Neal Barnard, MD, FACC, is an adjunct associate professor of medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, DC, and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Dr. Barnard has led numerous research studies investigating the effects of diet on diabetes, body weight, and chronic pain, including a groundbreaking study of dietary interventions in type 2 diabetes, funded by the National Institutes of Health, that paved the way for viewing type 2 diabetes as a potentially reversible condition for many patients. Dr. Barnard has authored more than 90 scientific publications and 20 books for medical and lay readers. He is the editor in chief of the Nutrition Guide for Clinicians, a textbook made available to all US medical students.
As president of the Physicians Committee, Dr. Barnard leads programs advocating for preventive medicine, good nutrition, and higher ethical standards in research. His research contributed to the acceptance of plant-based diets in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. In 2015, he was named a fellow of the American College of Cardiology. In 2016, he founded the Barnard Medical Center in Washington, DC, as a model for making nutrition a routine part of all medical care.
Working with the Medical Society of the District of Columbia and the American Medical Association, Dr. Barnard has authored key resolutions, now part of AMA policy, calling for a new focus on prevention and nutrition in federal policies and in medical practice. In 2018, he received the Medical Society of the District of Columbia’s Distinguished Service Award. He has hosted four PBS television programs on nutrition and health.
Originally from Fargo, North Dakota, Dr. Barnard received his medical degree at the George Washington University School of Medicine and completed his residency at the same institution. He practiced at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York before returning to Washington to found the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Neal Barnard, MD’s
Classes for the
March 2025 Caribbean Cruise
Cruising into Health
You are embarking on the most enjoyable vacation imaginable. Yes, it is a vacation in the sense of sun, leisure and exotic locales, but it’s also much more. It is a vacation from old habits and old foods and the beginning of a whole new way of thinking about yourself and your health. This week promises a wonderful opportunity to understand the hows and whys of healthy eating – while someone else does all the cooking – in the company of others who came to share the journey. Let Dr. Barnard encourage you to take the adventure for all it is worth.
KEYNOTE: The Power Foods Diet – A New Nutritional Approach to Weight Control
Easier and more effective ways to lose weight are the focus of many research trials. Large cohort studies conducted by Harvard Researchers revealed the consumption of certain foods was associated with weight loss in ensuing years. Many of these foods, that trigger weight loss automatically, include berries, cruciferous vegetables, melons, citrus fruits, and beans, as well as certain spices. The Power Foods approach encourages the addition of these specific foods that cause weight loss, unlike the usual approach to dieting, which focuses on going hungry and avoiding your favorite foods. The Power Foods are effective in trapping calories in the digestive tract and then, carrying them out with waste. They also ramp up metabolism, allowing calories to burn faster and longer. This presentation will describe the scientific studies illustrating relationships between food and body weight and how to seamlessly add these foods into your daily routine.
Your Body in Balance: How Foods Affect Hormones
In recent years, the role of food choices in hormone-related conditions has become clearer, with striking benefits for health. Dr. Barnard will illustrate the importance of low-fat, high-fiber diets to reduce pain for women caused by dysmenorrhea and endometriosis. Dietary intervention can also reduce the symptoms experienced by postmenopausal women, including hot flashes, and affect other health concerns that arise during this time including heart disease, diabetes, and weight gain. This session will demonstrate how to make these dietary changes seamless and straightforward with new tools to alter hormones naturally and improve health.
Panel Q&A: Cruisin’ for Knowledge – Doctor’s Panel
Hosted by Sandy Pukel with Drs. Neal Barnard, Michael Greger, & Michael Klaper
Don’t miss this motivational, inspiring, and informative Q&A with plant-based diet luminaires, Drs. Michael Greger, Neal Barnard and Michael Klaper. Your host is Sandy Pukel, founder of Holistic Holiday at Sea. This is your chance to get all your questions answered. Whether you have been practicing a plant-based lifestyle for year or are just getting your feet wet, these experts can take you to the next level. Get the real scoop on living well, eating well, and taking control of your health.
An Intensive Plant-Based Diet for Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes can lead to serious complications and major costs. Although medications remain a mainstay of treatment, nutritional interventions, and increasingly, plant-based diets, have shown surprising power in both the prevention and management of this disease. The benefits of the diet appear to be mediated by a reduction in the intracellular fat that leads to insulin resistance. This presentation will describe the results of these trials and how individuals can put their findings to use.
