weight loss,
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
announced in early May. The decision,
which comes in response to a petition
filed by PCRM, will end misleading
claims made in the “Milk Your Diet. Lose
Weight” and “3-A-Day. Burn More Fat,
Lose Weight” promotions.
In the FTC petition, PCRM charged
that the dairy industry has used false and
misleading advertising in its multimillion-dollar marketing campaign suggesting that consuming milk and other dairy
products causes weight loss. In response,
the FTC’s Division of Advertising Practices met with USDA staff and representatives of the National Fluid Milk Processor
Promotion Board and the National Dairy
Promotion and Research Board, who
agreed to discontinue all advertising and
most convenient and reliable source
is a daily multivitamin. All common
brands for children and adults contain
more than enough B12. Spirulina, miso,
and seaweed are not reliable sources
of vitamin B12.
We recommend that all adults and
children take a daily multivitamin or
a B12 supplement of at least 5 micrograms per day. The recommended
dietary allowance for adults is 2.4
micrograms per day, with increased
requirements for women who are
pregnant or breastfeeding.
Most cases of B12 deficiency have
other marketing activities
involving weight-loss claims.
Available research does not
support the claim.
“It is important to recognize
that the dairy industry, which
used to have a mom-and-pop
image, is a huge commercial
entity that will exaggerate to
sell its products,” said PCRM president
Neal Barnard, M.D. The news of this
consumer victory was covered by many
major media outlets, including The New
York Times, CNN, and The Today Show.
The dairy industry’s weight-loss campaign was based largely on three small
studies conducted by Michael Zemel,
Ph.D., a professor of nutrition at the
University of Tennessee whose funding
came from dairy industry sources and who
patented the dairy-weight-loss claim. Out
of 27 randomized, controlled research
trials investigating the effects of dairy
nothing to do with diet. Rather, individuals who lose their ability to absorb
the vitamin become deficient no matter
what sort of diet they follow and need
treatment with injectable or high-dose
oral B12.
In the nonindustrialized world,
where bacterial contamination commonly brought traces of B12 to foods, B12
deficiency is largely prevented. However,
modern hygiene has eliminated this
source, just as indoor living has largely
eliminated sunlight, nature’s source of
vitamin D. A daily multivitamin restores
these essential nutrients.
The dairy industry has
banked on consumers not
taking an overly close look
at its health claims.
products on body weight, Dr. Zemel’s
were the only ones showing a link between
dairy consumption and weight loss.
The dairy industry has banked on consumers not taking an overly close look at
its health claims. A review by PCRM nutritionist Amy Lanou, Ph.D., published in
the March 2005 issue of Pediatrics, showed
that there is little scientific evidence to
support the idea that drinking milk helps
children build strong bones. Researchers
who hoped that milk would help prevent
hip fractures later in life found no such
evidence after an 18-year investigation as
part of the Nurses’ Health Study. Also, yet
another study has linked milk to prostate
cancer: A new study in the International
Journal of Cancer found that as consumption of dairy products or overall dietary
calcium intake increased, risk for prostate
cancer increased. In a survey of 29,133
men, those who consumed the most
dietary calcium (greater than 2,000 milligrams per day) had a 63 percent greater
risk, compared with those consuming less
than 1,000 milligrams per day.
15
The Cancer Project
The Cancer Project Update
More Praise for the Cancer Project
T
he Cancer Project’s instructors are changing lives
across the country. Here’s a letter of praise from
Dr. Chris Gordon:
April 27, 2007
I am writing to express my admiration and
gratitude for a session of The Cancer Project that was
presented here at Advocates on April 26, 2007, by
chef Rose Lee.
Our agency supports people with a variety of
disabilities, including psychiatric, developmental,
other cognitive disabilities, and physical disabilities.
For many of the people we support—especially
people with psychiatric disabilities—poor nutrition
contributes very substantially to significant
morbidity and early mortality. On average, people
with psychiatric disabilities die 15 years younger
than their non-disabled peers, primarily due to
cardiovascular and pulmonary disease.
Rose Lee was magnificent!!! She met with a group
of over 40 people with disabilities and staff members.
