enjoy. >> extra source egg -- eggs are a source of 13 vitamins and minerals. >> dairy products are very nutrient-rich. you get a lot of nutrients for every cal ray that you consume. >> a plant-based diet runs up against our meat-loving culture. >> us doctors eat meat because most americans eat meat. if they don't really see for themselves or their own families why it might be a good idea to cut back or even cut meat out of your diet all together then they may not be so inclined to trim for their patients. >> even doctors who do see the benefits of the esselston diet may not recommend it to patients. >> anybody who's able to do that diet can have dramatic success. the problem is is that many people are unable or unwilling to make these changes and so in my practice, i try to take baby steps one step at a time. >> and dean ornish said when it comes to diet, it's not all or nothing. >> one of the interesting findings in all of our studies, the more people changed their diet and lifestyle the more they improved in direct proportion. >> i was curious about the science between dr. e claims coronary eve % reducing >> oh, absolutely. >> the lay wisdom i you develop these plaques, they're there, you're stuck with them. try not to let them get worse. is that faulty thinking? >> i think it's absolutely faulty thinking. >> here's a picture esselston likes to show of a heart patient with a blocked coronary artery, and here's that same patient after going on a plant-based diet. you see the way the blockage has almost disappeared? sharon survived a heart attack a year ago after a coronary artery became completely block. now she's counting on the esselston diet to keep her from having another. >> thankfully your heart muscle function is normal. >> kim's cardiologist says -- so far, so good -- with the diet. >> it is a difficult sell but those who get on to it have benefited from it, without question. >> i asked sharon to meet me here in new york city. cooking at home is one thing, but eating on the road, eating on the run, that's quite another. as the old saying goes, if her diet can make it here, it can make it anywhere. 46th and broadway, please. sharon? how are you? when you cook at home it is lot more in your control. what's the most difficult thing when you're on the road? >> when i see here, i see pizza, which it is not because i'm sure there's oil in it. and pizza, that looks like pepperoni. when i look up here i see pasta. so my question would be, when i go in, do you have whole wheat pasta. then my second question is can you prepare it without oil.