“After attending the Plant-Based Prevention of Disease (P-POD) Conference 2019 in North Carolina, I decided it was time to connect with evidence-based eaters in the Treasure Valley. From the first meeting, I knew that this was the place for me and the people I’d been looking for.”

Cristen Iris

“Twice in my past I lost weight intentionally, once in the mid-1980’s and again in the early 1990’s.  Both times I gained all the weight back plus some.

In 2015 when I hurt my right knee getting out of a chair onto a carpeted floor, the only cause I could come up with was that I was too heavy at 209 pounds.  So, on November 20, 2015 I decided to join Weight Watchers and lose some weight.   About a month later I discovered a whole food, plant-based diet and decided to continue with Weight Watchers, but to eat only potatoes, beans, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.  I consistently lost a pound or two a week until I hit 175 pounds on May 7, 2016.   At this weight I decided I’d lost enough.

I dropped Weight Watchers but continued to eat a whole food, plant-based diet, always eating until I was satisfied, but no longer keeping a food log and counting points

Fast forward to today, three and two-thirds years later, and I am still at 175 pounds, give or take a couple.   That’s 1,353 days of maintaining my 34-pound weight loss with no portion control or point counting.

I avoid the Standard American Diet like it’s a disease (which it is) and no longer eat meat, dairy, eggs, added oils, white sugar, white flour and fast foods, whether they be from the frozen aisle in the grocery store or the fast food restaurant down the street.

I am grateful for mentors like Dr. John McDougall, Dr. Michael Klaper, and Dr. Joel Fuhrman who have written books and made YouTube videos that guided me in the ways of a whole food, plant-based lifestyle.”

Reed Burkholder

One of my earliest memories as a child was of being very afraid to fall asleep. I knew that if I fell asleep, I would not “remember” to breathe. Breathing is something that most people take for granted and do without thinking. For someone who has been diagnosed with severe and chronic asthma, it often takes a very conscious and deliberate effort to breathe. I was diagnosed with asthma just before I turned 3 years old. Back in those days, asthma was viewed as a psychosomatic illness, with “episodes” brought on by stress or mental health issues. At the time, doctors treated asthma with a medication that contained a sedative barbiturate drug. The effects of this medication on me were immediate and dramatic. My parents described it to the doctors, telling them that it was  as if they were watching their semi-conscious child drown. Thankfully, years later, other medications were developed that did not contain sedatives. I was limited in any activities that involved physical exertion, throughout my childhood, often sitting on the sidelines. I was labeled as the “asthmatic”. My asthma symptoms continued throughout my entire life, resulting in me needing to be on constant and daily medications. I have been on pills, inhalers, steroids and I could never leave home without my bag of meds! I also had seasonal allergies, which exacerbated my regular asthma symptoms. In other words, I was “sick” every single day of my life. 

I grew up eating the standard American diet. In my late 20’s, I stopped eating meat for ethical reasons. I thought that I was a “good” vegetarian and I raised my 3 children in a vegetarian lifestyle. I bought milk and cheese from supposedly “ethical” sources. All three of my children were diagnosed with asthma or asthma related issues. Asthma traits are inherited, we were told by doctors. There were many emergency room visits when prescribed medications did not work well enough. 

Almost 3 years ago, I watched “Forks Over Knives” and “What the Health?”  The next day, I gave away all of the dairy that I had in the refrigerator to neighbors, who gladly took it. Two weeks after being dairy free, I noticed that I did not need my rescue inhaler at all, while I was on a long bike ride. I did not need my rescue inhaler at all after that day, period! After two weeks of not needing the rescue inhaler, I emailed my doctor to ask how to wean off of the inhaled steroid medication that I was taking twice a day. I also wanted to stop the pills. She said that I should give it a few months before I tried to wean off medications, in case it was a fluke. I immediately contacted my daughter who is a clinical pharmacist, and who knows her mother very well. She advised me on how to wean off, slowly. I agreed to involve my doctor and she was very supportive. My doctor also advised me on how to stop the pills, and other inhalers. My doctor continues to be very supportive.

I have followed a Whole Food Plant Based diet for almost 3 years and I feel the absolute healthiest that I have EVER felt in my entire life! One of the many side effects of the medications that I had been on for so many years, is joint pain. I have no joint pain anymore, I can breathe without effort all of the time and I am living my best life now! 

Carolyn Bender