Food As Medicine 2012: Day 1
Day 1 at Food As Medicine 2012 was a great feast with over 300 marvelous people in attendance.
Who’s here?
25% MD’s, 25% RD’s & Nutritionists, 11% Nurses & Nurse Practitioners, 10% Saybrook University Students, 4% Medical School Students & Residents. 6% are Medical School Faculty, 27% work with underserved communities. Geographically, the largest number of our attendees are from Maryland and California. A senior scientist is here from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia and a physician from Beijing United Family Hospital in China. Rene Domersant from the Ministry of Health in Haiti, a participant in our Global Trauma Relief professional trainings, is here.Jeffrey Mills, Director of Food & Nutrition Services for DC Public Schools is here. Nora Pouillon of Restaurant Nora, the first certified organic restaurant in the US, and Judith Friedman of The Natural Gourmet Institute are here. The entire Krebs family from Selinsgrove, PA are here (mom’s a PT & MT, dad’s an MD, one daughter is a med student and another daughter a student). Sadja Greenwood, MD, MPH, a legendary sage is here from Bolinas, CA. The people are amazing!
Hope Amidst the Rubble
We’re so pleased to have our work in Haiti featured in Gaim Life’s Stories of Hope series!
Read our article entitled Hope Amidst the Rubble: How a non-profit is working to make life better in Haiti, two years after a devastating earthquake.
Please like and share!
So Easy It's Crazy: Sunshine Tomato Soup
The other evening, I made myself a cup of delicious raw tomato soup in about 30 seconds. To replicate this soup, it will be necessary to have on hand:
One huge, truly ripe, exquisitely delicious, organic tomato (I used a sunshine yellow heirloom.)
A splash of very good, extra virgin olive oil
A thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger root
Unthinkable
Both my home & office laptops developed crippling problems within one week. Well, hello, Universe!
My office computer recovered. But I found myself in an Apple store, after a discouraging meeting with the tech at the Genius Bar, having a serious discussion with a young saleswoman about purchasing a new mac. I happened to mention that I had started experimenting with unplugging for long stretches of time– leaving my cell phone behind, limiting my computer time… She stopped what she was doing and stared at me, stunned. “I could never do that!” she said earnestly– her eyes repeatedly returning to mine, questioning, fascinated.
Nourish Means….
Food As Medicine Executive Chef Rebecca Katz, MS, just shared this lovely video, “Nourish means….” from the folks at NourishLife.org.
What nourishes you?
Hot off the Presses: Research & Reports
Lots of big reports have been coming across our screens lately, and here are several that might interest you:
- Integrative Medicine in America: How Integrative Medicine Is Being Practiced in Clinical Centers Across the United States
Sponsored by The Bravewell Collaborative, the report ”…provides current data on the patient populations and health conditions most commonly treated with integrative strategies.
In a survey of 29 U.S. integrative medicine centers, 75 percent reported success using integrative practices to treat chronic pain and more than half reported positive results for gastrointestinal conditions, depression and anxiety, cancer and chronic stress.
Plain & Simple: Brown Rice
I’m often asked how to make a good pot of brown rice– neither hard nor mushy, but just chewy enough. Classic brown rice.
That’s easy.
Launching Today: Freedom from Depression Audiobook
Hot off the presses: Center Founder and Director James S. Gordon, MD’s new Sounds True audiobook, Freedom from Depression: a Practical Guide for the Journey launches today!
Based on Dr Gordon’s enormously popular book Unstuck: Your 7 Stage Journey Out of Depression, the audiobook contains new experiential and didactic material. Quoting the Sounds True website:
The true source of healing from depression comes from within—not from doctors or medications. Yet when depression drains away our vitality and will, how can we find the energy to help ourselves? With Freedom from Depression, Dr. James S. Gordon reveals a new and empowering approach for dealing with this misunderstood condition—a way out of the darkness that helps you restore balance and joy to your life.
Problem Solving: Healthy Meeting Food
Have you ever had to plan snacks for a meeting?
For a recent staff meeting at the Center, I came up with the following menu:
Mind-Body Bookshelf: Enjoy Every Sandwich
Every man dies– not every man really lives.
– William Ross Wallace
Several thoughts struck me after completing Lee Lipsenthal’s Enjoy Every Sandwich: Living Each Day As If It Were Your Last. One- this is one of those very precious books like Randy Pauch’s The Last Lecture that are sublime in their honesty, vitality, and sheer joie de vivre. And two- I wish I had met Lee. We emailed several times as publication approached. I hoped he would be able to do an author talk for the Center, sharing some of his wisdom and unique personality– but he passed away before that could happen.
