[MUSIC PLAYING]
JUSTYNA SANDERS:
I'd like to thank
Google very much for having me.
And thank you to Bobby for
inviting me here today.
So yes, my name is
Dr. Justyna Sanders.
And today I'm going
to talk to you
about a life-saving,
life-changing topic.
It's a topic that
literally fuels my life.
And it's how to use
lifestyle as medicine but,
most importantly, how to use
the whole-food, plant-based
lifestyle and how to live it.
So I'd like to begin
by talking briefly
about the current state
of our health care system.
Did you know that each and every
single day, around 1,671 people
die of heart disease?
That's 1 out of every 4 deaths.
That's 610,000 people dying
from one single disease each
and every single year.
Our health care system is
in dire need of change.
When it comes to bankruptcies,
personal bankruptcies
in this country are due to
health care-related costs.
It's around 62%.
But what's really sad is that
the majority of these people,
they have health insurance.
There's something wrong
with this picture.
We are one of the wealthiest
countries in the world.
And yet we have one of
the poorest health care
systems, not when it comes to
acute care or emergency care.
No, we're thriving in that.
But when it comes to
chronic disease management,
we are suffering.
And something needs to
change before it's too late.
When we look at the top 10
leading causes of death,
we have heart disease, which
is the leading cause of death
in America, cancer,
chronic lower respiratory
disease, stroke, Alzheimer's,
diabetes, kidney disease.
All of these diseases,
these 7 out of 10 diseases,
they're all chronic diseases.
But not only that, they are
lifestyle-related diseases.
Most importantly, however, each
and every single one of these
are completely preventable.
Now, more than
ever before, if you
learn how to use
lifestyle as medicine,
you can prevent the development
of these types of diseases.
So it's important to put
medicine into your own hands
and know how to do that.
So you're probably wondering,
what is a chronic disease?
A chronic disease is a disease
that's three months or more
in length, so it's persistent.
It's the leading cause
of death and disability
in North America,
so Canada included.
But what I mentioned before--
the key is that they're
lifestyle-related diseases.
So anything from a
sedentary lifestyle,
to what you eat every single
day, to who you surround
yourself with, to the
negative thoughts that
flood your mind
on a daily basis,
whether or not you have
physical activity--
these are the
things that are key.
Alcohol consumption
and smoking--
all of these can potentially
develop into something
like a chronic disease.
There are cumulative
effects that
happen on a whole-body system.
So what I want you
to take home today--
and if there's anything that I
say as a one take-home point--
is that, every single
chronic disease
stems from systemic
inflammation.
That means full body.
So whatever you do that causes
any form of inflammation
in your body, that
can literally result
in any type of chronic
disease in the future.
So what are the
chronic diseases?
Here is a list.
This is by no means a
comprehensive list of diseases.
But heart disease, cancer,
and all the other diseases
I mentioned, inflammatory bowel
disease, obesity, arthritis,
anything from diabetes and
MS, autoimmune disease,
such as lupus--
all of these diseases and so, so
many more are chronic diseases.
And the evidence shows that 70%
to 80% of all chronic diseases
can be prevented if you
learn how to use lifestyle
as medicine, of which
whole-food, plant-based
nutrition is of
utmost importance.
I always say
there's no drug more
powerful in the entire
world that has the power
to prevent, treat, and
reverse the vast majority
of chronic diseases than
using lifestyle as medicine.
So I know what you're
probably thinking.
And many people
actually think this.
Well, I heard somewhere,
whether on Google
or from some friend of yours,
that it's not necessarily
the lifestyle.
It's my genes that matter.
Maybe you have some disease
that runs in your family,
and you feel like
you're destined
to get this type of disease.
You're going to get it anyway.
So you might as well
enjoy life, right?
So do your genes really matter?
Well, the evidence say not
as much as we once thought.
In fact, 5% or less, 5% or
less, of all chronic diseases
can be attributed
solely to your genes.
That's it.
So 95% are potentially
due to your lifestyle.
Now, upon doing my
research, I found
that there are three areas of
study that prove the validity
and can verify this.
So let's first look
at migration studies.
Migration studies are
those in which scientists
follow a group of people
that migrate from one country
to the next.
Then they record their
lifestyle and dietary habits
in that country.
And then they measure
their age-adjusted rate
of chronic disease.
So in one particular study
by Robertson and Rhodes,
they took a group of-- actually,
three groups-- of Japanese men.
All were of the same
genetic pool, similar age,
of course, same sex and
same race, living in Japan.
One group of men migrated from
Japan and moved to Hawaii.
Well, then, another group
of men migrated from Japan,
and they moved to California.
And then scientists looked at
their dietary and lifestyle
patterns.
They recorded them.
And then they
measured their rate
of cardiac age-adjusted
heart disease.
And they found that
the age-adjusted risk
of heart disease
was the greatest
in those living in California.
And the reason why--
it was the standard American
diet that they adopted.
Where the lowest rates of heart
disease were those in the men
that remained in Japan.
And the reason why is because
they were eating less-processed
and more plant-based foods.
So in this case, it was more
the lifestyle, not so much
the genes, that contributed
to the development of heart
disease.
Next was the field
of epigenetics.
In the field of epigenetics,
scientists actually
test what the environment--
in fact, the environmental
effects on our genes are.
And so depending on the
environmental stimuli,
it can turn genes on or turn
genes off and, therefore,
express them or suppress
or quiet them down and not
express them.
So let's say someone has
the genes for breast cancer,
they're at risk.
They have BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes.
And let's say now this person
lives an extremely sedentary
lifestyle.
The diet is filled with
animal products that are
high in estrogens and hormones.
They drink alcohol
every single night,
which also raises their hormone
levels, their estrogen levels.
