Dr. Dean Ornish was born July 16, 1953, in Dallas, TX to Edwin (a dentist) and Natalie (a historian). He married Shirley E. Brown (a nutritional expert and co–director of Ornish’s research), until they divorced in 1994. Dr. Ornish married Mary Blackwell in June of 1998. He attended Rice University, received his B.A. and graduated summa cum laude from University of Texas at Austin in 1975, and received his medical doctorate from Baylor College of Medicine in 1980.

San Francisco–area physician Dean Ornish is the author of several best–selling books that tout a low–fat, high–carbohydrate diet and moderate exercise program as the best way to prevent and even reverse cardiac disease. Ornish also runs seminars and “healthy lifestyle” retreats that teach patients how to maintain both a sensible diet and positive outlook on life. Though some in the medical community were initially wary about Ornish’s ideas, follow–up studies have demonstrated that his program has indeed been able to unstick some of the plaque build–up in arteries that causes a heart attack, and by 2003 several major health insurers covered the cost of enrollment. “The work has made Ornish one of the few practitioners to successfully test an Eastern style of health care,” according to Los Angeles Times columnist Shari Roan, “which focuses on holistic healing, using traditional, Western scientific methods.”

For over 35 years, Dr. Dean Ornish’s series of scientific research studies have been empowering the way millions of people think about the simple lifestyle choices they make each day in dynamic relation to their health & wellbeing. From being a revolutionary thought leader, a powerful professor, a beloved author and respected advisor to some of the worlds most powerful leaders, Dr. Dean Ornish is resoundingly recognized as a leader in health, healthcare and medicine.