Caryn Dugan
I love to eat. Who doesn't?
You name it and I have probably tried it. In fact, in high school, one of my friends called me the human garbage disposal. During college I shared the same diet as many other students: bar food, fast food, packaged food. Eventually I knew it was time to get on track and clean up my act. In an effort to do this, I ate mainly packaged “healthy” diet foods (you know the ones.) This made it easy to keep track of my fats, carbs and calories. After all, that is what being healthy is, right? Sometimes I would wonder about those 26-letter words under the ingredients heading on the box, but shoot, it was only 250 calories and 2 grams of fat, so it must be healthy! You get the picture.
Why I do what I do.
Fast forward to 2008. This proved to be a pretty rotten year. I lost my dad to cancer and exactly ten weeks later, I too was diagnosed. Mourning the loss of my dad soon turned into fear and anger as I dealt with my own condition. I was so healthy — why did this happen? Luckily, my treatment was quick and today I remain cancer free. However, the exceptional loss in my family coupled with my own brush with cancer sparked a drive to understand the role food, both processed and whole alike, have on our body.
An insatiable need to learn how the food we put in our body directly affects our health continues to be my quest. During reading and researching, meeting with authors, instructors and medical experts in the field of nutrition science and health, I adopted a plant-based whole foods diet. It’s no secret that mainly unprocessed, real food is what our body responds to and uses to develop a strong immune system to help fight off disease and chronic illnesses. I became a Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine “Food for Life” instructor, completed Rouxbe School of Cooking chef’s training, attended Wellness School of Coaching and earned my “Well Coach” certification, and finished E-Cornell’s Plant-Based Certification course.
My mission.
Today, still delving deep in continual education and always working toward the highest in certifications, I enjoy teaching plant-based culinary classes and serving my clients. Along with making regular appearances on St. Louis TV affiliates such as Fox, CBS, and NBC morning shows, I'm also demonstrating in large venues such as home shows and health immersions. Whether you are looking to reverse an illness or take preventative measures to avoid one, looking at what you put in your body is a good place to start. The most asked question I receive is, "how do I begin?". My answer, A Plant On Every Plate.