Quirky Cooking Chats

Have you ever wished you could just get rid of all the clutter that weighs you down, sell your house or rent it out, reduce what you own to what you can take with you in a caravan, take your kids out of school, throw away the to-do list, leave the city behind, and travel Australia with your family? No deadlines, no pressure, nowhere you have to be, off on an adventure under the wide open skies with those you love…. Sounds like a dream come true, huh! Most of us are not brave enough to make it happen, but those who do it say they have NEVER regretted it!!

Meet Justine of More Stories, Less Stuff. Justine and her hubby Phil did just this – packed up, left Melbourne, and have been travelling Australia with their three girls for the past nine months – and they don’t have an end date in sight. Justine says, “I began the minimalist journey and decluttered us out of a home!” And they definitely don’t regret it.

Jo was lucky enough to meet this gorgeous family last week as they were travelling in her home area, the Atherton Tablelands, and she persuaded them to hang around for the week. Little did Justine realise that when she popped over for a cuppa, Jo would rope her into doing a podcast…. 😀

This is a great interview – fascinating and fun, with many gems of truth that families will benefit from, whether they’re dreaming about travelling around Australia, or just want to simplify their life and spend a more quality time with their family. They chat about:

• how to begin working towards travelling with kids

You can follow Justine, Phil and the girls on their travels here:

Facebook: More Stories, Less Stuff

Instagram: @morestorieslessstuff

The post AQJ 146: Travelling Around Australia with Kids appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Dr Natalie Challis (neuro-psychotherapist) and Leigh Shinde (neuro-nutritionist) of the Kids Development Centre in Perth join us once again for another fascinating interview on the study of the brain, and how QEEG’s (brain imaging) can give parents a clearer picture of why their child is struggling, and the steps that can be taken to heal. Dr Nat and Leigh use the Biopsychosocial Model – an interdisciplinary model that looks at the interconnection between biology, psychology, and socio-environmental factors. The model specifically examines how these aspects play a role in topics ranging from health and disease models to human development. In this interview we delve deeper into how practitioners can use this model to work out an effective plan to reduce distress in the patient. Dr Nat and Leigh also help us to understand how inflammation is one of the key drivers of anxiety symptoms and how finding your child’s inflammatory triggers and then reducing those triggers will reduce anxiety symptoms.

A very fascinating and practical podcast that any parent with an anxious or distressed child MUST listen to!

Useful Links:

Love Your Anxious Child online program starts on the 1st October. Quirky Cooking listeners get a special $200 discount if they use the code Q200 (for full price) or Q200pp (for the monthly payment plan).

Special Offer for Our Listeners: FREE initial phone consults for quirky listeners – email [email protected] to arrange a time to chat personally with Dr Nat or Leigh about your anxious child’s symptoms.

Also listen in here to our first podcast with Dr Nat and Leigh, Childhood Anxiety & the Inflamed Brain.

About Dr Natalie Challis and Leigh Shinde:

Leigh is a children’s Neuro-Nutrition Expert. She holds a Bachelor of Science with postgraduates in both Human Nutrition, and Nutritional and Environmental Medicine. As a Neuro-Nutritionist she investigates how food, additives, nutritional deficiencies, gut health and genetics can impact on your child’s neurological and physiological development.

The post AQJ 145: Anxiety – Analysing & Reducing Distress in Children appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Many people struggle with histamine reactions and have been diagnosed with Histamine Intolerance or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, and have had to limit their diet to reduce reactions.

What do these terms mean? What are the symptoms and causes? And what can you do to heal from these issues?

In this interview, Elyse Comerford (nutritionist, health scientist and GAPS practitioner) explains:

• the natural function of histamine in our bodies

Useful Links

• Elyse Comerford – nutrition consultation, recipes, help for healing

The post AQJ 144: Understanding Histamine Intolerance appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Following on from their last podcast, Jo and Fouad have an informal chat about their thoughts on helping children to eat well – with plenty of humour, stories, and insights from their own families! They talk about:

• the importance of knowing what your goals are, and what you’re trying to teach your kids regarding health

Grab a cuppa and enjoy the chat. 🙂

This podcast follows on from the previous one: Helping Teens to Eat Well, with Dr Damian Kristof & Jo Whitton

** Learn more about how to encourage your kids to eat well at the new Quirky Cooking event **

“Nourishing Your Family”, with Jo Whitton and Elyse Comerford – https://quirkycooking.com.au/events

There is so much pressure on parents these days. Parenting in the digital age is tricky, plus there’s all the confusion and conflicting nutrition information we are bombarded with, and the stress of chronic illnesses and developmental disorders that are a part of life for many… it’s a minefield! 

Join Jo Whitton (Quirky Cooking) and Elyse Comerford (Nutritionist) as they present ‘Nourishing Your Family’ – a simple, wholesome blueprint created from their real-life experiences with their own families. They will take you through every step from building the foundations of good health and happiness, to then delving further into gut health and how it relates to the health of our whole system, and what you can do if you are suffering from acute and/or chronic health issues. Combine this with practical nutrition guidelines, food preparation tips and cooking demonstrations to help you reduce the food stress, and you have an evening jam-packed with inspiration (and the perfect amount of information!). 