Many consumers had hearing impairments, many
needed staff assistance of various kinds, and we were
a big group. Nonetheless, Rose engaged us all with
lively and informative material and a warm, engaging
style. She prepared a wonderful, delicious meal, using
techniques and ingredients that were easily accessible
to all of the audience. Everyone had a wonderful time,
learned a lot and raved about both the food and the
experience. Everyone is hoping that Rose will be able
to return.
This was truly a wonderful learning experience for
all of us—including me, the Medical Director! I am
definitely going to modify my diet on the basis of this
terrific presentation. Keep up the fantastic work!
Sincerely,
Chris Gordon, M.D.
Vice President, Clinical Services
Medical Director
Advocates, Inc.
Framingham, MA
More Cancer Project News
• Attention health professionals! The Cancer Project will
be hosting its second annual Cancer & Nutrition Symposium
on Saturday, July 28, in Bethesda, Md. The symposium will
provide breakthrough information on how foods fight cancer
and will feature top researchers and authors T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D.; Lawrence H. Kushi, Sc.D.; John McDougall,
M.D.; June Chan, Sc.D., and The Cancer Project’s president,
16
GOOD MEDICINE Summer 2007
Neal Barnard, M.D. To sign up, visit www.CancerProject.
org/Symposium.
• Are your children developing healthy
eating habits? The earlier children start
eating a nutritious diet rich in cancerfighting foods, the greater their chances
of staying healthy for life.
The Cancer Project is now offering
Nutrition for Your Kids: A Dietary Approach to Cancer Prevention. The booklet provides information on how diet
affects cancer risk and includes nutrition information
for children in every age group, delicious recipes, and tips on
how to instill healthful eating and exercise habits in kids. To
order your free booklet, visit www.CancerProject.org/kids.
The News You Need
The Cancer Project
By Chelsea Lenge, R.D., and Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
the stomach. N-nitroso compounds are formed in the
body by a chemical process that starts with nitrates
such as cured meats and dairy products. Antioxidants,
such as vitamin C, usually neutralize these potential
carcinogenic compounds by turning them into nitric
oxide. Researchers from the study found that consuming fat may cause N-nitroso compounds to re-form in
the stomach.
Fat counters vitamin C benefits. BBC News. April 8, 2007.
©iStockphoto
Flavonoids May Decrease
Pancreatic Cancer Risk
R
Carcinogens in Cooked Meat
Increase Breast Cancer Risk
R
esearchers at the University of South Carolina recently evaluated the effects of exposure to two carcinogenic compounds found in cooked meat—polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heterocyclic amines
(HCAs)—and breast cancer risk. The study found that
postmenopausal women who consumed grilled, barbecued, or smoked red meat more than once a week had
a 47 percent increased risk of developing breast cancer
over their lifetime, compared with women who ate meat
less than one time per week. Breast cancer risk increased
to 74 percent for women who consumed meat and ate
fewer than five servings a day of fruits and vegetables.
PAHs and HCAs are formed when barbequing, grilling,
smoking, and pan-frying meats at high temperatures.
Exposure to these harmful substances can be limited
simply by eating a plant-based diet that is rich in beans,
fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
esearchers from the Cancer Research Center
of Hawaii found that consuming foods rich in
flavonoids may decrease pancreatic cancer risk by as
much as 23 percent in nonsmokers and 59 percent in
smokers (smokers generally have a higher pancreatic
cancer risk). Foods rich in flavonoids include apples,
broccoli, onions, kale, and berries. These compounds
play important roles in cancer prevention and survival,
including apoptosis or cancer cell death.
The study was part of the ongoing, eight-year
Multiethnic Cohort Study involving 183,518 participants. Investigators looked at three specific classes of
flavonoids—quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin.
Kaempferol was found to have the strongest cancerfighting effects in smokers. Foods rich in kaempferol
include grapefruit, spinach, and cabbage.
Nöthlings U, Murphy SP, Wilkens L, Henderson BE, Kolonel LN. Flavonols and pancreatic cancer
risk: the multiethnic cohort study. Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research. April 2007. Abstract 856.
©iStockPHOTO
Steck SE, Gaudet MM, Eng SM, et al. Cooked meat and risk of breast cancer—lifetime versus
recent dietary intake. Epidemiology. May 2007;18:373-382.
