When a person in authority or a celebrity takes up a cause, it makes a significant difference in shaping opinions and changing things in major ways. After Eric Adams, who has an inspiring personal story from 2016 of beating diabetes with a plant-based lifestyle, became Mayor of New York City in 2022, he has paid full attention to advocating and implementing healthier diet options in public schools, hospitals, and even correctional centers.
Mayor Adams graciously granted an exclusive interview to ALotusInTheMud.com, in which he distinguished a plant-based lifestyle from vegan diets and explained why he considers US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. an ally. Excerpts:
Parveen Chopra: Mayor Adams, let’s start with your personal story of healing. Being diagnosed with diabetes in 2016, you reversed the disease and got rid of related complications by adopting a plant-based diet.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams: It was several years ago that I had a medical scare. My vision was impacted so much that doctors felt I was going to lose my sight. There was damage in my hands and feet as well, which could have become permanent. I also had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc. I went to a doctor named Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr. at Ohio’s Cleveland Clinic. He introduced me to a plant-based lifestyle. Plant-based as the foundation of your diet doesn’t mean that you’ll never eat any meat or fish. However, the bottom line is that you should opt for plant-based and healthy food. I started on that diet, and within three weeks, my vision loss went away, and in three months, the nerve damage healed too.
It was a remarkable turnaround and a real learning experience for me. It taught me the power of food. Many people believe that their health issues are hereditary or in their DNA. In fact, it’s in their dinner. But we have the same diseases that our family members have had because we have the same dinner and the same menu.
We all have a desire to consume fast food. We are addicted to the salty taste. Nature supplies us with all of that in the environment. We just have to learn to identify. Many people find it challenging to adjust to non-sugary and unprocessed foods. It took some adjustment for me, but I stood with plant-based diet.
~ Mayor Eric Adams
Parveen Chopra: Having been on this journey for a long time with a plant-based lifestyle, please share the difficulties you encountered in adopting it and how you coped.
Mayor Eric Adams: Well, you know, food is addictive, and we all have a desire to consume fast food. We are addicted to the salty taste. Nature supplies us with all of that in the environment. We just have to learn to identify. So, it was an adjustment. As you can imagine, many people find it challenging to adjust to non-sugary and unprocessed foods. It took some adjustment, but I stood with it.
Parveen Chopra: As a public figure, you began discussing this some years ago. But as Mayor of New York City since 2022, how have you promoted a plant-based diet and lifestyle, and with what results?
Mayor Eric Adams: Well, the government can’t tell people what to place on their grill or their stove.
But we can control what we do and how we feed people. So, we are modifying the food that we serve to our children. We have encouraged the plant-based lifestyle in our schools. We have implemented this in our health and hospital system, where medical professionals have plant-based meals as the default menu. Those who want something different can also find it. But we find that 90% of the people who have a plant-based meal want to stick with it. And the plant-based options they’re learning is part of the healing process.
We are also looking at plant-based options in the Department of Correction and even in ACS (Administration for Children’s Services). So we have become more healthier in what we feed New Yorkers who are in our care or who come to us for food.
Parveen Chopra: Many people, including myself, are confused – what is the difference between plant-based diet and veganism?
Mayor Eric Adams: Well, plant-based diet is food in its most original form. Vegan is anything that’s not animal. But it doesn’t mean it’s healthy. Oreo cookies, and sodas like Coca-Cola are vegan! Non-animal doesn’t mean that something is healthy. Many foods that are not made up of animal products can be unhealthy, even harmful.
Health Secretary RFK Jr is looking at areas that may be controversial. However, the fact that we don’t teach lifestyle changes as a healthy method in medical school should be a controversial topic for us. Every health problem should not come with a pill or an operation.
~ Mayor Eric Adams
Sometimes you have to go to extremes to come in the middle, and when you don’t push the envelope, we won’t get any changes. He was able to eliminate the red dye in food. He’s looking at areas that may be controversial. However, the fact that we don’t teach lifestyle changes as a healthy method in medical school should be a controversial topic for us. Every health problem should not come with a pill or an operation.
Parveen Chopra: Now, at the federal level in the US, we have Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. He has been implementing some policies his critics call controversial. He aims to make America healthier again by reversing the chronic disease epidemic through prevention, promoting healthier diets, and encouraging active lifestyles. Do you think he is an ally or is he going too extreme?
Mayor Eric Adams: I think RFK Jr is an ally.
Sometimes you have to go to extremes to come in the middle, and when you don’t push the envelope, we won’t get any changes. He was able to eliminate the red dye in food. He’s looking at areas that may be controversial. However, the fact that we don’t teach lifestyle changes as a healthy method in medical school should be a controversial topic for us. Every health problem should not come with a pill or an operation. Therefore, we should modify our approach to teaching doctors so that they can more readily adopt lifestyle changes.
Parveen Chopra: In America, as in most countries today, meat is a major part of the daily diet. What advice will you give to meat eaters to transition to a vegetarian, plant-based diet?
Mayor Eric Adams: Well, you have to wean them off their habits with knowledge to help them find their entryway.
When I communicate with people, I ask them what is important to them. Some people want to be around to play with their grandchildren. Some want to reverse a chronic disease that they are going through. Some people want to be an example for a loved one who is going through a chronic disease. So we all have entry points, we all have things that are significant to us.
What’s important to me may not be important to you. And you know, I want to be around for my son and see him married. I would love to play with my grandchildren. That’s why I want to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Parveen Chopra: A Lotus In The Mud is a wellness and spirituality magazine based in New York. What advice would you want to share with our readers?
Mayor Eric Adams: Yes. Food is life, and life is food.
Just as we invest in stocks and bonds, we should also invest in our bodies, doing so every day. It would pay you great dividends, and you’ll get a return on your investment.
New in New York City: Healthier menus
- New York City is committed to the health and well-being of every child. We provide approximately 800,000 free nutritious meals and options to all NYC public school students every day.
- On Fridays, our school cafeterias serve a nutritious, plant-based dish as the primary menu item, made with fresh ingredients.
- We have debuted over 20 new plant-based recipes on Fridays.
- The school meals are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein, and expose students to healthy meals prepared in flavorful ways.
- But we’re not stopping at our schools – our jail system now has plant-based meal options.
- And New York Health + Hospitals serves over 14 plant-based dishes and gives each patient a plant-based cookbook when they are discharged to support healthier diets.
Watch a short clip from Mayor Adams’ interview to Lotus contrasting plant-based diet with vegan:
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