By Amanda Mlekush
App State Nursing faculty member Melinda Bogardus, PhD, MSN, FNP-BC, RN, DipACLM, was recently selected to join the Board of Directors for Plant-Based Prevention of Disease (P-POD), a non-profit organization promoting holistic health and well-being through plant-based nutrition.
Bogardus joined the board in May 2025 to serve as the nurse planner for P-POD’s annual conference series. This year’s conference series includes five virtual and one in-person offering, which will take place Oct. 5 in Philadelphia.
“I believe deeply in the mission of this organization to inspire and help professionals promote health and well-being with nutritional interventions,” Bogardus said. “I greatly respect P-POD’s continued avoidance of commercial sponsorship and dedication to recruiting expert speakers concerned with nutrition and the social determinants of health. It is a privilege for me to serve on the board of P-POD.”
Bogardus said she began pursuing a plant-based diet when working as a family nurse practitioner at the University of Miami, and providing care for female patients living with HIV and AIDS.
“I noticed that many of my patients were experiencing adverse medication side effects and age-related changes that could be addressed with healthy eating and incorporating whole plant foods in their diet,” she said. “In 2010, I eliminated all animal products from my diet with some nutrition guidance from my partner, who is a registered dietitian.”
After coming to App State in 2021, Bogardus participated in a research study with colleagues Dr. Martie Thompson (Public Health), Dr. Sydeena Isaacs (Nutrition) and Dr. Shenghui Wu (Public Health) to explore the impacts a whole food, plant-based diet would have on college students.
“Despite having somewhat limited participation, we did see trends such as improved depression symptoms and less intake of processed foods with the students trying out this diet,” Bogardus said. The researchers have published information about the study in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior and plan to submit a manuscript to the Journal of Nutrition detailing the full study and results.
To supplement her diet, Bogardus and her partner have started a home-based garden where she grows fruits and vegetables including potatoes, New Zealand spinach, squash, tomatoes, pears, black raspberries and quince.
She says that some of her favorite plant-based meal recipes are grain bowls with black beans, corn and other vegetables, homemade vegetable pizza and Middle Eastern staples like hummus, falafel and tabouli. (Bogardus is pictured with some blueberries grown in her garden; photo provided)
Woman holding a garden pepper in her palm
Dr. Melinda Bogardus in her garden