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The Spectrum: A Scientifically Proven Program to Feel Better, Live Longer, Lose Weight, and Gain Health
Dr. Dean Ornish’s Program for Reversing Heart Disease was a landmark bestseller that transformed the way we think about our health and well-being. Now Dr. Ornish returns with The Spectrum, a groundbreaking audiobook that helps you determine where you are on the spectrum of health and gives you choices for gaining and sustaining optimum health for life.
With his personalized approach, Dr. Ornish brings you the future of medicine today–the tools to customize a way of eating, managing stress, and exercising that is based on your own desires, needs, and genetic predispositions.Your genes are not your fate. New research by Dr. Ornish and his colleagues shows that changing what you eat and how you live may actually alter, for the better, how your genes are expressed. The Spectrum not only gives you a new path to health and well-being, it may also help reverse the worldwide epidemics of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, elevated cholesterol levels, and other chronic conditions.
For almost three decades, Dr. Ornish has been leading a revolution in medicine, and his pioneering findings outlined in The Spectrum can make a powerful difference in your health and well-being.
With his personalized approach, Dr. Ornish brings you the future of medicine today–the tools to customize a way of eating, managing stress, and exercising that is based on your own desires, needs, and genetic predispositions.Your genes are not your fate. New research by Dr. Ornish and his colleagues shows that changing what you eat and how you live may actually alter, for the better, how your genes are expressed. The Spectrum not only gives you a new path to health and well-being, it may also help reverse the worldwide epidemics of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, elevated cholesterol levels, and other chronic conditions.
For almost three decades, Dr. Ornish has been leading a revolution in medicine, and his pioneering findings outlined in The Spectrum can make a powerful difference in your health and well-being.
Audio
First published January 1, 2007
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About the author
Dean Ornish
72Ìýbooks160ÌýfollowersDean Ornish is an American physician and researcher. He is the president and founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California and a Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. He is a well-known advocate for using a plant-based diet and healthy lifestyle changes to treat and prevent heart disease.
Dean Ornish earned a B.A. in Humanities summa cum laude from the University of Texas in Austin, where he gave the baccalaureate address. He received his M.D. from the Baylor College of Medicine, he was a clinical fellow in medicine at Harvard Medical School, and he completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Dean Ornish earned a B.A. in Humanities summa cum laude from the University of Texas in Austin, where he gave the baccalaureate address. He received his M.D. from the Baylor College of Medicine, he was a clinical fellow in medicine at Harvard Medical School, and he completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
March 20, 2017
From page 17: ...nine factors related to nutrition and lifestyle accounted for almost 95% of the risk of a heart attack in men and women in almost every geographic region and in every racial and ethnic group worldwide. These factors were: smoking, cholesterol level, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, diet, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and psychosocial issues such as emotional stress and depression. In other words, the disease that kills the most people each year worldwide and accounts for the single largest expenditure of healthcare dollars is almost completely preventable just by changing diet and lifestyle in ways described in this book.
If that doesn't make you pick up this book, I don't know what will.
This first third of this book dives deeply into the fields of nutrition, stress management, guided meditations, and exercise. The information conveyed in these sections is clear and easy to understand with scientific studies as backup. These are the sections that I found most useful and in some cases mind blowing.
The second third deals with specific issues: lowering cholesterol, losing weight, lowering blood pressure, preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes, preventing and reversing cardiovascular disease, and preventing and treating prostate and breast cancer. There is really great information here, but there is a ton of repetition, as the solutions have already been outlined in the sections before this one.
The final third covers recipes, cooking and shopping tips. Honestly, this is the part I found least useful, but it would be pertinent information for anyone new to the ideas in this book.
In some ways, Ornish is preaching to the choir with me, but I reinforced ideas I already had formed, learned some new things, and have no doubt that I will re-read sections of this book for the rest of my life.
If that doesn't make you pick up this book, I don't know what will.
