Red cabbage cooked with red onion and plum - yum!

I’ve started adding fruit to cooked vegetable dishes and I have to say they taste rather lovely! During the summer I was adding lots of fruit into my salads, be they goji berries, strawberries or pears.  As the nights draw in, I’m carrying that over into my cooked vegetable dishes. So next time you’re stir-frying some vegetables or making a vegetable based casserole try adding in a little chopped apple, pear, whole lemon or plum. They add a real zest to the dish and of course with the added colour, that equals more phytonutrients with all their wonderful restorative functions in the body.

The photo is of a red cabbage dish with added plum, but try it with whatever fruits you have to hand. Enjoy!

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic. For more information contact Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk.

66 to 75% of colds are caused by 200 different viruses  which is why there is no effective anti viral for the common cold. For the Flu, a jab may be on offer, but the leading doctors only recommend those for people at high risk, given the potential for side effects and development of resistance.

What everyone can do though is boost his or her natural defences with some simple, good food and nutrition ideas:

• Drink plenty of fluids, especially warmer fluids. Central heating during the winter can make it more difficult to stay hydrated, so make sure you drink enough water. What’s enough? Take your body weight in kg, multiply by 31, that gives you the ml of water you should drink per day: Make soups and broths with fresh vegetables (batch cook and freeze), drink green tea, herbal teas, especially ginger and echinacea.
• Have a good protein source with each meal or snack. Amino acids in proteins are the building blocks of life, all our immune cells and detoxification systems need those aminos to function! Beans, pulse, seeds and nuts are good vegetable protein sources. ‘Clean’ & “lean’ are the key words for animal proteins, that means organic or wild wherever possible and cuts without excess fat.
• Season your food with garlic, onions, ginger, turmeric & cayenne pepper. All of which have antioxidant, detoxification and antimicrobial properties.
• Eat more vegetables & fruit. 5 a day is really the bare minimum, if you want to be optimally healthy then have 6 or 7 different coloured vegetables and 2 or 3 pieces of fruit. So that’s 3 veggies with each lunch and dinner, a piece of fruit as dessert or with breakfast or as a snack (with nuts & seeds). They are packed with vital vitamins, minerals & phytonutrients and your body will thank you for it!
• Cut out the refined carbohydrates and simple sugars. Research has shown that sugar can suppress the immune system for hours after eating, so sugary cakes and sweets are the worst thing if you are feeling sick. Replace refined ‘white’ carbohydrates with whole ‘brown’ ones that provide the important B vitamins and have a slower release of energy and sugars.
• Eat enough of the good oils. Fats are not all bad, we really need the essential fatty acids for optimal immune function; 3 portions of oily fish a week will do it. Plus add a handful of seeds and nuts to meals or snacks or in a dressing most days, the best choices are pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, walnuts, flaxseeds & almonds.
• Get enough sleep. It’s when the body rests and repairs so vital for a good immune system. Get into a rhythm especially for these winter nights and aim for seven or eight hours a night. Use relaxation and breathing exercises to help unwind and to keep you stress free through the day.
• Take regular exercise. Regular exercise will keep you in optimal health, but if you are run down then excessive exercise will be an added stress on the system. So keep fit but don’t push yourself when you feel a cold coming on.

For more information on nutrition please contact Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition.

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic, addressing functional imbalance in the body with bespoke nutrition programmes. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk

I work with Susie Hampshire at Jiva and Littleton Mill retreats, she is an amazing massage therapist and meditation teacher. She practices in London, Bristol and at retreats around the world. A massage with Susie is fabulous so treat yourself! More details on Susie can be found at her website www.thebodyspace.co.uk.

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic, addressing functional imbalance in the body with bespoke nutrition programmes. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk.

For more information please contact Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition on 07775 582 332 or ange@fabulousnutrition.co.uk

Support the Plastiki project here and most importantly, reduce your own use of plastics.

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic, addressing functional imbalance in the body with bespoke nutrition programmes. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk.

For more information please contact Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition on 07775 582 332 or ange@fabulousnutrition.co.uk.

