"Dean Ornish’s speech was brilliant, great, and consistent with the theme of making changes towards a healthy lifestyle. "
-Rob Gingras, Director, Corporate Services, CIGNA"Dr. Ornish was an outstanding keynote speaker and connected in a very personal way with our audience. We received very favorable comments and reviews from everyone that attended our first Business Program. Dr. Ornish was not only presented very timely information but he tailored his content to our industry and gave everyone points to consider for their own companies. We would definitely use Dr. Ornish again. "
-Jim Whitman, Senior Vice President, National Association of Chain Drug Stores"Thank you for gathering with us at the 2005 Milken Institute Global Conference to debate and discuss the complexities of, and opportunities for, speeding disease treatments and cures. We greatly appreciated the thought and preparation that went into your remarks in the Cures in the Cupboard: Foods that Fight Disease session. You provided a critical perspective that enhanced the value of the Global Conference and the audience's experience. "
-Greg Simon, President, FasterCures"Thank you for presenting at the 2005 San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference. We've received very positive feedback from the 1400+conference attendees. Without your participation, enthusiasm, and support, we wouldn't be able to offer such unique and extensive programs. We appreciate your partnership and look forward to working with you in the future. "
-John Abbott, Yoga Journal"The campus is still buzzing with enthusiasm. We have heard many positive comments. Your speech was both educational and interesting. Our entire campus community was very pleased. "
-Karla J. Russo, Manager of Special Events, Quinnipiac UniversityThe Power of Lifestyle Change
Dr. Ornish masterfully explains the future of preventative medicine, analyzing the spectrum of choices available to reverse and prevent life threatening conditions. His inspiring stories encourage audiences to embrace a healthier life.
What is the Optimal Diet?
Arguing that it’s not just how much you eat, it’s primarily what you eat, Dr. Ornish explains how an diet abundant in plant-based foods can help audiences trim waistlines and gain health.
Dean Ornish, M.D., is the founder and president of the non-profit Preventive Medicine Research Institute and Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Ornish received his M.D. from the Baylor College of Medicine, was a clinical fellow in medicine at Harvard Medical School, and completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He earned a B.A. in Humanities summa cum laude from the University of Texas in Austin, where he gave the baccalaureate address.
For over 36 years, Dr. Ornish has directed clinical research demonstrating, for the first time, that comprehensive lifestyle changes may begin to reverse even severe coronary heart disease, without drugs or surgery. Recently, Medicare agreed to provide coverage for this program, the first time that Medicare has covered a program of comprehensive lifestyle changes. He directed the first randomized controlled trial demonstrating that comprehensive lifestyle changes may slow, stop or reverse the progression of early-stage prostate cancer. His current research showed that comprehensive lifestyle changes affect gene expression, “turning on” disease-preventing genes and “turning off” genes that promote cancer and heart disease, as well as the first study showing that these lifestyle changes may begin to reverse aging by lengthening telomeres, the ends of our chromosomes which control aging (in collaboration with Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn, awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine).
He is the author of six books, all national bestsellers, including: Dr. Dean Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart Disease; Eat More, Weigh Less; Love & Survival; and his most recent book, The Spectrum.
The research that he and his colleagues conducted has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, The Lancet, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Circulation, The New England Journal of Medicine, the American Journal of Cardiology, The Lancet Oncology, and elsewhere. A one-hour documentary of their work was broadcast on NOVA, the PBS science series, and was featured on Bill Moyers' PBS series, Healing & The Mind. Their work has been featured in all major media, including cover stories in Newsweek, TIME, and U.S. News & World Report. He has written a monthly column for Newsweek and Reader’s Digest magazines, is currently Medical Editor of The Huffington Post and writes a regular column for TIME magazine.
Dr. Ornish was appointed by President Clinton to the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy and by President Obama to the White House Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health. He has been a member of the boards of directors of the San Francisco Food Bank, the J. Craig Venter Institute, and the St. Vincent de Paul Homeless Shelter in SF where he and colleagues established an integrative medicine clinic which will be replicated throughout the country. He was elected to the California Academy of Medicine and chaired the Google Health Advisory Council with Marissa Mayer 2007-9.
The “Ornish diet” was rated #1 for heart health by U.S. News & World Report in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.
He has received several awards, including the 1994 Outstanding Young Alumnus Award from the University of Texas, Austin; the University of California, Berkeley, “National Public Health Hero” award; the Jan J. Kellermann Memorial Award for distinguished contribution in the field of cardiovascular disease prevention from the International Academy of Cardiology; a Presidential Citation from the American Psychological Association; the Beckmann Medal from the German Society for Prevention and Rehabilitation of Cardiovascular Diseases; the “Pioneer in Integrative Medicine” award from California Pacific Medical Center; the Stanley Wallach Lectureship Award from the American College of Nutrition; the Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement; the Linus Pauling Award from the Institute for Functional Medicine; the Glenn Foundation Award for Research; the Bravewell Collaborative Pioneer of Integrative Medicine award; and the Sheila Kar Health Foundation Humanitarian Award from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Los Angeles). Dr. Ornish has been a physician consultant to President Clinton since 1993 and to several bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress, and he consulted with the chefs at The White House, Camp David, and Air Force One to cook more healthfully (1993-2000). He gave a keynote speech reviewing the science of integrative medicine at the Institute of Medicine’s first Summit on Integrative Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences.
Dr. Ornish was honored as “one of the 125 most extraordinary University of Texas alumni in the past 125 years;” chosen by LIFE magazine as “one of the fifty most influential members of his generation;” recognized as “one of the most interesting people of 1996” by People magazine; and by Forbes magazine as “one of the world’s seven most powerful teachers.”