Dr. Rajiv Bajekal is a consultant spinal surgeon practicing in London with over thirty-five years of experience in orthopaedics and spinal surgery. A Fellow of the prestigious Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS), his MCh designation for orthopaedics is reserved for surgeons achieving years of extensive and intensive advanced studies. As an advocate of beneficial lifestyle and nutritional choices, Dr. Bajekal is also a member of the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine (IBLM).
Dr. Bajekal is a senior examiner for the FRCS Trauma and Orthopaedics Examination and lectures both nationally and internationally to general practitioners. He is also part of Total Orthopaedics, a London-based group, where he provides high-quality, patient-focused care, specializing in non-surgical treatment options.
Dr. Bajekal’s surgical practice focuses on the lumbar spine with an emphasis in managing sciatica, lower back pain, spinal stenosis, osteoporotic fractures, and infections. He is particularly invested in finding simple, and often non-surgical, solutions for patients in severe pain, and practices lifestyle medicine to look at problems more holistically rather than simply isolating the presenting problem.
As a board-certified lifestyle medicine practitioner, who has personally experienced the healing benefits of a whole food plant-based diet, Dr. Bajekal has become a passionate advocate for lifestyle medicine with his patients. He has written a module and lectured for the UK’s first plant-based nutrition course on bone health and osteoporosis conducted by the University of Winchester. He has also co-written a chapter in an academic text on bone health for health professionals titled “Plant-Based Nutrition in Clinical Practice.” Dr. Bajekal is passionate about teaching and lecturing, often making difficult areas of spinal surgery easy to understand. For more information visit www.rajivbajekal.com and follow him on instagram @drrajivbajekal.
March 2023 Cruise Classes:
Keynote: Managing Osteoporosis With a Plant-Based Diet and Lifestyle Approaches
Are vegans more prone to fractures? This lecture is for all those who are worried that a plant-based diet makes them more prone to have weaker bones and suffer the consequences of osteoporosis. There will be an overview about the structure and physiology of bone and how to use the pillars of lifestyle to build bone strength. We will also discuss protein, calcium, and many other micronutrients, and how to optimize your diet for healthier bones. Interpretation of DEXA scans and medication for osteoporosis will be discussed in brief. Are supplements useful in achieving stronger bones? We will also examine the role of exercise, especially in later years, with a particular emphasis on building bone and muscle strength.
Back Pain: When Should We Be Worried?
Why are back and neck pain the most common causes of years lived with disability? Lower back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide and 80% of adults will experience it in their lifetime. Currently, 7.5% of the world’s population suffer from low back pain and Americans spend over 50 billion dollars annually on managing back pain. Behind skin disorders and joint pain, back pain is the third most common reason for visits to the doctor’s office.
What are the common presentations of back and neck problems? When should we be worried and seek medical attention? Do I have cancer? Will I be in a wheelchair when I am older? We will discuss these concerns as well as some common, long-term back pain problems and their management. There will be a focus on prevention and living with long-term problems. This is a lecture for all those who have suffered with some back issues, and also for those who do not wish to ever suffer from back problems!
Reversing Diabetes With a Plant-Based Diet – Dr. Rajiv’s Journey and the Evidence
Diabetes is prevalent in over eleven percent of the population of the United States, and a third of the population may have prediabetes. What people rarely appreciate is the fact that diabetes, especially in younger adults, greatly increases all-cause mortality.
This is a lecture to look at the science of type II diabetes using an illustrative story of my own journey with diabetes. There will be a discussion about the manifestations of diabetes and the complications. What is remission and reversal? How effective is a plant-based diet in managing diabetes? What are the lifestyle medicine pillars that one can use to tackle diabetes? This lecture is meant to inspire those who want to improve their health, lose excess weight, and live a healthier, more energetic life well into their senior years.
