Events

The Doctors For Nutrition Lifestyle Medicine Conference 2026 (DFN LM26) brings a truly unique learning opportunity to Sydney.  

This event is Australasia’s only lifestyle medicine conference focused on whole-food, plant-based nutrition. Our conference has been designed as a unique platform to explore evidence-based lifestyle strategies transforming health outcomes. 

The program features the latest advancements alongside time-honoured research on the six pillars of lifestyle medicine. These pillars collectively form a powerful framework for preventing and managing chronic diseases, addressing some of the most pressing healthcare challenges of our time.

Doctors For Nutrition’s first Six Pillars webinar will explore the evidence that a plant-based diet and lifestyle can prevent and even reverse type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is one of the fastest-growing chronic conditions worldwide, outpacing even heart disease and cancer. In 2024, diabetes caused 3.4 million deaths—1 every 9 seconds—making it a true global epidemic. One Australian is diagnosed with diabetes every 5 minutes, and around 1.3 million people are living with the disease. New Zealand has seen a 90% increase in the number of diabetes cases, and numbers continue to climb with more than 340,000 people affected.

Robust evidence supports whole‑food, plant‑based and plant‑rich dietary patterns—rich in whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables—for diabetes prevention, improved glycaemic control, and remission in some cohorts, often outperforming standard dietary approaches in randomised controlled trials.

Nutrition and lifestyle interventions are pivotal for preventing, managing, and in some cases reversing type 2 diabetes. Australian and New Zealand GPs recognise the importance of nutrition counselling but report barriers beyond training.

This webinar will provide GPs with vital information on how an eating pattern focused on whole plant foods and other lifestyle interventions can reduce their patients' risk of developing diabetes.

Following the recorded presentation is a question and answer section that was answered live by Amy Leahy and Hollie Waters.

Speakers

Amy Leahy, MPH
Amy Leahy is a degree-qualified nutritionist with over six years of experience in plant-based health education and clinical practice. She holds a Bachelor of Health Sciences in Nutritional and Dietetic Medicine and a Master of Public Health.

Amy has developed educational content and resources for a range of plant-based health organisations and corporate wellness programs. She is passionate about creating accessible, engaging, and evidence-informed materials for healthcare professionals and the general public and is a firm believer that confidence in our knowledge of plant-based health and diets makes it easier to make the switch - and to sustain it for the long term.

Hollie Waters, APD
Hollie Waters is an Accredited Practicing Dietitian and Credentialled Eating Disorder Clinician. She holds a Master of Nutrition and Dietetics from Griffith University, and a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition through eCornell. Hollie is a passionate advocate of the benefits of plant-based nutrition, having followed a plant-based diet herself for the past 12 years.

Through her private practice, Etico Nutrition, Hollie supports others to adopt and maintain a healthy whole food plant-based diet. She also works to highlight the many benefits of a compassionate and low-impact lifestyle. Hollie has a special interest in dietary management of inflammatory and autoimmune conditions, cardiovascular disease, as well as sustainable food production practices and zero-waste strategies. Her goal is to provide her patients with the tools and knowledge they need to improve their health through sustainable dietary and lifestyle choices.