Nutrition in Healthcare Conference 2023
- Nutrition in Healthcare Conference 2023,
- 04 Apr 2023
Doctors For Nutrition was delighted to once again host Australasia’s only whole food plant-based nutrition conference in February 2023.
Over 250 delegates, the majority of whom were healthcare professionals, gathered in-person or virtually. Those joining face-to-face gathered in Australia’s cultural capital, Melbourne. The conference ran over two full days and we were joined by 24 local and international experts who showcased both the long-established and the latest research on the leading lifestyle factor to influence health outcomes: our diet. Delegates learnt about the role of a whole food plant-based approach to eating in the prevention, management and reversal of numerous chronic disease conditions.
A key focus of the event was providing practical tools and techniques to support delegates in transitioning to a whole food plant-based diet themselves or helping their patients to do so. Interactive sessions facilitated real-time responses to the most popular questions from the crowd.
Outside of the main academic program there were many other opportunities in which to partake: chances to get moving including a mindfulness session, a run and a guided walk. During the conference dinner we were honoured to be joined by Professor Boyd Swinburn to discuss The Global Syndemic. We enjoyed plenty of belly laughs thanks to our entertaining MC Clint Paddison. Our Board-Chair Dr Heleen Haitjema and Dr Ayesha Sherzai also guided us through a cooking class.
Another highlight of the jam-packed weekend was the entirely whole food plant-based menu, keeping our delegates fuelled and supporting the evidence-based philosophy of the conference.
We were pleased to be able to offer health professionals Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credit for NIHC. The conference was approved for CPD hours by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) and with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM).
In recognition of the importance of future healthcare professionals, Doctors For Nutrition were fortunate to be able to offer five scholarship places, made possible by the generosity of our donors.
Another fantastic outcome from the conference was that I got to meet like-minded medical students from other universities.
Following is a very brief recap on the academic sessions throughout the two days. If you are interested in accessing the full recordings on-demand head to our ‘on-demand access’ page. CPD hours are available with RACGP and ACRRM, they may also be available for other professional bodies based on self-reporting requirements.
DAY ONE
What is whole food plant-based nutrition and how can I prescribe it?
Dr Renae Thomas
This session kicked-off the conference with an introduction to whole food plant-based (WFPB) nutrition from a clinical perspective. Dr Thomas discussed the nuances (such as salt, oil, and sugar), specifics (inclusions and exclusions), nutrition as a spectrum, and frequently asked questions (such as around protein, calcium, and iron). She provided a foundational overview of the benefits of WFPB nutrition for patients (and health professionals alike)! Following this, Dr Thomas delved into what is often the most challenging component – the practical aspect of how to prescribe nutrition in a clinical setting and specific methods to make this easily accessible, understandable, implementable, and results driven.
Preventing Cognitive Decline
Drs Dean and Ayesha Sherzai
Drs Dean and Ayesha Sherzai started off our academic sessions by looking at what we know about our amazing brain, the diseases that affect it, their consequences, and what we can do as a society to reduce their risk and prevalence.
With dementia being the #1 disease in most countries of the world (74.7m people impacted globally) this in-depth session provided hope that we all have the ability to improve our brain health.
They discussed the myths and misunderstandings that relate to Alzheimer’s Disease. As opposed to being purely a genetic disorder, for instance, adherence to a healthy lifestyle can in fact offset the genetic component: genetic risk combined with an unhealthy lifestyle sees risk skyrocket by 360% but, genetic disease combined with a healthy lifestyle reduces risk to less than 30%.
The doctors presented evidence showing that a healthy lifestyle can prevent or reduce the advancement of dementia. Central to this is food which is considered to be most important for the brain’s internal environment protecting from oxidative stress and reducing inflammation.
Eat a cup of greens and you’ll have an 11 yr younger brain.
Evidence-based weight loss
Dr Michael Greger
Physician, New York Times bestselling author and internationally recognised speaker on nutrition, Dr Michael Greger joined us via treadmill from the US to present on evidence-based weight loss. Dr Greger reiterated that the single most effective long-term weight loss strategy is a whole food plant based diet. He focused on the significance of calorie density and a shift from restriction to concentrating on quality whole foods.
General Practitioner Panel: Turning the tide on type 2 diabetes
Dr Anis Ta’eed, Hollie Waters APD and Dr Gemma Newman
Our experts shared research and experience regarding nutrition and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), shedding light on the pathophysiology of T2DM, why ketogenic/low-carb diets aren’t appropriate in T2DM, preventing and reversing T2DM and meal planning.
Dr Anis Ta’eed reminded us how critical it is that the underlying cause of T2DM is addressed; it does not need to be inevitable that decline in health, or death, will happen as a consequence of diabetes. Dr Gemma Newman shared information on how to control diabetes, including thoughts on calorie restriction and the use of lower carb diets. Hollie Waters APD provided practical advice on what a well-planned WFPB diet may look like, and shared simple substitutions and tips on meal planning.
Nutrition and Skin Conditions
Dr Niyati Sharma
Dermatologist Dr Niyati Sharma delved into the nutrition link with common skin conditions such as acne, rosacea, psoriasis and others, including urticaria and hidradenitis suppurativa. She provided recommendations for these conditions and explanations of the potential causes. Dr Sharma shared details about the complex interplay between the immune system, the skin microbiome and the environment resulting in a breakdown of the skin barrier. She highlighted that It is just as important for dermatologists to talk about nutrition as it is for a cardiologists.
