Steven R. Gundry
Gundry in 2019
Born	(1950-07-11)July 11, 1950 (age 75) Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Education	Yale University (BA) Medical College of Georgia (MD)
Scientific career
Fields	Cardiothoracic surgery,nutrition
Institutions	Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Website	gundrymd.com

Steven Robert Gundry (born July 11, 1950) is an American physician,low-carbohydrate diet author and former cardiothoracic surgeon.^[1][2] Gundry is the author ofThe Plant Paradox: The Hidden Dangers in "Healthy" Foods That Cause Disease and Weight Gain, which promotes the controversial and pseudoscientificlectin-free diet.^[3] He runs an experimental clinic investigating the impact of a lectin-free diet on health.

Gundry has made erroneous claims thatlectins, a type of plant protein found in numerous foods, causeinflammation resulting in many modern diseases.^[4] HisPlant Paradox diet suggests avoiding all foods containing lectins.^[5] Scientists and dietitians have classified Gundry's claims about lectins aspseudoscience.^[5][6] He sells supplements that he claims protect against or reverse the supposedly damaging effects of lectins.^[7]

Gundry graduated fromYale University with aBachelor of Arts degree in 1972 and went on to earn aM.D. at theMedical College of Georgia (a division ofAugusta University) in 1977.^[8][9]

People reported in 1990 that an infant boy's heart spontaneously healed itself while waiting weeks on life support for a transplant from Gundry andLeonard Bailey.^[10] The boy's recovery made the need for a heart transplant unnecessary, and he underwent a successful four-hour surgery from Gundry to repair themitral valve.^[11] Gundry has authored articles and registered several patents for medical devices during his career as a cardiothoracic surgeon.^[12]

In 2002, Gundry began transitioning from Clinical Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery atLoma Linda University School of Medicine to private practice by starting The International Heart & Lung Institute inPalm Springs, California.^[13][14]

By mid-2000s, Gundry was providing dietary consulting through The Center for Restorative Medicine, a branch of his private surgery practice.^[15][16]

Gundry has authored books focused on food-based health interventions.^[17][18] Although not mentioned in his first book,Dr. Gundry's Diet Evolution: Turn Off the Genes That Are Killing You and Your Waistline (2008), his second book,The Plant Paradox (2017), advocates avoidinglectins, a class of proteins found in numerous plants.^[4] In 2018, he published an accompanying recipe book.^[19]

He is the host of theDr. Gundry Podcast on health and nutrition.^[20] Gundry writes articles for Gwyneth Paltrow'sGoop website, which has been criticized for promotingquackery.^[21] Gundry has also supported the website ofJoseph Mercola for giving "very useful health advice".^[22]

Gundry advocates a low-carbohydrate diet. In 2022, he authoredUnlocking the Keto Code which promotes a lectin-freeketogenic diet consisting of goat and sheep dairy products, fermented foods,grass-fed beef,shellfish, olive oil, and red wine.^[23] Gundry's ketogenic diet encourages the consumption ofpolyphenols,time-restricted eating, and "mitochondrial uncoupling" to facilitate weight loss.^[23][24][25]

Gundry sells supplements that he claims protect against the damaging effect of lectins.^{[9][7][26][6]} Gundry's claims supporting the efficacy of the what he calls "dangerous" lectins have been thoroughly rebuked and rejected by the scientific community.^[27][28][29]

T. Colin Campbell, a biochemist and advocate for plant-based diets, states thatThe Plant Paradox contains numerous unsupported claims, and refutes that it makes a "convincing argument that lectins as a class are hazardous."^[7] Campbell also commented that "even more egregious are the wild claims he makes with no referencing at all, which is most of the text... Sometimes it almost seems like this author is just making things up that sound good".^[7]

Robert H. Eckel, anendocrinologist and past president of theAmerican Heart Association, argues that Gundry's diet advice contradicts "every dietary recommendation represented by theAmerican Cancer Society,American Heart Association,American Diabetes Association and so on" and that it is not possible to draw any conclusions from Gundry's own research due to the absence ofcontrol patients in his studies.^[30] Writing inNew Scientist, food writer and chefAnthony Warner notes that Gundry's theories "are not supported by mainstreamnutritional science" and that evidence of the benefits of high-lectin-containing diets "is so overwhelming as to render Gundry's arguments laughable".^[26]

