The Mental Gut Health Forum, a lecture, panel discussion and Q&A led by Brian R. Clement, PhD, the author of Food Is Medicine, will take place May 6 at the Westport Inn, located at 1595 Post Road East in Westport, Connecticut. Francesca Vitale, founder and director of The Healing Force, based in Westchester, says she organized this event to educate and bring awareness to mental illness and the correlation between the mind and the gut.

Clement is a licensed nutritionist and the director of the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida. “He’s had five decades on the front lines of natural health care, which gives him the tools to explain in great detail, and in terms that are easy to understand, how we can fix this universal problem,” Vitale says. “How many people who are suppressing their minds with medicine and often residing in institutions just need to change their gut health? My intention as a holistic wellness educator and practitioner is to help others become empowered and heal. In my opinion, knowledge is power—and the key to self-preservation.”

After Clement’s lecture, psychotherapists, analysts and others in the field of alternative medicine will join a panel discussion based on this narrative, Vitale says. Panelists include Robert Inesta, a chiropractor, licensed acupuncturist and functional medicine practitioner; Elaine Zietler, a colon hydrotherapist; and Jane K. Gelsi, PhD, a licensed clinical social worker and the director of the Austin Group for Counseling.

There will be two sessions, from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 8:30 p.m. Both will include a panel discussion and guest speakers. The cost to attend is $53 for reservations made by April 22, or $63 afterward.

To register, visit MentalGutHealth.com or call Francesca Vitale at 914.837.6830.