Nutrition Essentials

Class 1: Kickstart Your Health: Weight Control and Diabetes Prevention focuses on the science supporting the benefits of plant-based nutrition as well as getting ready to start a low-fat, plant-based eating pattern. 

This free class runs from 7:30-9p and is immediately preceded from 6:30-7:30p by a vegan potluck and talk on environmental benefits of a vegan diet presented by ERUUF's Earth Justice and Communecos. 

No registration is required, and individuals can come to the whole event (if potluck please bring a vegan dish with ingredients labeled) or just the Food for Life class.

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Many people nowadays are eager to trim their waistlines, tackle diabetes, or improve their health in other ways. This program presents an engaging and effective way to help them reach their goals. It is based on scientific studies and favors vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains.  

A vegan or plant-based dietary pattern of whole grains, beans, vegetables, and fruits can help prevent diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other chronic diseases. According to the Academy of Nutrition and
Dietetics, "Appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases."

Food for Life is a nutrition education program delivered by Physicans Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) licensed instructors like Dilip Barman. Most of our classes are series of 4-6 or more classes where there is some nutrition education and then where the instructor cooks several healthful, tasty, and easy dishes.

This class, Food for Life: Nutrition Essentials, is a no-cook introduction based on PCRM´s successful 21-Day Vegan Kickstart program. Depending on one´s perspective, Nutrition Essentials is about losing weight, maintaining a healthy weight, or simply embracing an overall healthful way of eating. Much of the basis of the Nutrition Essentials is about making a qualitative shift in the way we eat as opposed to a quantitative shift.

We are offering today the first part of four of the curricula. We hope to offer other parts and other FFL classes including a food sampling component, in the new year. Each one-hour class of Nutrition Essentials features video presentation, discussion, and activities focused on adopting a healthful, plant based diet.  The first class is stand-alone and provides an excellent overview and introduction.

Students will learn about making nutritious choices in foods. They will make and discuss to-do lists of things to do to move toward more plant-based eating, and leave with resources and tips.