My whole 30 post series

Owing to some very unhealthy (albeit delicious) personal food habits in the wake of Easter, I decided it was time I cleansed. The last cleanse I did was in college, way too long ago. That was a four day juice fast, retreat style. Many happy memories of Ballingup bush surrounds, friends and vegetables! Much as I'd love to relive that time, it's just not practical for a breastfeeding mother of two to fast for any length of time, much less head to a quiet bush retreat for the duration. It has to be a different sort of cleanse for me!

I chose the whole 30 cleanse for a couple of reasons. Foremost, it can be done at home, and requires no special effort or expense. Big bonus. It's based on whole foods, JERF, just eat real food, for a month. This promises to reset my digestion and eliminate cravings. Great, much needed! But I also chose it for a more, shall we say, 'investigative' reason.

With all the hoopla around the paleo diet of late, many people, including high profile personalities, have put their two cents into the debate 'for what it's worth'. I happened to flick past that unfortunate tv show 'the circle' recently to hear a bleach blonde drag queen-like woman in her 40s declare that in her opinion cutting out entire food groups wasn't healthy. I wasn't aware she held any qualifications to that end...

But why not put it to the test? There are thousands of testimonials online by people whose lives have been changed for the better to various degrees by paleo and similar diets. While it doesnt suriprise me that eliminating processed food does anyone a world of good, I'd like to see what it can do for me. I'm a perfect candidate at present as my health is wanting. My senses of smell and taste are diminished, a sign of zinc deficiency. I have chronic plantar fasciitis (sore feet) and lower back pain, signs of low magnesium. I'm increasingly tired, which could be my baby's night waking, or anaemia, or both...my baby's night waking is itself possibly due to my milk being high in sugar and low in essential nutrients, I strongly suspect this to be the case as she had been sleeping through prior to my diet completely falling off the proverbial wagon. At present, my diet is like many western diets, inclusive of all types of food, real or otherwise. So I'm going to cut a few out and report the changes! 

The whole 30 diet essentially eliminates sugar, grains, dairy and legumes. While grains have been on my hit list for ages, legumes and dairy are a different story. I still think legumes should be ok provided they are bought dried and soaked til sprouted, but for the sake of science I'll forego the pleasures until the end of the cleanse, then reintroduce them. Its been a long time since I've consumed pasteurised milk, and I do feel that raw milk is a wonderful thing, but in the spirit of cleansing and investigating, I'll forego that too. Sugar is something I regularly eliminate...long story!

In addition to the whole 30 protocols, I'm going to drink warm lemon water before meals, and take a gut cleansing herbal formula, as well as my usual handful of probiotics every evening. 

I'm certain that my health will be amazing by the end of the month. I'm sure my zinc, magnesium and iron levels will return to normal, I'll lose some weight, have heaps of energy, feel light and happy and calm. I'm looking forward to it, and I hope to inspire others to try it too. 

And finally, for the sake of accountability, Im posting a selfie, before and after style!

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to an improvement in that dial! (to say nothing of everything south thereof).

My baby (no. 2) led weaning

It's been a really long blogging hiatus, but I'd like to think I've collected some wisdom during that time!  First I'd like to introduce baby number two, my little lady, Sofia Rose. How delightful a daughter is! She's 13 months old at present, and it seems like she will always be a baby to me!

 

 

But she's an independent little thing, in every way. After being exclusively carried and worn on my chest, and sleeping by my side at night, she asked to be put on the floor the day she turned 5 months old. To the astonishment of all present, she began to commando crawl along the mat. And that was it, she was on the move! She was on all fours a few weeks later, by 6 months she was crossing rooms. At 9 months she took her first step, by 10 months she was walking.

Her food journey has had a similar element of precocious independence. I'd made up my mind to keep her exclusively breast fed through her first year, believing this was the healthiest start to life... But my baby had other ideas! At just barely 4 months she mastered grabbing food from my hand and stuffing her fist into her mouth before I could stop her! Far from 12 months on milk, it was all I could do to make it to 5 months!



Sprung!...Is that a beetroot Sofia? Delicious?