Fat May Inhibit the Beneficial
Effects of Vitamin C
R
esearchers from the University of Glasgow found
that fat in foods diminishes the ability of vitamin
C to protect against cancer-forming compounds in
www.CancerProject.org
The Cancer Project is a nonprofit PCRM subsidiary that advances
cancer prevention and survival through nutrition education and research.
17
Member Support
The Art of Compassion Gala
Bringing Out the Best in All of Us
T
he Art of Compassion gala was an
enormous success by all accounts. The
historic venue in the heart of Washington,
D.C., was a magnificent setting, funds
were raised to support PCRM’s programs,
and guests enjoyed each other’s company,
wonderful food, and a star-studded celebration. But by far the biggest impact
that the event had on the organization is
how it brought people together in support
of PCRM’s work.
The outpouring of support for the
Art of Compassion gala was felt from the
moment we announced this huge undertaking. Restaurants, performers, auction
donors—and more sponsors than we’ve
Betsy Wason
Director of Development
Including PCRM in Your Will
Please send me information about:
A bequest is an important way to
ensure that your resources work for
the causes you support. The following sample is language that may be
used in a will:
 bequests
“I give, devise, and bequeath to the
Physicians Committee for Responsible
Medicine, Inc., federal tax identification number 52-1394893, 5100 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Suite 400, Washington,
DC 20016, the sum of $_______ (or
describe the real or personal property or percentage of the estate) as a
charitable contribution to be used for
its general purposes.”
Explore more gift options to help
you achieve your goals at
pcrm.planyourlegacy.org.
18
Summer 2007
2007
 gift annuities
 other planned gifts
Name Address City State/Province
zip/Postal Code
Country
E-mail Phone
Please mail to:
The PCRM Foundation, Attn: Membership Dept.
5100 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Suite 400
Washington, DC 20016.
Or visit our planned-giving Web site at http://pcrm.planyourlegacy.org.
GM07SM
Mike Wilkinson
PCRM supporters Cammie and Meg Wolff with Neal Barnard, M.D., president of PCRM
ever had before—backed up our gala plan
with action and funding that allowed us
to pull off the event in such a grand way.
And when it came time for staffing, our
volunteers generously came forward to
ensure that the evening ran smoothly and
to account for every detail.
Celebrating together is important.
However, the “best” in all of us goes way
beyond tuxedos and gorgeous gowns. During the evening, we heard over and over
how important it was that PCRM keep
working toward a day when medicine will
not involve needless suffering. We heard
how you value your health and how you
value compassion. Your “best” carries way
beyond any special occasion. So while we
have the momentum of the gala driving us
forward, let me encourage you to continue
giving PCRM your best, because it’s the
incredible support of our membership that
will ultimately result in a compassionate
future. Keep up the great work!
Member Support
Kim Howe
A Strong Voice
for PCRM
A
s a dedicated supporter of PCRM and
its mission, Kim Howe is a PCRM
Lifetime Partner and the 2006 sponsor
of PCRM’s campaign to promote alternatives to dissection in schools. She has also
begun to lend her own voice to PCRM’s
message of compassion and ethics in
research and a healthy vegetarian diet to
promote health and prevent disease.
Kim recently joined Toastmasters to
be able to hone her own speaking skills
and become a stronger voice for what she
believes in. To drive home her message,
she includes PCRM materials in her
presentations and makes them available
to her audiences.
Kim recently traveled to Washington,
D.C., for PCRM’s Art of Compassion Gala
where she again pledged to sponsor one of
PCRM’s programs. This year, she is sponsoring the campaign to end live animal labs
in medical research and education.
Kim lives in Calabasas, Calif., with
her dog, Daisy, whom she and her late
husband, Robert, found abandoned on
the streets of Phoenix. Daisy is one of a
long line of rescued dogs that have shared
the Howe home.
“I have been interested in animal issues
since I was a child,” Kim said. “My mother
taught me how important it was to be kind
to them. Most people think of animals as
things to be used and thrown away. They
do not stop to think that they have feelings
and that we do not have the right to inflict
pain on them and abuse them.”
Asked why she chooses to support
PCRM, Kim emphasized that it is because PCRM presents a scientific basis for
what it promotes. “I like the credibility
of having compassionate physicians and
scientists reaching as many people as
possible to educate them,” she said. Kim
believes that if people become more aware
of how animals are treated, many will
want to work toward change. “That is
what I try to do as I go about my everyday life—to inform people and motivate
them to speak out for animals and try to
bring about changes.”
