Tag: Culinary Medicine

Exploring the Fusion of Medicine and Culinary Arts: Nicholls’ Culinary Medicine Program

When education transcends traditional boundaries, the results can be truly remarkable. This sentiment is beautifully embodied by the annual Culinary Medicine Program jointly hosted by Nicholls State University and the Louisiana State University Health New Orleans School of Medicine. For an impressive fifth consecutive year, these esteemed institutions have come together to nurture a unique learning experience that merges the worlds of gastronomy and medicine. According to this news release from the school, this innovative program, held at the renowned Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, offers a glimpse into the captivating synergy between evidence-based nutrition and culinary mastery, providing a platform for future medical practitioners to enrich their practices with invaluable knowledge.

The backdrop for this enriching endeavor, the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, sits nestled in the heart of Louisiana’s Bayou Region, a place where culture, flavors, and traditions meld seamlessly. It beckons aspiring chefs with an audacious palate and a fervent desire to thrive in the food and service industries, offering them the opportunity to pursue Bachelor of Science or Associate of Science degrees in Culinary Arts. In a state where culinary excellence thrives, Nicholls stands tall as the sole post-secondary institution in Louisiana offering a comprehensive four-year culinary degree program.

The synergy of minds between the culinary institute and the medical school is profound, exemplifying the value of interdisciplinary collaboration. This year’s iteration of the Culinary Medicine Program took place from July 17 to 28, featuring a cohort of nine third-year medical students from the LSU Health Sciences Center (LSUHSC) New Orleans. These budding medical professionals made a conscious choice to delve into the culinary medicine course, facilitated by the proficient instructors from Nicholls’ Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, along with the didactic program in dietetics.

The heart of the program lies in its ability to introduce future physicians to the realm of evidence-based nutrition and the practical prowess of culinary artistry. The program structure was designed meticulously to encompass a range of topics, each underscoring the pivotal role of food in disease prevention and management. Morning lectures, infused with insights on weight-neutral nutrition approaches, dietary patterns and their health outcomes, genetics and nutrition, and much more, provided the foundation for students to comprehend the intricate dance between nourishment and well-being.

In a poignant twist, the classroom knowledge was translated into tangible experiences through hands-on culinary exercises. Post-lecture sessions saw students donning aprons and immersing themselves in the creation of dishes that resonated with the principles discussed earlier. This immersive approach not only consolidated their understanding but also imbued them with practical skills to weave nutrition into their future medical practices.

Dr. Craig Walker, the visionary founder, president, and medical director at the Cardiovascular Institute of the South, aptly acknowledged the program’s uniqueness and the vital knowledge it imparts to the medical leaders of tomorrow. He remarked, “This is a unique program by Chef John Folse that is sharing valuable knowledge with future leaders in the field of medicine.” Dr. Walker’s words underline the invaluable contribution the Culinary Medicine Program makes to the realm of health education.

In conclusion, the Culinary Medicine Program at Nicholls State University serves as a remarkable testament to the power of education that transcends boundaries. By blending the realms of culinary arts and medical science, this program not only imparts invaluable knowledge but also nurtures a holistic perspective that future physicians can carry into their practices. The fusion of these diverse fields is a clarion call for more such interdisciplinary collaborations that enrich the educational landscape and prepare professionals for multifaceted challenges.

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Culinary Medicine Partnership

In partnership with LSU Health New Orleans, Nicholls State University proudly announced its latest offering– a two-week course in culinary medicine beginning in the summer session of 2019. The program began July 1st. Nine third-year LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine students are enrolled. They are currently studying the possible preventative effects that nutrition can have in treating chronic diseases, as well as the crucial, fundamental culinary skills and recipes to promote good nutrition. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, eating patterns and specific foods have proven to be effective treatments in some cases of epilepsy, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, colon cancer, type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and acute cough.

Dr. John La Puma, the founder of ChefMD and Chef Clinic, defined culinary medicine as: an evidence-based field that blends the art of cooking with the science of nutrition. It is multidisciplinary in its way of blending art and science, which are arguably very similar in that they both take time, craft, and attention. Culinary medicine promotes the teamwork of physicians and nutrition professionals to prevent and treat patients’ illnesses by learning more about the food we eat.

“The Office of Undergraduate Medical Education is excited to offer this career planning elective to the Class of 2021. While students are taught the science of nutrition during their first and second years of medical school, the Culinary Medicine CPE gives them the opportunity to translate this into practical knowledge,” Dr. Catherine Hebert, the associate professor of clinical medicine and co-director of clinical sciences curriculum at LSU Health New Orleans stated. She continued, “It is not just about telling a patient to cut out salt and fat. It is about teaching them how to do this in a way that is realistic given the time and money constraints that we all face.”

During the course, students begin the day in the classroom. Here, they learn nutrition theory through lectures, case studies, and simulations that focus on such ailments as diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, heart disease, and obesity. In the afternoon, the third-year will move from classroom to kitchen in order to learn fundamental culinary skills and related recipes from chefs and other culinary professionals. What is learned in the morning is then created in the afternoon, meaning that the nutrition content learned at the head of the day is used in relevant recipes in the afternoon. The Culinary Department Head Chef John Kozar gave the example, “Let’s say they learn about diabetes in the morning, we will work on dishes appropriate for the diabetic patient in the afternoon.”

The learning does not stop at the walls of the classroom or kitchen. Students will also take field trips to Rouses Supermarket with a Registered Dietician (RD), tour the kitchen at Thibodaux Regional Medical Center, and test their new nutritional knowledge at local restaurants.

“This is an exciting opportunity for both Dietetics and the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute to have an even bigger impact on the community,” expressed Dr. Brigett Scott, associate dean of the College of Science and Technology and associate professor of dietetics. “What people eat has one of the biggest impacts on their health. Ultimately, the goal is that these future doctors will practice in Louisiana and promote the nutrition and culinary skills they learned to make an impact on the health of our community.”

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