What makes a health guru?

Firstly, health gurus need to have your full confidence.  So whilst, it goes against the grain to some extent, most of the health gurus we have chosen are medical doctors first and foremost.  We also have included the odd scientist/clinician and nutritionist.

Why does this go against the grain?   Because generally, in our experience most medical doctors don’t have a real interest in continued health and well-being.  They are trained solely to deal with the symptoms of illness by use of pharmaceutical products.  Effectively, they have become the distribution arm of the pharmaceutical industry.  Particularly, GPs and the whole of the NHS.

So when a medical doctor actually uses the knowledge that they have, recognises the bigger picture and turns their back on the established way of things, it is worth taking notice.

That said, we are not criticising or doubting the professionalism, skills and hard work that the vast majority of the medical profession devote to their work.  It is the system they find themselves in that is to blame.

The ‘System’ is to blame

That system, and primarily the medically trained experts responsible for it at this time (not to mention the politicians) is, in our view at fault for the extent of the pandemic we now face.

There has been zero advice and guidance from these so-called experts and politicians on how to improve the immune health of the nation. It is immune health on which the severity and extent of the COVID-19 pandemic balances.

Not to mention the need for immune health to get the best out of the vaccine.  The lack of advice and guidance is bordering on gross negligence.

Our Founder is asking healthcare, public health and nutrition professionals and scientists to support a letter being sent to Matt Hancock the health secretary to this effect.  Please support this Petition if you are such a professional or scientist.

Health Gurus need the right background or training

One of the principal concerns about medical doctors as a whole is that they don’t fully understand or recognise how the body works.  They don’t understand the importance of the input (nutrition) but focus solely on the output (symptoms).  The mantra is to deal with symptoms and not the underlying cause of the problem.

So training or research is key for a health guru to get fully up to speed with health and well-being through diet, lifestyle and control of toxins (voluntary and involuntary).  Often they have ben through a life-changing health issue themselves.  Realising that the usual medical treatments don’t work or are dangerous from a long-term perspective.

Many of our health gurus are also at the heart of clinical research into the benefits of health and well-being practises.

Health and well-being practices

Some of these have been around for centuries.  For example, in Chinese or Ayurvedic medicine. But many treatments are non-patentable so the results of such trials can be enjoyed by everyone.

On the other hand, it is the main reason why money hasn’t been made available to test them properly until now. Companies cannot make as much money from carrying out clinical trials.  So Government has to step in either to do the research or incentivise companies to do it.

False economy by Government

It is a false economy by Governments worldwide to pay inflated prices for patented medicine to pharmaceutical companies.

These are expensive remedies that are used to “close the stable door after the horse has bolted”.  By improving general health and well-being rather than paying so much to Big Pharma, hospitalisations and cost of healthcare will reduce dramatically.

No more starkly obvious is this premise than it is now with reference to the pandemic.  Blind panic by an under prepared Government has resulted in huge amounts of money being thrown at pharmaceutical companies and the economy being devastated.

Introducing the Health Gurus for 2021

All of the health gurus we mention here are followed by our Founder’s biologist mother, Joan Ebsworth.  She has written extensively for us on immune health. Read more about the immune system in our various Articles.

It is not surprising that many of these are American.  The American healthcare system is more broken than the NHS. Which means the cost of healthcare is spiralling out of control and many can not afford to pay for the insurance that is needed to pay for visits to doctors or hospitals.

Health gurus: USA – in alphabetical order

Dr Amy Myers MD 

Amy Myers, MD is a two-time New York Times bestselling author and an internationally acclaimed functional medicine physician.

She specializes in empowering those with autoimmune, thyroid, and digestive issues to reverse their conditions and take back their health.

To date, Dr. Myers’ groundbreaking books, The Autoimmune Solution and The Thyroid Connection, along with her Amazon #1 Bestseller, The Autoimmune Solution Cookbook, have sold over 500,000 copies and been translated into 13 languages.

Dr. Myers has been a special guest on the Dr. Oz Show 7 times, produced and starred in her own wildly-popular PBS special, 28 Day Metabolism Makeover, and been featured in dozens of television and radio interviews, global health summits, and nationally-syndicated podcasts.

