A Healthy Lifestyle Starts in the Kitchen
A chef, cookbook author, spokesperson, and food reporter, Chef Leticia Moreinos Schwartz has dedicated her life to food and creating healthy cuisine. We spoke to her about why food is such an important cultural element and how Americans can make preparing their own meals more appealing.
How have you used food to embrace your culture?
Growing up in Brazil, I was exposed to a variety of cultures: the Portuguese, the native Indian, and the African. The result is a delicious combination of exotic dishes prepared with techniques and ingredients from all three cultures meeting in the same pan.
When I moved to the United States, I missed the taste, the flavor, the people, and the energy from Brazil. Cooking and writing about cooking were the ways I found to reconnect with my country after I left, and my tribute to Brazil couldn’t be contained to just the plates on my table. I wanted to share my passion and my joy of cooking with the rest of the world. I went on to write two cookbooks about Brazilian cuisine (“The Brazilian Kitchen” and “My Rio de Janeiro”) and later wrote a third book called “Latin Superfoods” (fall 2019).
How does healthy eating and cooking help those suffering from diabetes?
Having a personal connection with type 2 diabetes — my grandfather died from complications of the disease — I’ve learned to pay attention to nutrition, eating habits, and lifestyle. I’ve been on an incredible journey as the spokesperson for a healthy living campaign, and having participated in the documentary “A Touch of Sugar”, I see fırsthand that unhealthy eating habits can contribute to serious health issues.
If your unhealthy diet bothers you but your eating habits persist, then you should relocate dinner preparation to the kitchen, rather than relying on takeout — that’s because the kitchen is the scene of a daily healthy victory!
But I do realize immigrants — including myself — are especially vulnerable to dietary and lifestyle diseases. Once we move to the United States, our habits change for the worse, along with our health. We no longer shop at farmers markets or cook homemade meals. Instead, we buy takeout and prepacked foods.
The road from a healthy Latin culture to the North American table became a tough one somewhere along the way. That’s why we need to give ourselves an ultimatum! No more buying takeout meals starting right now!
What advice would you give someone who has diabetes but is hesitant to make changes to their diet?
Most people associate healthy cooking with boring taste and flavorless foods. I’m on a mission to prove that healthy eating can not only be absolutely delicious, but also that food is medicine, and that by living a healthy lifestyle, you can take control of your health and your life.
With the possible exception of medicine, nothing exerts more influence than diet and exercise in controlling type 2 diabetes. And by diet, I’m referring to healthy home cooking.
But to cook, we need time, and nobody has time. We make time. Time is a gift, like cooking is a gift. These are some of the most valuable gifts you can give yourself: taking time to be responsible for your own well-being.