Nutrition and Indigenous Health
Tracy Hardy APD
Tracy delved into the importance of culturally responsive, trauma integrated care, practice and healing approaches. With so many critical lessons to be learnt from First Nations Peoples of Australia her presentation was invaluable. It was an area of care in which many delegates were seeking more education. Tracy highlighted the Aboriginal holistic wellbeing model and the impact of colonisation. She raised the need to find ways to tackle the systemic disconnect we have with where our food comes from, making it more disposable and adding to our significant food waste problem.
Hormone Harmony
Dr Gemma Newman
We were fortunate to have Dr Newman join us on the stage for a second time to speak about the key role that nutrition can play in keeping our hormones in check. She delved into common conditions linked to women’s health including PCOS, fibroids and endometriosis and how lifestyle can improve these problems. Dr Newman explored how various lifestyle measures can impact hormone-related conditions
All of the pillars of lifestyle medicine apply to PCOS.
DAY TWO
Meat and Gut Health
Dr Alan Desmond
Consultant Gastroenterologist Dr Alan Desmond explained the effect that meat consumption has on the human gut microbiome and reviewed the evidence on the links between meat consumption and many common digestive disorders.
He presented some staggering statistics around the increase in bowel cancer rates locally and reviewed the most up-to-date scientific publications on meat and gut health, explaining the therapeutic potential of a whole-food plant-based diet in helping patients to restore their gastrointestinal health.
Food and the Environment
Dr Peter Johnston APD
Dr Johnston recapped the dire situation we’re currently in from a planetary perspective. He investigated the impact of our food system on the environment and the way forward to optimise human health and environmental sustainability on Earth. Sadly he pointed out that we pay for low-cost animal foods three times: at the checkout, in subsidies (taxes) and in the enormous clean-up cost to our health and environment.
To deal with the problem of protecting the environment, we first need to know what the problem is.
Nutrition and Heart Health
Dr Caldwell Esselstyn
Eminent MD, Dr Caldwell B. Esselstyn, one of the most well-known and respected luminaries in the plant-based healthcare movement, joined us from the US for his greatly anticipated presentation on Nutrition and Heart Health.
Dr Esselstyn discussed how we should treat the cause of coronary artery disease. Rather than drugs and procedures which do not treat the causation of this disease, people who transition totally to plant-based foods may halt and selectively reverse their disease.
Food and food alone can halt and reverse the effects of coronary artery disease.
A nutritional approach to cardiac rehabilitation
Dr Ahmad Farshid
Delegates enjoyed the inaugural presentation of dietary and outcome data, from cardiologist Dr Ahmad Farshid, for a group of high risk patients using a plant-based diet for treatment and prevention of ischaemic heart disease. Importantly Dr Farshid confirmed that individuals with heart disease will take responsibility for their own health and that they will make sufficient changes to affect their risk factors such as blood pressure, weight and cholesterol.
GP Panel Discussion
Dr Luke Wilson, Dr Alyce Churchill, Dr Sam Gartland, Dr Martyn Williamson, Dr Juliette Roex
A panel of GPs with specialities in different areas discussed a broad range of common questions that arise in the areas of mental health, challenges in primary care with whole food plant-based lifestyle interventions, nutrition and autoimmune conditions and effective patient change communication.
WFPB Immersions and Workplace Programs
Dr Malcolm Mackay, Dr Peter Johnston APD, Jenny Cameron
Dr Mackay, Dr Johnston and Jenny shared exactly how they obtain such impressive results with their retreat and group program clients. They explained how they walk with them through the barriers to making change, the strategies for overcoming these and took a dive into the dose-response nature of dietary intervention.
Nutrition and Cancer Panel
Dr Despina Handolias, Dr Alan Desmond, Dr Renae Thomas
Oncologist Dr Handolias presented the cellular pathways of cancer, genetic alterations, nutritional/dietary interventions in oncology, and the main dietary interventions that have been studied. She examined risk reduction in the context of the complexity of cancer. Dr Thomas explored hormonal cancers and known potential risk factors in terms of prevention and relapse prevention, as well as dietary pattern. Dr Desmond returned to the stage for a second time to dive deeper into bowel cancer and the role played by the gut microbiome and diet in bowel cancer risk.
Behaviour Change in a Community Setting
Dr Dean Sherzai
After a robust 2 days exploring the evidence base behind WFPB nutrition, Dr Sherzai detailed a neuroscientific approach to behaviour change in a community setting. He explored: why behaviour change often fails; the roles of different parts of our brain in the change process; and The Habit Loop. He generously shared what has worked for him in their community projects and looked into effective behaviour change approaches.
I never thought it was possible … until we did it
Dr Renae Thomas
It was a perfect high energy wrap-up to the NIHC with an inspiring look at how the landscape has changed in regards to nutrition in the healthcare field through the lens of an Australian Preventive and Lifestyle Medicine Physician who has lived and practised it in the USA since becoming a doctor.
Doctors For Nutrition were elated at the positive response to the NIHC. The energy at the venue was electric and everyone of our phenomenal speakers were so generous with their time outside of their sessions. They each gave us so much insight and knowledge into their specialist areas, and, most importantly, provided actionable and practical advice. Our brilliant MC, Clint Paddison, kept the weekend flowing smoothly.
Thanks also goes out to our facilitators who got our minds and bodies moving each morning, our conference organising partner, Think Business Events, our sponsors and exhibitors and the CENTREPIECE team (particularly for the bespoke menu).
Finally an important thanks to our delegates who will take away their knowledge and share it with others!
