I grew up just outside of New York City—the daughter of a Japanese restaurateur father. Thus for me food exploration has always been a deeply ingrained necessity, on par with breathing.
After residency, I quickly learned that medical practice goes like this: You have diabetes or high blood pressure—here’s a pill, eat better, exercise, see you in 3 months.
Further, the report, Global Burden of Disease, concluded that unhealthy diet is the biggest contributor to tens of millions of deaths worldwide (https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(19)30041-8/fulltext ). Yet, fewer than 20% of medical schools report requiring a nutrition course (https://nutrition.org/ ).
The terrifying truth of today’s healthcare, a point Nutritank makes repeatedly, is that those of us on the front lines of this epidemic don’t have practical knowledge nor the resources to address this issue.
Frustrated with the lack of resources, my chef-husband and I co-founded Clean Your Plate, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (https://www.cleanyourplaterx.org/our-story/).
Clean Your Plate is an evidenced based partnership between healthcare professionals, chefs, and community leaders that empower communities to live healthier lives through access to wellness opportunities regardless of personal resources.
Clean Your Plate’s multi-faceted approach to wellness includes:
- Culinary gardens in food deserts;
- Lifestyle medical student rotations;
- Culinary medicine workshops in resource limited neighborhoods;
- The W.O.N.D.E.R. program—a partnership with elementary schools; and
- The Golden Isles Wellness Weekend—a three-day annual medical education conference building resilience in healthcare professionals.
What I love about Nutritank is their passion and support of our mission—partnering with us to create a healthier future!
Contact:
Instagram: cleanyourplaterx
Website: www.cleanyourplaterx.org
