HEALTH AND WELLNESS FACTS & STATS
Grounded in evidence. centered on equity, Power is Giving exists because the data are clear: lifestyle-driven chronic illness is preventable, arrestable and often reversible when we make nutrition equity accessible for everyone.
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By expanding whole-food, plant-based (WFPB) lifestyle education in communities where access has long been limited, we shift health trajectories upstream and close wellness gaps created by systemic inequity. When youth and adults embrace WFPB living, they move away from lifestyle-driven chronic illness and toward restored vitality and longevity.
DIABETES: PROGRESSION REVERSAL
​According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), in a study of patients with type 2 diabetes, more than 1/3 achieved reversal of their diagnosis after an intervention using a low-fat, whole food, plant-predominant diet. Patients saw A1C drops of up to 1.2 points, medication reduction, and, in many cases diabetes remission; outcomes unmatched by drugs alone.
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 38 million Americans are living with diabetes; more than 1 in 10 people.
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The burden of lifestyle driven chronic illnesses fall hardest on communities that have been historically under-resourced and systemically disinvested.
HEART DISEASE REVERSAL: DOCUMENTS & REPLICABLE
Studies by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn (Cleveland Clinic) and Dr. Dean Ornish (Preventive Medicine Research Institute)demonstrated that a strictly whole-food, plant-based diet can reverse coronary artery disease. Participants experienced improved blood flow and, in imaging studies, plaque regression.
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In longitudinal cohort studies, higher adherence to a whole food, plant-based dietary patterns is associated with 24% lower mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer, even among people already living with metabolic illnesses.
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​Heart disease and cancer remain the top two killers globally. WFPB diets influence major risk factors (cholesterol, blood pressure, oxidative stress, insulin resistance) for both.
FOOD APARTHEID 101
Food apartheid is a term coined by community educator and food justice leader Karen Washington to describe the unequal and unjust distribution of healthy, affordable food across communities. Unlike the phrase “food desert,” which suggests a natural condition or lack of potential, food apartheid names the political, social and economic decisions that determine who has access to fresh, nutritious foods and who doesn’t.
In Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, NC, food apartheid is visible in clear and preventable patterns:
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Limited access to affordable produce in under-resourced neighborhoods
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Higher concentrations of fast food outlets and convenience stores
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Fewer culturally aligned nutrition and lifestyle education opportunities
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Barriers that make preventive wellness support harder to reach
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Increased vulnerability to lifestyle-driven chronic illnesses
These conditions don’t appear on their own. They reflect decades of historic disinvestment, zoning decisions, economic structures and systemic inequities that shape health outcomes long before a person sits down to a meal.
Power Is Giving uses the term food apartheid because it tells the truth about why chronic illness disproportionately affects specific neighborhoods across our region. When we understand the root causes, we can design solutions that honor culture, empower families and restore access to the resources every household deserves.
Our Eat Drink Disrupt (EDD) programs bring whole food, plant-based lifestyle education directly into trusted community spaces. We equip youth and adults with evidence-informed tools and culturally aligned guidance that support meaningful, sustainable shifts in health — even in communities where access has been intentionally restricted.