They have poor relationships.
They have cortisol surges
almost every single day
because of their stressful job.
And they're extremely unhappy.
The risk of that
person developing
that disease of breast
cancer is so much higher
because now the environmental
stimuli can actually
turn the genes on and
express those genes.
So again, it's not so
much the genes, but rather
the lifestyle that can
turn the genes off or on
that can make a difference.
And the third field
of study is the field
of lifestyle medicine itself.
So renowned physician and
researcher Dr. Dean Ornish
had some groundbreaking
research--
and I mean phenomenal.
As a physician, this type of
research is just unbelievable.
It's what you want to
hear time and time again.
He found that, through
lifestyle modification,
you're able to reverse
coronary artery disease.
And not only that,
he found that he
was able to reverse
prostate cancer--
incredible.
And these four little things
are part of his lifestyle
modification program.
Moderate exercise daily,
one hour of meditation
or some kind of
yoga or mindfulness
practice every single day,
having love and intimacy, which
he calls social support.
And the fourth concept
or aspect of this program
is whole-food,
plant-based nutrition.
And that's it.
It has been so wildly successful
that Medicare actually
has funded his program.
This, as a physician,
makes me excited
because this is true medicine.
So I know you're
probably wondering.
Well, I go to my doctor
all the time, right?
Your annual exam,
everybody, I'm sure, goes.
And yet, I have not heard my
doctor talk about this at all.
Did you go to some
special medical school?
No.
The answer is I did
not, and I did not
learn this in medical school.
So to give you a better
understanding of how I got here
and how I came to
know this information,
I'd like to give you a little
bit of a glimpse into my past.
So to begin, I was
actually born in Poland
in one home with four
generations under one roof--
a lot of people.
We never ran out of two things.
I always say this.
Love-- we had a lot of that--
and kielbasa.
And for people that might
not know what that is,
it's polish sausage.
I swear, I ate
that for breakfast.
And according to my mom, I was
six months old the first time
I was licking one.
I have no idea.
Problems-- maybe not.
And so that's what my
relationship with food
started off with, with
cold cuts, really.
And I was eating a lot of
pierogis and deep-fried donuts,
which we called [POLISH] and
all of these dairy and animal
product-based foods.
And so when I was
around three, my family
wanted to leave
and flee communism.
This was the time of
communism in Poland.
And it was also a few
months after the disaster
of Chernobyl.
So my family packed
myself and my brother up,
and they took two suitcases,
and we fled to Italy.
We were refugees
for about a year,
and then we got
accepted into Canada.
And so we immigrated there.
And let's just say my
upbringing in Canada--
well, my diet just evolved, OK?
Now, not only was I eating the
traditional, staple Polish food
that I had grown up with,
I was now also indulging
in the delicacies of the
Canadian diet, which consisted
of donuts from Tim Hortons,
and sugary, refined cereals
and, of course, fast food.
So my diet was not that great.
And in fact, when I
was seven years old,
I started developing
some symptoms.
I had headaches.
I started developing bloating.
And I would tell my mom and dad.
And they would brush it off
as though it was something
not serious, some kind of
indigestion and nothing
to be worried about because
they had symptoms like that too.
So what's to worry, right?
Yes.
So now, moving
forward, I've always
dreamed of becoming a doctor.
So I knew that, when choosing
a degree, my undergrad,
it would have to be premed.
So I did.
I went to a four-year and
did a four-year degree
at McMaster University
in Hamilton, Ontario,
in kinesiology.
And there, I finally
learned about nutrition,
not the kind of
nutrition I know today.
So I went low fats.
I started eating grilled chicken
and grilled salmon every day,
and all of this stuff.
I was working out
five days a week,
implementing every single
thing I learned to a T
because that's what you do
when you're a student, right?
And so I did.
And I was loving it.
And I loved the way my
body started looking.
I was toned, and
I looked amazing.
But let me tell you,
the symptoms got worse.
I was suffering so much.
You would never
know on the outside,
and I would hide it
with clothes sometimes,
but I was bloated to
the point where I looked
nine months pregnant sometimes.
I was developing
fibromyalgia pain.
And for those who don't
know what that is,
it almost feels like
you're a big bruise.
And every part of your body
feels tender to the touch.
I had cystic acne.
I had so many problems
with weight gain.
And this led to a binge eating
disorder, on, and on, and on.
And so there was
one point at which
I had not gone to the
bathroom for two whole weeks.
And so I thought, that's it.
I should probably
go see a doctor
and see if this is normal.
Because the things I'm
learning in kinesiology--
that is not normal.
So I did.
I sought medical attention.
And finally, I thought I
was going to get the answer,
and I was going to be cured.
I was going to get something.
My doctor told me,
you need to stop
eating those plants with such
fibrous tissue and fibrous
skins.
I'm like, what are
you talking about?
Tomatoes and apples and celery--
this was the recommendation.
These were the types
of food she told
me to avoid because she said and
deemed that it was irritating
my colon.
And it was irritating me to
the point that I was backed up.
And so I believed her.
And not knowing anything better,
I just thought, that's it.
I am destined for a life
eating Metamucil crackers
and eating a lot of
laxatives and prunes.
That's all I was going
to eat, and that was it.
So after I graduated, I
then went and did my degree
in medicine.
And this was truly the most
wonderful, amazing experience
of my life.
I remember each and
every patient encounter.
It was remarkable.
I always say that some of
the most challenging times
in your life are some of
the most beautiful and,
looking back, most rewarding
and those moments that you would
actually never want to change
because they've made you
who you are today.
And I feel like medicine
has done that for me.
It really truly made me
into a different person
and understand empathy and
compassion even more so
for people.
So I love medicine, as always.
