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Alum Taps the Cannabis Market—With a Health-Oriented Twist Dr. Michael Greger ’95, author of books like How Not to Die, has dedicated himself to promoting the link between diet and longevity By Joe Wilensky Early in his career, when physician Michael Greger ’95 was working at a Boston-area public hospital, he realized that the vast majority of what he was treating were ailments that could have been avoided. “About 80% of the stuff you see in primary care is preventable,” he says. “People are coming in with high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes—and while we can slow down the rate at which those patients decline, if we want to get at the underlying, root causes, you really have to change the lifestyle.” And the biggest, direct lifestyle impact people can make on their health is through diet and nutrition, says Greger, who has long been a passionate promoter of plant-based, minimally processed foods. Greger has now been delivering that message for more than a quarter of a century—first by speaking at medical schools across the country and then, looking to reach ever-larger audiences, releasing his talks on DVD. About 80% of the stuff you see in primary care is preventable. In 2011, he launched the nonprofit organization and website NutritionFacts.org, which now boasts a companion app, a podcast, and a wealth of continually updated videos and news. In the past decade, Greger has also become a bestselling author—writing the How Not to Die, How Not to Diet, and How Not to Age trio of self-help guides, each of which has a companion cookbook. “This book brims with valuable insights,” says a Financial Times review of How Not to Die. “Dr. Greger tends to rely on the gold standard of medical research—randomised controlled trials—rather than the latest fads. Vegetarian or not, this book is a great way to improve your diet." Greger’s next book, due out by the end of 2026, is How Not to Hurt, on lifestyle approaches to pain management; another will delve into cancer survival. He has also penned volumes on ultra-processed foods and their controversies, how to naturally lower LDL cholesterol through diet, and the risks and benefits of Ozempic and similar weight-loss drugs. “Ozempic: it’s much worse than its advocates say, and much better than its detractors say,” the typically unfiltered Greger says with a chuckle. “So basically, the book ticked everybody off—which is how you know you wrote a good book.” Greger traces his devotion to what’s now called wellness and lifestyle medicine to childhood, when his grandmother—then just 65 and already having had several bypass surgeries—“was sent home, confined to a wheelchair with end-stage heart disease, to die,” he recalls. Greger still speaks regularly about nutrition and lifestyle medicine. It was the late ’70s, and his grandmother happened to watch a “60 Minutes” appearance by lifestyle medicine pioneer Nathan Pritikin, whom she sought out to treat her. She switched to a strict plant-based, low-fat diet and began walking—eventually up to 10 miles a day. Greger traces his devotion to what’s now called wellness and lifestyle medicine to childhood, when his grandmother, then just 65, “was sent home, confined to a wheelchair with end-stage heart disease, to die.” “It was a combination of those two things that helped improve blood flow to her heart muscle, and basically gave her her life back,” says Greger, who vividly recalls watching her get steadily better. Stories You May Like Engineering Alum’s Work Could Bring New Meaning to ‘Just Do It’ Want to Start Running in 2026? A Big Red Olympian Has Tips! “It was only later that I looked back and realized what a revolutionary approach that had been, at a time when we didn’t think heart disease was reversible at all.” And she went on to enjoy another 31 years, passing away at 96. “My grandma was part of this revolution in medicine,” he says, “so I think I needed to carry on that torch.” So what does Greger see as the worst nutritional offenders? He names three: anything with trans fats, which have largely been removed from the U.S. food supply; processed meats like bacon, ham, hot dogs, sausage, and lunch meats that contain known human carcinogens; and what he calls “liquid candy”—the plethora of sugar-sweetened beverages. And what are three things people should add to their diets? “Berries, the healthiest fruits; dark green leafy vegetables, particularly cruciferous vegetables like kale and collards; and legumes, beans, split peas, chickpeas, and lentils,” he says, “which are the protein superstars of all the ‘blue zones’—the global areas with the greatest longevity.” What does Greger see as the worst nutritional offenders? He names three: anything with trans fats; processed meats, like bacon; and what he calls “liquid candy”—the plethora of sugar-sweetened beverages. A CALS biology major on the Hill, Greger earned an MD at Tufts, entering healthcare just as wellness medicine was going mainstream. He points in particular to the famous 1990 Lifestyle Heart Trial by Dr. Dean Ornish, which scientifically proved what Pritikin had begun: that comprehensive changes could, in fact, reverse coronary artery disease without drugs. Decades of global study data “has found that, taking risk factors for death and disease across the board, diet is basically the number-one killer of humanity—so that means that the power is at the end of our fork,” Greger says. “And while I certainly cover many other lifestyle medicine topics like sleep and exercise, the nutrition piece has the most important life-changing, life-saving information, and it needs to be in the hands of as many people as possible.” That information, he notes, comes down to what experts have long recommended. “The best diet for human beings is—spoiler alert—fruits and vegetables,” he says. “We really do have tremendous power over our health and longevity.” (All images provided.) Published July 15, 2026 Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Class Year Email * Save my name, email, and class year in this browser for the next time I comment. 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