Dr Andrew Saul PhD

Andrew Saul has been a consulting specialist in natural healing for over 30 years. He has a Ph.D. in Human Ethology (behavioural biology).

As an author and veteran lecturer for three colleges his command of clinical nutrition is second to none.

His world-famous, peer-reviewed, non-commercial natural healing website, www.DoctorYourself.com, receives over 40,000 hits per day.

Psychology Today named Saul as one of seven natural health pioneers. He is featured in the documentary Dying to Have Known: The Evidence Behind Natural Healing and the very popular Food Matters movie.

He has authored or co-authored fourteen books, including four with Abram Hoffer. Saul is currently Editor of Basic Health Publications’ popular Vitamin Cure book series, with over a dozen titles in print or in progress and Editor in chief of the Orthomolecular News Service.

Dr T Colin Campbell PhD

Colin Campbell, PhD has been dedicated to the science of human health for more than 60 years. His primary focus is on the association between diet and disease, particularly cancer.

Although largely known for the China Study which is one of the most comprehensive studies of health and nutrition ever conducted. Recognized by The New York Times as the “Grand Prix of epidemiology”.

Dr. Campbell’s profound impact also includes extensive involvement in education, public policy, and laboratory research.

Dr. Campbell grew up on a dairy farm and was the first in his family to go to college, where he studied pre-veterinary medicine at Pennsylvania State University.  After obtaining his bachelor’s degree, and while completing his first year at the University of Georgia veterinary school, he received a telegram from a well known professor at Cornell University, offering a scholarship and research opportunity too good to turn down.

And so he completed his education at Cornell University (M.S., Ph.D.) and MIT (Research Associate) in nutrition, biochemistry and toxicology.  He then spent 10 years on the faculty of Virginia Tech’s Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition before returning to Cornell in 1975 where he presently holds his Endowed Chair as the Jacob Gould Schurman Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry in the Division of Nutritional Sciences.

Dr. Campbell’s research experience includes both laboratory experiments and large-scale human studies. He has received over 70 grant-years of peer-reviewed research funding (mostly with NIH), served on grant review panels of multiple funding agencies, actively participated in the development of national and international nutrition policy, and authored over 300 research papers.

Throughout his career, he has confronted a great deal of confusion surrounding nutrition and its effects. It is precisely this confusion that he has focused so much on, in recent years.

In order to synthesize the findings of his long and rewarding career, and to give back to the public whose lives are threatened by rampant misinformation and special interests, Dr. Campbell co-wrote The China Study: Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-term Health, which has sold more than 2 million copies worldwide.

He is also the author of the The New York Times bestseller Whole, and The Low-Carb Fraud. Several documentary films feature Dr. Campbell and his research, including Forks Over Knives, Eating You Alive, Food Matters, and PlantPure Nation.

He continues to share evidence-based information on health and nutrition whenever given the opportunity. He has delivered hundreds of lectures around the world and he is the founder of the not for profit T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies and the online Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate in partnership with eCornell.

Dr David Perlmutter MD

Dr. Perlmutter is a Neurologist and five-time New York Times bestselling author. He serves on the Board of Directors and is a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition.

Dr. Perlmutter received his M.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine where he was awarded the Leonard G. Rowntree Research Award.

He serves as a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and has published extensively in peer-reviewed scientific journals including Archives of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and The Journal of Applied Nutrition.

In addition, he is a frequent lecturer at symposia sponsored by institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, Columbia University, Scripps Institute, New York University, and Harvard University, and serves as an Associate Professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

His books have been published in 36 languages and include the #1 New York Times bestseller Grain Brain, The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs and Sugar, with over 1 million copies in print.

Other New York Times bestsellers include Brain Maker, The Grain Brain Cookbook, The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan, and Brain Wash, co-written with Austin Perlmutter, M.D. He is the editor of The Microbiome and the Brain authored by top experts in the field and published in December 2019 by CRC Press.

