It’s possible to dramatically impact your health by simply changing what you eat and how you live. Ready to learn how? Join us for a new series, Educating Eats, presented by the 4 Roots Foundation and the Winter Park Health Foundation. In our latest session, Dr. Monica Aggarwal, a board-certified cardiologist and expert on using nutrition and lifestyle management to manage heart disease and chronic illnesses, and Chef Edwin Cabrera, Executive Chef with AdventHealth’s Center for Nutritional Excellence, will discuss how your eating habits can impact a health crisis that is plaguing more than 10 percent of the U.S. population – diabetes.

Diabetes can affect many of your body’s functions and is linked to serious complications, including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure and even amputations. It’s critical to get it under control, but the good news is, with healthy habits and adjustments, you can not only manage your symptoms, you can get started on a journey to wellness for the rest of your life.

Whether you’re prediabetic, have been diagnosed with diabetes or are looking for ways to safely and effectively cut carbs for healthier living, this class is for you. You’ll learn life-changing information on how to manage your carbohydrate intake and learn to tell the difference between the various types of carbs and how to read food labels.

In this hands-on, interactive cooking demonstration, you’ll also learn how to make — and then sample — three healthy, satisfying and delicious recipes: Edamame Salad with Beets and Pears, Farro Risotto and Tofu-Chocolate Pudding.

Join us in the Nutrition Theatre at the Center for Health & Wellbeing for this immersive program. You’ll roll up your sleeves and help prepare the meal and learn helpful lifestyle and nutrition tips along the way.

Cancelling Your Reservation: In order to receive a full refund, participants must cancel their program registration at least 72 hours prior to the scheduled start of the program. Center for Health & Wellbeing’s Refund Policy >>>

About the Presenters

Monica Aggarwal, MD, is an adjunct Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine in the University of Florida Division of Cardiovascular Medicine. She received her medical degree from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and subsequently went on to complete a residency in internal medicine at Tufts-New England Medical Center. She then completed a cardiology fellowship at the University of Maryland. Dr. Aggarwal’s own path to understanding the impact of nutrition in illness started soon after the birth of her third child, when she developed an advanced form of rheumatoid arthritis. She was placed on medications that gave her severe side effects. It was only through learning about the microbiome (gut), its impact on the immune system and the role of nutrition in affecting the gut, was she able to truly heal. Determined to change the face of medicine, she left private practice and returned to academics in order to pursue research on the role of diet and to create an integrative cardiology practice focused on nutrition and lifestyle.

Dr. Aggarwal gives talks around the community and the country. She was named a “Next Generation Innovator” by Cardiology Today. Board certified in cardiology, echocardiography, nuclear cardiology and advanced cholesterol management, she is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology (ACC), where she is a member of the nutrition council working on nutrition policies for the nation. She is the author of the book “Body on Fire: How Inflammation Triggers Chronic Illness and the Tools We Have to Fight It,” which outlines prescriptions to help guide people to better health. She currently sees patients in Orlando, Florida and via telehealth as part of Wholistic Cardiology and conducts research at the University of Florida.

Chef Edwin Cabrera, Executive Chef with AdventHealth’s Center for Nutritional Excellence, entered the culinary field after dancing classical ballet for fifteen years, and now develops innovative recipes reflecting the principles of AdventHealth’s CREATION Life initiative. A graduate of Scottsdale Culinary Institute in Arizona, he holds an AA degree in Occupational Studies in Culinary Arts and Sciences, and Restaurant Management. Chef Edwin has worked at a diverse array of restaurants including Jiko – The Cooking Place at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, Bistro de Paris, Tantra (Indian cuisine), Morton’s of Chicago and Canyon Ranch Health Spa.