Kim and Robert began supporting
PCRM in 1989. “We were probably
among the first people ever to join,” Kim
said. “I remember when my husband
and I were back in Washington, D.C.,
many years ago—I think it was not terribly long after Neal started PCRM—we
wanted to meet him and see what he was
like and what the organization that we
were supporting was doing, so we made
an appointment and went to see him and
his offices, which were small, and he only
had a small staff. But he was very gracious,
he showed us around, and he gave us a
book,” she recalled with a smile.
“When we left, my husband asked what
I thought, and I told him that I thought
Neal was very personable and would be a
good voice for the animals. My husband
agreed and said, ‘I think he will do very
well.’ My husband had very good judgment!” Kim said.
PCRM Wants Your Vehicle!
D
onating your car, truck, or RV to
PCRM is not only tax-deductible
but it is also a great way to support
all of our programs. Contact V-DAC
(Vehicle Donation Any Charity) at
1-866-332-1778 and let them know
you wish to contribute to PCRM and
they will make arrangements to pick
up your vehicle. If you have questions
or need more information, please
contact Brian Halprin at bhalprin@
pcrmfoundation.org.
Member Update from Dr. Neal Barnard
O
n May 10, we held our first “President’s Update” conference call for
Stewards, President’s Circle members, and Lifetime Partners. Dr. Barnard
gave an update to members on PCRM’s activities, including the breaking
news story about our victory with the dairy industry lawsuit. Members who
participated in the call had the opportunity to ask questions and interact with
fellow PCRM supporters. The feedback was so positive that we will continue to
schedule regular conference call updates throughout the year. To learn more
about the benefits of being a Steward, President’s Circle member, or a Lifetime
Partner, please contact Craig Ziskin, associate director of annual giving, at 202686-2210, ext. 374.
19
PCRM Marketplace
PCRM Marketplace
Research Issues
What Will We Do If We Don’t
Experiment on Animals?
Medical Research for the 21st Century
C. Ray Greek, M.D., and Jean Swingle Greek, D.V.M.
The Greeks answer the title’s question with a tour of truly
modern medical research. With advances in the study
of human genetics and the ability to measure human
responses to drugs at the molecular level, researchers will
find it increasingly difficult to justify the crude data accumulated from animal experimentation. 262 pgs, $24.99
Pleasurable Kingdom
Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good
Jonathan Balcombe, Ph.D.
Life as experienced by animals is
not a grim struggle for survival,
according to animal behavior
researcher Balcombe. He presents persuasive evidence that
animals—like humans—find
enjoyment in touch, food, aesthetics, companionship,
anticipation, and more. Full of insight and humor, the
book poses vital ethical questions. 256 pgs, $24.95
Health and Nutrition
NEW LANDMARK BOOK FROM PCRM
Nutrition Guide for Clinicians
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
This comprehensive medical
reference manual covers nearly
100 diseases and conditions,
including risk factors, diagnoses,
and typical treatments. Most
importantly, it provides the
latest evidence-based information on nutrition’s role in prevention and treatment.
Includes an in-depth examination of general nutrition, macronutrients, micronutrients, and nutritional
requirements for all stages of life. 884 pgs, $19.95
Special Discount $17.95
Your Vegetarian Pregnancy
A Month-by-Month Guide to Health and Nutrition
Holly Roberts, D.O., F.A.C.O.G.
Fulfilling every nutritional guideline recommended by the
American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, this book
is the first authoritative guide to maintaining a healthy
plant-based diet before, during, and after the birth of your
child. 378 pgs, $15.00
20
Summer2007
2007
Dr. McDougall’s Digestive Tune-Up
John A. McDougall, M.D.
Dr. McDougall takes a candid,
humorous look at how the digestive tract functions. Learn
how a low-fat, cholesterol-free,
plant-based diet can prevent and
cure constipation, hemorrhoids,
IBS, and other chronic intestinal
disorders. 211 pgs, $19.95
New!
Food Allergy Survival Guide
Vesanto Melina, M.S., R.D., Jo Stepaniak, M.S.Ed.,
Dina Aronson, M.S., R.D.