This first third of this book dives deeply into the fields of nutrition, stress management, guided meditations, and exercise. The information conveyed in these sections is clear and easy to understand with scientific studies as backup. These are the sections that I found most useful and in some cases mind blowing.
The second third deals with specific issues: lowering cholesterol, losing weight, lowering blood pressure, preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes, preventing and reversing cardiovascular disease, and preventing and treating prostate and breast cancer. There is really great information here, but there is a ton of repetition, as the solutions have already been outlined in the sections before this one.
The final third covers recipes, cooking and shopping tips. Honestly, this is the part I found least useful, but it would be pertinent information for anyone new to the ideas in this book.
In some ways, Ornish is preaching to the choir with me, but I reinforced ideas I already had formed, learned some new things, and have no doubt that I will re-read sections of this book for the rest of my life.
December 27, 2014
I keep reading and re-reading this book, as it has very good health tips. More of which I should follow. But there is a recipe section that I use to make healthy lunches on a weekly basis. If you know Dr. Ornish from the 1980's with his REVERSING HEART DISEASE, this book is along the lines of overall improvements in health. Basically, he says know what you are eating and make your own decisions. He rates foods on a 1 to 5 scale (spectrum), one being really healthy (think fruits and veggies) to five which is crap (cold cuts, fast food, etc). The 2-4 section are lean meats and proteins, good fats and dairy, most of which is reasonably good for you. He doesn't tell you how to live your life and/or diet, but he wants you to know what the choices and options are. And he believes in moderation, so if you occasionally slip over to the unhealthy 5 section there is no judgement (except your own for eating it!). The recipe section is really good (as I mentioned above) and there is also a section on meditation and exercise and their importance, but this is not a workout book.
March 20, 2016
Dean Ornish has built quite a reputation in the U.S., as far as I can judge. His lifestyle change program is reimbursed by a number of medical insurers. This book explains how the program works, and why it works and sums up quite a bit of research (some of it Dr. Ornish's and his colleagues' own) that delivers the scientific basis. The Spectrum contains four fields: nutrition, stress-management, guided meditation and exercise. In four chapters these are described in some detail. Then follow a number of chapters dealing with issues such as lowering your cholesterol, losing weight, lowering your blood pressure, preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes, preventing and reversing cardiovascular disease and preventing and treating prostate cancer and breast cancer. Each of these chapter is divided in turn in the four areas of the spectrum, which leads to quite a bit of repetition (many phrases such as 'as described before', 'as mentioned in chapter x,' etc.). I was nearly tempted to deduct a star for this editorial concept. But for 2 reasons I stuck with 4 stars: 1) Dean Ornish is an authoritative voice not to be overheard and 2) the book contains a large selection of recipes by Chef Art Smith that are not very difficult to make, but still a notch above what you typically find in a book like this.
August 10, 2013
Based on his portrayals in the media as part of the "diet wars" with the late Dr. Atkins, I expected the author's views to be fairly extreme. Instead, I found this book very refreshing. What you get instead is a spectrum of choices depending on how far you want or are willing to go in your nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes.
There is a plan for everyone including someone just trying to eat a little healthier, prevent heart and other lifestyle related disease, and a plan for those who are trying to reverse disease and essentially prevent an untimely death. I plan to give serious consideration to following this plan of action as preventative measure.
There is a plan for everyone including someone just trying to eat a little healthier, prevent heart and other lifestyle related disease, and a plan for those who are trying to reverse disease and essentially prevent an untimely death. I plan to give serious consideration to following this plan of action as preventative measure.
October 11, 2013
Why don't health book authors have better editors? This Ornish book claims to present a program for improved health and it does cover extensive scientific research on a range of modern day maladies from heart disease to diabetes. But somehow he never actually gets around to any concrete suggestions on what a person should consume daily to manage and improve their own health. There is much discussion of our need to adjust dietary and lifestyle recommendations for an individual's unique physiology but no real guidelines as a starting point. I ordered this hoping for a resource that would help a friend make some better choices. Joel Fuhrman's books are a much better guide, especially the Nutritarian Handbook.
