The Samueli Institute concluded the first phase of the Teaching Kitchen Collaborative (TKC) “Teaching Kitchen – Multisite Trial” (TK-MT) this year, which aimed to improve the health outcomes of adults at-risk of cardiometabolic disease through the delivery of culinary and lifestyle interventions.
The TKMT is a multisite collaboration between the Samueli Institute, UCLA, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, and University of Texas Health in Houston, with Harvard University as the coordinating site. TKMT aims to assess the feasibility and preliminary impact of the TKC curriculum on health outcomes and wellbeing.
The TKMT curriculum is an interactive year-long program that teaches culinary skills, nutrition education, mindfulness, and stress reduction, promotes movement, and optimizes behavior change through health coaching strategies.
Shaista Malik, MD, PhD, MPH, executive director of the Samueli Institute, was the principal investigator for the study, with Karen Lindsay, RDN, PhD, registered dietitian nutritionist and Early-Career Samueli Endowed Chair, as co-principal investigator. Other team members included Jessica VanRoo, CCMP, NBC-HWC, executive chef; Theresa Nutt, MA, BSN, HNB-BC, NBC-HWC, health coach and administrative director of education; Sarah Meier, MS, NBC-HWC, health coach and educator; Efrain Cerrato, MBA, ACSM-EP, integrative cardiac rehabilitation program manager, as the study’s exercise physiologist, and Mirian Kang, research coordinator.
Sixty individuals participated in this randomized controlled trial at the Samueli Institute. The intervention group participated in a year-long program, which included 16 weekly classes followed by eight monthly classes. The control group participated in two classes and then received recordings of classes after the 12-month mark. Outcomes were assessed at the beginning of the program as well as at four months, 12 months, and 18 months.
VanRoo led interactive culinary education sessions, covering recipes and topics such as healthy fats, proteins, building a health plate, how to repurpose food, and how to eat out in healthy ways. The other study team members also incorporated lessons from their respective areas of expertise during each class.
VanRoo remembered an empowering moment with one participant: “We introduced participants to frozen vegetables. For some, this was a surprising moment, as they believed that healthy eating had to consist of fresh, expensive, and time-consuming ingredients. One woman wasn’t aware that frozen vegetables were considered healthy. I took this as an opportunity to explain that frozen vegetables are picked at peak ripeness, retain their nutrients, and can go from the freezer to the plate in just minutes. She went home and cooked dinner later that week with frozen veggies, excited about the simplicity of this healthy ingredient. This shows that sometimes the smallest shifts in perception can lead to significant changes in behavior. It’s about empowering people with the tools and skills to take charge of their health and build sustainable lifestyle habits.”
Looking at early results across the four study sites, the intervention was found to exert a statistically significant benefit in the following measures on the intervention group versus the control group:
- Dietary quality
- Cooking confidence
- Mindful eating behavior
- Self-efficacy
There was also a non-significant trend towards decreased blood glucose, lipid and triglyceride levels in the intervention group versus control.
“These preliminary results suggest that a lifestyle intervention centered around culinary medicine has the potential to empower individuals with poor metabolic health to improve health behaviors and prepare more meals in the home,” Lindsay said. “The trend towards improved blood markers is promising and indicate that this type of intervention may contribute towards reduced risk of cardiometabolic diseases, although further research with larger sample sizes is required.”
As the trial draws to a close across all sites, further analyses are underway to determine if behavior changes can be sustained at 18 months among participants in the intervention group. Qualitative interviews conducted with the intervention group participants will also help the researchers to understand which components of the trial were most feasible, acceptable, and what may have been lacking. Understanding barriers and limitations to engaging in intensive lifestyle interventions is important to inform future larger studies of this nature with the goal of reducing risk for downstream chronic disease.
