Meet the Intern: Leah Kern
Hi! I’m Leah Kern. I graduated from The University of Vermont with a BS in Dietetics, Nutrition and Food Sciences this past May, 2019. I'm currently a dietetic intern in Sodexo’s NYC region. I’m originally from northern New Jersey, called Vermont my home for a few years and now live in Brooklyn, NY.
How did you get into the field of nutrition?
The short answer is that I thought I knew everything about nutrition in high school, so I wanted to pursue it in college and professionally. But, looking back, I see how misinformed and backwards my thinking used to be.
The longer answer: if you asked me five years ago what it meant to eat healthfully, I would’ve said something like, “eat salad.” If asked the same question today, I would say, “It depends.” Salad’s fibrous nature is far from ideal for someone experiencing GI distress. For the elderly population, salad might pose chewing difficulties. Or perhaps someone just doesn’t enjoy salad, and that doesn't mean they can’t be healthy. Five years ago, I was someone who fell victim to trendy articles, which praised certain foods and condemned others. Now, I understand that, with food, there is no such dichotomy as good and bad. Nutrition is far more complex than the “eat salad” narrative that I originally subscribed to. I have come to learn that nutrition is not all about calories and weight, good and bad. Health is personal and circumstantial. The media often reports pseudoscience diluting nutrition to quick fixes and fad diets. In reality, nutrition is a balancing act of evidence-based findings, individualized care, and an understanding of social and behavioral disposition.
With contradicting information everywhere, people (like myself in high school) are rightfully confused, dying to know once and for all: What should I eat to optimize my health? I got into the field of nutrition to become a professional equipped with the skills to sift through the nonsense and point to the science. I want to help people understand, enjoy, and make peace with food without all the noise of diet culture.
What do you see yourself doing as a dietitian?
I would love to have my own private practice one day a few years down the road. But, for the immediate future, I know I won’t be able to start there from day one. I haven't had my clinical rotation in a hospital yet (which is a huge part of the internship) so I feel like I can't say yet which part of the field I see myself working in until I’ve had that experience.
What I do know about my future pursuits is that I am interested in telling stories through food and cooking. I’ve been playing with this idea on my food instagram account, @foodfor_thought_, where I share stories about cooking meals with friends and family. This account has been like an ongoing soul project for me to put my thoughts down and stay inspired. I also like its function as a representation of how I’ve grown in my mindset around nutrition. If you look at posts from when I started the account in 2015, you’ll see mostly salads made up of pretty much just raw veggies and beans. But in more recent posts, you’ll see a wide array of different foods accompanied by short anecdotes about cooking. To me, this represents how much I’ve loosened up as I’ve come to realize that nutrition is not as black as white as just eating salad. In our increasingly fast-paced lives, I believe that food is such a powerful way for people to come together, slow down, and enjoy spending time together. Plus, we have to eat every day, so why not try and find a way to make it enjoyable?
In my future work as a dietitian, I hope to capture this philosophy in some combination of counseling, teaching, and writing.
Favorite food(s)?
Roasted chickpeas, feta cheese, and tahini (really into Mediterranean style food!)
Least favorite food(s)?
Kale. Yep, that’s right, I said it. I’m in the dietetic field and I don't like kale and I haven't died yet from failing to consume this “superfood.” So rest assured, if you, like me, also don't like kale, know that I’m living proof that you can still be a perfectly healthy person without it!
Favorite meal to cook?
I’m really into making Shakshuka (Israeli dish with eggs poached in tomato sauce) because it’s fairly cheap, packs in a lot of veggies, and it looks pretty impressive without actually doing much work. My friends love to take pictures of it put it on their Instagrams, so that’s kinda fun too.
Fun fact?
I’ve driven cross country twice in the last year (from California to Vermont and vice versa)!
When I’m not at school, you can find me: working at Trader Joes (I love working there and I love talking about working there so if you have any questions, I’m your girl), running, reading or cooking.
Leah will be interning with Sammi until mid-December as part of her wellness rotation during her dietetic internship. Follow her on Instagram at @foodfor_thought_.