“Angela helped to find the root cause of the problem”

I have had bloating and digestion problems for years and have tried various things to eliminate it including diet changes and other ‘alternative’ treatments or cleanses. These provided temporary relief but the bloating problems along with eczema/psoriasis always sneaked back! Angela helped to find the root cause of the problem through holistic treatment and some detailed ‘sample’ testing. Thanks to Angela and her fantastic advice and support, I have beaten off some nasty bugs, changed my attitude towards certain foods in my diet and have adopted a healthier lifestyle which I hope remains a permanent fixture. Whether face to face, on the phone or by email, Angela has been available to provide me with guidance and some great ideas to make the changes I wanted and needed. I would recommend anyone considering nutritional therapy to pick up the phone to Angela. You won’t regret it!

Sharon, 39, Communication Consultant

Bloating and digestive issues are a common complaint from clients. While dietary changes will usually help, there can be underlying factors involved. In this case we identified low stomach acid and the presence of undesirable bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). If stomach acid is low then digestion of the food we eat is inhibited and the partially digested food will lead to bloating. So while diet changes had helped Sharon in the past, it was only when we addressed the poor digestion by eradicating H pylori and re-establishing optimal stomach acid that we were able to properly resolve bloating issues.

“In 2009 after 15 years of following a moderate fitness regime I took up running after giving birth to my second child.  I really enjoyed the challenge and managed to run a 5k run without too much trouble.  After a few months, however, I found that the combination of trying to juggle work, small children and a fitness regime was taking its toll.  Rather than feeling fitter I found managing day to day life and keeping fit was making me feel tired and burnt out culminating in a viral infection that meant I couldn’t exercise for over 2 months.  I sought help with Angela at Fabulous Nutrition and can honestly say I haven’t felt this energised since my early teens.  She suggested I completed a comprehensive metabolic profile which showed a number of metabolic deficiencies that could be effecting my energy levels.

I embarked on a programme of simple diet changes and vitamin and mineral supplements including – antioxidants, Co Q10, high strength B vitamins, pro-biotics and carnitine.  I was surprised how quickly i regained my fitness levels, how mentally energised i felt and now plan to run a half marathon in the next few months.” Rebecca, 32, Richmond

This was an interesting case in that although she had a reasonably healthy diet and did lots of the right things, she was lacking in energy and had a really weakened immune system. Running the comprehensive metabolic profile (I used Designs for Health profile) enabled me to identify some underlying deficiencies in her cellular energy pathways (as well as some other factors), I could then design a really tailored programme that addressed these issues and importantly helped Rebecca to achieve the improvements in performance relatively quickly.

If you or someone you know would like to feel more energised please contact me, Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition on 07775 582 332 or ange@fabulousnutrition.co.uk.

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic, addressing functional imbalance in the body with bespoke nutrition programmes. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk

This weeks story is Fiona who at 58 wanted to lose weight and feel more energised. She didn’t feel that she had any major health issues, but I did identify some metabolic imbalances which made it a bit more difficult of her to lose the weight she wanted to. We decided that she would follow my 21 day detox programme and I think Fiona’s own testimonial speaks for itself:

“I am truly amazed at what a transformation in only 3 weeks.

My grown up family had suggested (not too subtly) that I needed to lose weight and cut down on my alcohol intake.  As a widow, in my late fifties and working full time within the field marketing industry, I had got into the habit of coming home from work, heating up something quick and easy to eat and settling down most evenings to either a few gin and tonics or a bottle of  wine to help me unwind. Whilst I accepted that my weight was on the high side and I was now buying larger sizes of clothing I had convinced myself that this was all part of the aging process.

With a winter sunshine holiday on the horizon though, I really wanted to feel more energetic and look better so, encouraged by my family, I decided to follow the 21 day detox programme.  Not only have I lost half a stone in weight, lost 2 inches on my waist and hips and my waistline seems much lower down now, but most importantly I certainly do have more energy, vitality and focus and no longer find myself waking up on the sofa to find that I have missed the end of the programme that I had been watching.

I have never been one for faddy diets and this programme is certainly not one of those. However the discipline of following the programme has taught me that fresh, simple foods can be so delicious as well as far more nutritious. I cannot state that I followed the meal plan religiously – however I did not eat anything that wasn’t on the list, I never felt hungry and the biggest surprise of all for me was that I did not feel the need to have that gin and tonic!  I really loved the nutritional shakes and will probably continue having these on a regular basis as part of my new eating regime.

