On May 28, Rodale Institute in Berks County and The Plantrician Project released a new white paper recommending  ways regenerative organic agriculture and lifestyle medicine can come together to improve quality of life.

The Power of the Plate: The Case for Regenerative Organic Agriculture in Improving Human Health compiles historical data, as well as comprehensive health, nutrition and agriculture research from around the world, to conduct a holistic analysis of the global food system and recommend the ways in which agriculture and lifestyle medicine can come together to improve quality of life.

Presenting the concept of regenerative health, with contributions from farmers, scientists, and medical doctors, this paper is the first of its kind to consider the deeply intertwined effects of industrial agriculture on nutrition and healthcare and recommend solutions for restoring human and planetary health.

Key findings:

-- Over the last 50 years, quality of life has decreased while lifestyle diseases like cancer, diabetes, and heart diseases have increased rapidly, due in large part to diet.

-- The Standard American Diet derives more than half of total calories from highly processed foods and only 11 percent of calories from fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and nuts.

-- U.S. agriculture grows fruits, vegetables, and nuts on just 3 percent of cropland, and our crops have continued to lose nutrient density, leading to health issues and lifestyle diseases.

-- In addition to lacking nutrition, industrial farming directly and indirectly affects human health via exposure to potentially endocrine-disrupting chemicals and through environmental pollutants.

-- The key to improving human health lies in both what we eat and how it was produced and requires shifting to a regenerative health model that incorporates regenerative organic agriculture and nutrition into all levels of our food and medical systems. 

Recommendations

The white paper also makes specific recommendations for the integration of food and healthcare and the expansion of regenerative health-- 

-- Emphasize education and collaboration between medical professionals, farmers, and consumers to identify the positive impacts of a whole foods, organic diet

-- Integrate nutritional education into the medical education curriculum.

-- Implement localized, integrated health initiatives that combine medical treatment with access to organic fruits and vegetables and incentivize medical professionals to implement these practices.

-- Fund more research for specialty crops and regenerative organic farming to improve technology & lower costs and incentivize these farming methods.

-- Provide increased financial & institutional support for farmers transitioning to regenerative organic practices.

-- Encourage food companies to support regenerative organic farmers.

Click Here for the full report.  Click Here for a fact sheet.

June 2 Live Discussion

Medical doctors and soil scientists, including the white paper’s authors Dr. Scott Stoll of The Plantrician Project, Dr. Andrew Smith of Rodale Institute, Dr. Zach Bush of Farmer’s Footprint, Dr. Ron Weiss of Ethos Health, and Dr. Meagan Grega of Kellyn Foundation, will be discussing those recommendations in a June 2 online panel discussion entitled “Ask the Experts: How Regenerative Organic Agriculture Can Improve Human Health.”

Click Here to register for this free event.

Background

Rodale Institute has been researching regenerative and organic agriculture since 1947. Widely recognized as the global leader of regenerative organic agriculture movement, Rodale Institute is home to several long-term organic and conventional comparison trials, such as its flagship Farming Systems Trial, started in 1981.

“Our research has proven that a regenerative organic system cannot only feed the world, but feed it better quality food,” said Jeff Moyer, Rodale Institute CEO. “This white paper gives us the opportunity to lay out in detail the ways in which our food system has a direct impact on our health, and how what we put on our plate—and the way it is produced—dramatically affects our health and our society.”

According to experts, the American healthcare system is currently overburdened with insufficient immune systems and lifestyle diseases; despite this, medical students receive less than 25 hours of nutrition education during their four years of medical school. The rising prevalence of unhealthy diets has paralleled the rise of industrial agriculture.

The Plantrician Project, co-publisher of “The Power of the Plate,” aims to inspire and educate physicians, healthcare providers and health influencers with knowledge about the indisputable benefits of a primarily organic, whole food, plant-based diet to prevent and reverse chronic lifestyle related diseases.

“Proper nutrition is the foundation of health,” said Dr. Stoll. “As a physician, I see an incredible number of patients with preventable, and reversible, lifestyle-related diseases. A critical component of healthcare is the production of healing foods and it is essential that we develop relationships with our local farming communities to improve the food ecosystem—making healthy, nutrient-dense foods easily accessible and affordable.

“The Power of the Plate” is part of a health-focused partnership between Rodale Institute and The Plantrician Project.

The organizations are working to establish the Regenerative Health Institute, a state-of-the-art facility and educational hub designed to bring together the fields of medicine and agriculture that have, historically, been siloed.

This facility will conduct research on the links between farming and human health, as well as provide educational programming and community support for agricultural professionals, medical professionals, and the public.

Learn more at Rodale’s Regenerative Health Institute webpage.

Visit the Rodale Institute website for more information on programs, initiatives and other upcoming events.

Related Article:

Penn State Creates New Institute To Address Complex Food-Energy-Water-Land Challenges

[Posted: May 28, 2020]

6/1/2020