March 13, 2017
Apparently Ornish, whose primary research findings have not been replicated in multiple attempts, thinks sugar is better for you than salmon. Also, if you're looking for healthy recipes, how about making bagels at home with white flour and white sugar? This book is a joke and I don't think I've ever seen such a huge mixture of hand-waving, logical fallacies, and misrepresentations of the research on nutrition so well consolidated before.
January 15, 2009
This is an excellent book--I gave it 4 stars because it tends to be repetitious in places. Ornish talks about the relationship of diet and lifestyle to health, mapping out a spectrum of healthy food choices as well as lifestyle choices, and encourages you to determine where you are and where you want to be.
March 8, 2018
Nothing earth shattering here just some pretty sound advice for nutrition, exercise and meditation. The more regimented you become in your approach the more benefits are felt. Solid advice, information.
January 8, 2014
Waste of time. Too permissive. Allows temptations that undermine the discipline necessary for change.
August 23, 2017
I've only tried one recipe thus far (the dal soup), so five stars may be premature.
Dr. Ornish has a very impressive track record for his successes in the health field. His methods of diet and exercise - lifestyle changes - can, at their most stringent, actually reverse heart disease and other problems. This book offers not only the program for reversing life-threatening problems, but also offers totally doable ways to make everyone live healthier.
Well, unless you prefer the Atkins method and want to focus on protein and fat rather than good carbohydrates. As Dr. Ornish points out, we are all unique; a certain diet may work phenomenally well for one person while another person might completely fail at it.
But Dr. Atkins isn't making any claims about reversing chronic illnesses.
I need to exercise more, but I think this may be the most sustainable diet I've tried yet. It's basically the "Simply Filling" plan on Weight Watchers (or whatever the cleanest eating method is there these days), minus most meats - and minus most of the guilt. Dr. Ornish doesn't make you feel guilty for having little treats, as long as you do things the most healthy way most of the time. I like that. In the week where I stuck to the program hardest, I felt really good! Decreasing fat and protein while increasing fruits, vegetables, and good carbs works for me.
I will have to keep at this and see how it goes. As winter approaches, we'll see how sustainable it is; it's harder to get good produce in the frozen north.
Anyway. I was really impressed by this book. The science is sound and the lifestyle is sensible, without being extreme.
Dr. Ornish has a very impressive track record for his successes in the health field. His methods of diet and exercise - lifestyle changes - can, at their most stringent, actually reverse heart disease and other problems. This book offers not only the program for reversing life-threatening problems, but also offers totally doable ways to make everyone live healthier.
Well, unless you prefer the Atkins method and want to focus on protein and fat rather than good carbohydrates. As Dr. Ornish points out, we are all unique; a certain diet may work phenomenally well for one person while another person might completely fail at it.
But Dr. Atkins isn't making any claims about reversing chronic illnesses.
I need to exercise more, but I think this may be the most sustainable diet I've tried yet. It's basically the "Simply Filling" plan on Weight Watchers (or whatever the cleanest eating method is there these days), minus most meats - and minus most of the guilt. Dr. Ornish doesn't make you feel guilty for having little treats, as long as you do things the most healthy way most of the time. I like that. In the week where I stuck to the program hardest, I felt really good! Decreasing fat and protein while increasing fruits, vegetables, and good carbs works for me.
I will have to keep at this and see how it goes. As winter approaches, we'll see how sustainable it is; it's harder to get good produce in the frozen north.
Anyway. I was really impressed by this book. The science is sound and the lifestyle is sensible, without being extreme.
November 8, 2020
1. How to reverse diseases like heart disease, breast cancer, diabetes, and other cancers including prostrate cancers is the theme of this book.