Dr. Perlmutter has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated television programs including 20/20, Larry King Live, CNN, Fox News, Fox and Friends, The Today Show, Oprah, The Dr. Oz Show, The CBS Early Show, and CBS This Morning.

Dr. Perlmutter is also the recipient of numerous awards, including:

  • the Linus Pauling Award for his innovative approaches to neurological disorders.
  • the National Nutritional Foods Association Clinician of the Year Award.
  • the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the American College of Nutrition
  • and most recently the 2019 Global Leadership Award from the Integrative Healthcare Symposium.

Dr Joseph Mercola MD

Dr. Joseph Mercola is the founder of Mercola.com. An osteopathic physician, best-selling author and recipient of multiple awards in the field of natural health, his primary vision is to change the modern health paradigm by providing people with a valuable resource to help them take control of their health.

Dr. Mercola has paved the way for revolutionary changes in the field of natural health. He is always ahead of the curve when it comes to innovative health information, breaking beyond the confines of conventional medicine to bring trustworthy health advice to his audiences. Here are some of the contributions he made to natural health:

  • 1999 – Reported about the dangers of the NSAID Vioxx. In 2004, the drug was withdrawn by Merck from the market due to its potential to cause adverse cardiovascular effects.
  • 2000 – Advised against the cultivation and consumption of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). In 2015, the National Geographic published an article calling GMOs “the biggest fraud in the history of science.”
  • 2000 – Promoted lack of vitamin D as “far more important to health” than concerns over calcium. In 2015, Science Daily promoted sunlight and vitamin D to be necessary for public health.
  • 2001 – Warned against the use of mercury in dentistry, which was revealed to have close links to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. In 2017, the Minamata Convention on Mercury became effective, banning the manufacture, import and export of products that contain mercury, including dental amalgam.
  • 2002 – Advised against water fluoridation, as fluoride is an endocrine disruptor that can do body-wide problems. In 2015, the U.S. lowered its fluoride levels in water, finding that it damages the teeth.
  • 2006 – Advised against aspartame due to its connection to leukemia and 90 other different related adverse reactions. In 2015, The Washington Post published an article about on the real dangers of fake sweeteners.
  • 2012 – Supported the California Ballot Proposition 37 (Yes on 37) which would require GMO foods to be labeled. Prop. 37 paved the way for other state initiatives, such as in Oregon, where a bill was passed in 2014 officially banning genetically engineered crops from being grown in Jackson County.
  • 2014 – Visited Mexico and partnered with Caminos de Agua (formerly CATIS-Mexico) to support rural communities by helping develop low-tech fluoride removal and rain water catchment mechanism for non-contaminated water.

Dr. Mercola has written a total of 15 books, three of which have been included in The New York Times Best Sellers list, namely “Effortless Healing,” “The No-Grain Diet” and “The Great Bird Flu Hoax.” His most recent books, which have also been hailed as best sellers in the health category, are “Fat for Fuel,” “Ketofast” and the newly released “EMF*D.

Due to his tireless efforts in disseminating important health information to the public, Dr. Mercola has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors. In 2009, he was named the top Ultimate Wellness Game Changer, which awards “100 innovators, visionaries and leaders in 10 categories who are harnessing the power of new media to reshape their fields and change the world.

He also has received prestigious awards from Emord and Associates P.C. for his contributions to holistic medicine, including the Sacred Fire of Liberty Award, Excellence in Health Journalism Award and the Freedom of Informed Choice Award.

Dr Mark Hyman MD

Dr. Mark Hyman is leading a health revolution.  One revolved around using food as medicine to support longevity, energy, mental clarity, happiness, and so much more.

Dr. Hyman is a practicing family physician and an internationally recognized leader, speaker, educator, and advocate in the field of Functional Medicine. Including the following:

  • founder and director of The UltraWellness Center.
  • the Head of Strategy and Innovation of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine.
  • a thirteen-time New York Times bestselling author.
  • Board President for Clinical Affairs for The Institute for Functional Medicine.
  • host of one of the leading health podcasts, The Doctor’s Farmacy.

Dr. Hyman is a regular medical contributor on several television shows and networks, including CBS This Morning, Today, Good Morning America, The View, and CNN. He is also an advisor and guest co-host on The Dr. Oz Show.

Dr. Hyman has turned his passion for Functional Medicine, real food, nutrition, and wellness into activism. Working to change our food system on a global scale.

Through his work to change policy for the betterment of public health, Dr. Hyman has:

  • testified before the US Senate Working Group on Health Care Reform on Functional Medicine.
  • consulted with the surgeon general on diabetes prevention.
  • participated in the 2009 White House Forum on Prevention and Wellness.
  • been nominated  for the President’s Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health.
  • presented at the Clinton Foundation’s Health Matters and the Clinton Global Initiative
  • contributed to the Achieving Wellness in Every Generation conference
  • assisted the World Economic Forum on global health issues, TEDMED and TEDx.
  • He is the winner of the Linus Pauling Award and the Nantucket Project Award.
  • He was also inducted into the Books for Better Life Hall of Fame With Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Michael Roizen.

Dr. Hyman crafted and helped introduce the Take Back Your Health Act of 2009 to the United States Senate  This Act promotes reimbursement for lifestyle treatment of chronic disease. With Tim Ryan in 2015, he helped introduce the ENRICH Act into Congress to fund nutrition in medical education.

Dr. Hyman plays a substantial role in the major 2014 film Fed Up, produced by Laurie David and Katie Couric, which addresses childhood obesity.

Health gurus: USA – in alphabetical order

Amanda Hamilton

Amanda has been one of the UK’s most established nutrition experts for almost two decades with a career that’s included more than eight internationally syndicated TV series and four books, the latest of which became a number one Amazon best-seller.

Last year she was named as one of the UK’s top five “super-nutritionists” – able to impact both day-to-day and long-term health with practical, professional advice. She is also a certified Life Coach.

Prior to her professional training in nutrition, she was a BBC TV presenter and print journalist, skills that are called on regularly in her roles as a media commentator or brand ambassador. In the coming year, she is launching and co-hosting her own online education programmes.

Exercise and Sport 

Exercise is also a key aspect of her holistic approach to health. A qualified Pilates and Barre instructor, she regularly hosts classes in her own studio or online, and in her spare time she also competes in international-level badminton.

Nutrition Philosophy

Amanda’s approach to food is first and foremost realistic – lots of plants, farm to table, minimal processing and sustainability – adding in gut-friendly foods and regular fasts for wider health benefits.

Business and Consulting

She is in great demand as a consultant and guest speaker across a diverse range of sectors.  Amanda works with a number of brands on projects ranging from board level strategy, PR and communications to engagement and education.

In the hotel and wellness industry she’s long been respected as a thought leader. She led several successful wellbeing concepts, designing signature wellness menus and health programmes for some of the world’s leading destinations. In the UK, she continues to host her retreats at the award-winning Champneys Hotel & Spa.

The Move to Online

During the lockdown months she created online retreats targeted towards women in midlife. Due to their popularity they remain part of the programme of events for 2021 and beyond.

Dr Damien Downing

Damien Downing qualified from Guy’s Hospital (London) in 1972. He worked in the UK NHS initially and then in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific. He returned in 1980 to set up a private practice in nutritional and environmental medicine.

Dr Damien has particular interests in:

  • membrane lipids and lipid therapy.
  • mitochondrial dysfunction.
  • environmental toxic effects.
  • sunlight and vitamin D.

Dr Downing is the Co-founder and current President of the British Society for Ecological Medicine.  He also Co-founded the Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine in 1990, and was for 20 years its editor-in-chief.

He serves on various Boards and has influential appointments including:

His 1988 book Daylight Robbery pioneered our understanding of how vital sunlight and vitamin D are for health.

His book The Vitamin Cure for Allergies was released in 2010, and The Vitamin Cure for Digestive Disorders in 2013.

Patrick Holford BSc, DipION, FBANT, NTCRP

Patrick Holford, , is a pioneer in new approaches to health and nutrition. He is a leading spokesman on nutrition in the media, specialising in the field of mental health.