And in this time after
I actually graduated,
I had always wanted
to live in California.
And so I moved to
the United States.
And I took a whole year off.
I got married.
And so I was waiting
on a green card.
And that was the
whole plan, so then I
didn't have to do a visa after.
So I ended up staying in the
United States for that year
and feeling terrible--
feeling terrible because
I was on the high,
the peak of my life.
I was independent.
I had my whole
world ahead of me.
I was a doctor.
I graduated from medical school.
And now I was going
to make a difference
in the health of humanity and
serve people in the best way
that I thought I could.
I was going to make
that difference
for people in their lives.
And here I was at home in
isolation, one obstacle
after the next, and
I had a car accident.
Everything just started
spiraling out of control
to the point where I fell.
And when I mean I fell, I fell
to that point of depression,
and it was scary.
But in that year,
something crazy happened--
crazy good.
I went to a lecture provided
by the University of Arizona.
So I was living in
Arizona at this time.
And this was a lecture by
Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn.
Now, this was not
a typical lecture.
I had never gone to
something like this.
And I very skeptical
because this
was a lecture called "Preventing
and reversing heart disease
using diet, specifically,
plant-based nutrition."
I was like, uh-uh.
I learned about
nutrition-- you know,
low-fat diet, grilled
this and that-- and no.
This is not true.
But you know what?
It was free food, nonetheless.
And when you're in debt,
you go and get free food.
So that's what I
did, and I went.
And literally, from that
moment on, I saw this.
And I looked at it.
I took a moment, and
I never looked back.
This was a life-changing
moment for me.
So what you see here
is an arteriogram.
And in this arteriogram on the
left, you see this narrowing.
And this is actually
someone's heart.
So this is a narrowing of
the left anterior descending
artery, the distal part.
And so it's almost frayed.
And it looks like there
are some kind of plaques.
It looks like the blood probably
can't go through there very
well, can it?
And that's what you see there.
And on the right, you see
the exact same patient.
And here, you see this beautiful
left anterior descending
artery.
It's completely patent.
It's opened up.
There's blood flow
going through it.
From a diseased heart to a
healthy, non-diseased heart,
the dates--
I mean, I looked at this,
and I thought, oh my god,
are you kidding me?
I went through so many years
of study, a four-year health
degree in kinesiology, a
four-year medical degree.
I became a doctor, and I
had never seen or heard
anyone talk about
this ever before.
This was literally
my aha moment.
I had what you would
call a visceral reaction.
And when you're
sitting there having
chills, like I'm kind
of feeling right now,
run up and down my body--
because this was surreal to me.
I felt elated because, on one
hand, I thought, oh my God.
I have just cured humanity
of every chronic disease.
I'm going to share
it with the world.
And on the other hand, I
thought, I am infuriated.
How could I have been robbed
of this type of information?
How could I have not known this?
And if I would have, do
you know how many lives I
could have saved
with this information
through each and every single
one of my patient encounters?
Yes, I was upset.
But I took that, and
that fire that burned
within me, I literally dove--
because I was still skeptical.
I needed to find out if
this was really valid.
I dove into research articles
and journals, medical journals.
And then I contacted experts
and started reading texts
about all this.
I started going to medical
conferences, the first ever
plant-based nutrition and
health care conference.
Yeah, I discovered
it, and I went.
And so I started engaging
myself with this information
and learning about it more
and more, more to the point
where I started learning about
using lifestyle as medicine
and integrative
medicine and functional
medicine and Ayurveda
and herbalism and all
this other stuff.
And my mind was blown.
The more I learned,
the more I realized
I needed to learn even more.
And as a physician, it started
this whole wheel of curiosity.
Like, I don't understand.
How could we go through a
system where we don't know this?
How, as physicians,
can we really dispense
the information that is
kind of half information?
If you don't have
this knowledge,
how can you give proper
information to your patients?
What if your patient comes
in with some kind of question
about an herb?
What if your patient
comes in and wants
to know how to improve
his or her lifestyle
and how to prevent
disease from happening?
Prevention-- where was this?
Why was this missing in
the system that we have?
And so all of this curiosity
and all of this research--
I dove into so many
years of research.
But at that time, I
was at, basically,
one of those precipice
moments where, on the left
was residency and something
guaranteed and something
that that would be
part of a system.
But on the right was
what I saw as a solution
because I wanted
to be a solution.
I did not want to be
a part of the problem.
So I made the hardest
decision of my entire life.
And I chose to forgo residency.
And I chose to go
into the unknown
and figure it out
as I go and use
my medical degree
and this information
to share with people
to change and transform
the health of humanity
because this is essential.
So that's when I decided
to launch my website.
And this was just two years ago
when I finally launched this,
prescriptionlifestyle.com.
And it's free,
evidence-based site where
I can share information with
you on whole-food, plant-based
nutrition and using
lifestyle as medicine
and, of course, encompassing
all different forms of medicine,
such as integrative medicine
and functional medicine, which
focuses on the underlying
cause of disease as
opposed to a
symptom-based system.
So I created this
with the foundation
of using lifestyle as medicine
based on five core lifestyle
principles.
The principles are the mind--
so your psychological,
emotional, mental well-being--
anything from
meditation or getting
psychological counseling of any
kind or yoga, things like that.
The body-- so physical
activity, but also things
like sleep and the microbiome,
et cetera, et cetera.
And I also like to add in
here, which a lot of people
don't even know about, but
getting comprehensive mineral
and vitamin analyses, which your
doctor doesn't typically order.
I think it's essential to
know what your baseline is
and what you're working with.
Also, social support,
social support--
so human-to-human
interaction and how
to enhance that in your life.
Environmental impact--
so things like
toxins in your water
and your cosmetics
and food and things like that.