Three prominent authorities in nutrition and vegetarian
cooking explain how to pinpoint foods that trigger allergies and aggravate conditions such as arthritis, asthma,
ADHD, and depression. Learn to recognize“hidden” culprits
in prepared foods. Discover delicious, healthful substitutes.
Includes over 100 recipes. 383 pgs, $19.95
The Best in the World
Fast, Healthful Recipes from Exclusive
and Out-of-the-Way Restaurants
Neal D. Barnard, M.D., Editor
This popular collection of wonderfully
healthy recipes comes from the
world’s best and most unusual restaurants. Enjoy these vegan delicacies at
home. Hardcover, 71 pgs, $11.95
Super Size Me DVD
Directed by Morgan Spurlock
In this award-winning documentary, filmmaker Spurlock
lives on a McDonald’s-only diet
for one month, with devastating
results. Mixing humor with commentary by medical
experts, Super Size Me exposes the consequences of
the national romance with fast food. 96 minutes,
plus bonus footage and interviews. Parental advisory:
language, graphic medical scenes. $26.99
Don’t Eat This Book
Fast Food and the Supersizing of America
Morgan Spurlock
Funny, optimistic, and fact-packed, this book presents
the backstory of Super Size Me. It also details how the
fast-food industry endangers health in the United
States, often with the cooperation of government.
320 pgs, $21.95
The Great American Detox Diet
Alex Jamieson
NOW IN PAPERBACK!
Morgan Spurlock’s vegan chef fiancée presents the
detox program that undid the damage caused by his
monthlong, nothing-but-McDonald’s diet. Jamieson’s
eight-week program includes nearly 90 recipes
that eliminate animal products, sugar, caffeine, and
potential allergens. 288 pgs, $14.95
An educationally enhanced Super Size Me DVD package for
grades 6–12 is available from www. SuperSizeMeStore.com.
Healthy Eating for Life book series from PCRM
PCRM’s series of medically sound, reader-friendly books explain diet’s role in
wellness and disease prevention. Each book includes at least 80 healthy, delicious
vegetarian recipes. Forewords by PCRM president Neal D. Barnard, M.D.
Healthy Eating for Life for Children
PCRM with Amy Lanou, Ph.D.
When children learn proper nutrition
early in life, they are more likely to avoid
heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.
Here’s how to get them started. Includes
kid-tested recipes. 258 pgs, $14.95
Healthy Eating for Life for Women
PCRM with Kristine Kieswer
Learn how the right foods can ease
menstrual and menopausal symptoms,
strengthen bones, encourage weight
loss, protect the heart, and help prevent
certain cancers. 260 pgs, $14.95
Healthy Eating for Life to
Prevent and Treat Cancer
PCRM with Vesanto Melina, M.S., R.D.
This book provides a complete nutrition
program to prevent and fight cancer.
Packed with tips and guidelines for lifelong good health. 244 pgs, $14.95
Healthy Eating for Life to
Prevent and Treat Diabetes
PCRM with Patricia Bertron, R.D.
Studies show that diabetes can be highly
responsive to diet and lifestyle changes.
PCRM explains these changes and how to
put them into practice. 244 pgs, $14.95
PCRM Marketplace
From Neal D. Barnard, M.D., PCRM president
Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program
New!
for Reversing Diabetes
I f you have diabetes or are
concerned about developing it,
this program could change the
course of your life. Dr. Barnard’s
groundbreaking clinical studies,
the latest funded by the National
Institutes of Health, show that
diabetes responds dramatically to a low-fat, vegetarian
diet. Rather than just compensating for malfunctioning
insulin like other treatment plans, Dr.Barnard’s program
helps repair how the body uses insulin. Includes 50
delicious recipes. 288 pgs, $25.95
Breaking the Food Seduction
We all have foods we can’t resist, foods that sabotage
our health. But banishing those cravings for chocolate,
cookies, cheese, or burgers isn’t a question of willpower,
it’s a matter of biochemistry. Drawing on his own
research and that of other leading institutions, Dr.
Barnard reveals how diet and lifestyle changes can
break the craving cycle. 324 pgs, $14.95
Breaking the Food Seduction Audio Summary
by the author, 68 mins, compact disc, $10.00
Turn Off the Fat Genes
Genes, including those that shape our bodies, actually
Becoming Whole: The Story of My
New!