I now feel fabulous and can’t wait for my holiday.” Fiona, 58, Oxfordshire

For more information please contact Angela Walker at Fabulous Nutrition on 07775 582 332 or ange@fabulousnutrition.co.uk. Fabulous Nutrition is a London based Nutritional Therapy Clinic, addressing functional imbalance in the body with bespoke nutrition programmes. www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk

I’ve been working with the Right Body Image team for a few months now to put this programme together, we’ve also been featured in the Now Magazine website, so great to see so much interest.

I’ll be providing all the nutrition advice to anyone on the Right Body Image programme.

If you would like to find out more, then please contact me on the details below.

Fabulous Nutrition is a London based nutritional therapy clinic. Fabulous Nutrition will address functional imbalance in the body with a bespoke nutrition problem, specialising in digestion issues, energy problems, detoxification and immune support. If you want to feel more fabulous, please contact Angela Walker on 07775 582 332 ange@fabulousnutrition.co.uk or  www.fabulousnutrition.co.uk

I always advocate more plant-based foods i.e. vegetables, fruit, beans, peas, lentils, seeds & nuts compared to animal based food such as meats. I actually prefer more vegetables to fruit, which some people can find hard to digest or which can add too much sugar. One really simple way to add more vegetables is to juice or make smoothies – you can drink more than you can eat! You will need a good juicer, one that can handle ‘harder’ vegetables. To make smoothies you only need a blender, which tend to be cheaper than juicers.  Here are a couple of ideas for an immune boosting juice and smoothie:

Immune shot:

This juice will help support the immune system, boosting the body’s natural defences against virus, infections and disease.

• 1 medium carrot
• 3 cm chunk of raw ginger
• 1 red pepper
• Papaya or cantaloupe melon (an orange coloured variety)
• 1 lemon (just the flesh, not the pith or skin)

Why it works: This one is full of beta-carotenes, carotenoids and vitamin C. Foods high in beta carotene and carotenoids may reduce the risk of cancer, beta carotene is a precursor to vitamin A which is important for the immune cells, which the anti-oxidant action of vitamin C is anti cancer and immune boosting.

Immune Boost Smoothie

• Tablespoon of pumpkin seeds
• Tablespoon of sunflower seeds
• Half a cup of almond milk
• Half an avocado
• Cup of strawberries or blackberries

Blend together and enjoy – it makes a good breakfast or snack. It’s even better if you can soak the seeds overnight.

Why it works: Avocados are nutrient dense, a good source of folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin B5, K & B6. The seeds contain zinc and magnesium; zinc is particularly good for the immune, almond milk is also high in magnesium. The berries are high in vitamin C.

I’m planning a workshop on nutrition to boost the immune system. If you would be interested in attending then drop me an email or leave a comment and I will let you know the details once confirmed.

• Eat when you are hungry. Real hunger (rather than just habit) is a sign of healthy digestion (agni). If there isn’t hunger, then digestion of food will be inefficient. If that means missing the occasional meal then fine, but if hunger is always low then if can be stimulated for example a glass of warm water and fresh ginger may help.
• Have positive feelings toward the food you are about to eat. Digestion starts with the smell and anticipation of food, which stimulates saliva that starts to breakdown the food before it reaches the stomach. If you are relaxed and positive about the food you are about to eat it will help digestion.
• Avoid talking or other distractions while eating. TV dinners for example are a distraction from digestion; the emotions elicited from the TV or a conversation might disturb the positive and relaxed feelings towards food & eating.
• Rituals before eating can help; the Indian ritual of washing hands and face before eating for example is to promote relaxed emotions prior to meals (as well as for hygiene reasons)
• Chew each mouthful thoroughly, Ayurveda recommends 32 times per mouthful. Think about it this way, your digestive tract has no teeth!
• Eat enough to fill the stomach ¾ full in other words, stop eating just before you feel full. Everyone’s body is different, the Ayurvedic guideline is generally two handfuls of food, but learn to listen to your own body.
• Eat at regular times during the day. Ideally lunchtime should be the main meal, as this is the time of day when agni is strongest.
• Sip warm water while eating, avoid cold water before a meal as this will suppress agni