It's radiation,
things in our air.
And at the core, whole-food,
plant-based nutrition.
And I always deem this
as being the essential,
most important because,
alone, 30% to 60%
of all chronic diseases can be
reversed by just implementing
this one principle.
So what is a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle?
So I know what a
lot of people think.
This is a misconception.
But a lot of people think
a whole-food, plant-based
lifestyle is a vegan
lifestyle, period.
Thank you.
OK.
It's not.
It's not just that.
It's so much more.
So what I define a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle as is
an unprocessed vegan
lifestyle, not diet--
lifestyle.
And the reason why-- so there
are no animal products--
so no meat of any kind,
no dairy of any kind,
including no eggs at all.
But it's also unprocessed--
so the refined carbohydrates--
that doesn't mean you
can't have bread, just not
the refined kind--
and things that are very
much processed in nature
and very much chemically
laden ingredients.
So that is what a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle is.
But also, what I like to add
is organic, non-GMO whenever
possible, and nutrient dense.
So you want to
fill your plate up
with as many
nutrient-dense foods.
That means the most
bang for your buck.
You put a lot of
money into your car.
Or some people put a lot
of money into their looks.
How about we put a lot of
money into those microgreens?
We put a lot of money
into our sprouts or herbs
and different things that
can make our dishes so
rich in nutrition and
that will actually
prevent you from aging and
developing all these diseases.
So why would you
ever want to adopt
this or any other lifestyle
habit, for that matter?
I say that it's important
to learn your whys.
My saying is that knowledge
is the gateway to your health.
Once you develop that, then you
could do something about it.
So knowledge-- it
doesn't equal power.
It's a gateway.
And what you have to do is
find out what your why is.
I can't tell you
what your why is.
I can't tell you what
your why is or you.
But you, everybody,
has an individual
why they would want to adopt
using lifestyle as medicine
or becoming whole
food, plant based.
That's up to you.
And I can't make you do that.
I can only stand here and try
to give you the information,
stir up some curiosity
in you, and get
you to go and find out
the answers for yourself,
and maybe make that
change for yourself.
So hopefully I will
inspire you to do so.
So if you find your why, I
always say it's like your key.
You use your why.
You open up the gateway.
You step on to the
other side, and that
is where change happens.
So why not?
Why not?
So why not animal products?
Saturated fat and
cholesterol, increasing
your LDL cholesterol,
increasing risk
of heart disease and stroke.
Why not animal products?
Protein access-- we are
getting far too much protein
in America.
The question should not be,
are you getting enough protein?
It should be, are you
getting enough fiber?
We do not have the diagnosis
called kwashiorkor,
where you have bloating and
skinny atrophy types of limbs.
We do not have that
diagnosis in America.
That is not a problem we have.
So we don't have a
problem with protein.
But we do have a
problem with fiber.
So I want to start changing the
language when it comes to this.
In fact, protein
excess can cause
acid overload, which can cause
our kidneys to become toxic.
Our diets should
only be 6% to 10%
of protein, of which it
should be plant based.
That's it.
Hormones-- so why
not animal products?
Hormones.
Exogenous-- so what is
injected into animal products
or into the animal itself,
such as growth hormones.
And endogynous--
within the animals
themselves, they have
their own hormones.
They are animals.
They have their own
levels of hormones.
So whenever you ingest
any animal product,
you are ingesting
their hormones, period.
And so who would want that?
This can lead to things
such as acne and things
such as early menstruation,
which we're seeing
a lot in young, young women.
We're seeing that younger
and younger, people are
getting their periods,
but worst of all, cancer.
Antibiotics-- antibiotics
that are in the actual animal
products themselves.
What do antibiotics do?
Antibiotics kill
bacteria, right?
So in our guts, I don't
know if you're aware,
but we have this thing
called the microbiome.
We have trillions and trillions
of microbes, viruses and things
like that, but microbes that
are bacterial based and mostly.
And so what happens when
we eat these antibiotics?
What do you think we're
doing to our own microbiome?
These are species
that protect us.
70% of our immune
system is in the gut.
They synthesize vitamins for us.
They synthesize minerals for us.
They help us in so
many different ways.
And what I always
say is, we should
find ways to create a symbiotic
relationship with our gut
microbes.
We should start learning,
not just what I want to eat,
but what do my gut
microbes want to eat?
What will make
them thrive, which
will, in turn, make me thrive
and make me have a good health
outcome?
Inflammation-- so
inflammatory mediators
get released when you
eat animal products.
A lot of people don't know this.
So these measures called
c-reactive protein
and insulin-like growth
factor 1 and interleukin 6--
all of these cytokines
and inflammatory mediators
get released.
What happens then, if you
eat that meal with an animal
product in it, and all of
a sudden a virus comes by,
and it wants to
attack your body?
Well, your body's
already going in--
you have low-grade
inflammation here.
And your immune system
is trying to fight off
that low-grade inflammation.
It will not be able to fight
off this virus as well if it
was not in overdrive.
Glycotoxins-- so many
people don't know this,
but eating chicken, beef,
and fish, but mostly chicken,
you are ingesting
these toxins called
glycotoxins, called advanced
glycation end products.
These toxins are
neurotoxins that suppress
these anti-aging
proteins called sirtuins.
These are proteins that protect
the brain from shrinking.
Who wants that?
And there's actually
some signs that
have been showing that
this is potentially
one of the mechanisms
for Alzheimer's, but also
for other forms of dementia.
Nitrosamines-- eating
animal products
with decaying meat in our colon
for a prolonged period of time
without defecating
and not being regular,
well, they actually release a
byproduct called nitrosamines,
which are actually carcinogenic,
mostly for colon cancer.