Complete Recovery from Breast Cancer
Meg Wolff, Foreword by T. Colin Campbell
Eight years after losing a leg to bone cancer, Meg Wolff
was dying of breast cancer. Conventional treatments
were not expected to save her life, but Meg fought
back with a macrobiotic diet and a
determination to control how she
would live or die. Discover Meg’s
story of physical and emotional
healing and how it could apply to
your life. 288 pgs, $21.00
Appetite for Profit
Michele Simon
Law professor and health food policy expert Michele Simon exposes manipulation of consumers and government
by fast-food, beverage, and processed-food corporations.
The result is a national epidemic of obesity , heart disease,
and diabetes. Fascinating and empowering reading. 416
pgs, $15.95
Don’t Drink Your Milk
Frank Oski, M.D.
Milk is the perfect food—for a calf. For humans, however,
adapt to outside influences. Dr. Barnard explains the
process and provides a three-week gene-control
program complete with menus and recipes by Jennifer Raymond. Here are powerful tools for achieving
long-term weight loss and better health. Paperback,
350 pgs, $14.00
A Physician’s Slimming Guide for
Permanent Weight Control
You can succeed in becoming and staying slimmer! This
book is not a diet—it’s a comprehensive program that
takes the reader beyond artificial“formula approaches.”
96 pgs, $7.95
Foods That Fight Pain
Did you know that ginger can prevent migraines and
that coffee sometimes cures them? Drawing on new
research, Dr. Barnard shows readers how to soothe
everyday ailments and cure chronic pain with common
foods. 348 pgs, $14.00
Foods That Fight Pain VHS video, 55 mins, $14.95
Food for Life
The breakthrough book on aging, heart disease, cancer,
weight control, and general health. Preface by Dean
Ornish, M.D. Loads of tips on changing your diet, 21 days
of menus, plus delicious recipes by Jennifer Raymond.
334 pgs, $14.00
milk poses several health risks, as outlined in this very
readable book by the former director of the Johns Hopkins
University Department of Pediatrics. 92 pgs, $9.95
The Whole Foods Diabetic Cookbook
Patricia Stevenson, Michael Cook, Patricia Bertron, R.D.
It’s not just about sugar anymore! A low-fat, vegetarian diet
high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans will keep
blood sugar at a more constant level and help control excess
weight.Delicious recipes make it easy.Includes background
info on diabetes and nutrition. 159 pgs, $12.95
More Great Good Dairy-free Desserts—Naturally
Fran Costigan
Chef-instructor Fran Costigan teaches the fine art of
creating vegan pastries, pies, cakes, puddings, and frozen
desserts. Everyone from novice bakers to gourmet cooks
will find valuable tips on equipment, techniques, and
all-natural ingredients. 221 pgs, $19.95
Vegan Microwave Cookbook
Nancy Berkoff, R.D.
Award-winning chef and columnist Nancy Berkoff offers
over 165 easy recipes, many of which take less than 10
minutes to prepare. Microwave magic can make dream
meals mesh with a busy schedule. 287 pgs, $16.95
From The Cancer Project
The Nutrition Rainbow Poster
The more naturally colorful your meal is, the more
likely it is to have an abundance of cancer-fighting
nutrients. Pigments that
give fruits and vegetables
their bright colors represent
a variety of protective
compounds. The Nutrition
Rainbow poster shows the
cancer-fighting and immuneboosting power of differenthued foods. 17”x22”, $6.00
Prescription for Life Poster
This whimsical work of art introduces your patients
to the importance of fruits,
vegetables, whole grains, and
beans in cancer prevention
and survival. It also tells how
to obtain free information
about nutrition, recipes,
and classes from The Cancer
Project. 17”x22”, $6.00
The Survivor’s Handbook:
Eating Right for Cancer Survival
Find out how foods fight
cancer and the advantages
of a high-fiber, low-fat, dairyand meat-free diet. Includes
updates from the latest
research, special prostate
and breast cancer sections,
tips for making the dietary
transition, and recipes. Spiral bound, 145 pgs, $14.95
Eating Right for Cancer Survival video
This groundbreaking new video is designed to work
hand-in-hand with the companion Survivor’s Handbook. Together they’ll provide you with empowering
information on how simple, everyday choices can
cause major changes in your health and well being. Contains eight presentations by Neal Barnard,
M.D., Jennifer Reilly, R.D., and Amy Lanou, Ph.D.
