# Prescribing food as medicine to fight disease

> A growing movement treats nutrition as a clinical tool, backed by research showing medically tailored meals can prevent and manage chronic illness.
- Title: Prescribing food as medicine to fight disease · TIME
- Summary: A growing movement treats nutrition as a clinical tool, backed by research showing medically tailored meals can prevent and manage chronic illness. The Food…
- Keywords: food is medicine, nutrition, chronic disease, heart disease, healthcare, american heart association, medically tailored meals, public health, Prescribing, food, medicine, fight
- Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/10/11/the-benefits-of-prescribing-food-as-medicine
- Author: TIME
- Published: 2026-10-11T10:00:04.332+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: food is medicine, nutrition, chronic disease, heart disease, healthcare, american heart association, medically tailored meals, public health
## Diet is powerful medicine
Nutrition is one of the most powerful tools to prevent and manage chronic health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension. The American Heart Association identifies eating better as one of Life's Essential 8.
## What healthy eating looks like
The fundamentals of a heart-healthy diet have been consistent for years: eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, prioritize healthy sources of protein, and choose whole grains while minimizing sodium, processed foods, and added sugar.
## Knowing and doing are different
Eating a healthy diet depends on whether you can afford healthier foods, which often cost more.Nearly one in seven U.S.households struggled with having enough food to eat at some point in two thousand twenty-four.
## Hidden sodium in healthy foods
Even foods that seem healthy can contain unhealthy ingredients.A salad can contain surprising amounts of sodium and saturated fat if it has processed meat, cheese, and dressing.
## Food Is Medicine movement
A growing movement called Food Is Medicine proposes that medically tailored meals can help prevent and treat chronic diseases.
## Research shows promise
In a randomized clinical trial of two hundred six adults living with heart failure in the Navajo Nation, a meal program reduced the likelihood that patients would be hospitalized or visit an emergency department within…
## Teaching nutrition to doctors
In two thousand twenty-six, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education announced a new initiative for medical schools to deliver at least forty hours of nutrition education in U.S.medical schools.
## Finland's cardiovascular turnaround
More than fifty years ago, North Karelia in eastern Finland faced a cardiovascular crisis with heart disease mortality among the highest in the world.
## Systems change, not just advice
Poor-quality diet is one of the most common risk factors for heart disease.To transform population health, healthy food should be something doctors can prescribe and deliver as part of healthcare, not just recommend to individuals.

> To transform the health of the American population, healthy food should be something we can recommend, be able to prescribe, and deliver as part of health care.
## Key takeaway

The Food Is Medicine movement aims to integrate nutrition into healthcare by prescribing medically tailored meals alongside medication to prevent chronic disease.