Food is Medicine

Available Languages:

English

UF/IFAS fosters interdisciplinary collaboration to develop innovative solutions addressing food, nutrition, and health challenges in Florida and beyond. The UF Food is Medicine (FiM) Initiative plays a central role in this mission, leveraging UF’s expertise across agriculture, Extension, research, teaching, and clinical and nutrition sciences to improve health and strengthen communities.

Narrower Topics

Food Groups

Functional Foods

Foods that are considered, by nature or manufacture, to contain significant levels of biologically active components which provide desirable health benefits beyond basic nutrition.

Human Nutrition

Puréed foods

Publications

Food as Medicine: Can nutrition be a prescription?

Andrea Krenek, Anne Mathews, and Wendy Dahl

Diet and lifestyle behaviors can affect health status and the development of disease. The importance of nutrition in healthcare is especially relevant as one in five deaths globally can be connected to poor diet. Food can be an integral part of preventing, managing, and treating disease through personalized nutrition, medically tailored meals and groceries, produce prescription programs, and culinary medicine. This publication dives into how nutrients connect to disease and uses of Food as Medicine as an overview for general learners.

A Taste of Culture: Evidence-based Health Benefits of Cooking with Herbs and Spices

Isabella Alobele, Lori Johnson, Hillary MacMichael, Amy Mullins, Ava Theng, Madison Gindea, Ryan Perez, Tatiana Tchuisse, Yvette Vork, and Melissa Vilaro

This publication covers the health benefits of cooking with herbs and spices with a focus on up-to-date scientific evidence on the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and metabolic health benefits associated with their culinary use. This is the first publication in a two-part series related to the Taste of Culture curriculum. Written by Isabella Alobele, Lori Johnson, Hillary MacMichael, Amy Mullins, Ava Theng, Madison Gindea, Ryan Perez, Tatiana Tchuisse, Yvette Vork, and Melissa Vilaro, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, November 2025.