The protein
constituents themselves,
such as casein in cow's milk,
is linked to the promotion
stage of cancer.
And then things such as viruses
and bacteria such as E. coli
and Salmonella--
all of these things are also
found in animal products.
Why not animal products?
Because of insulin resistance.
Get this.
The number-one cause
of insulin resistance
is not refined carbohydrates.
The number-one cause
of insulin resistance,
which as you probably
know leads to diabetes,
is due to animal products,
meat specifically,
to saturated fat
and cholesterol.
The mechanism behind
this that we did not
learn in medical school
was intramyocellular fat
deposition.
So what happens when you eat
a meal with sugar, right?
You have glucose in
your bloodstream.
And you need that glucose
to fuel your muscles.
You need to use your muscles.
You want to flex
it, so you need it.
So your glucose
is in your blood.
Your insulin gets released
from your pancreas.
It now needs to go to where that
glucose needs to get taken up
by whichever muscle.
So we have this muscle
cell right here.
And then we have this insulin.
It goes, and it binds to its
receptor on its muscle cell.
And then the glucose
comes in, and then it
flows right through.
It's like a channel
that's formed.
And that's how we get
energy into our cells
whenever we need it.
What happens when we
have intramyocellular
fat deposition is
that the fat actually
clogs up this portion
of the cell where
the receptor is that would
normally allow insulin
to bind to it.
Well, it won't allow
it to bind to it.
So insulin doesn't work
as well as it used to.
And so we're not
uptaking the glucose.
This causes glycosylation.
And in the end, this is
the number-one reason
for insulin resistance.
Processed meat-- so in 2015,
the World Health Organization
labeled processed meat as
a level-one carcinogen.
That is the same level
as cigarette smoking.
That's your bacon, your
sausages, your hot dog,
and the kielbasa, the
cold cuts, that's right.
So I always ask
parents, specifically,
if you wouldn't allow your child
to smoke a cigarette, would you
allow them then to
smoke, eat, a hot dog?
I don't think so.
Dysbiosis-- so dysbiosis
of your own microbiome.
So we have different strains of
bacterial species in our gut.
And depending if you're a meat
eater versus non-meat eater,
scientists have
actually discovered
that we have different,
completely different strains
of bacteria.
And some are good bacteria
and help you thrive, and some
are bad bacteria and contribute
to the development of disease.
Yeah.
So trimethylamine oxide--
so when you eat meat,
you eat lecithin and carnitine.
And the bacteria that you have
in your gut as a meat eater
converts that to trimethylamine.
Then it goes into your
liver, which converts
it to trimethylamine oxide.
And scientists have found that
this is an athrogenic chemical.
What does that mean?
That it causes atherosclerosis.
So that will lead to the
development potentially
of heart disease and stroke and
vascular disease on the whole.
But plant-based
eaters, they don't
have the gut microbes that can
produce this type of chemical.
How wonderful.
Heme iron-- so heme iron
is carcinogenic on its own.
You should be ingesting
non-heme iron.
Why not animal products?
Chemicals contained
within the animals
themselves, fish for instance--
if you're ingesting fish--
I used to eat sushi four
or five times a week.
I loved it.
But had I known what
was really in it,
I would never have ate it.
PCBs, petrochemicals,
microplastics, dioxins,
endocrine disruptors--
this is your meal
when you eat fish.
And it can lead to
so many problems
with your own endocrine
system, your own hormones,
and can lead to the
development of cancer
and so many other diseases,
including autoimmune diseases
and whatnot.
Chemicals produced
from cooking meat
themselves, like heterocyclic
amines, when you cook meat,
are carcinogenic.
And casomorphins.
If you've ever been addicted
to cheese, this is why.
Casomorphins are found in dairy.
And they are types of
hormone-like substances
that actually bind to
the same opiate receptors
in your brain the
way that heroin does.
All I have to say is those
food manufacturers-- they truly
know what they're doing.
Why not processed food?
Well, why not?
Why not oil?
Oil is stripped of nutrition.
You take a whole, intact,
beautiful plant food.
You take out all the oil, and
that's all you've got left.
And you've left the
fiber, the phytonutrients
and all those wonderful
enzymes and everything
that plant has to offer, and
you're just left with the oil.
Science has found that--
and it's in research
journals, medical journals--
that oil, including olive
oil and coconut oil,
actually damages the innermost
lining of our blood vessels.
Those are the endothelial cells.
That is what predisposes
you to developing
those atherosclerotic plaques.
Why else not oil?
We are getting far too
many omega-6 fatty acids
in our diet in the
form of oil and far too
little omega-3 fatty acids.
We need to reverse this.
We need to be getting more
omega-3s and less omega-6's--
proinflammatory.
And then the worst
is fried food when
you have those trans fats,
which are hydrogenated oils.
And this increases
your triglycerides,
which is one of the worst risk
factors for vascular disease.
Why not refined flour
or refined sugar?
Again, it's stripped
of nutrition.
You take it from
the whole plant,
and then you're left
with this powder,
and that's all you have.
It's proinflammatory.
It can cause and lead to
diabetes, obesity, and weight
gain.
And what we are now
seeing in hospitals
all across the
nation is a disease
called non-alcoholic fatty
liver disease in rates
that we've never seen before.
And this is one of the reasons.
Why not chemicals
in processed foods?
So we have artificial
sweeteners.
Why not artificial sweeteners,
such as sucralose or aspartame?
Because it can cause dysbiosis
of your own microbiome
as well as inflammation and lead
to inflammatory bowel diseases.
Why not high-fructose
corn syrup?
That's delicious, right?
Because again, it can lead to
non-alcoholic liver disease
and as well as
diabetes and obesity.
