Sacred Plates: Reclaiming Wellness Through Ancestral Eating | Kamila McDonald | TEDxClarkstown
NOTE FROM TED: While some may find this helpful as a complementary approach, please do not look to this talk as a substitute for medical advice. This talk only represents the speaker's personal views and understanding of diet, health, and healing. We've flagged this talk because it falls outside the content guidelines TED gives TEDx organizers. TEDx events are independently organized by volunteers. The guidelines we give TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/tedx_content_guidelines.pdfIn her talk, Kamila McDonald reflects on the vibrant, medicine-free life of her 100-year-old grandmother to explore a powerful truth: we’ve become disconnected from the ancestral wisdom that once kept us well. Sharing her personal journey from growing up in Jamaica on fresh, Ital foods to battling depression, weight gain, and prediabetes after moving abroad, Kamila reveals how processed foods and emotional disconnection fueled her decline. Her healing came not from a trendy diet, but from a return to real food, breathing exercises, slow, intentional living, and gut health. She reminds us that our ancestors didn’t count calories; they honored food as medicine. Backed by science and cultural truth, Kamila offers a simple but profound message: we are not broken, just disconnected, and healing begins on our plates, one small, conscious step at a time.
Kamila McDonald is a Jamaican health and wellness entrepreneur, author, and certified fitness coach committed to making holistic living accessible and culturally relevant. A Stanford and UC Berkeley graduate, she blends academic insight with real-world impact in plant-based nutrition, sustainable business, and community wellness.
Her journey from battling weight challenges, an eating disorder, and prediabetes to becoming a wellness leader fuels her mission.In 2017, she published Kamila’s Kitchen, which grew from a bestselling nutrition guide into a thriving plant-based restaurant chain.
Beyond food, Kamila leads a community-based wellness programs.
WellGood – A sustainable food company producing plant-based alternatives, with an eco-conscious approach.
Through her ventures, Kamila empowers individuals to embrace wellness through culture, self-care, and sustainability; proving that transformation is possible, one meal and one movement at a time. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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