PCRM Physician-Founder to Discuss Obesity Epidemic, Atkins Craze, Influence of Meat, Dairy Industries Over Federal Food Guidelines

WASHINGTON—Twenty years ago, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) was founded to steer Americans toward a healthier diet and to promote alternatives to animal research. Today, with support from physicians like the late Dr. Benjamin Spock and Dr. Henry Heimlich, the PCRM has emerged as the nation’s leading voice in the fight against the obesity epidemic and chronic diseases through a healthier diet.

Since its founding in 1985, PCRM has:

• Won a battle in federal court against the Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services over the influence of the meat and dairy industries over federal diet guidelines.
• Filed a high-profile lawsuit against Atkins Nutritionals on behalf of a Florida man who sustained a life-threatening artery blockage after more than two years on the diet.
• Along with the Georgetown University School of Medicine, completed a study on diet and type 2 diabetes, finding that patients on a low-fat vegan diet are able to reduce blood sugar and medication use more than those on an American Diabetes Association diet.
• Brought an end to animal use in medical education at 80 percent of North American medical schools.

WHAT: Teleconference

WHO: PCRM founder and president, Neal Barnard, M.D.

WHEN: April 13, 2005, 1:00 pm Eastern

Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a nonprofit health organization that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research,and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in research.