And why not MSG?
It's an excitotoxin, excitotoxin
that can lead to hyperactivity
and disrupted learning.
Why not food that
is not organic?
And why not food that is GMO?
Pesticides, herbicides,
fungicides, chlorpyrifos,
which, in Europe,
has been banned--
why hasn't it been banned here?
It's been linked to neurological
developmental disorders.
But yet we haven't banned
it in the United States.
Glyphosate, which
is a carcinogen--
why would you want
to eat carcinogens?
Endocrine disruptors-- and it
has been linked to Parkinson's.
And Bt toxin, which has
been found in GMOs--
Bt toxin actually perforate
the lining in gut microbes.
So I ask always,
what do you think
it's doing to your gut lining?
I always say, too, if you
can't do 100% organic,
then please do refer to the
Environmental Working Group.
They have a phenomenal Dirty
Dozen and Clean 15 chart.
And in fact, just
a few weeks ago,
they came up with
an updated version,
so you can refer to that.
Why not alcohol?
This is a very touchy
spot for many people.
But alcohol, not even a
glass a day, is good for you.
No.
It has been linked to
all different cancers--
breast cancer, prostate cancer,
esophageal cancer, oral cancer,
liver cancer, pancreatic cancer.
Can I keep going?
Please stop me.
It is so dangerous.
Gastrointestinal reflux disease,
liver disease, liver failure,
kidney disease, hypertension.
If you take a Petri
dish in a science lab
and you put a human
cell on it, and then
you pour alcohol on top
of it, guess what happens?
The cell, actually, you
can see the proteins
start denaturing and fraying.
They start splitting.
And that, if you think about it,
if you keep doing it every day
and every day and every
day, the cumulative effect,
what do you think it's doing
to your body on a whole?
It causes premature aging, and
it suppresses your stem cells,
suppresses your stem cells.
Why not unfiltered water?
Because of arsenic
and fluoride and all
of those pharmaceutical
drugs that people
dump into the water system,
pathogenic bacteria and PCBs
and heavy metals--
you definitely want to be using
a filter, a very good one.
And if not, then you want to
go and get some filtered water
from the store.
So finally, why would
you ever even want
to adopt a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle?
Why to do this?
Number one, it is the
most important principle
of using lifestyle as medicine.
And it is the only
diet on planet Earth
that has ever been shown to
reverse heart disease, end
of story, period.
And if that's not a reason
alone, I don't know what is.
It is a phenomenal way to
prevent, treat, and reverse
the vast majority
of chronic diseases.
Longevity-- who
doesn't want to live
a long, but long and healthy
life, not just a long life,
but a long and healthy life?
Well, the longest-living
cultures in the world,
called centenarians--
so people who
live 100-plus years or older.
And these people
have actually been
shown to adopt a
predominantly whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle.
So yeah, if they do it--
and these are actually
the blue zones.
So if you've ever heard
of Dan Buettner's work,
the Blue Zones are places such
as Loma Linda in California,
believe it or not,
but other places
like Sardinia and in Italy and
Okinawa in Japan, et cetera.
It is the best weight loss
program you will ever be on,
I promise.
There are an abundance
of phytonutrients.
And this is my favorite
part because this is often
overlooked on this lifestyle.
And I feel like it needs
its place to shine.
Phytonutrients are extremely
important in our bodies.
We get these from whole,
intact plant foods.
Scientists have found
that there's about 800
or so bioactive amines.
These are your polyphenols,
such as your bioflavonoids,
your carotenoids.
These are chemicals
like turmeric,
curcumin in your turmeric.
You've heard of curcumin.
You've heard of
turmeric, I'm sure.
What about catechins in green
tea or resveratrol in grapes?
What about sulforaphane in
broccoli or broccoli sprouts?
These are fascinating, brilliant
chemicals that work like
an orchestra in synergy
with each other, in whole,
intact plants that you cannot
get from just a supplement.
You have to get it
from the whole plant.
And they work to
repair our own DNA
through various
different mechanisms.
They decrease your
overall oxidative stress.
They're super antioxidant.
And scientists are really,
truly just starting--
the tip of the iceberg--
to figure out what their
potential is and what roles
they play on our
bodies on a whole--
remarkable.
I love that topic.
Anti-inflammation or
anti-inflammatory--
that's the diet.
But it's not a diet.
It's a lifestyle.
So yes, it decreases
your overall inflammation
in your body, decreases
your c-reactive proteins,
and your interleukin
6, and on and on.
And it inhibits this
process called angiogenesis.
So tumor cells, when
they grow and they
want to spread throughout
your body, called metastases,
they use a process
called angiogenesis
to grow brand-new vessels.
Well, whole-food,
plant-based nutrition-
that's abundant in things
such as phytoestrogens,
phytoestrogens from
plants such as organic soy
and omega-3 fatty acids, they
actually inhibit angiogenesis.
Remarkable.
Why adopt a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle?
Because it's the
highest source of fiber.
It's the highest source.
I always say, if you're looking
for the next detox, this is it.
It is the best detox
in the entire world.
In fact, did you know that
only 3% of the US population
gets enough fiber in their diet?
3%.
Please, let's start asking,
well, do you get enough fiber?
Or how do you get enough
fiber in your diet?
Where do you get
your fiber from?
I would love for us to change
that conversation again.
We should be getting around
25 grams of soluble fiber
and around 45 grams of insoluble
fiber every single day.
So soluble fiber are things from
your nuts and seeds and beans.
And insoluble fiber are
things from your whole grains.
And what these do is,
soluble fiber actually
lowers your LDL cholesterol
by decreasing its reabsorption
at the level of the gut.
