Dean Ornish quotes

Think about it: Heart disease and diabetes, which account for more deaths in the U.S. and worldwide than everything else combined, are completely preventable by making comprehensive lifestyle changes. Without drugs or surgery. (Dean Ornish)

People who are lonely and depressed are three to 10 times more likely to get sick and die prematurely than those who have a strong sense of love and community. I don't know any other single factor that affects our health - for better and for worse - to such a strong degree.

Dean Ornish

The need for love and intimacy is a fundamental human need, as primal as the need for food, water, and air.

Dean Ornish

An educated patient is empowered; thus, more likely to become healthy.

Dean Ornish

Because the biological mechanisms that affect our health and well-being are so dynamic, when people change their diet and lifestyle, they usually feel so much better, so quickly; it reframes the reason for changing from fear of dying to joy of living. Also, the support that patients give each other is a powerful motivator.

Dean Ornish

Joy of living is sustainable; fear of dying is not.

Dean Ornish

Even more than feeling healthy, most people want to feel free and in control.

Dean Ornish

In general, losing weight is a good thing for those who are overweight, but it's important to lose weight in a way that enhances your health rather than one that may compromise it.

Dean Ornish

I'm a big admirer of Walter Willett's work. I think he's done some really important research. He and I agree on most things.

Dean Ornish

Whether you're six or sixty, if you go on a diet and lifestyle program and feel constrained, you're likely to go off it sooner or later. Offering a spectrum of choices is much more effective; then, you feel free and empowered.

Dean Ornish

When most people think about my work, they think about diet. To me, diet has always been the least interesting part of it. (Dean Ornish)

Curious patients are more receptive to new ideas, and those who engage their health practitioners in a dialogue are much more likely to adhere to these recommendations.

Dean Ornish

Although scientists can often be as resistant to new ideas as anyone, the process of science ensures that, over time, good ideas and theories prevail.

Dean Ornish

With everything that you can imagine at our fingertips, many of the social interactions that help tie people together in a community have faded away. Are communities traditionally built on relationships, trust and familiarity a thing of the past?

Dean Ornish

The Internet has transformed many parts of our daily lives, touching everything from how we find information to how we go shopping, get directions, and even stay in touch with friends and family.

Dean Ornish

We all know we're going to die one day, but who wants to think about it? What's sustainable is joy, pleasure and freedom.

Dean Ornish

I grew up in Texas, eating meat five times a day, and I liked meat. But I began being a vegetarian when I was 19 because I found that I felt better.

Dean Ornish

There's no point in giving up something you enjoy unless you get something back that's even better, and quickly.

Dean Ornish

The need for connection and community is primal, as fundamental as the need for air, water, and food.

Dean Ornish

I've found that if I tell somebody 'Eat this and don't do that,' it's not only not helpful, it's counterproductive because even more than being healthy, we want to feel free and in control, and as soon as somebody tells us to do something, there's a tendency to do just the opposite.

Dean Ornish

I am as non-accepting of medical quackery and unscientific approaches as anybody else. I've grown up as a card-carrying scientist, and I know the power of science to answer questions, and for many questions I don't know of anything better than scientific approaches to answer them. (Dean Ornish)

Whether it's by helping us search for health-related information, connecting us with doctors through online portals, or enabling us to store and retrieve our medical records online, the Internet is starting to show the promise it has to transform the way people interact with and improve their own health and wellness.

Dean Ornish