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Culinary Medicine
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      • Alyssa Frisby, M.S., RD, LD
      • Destiny Chau, M.D.
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      • Bala Simon, M.D., Dr.PH, DipABOM, DipAMLB, FAAFP
      • Amy M. Scurlock, M.D., FAAP, FAAAI
      • Brittany Wilkerson, MPAS, PA-C, dipACLM
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  1. University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
  2. Culinary Medicine
  3. About Us

About Us

Welcome to UAMS Culinary Medicine

Location and Contact Information

UAMS Culinary Medicine
Location: First floor of the Reynolds Institue of Aging Building on the UAMS campus
629 Jack Stephens Drive, Little Rock AR, 72205
Phone: 501-503-7078
Email: culinarymedicine@uams.edu

Who We Are

Culinary medicine logo. Includes the text: We AR cooking for a better state of health.

UAMS is ideally placed to play an effective leadership role in culinary medicine in Arkansas through integrating courses throughout all colleges and to develop an outreach education service. The aim has to be to provide excellent, patient-centered care on health meets food, which is cost effective and delivered close to home.

Mission

To improve the health of patients and the public by improving their food choice of high-quality meals that help to prevent and treat disease and restore well-being.

Vision

Every Arkansan will have the knowledge, foundation and commitment to make healthy food decisions.

Goal

To provide health care providers with knowledge on healthy food choices and culinary skills to enhance their ability to counsel patients on prevention and disease-specific management through food.

Background & Significance

View the Culinary Medicine Menu!

Women cutting vegetables in the Culinary Medicine kitchen

Arkansas ranks 47th in overall health and has the third highest obesity rates at 35.7 percent, according to a 2017 Robert Wood Johnson report.  Increase in obesity rates parallels the increasing rates of diabetes. Diseases associated with obesity and DM includes hypertension, high cholesterol, severe vision impairment or blindness, mobility limitations, limitations in instrumental activities of daily living, and coronary heart disease (CHD), congestive heart failure (CHF), stroke, myocardial infarction, lower extremity amputations, hyperosmolar hyperglycemic nonketotic syndrome, diabetic ketoacidosis, hypoglycemia. chronic kidney disease, and peripheral vascular disease. Economically DM costs the state of Arkansas over eight billion dollars.

Arkansas is underserved with low physician to patient ratios. The expansion and empowerment of healthcare providers knowledgeable about the impact of food on chronic disease management may be impactful clinically and cost effective wise.  A number of initiatives have been focused on structured education programs. There is a need to advance this to a new level by introducing a culinary medicine program to teach students across the healthcare strata the impact of food on health.

UAMS is ideally placed to play an effective leadership role in culinary medicine in Arkansas through integrating courses throughout all colleges and to develop an outreach education service. The aim has to be to provide excellent, patient-centered care on health meets food, which is cost effective and delivered close to home.

Subpages

  • Message from the Provost
  • Message from the Program Director
  • What is Culinary Medicine?
  • Meet the Team
  • News
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Mailing Address: 4301 West Markham Street, Little Rock, AR 72205
Phone: (501) 686-7000
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