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. 2021 Apr 8;16(3):374-381.
doi: 10.1177/15598276211006349. eCollection 2022 May-Jun.

Jumpstarting Health With a 15-Day Whole-Food Plant-Based Program

Susan M Friedman  1 , Carol Hee Barnett  2 , Robert Franki  2 , Bruce Pollock  2 , Beth Garver  2 , Ted D Barnett  2
Affiliations

Jumpstarting Health With a 15-Day Whole-Food Plant-Based Program

Susan M Friedman et al. Am J Lifestyle Med. .

Abstract

The 15-day Jumpstart was developed as an evidence-based, affordable, standardized, replicable, and scalable program, designed to demonstrate quickly to patients that changing what they eat can improve their health. The program was designed using the principles of the self-determination theory of motivation and personality. Patients were instructed to eat an Esselstyn-compliant, whole-food plant-based diet consisting of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes. Of the 389 participants in the program from September 2018 to February 2020, average weight loss was 5.8 pounds (7.3 for those whose body mass index was >30), average systolic blood pressure drop was 6.8 points (16.8 points for those with systolic blood pressure >140), average drop in cholesterol was 26 points (44 points for those with a cholesterol >200), average drop in low-density lipoprotein was 19 points (33 points for those with a low-density lipoprotein >100), and average drop in fasting blood sugar was 5.1 points (28.4 points for those starting in the diabetic range); P value was <.005 for fasting blood sugar and <.001 for all other comparisons. A 15-day program that helps patients adopt an Esselstyn-style whole-food plant-based diet, through education, individualized medical feedback, social support, and facilitated small group work, rapidly improves health.

Keywords: hyperlipidemia; hypertension; lifestyle medicine; nutrition.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Both Susan M. Friedman and Ted D. Barnett practice lifestyle medicine. Susan M. Friedman, Ted D. Barnett, and Carol Hee Barnett are board members of Rochester Lifestyle Medicine Institute (RLMI), a nonprofit organization with a mission to “to establish Lifestyle Medicine, especially the adoption of Whole-Food Plant-Based nutrition, as the foundation for health and the healthcare system.” Robert Franki and Beth Garver are employees of RLMI.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Jumpstart program organization.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Biometric outcomes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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