Part 1: Turning Science Into Real-World Health Solutions

At Tufts University’s 2025 Food is Medicine Summit, one message stood out: it’s no longer about proving that food is medicine; it’s about putting it into practice. Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, Director of the Food is Medicine Institute at Tufts, opened the summit with a challenge: “Nutrition must be the top priority for healthcare, not top three, not top five.” It’s a statement that reflects a growing reality. Eighty-six percent of Americans now believe healthy food should be part of medical care. The evidence is clear: diet-related disease drives the majority of chronic conditions, from cardiovascular disease to Type 2 diabetes.

The Shift from Research to Implementation

For decades, the healthcare system has been designed to treat illness rather than prevent it. But initiatives like produce prescriptions, medically tailored meals (MTMs), and nutrition security programs are starting to change that. Tufts researchers and partners are demonstrating how integrating nutrition interventions into care delivery can improve clinical outcomes and lower total healthcare costs. 

Still, widespread adoption faces barriers. More than 90% of Americans cite cost as the biggest challenge to eating well, followed by limited time, cultural preferences, and confusion about what “healthy” means in practice. 

The Food is Medicine Institute’s work reframes food not as a prescription, but as a pathway, one rooted in culture, access, and dignity. The goal isn’t to medicalize food, but to humanize healthcare. 

From Insight to Action: The Nurish’d Approach

At Nurish’d, we share this vision. Our platform makes it possible for healthcare organizations, insurers, and clinicians to deliver Food is Medicine programs at scale, translating evidence-based nutrition into actionable care plans. 

By integrating with clinical workflows, electronic health records (EHRs), and partner meal providers, Nurish’d helps turn “nutrition as a priority” into measurable outcomes: better adherence, lower readmissions, and improved patient satisfaction. 

Looking Ahead

The Food is Medicine movement has proven the science. Now the challenge is logistics, making nutrition-based care a seamless part of the health system. 

Nurish’d is helping bridge that gap: empowering payers, providers, and communities to move from intention to implementation, one meal at a time.