2. Author: Your genes might lift the gun but it’s your environment that pulls the trigger.
3. Environment includes your food, exercise, and self care (meditation and Hatha Yoga). If you change dramatically these things then you can not only stop the diseases in its course but reverse them despite your bad genes!
4. Food: 1) Whole food and plant based meals. 2) 5 cups of green tea per day can do great good with its phytophenols. 3) Take flaxseed oil or fish oil to get omega 3s. 4) avoid simple carbs, smoking, and animal proteins including milk!
5. Scary part: 1. No. 1 killer in the world and bigger than all other killers� numbers put together! 2. heart attack chances are higher if your arteries are 30% clogged than 95%. Because 1) 95% clogged ones have made alternative ways to flow the blood; 2) 95% clogged is hardened plaque.
6. Loneliness: Feeling lonely is like smoking 15 cigarettes a day (this is from another book). To avoid that loneliness having family and friends support is key to reverse diseases. Church going has a positive impact too.
7. 1/3 of people will know they have a high calcium score (heart disease) only when they get a sudden attack and die.
8. This author is the one advised Bill Clinton to change his diet to plant based.
2. Author: Your genes might lift the gun but it’s your environment that pulls the trigger.
3. Environment includes your food, exercise, and self care (meditation and Hatha Yoga). If you change dramatically these things then you can not only stop the diseases in its course but reverse them despite your bad genes!
4. Food: 1) Whole food and plant based meals. 2) 5 cups of green tea per day can do great good with its phytophenols. 3) Take flaxseed oil or fish oil to get omega 3s. 4) avoid simple carbs, smoking, and animal proteins including milk!
5. Scary part: 1. No. 1 killer in the world and bigger than all other killers� numbers put together! 2. heart attack chances are higher if your arteries are 30% clogged than 95%. Because 1) 95% clogged ones have made alternative ways to flow the blood; 2) 95% clogged is hardened plaque.
6. Loneliness: Feeling lonely is like smoking 15 cigarettes a day (this is from another book). To avoid that loneliness having family and friends support is key to reverse diseases. Church going has a positive impact too.
7. 1/3 of people will know they have a high calcium score (heart disease) only when they get a sudden attack and die.
8. This author is the one advised Bill Clinton to change his diet to plant based.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 9, 2020
If you visit a doctor for any non-emergency visit, almost all of them will prescribe drugs for you without telling you about the side-effects of the drug that they just prescribed. Very few will take the time to tell you what else you can do or eat to avoid visiting doctors again (oh they don't mind that you visit them repeatedly). Well, you can ask your doctors about those in your next visit (which I hope you would not have to do).
Meanwhile, there is Dr. Dean Ornish, the author of this book. He has lots of talks around the medical community and even one famous at about how to use food to keep you healthy and avoid expensive (and traumatic) trips to the hospital -- eating the right kind of food, exercising and even stress management. Pharma companies will hate us for this. If you cannot personally visit Dr. Ornish, read this book and keep it in near your dining room and kitchen because it also has an entire section dedicated to which foods to eat and even how to prepare them in a healthy way.
Would you rather visit the pharmacy or the grocery store for your well-being?
Meanwhile, there is Dr. Dean Ornish, the author of this book. He has lots of talks around the medical community and even one famous at about how to use food to keep you healthy and avoid expensive (and traumatic) trips to the hospital -- eating the right kind of food, exercising and even stress management. Pharma companies will hate us for this. If you cannot personally visit Dr. Ornish, read this book and keep it in near your dining room and kitchen because it also has an entire section dedicated to which foods to eat and even how to prepare them in a healthy way.
Would you rather visit the pharmacy or the grocery store for your well-being?