So I abandoned my grand plans of breastfeeding exclusively, and, with the encouragement of a friend and colleague who's opinion I respect, we went ahead with her first foods. As it was very much Sofia's choice to begin to eat solids, she seemed like a perfect candidate for baby led weaning (BLW). We had intended to use this style for Antonio, but wimped out when he gagged on a green bean! I fed him all of the same foods that I offered to Sofia, only as purees. Sofia had a combination of baby led weaning and Weston A Price baby feeding recommendations, which means I gave her certain very important, nutrient dense foods in a cup or spoon, which is not strictly in line with baby led weaning practices.  First I fed her chicken broth from a small cup. Broth is a wonderful first food as its warm, nourishing, and helps to seal the little gut, and promote gut flora balance, which is the most important thing a food can do! She loves her broth still, these days she drinks it through a straw. 

Following the broth was egg yolk. A perfect baby food, yolk is very similar in it's nutritional profile to breast milk, and I always think it's as though it was made for little ones! Both my babies loved it. Yolk provides fats and fat soluble vitamins, needed for immune system function and the rapid brain development of the little ones, plus iron, which can begin to deplete in mothers milk, but it's so much more easily absorbed from an egg yolk than those awful fortified cereals (which just constipate the poor little things anyway). I found the easiest way to give yolks was like the broth, in a small cup. I prepared them in a little pot, first melting about 5g of butter, then adding the yolk, stirring, over a very low heat for just a few seconds, to warm it through. Now she eats whole eggs, scrambled, and has raw yolks in smoothies. I continue to ensure she gets at least two yolks per day for optimal growth and development. 

 

The final food I offer to her on a spoon is butter. My babies both love organic, grass fed butter. It's a great source of fat soluble vitamins and saturated fats, important for gut health, brain and bone development.
 

In addition to these, I offered her vegetables, boiled until soft in salted water, and smothered in butter! She tasted fruit pieces, yoghurt and avocado. Her first meat experiences were with chicken drumsticks, with most of the meat removed. This was always an amusing sight, especially as she was such a little thing. 

 

According to the BLW recommendations, I allow Sofia to govern her food intake, to play with foods and experiment with them, and stop when she feels full. I never made her puréed food unless the family was having dhal or soup. However there are certain foods I've withheld from her. I've limited her intake of grain based food, since babies lack the digestive enzymes necessary to break them down. (This is one of the arguments put forward for breastfeeding exclusively for 12 months.) Giving floury foods like bread and pasta at a young age kills off beneficial bacteria in the gut, creates leaky gut syndrome by degrading gut integrity, and feeds opportunistic flora like candidia albicans. This is a situation worth avoiding, since its much easier to prevent than cure. Needless to say, she has never had refined sugar. When kids do consume these foods early the result is frequent infections like cold and flu, gastro, uti, ear infections and tonsillitis. Sofia certainly isn't deprived though! She enjoys treats like medjool dates, berries, cream and raisins, and her first birthday cake was a variation on a GAPS recipe, based on eggs, nuts and dates. (I'll post about her first birthday cake next week.)

 Our families have been very supportive of BLW. I've heard that sometimes mums have to battle with family members who are pro puréed food til a certain age, which can make it trickier for a new mum to stick to BLW. If you're seeking advice on how to respond to histrionics from family I would suggest you find your own certainty of your conviction. When you are sure, you convey this in your manner and tone of voice, and you'll find the argument simply doesn't come up. Have confidence in your child, and remember you must do what you believe in. If you cave in to others criticism and do it their way you'll feel guilty about it. (That applies to everything!)
 

A question I've often seen asked by mums new to BLW is how to introduce 'meals' to the baby. I have to say I didn't and don't. My focus is to ensure I provide Sofia with enough nutrients, so I mostly offer single foods at a time, except at dinner time, when she has a plate of what the family are eating. I feel it's preferable to give one thing at a time, so the child can really immerse themselves in the sensory experience of the broccoli or the asparagus or the chicken. Each day I work out when Sofia will have her eggs, whether she'll have some meat, which veggies I'll prepare and which snacks to take when we go out. This method is also far easier for me, because lets face it, I have enough to do! But if you want to offer meals to you baby led weaning bub, I'd recommend doing it 'tasting plate' style. For example a little cheese, a few boiled carrot sticks, some avocado, some peas and a lamb chop. I'd also say that soups are the easiest and one of the most nourishing ways to feed baby and yourself alike! 

 

Every household will do it differently, but I hope my story will inspire you in some way. 

Leave a comment if you have a funny BLW story, pic, or any questions etc. 

Yummy Mummy's Super Snacks

"Get used to eating your meals cold" they all said when I was pregnant. But after Antonio was born I wondered, what meals? Who has time to make food for themselves? I was doing well to grab an apple most days. But of course we must eat properly, because mum's health is baby's health, and mum's food becomes baby's food. Not only that, but a well nourished mamma makes more milk, copes better with the inevitable sleep deprivation, feels less overwhelmed and more in control of herself. This was not me in the early baby days! So I have spent much time devising a system to ensure I have quick, easy health food on hand. In the process I've learned that being healthy has much in common with being a mum. Both require prioritisation, mindfulness, fore planning, flexibility and a lot of self love.

My answer to the issue has been to prepare large batches of snacks in advance, snacks which are very nutrient dense; high in fats, protein, vitamins and minerals. Here are my favourite superfood snacks.

Dip - not the supermarket sludge, but home-whizzed super dip! You can use avocado or home made cream cheese extracted from yoghurt. To this I add a huge handfull of fresh herbs, anything you like, they're all packed with their own respective goodies, half a clove of garlic, pine nuts and some sprouts. You can add any other flavours you like after that. I like a bit of home made roasted capsicum and some olive oil. You could put in some olives, sun dried tomatoes, feta cheese, roasted pumpkin...go crazy! And don't forget a good pinch of ground sea or rock salt.

Veggie sticks - with which to eat your dip. Chop them the night before and stick them in an airtight in the fridge. You can also use them for a quick half an avo.

Bliss balls - these sweet treat superfoods really fill you up! You can pack them full of awesomeness. Coconut oil, nut butters, activated nuts, tahini, raw honey, spices like cinnamon, cloves and cardamom, raw carob or cacao, orange zest, ginger root... Just blitz it all up in the processor. Dates make a great base but you can use any preservative free dried fruit. Mmmm....

Smoothies - they take a few seconds to whizz up and you can use them to really improve your health. You can use nut milks, raw milk, bananas, apricots, egg yolks, coconut oil, flax oil, fresh or frozen berries, yoghurt or kefir. You can also do green smoothies, with a fruit base and some green veg, for the most awesome energy kick you'll ever get in a glass.

Banana - for times that you're out of the house and need to pick up a power snack, have bananas. Yes, plural. You won't get the richness of good fats, but 'nanas are power packs of energy and electrolytes, while being low in fructose. And very filling! Also, bub can share it with you, and it's amazing how sweet their disposition becomes when they've had a healthy snack!

Chicken soup - this isn't a trick I do myself, but a girlfriend swears by a thermos flask full of chicken broth! She sips it whenever she feels her blood sugars slipping. See the post 'eating warm' for the recipe.

For me, the lack of time to do anything for myself puts a downer on my mummyhood. I found that keeping my tummy full of healthy food makes all the difference. So if you are feeling deprived as a Mamma, I highly recommend you try these ideas. A quick and easy superfood snack can transform your life! They'll keep you full and happy, and it's so very true that a contented Mamma means a contented baby. And its so empowering to know you can turn your own mood around so easily!

Happy power snacking!

Miraculous Magnesium

Many of you will have heard me rabbit on about Magnesium. Of all the minerals our bodies require to function, Magnesium is used up in the greatest quantities, so we need to make sure we intake enough through our food or we'll experience symptoms of deficiency. The first symptoms you'll notice are muscular cramping, spasms, ticks, headaches, allergies, fatigue, blood sugar imbalance and constipation. The effects of long term, chronic Magnesium deficiency can be anxiety, depression, insomnia, joint inflammation, osteoporosis, asthma, diabetes type 2, angina, high blood pressure and a heightened sense of stress. Once you're experiencing symptoms of magnesium deficiency it's important to see your Naturopath for a good quality supplement; supplements have not been created equal. Some are far better than others.

Food is a very good way to up your stores of Magnesium. The richest source is tahini, or sesame seed paste. After tahini come almonds and the other nuts and seeds. Raw cocoa is a great source too. Buy some raw cocoa powder and use it unsweetened as drinking chocolate as an easy way to get Magnesium into everyone!






Vegies come next. Anything green is high in Magnesium because the chlorophyll molecule contains Magnesium. In fact green smoothies are an incredibly effective way to boost your intake. You can make them by pulling out your blender and throwing in any green fruit and veg you have on hand. Green smoothies will not only enhance your intake of Magnesium, they're full of vitamins such as A, C, E, B group and K, and many other antioxidants. Salads are another great way to eat loads of vegies, as are stir fries and soups.




Other useful sources are tofu, oats/porridge, polenta, lentils, beans and chick peas. Look out for the next blog which will be called "Meals that Heal" for ideas on how to incorporate all these high performance foods into your diet.


Changing your salt will be a big help too. Processed, supermarket salts are pure sodium chloride, while real sea salt or rock salt contain many minerals, including Magnesium.

On the other hand, certain foods increase your requirement for Magnesium. Sugars and refined foods have caused the western world to become ever more deficient, which has probably contributed to the advent of our ridiculously high rates of osteoporosis, heart disease, mental illness, diabetes and allergies over the last 50-odd years. So there's yet another reason to avoid them. Once again these are foods like pasta, bread, pastry, biscuits, crackers, chips, soft drink, cordial, cakes and sweets.

If your health problems are caused by Magnesium deficiency, changing your diet and taking a good quality supplement will make you feel absolutely magnificent within a few days. Why not give it a try?

Candidiasis - my journey

I've been meaning to write about Candidiasis for a while now, and I've even been asked to by patients who struggle with it, but I haven't yet. This is because it's such a boring subject by itself. A description, some recommendations...yawn...

Yet it's totally integral to good health. Without good intestinal health, we can't be healthy at all, physically, mentally or emotionally. The intestines are the crux of our total health.

Candida albicans is a yeast which lives in our gut along with many other microbes (bacteria such as acidophilus & friends, e-coli etc) which function in a perfectly balanced ecosystem to digest our food. When we mistreat our 'intestinal flora' (the collective name for all these yeasts and bacteria) with sugar, alcohol and excessive antibiotics, the candida becomes too prolific, because the others can't keep it in check. This results in poor digestion of food and poor absorption of nutrients, and without enough nutrients no system can be healthy, including our immune system (allergies, colds & flu, recovery time etc), liver, kidneys, heart, muscles, bones, hormones (which affect weight, fertility, stress) and nervous system (and therefore emotions). This situation is known as 'malabsorption syndrome'. Then of course there are the other little complications such as bloating, gut cramps, oral and vaginal thrush, urinary tract infections, and other rashes and fungal infections anywhere else on the body.

I learned the importance of balanced gut flora the hard way, and it's probably the reason I became a Naturopath. So instead of listing all the treatments for intestinal candidiasis I'm going to share my story, which may be very familiar to you, because it's common amongst little kids. Some of us lucky ones are taken to a natural health professional and recover, others continue with modern medicine and the story continues into adulthood.


As a small child (I'm told) I had many recurrances of urinary tract and ear infections. Each time my Mum would take me to the doctor and I would be prescribed antibiotics. Over and over again. That many courses were probably enough in themselves, but I was also consuming cereal and milk and bread daily, and possibly too many biscuits at Grandma's house! So, by the time I was 8 or 9 I had such a rampant case of candidiasis that I developed very bad vaginal thrush. I remember this part well; no 9 year old should ever have to endure thrush. At the time it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. At her wit's end, my poor Mum took me to a Naturopath. This Naturopath, though I don't remember her at all, changed my life. I was sent home with an eating plan which involved eliminating all sugar in all forms. That is lollies, cakes, biscuits, commercial fruit juice, soft drinks, dried fruit, bread, pasta and other wheat products, and dairy, (with the exception of plain, natural pot-set yoghurt). These high GI foods are what candida albicans loves to eat. I was also given a probiotic powder (these days we have capsules, I did it tough!) to recollonise my gut with good bacteria (the ones the antibiotics killed), and the most vile liquid herbal, to kill the excess candida, both to be taken daily.

Now as a Naturopath I would struggle to believe any 8 or 9 year old would follow this regimen. And of course it is largely up to the parents to ensure the programme is followed, however I remembered and remember still what that thrush felt like. I was more than willing to do whatever was required to ex it. And when I noticed one day that my bloated tummy was now flat, I was hooked!

It wasn't easy at first though. Back then there weren't as many wonderful alternatives to wheat as there are now. The bread for my school lunches was dry and had a nasty habit of crumbling. The wheat free pasta was woeful, I'd rather have eaten brocoli than the wheat free biscuits of the day and all of it was hard to source. Forget the existance of a health food asile in the supermarket. There were no wheat free breakfast cereals that were also sugar free so on schoolday mornings I ate puffed something-or-other, which tasted like cardboard, with either goats milk or yoghurt. We soon abandoned the cereal/milk thing in favour of real food; fruit, yoghut and nuts or eggs or baked beans or rye bread toast with almond spread. (Now I have a lot of porridge too, but Mum has bad childhood memories of the stuff and couldn't bring herself to feed it to us.)

One of my Mum's favourite memories of my first couple of days was about 72 hours into the programme, when I announced that "I feel better in my feelings". When asked to explain I said that the girl down the road was "still annoying, but I don't feel like killing her anymore."

There was pent up irritability that just disappeared. There were loads of physical symptoms that disappeared, including the bloating, and the infections. I was a much happier kid in general, and I never forgot the instant difference the treatment plan made for me. After a while I discontinued the herbal, and only took a course of the probiotics here and there, but I stayed on the diet for the most part. There were, of course, times when it wasn't possible, like our family trip to Rome over Christmas when I was 9 and a half. Thanks to the abundance of sugar and pasta and bread (mmmmmm) some symptoms returned. It's happened like that over the years; I start eating sugar and flour and after a week or so I feel different. But it's never been severe and out of control again. I now know how to manage my gut flora and still live a normal, restaurant-loving Melburninan life.

Now that I'm about to start a family of my own I hope that I can help them to maintain gut flora balance, and prevent all that pain and discomfort. Here are some of the things I will do to ensure their health:

Breast feed and never give formula. There are herbs I can take if there's a supply problem.

Ensure they eat real food at all times, ie fruit, veg, nuts, seeds, legumes, meat, fish, real yoghurt, oats, rice and quinoa. This ensures they get plenty of nutrients and don't get sick much in the first place.

Ensure they never drink soft drinks and grow up knowing that they're poison

Ensure they dont drink processed cow milk

Keep sugary foods (including breakfast cereals) for very special occasions like Christmas, Easter and Birthdays, and even then keep it to a minimum

At home, cook mostly wheat free foods, so that when they are out it's not as big an issue.

Treat ear infections with a drop of garlic oil and a homoeopathic, no need for antibiotics

Treat colds with homoeopathics and (when they're older) herbs unless it's a critical situation


So these are the preventative measures you can use for candidiasis. The great thing about raising kids this way is that they'll be really healthy in general, and you'll never know what other diseases you've prevented. You'll most certainly use less pharmaceuticals because there will be less need for them. They are less likely to develop allergies because their little livers will be clean, and they'll be more emotionally balanced and mentally at their best.

If you're treating yourself for candidiasis, these are the two products you can get from your pharmacy or health shop









Or you can see your Naturopath for an individualised treatment plan. If you also have thrush I find garlic tablets work very quickly, and they don't have to be fancy ones, Natures Own Odourless Garlic works fine, 2 tablets 3 times daily til it's gone, in conjunction with the diet, probiotics and herbs. With garlic treatment thrush is usually gone in a day or so.

If you need to take a course of antibiotics, and I stress the word 'need', as I believe they should be used in very rare circumstances, then always take a course of probiotics immediately after you finish them and spend some time on the diet as well.

Exercise and sleep are also important for treating candidiasis. Exercise is known to boost the immune system in several ways; by increasing happy brain chemicals and by encouraging good quality sleep. During good sleep our bodies replenish, and the immune system is strengthened. If you're not waking feeling refreshed then you're not getting good quality sleep. The clean eating plan alone will probably recitfy this.

It's important to remember that candidiasis is endemic to the westernised world, where we consume highly processed foods every day and feed them to our kids, and overuse antibiotics. As a Naturopath I tend to find it at the core of most of my client's ill health, because we can't be healthy without a perfectly balanced intestinal system. The good news is that the intestinal system regenerates itself very quickly; in 3 months it's an entirely new gut. This means that if you remain on the treatment for 3 solid months you have a gut that's made from good food, and will be functioning beautifully.

If you want more info on candidiasis or you want to share your story, please comment or email me


Wishing you great gut health!

"Catching a Cold" - Germ theory and the immune system

How and why does sickness occur? This is truly a multi billion dollar question. Yet to me it's fairly simple. Here's my take on illness.

I hear people around me make reference to "catching a cold" from someone, or blaming their illness on germs in their environment. It makes me realise what a fantastic job advertising is doing for chemical cleaning products. If it was essential to douse our homes and children with pine-o-clean in order to prevent illness, why is it that we're more unwell now than we were before it was on the market?

In the 19th century in France there was a guy called Louis Pasteur. He proved the theory that disease was caused by pathogenic microbes, which became known as "germ theory". He also provided several solutions to common causes of poisoning, and this is why we now pasteurise milk, to make it hygenic and increase shelf life.

In the time since then we began to discover the fabulous complexity of the human immune system. We still have not finished discovering its fabulousness and complexity, but we do know that its role is to protect us from these nasty germs. In the 19th century the germ was an important discovery which saved many lives, however, in these hygenic and sanitised times of the 21st century, I think we're ready for the next step. It's time we took responsibility for our own immunity.

To my mind, germs are a part of our environment, part of our ecosystem. They inhabit our bodies (skin, mouth, throat, intestines etc) at all times and always have. They live in harmonious balance with our immune system. That is, unless our immune system is under assault. This is inevitably the case for all us city dwellers. In order for our immune system to function well there are several things we need. They are:

Clean air, free of pollutants and chemicals
Clean food, free of pollutnants and chemicals
Clean water, free of pollutants and chemicals
Exercise and
Sleep

In addition to these basics, other immune strengtheners include anything that feels good, such as massage, laughing, dancing, hobbies etc.

Therefore the reason our immune systems are under assault these days is because

our air is full of pollutants and chemicals, from industry and cars etc
our food is full of pollutants and chemicals, from modern farming techniques, refining of foods and food additives
our water is full of pollutants and chemicals, such as flouride and 'cleaned' with chlorine.
we live increasingly sedentary lives
we don't sleep well thanks to caffiene, electricity, stress and late nights

So if these are the true reasons why we're sick, should we treat with more chemicals? I would suggest not. I'd also like to point out that when it comes to germ killing, few chemicals come close to being as effective as a single drop of essential oil. The best choices for cleaning are eucalyptus, tea tree, lemon and lavender. In addition to these, I use Eco Store cleaning products in my home. But when it comes to my immune system, I choose to eat organic foods, limit sugar, dairy and refined foods, drink filtered water, and get good sleep and regular exercise. There's not much I can do about the air, short of vote Green! And I could certainly use more massages! I honestly never get sick unless I'm stressed and or eating badly. I can even cope with a certain amount of sleep deprivation provided my diet is really good. For me, this is totally worthwhile.

Recently I treated a woman who came to me complaining that she'd had a cold for two years continuously. She was on a high daily dose of rhinocort and nothing she took was helping at all. She was certainly not pine-o-clean deficient. I'm sure her home was very hygenic. As it turned out she had a severe milk intollerance. One week later she was symptom free (and rhinocort free) after eliminating the dairy products from her diet. It's worth remembering that dairy is a common cause of excess mucous production, which can lead to cold symptoms and sinus infections.

Finally, my advice if you do have a cold is see your Naturopath! A Naturopath can help you to kill the infection and also bring your health back to 100%, where it belongs, by identifying and treating the cause of the problem. For ideas on how to treat yourself at home, check out my blog "Get Well Soon" from May last year.

Eating warm

There is no one right way to eat. I believe the only rule about nutrition is this; if you're not feeling vital and energetic, looking and feeling fabulous, change something. We all deserve to feel awesome all the time, and food choices are one of the biggest determining factors. However 'correct food choices' means something different at different times of the year, depending on your ethnicity, age, level of activity, job and so many other lifestyle factors.

Thus, when I'm asked what we should eat during Winter, I find it a little difficult to launch into the discussion. So what I will do is take the opportunity to talk about seasonal eating, since this topic takes things like geography into account.

First, I shall yet again point out the flaws in the current prevailing supermarket food supply. If you buy 'fresh' food from the supermarket you probably have no idea what's in season at what time of year, since supermarkets transport frozen foods over vast distances and keep them in cold storage for very long periods so they can be available year round. So while some of the produce may be reasonably fresh, some will not be, and those that aren't have seriously compromised nutritional values. Even when you buy organic you need to be aware that some things may have been flown in, so familiarise yourself with what is in season in your local area each season.

When it comes to preparation of foods it's important to observe your body's instincts and inclinations. A salad is a very healthy choice in summer, but is far too light at midwinter, when the body needs as much help to warm up as possible. Therefore soups, stews, stir-fries, curries and roasts are the healthy choice for Winter. Of course, cooking the begeezers out of your vegies certainly reduces the nutritional content, so nature thought up a balancer for that too.

Here's a fantastic tip for boosting the nutritional content of your food in Winter time: Cook with your own home made stock.

Stock recipe

(You will need an enormous pot with a lid, a silicone muffin tray and some tuppaware, as well as lots of time.)

2 or 3 chicken carcasses or some beef bones from the biodynamic butcher
2 or 3 carrots
3 stalks of celery
2 unpeeled onions, halved
2 or 3 tbsp white vinegar

Place carcasses or bones into the pot, cover with cold water and add vinegar. Allow to stand for one hour. Add roughly chopped veg and bring to a boil. Using a seive, skim off any scum from the surface, then turn the heat way down to very low, cover and simmer for 6-12 hours for chicken and up to 24 hours for beef stock. Add water if you need to.

Once this has cooled, strain and discard the solids, and freeze the liquid into tuppaware and muffin pans. I find it's useful to mark the number of cups on the container for when you need a specific amount. This won't matter if you're making soup, but for things like rice and quinoa you'll need to know a more exact quantity.

So that's my stock recipe. I make this once every 3 weeks or so to keep my freezer full. The purpose of standing the bones in the vinegar water is to liberate the gelatin and the lovely minerals from them. Preparing food with this stock is a wonderful way to increase the nutritional content. And also much tastier than the packaged stuff! Bonus.

Adding spices to food is another great idea during winter. Cumin, ginger, cloves, black pepper, turmeric, chilli, cardamom, cinnamon and herbs like parsley, thyme, corriander, sage and galangal are really important during winter to warm the body and boost immunity. Cumin turns a pumpkin soup into restaurant quality, along with a little last minute orange zest over the plate. Toss some chilli, garlic and olive oil throgh some lightly blanched greens, or make poached pears with cinnamon or baked apples with cloves, (both can be sweetened with honey) for dessert. Nature provided us with these gorgeous warming spices to keep us healthy. They're used at midwinter in most traditions, just think of the traditional Yule tide plum pudding or mulled wine!

It's important that we get enough salt through Winter, so make sure you cook with a good quality sea salt or rock salt. As always, avoid processed salts containing anti-caking agents and other additives.

Animal products like meat and eggs are very warming foods and therefore best consumed in Winter. During the Summer they can be too heavy and acid forming, but in small amounts they are great during the cold months. If you imagine our primitive ancestor's diet, meat would have featured more during Winter due to a shortage of most other foods, and this is what our bodies are genetically accustomed to.

Other warming foods are the high carbohydrate veg like pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, leeks, parsnips etc, legumes like beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, and grains like rice, oats and quinoa.

In winter we still require our 2 litres of water daily, but drinking cool water is often the last thing we feel like doing, and quite rightly. During the cold months it's much better to drink warm cups of herbal tea for our fluid intake. Some of the most useful are rosehip tea, which tastes yummy and is a great source of vitamin C, liquorice tea, which soothes the lungs and digestion and decreases stress, and green tea, which is full of antioxidants like quercetin (which is helpful in treating varicose veins).

When I was going through school I remember being freezing in the classroom and playground during winter. It's really difficult to combat this using food since it has to be sent in a lunch box, but it is possible. Personally I would love to see tuck shops producing some healthy warm food for kids lunches. But until that time, here are some tips for keeping little ones (and big little ones) warm using food.

Breakfast should be warm and heavy; eggs, either soft boiled, lightly fried or poached, or some organic oatmeal with honey are perfect. Then fill the lunchbox with heavy, wholesome snacks like organic salted nuts, crispy polenta sticks, real cheese (not the processed stuff), vegie patties made with grated sweet potato, leek or zucchini, or a cold rice or quinoa pilau made with your homemade stock, some spices and some vegies. If you have to put in a sandwich, replace the salad and sprouts with a piece of grilled chicken or roast lamb, some cheese, avocado and some grilled veggies. Use a heavier bread like rye or oat flour bread, and maybe even grill it. When their food keeps them warm they'll learn better and have more energy to run around and warm up even more.

So to conclude, follow your instincts in every season. Find a way to continue to eat healthy, whole foods so they keep you warm, using ideas like homemade stock, quality salt and spices.

If your immunity needs an extra boost, try a good quality powdered vitamin C supplement and some zinc tablets, or see your naturopath for individualised treatment.

Warm fuzzies! Love, Sara