Nimali Fernando has seen first-hand the connection between what kids eat and their well-being.

"On first glance, you think of diet-related illnesses, mainly just pediatric obesity, and it's true that about 30 percent of kids in our community and nationwide really are either overweight or obese.

And that's a pretty staggering number.

But as I paid more attention to a lot of the symptomology that I was seeing in kids who even weren't obese or overweight, I was seeing that those symptoms often traced back in some way to the diet."

To help change that, the pediatrician co-authored a book and started a blog and a website.

"I simply posted recipes on that website and when I would see patients in the office  and felt like I didn't have enough time to go over the nutrition topics with them I would point them to that website.

And then when I started to see how empowering that was for families to actually get in the kitchen and use our recipes and see their kids eating better, then I decided to teach a few cooking classes."

In 2012, she co-founded the Dr. Yum Project.

"Feeding is a developmental process… this is lentils with spinach…"

In this kitchen inside her clinic, she gives parents ideas for raising healthy eaters.

"Maybe it's using our menu planner to see how they can make meal planning easy for them.

Maybe it's using our budget-friendly recipes to figure out how to eat really healthy on a budget.

Maybe it's using our baby food options so that they can see how to feed their babies the same food they're eating."

"Even my husband and I are eating better because we're making sure that the kids eat better."

Almost all of the ingredients used in the cooking classes come from the clinic's garden, all the recipes are posted on Dr. Yum's website.

"Every single recipe is tasted by families and we have the real feedback that we get from families, parents and kids about the food that is out there.

We've tagged all those recipes, make it really easy to build or find."

The ultimate goal is to change the culture around kids' food.

"There is a lot going on in the media, and you know, just kind of advertising and things around that say that kids, you know, kids foods are, like 'Lunchables,' or kids foods are processed foods, kids won't eat fresh carrots, since they would rather have Doritos.

You have to remember that these messages are out there because those companies are trying to make money.

You have to learn how to try new foods all of the times."

Fernando and her colleagues hope to inspire pediatricians around the country to start cooking lessons to help families enjoy real, nutritious meals.