Food & Wellness

Using Food As Medicine

Whether it's using ginger to soothe your stomach, turmeric to combat inflammation or cinnamon to lower blood sugar, food can heal and help create balance in the body bringing it from dis-ease to harmony. Learn how to use plant-based food as a "power tool" to charge your energy, change your mood, reduce inflammation, boost your immune system, heal dis-ease, lower your toxic load and minimize your footprint on the planet.

Decades of Experience

Given her pioneering mother, Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy grew up with holistic health practices from wheat grass juicing to making her own yogurt.  She became a vegetarian in 1984 and gluten-free in 1997.  After almost dying from Crohn's Disease, she trained in various modalities:

• Coaching from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (IPEC)
• Holistic Health Counseling from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition (IIN)
• Lifestyle & Weight Management from the American Council on Exercise (ACE)

A gluten-free vegan, she is a seasoned cook and has been featured in two Integrative Nutrition books, the American Heart Association Healthy Soul Food cookbook and has contributed to various publications such as The Network Journal and Real Health.  She has written five books, including Seven-Day PWR Detox: Cleanse Your Body, Mind & Spirit While Living Your Daily Life and 40 Days To Power Living: Think. Eat & Live On Purpose.  She has coached people through a range of health issues (with an emphasis on gut and immune health) and incorporates her deep knowledge of the mind-body connection into energy management approaches.  Learn about her journey.  View her Yoga & Mindfulness and Empowerment offerings.

A Leader in Health Advocacy

Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy is a highly respected health advocate from being Adjunct Faculty for the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and teaching medical students and cardiologists stress management techniques to being the nutrition expert and lead teacher for S.P.I.C.E. (Supporting Pre-Conception Individuals through Cultural, Cooking and Coping Essentials) - a  program to help reduce disparities in childbirth outcomes through enhancing education and support services that are focused on Caribbean, African American, African and Latino Women in Brooklyn. She has worked with a variety of organizations, such as:

• Mount Sinai
• AARP New York
• HealthCorps
• Sharp HealthCare
• Harlem Hospital Center
• Elmhurst Hospital Center
• King's County Hospital Center
• Central Harlem Health Revival
• Institute for Integrative Nutrition
• Association of Black Cardiologists
• National Ayurvedic Medical Association
• National Institutes of Health
• Ralph Lauren Cancer Center
• Women Organized Around Wellness
• National Ayurveda Medical Association
• Teen People/Pathways to Beauty & Wellbeing
• Tendu Wellness Indulgence Festival

• Urban Zen Foundation
• Mentoring in Medicine
• American Heart Association
• American Diabetes Association
• Integrative Healthcare Symposium
• ClubMom Day of Indulgence
• Harlem Healthy Living Initiative
• Student National Medical Association
• The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives
• Albany College of Pharmacy & Health Services
• Alliance for a Healthier Generation
• Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine
• East Harlem Asthma Center of Excellence
• Holistic Wellness Expo, City College of New York
• Athletic Center of Excellence & Sports Medicine
• Congressional Black Caucus Health Empowerment Tour
• Cleveland Clinic's Speaking of Women's Health Tour

As a National Spokesperson for the American Heart Association, she represented the association in the national media for the Search Your Heart Program and Power To End Stroke Campaign. She also served on multiple committees including the International Stroke Committee, NY State Stroke Committee, NY State Advocacy Committee, Multicultural Leadership Committee and Harlem Go Red Committee. In addition, she served on the Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Health Care (ACCAHC) and was a leader for the Harlem Healthy Living Initiative created by The Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce with Congressman Charles B. Rangel and The City of New York to help residents live healthier and productive lives.