Infusing Traditional Latino Dishes with Healthier Ingredients

Food is an important part of Latino culture. Unfortunately, many dishes traditionally contain ingredients that can contribute to chronic diseases and obesity. This prompted MetroHealth to launch VIDA!, a program that trains volunteers from Hispanic church congregations as Community Health Cooks, showing them with hands-on lessons how to put a healthy spin on traditional cultural foods. These lay leaders then extend their new knowledge to their own families and throughout their community.

ideastream's Darrielle Snipes visited a recent Vida! class and later spoke with Yolanda Ramos, the chef who helped MetroHealth develop their recipes. Yolanda shared how a scary diagnosis inspired her to make substantial changes in her diet and life.