Real Food. Real Medicine. Real Change.
VITAL SIGNS 2026
June 16-18th, 2026
Case Western Reserve University || Cleveland, Ohio
Hosted by Rip Esselstyn — featuring the nation’s leading experts in Food as Medicine and Lifestyle Medicine.
Providers earn continuing education credits (pending) while learning how real food can transform clinical outcomes.
For Providers
CME-accredited education and clinical application
For Individuals
Real-world guidance and practical resources
For Everyone
Connect with pioneers in lifestyle and nutrition science
Where Healthcare Meets Real Food.
June 16-18th, 2026
For too long, nutrition has been the missing link in medicine.
Vital Signs 2026 brings together healthcare providers, researchers, and the public to explore how evidence-based nutrition can prevent and reverse chronic disease — and change the future of healthcare.
Discover the Power of Real Food as Medicine
June 16-18th, 2026
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Learn from top physicians and researchers advancing the science of plant-based nutrition
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Gain practical tools to apply Food as Medicine in your clinic, workplace, or home
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Hear inspiring patient and provider success stories
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Experience immersive cooking demos and taste delicious, whole-food, plant-based meals
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Connect with like-minded professionals and changemakers
We now have decades of evidence showing that heart disease is largely preventable and even reversible with lifestyle change. Vital Signs is where science meets practice, giving clinicians and patients alike the confidence to use real food as real medicine.
- Dr. Brian Asbill
From the Team Behind PLANTSTRONG
Built on decades of clinical evidence and real-world transformation, Vital Signs 2026 is hosted by Rip Esselstyn and the PLANTSTRONG team — in collaboration with leading physicians and institutions advancing the Food as Medicine movement.
Program Agenda
Tuesday, June 16th
3:00 - 4:30 PM Registration
4:30 - 6:00 PM Food as Medicine: From Evidence to Everyday Practice - Rip Esselstyn
6:00 - 7:00 PM Plant Strong Dinner Buffet
7:00 - 8:00 PM Prevent & Reverse: Clinical Outcomes When Food is Prescribed — Biomarkers, Medications, and Guidelines - Dr. Brian Asbill
8:00 - 8:30 PM Peer Exchange: Identifying Barriers to Food as Medicine in Practice - Interprofessional Learning
Wednesday, June 17th
8:00 - 9:00 AM Plant Strong Breakfast
9:15 - 10:15 AM Prescribing Nutrition Across Specialties: Beyond 'Eat Better' - speaker to be announced!
10:15 - 11:15 AM Behavior Change that Works: Motivational Interviewing & CBT Tools for Nutrition Counseling - Dr. Elizabeth Winings
11:15 - 12:15 PM Primary Care: What a 15 Min Visit Looks Like, Here's the Assessment, How to Guide Your Patient - Dr. Laurie Marbas
12:15 PM Applied Nutrition Lab (Lunch!): Translating Food Environments Into Patient Success
1:30 - 2:30 PM Nutrition Myths That Undermine Patient Outcomes - speaker to be announced!
2:30 - 3:30 PM Insulin Resistance as a Root Cause: Clinical Implications for Food-Based Intervention - Dr. Laurie Marbas
3:30 PM - 4:30 PM Making Food as Medicine Work in Real Systems: Billing, SMA, Leadership & Toolkits - Plant Strong Panel
4:30 - 5:00 PM Guided Exercise: Identify One Food as Medicine Change You Will Implement in the Next 30 Days.
BONUS ADD-ON EVENT (See registration options): From Prescription to Plate: Teaching Food as Medicine Through Real Meals with Ann Crile Esselstyn and Jane Esselstyn
Heavy hors d'oeuvres included.
Thursday, June 18th
8:00 - 9:00 AM Plant Strong Breakfast
9:15 - 10:15 AM Decoding Food Labels: A Practical Skill for Better Patient Outcomes - Rip Esselstyn
10:15 AM - 11:00 AM Clinician Resilience & Patient Outcomes: Why Provider Well-Being Matters - Dr. Elizabeth Winings and Dr. Brian Asbill
11:00 - 11:45 AM From Insight to Implementation: Next Steps for Food as Medicine - Rip Esselstyn and Plant Strong Team
11:45 AM Event Concludes
I’ve seen what happens when patients discover the power of real food — lives change. Vital Signs is about bringing that transformation into the mainstream of medicine, where it belongs.
-Dr. Laurie Marbas
MEET YOUR HOST
RIP ESSELSTYN
NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLING AUTHOR
FOUNDER OF PLANTSTRONG
Rip Esselstyn spent a decade as one of the premier triathletes in the world. He then joined the Austin Fire Department where he introduced his passion for a whole-food, plant-based diet to Austin’s Engine 2 Firehouse in order to rescue a firefighting brother’s health. To document his success he wrote the national bestselling book, The Engine 2 Diet, which shows the irrefutable connection between a plant-based diet and good health. He is featured prominently in the documentary Forks Over Knives and The Game Changers.
As the founder of PLANTSTRONG, Rip develops and implements a range of programs and events geared toward education, inspiring and nurturing PLANTSTRONG living for individuals, families, and organizations across the globe.
DR. BRIAN ASBILL
CARDIOLOGIST
Dr. Asbill is board certified in Cardiovascular Diseases, Clinical Lipidology, and Lifestyle Medicine and served as a cardiologist at Asheville Cardiology Associates (Asheville NC), where he was also the Director of the Lipid Clinic. He was the Medical Director of Preventative Cardiology for Mission Health Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP), an intensive therapeutic lifestyle change program offered through Lifestyle Medicine Institute for the prevention, management, and reversal of vascular disease.
DR. ELIZABETH WININGS
NURSE PRACTITIONER
Dr. Winings specializes in the relationship between diet, lifestyle, and mental health. Elizabeth Winings, DNP, APRN is ANCC Board Certified as a Family Mental Health-Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner. She also has advanced training in Plant-Based nutrition, completing her doctoral internship in nutrition and lifestyle medicine at the True North Health Center in Santa Rosa, CA. She is a Diplomat of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Jacksonville University.
Dr. LAURIE MARBAS
LIFESTYLE MEDICINE PHYSICIAN
Dr. Marbas is a double board-certified physician who believes your body is designed to heal when you give it the right conditions.
Over the last decade, she's helped thousands of people rebuild their energy, metabolism, and confidence using one simple principle: healing happens through habits, not willpower. Dr. Marbas is Air Force veteran and an eternal student of human potential.
More Speakers Coming Soon!
The conference will be held in the heart of University Circle—steps away from world-class museums, botanical gardens, and restaurants. Discounted hotel blocks will be shared upon registration.
*Your event ticket is fully refundable up to March 16, 2026, less a $50 non-refundable fee.
Join us in Cleveland for three transformative days of evidence, education, and empowerment.
Vital Signs 2026—Real Food. Real Medicine. Real Change.
Questions? Call us at (512) 815-3322 or email at: events@plantstrong.com