And your soluble fiber, it not
only changes the pH in your gut
to an optimum pH,
it actually helps
to bind all of
those metals and all
of those toxins and everything
and bulk up your stool for you.
Awesome.
Resistant starch-- so along
with fiber, our microbiome,
it thrives on a certain food--
prebiotics,
fiber-resistant starch.
We need these things in our
life to feed the microbes that
literally feed our health.
All the vitamins and all the
minerals you could ever want
are on this type of lifestyle.
Every single amino acid--
yes, that's nonessential
and essential amino acid--
is on this type of lifestyle.
The only vitamin that you
might require is a vitamin B12
or vitamin D. And I would
definitely recommend getting
some kind of omega-3
in the form of algae,
not fish oil or fish--
algae.
The source where the fish
get their omega-3's from
is the algae.
So something like
chlorella-- and you
could throw that in your
smoothie or something
like that every day.
Phytates-- they increase
your natural killer cells
and have, in studies, been
shown to inhibit cancers.
You have more energy,
improved mood.
Your taste buds take flight.
So if you are a foodie,
this is your lifestyle
because I can promise you, I
have never been so creative
with recipes and just
having so much fun
with making my own cheeses at
home out of four ingredients.
Who knew cashews can
taste like cheese?
Overall, it's a
fast type of food
because, if you learn
how to make it yourself,
it doesn't take much
time, and that's that.
So what does a whole-food,
plant-based lifestyle look
like?
There was nothing
that I could find,
so I created a
pyramid for everybody.
So here is the whole food,
plant-based food pyramid.
And every single level-- you
can actually go on my website
for free.
Everything's free on there.
And you could click
on every single level
to give you an idea of what is
in each level, specifically.
But very briefly,
the first level
is your filtered water and
all of these beautiful herbs
that you can then infuse in
your water to make it flavorful.
You can also infuse
fruits and different types
of spices and herbs.
And then, the second level
is all your leafy greens--
so your spinach and your chard
and your kale and arugula, et
cetera.
Then, on the left here, we
have the crucifixes vegetables
because they're huge
anti-cancer benefits.
And then over here,
we have a wide variety
of mixed vegetables.
I would like to
specifically add, though,
to get prebiotic-rich vegetables
almost every day if possible.
These are things like asparagus
or hickory, things like that.
And the reason why
is that is the food,
a direct food for your
microbiome, just like fiber.
And also Allium
vegetables, which
have extremely beneficial
effects on our body,
as a whole-- these
Allium vegetables
are things such as garlic
and leeks and onions.
Who doesn't like those?
The next level is fruits,
all fruits can think of.
And then whole grains--
whole grains, not whole wheat.
There is a difference.
Then we have different
types of seeds--
so flax seeds, chia seeds,
hemp seeds, sunflower seeds,
any seeds.
And all of these over
here-- so different types
of legumes and beans and lentils
and peas and things like that.
This is probably
my favorite level.
And it's microgreens
and sprouts and all
these phytonutrient-rich
things such as herbs
of all different kinds, both
culinary and medicinal herbs,
as well as turmeric
root and ginger root.
And this right here
are your probiotics.
But they're non-dairy
probiotics-- so
things such as tempeh
and kimchi and kefir
and things like sauerkraut.
I grew up Polish.
I didn't give up that, right?
And over here is another very
often-overlooked category
in the whole-food,
plant-based world.
And this is where I
get my iodine from
and where I recommend people
get their iodine from--
seaweed, seaweed of different
kinds-- wakame and kelp
and nori, et cetera.
And mushrooms-- so we have
medicinal mushrooms or even
white button mushrooms
of all different kinds
that you should be getting.
And they have tremendous, again,
effects on your total health.
And right here, this
little category, are fats--
healthy, whole, intact
fats that are not oil.
But they're things such as
nuts and avocados and coconuts.
So that's that.
I came up with tips and
tricks for everybody
that you can go on my website
and check out for yourself
and learn more about this
lifestyle if you're interested,
but things such as
optimizing the bottom half
and minimizing the top half--
but really, you can eat as much
as you want on this lifestyle
just to feel full and satiated.
And that's the key.
Without flavor,
you've got nothing.
You've got to have the flavor
in the nutrition, right?
To make it sustainable,
you have to have flavor.
So I encourage people to
use all the spices and herbs
all the time.
Again, on this
type of lifestyle,
I recommend taking around
2,000 international units
of vitamin D if and only if you
don't have any sun exposure.
In sunny California,
we're very fortunate.
But some people stay
indoors all the time
and never see the sunshine.
It might be a good idea.
Also, vitamin B12.
You can get it in
fortified foods,
such as nutritional yeast,
which is a fantastic cheese
alternative.
You can throw it in
and make cheese sauces
with it, make pasta with-- oh,
my gosh, it's just so good.
And yeah, so fortified foods,
you can get your B12 from that.
But otherwise, it
would be recommended
to take one B12
supplement a day.
Even though our liver stores it
for up to three to five years,
we should still, science says,
be taking it every single day.
And like I mentioned
before, you should
be getting around
250 milligrams a day
of your DHA, which is your
algae-based omega-3 fatty
acids.
Now, people might think,
well, I eat flax seeds.
OK.
That's great.
You're getting your ALA.
But you want the DHA, which is
actually extremely difficult
to get in a diet,
anybody's diet.
I don't care what diet
you're on, it's really hard.
So I always say,
go to the source.
Don't go to the fish who
then went to the source.
Go directly to the source,
which is the algae.
And the favorite algae that I
like to recommend is chlorella.
It's a non-blue-green algae.
It's a simple green algae.
So there's no link
to things like BMAA,
which is a toxin, which
could be something that--
I've read about spirulina,
since it's a blue-green algae,
could be linked to ALS,
but stick to chlorella.