103 mins.
DVD $14.95
VHS $14.95
Special Video
/Handbook
Combo Offer
DVD / Handbook $24.95
VHS / Handbook $24.95
21
PCRM Marketplace
From PCRM
Fat-Free and Easy
Great Meals in
Minutes!
Jennifer Raymond
As guest chef for Dr.
Dean Ornish’s “Open
Your Heart” program,
Jennifer Raymond
has the secret to making quick, fat-free,
scrumptious, vegan
recipes that will delight everyone. 152 pgs, $12.95
Choose Health! Four Food Groups Poster
Striking color photos illustrate PCRM’s New Four Food
Groups for complete nutrition without cholesterol
and excess
fat. Includes
serving recom
mendations.
22"x17", $6.00
Cartoon Four Food Groups Poster
PCRM’s colorful and informative guide to nutritional
recommendations, illustrated for younger eaters.
Vegetarian Starter Kit
It’s all here. Learn about the power
of a plant-food diet for fighting
disease and maintaining a healthy
weight. Get the facts on vegan
diets for pregnant women, babies,
and children. Try delicious sample
recipes. Debunk common myths. And make friends with
the New Four Food Groups! 16 pgs, $2.00
Go Veg—B4 It’s 2L8
Quality 100% cotton.
Yellow on forest green.
$11.95
22"x17", $6.00
Guía de Iniciación para una Dieta Vegetariana
New Four Food Groups
The Spanish-language version of PCRM’s popular
Place Mats
Vegetarian Starter Kit. $2.00
Four colorful guides to the New
Four Food Groups. The flip side
provides cooking and food stor- Show your support for
humane research with
Humane Charity Seal
of Approval Items
Go Vegan
Multilingual
Apron
Veg-friendly
phrases in
ten languages.
21"x 28" gourmet
apron with pocket.
Cream on forest
green. $13.95
Refrigerator Magnet
Full color, 2"x3½". $1.00
Bumper Sticker Full color. $1.00
please print
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2007
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please add applicable sales tax.
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Mail to:
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(Do not use the membership envelope in this issue.)
1-800-695-2241
Or order online at: www.pcrm.org
Or call toll-free:
©photodisc
Just the Facts
PCRM Illustrations/doug Hall
Crematoriums Feel the
Heat From Obesity
Expanding waistlines in the
United Kingdom are forcing many crematoriums to
enlarge their furnaces to
accommodate larger coffins. Most standard furnaces,
which fit coffins 16 to 20
inches, are too narrow to fit
the wider coffins, which now
go up to 40 inches to accommodate bigger bodies.
Vegan Burgers Sell
Like Hot Cakes
When meatless burgers
made their debut on the
lunch menu at Newport
Harbor High School in
California’s Newport-Mesa
Unified School District, they
sold out within minutes and
left students asking for more.
Newport Harbor is the first
school in this district to offer
vegan options at lunchtime.
Egypt’s Disappearing Frog
The dissection industry in
Egypt is taking a massive toll
on the Egyptian common
frog, a population of amphibians whose numbers are
rapidly dwindling. A random
survey conducted among
students from science fields
showed that the average
Egyptian student dissects 14
to 17 frogs each year. Estimates show that 1.5 million
frogs are collected annually for dissection purposes.
About 10 percent of these
frogs suffocate to death in
storage containers. All of
Egypt’s science-related fields
require animal dissection.
Poo Dun It?
Federal and California state officials
are blaming last year’s nationwide E.
coli outbreak in spinach on cattle manure from the Paicines Ranch in San
Benito County. Manure from the ranch,
which is near a spinach field leased
by Mission Organics, was contaminated with E. coli, the main species of
bacteria living in the intestinal tracts
of animals. Animal intestines are the
natural source of E. coli infections.
Just the Facts
If You’re Happy and You
Know It, Wag Your Tail…
to the Right
Researchers in Italy report that
dogs wag their tails to the right
side when they feel fundamentally happy or positive about
someone or something. When dogs experience negative or
fearful feelings, they wag their tails to the left. Some researchers had argued that only humans show brain asymmetry.
