Stop the presses! Is the former Arkansas governor, who prides himself on a pork barbecue diet, going vegetarian, or — gasp — vegan? We told you over the summer about his daughter Chelsea‘s vegan menu at her wedding. Maybe her health-conscious ways have rubbed off on her father?
In an interview with Willow Bay, Bill Clinton opened up about his new healthy choice. When Bay asked if he was looking forward to grandchildren, the former president had this to say:
“I’m trying to stay healthy enough to have ‘em. That’s what I want to do…. My travel schedule has cut back on my exercise some, which is frustrating to me, but I, I follow a pretty strict diet and I try, you know, to limit how much I eat and what I eat, and I lost 20 pounds or so…. Pretty much [vegan or vegetarian]. Once in a while, I’ll eat fish but not often because I’m trying to be one of those experimenters. Since 1986, several hundred people, who have tried essentially a plant-based diet, not ingesting an cholesterol from any source, have seen their bodies start to heal themselves, break up the arterial blockage, break up the calcium deposits around the heart. Eighty-two percent of the people who have done this have had that result, so I want to see if I can be one of them. I’ve got to do it for a few more months before we’ll have any idea if it work.”
It appears the study Clinton is referencing is this one performed by Dr. Dean Ornish. Our reporters at the Clinton Global Initiative have said Clinton looks better than ever. We’ve posted two photos above. The one on the left is Clinton in 2010 and the one on the right, at last year’s CGI. You be the judge. Has Clinton’s veggie diet improved his appearance?
Photo 1 by PR Photos; Photo 2 by CGI via Flickr.