Harriet Hall ofScience-Based Medicine has noted that Gundry's alleged evidence for the benefits of alectin-free diet is anecdotal and meaningless as there are no studies with control groups in the medical literature to support his claims. Hall concluded that Gundry is not a reliable source of medical information and asserts that "the lectin foods that Gundry prohibits are part of a science-based healthy diet. Avoiding them might lead to inadequate nutrition."^[31]

Mario Kratz ofRed Pen Reviews gave Gundry's bookThe Plant Paradox an overall score of 49% and a 29% score for scientific accuracy.^[1] Kratz stated that the book's strong claim that a lectin-free diet can prevent and reverse most chronic diseases is not supported by scientific evidence. He also commented that the book makes an unusual claim that consumption of fruit leads toobesity andweight gain which is not supported by any evidence and is contradicted by cohort and experimental studies which show an inverse association.^[1] Kratz concluded that "while the diet recommended inThe Plant Paradox probably has general health benefits for people who can stick with it, it's not clear whether avoiding common dietary lectins is beneficial".^[1]

AlthoughToday's Dietitian acknowledges that consuming raw beans, which contain lectins, could be harmful, it concludes that "it would be nonsensical for any dietetics professional to recommend a lectin-free diet."^[3]

In November 2021, Gundry published a poster abstract inCirculation which claimed that mRNA vaccines against theCOVID-19 virus "dramatically increase" inflammation and that this was associated with heart disease.^[32] Commentators in British media cited the abstract as evidence of the mRNA vaccines being unsafe.^[32] The abstract was not peer-reviewed before publication. The American Heart Association issued anexpression of concern, warning that the abstract may not be reliable and that, among other problems, there were "no statistical analyses for significance provided, and the author is not clear that only anecdotal data was used".^[33] TheReuters Fact Check team concluded that it did "not provide reliable evidence that mRNA vaccines increase risk of heart disease".^[32]Full Fact noted that the claims in the abstract relied on results from a test for which there was little evidence that it could accurately predict the risk of heart attacks.^[33]

• Dr. Gundry's Diet Evolution: Turn Off the Genes That Are Killing You and Your Waistline. New York: Harmony Books. 2009.ISBN 978-0307352118.
• The Plant Paradox: The Hidden Dangers in 'Healthy' Foods That Cause Disease and Weight Gain. New York: Harper Wave. 2017.ISBN 978-0062427137.
• The Plant Paradox Cookbook: 100 Delicious Recipes to Help You Lose Weight, Heal Your Gut, and Live Lectin-Free. New York: Harper Wave. 2018.ISBN 978-0062843371.
• The Plant Paradox Quick and Easy: The 30-Day Plan to Lose Weight, Feel Great, and Live Lectin-Free. New York: Harper Wave. 2019.ISBN 978-0062911995.
• The Longevity Paradox: How to Die Young at a Ripe Old Age. New York: Harper Wave. 2019.ISBN 978-0062843395.
• The Plant Paradox Family Cookbook: 80 One-Pot Recipes to Nourish Your Family Using Your Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or Sheet Pan. New York: Harper Wave. 2019.ISBN 978-0062911834.
• The Energy Paradox: What to Do When Your Get-Up-and-Go Has Got Up and Gone. Harper Wave. 2021.ISBN 978-0063005730.
• Unlocking the Keto Code: The Revolutionary New Science of Keto That Offers More Benefits Without Deprivation. Harper Wave. 2022.ISBN 978-0063118386.

• 1950 births
• 21st-century American physicians
• Living people
• American cardiac surgeons
• Cardiothoracic surgeons
• American cookbook writers
• American health and wellness writers
• American nutritionists
• Fasting advocates
• Loma Linda University faculty
• Low-carbohydrate cookbook writers
• Low-carbohydrate diet advocates
• Medical College of Georgia alumni
• Pseudoscientific diet advocates
• Yale University alumni
• 21st-century surgeons
• 20th-century American surgeons

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