So lifestyle as medicine--
remember, for those people who
are scared, it's not a diet.
It's life long, and
therefore it's a lifestyle.
You're not giving up anything.
In fact, you're
gaining everything,
and that's your health,
for, without it, you
have nothing at all.
I always say that health is
your greatest investment.
So keys to transition-- go slow.
Go in a stepwise progression.
Learn your whys.
Remember to movie beyond
the cultural limitations.
From a Polish traditional
diet, I moved away from it.
There's no deprivation.
You can eat as much as you want.
Focus on nutrient-dense foods.
Find what works for you
in terms of alternatives
to your favorite meals.
Buy in bulk.
And remember, start
with the food pyramid.
Look at that, get
curious, and see
if you can just start making
slow and little changes
day by day in your lifestyle.
Be mindful, and make
each bite count.
I would say, before you take
that bite, ask yourself,
is this going to hurt, or
is this going to heal me?
Remember, it's not
that you can't.
It's that you just
don't want to.
So whatever setting
you're in-- let's say
you're in a restaurant, or
you're at someone's house,
and they offer
you something, you
don't have to feel embarrassed.
This isn't something that
maybe you're missing out on.
It's OK.
Your body matters
the most to you.
Without it, you have nothing.
Your health is the
most important.
So it's OK to say no.
And it's OK to celebrate
that and say, you know what?
It's not that I can't.
I just don't want that.
I'd rather something else.
Key points to keep
in mind-- weight
doesn't equal,
necessarily, health.
Just because you're skinny
does not mean you're healthy.
Remember what truly defines
a healthy lifestyle.
Moderation kills-- I
say this all the time.
Would you rather have
a moderate heart attack
or a full-blown heart attack?
Everything you do every
single day is cumulative,
and it affects your health.
In order to live a
healthy lifestyle,
though, you have to
become habitual in nature.
And remember-- key point--
your fate does not lie in
the hands of your genes.
So this was my journey.
My journey then--
I had cystic acne at
various points in my life.
I was bloated.
I was 30 pounds overweight.
I was extremely--
in so much pain
from the chronic
constipation, 15-plus years
without an answer,
yo-yo dieting.
That's what I looked like.
And on the right, you probably
think, wow, pillar of health--
toned, healthy, skinny--
couldn't be further
from the truth.
This was during the time I was
in kinesiology, working out
five days a week, implementing
everything I learned.
I looked so healthy
on the outside.
But on the inside,
this is still going on.
I was still suffering.
It wasn't until I discovered
whole-food, plant-based
nutrition after
graduating from medicine
that I started implementing
this lifestyle for myself.
I started practicing what I
preach because I believe that,
to become a good teacher and a
good doctor, you must do that.
You must practice
what you preach.
And I did that, and
I implemented it,
and all those
symptoms went away.
My endometriosis,
which I didn't mention,
and all of these other
inflammation types of processes
that were happening
in my body started
to dissipate one after
the next after the next,
as if I was on some medication.
And I was never on a medication
other than laxatives.
And I'm not on a
medication today.
And I can tell you that years--
now it's been six
years-plus later.
I have been thriving
on this lifestyle.
And I love it more than ever
because I see that it works.
And I speak with
utmost conviction
because I know what it can do
to people and their health.
And it makes me want to cry
because, again, I didn't
learn this a long time ago.
But I'm feeling so fortunate
and grateful that I
can share this information with
people today and that maybe,
just maybe, just maybe I can
empower and inspire you even
if just by an ounce
to just, like I said,
get curious and see if
maybe you can implement
some of this for yourself.
So what does your health
journey look like?
How will you
rewrite your future?
I would love for you
guys to all become
a part of my journey
and my vision
for transforming the
future of health care
by using lifestyle as
medicine and changing
the system that way.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
- I envision a
system that merges
all disciplines of medicine
into one practice, whose
primary focus is on prevention,
uncovering the underlying
cause of disease, and revering
lifestyle as medicine.
Beyond science, medicine
is a healing art,
a magnificent orchestration of
five core lifestyle principles.
Environmental impacts are often
a hidden burden on our health.
Embrace a state of
physical well-being.
Our bodies are designed to move.
Love your body, and
it will love you back.
Mental, emotional,
psychological welfare
is absolutely crucial
to your health.
So meditate,
breathe, be mindful.
The mind-body
connection is paramount.
What you believe has the power
to dictate your innate healing
capacity.
As doctors, we
pledge to do no harm.
Yet, why do we dismiss
using food as medicine?
Whole-food,
plant-based nutrition
is the foundation
and answer to much
of the disease that
plagues our world.
Our social interactions
have the power to heal.
Surround yourself with those who
support, respect, and love you.
My name is Dr. Justyna Sanders.
And I have a vision to
radically transform medicine.
Optimum health
begins with a choice.
It's what you do each
day that will ultimately
determine your health outcome.
Why have we allowed
ourselves to become
entrapped in this labyrinth
of disease, of drugs,
and more disease?
Your body-- it's
designed to heal itself.
Why, then, have we abandoned
our fundamental right
to heal the way our
bodies intended?
We need to remove the
veil of unknowingness
because I believe that knowledge
is the gateway to our health.
Join me on this remarkable
journey in rediscovering
and revolutionizing medicine.
Become a part of the solution.
Take autonomy for
your own health.
[END PLAYBACK]
JUSTYNA SANDERS: I always say
that lifestyle as medicine
is the universal
drug of the future.
But don't wait for tomorrow
for the health care system
to catch up.
Start taking your medicine now.
I want to sincerely thank you so
much again to Google and Bobby
for this opportunity.
And I want to thank
you all for coming.
[APPLAUSE]
