How to use food as medicine to prevent diseases
NEW ORLEANS — Encouraging a healthful diet in patients promotes the prevention and reversal of chronic diseases, such as CVD, diabetes, cancer and obesity, according to a presentation at the ACP Internal Medicine Meeting. Of the ten leading causes of death in the United States, at least seven, including the top four, are directly related to diet choices,” Michelle McMacken , MD, assistant professor of medicine at New York University School of Medicine, said during her presentation. These conditions include heart disease, cancer, lung disease, cerebrovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and kidney disease, according to McMacken. Power of nutrition “Nearly half of all deaths due to heart disease, stroke and diabetes are due to poor, suboptimal diet,” she said. We now know that a poor diet is responsible for more deaths from chronic disease at the population level than smoking... Most of our patients know that it’s probably not a good idea to smoke, but I don’t ...