Tuesday, May 21st, 2019

1:30 PM - 2:30 PM

Track III: Food, Nutrition and Fitness Herscher Hall, Guerin C, Webcast

Food as Medicine: Food for the Body – Food for the Soul - Food as a Creative Experience

Serena Poon, Nutritionist and Celebrated Chef & founder, Just Add Water™

Annie Vonheim, Wellness Expert, Creator, Smart Pressed Juice

Stephanie Kordan, The Sensual Foodie®

Kanchan Koya, Tasty Creator and founder, Spice Spice Baby

Dr. Rahi, M.D., Dr. Raheleh Sarbaziha, Moderator

Serena Poon, Nutritionist and Celebrated Chef & founder, Just Add Water™: Based out of Los Angeles, California, USA, Serena Poon is a successful entrepreneur established in the culinary, health and wellness community. Doubling as a classically-trained chef and nutritionist to her clientele, she is known for curating healing and wellness programs using integrative health, holistic nutrition and culinary alchemy. Her passionate focus on the importance of whole body and mind wellness is inspired by the profound effect of cancer on her family when both her mother and father were diagnosed within two years of each other. After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, she went on to pursue an education  in the culinary arts at the esteemed Le Cordon Bleu, graduating at the top of her class. Serena began her culinary career working for Hugh Hefner and Playboy Enterprises at the Playboy Mansion

in Holmby Hills. She took that exposure into the world of fine dining and started her own personal chef and private catering business. Serena has established herself as a top high-profile personal chef and nutritional consultant in Los Angeles and has built a strong clientele strictly by referral. From the likes of Steve Bing, to Sean “P. Diddy” Combs to Jerry Bruckheimer, her clients span the globe and her travels expose her to new methods and sources of nutrition to add to her customized techniques. Serena’s philosophy for living an optimal healthy lifestyle can be achieved by integrating nutritional and physical therapy, focused mindfulness and balancing the body’s support system. With the launch of her health and wellness line Just Add Water™ in 2018 and the ceaseless expansion of her lifestyle brand Serena Loves, Serena has truly brought her philosophy to life and continues to build on her mission to help others live their best life through new methods of self-care and wellness.

Stephanie Kordan, The Sensual Foodie®: A vegan chef and plant-based wellness expert, Stephanie began her food blog The Sensual Foodie in 2011 with a desire to inspire others to fall in love with healthy food. You'll find her actively engaging on Instagram as @stephaniekordan, cultivating a hungry tribe of foodies that eat up her posts. Stephanie's plant-based recipes and delicious food photography are also featured in Thrive Magazine. Stephanie has appeared on tv as a food critic on MasterChef and Gordon Ramsay’s 24 Hours to Hell and Back. Gordon Ramsay chose Stephanie as one of the “top food critics of the nation” for the special MasterChef episode ‘Critics Choice” as Ramsay values Stephanie’s taste expertise on food, describing her as “an esteemed food critic.” Stephanie was also a casting judge for MasterChef Junior. She is most passionate about encouraging people to live an “eat more plants” lifestyle. Stephanie is currently creating an app and guide for health-conscious people transitioning to vegan. As an influencer, Stephanie creates sponsored posts and develops vegan recipes in collaboration with brands such as Veggie Grill, Oatly, Purple Carrot, Sun Basket, Le Creuset, Field Roast, Brandless, Waiakea, Impossible Foods, Maille, CrockPot, Milk & Eggs, Lahtt Sauce, Birch Benders, and more.

Annie Niou Vonheim has a lifelong passion for healing. She worked with the top functional medicine researchers in chronic disease management for physicians and hospitals all over the world. It was after 15 years of work in this field that she discovered that no matter how complex the health protocol, the most powerful medicine in the world came from the humble green vegetable. This is why she created Smart Pressed Juice- to make the healing, revitalizing phytonutrients in plants accessible to everyone.

Kanchan Koya has a doctorate in Molecular Biology from Harvard Medical School, training from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, and knows that food can be the best and most powerful preventative medicine. While studying DNA repair as a PhD student, Kanchan’s lab began studying the cancer-fighting powers of curcumin, the active compound in the ancient spice, turmeric. This sparked Kanchan’s interest in the science-backed health benefits of spices, which she had grown up enjoying on a daily basis in India. Upon becoming a mother, she founded Spice Spice Baby, a platform dedicated to shedding light on the healing potential of spices, demystifying them for a global audience, and inspiring their use in food for the whole family. Kanchan’s recipes are original, eclectic, nutritious, and packed with spice. She is part of the Creators Program at Buzzfeed Tasty and host of the recently launched Momlight podcast helping mothers find health and vitality in #momlife. You can find her experimenting with spices in her kitchen, enjoying a sweaty yoga class, or sipping a glass of wine in Brooklyn, New York, where she lives with her husband and two kids.

Dr. Rahi, M.D., Dr. Raheleh Sarbaziha: Dr. Rahi, a board-certified physician in Internal Medicine, completed her post-graduate training program at the University of Southern California and completed her fellowship training in Integrative Medicine through the University of Arizona. Dr. Rahi completed training in Aesthetics in 2015 at the American Academy of Aesthetic Medicine and Esthetic Skin Institute From there, she trained for another two years in mastering the craft of Injectables and Aeshetics. Dubbed the “Anti-Aging Doctor,” Dr. Rahi believes that health and beauty are inextricably linked and comes from within. She remains a foremost expert in the Los Angeles area for Integrative Medicine and Aesthetics and is focused on disease prevention and engaging her clients to participate with her in creating simple plans to change their health and wellness on a daily basis. Her passion lies in ensuring you get the best health care starting from the inside out. Clients come from all around the world to get “Lips by Rahi” or a PDO Threadlift from the “Thread Queen.” Her approach to Aesthetics is always natural and firmly believes in treating-before-filling. As a nutrition and micronutrient specialist, Dr. Rahi's passion for food stems from the core belief that it should nourish the soul. She ensures every patient gets a personalized recommendation for diet, vitamins, and exercise. Dr. Rahi is also currently undergoing Yoga Teacher Training at LMU to learn the ways yoga can aid her patients. Dr. Rahi's goal is to never stop learning and growing. Always one to practice what she preaches, she works hard every day to serve as a model for her patients.