Nov 17, 2015

Food: Our Friend and Foe

Dean Trevor Young

Dean Trevor YoungFood is our common ground.

So said the legendary cookbook author James Beard. And yet, has there ever been a time in recent history that we’ve been so divided – and confused – over what to eat?

It strikes me that we’re in an interesting culinary moment in our cultural history. Delicious food is everywhere and in many new places. Aromas tempt us from curbside food trucks and images appear on our computer screens in irresistible high-definition. We’re hyper aware of the pitfalls of obesity, and yet we can’t seem to turn the tide on this epidemic. And, tragically, for an increasing number of Torontonians, hunger is a daily grind and a major threat to health.   

We know what healthy food looks like, but in our rushed, plugged-in modern lives, do we really understand how to have a healthy relationship with food?

In the winter issue of U of T Medicine magazine, we turned to the Faculty of Medicine’s distinguished nutritional researchers for answers. Experts in a vast array of disciplines, including health policy, psychiatry, genetics and molecular biology, take a close look at food: its uses – and abuses – as medicine, and the health consequences of too much (obesity) and too little (food insecurity).

We explore the ways in which food is deeply, intrinsically connected to both physical and mental health. And we examine how advances in genetic research have changed our understanding of nutrition in fascinating new ways.

We find many reasons to be encouraged, particularly in the struggle against obesity. The newly formed Centre for Child Nutrition and Health is one. The Centre is an exciting new model as it was designed to address the complexity of the obesity problem by drawing on expertise from many perspectives, from basic science to social media engagement. Individuals at the Centre are also addressing the way in which we educate physicians on lifestyle issues.

I’m encouraged to know that U of T Medicine, working closely with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, our hospital partners and many other stakeholders, is helping to create a healthier relationship with food – and separating much-needed fact from fiction in the nutritional domain. 

Finally, I’d like to thank the magazine’s art director Raj Grainger and editor Heidi Singer for their hard work in making the winter issue such a compelling read. If you haven’t done so yet, I encourage you to click here to learn about the fascinating work our Faculty are engaged in.

Trevor Young
Dean, Faculty of Medicine
Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions