Processed-Free America founder Dee McCaffrey’s passion lies in teaching others how to shop, cook, and eat healthfully, while serving as a role model and inspiration for sustainable weight loss and healthy living. Woven throughout her books, videos, seminars, cooking classes, and food products, is a personal message of hope, empowerment, and courage for making lasting lifestyle changes.
Dee earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Chemistry. During her 19-year career as an organic analytical chemist, she moved up the industry ladder from bench chemist to laboratory supervisor to ultimately managing the entire quality assurance program for one of the nation’s leading environmental testing laboratories.
During the years in which she practiced chemistry, Dee became intimately familiar with the chemical names and toxic properties of the majority of common environmental pollutants, particularly those used in and on America’s food supply. She made the connection that pesticides, preservatives, flavorings, colorings, and refined carbohydrates affect body chemistry in such a way that balanced health is difficult to sustain. It was this understanding that led to a dramatic transformation in her life—she overcame a decades long battle with obesity by eliminating processed foods from her diet. The result was a 100-pound weight loss, which she has sustained over three decades.
Along the way, she discovered a passion. While climbing the industry ladder in her chemistry profession, she spent nearly all of her off time sharing her weight-loss experience with others: explaining the relationship between food and health, and teaching them how to shop and prepare healthful meals for themselves and their families. Eventually, she channeled that moonlight activity into a second career as a clinical nutritionist by first earning a certification in holistic nutrition and diet counseling, followed by master’s and doctoral degrees in Clinical and Functional Nutrition. Functional nutrition is a science-based, client-centered approach to achieving and maintaining excellent health through natural methods, with diet and nutrition at the forefront.
In the early 2000’s, Dee became a trailblazer, coining the term “processed-free” to describe her nutrition philosophy of moving away from processed foods to eating foods in their closest-to-natural form. Her private nutrition practice specializes in helping clients achieve successful outcomes with weight loss, diabetes and metabolic diseases, digestive problems, autoimmune disorders and eating disorders.
Her books The Science of Skinny; Start Understanding Your Body’s Chemistry and Stop Dieting Forever (Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2012) and The Science of Skinny Cookbook (Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2014) are available in bookstores and online.
She frequently conducts nutrition lectures and cooking classes at numerous bookstores and natural food markets, including Whole Foods Markets, Sprouts Farmers Market and Natural Grocer. As a sought after nutrition and weight loss expert, Woman’s World magazine has quoted Dee’s advice in several of their articles on healthy food products and cooking. Dee’s weight loss story, books, and recipes have been featured in local and national print, including Quick and Simple Magazine and Obesity Help Magazine. Dee has appears on numerous TV and radio shows throughout the U.S. and Canada, including The Doctors, Better TV, The Dr. Steve Show, and the Faith Middleton Show (NPR).
Dee ran the Culinary World and was the featured expert at the annual American Diabetes Association Expo/Phoenix, one of the largest diabetes programs in the country, for three consecutive years. Each year, Dee educated thousands of audience members throughout the day with her fabulous recipes, cooking tips, and extensive nutrition knowledge focused on diabetes management and prevention. She has also been a featured speaker at the Arizona Children’s Obesity Conference, AIDS Connecticut, The Mogollon Health Alliance Women’s Wellness Forum and the National Library of Traditional Medicine Conference.
Dee and her husband Michael McCaffrey are the founders of Processed-Free America, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing healthful education in nutrition, cooking, and implementing lifestyle changes for weight loss and optimal health.
Dee is an adjunct faculty member at Arizona College of Nursing, the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, and Fortis College. She is a professional member of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals (NANP), the American Nutrition Association (ANA), the American Society for Nutrition (ASN) and the American Association of Nutritional Consultants (AANC). Dee lives in Tempe, Arizona.
Radio, television, print, and online media personnel that wish to schedule an interview with Dee are to call Michael at 602-510-3404 or email [email protected].