VA class starts path to wellness in kitchen
Cooking lessons aid veterans looking to improve health
The recipe was Bright Broccoli Salad, and Jose Navarro, 67, was excited to learn how to chop a large head of broccoli.
He had recently signed up for the threeweek Healthy Teaching Kitchen program at the Orlando VA Medical Center in Lake Nona and already had made changes to his eating habits at home.
“Before, we had rice, beans and little bit of meat and now we’re adding a little bit of salad and fruits to our plates,” said Navarro. “I’ve already lost 10 pounds!”
Healthy Teaching Kitchen is a nationwide VA initiative for veterans and their families and reflects growing awareness in the medical community about the significance of food education for patients, especially older adults.
Adults who are 65 and older are less
likely to meet the recommended daily values of nutrients, which can lead to increased risk of falls, fractures and hospitalization, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. About a third to a half of older adults don’t get the recommended daily amount of protein. More than 30% have vitamin D deficiency.
Several factors, including chronic disease, access to food, socioeconomic status and isolation change older adults’ relationship with food.
The authors of the paper, published this month, argue that health systems and community organizations can play a role in reversing this trend with programs that teach older adults about healthy eating.
Across the street from the VA, UCF College of Medicine is among the growing number of schools offering a course in culinary medicine to teach young doctors how to educate patients about food, nutrition and healthy eating.
At the VA , each facility customizes the Healthy Teaching Kitchen program based on the participants’ needs.
In Orlando, the woman in charge is Meredith Rockey, a registered dietitian who has been teaching the course since it started last August.
“I like to theme the recipes depending what’s going on,” she said. “February is
Heart Health Month so this one is all about things that are low in saturated fat, low in sodium and high in antioxidants.”
The three-week program runs once a month and about six veterans participate in each cycle. The kitchen is small and over time Rockey has learned that six is the perfect number for the space.
In their first week, participants first learn about nutrition and healthy eating. Then they take a trip to the grocery store and learn how to read nutrition labels and choose healthier foods.
“We had to search up and down the [grocery store] aisles with a list of things to find,” said Jack Davis, 77, who took the course last year. “We learned to use condensed milk instead of cream and cut down on the fat.”
And in the last session they get together and cook a meal.
On a recent Tuesday morning, while Navarro chopped the vegetables for the broccoli salad, Christine Johnson and her class partner Thomas Darcy were cooking a lemon-mango shrimp and vegetable pasta dish. Another pair was whipping up a healthy smoothie recipe.
“We’ve learned about the daily intake of sodium, sugars and we have a cheat sheet,” said Johnson, 50. “We learned about the portions you need to have on your plate. So it’s been educational.”
The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior study found that programs such as Healthy Teaching
Kitchen can benefit participants, particularly older veterans, because not only they learn how to eat healthy and take care of themselves, but also get an opportunity for social connection and interactions.
According to the study, a recent analysis of VA’s Healthy Teaching Kitchen showed high levels of satisfaction, improvements in cooking confidence and a better diet. Researchers further recommended that the VA’s teaching kitchen classes can become more age-friendly by incorporating educational elements, such as managing multiple medications and mobility.
“My goal is just to get them thinking about cooking a little bit more, because I think sometimes it can be difficult to get started, like if you have never chopped broccoli before and when you look at it, it can be intimidating,” Rockey said. “But once they try it …”
She then turned to Navarro and asked him if he was more likely to use broccoli at home now and he nodded.
Rockey puts out flyers and brochures around the facility to promote the course and the class is “booked out pretty far,” she said.
She said two other dietitians are planning on starting new cycles of the program.
You can learn more about the program and the recipes by visiting www.nutrition.va.gov/Healthy_Teaching_Kitchen.asp.