About
Vesanto Melina MS, RD
Living and thriving on a plant-based path for more than 30 years
Inspiration
From childhood, I felt drawn to the field of nutrition. My father completed his graduate work with the Nobel Prize winning pioneers of diabetes research, Banting and Best. He later conducted diabetes and cancer research himself. Meanwhile, my mother loved helping children, cooking, food preparation and fitness. With influences like these, nutrition became my passion.
My first full-time job was teaching nutrition at university. To gain a balance from academia, I travelled around the world and spent years in India. There, I gained an appreciation of how flavourful vegetarian diets can be.
When I returned to Canada, I learned about the terrible conditions faced by animals that are considered “food animals.” That experience inspired me to start teaching about plant-based nutrition, to the public and to dietitians. The timing was perfect for my books to become leaders in this emerging field.
I have gained tremendous wisdom from my son and daughter, and from living in cohousing communities in Vancouver BC. I also enjoy keeping fit and, at 83, I’m proud that I can still hold a two-minute plank!
Credentials
- Award-winning author, translating cutting-edge nutrition science into practical wisdom
- Co-author of fifteen award-winning books
- Lead author of dietitians’ position paper on plant-based nutrition
- International speaker: Barcelona, Reykjavik, Dresden, San Paulo & throughout North America
- Taught nutrition at the University of British Columbia and Bastyr University in Seattle
- Personal consultant to several of the best-known stars in the entertainment business
Vesanto Melina MS, RD
Awards and Achievements
I am honoured to have received the following awards and achievements throughout my career:
Lifetime Achievement Award
Plant-Based Prevention of Disease, Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine Conferences, New Jersey, 2023
Canada Book Award
Becoming Vegan: Express Edition Recognizing dedication and accomplishment, 2014
Real: Book Award
Responsible Eating and Living, Top 10 Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive Edition, 2014
IndieFab Book of the Year Awards
Foreword Reviews, Becoming Vegan: Express Edition, Honorable Mention in Health, 2015
American Library Association
ALA American Library Association Booklist
Book Reviews
Five Star Amazon Reviews &
#1 rating for plant-based books
Ryley-Jeffs Memorial Lecture Award
The Dietitians of Canada Board of Directors was honoured to announce Vesanto Melina MS, RD as the 2016 Ryley-Jeffs Memorial Lecture Award recipient.
Vesanto has an extensive and varied dietetics career that spans 5 decades, and she shows no signs of slowing down.
She is an internationally recognized speaker; a consultant to individuals, government (B.C. Corrections), and industry; a popular media personality; co-author of award-winning nutrition books; and a writer of peer-reviewed journal articles.
Her work has been and continues to be a source of fulfillment and tremendous personal and professional growth. She knows our profession to be one that promotes a full expression of human potential. Vesanto is a passionate supporter of Dietitians of Canada. She believes in people working in ways that are truly meaningful to them.
A version of Vesanto’s lecture is available in the Fall issue of the Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research.
Classics in Plant-Based Nutrition
Co-author of fifteen bestselling books on plant-based nutrition and food. They are published in ten languages, with one million copies in print.
- Plant-Powered Protein
- The Kick Diabetes CookBook
- Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive Edition with Brenda Davis
- Cooking Vegan (US) with Joseph Forest
- Becoming Raw with Brenda Davis
- Raw Food Revolution Diet with Brenda Davis and Cherie Sori