Slam Dunk Vegan Diet
Atlanta Hawks basketball star
Salim Stoudamire traded in
his junk-food, meat-based
diet for a vegan one last June.
Feasting on grilled tofu, quinoa, and plenty of fruits and
vegetables, Stoudamire’s new
diet gives him the endurance to play
hard, and he
often leads
his team in
scoring.
Swiss Company Goes
Fish-Free
A Swiss company derives
the omega-3 fatty acids EPA
and DHA from algae instead
of fish oil. The company is
working with the Food and
Drug Administration to gain
approval as a new dietary
ingredient in the United
States. Omega-3 fatty acids
are available from many plant
sources, and the human body
can convert EPA to DHA on
its own.
No TV Time for Fruits and Vegetables
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation reports that 40 percent
of commercials aimed at children promote unhealthy foods,
including candy, snacks, and
fast food. Children ages 8
to 12 see the most of these
commercials—about 21 per
day. The number of television
advertisements for healthy
fruits and vegetables? Zero.
Vegetarian Diets: Taste Great, Less Expensive
Vegetarians in the Netherlands can now enroll in “VegePolis,”
the world’s first discounted health insurance plan for people
on a meatless diet. Created by insurers Agis Zorgverzekeringen and Stichting Preventie, the plan operates on the principle that vegetarians are healthier than meat-eaters. The eating
habits of these policyholders will be tracked and compared
with their carnivorous counterparts.
Summer
2007 GOOD
GOOD MEDICINE
MEDICINE
Winter 2006
23
PCRM
Physicians Committee for
Responsible Medicine
5100 Wisconsin Ave., NW, Suite 400
Washington, DC 20016
Non-Profit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Random Lake, WI
Permit #1
Address Service Requested
Physician Profile
Gordon Saxe
M.D., Ph.D.
Innovative
Research
on Diet and
Prostate
Cancer
W
hen Gordon Saxe was just out of college, his
father was diagnosed with advanced cancer. In
searching for a way to help, Dr. Saxe met and interviewed cancer survivors who had experienced remissions of their cancers after adopting plant-based diets,
stress reduction, and other healthy lifestyle changes.
Fascinated by what he had witnessed, he embarked on
a lifelong journey of discovery that took him to both
graduate school and medical school.
Along the path, he shared much of what he had
learned with his father. “Dad remained incredibly op-
timistic, adopted some of my suggested changes, and
lived many years longer than his doctors had predicted,”
Dr. Saxe said. During a period when Dr. Saxe’s father
was particularly strict about his diet, he even experienced a remission of the cancer (confirmed by biopsy).
“His experience is one of the reasons I’m so passionate
about this topic and optimistic about its potential for
patients,” Dr. Saxe added.
A faculty member at the University of California,
San Diego, School of Medicine, Dr. Saxe has been
conducting groundbreaking research on the power of
a plant-based diet—in combination with body-mind
techniques such as meditation, yoga, and t’ai chi—in
controlling the spread of prostate cancer. He is also
examining the role that a plant-based diet may play in
altering how genes work to trigger cancer growth.
“It’s exciting to see how much control people can gain
over their health by making simple changes in their diets
and lifestyles. It’s also extremely gratifying to know that
this work is helping to answer the perplexing questions
about the nature of malignancy,” Dr. Saxe said.
Dr. Saxe spoke about the effects of plant-based
diets on disease progression in prostate cancer at
The Cancer Project’s 2006 Cancer and Nutrition
Symposium and PCRM’s 2007 Nutrition in Clinical
Practice continuing medical education seminar, and
he has been answering reader’s questions about diet
and cancer in his “Ask the Doctor” column in The
Cancer Project News for the past year.
YOU’LL BE SHOCKED! With postage, printing, and handling expenses, each returned
copy of Good Medicine costs PCRM almost $2. Over the year, this adds up to thousands of lost
dollars. If your address has changed, please let us know promptly.
24
[email protected] or 202-686-2210, ext. 304
GOOD MEDICINE Summer 2007
printed on recycled paper

Duke University Eliminates Animal Labs in Medical Teaching PCRM

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