This week’s Tango Alpha Lima podcast features Air Force retiree Mary Anne Kiel who talks about how the approach led to transforming the lives of servicemembers and their families.
Dr. Mary Anne Kiel, a retired Air Force physician, witnessed the poor health of servicemembers, their families and the health-care professionals taking care of them, including herself.
After she read an article espousing the benefits of whole food plant-based eating, Kiel spent the next two years exploring evidence-based resources to retake control of her health. These deliberate actions transformed her health, renewed her passion for medicine and made her a more effective military leader and engaged wife and mom.
“The power of lifestyle medicine in so many conditions is truly immense,” said Kiel, who is this week’s special guest on The American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast.
She explained that lifestyle medicine is about “helping people learn sustainable behavior change that they can do to help influence their health and wellness over the course of a lifetime. Not just lifespan but health span, increase the number of years that an individual is not only living but healthy.”
The behavior changes include being actively social, embracing a healthy, whole food plant-based diet, exercising regularly, getting enough sleep and more.
Kiel, a board-certified pediatrician and lifestyle medicine physician, now leads a plant-based lifestyle and enjoys teaching others these vital skills as a Food for Life Instructor through the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. Additionally, she continues to lead community events and collaborates nationally to advocate for military members and veteran health.
“The lifestyle medicine approach has allowed me to take it to the next level of getting to the root cause of disease, helping people find ways to make small changes — or big changes sometimes — and then see dramatic changes that they didn’t know were even possible,” explained Kiel, an American Legion member.
Also, co-hosts Stacy Pearsall, Adam Marr and Joe Worley:
• Discuss the upcoming Army-Navy Game presented by USAA.
• Chat about the best war movies.
• Dish on mystery meat.
Check out this week’s episode, which is among more than 280 Tango Alpha Lima podcasts available in both audio and video formats here. You can also download episodes on Apple Podcasts, Google Play or other major podcast-hosting sites. The video version is available at the Legion’s YouTube channel.
- Tango Alpha Lima