New Partnership Expands ‘Food Is Medicine’ Movement

Common Threads and Anahata Foundation have teamed up to support underserved communities in LA and NYC by emphasizing the power of nutrition

Common Threads, a national nonprofit focused on health and wellness through cooking and nutrition education, has forged a multi-year partnership with the Anahata Foundation to advance the “Food is Medicine” movement and support underserved communities in Los Angeles and New York City.

The collaboration comes amid an alarming backdrop where the prevalence of obesity among U.S. children and adolescents was 19.7% from 2017 to 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which also found that obesity prevalence increases as family income decreases.

A key focus of the partnership will be two initiatives: the Common Threads‘ Kitchen Clinic and Chef-Led Small Bites.

The Kitchen Clinic, designed for high school students, provides hands-on culinary education while promoting nutrition and wellness, helping students understand how food can prevent and manage chronic conditions.

Chef-Led Small Bites, aimed at elementary and middle schools as well as community spaces, brings professional chefs into the fold through interactive sessions that make learning about healthy eating engaging and fun.

“At Common Threads, we believe the kitchen is a classroom — a space where we learn to transform our health, fight disease, and thrive through the power of food,” Common Threads CEO and co-founder Linda Novick O’Keefe said. “Partnering with the Anahata Foundation allows us to deepen our impact in LA and NYC by addressing the root causes of chronic disease and health disparities. Together, we’re empowering young people to rewrite the narrative for their families and communities, one recipe at a time.”

Common Threads also offers a digital component, has partnered with more than 2,200 schools, and has provided over five million meals through its initiatives.

Above all, the two programs and this new partnership lay the foundation for promoting generational health—a core mission of Mark Bertolini, founder of the Anahata Foundation.

“Partnering with Common Threads aligns perfectly with the Anahata Foundation’s mission of holistic health and healing,” Bertolini said. “We’re thrilled to support programs that not only educate but also inspire, helping young people and their families see food as a gateway to wellness.”