Contributed by Dalina Soto, MA, RD, LDN, author of The Latina Anti-Diet: A Dietitian’s Guide to Authentic Health that Celebrates Culture and Full-Flavor Living. As a registered dietitian, Soto understands the pros and cons of intuitive eating. As a first-generation Dominican American, she’s also seen firsthand how this movement has only catered to a certain demographic. Soto shows us that food is so much more than calories; it’s about celebrating our culture and living a life full of flavor.
If I am honest, writing this book was hard because I wanted to get it right for my community. As a first-generation Dominican American and registered dietitian (in a field where as of 2022 only 13% of RDs identify as Latine!), I’ve seen how nutrition education fails to serve Latine communities. The Latina Anti-Diet emerges from my journey of recognizing that many people have no idea how healthy our cultural foods can be.
In your classroom, you’ve probably noticed how mainstream nutrition education can alienate students from diverse backgrounds. (When I was going to Penn State for my bachelor’s in nutritional sciences, I was the only Latina. The foods I ate at home were simply not on the classroom table.) Perhaps you’ve seen students struggle with conflicting messages about their traditional foods; one myth I still encounter all the time is that people should switch from white rice to brown because it’s “better” (spoiler alert: they shouldn’t, it’s not). My book challenges these narratives and brings nutrition science to our community in a way that helps heal not just individual relationships with food, but those of our mamis, primas, and tias too.
While I firmly believe anyone reading this book will take away valuable information for their journey to food freedom, it specifically centers Latine food and culture. Through my CHULA Method, I provide practical tools for understanding nutrition while honoring cultural identity. This framework is especially relevant for courses in nutrition, public health, cultural studies, and social work. It will challenge students to think critically about conventional nutrition paradigms while providing practical frameworks for supporting diverse communities.
What makes this book especially beneficial for your students is its intersectional approach. As a thin-privileged professional who acknowledges the complexity of body politics, I address how racism, colonialism, and white supremacy have shaped our understanding of “healthy eating.” This book elevates diverse voices and stories from my chulas (my term of endearment for my community) while calling out racism, fatphobia, and other issues that affect someone’s access to food and health. The book examines how these systemic forces impact food choices, body image, and health outcomes in Latine communities.
Your students will find:
- A critical examination of how diet culture specifically impacts Latine communities
- Evidence-based nutrition information that centers cultural foods and traditions
- Personal narratives from diverse voices in the Latine community
- Tools for developing a healthy relationship with food while honoring cultural heritage
- Discussion of social determinants of health and their impact on Latine communities
I wrote this book with the hope of preserving our cultural food traditions for future generations while promoting genuine health and wellbeing. By including The Latina Anti-Diet in your curriculum, you’ll help prepare students to work more effectively with Latine communities and contribute to a more inclusive understanding of health and nutrition. You’ll show them how to treat everyone, and I mean everyone, with dignity and respect.
Con mucho amor,
Dalina Soto, MA, RD
