Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

07/31/2025

Wake Forest University in North Carolina is doing something unjustifiable and possibly illegal with taxpayer money.

A whistleblower recently informed the Physicians Committee that a Wake Forest course scheduled to begin Aug. 4 will allow pediatricians in training and others to perform invasive procedures on young vervet monkeys, some weighing only 2 pounds.

The National Institutes of Health has given Wake Forest more than $12.5 million since 2012—including $1 million this year—simply to keep the university’s vervet colony going. But the continued funding of this colony is out of step with the NIH’s new initiative on human-based research.

The money from the NIH is probably not supposed to be used for pediatrics training. Plus, Wake Forest’s vervet experiments in areas like Alzheimer’s, aging, obesity, and diabetes have failed to benefit patients.

One NIH-funded experiment at Wake Forest forced 30 female vervets through a maze—including a mother who had just given birth and had to carry her infant the whole time—only to conclude that older animals walked more slowly. The experimenters even acknowledged that numerous human clinical studies have been conducted on the issue but dismissed those studies as “difficult and expensive.”

The next course is scheduled for Aug. 4-7.

The Physicians Committee is calling on the NIH to demand Wake Forest cancel the course and halt agency funding for the colony altogether.

❗Tell NIH: Defund Wake Forest’s monkey colony.

https://act.pcrm.org/5F16MY06nUmFJVC0zBF0Cw2

07/30/2025

A new study finds higher body fat linked to increased breast cancer risk after menopause.

A whole food, plant-based diet can be part of a healthy lifestyle to support weight management.

Learn more: https://www.pcrm.org/news/health-nutrition/elevated-body-weight-increases-risk-breast-cancer

07/30/2025

Saturated fat -- not eggs -- is the key culprit behind high LDL cholesterol, which can lead to cardiovascular disease And in fact, a diet low in saturated fat and high in dietary cholesterol, such as that found in eggs, can lower blood cholesterol levels. This -- according to a new study from researchers at the University of South Australia.

But what are we to make of this study, which received funding from an offshoot of the American Egg Board, an organization focused on marketing and promoting eggs?

Dr. Neal Barnard joins Chuck Carroll on this episode of The Exam Room to tell us what he makes of these findings, and to answer your questions about saturated fats, dietary cholesterol and eggs.

In this episode of The Exam Room, you'll learn:

- Whether eggs raise cholesterol for everyone
- Whether eggs egg whites and free range eggs are healthier options
- Dr. Barnard's favorite egg substitutes
- Whether eggs or meat and dairy have a greater impact on cholesterol
- How many eggs are safe to eat per week
- How saturated fat influences cholesterol absorption
- How quickly eggs can raise cholesterol
- Genetic factors that influence cholesterol

This episode is sponsored by The Gregory J. Reiter Memorial Fund, which supports organizations like the Physicians Committee that carry on Greg’s passion and love for animals through rescue efforts, veganism, and wildlife conservation.

� SHOW LINKS �
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� EVENTS �
International Conference on Nutrition in Medicine
Where: Washington, DC
When: August 14-16, 2025
Tix & Speakers: https://www.pcrm.org/icnm

Fit Vegan Workshop
Where: Vancouver, BC, Canada
When: Sept. 20-21, 2025
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About Us
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

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07/30/2025

The Physicians Committee is proud to join the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health’s new Validation and Qualification Network (VQN) — a bold initiative to accelerate the development and acceptance of innovative research technologies that better reflect human biology.

Joining this diverse network of more than 40 partners, the Physicians Committee is committed to accelerating the transition to research methods that better reflect human biology and reduce the use of animals in research.

Through the VQN, we’ll help advance new approach methodologies—including organ-chip models and computational tools—that are helping accelerate drug discovery, enhance safety testing, and improve disease modeling.

The VQN, launched as part of the NIH’s Complement-ARIE program, will help overcome barriers to broader regulatory adoption of these transformative technologies.

Learn more:

The Validation & Qualification Network is a new public-private partnership that would accelerate the implementation New Approach Methodologies.

07/29/2025

Wake Forest University in North Carolina is about to do something cruel and unusual. We’ve never heard of anything like it. A whistleblower recently informed the Physicians Committee that a course scheduled to begin Aug. 4 will allow pediatricians in training and others to perform invasive procedures on young vervet monkeys, some weighing only 2 pounds.

Among the most invasive procedures they plan to perform is intubation, in which trainees force a plastic tube through the animals’ mouths and into their windpipes. That can cause bleeding, scarring, injury to the vocal cords, and even death. They may also insert thin tubes into the animals’ urethras, which can cause painful bladder infections and injuries.

More than 200 pediatrics programs across the U.S. and Canada train using simulators modeled on human anatomy, not animals. And we have never heard of a single medical center using monkeys for this type of procedural training.

❗Tell Wake Forest to cancel this course before it begins!

https://act.pcrm.org/5F16MY06nUmFJVC0zBF0Cw2

07/29/2025

Not all “ultra-processed” foods are created equal.

Dietitian Xavier's letter in the Washington Post calls for more nuance in the conversation around ultra-processed foods and rising obesity rates—emphasizing that some healthful plant-based foods may carry the “ultra-processed” label, and that animal products like meat and cheese should also be part of the discussion when addressing the drivers of obesity.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/07/28/zyn-coke-sugar-cancer-obesity/

07/28/2025

We’re excited to announce the launch of our brand-new Spanish-language YouTube channel!

We’re kicking things off with Un Mundo Saludable, a six-episode series created to support Spanish-speaking communities with practical, science-based health and nutrition guidance.

The series is entirely in Spanish, and Episode 1 is available now!

Toma las riendas de tu salud por medio de una alimentación a base de plantas. www.comitedemedicos.org

07/28/2025

Scientists are using 3D breast cancer organoids—tiny tumors grown from patient cells—to study how cancer grows. These human-based models may help uncover how cancer cells shut down genes that are supposed to stop tumor growth.

Read more:

Study in a Sentence: Scientists use patient-derived breast cancer organoids—or 3D mini-tumors—to study processes involved in slowing or stopping tumor growth, also known as cellular senescence.

07/28/2025

Are plant-based meats part of the ultra-processed food problem—or the solution?

At this year’s International Conference on Nutrition in Medicine, Dr. Michael Greger will break down the latest research on ultra-processed foods, disease risk, and how plant-based diets may help reframe the narrative.

Join Dr. Greger and other top health care professionals Aug. 14-16 in Washington, D.C., for three days of groundbreaking nutrition science and clinical tools.

Register here: PCRM.org/ICNM

07/25/2025

We know corn chips and soda are processed. But there’s a food that’s processed even more, and it’s marketed as healthy: chicken breast.

Corn goes in, and the chicken’s body does the rest. It removes fiber, adds cholesterol, and turns fats into saturated fats. Then it’s fried, producing cancer-causing compounds.

Watch to learn why chicken may be worse than the junk foods we usually avoid.

07/25/2025

Learn more about maintaining a healthy weight on our website: https://www.pcrm.org/health-topics/weight-loss and for more plant-based tips, recipes, and nutrition guidance, follow our Food For Life by Physicians Committee page and find a class near you! 🍊🥦🫑

Learn more about maintaining a healthy weight: https://www.pcrm.org/health-topics/weight-loss

07/24/2025

The countdown is on—ICNM is just 3 weeks away!

Join us and hundreds of health care professionals in Washington, D.C., for the International Conference on Nutrition in Medicine, Aug. 14-16.

Discover the latest research on plant-based diets, chronic disease prevention, and practical tools to bring nutrition into clinical care.

Washington, D.C. | Aug. 14-16
Register now at PCRM.org/ICNM