December 9, 2019
Most of what he suggests makes sense. I disagree with his suggested whole grains and low fat way of eating though. I think he’s seeing great results with his plan because the population he is working with (sickly/heart disease) sees improvement from cutting sugar and processed foods from their diet. They also begin walking, yoga and take steps to engage more socially. IMO he’d see further improvement in his patients with fewer grains and more healthy fats. I love that he’s working with the health care system to have preventative care like yoga and meditation classes covered by insurance. Why wait until your sick and then pay for a lifetime of drugs and/or surgery? In summary, it’s worth a quick read/scan through to be reminded of a variety of ways to address a wide range of common ailments brought on by an unhealthy way of life. Nothing really new here though.
June 14, 2019
I picked up a few nuggets of information that were new to me, but otherwise, it was the same information, move more, eat better. I do think if you are trying to make some healthy lifestyle changes this book provides some good details. I know for myself personally, I can still do better with my sugar and sodium intake, two areas I seem to struggle with.
"There are at least 10,000 substances in foods that have powerful anti-cancer, anti-heart disease,and anti-aging properties."
"There are at least 10,000 substances in foods that have powerful anti-cancer, anti-heart disease,and anti-aging properties."
January 2, 2022
This was not the book I was hoping for. This is great for a person that is wanting to make healthier choices, move forward on the healthy spectrum, but we were looking for more guidance on eating for heart health and reversing CAD. His first book is best, but UNDO it also has more information than this one. However, this book is great for people who are just trying to be healthier and not radically change their diet.
August 26, 2017
The Spectrum: A Scientifically Proven Program to Feel Better, Live Longer, Lose Weight, and Gain Health (Hardcover)
by Dean Ornish
from the library
16 pages
by Dean Ornish
from the library
16 pages
September 18, 2020
Book in a sentence: a scientifically-backed showing how to increase the quality and length of your life.
Key lesson: the most influencing variables to living longer and healthier are nutrition, stress-management, exercise, and feeling loved.
Key lesson: the most influencing variables to living longer and healthier are nutrition, stress-management, exercise, and feeling loved.
July 29, 2023
I like the ideas in the book, but found it difficult to figure out what the actual program really was. Especially in regards to the food. Though I do like that stress management is a key part of the program.
June 2, 2018
Good information
Very helpful. I would like it to have included menu ideas and recipes. But overall very informative. It left me need to find out more
Very helpful. I would like it to have included menu ideas and recipes. But overall very informative. It left me need to find out more
February 20, 2020
Very well researched book.. At the end it gives you a load of recipes to follow the Spectrum way of life. Very easy read and I enjoyed it.
October 6, 2020
From 2007 so some of the data may be outdated. I just skimmed this but found it very interesting.
September 23, 2021
Quite old school type of keep fit in regards to avoiding saturated fat, which to a certain extend I don’t agree with. The part on meditation and exercise is excellent advice.
January 14, 2022
A book about eating healthier and meditating to reduce stress and disease.
July 12, 2022
Some good advice about food choices and exercise. Includes some appealing recipes.
March 18, 2013
The Spectrum by Dean Ornish, M.D. details the research Dr. Ornish and others have done regarding maintaining health and preventing disease. Dr. Ornish delves into the effects of food, stress, exercise, and attitude on health. He explains that the research reveals that while general healthy eating works for everyone, there are aspects of any diet that won't. Some people respond differently to different things based on their genetic makeup and other factors. Ornish provides insight into the idea of thinking prevention rather than cure. He explains that many diseases are related to diet and lifestyle and can be completely avoided if people are willing to change their diet, exercise more, and embrace meditation. Ornish teamed up with Art Smith to create recipes for the book. Some of the recipes sound delicious but several use ingredients I find suspect at best casting some doubt on the veracity of the book. I've yet to make any of the recipes, but they sound easy enough. I'll never make many of the recipes in this book because I eat a vegan, oil-free, primarily whole food diet. I watched the meditation DVD that came with The Spectrum and am looking forward to using it when I need a little aid with my meditation. The Spectrum is an interesting book based on research that provides solutions for those seeking to improve their health.
December 23, 2019
This book was what changed my perspective on the foods we eat and the disease they cause. It was the starting point to a plant-based life.
