The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recognizes March as National Nutrition Month®. Are you excited? I know I am – a whole month dedicated to learning more about nutrition. Each year, a theme is chosen; the theme for 2025 is “Food Connects Us.” This is such an important reminder that food is much more than the nutrients it provides; it brings people together worldwide, improves your overall health, builds relationships, and so much more. Food is a historical, emotional, and cultural connection that brings people together.
The Power of Food: Connecting Nutrition, Health, and Relationships
When we gather around food – we nourish more than our bodies; we nourish our connection with others and our overall well-being. When life gets busy, it can create stress, causing us to forget the importance of gathering around a meal. Our bodies go into fight-or-flight mode when stressed, causing difficulty with digestion and absorption of valuable nutrients. This is where our vagal nerve comes into play; when we stimulate our vagal nerve, our bodies relax, allowing optimal digestion and absorption.
One of the most effective ways to engage your vagal nerve is through laughter and socialization. Laughing and socializing naturally stimulate the nerve, promoting relaxation and better digestion. So, when we share a meal with loved ones, friends, co-workers, teammates, or even new acquaintances, we do much more than just eat–we create an environment that allows our body to benefit from the sweet nutrients we’re consuming. This is the power of food beyond its nutritional value. It’s a tool for connection, relaxation, and overall well-being.
An Activity to Engage with Feelings and Emotions Around Community and Food
Take a second to reflect on a special memory of a meal with a loved one that brings you to a happy place. How does this memory make you feel? What do you sense? Now that you have taken a second to reflect and pause, notice the power of those feelings and emotions. Were you aware of the moment? Who was this person? Did you share more than a meal?
Let’s take this a step further. Think about the role food played in this memory. Were you cooking, baking, eating a meal, picking out recipes together? Next, think about those emotions in the first half of this exercise. Are they positive feelings filled with love? Maybe you felt excited! What about a sense of longing? Whatever emotions came up, notice that food has the power to generate these feelings. Finally, consider how to bring these feelings into cooking and mealtimes this month. Can you recreate a family recipe? Start new traditions or practice an existing one? Invite friends over to cook and enjoy a meal together? Food is not just about nutrition – it is about being connected to our food, others, traditions, and love.
Tips for Preparing Meals Together
It may feel overwhelming to cook or prepare your own meals or snacks reducing your time to engage in meaningful mealtimes. However, with a few tips to simplify cooking, you can create a meal for yourself and your loved ones with much more confidence!
- Keep it Simple: Choose a simple dish over a complex one. It doesn’t need to be a masterpiece. Look for recipes with minimal ingredients and easy-to-follow instructions. My favorite place to search for recipes is Pinterest. A quick search like “under 20-minute dinners” populates many great places to start!
- Buy Pre-Cut Items: If you are in a time crunch, choosing pre-cut items helps you eat nutrient-dense food without the prep time, leaving more time to enjoy, laugh, smile, share, and taste the meal together.
- Cook with Others: This makes food fun! Cooking together makes your experience more of an activity versus a task. You might even learn a new tip or trick while cooking with someone else. Don’t forget to take a photo of this moment together – a photo is worth a thousand words.
- Prep Healthy Snacks: This ensures you are choosing nutrient-dense snack options. Homemade snacks allow you to share a bite with friends and strike up a conversation about what you made and how you did it.
- Create a Recipe Photo Album: When you see a recipe you want to try, screenshot it, add it to an album on your phone, and give it a try when you want to try something new.
There are powerful ways for you to engage with the food you are preparing and those you are cooking with. Take time this month to prioritize consuming food with community. Notice how it makes you feel, the memories it builds, and the emotions it brings up. Food is powerful, and it connects us with others.
About the Author
As a Certified Nutrition Coach, Julianna Quiring helps athletes optimize their performance through proper nutrition. Drawing from her experience as a Performance Nutrition Intern at Iowa State Athletics and nutrition coach at Life Time Fitness, she creates personalized strategies that enhance athletic achievement. Her goal is to guide and inspire athletes to make informed nutritional choices that support their success both on and off the court.