The story of Eloise’s plant-based transition is highly unusual because throughout her life, quite a few physicians suggested she look into a vegan diet before she actually made the change. Her story begins in the 1980s when she was working in Silicon Valley and was a self-described type A personality. At 122 lbs., she looked healthy on the outside, but had high cholesterol. Interestingly, her physician recommended that she change over to a vegetarian diet to control her cholesterol. At the time, Eloise did not take his advice, but later wished she could turn back the clock to transition to a plant-based lifestyle much sooner.
Fast forward 30 years, Eloise weighed 193 lbs. and was eating a standard American diet (SAD) when she developed an upper respiratory infection that lasted over six weeks. She went to her doctor, who told her he wanted to do an angiogram. Ten days after the angiogram, she had a triple bypass because two arteries were 90% blocked and a third was 70% blocked. Amazingly, this new doctor was a vegan and strongly encouraged Eloise to transition to a vegan diet. She was even in a hospital that had an entire wing dedicated to helping people change their diets, but she still chose to not make the change.
Later, Eloise moved to Florida, where her next physician told Eloise that she could not control her cholesterol with medication and also recommended changing to a vegan diet. At this point, she decided to finally look into making a diet change. Eloise read How Not to Die and was so amazed at the research presented, she “couldn’t put the book down.” Within nine weeks of consuming a vegan diet, her total cholesterol dropped from 385 to 170.
Shortly after getting these results, Eloise began to have difficulty breathing when she was out shopping one day. She went immediately to see her cardiologist and found out that one of her bypass grafts was 98% blocked. Eloise believes that if she had not already begun to transition to a plant-based diet, she would have had a heart attack. She told her doctor that her goal was to get off all medications using a vegan diet.
Eloise knew she needed to make plant-based eating her permanent lifestyle, so began researching programs for motivation and support. The PlantPure Health & Weight Loss Online Seminar was the first one she found. She describes the seminar as “opening her eyes to so many issues—especially how big pharma influences our healthcare system.” Eloise stated that one of the smartest things she did before beginning the seminar was to buy a 20-pack of PlantPure frozen entrees; she wanted to make sure she always had a good option on hand during the transition. She found the seminar so informative and exciting that she finished it in just two days. It introduced her to a number of compelling subjects and books that helped solidify the change. She started reading labels for both fat and sugar and came to realize that just because something was labeled as vegan did not necessarily mean that it was healthy.
Before making the change to a plant-based diet, Eloise had noticed some cognitive issues as well; she felt like she was slipping into the early phases of dementia. She was having difficulty finding words and was forgetting things more frequently. Since changing her diet, she feels the issue has been completely resolved. Eloise also reports that her energy level has gone “way up!” She used to tire quickly, but now gardens daily, and in her words, has “abundant energy.”
When asked what advice she would give to someone thinking about trying out a plant-based diet, she had several sage recommendations: be kind to yourself and extend grace as you make the transition. Go for 80% compliance and then keep working to get better—before you know it, you will be at 99%. Be single-minded and focus only on creating a healthy lifestyle—everything else will fall in line after that. Last, have a motto to live by. For Eloise it is, “There is no food on the face of the earth worth dying for.”
Eloise hopes that by sharing her story, she will inspire people not to wait until they contract a serious illness to make the leap into a plant-based lifestyle. She had so many doctors gently nudging her to change and hopes to provide that same inspiration for others.
Interested in trying the seminar yourself? From the producer of Forks Over Knives and PlantPure Nation, the seminar includes a workbook, food discounts, and more, and makes a great gift for friends and loved ones. Visit PlantPureHealthandWeightLoss.com to learn more and get started!