April 16, 2011
Few months ago I decided to eat more healthy. As a scientist I started from searching the scientifically proved way to improve my diet and I found this book. It is well explained material to create your very own special diet. Author says that everyone is different and so everyone needs different food to sustain his needs. I like to have choose other than either follow the instructions or die and this book gave me exactly this. Almost all advices are confirmed by scientific data which is great because you know exactly what's the impact of many types of food and you can easily choose the best option from the wide spectrum. This explains the title of the book which is accurate. There are also chapters about stress management and physical exercises but they aren't as great as this about diet. Don't get me wrong, they solid, just nothing mind changing.
Why did I rate only 4 stars to this book? Because it has lots of repetitions which I hate. Despite this I strongly recommend the Spectrum for everyone interested in health. In fact I think that reading it will be beneficially to almost everyone.
Why did I rate only 4 stars to this book? Because it has lots of repetitions which I hate. Despite this I strongly recommend the Spectrum for everyone interested in health. In fact I think that reading it will be beneficially to almost everyone.
February 24, 2012
Dr. Dean Ornish is a nationally renowned cardiac rehabilitation researcher. He first got in the limelight for a study in the early 1990s where he use a clinic setting to keep 13 patients on a strict diet and exercise regimen. Although one of the overly competitive patients died while rowing a "virtual boat," the study was deemed a success. Ornish said he is in basic agreement with Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn on a plant-based diet though Ornish would add 3, 1,000-mg capsults of fish oil a day.
While Esselstyn's program, presented in "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease," called for eliminating all except plant-based foods, Ornish said he was in basic agreement in his book, "The Spectrum." However, Ornish said he would add three, 1000 mg capsules of fish oil daily, whereas Esselstyn did not even recommend fish.
The book could be very worthwhile for persons needing cardiovascular rehabilitation or hoping to avoid adverse heart conditions.
While Esselstyn's program, presented in "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease," called for eliminating all except plant-based foods, Ornish said he was in basic agreement in his book, "The Spectrum." However, Ornish said he would add three, 1000 mg capsules of fish oil daily, whereas Esselstyn did not even recommend fish.
The book could be very worthwhile for persons needing cardiovascular rehabilitation or hoping to avoid adverse heart conditions.
August 8, 2012
This book is fantastic! I find it comforting to know that it's not inevitable that I wind up with heart disease like my father. I've always exercised fairly regularly, I've been careful about diet, but I've always delighted in a LOT of sugar. This book really helped guide me. I've been eating a LOT more fruit, more veggies and just feel pretty danged good in general. I had cake a few days back and you know what? I could feel that it wasn't good for me.
Ornish is amazing. The recipes, in this book are fantastic and healthy for you. I couldn't ask for more. There is enough guidance to allow you to adjust your diet to your specific needs. This means you can add meat or additional fats if you don't need to reverse heart disease. I love the flexibility as well as the reminder that it's so incredibly important to take care of your health.
Ornish is amazing. The recipes, in this book are fantastic and healthy for you. I couldn't ask for more. There is enough guidance to allow you to adjust your diet to your specific needs. This means you can add meat or additional fats if you don't need to reverse heart disease. I love the flexibility as well as the reminder that it's so incredibly important to take care of your health.
March 27, 2014
A friend gave me this book, and I appreciated much of the well-researched information in this book, but it wasn't easy to get into. It was mostly dry reading, really dry, and wasn't crazy about Dean Ornish's examples of his own family and their relationships sprinkled throughout the book. I found it distracting, and kept wondering if this book was meant to be part memoir? Overall the book had so much useful information and I flagged so many mouth-watering recipes, was worth reading. I was disappointed it wasn't completely vegan--and wondered why taking the skin off a sausage was included? When is sausage a healty option? Also I felt the cooking section should have had all the cooking terms listed before the recipes, but I'm sure the recipes will make this book useful for years to come.
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