Dr. Andrew Erlandsen
Andrew Erlandsen, ND, is the primary contact for the Food as Medicine Institute.
Dr. Erlandsen earned his Doctorate of Naturopathic Medicine from the National College of Natural Medicine (now National University of Natural Medicine – NUNM) in Portland, Oregon. In 2013, Dr. Erlandsen worked on a team to develop NUNM’s Master of Science in Nutrition (MScN) degree. In 2021, he was named Dean of the School of Undergraduate and Graduate Studies at NUNM.
As a professor, Dr. Erlandsen teaches a variety of Nutrition courses in all of the academic programs at NUNM. He also teaches courses in clinical research and mentors students on their thesis projects. Dr. Erlandsen is currently working with a research team examining the effects of the ketogenic diet in people with Parkinson’s disease.
Dr. Erlandsen leads community-based nutrition and cooking workshops as part of the Food as Medicine Institute. Since 2012, he has taught the Food as Medicine Everyday (FAME) series in Banks, Oregon, reaching more than 100 community members.
Prior to NUNM, Dr. Erlandsen earned his degree summa cum laude in Food Science and Human Nutrition from the University of Maine. With more than a decade of food service experience, cooking, and managing restaurant kitchens, he has a true passion for food, nutrition, and using food as medicine. You can contact Dr. Erlandsen at aerlandsen@nunm.edu.
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Kira Freed, MEd, MScN
Kira Freed, MEd, MScN, is an adjunct faculty member at National University of Natural Medicine. She is also the Nutrition Department Coordinator, which encompasses supporting Nutrition program students and faculty as a teaching assistant, managing the teaching kitchen, coordinating Nutrition internships, and supporting the Food as Medicine Institute as a Food as Medicine Everyday Educator.
Kira’s career in nutrition was inspired by her lifelong love of cooking and a transformative experience using food as medicine. After a cancer diagnosis in her family, she was inspired to examine the many ways that how and what we eat impacts our health and wellbeing. Cooking with whole foods, using seasonal, local ingredients, and preserving foods at their peak were family values Kira learned very young, and now they are intentional habits that are foundational to her philosophy of nutrition, her practice in the kitchen, and her belief in food as medicine.
Prior to pursuing a career in nutrition, Kira worked for more than 10 years in higher education as an academic advisor and college success instructor at a local community college. She is passionate about higher education and the opportunities it presents, and she especially enjoys working with adult learners as they pursue educational and career goals.
Kira is a lifelong lover of food, so most of her interests revolve around it! She loves cooking, gardening, canning and preserving (especially jams and jellies), visiting farms and farmers markets, and collecting cookbooks. When not thinking about food, Kira also enjoys thrift store shopping and reading for pleasure.