More Consensus than Controversy in Nutrition: Whole Food Plant-Predominant Diet

In public discourse, there appears to be more nutrition controversy than truly exists. At the core of this issue are the complexities of nutrition studies and the challenge of getting the media to help communicate those studies accurately and effectively. An important part of the solution is better health science communication. In this session, Drs. Gardner and Hauser aim to do just that. Dr. Gardner will first review several recently published trials (i.e., Plant meat vs. Red meat, Ketogenic vs. Mediterranean, Vegan vs. Omnivore) to provide examples of evidence-based nutrition studies and will follow that with scientific statements from the American Heart Association summarizing consensus around dietary patterns. He’ll also share behind-the-scenes stories of how nutrition science and entertainment meet as they did in the Netflix docuseries featuring his research, "You Are What You Eat." Dr. Hauser will then translate the science to practical dietary changes that are as delicious as they are healthful. She’ll share her research on how diet quality is likely more important than the name of any popular dietary pattern. Then, she’ll provide updates on her exciting work in the field of culinary medicine and share resources that can be used personally or professionally to help expand cooking skills to dish out meals that are delicious, affordable, and timely. The unique blend of evidence-base and humor in this session should leave attendees with important new understandings and strategies to take back to their patients and practices.