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A Personal Profile
by Jeff Novick, Registered
Dietitian at the McDougall Program
I have been interested in food
and fitness for as long as I can remember. Some of my
earliest childhood memories involve helping my grandmother
prepare food from scratch, and learning about wrestling from
my grandfather. As a child my two favorite TV shows were
Jack LaLanne and The Galloping Gourmet with
Graham Kerr. When I was in grade school, I petitioned
my school to let me become the first male to take Home
Economics instead of Industrial Arts (or “Shop” as it was
called). I wanted to learn about food and cooking, not
metal and woodworking. Sports, specifically gymnastics,
wrestling, and soccer were also my interests.
In 1973, I had my first
experience with vegetarianism from the book Love Your
Body by Viktoras P. Kulvinskas. He recommended a raw
food vegan diet. My neighbor and I tore up a section of my
parent’s backyard to plant an organic garden, started
growing sprouts, turned my father’s garage into a gym, and
went on a vegan diet. While we didn’t stay with the diet
for long; this was a jumping off point for me to begin to
explore ideas about vegetarianism, meditation, yoga, and
other alternative approaches to health.
Eventually, my interests led
me to culinary school in 1981 where I received a degree in
Culinary Arts and Food Service management from the State
University of New York. Over the next few years, I worked in
many restaurants around the country including as a Pastry
Chef in a gourmet French restaurant in Grand Junction,
Colorado, and as the chef of a natural foods restaurant in
Syosset, New York.
My father was a butcher, as
was his father, so my new ideas about vegetarianism early in
my life were a real shock for my parents. They were
concerned that these ideas were not safe and healthy. They
wanted some “proof,” but at that time most of the “science”
was poorly written, and too many articles were from Eastern
writers with hard to pronounce names. “Real evidence” on
the safety and benefits of a vegan diet was lacking. (Time
spent working in the butcher business with my father was eye
opening, especially in terms of where food comes from and
what can legally be put into food.)
The real evidence finally
arrived for me in 1983 with the publication of The
McDougall Plan. Dr. McDougall’s clear explanations of
the science and exhaustive documentation were career
changing. He uncovered many nutritional myths, including
those persuasive ones about protein and calcium. After
reading The McDougall Plan everything I had
once been confused about nutrition and health made sense—I
was freed to move forward, having both the knowledge of and
the confidence in a properly designed vegan diet. I
understood this was not an “alternative” approach, but
rather a rational, safe, and sane way of eating to regain
health. Of course, the first people I gave copies to were
my parents.
In 1985, I left the restaurant
industry and went to work as a Major Account Manager for
Kraft Foods; eventually becoming a Supplemental Distribution
Manager. At the same time, I was trying to spread the
message about healthy eating. I wrote letters to the editors
of the local papers and articles for the local co-op. I
started teaching adult education classes and at the local
community university program. In my spare time, I was
running an organic food co-op out of my house, counseling
clients, and taking several distance learning courses to
further my education. Dr. McDougall was a real inspiration
to me at all times and I not only read all of his material,
but attended conferences where he spoke. I was especially
impressed with how he went back into the medical/health
system to try to change it, instead of just criticizing it
from the outside.
Soon, I realized that while my
career with Kraft was financially successful for me, I was
not happy. I was in conflict by working for a company
that sold the same products that were causing most of
America’s health and weight problems. The enjoyment and
self-satisfaction I received from helping others to change
their diets made me realize my real passion. I decided to go
back to school for a formal education in nutrition. In 1992
I left Kraft Foods to get university training—my goal was to
get a degree.
As part of my senior year in
undergraduate training at Indiana State University, I had to
choose a “specialized” internship experience. When I
submitted my proposal for the McDougall Program at St Helena
Hospital in the Napa Valley, the internship supervisor asked
if he was a “real doctor.” Of course he was! Not only did I
get to go, but also the University awarded me a scholarship
to help with the expenses. In April/May of 1995 my dream to
work with Dr. McDougall at his program came true. There I
got to see for the first time the full implementation of
proper nutrition in a clinical setting. I saw participants’
blood pressures and cholesterols drop, and their health
dramatically improve in less than 12 days. It was during
these sessions that Dr. McDougall’s study on his patients
was accepted for publication. I remember feeling hope that
finally the tide was changing. I applied for a position
with Dr. McDougall, but none was available—so back to
Indiana State University I went to pursue my graduate
degree. Upon return, I was chosen to present the data I had
collected to the Indiana State University graduate research
conference.
As a graduate student, I
continued my community support groups and had the fortunate
opportunity to meet the associate director of a local
hospital. As a result of our meeting, and our shared
interests in natural health and living, I was asked to
create a nutrition curriculum for the family practice
residents program which became my Masters Thesis. The
project, known as The Nutrition Education Initiative,
was a wellness-based curriculum for the medical doctors,
family practice residents, and medical students in the
community, and featured vegan meals at each of the
educational sessions. The project ran for almost 3 years.
As a result of this project, and my other academic,
professional, and community work, the Governor of Indiana
awarded me the Indiana State Public Health Excellence in
Health Science Award in 1997, and in 2003, Indiana State
University awarded me the Graduate-of-the-Last-Decade
Award.
In 1998 I received my graduate
degree in Dietetics with a minor in exercise physiology. My
first job was at the Pritikin Longevity Center in Florida.
As the Director of Nutrition for Pritikin, over the next 10
years I was able to see first hand the impact of diet and
lifestyle on thousands of people each year in a controlled
residential setting. While the program was not vegetarian,
the principles and guidelines were very similar to the
McDougall Program. People threw away their medications and
were cured of chronic ailments. In addition, the center
was actively involved in documenting and publishing the
results of their program and I was able to participate in
both their ongoing research and their science advisory
committee.
In 2005, Dr McDougall and I
met up again at the annual North American Vegetarian Society
meeting and discussed again the possibility of working
together in the near future. In 2006 I spoke at the
McDougall Advanced Study Weekend program in Santa Rosa,
California. The setting was impressive, but what moved me
most was the intimacy and family feel of the program. With
John, his wife and daughter, Mary and Heather McDougall,
working together this was truly the McDougall Program.
In November of 2007, after
almost 10 rewarding years with the Pritikin Program, I
decided to seek other opportunities. In January of 2008 I
formally joined the McDougall Program as their dietitian. I
have never been more pleased with a career decision. In
addition to my work with the McDougalls, I continue to speak
and teach regularly. For example, this past year I lectured
for the Florida Academy of Family Physicians, the Florida
Cardiology Group, the University of Alabama Medical School,
as well as many vegetarian groups and conferences around the
United States. I also teach online classes in nutrition
for the School of Health Sciences at Kaplan University
(Online Learning). I serve as Director of Education for the
Natural Health Association and maintain my own website and
private practice, where I do nutrition and lifestyle
coaching and medical nutrition therapy.
I facilitate a discussion
forum at Dr McDougall’s website,
www.drmcdougall.com. Here anyone can ask questions and
discuss health and nutrition issues. It is a very active
forum with over 800 topics—I have personally made over 1700
posts.
I also facilitate a regular
blog, free newsletter, and support forum at my own website
at
www.JeffNovick.com. People can also contact me at the
National Health Association website at
www.healthscience.org. I do personal consultations and
coaching and am available for public speaking. Contact me
jeff@jeffnovick.com |
