World-Renowned Dietitian Kate Scarlata Joins Epicured to Transform Healthcare through Nutrition
Epicured, the leader in gut-healing, low FODMAP, and gluten-free prepared meals, welcomes dietitian-innovator Kate Scarlata as Vice President of Nutrition and Translational Science. She brings to Epicured an unparalleled vision and passion for improving health outcomes through food. With Scarlata on board, Epicured will transform healthcare by making evidence-based nutrition a staple of dinner tables nationwide.
Scarlata’s role at Epicured will build upon all that she has cultivated in more than 30 years at the forefront of digestive health and low FODMAP diet research. Kate was an early advocate for the 88 million people struggling with life-long digestive illnesses. When very few of her peers understood the potential of the low FODMAP diet, she organized symposiums to demystify it and published numerous articles and books, eventually landing herself on The New York Times Best Seller list. Confronted with a lack of materials to simplify the diet for patients, Scarlata also developed easy-to-use guides, grocery lists, and recipes that have since become the industry standard.
Kate’s role at Epicured builds on her life’s work, ensuring even more people have access to food that alleviates their pain and distress while making eating joyful again. She will translate cutting-edge nutrition research into well-balanced menus that inspire people to make healthy choices, meal after meal. Scarlata will also build clinical partnerships across the country, helping to launch new research programs and promote access to registered dietitians for Epicured subscribers.
“The most rewarding aspect of my work has been seeing the low FODMAP diet give my patients their lives back,” says Scarlata. “I’ve been using Epicured’s low FODMAP meals to treat my patients for years because it’s so convenient and delicious. There’s simply nothing else on the market like it. Our aligned mission is already making for a powerful partnership.”
Scarlata’s first major contribution to Epicured is the launch of a new research program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. This study will continue at the University of Michigan’s Gastroenterology Clinic. Participants in low FODMAP research studies are provided Epicured food to ensure dietary compliance. Speaking about the partnership, William Chey, MD, and Director of the GI Nutrition Program at Michigan Medicine, says, “Using Epicured’s low FODMAP food to ensure patient adherence and satisfaction has drastically improved our ability to execute diet-based studies. With Epicured, we’re advancing research in food-related IBS symptomatology and better understanding the effects of FODMAPs in the gut.”
Scarlata will also be a fixture in the Epicured Test Kitchen, collaborating on product development alongside Epicured’s culinary director Daniel Chavez-Bello. Chef Dani’s years of fine-dining experience at Michelin-starred restaurants like Bouley and El Bulli provide the perfect complement to Scarlata’s clinical expertise.
“Dietary restrictions can be incredibly difficult and isolating because a great meal is such an essential social and cultural experience,” says Epicured CEO Richard Bennett. “We are building a diverse team of thought leaders like Kate and Chef Dani to create new approaches to solving complex healthcare issues.”
About Epicured
Epicured is a healthcare company that harnesses the natural healing power of food to help people eat better, feel better and live better. As the first low FODMAP and gluten-free meal service, Epicured gives customers with IBS, Crohn’s, Colitis, SIBO, and celiac an easy way to achieve better digestive health. They pair Michelin-star chefs with the best doctors and dietitians and have a one-of-a-kind partnership with Mount Sinai Health System.
Epicured was founded in 2016 by Richard Bennett, the company’s CEO, and Renee Cherkezian, RN, Director of Product Development and a nurse-turned-chef. For the last 3 years, Epicured’s customers have enjoyed freshly prepared, antibiotic, hormone, and preservative-free, mostly organic, non-GMO ‘food as medicine’ for chronic digestive conditions.
Epicured’s meals, snacks, and beverages are always prepared and delivered fresh. Delivery is available in the US, across the contiguous 48 states. To learn more, visit www.epicured.com.
About Kate Scarlata
Kate Scarlata MPH, RDN joined the Epicured team as Vice President of Nutrition and Translational Science in March 2020. She has 30 years experience providing nutrition consultations to individuals with digestive conditions including: irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and mast cell activation syndrome. Ms. Scarlata is considered a global expert in food intolerance, in particular the science-based, 3 phase low FODMAP diet. She’s currently engaged in 2 research studies.
Ms. Scarlata is a New York Times Best Selling author and author of multiple scientific journal articles. Her role at Epicured includes expanding clinical and research partners. She works collaboratively with the Epicured’s culinary team to aid recipe development to help serve a larger demographic of digestively challenged patients. Kate firmly believes that food is an under-utilized as treatment modality, and can be better leveraged to enhance nutritional status, disease outcomes and quality of life.