Patrick started his academic career in the field of psychology. He then became a student of two of the leading pioneers in nutrition medicine and psychiatry – the late Dr Carl Pfeiffer and Dr Abram Hoffer.

In 1984 he founded the Institute for Optimum Nutrition (ION), an independent educational charity, with his mentor, twice Nobel Prize winner Dr Linus Pauling, as patron.

ION has been researching and helping to define what it means to be optimally nourished for the past 25 years. It is one of the most respected educational establishments for training nutritional therapists.

At ION, Patrick was involved in ground-breaking research showing that multivitamins can increase children’s IQ scores – the subject of a Horizon television documentary in the 1980s.

He was one of the first promoters of the importance of zinc, antioxidants, high-dose vitamin C, essential fats, low-GL diets and homocysteine-lowering B vitamins and their importance in Alzheimer’s disease prevention.

Patrick is the Founder of the Food for the Brain Foundation and on the board of trustees, and a Director of the Brain Bio Centre.  The Foundation’s treatment centre specialises in helping those with mental health issues, ranging from depression to schizophrenia.

He is an honorary fellow of the British Association of Nutritional Therapy, as well as a member of the Nutrition Therapy Council and the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council.

He is also Patron of the South African Association of Nutritional Therapy. In 2014 Patrick was inducted to the Orthomolecular Medicine Hall of Fame.

The author of 37 books, translated into over 30 languages and selling millions of copies worldwide, including:

  • The Optimum Nutrition Bible,
  • The Low GL-Diet Bible,
  • Optimum Nutrition for the Mind
  • The 10 Secrets of 100% Healthy People,
  • 10 Secrets of Healthy Ageing and Good Medicine.

Patrick is frequently quoted in the media and presents lectures and workshops throughout the world.

Dr Rangan Chaterjee MD

Rangan Chatterjee is a British physician, author, television presenter and podcaster.

He attended the University of Edinburgh where he studied Medicine and graduated in 2001 with an additional degree in immunology.

After graduation he worked in Edinburgh for two years. Now he is a pioneer in the emerging field of progressive medicine, and has nearly 20 years’ experience as a doctor. In 2017 he came 8th in the Pulse Power 50 list for influential GPs.

He is best known for his TV show Doctor in the House. Also for being the resident doctor on BBC One’s Breakfast Show and as a regular commentator on BBC Radio.

His TV show Doctor in the House has been shown in more than 70 countries around the world.  He also writes for the Huffington Post and writes a monthly column on lifestyle medicine in Top Santé. Also he is a podcaster and has his show “Feel better, live more”, hosted with aCast.

He has written 3 Sunday Times best-selling books: The Four Pillar Plan, The Stress Solution, and Feel Better in 5.  Dr Chatterjee hosts the #1 Health and Wellbeing podcast Feel Better Live More, which has been downloaded more than 20 million times.

Dr Chatterjee co-created the highly acclaimed Prescribing Lifestyle Medicine educational course.  This course has been delivered to over 1200 GPs, Consultant Physicians and other healthcare professionals providing them with a usable framework to apply Lifestyle Medicine principles in clinical practice.

He regularly features on BBC news channels and has given an inspirational TED talk on making diseases disappear with nearly 3 million downloads.

Dr Rupy Aujla MD

Dr Rupy Aujla is an NHS GP working in Emergency Medicine and has completed a masters in Nutritional Medicine.

D Rupy is the founder of ‘The Doctor’s Kitchen‘, which strives to inspire and educate everybody about the beauty of food and the medicinal effects of eating well.

He creates healthy and delicious recipes using carefully selected ingredients, explaining the clinical research behind them across his media platforms.

Dr Rupy is a Sunday Times bestselling author, with two cookbooks published by Harper Collins – “The Doctor’s Kitchen” and “Eat to Beat Illness” and often appears on BBC and ITV.

In addition, he is the founding director of Culinary Medicine, a non-profit organisation which aims to teach doctors and medical students the foundations of nutrition, as well as teaching them how to cook.

In his role as clinical adviser to the Royal College of GP’s and more recently being accepted as a fellow on the NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme, Dr Rupy has big aspirations to bring this concept to the profession globally.