If you are feeling stuck (and petrified!) with no idea where to start, or you are on your health journey already but would love some encouragement from two mums who have battled through many obstacles to nourish and heal their families, then this event is not to be missed! 

Learn from Jo and Elyse:

• How they worked through major health issues in their families

Book in here!

The post AQJ 143: Helping Teens to Eat Well, Part 2 appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

As kids get older and become more independent, they sometimes begin to move away from the healthy foods they’ve been raised on. Hanging out with friends, getting their license and first car, going off to work or uni, going to parties and places where the food is far from ideal… Parents often feel stressed about their teenagers reduced interest in eating healthy food during this stage of life! If teenagers are not part of a ‘health conscious’ peer group, it can be hard for them to eat differently to their friends.

In this podcast, Fouad interviews Dr Damian Kristof (naturopath, nutritionist and chiropractor) and Jo (Quirky Cooking) about how they’ve coped with the teenage years and their kids’ food choices. They discuss how they taught their kids to eat well while young, the difficulties they’ve faced along the way, the changes that happen in the brains of teenagers and how it affects their food choices, what to do when kids get ‘off track’ with their eating, how to help teenagers to take responsibility for their own food choices, and much more.

Useful Links:

Listen to Jo’s son Isaac talk about diet changes from a teenager’s perspective 

Learn more about Dr Damian Kristof 

Damian’s seminars, “The Power of Food” and “Crack Your Stress Code”

Damian & Marcus’s Podcast, “100 Not Out” (all about ageing well)

Read Jo’s story, and how her family healed with food

The post AQJ 142: Helping Teens to Eat Well, with Dr Damian Kristof & Jo Whitton appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Over the last century, our refined, Western foods have crept into most societies world wide. What has been the impact of these foods on the health and wellbeing of ancient cultures and peoples? In this podcast, we discuss the work of Weston A. Price and the foundation that carries his name, and how they are helping cultures all over the world to return to traditional, healing foods.

Background:

Weston Price was a dentist with an interest in nutrition and health, who travelled extensively in the 1930’s, observing the dietary habits of diverse cultures including the Lötschental in Switzerland, Native Americans, Polynesians, Pygmies, and Australian Aboriginals, among many others.  His extensive research materials include some 15,000 photographs, 4,000 slides, and many filmstrips.  He observed that various diseases endemic to Western cultures of the 1920s and 1930s were rarely present in non-Western cultures, and that as non-Western groups abandoned indigenous diets and adopted Western patterns of living, they showed increases in typical Western diseases. He concluded that Western methods of commercially preparing and storing foods stripped away vitamins and minerals necessary to prevent these diseases.

Initially, the medical and scientific communities vigorously rejected this controversial work as lacking scientific precision, nevertheless, as time went on, research has confirmed his observations and modern medical orthodoxy is slowly accepting that lifestyle and diet are a major factor, perhaps the major factor, in the degenerative diseases that plague the developed world.  Many have credited his book, “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration: A Comparison of Primitive and Modern Diets and Their Effects“, with greatly improving their health. [via amazon.com.au]

This Episode:

Jo interviews Hilda Gore of the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) in the US about her work, the foundation’s commitment of sharing knowledge and research around “food, farming, and the healing arts”, and her upcoming trip to Australia. They talk about this non-profit group’s dedication to restoring nutrient-dense foods to the human diet through education, research and activism. WAPF supports a number of movements that contribute to this objective including accurate nutrition instruction, organic and biodynamic farming, pasture-feeding of livestock, community-supported farms, honest and informative labelling, prepared parenting and nurturing therapies.

Bonus – Intro with the cooks at the Hope for Health “Together Retreat”!

Jo is recording this episode from Noonamah, NT, where she and her friends and cooking at an Indigenous health and cultural learning retreat – the perfect place to talk about traditional cultures, the effect of a western diet on indigenous people, and the importance of traditional healing foods!! Jo, Leah and Shantell share their experiences of cooking for and with the Yolngu people of East Arnhem Land – fascinating indigenous foods, knowledge and bush craft were shared with the Balanda (non-indigenous) people at the two week retreat, and much connection, learning and healing took place. Such a beautiful experience for all who attended. (You can find more info about the “Together Retreats” here.) Jo and the girls were adopted into the Yolngu clan, and Jo is looking forward to travelling with Hilda up to Elcho Island to spend time with the Yolngu people in September, learning more about their traditional foods. You can check out Jo’s photos and videos of this retreat on her Quirky Cooking Facebook page, here.

Useful Links:

Learn more about The Weston A. Price Foundation

Visit Hilda’s Website, Holistic Hilda

Listen in to Hilda Gore’s Podcast, Wise Traditions

Help support Hilda’s upcoming trip to Australia

Learn more about the work of Hope for Health in Australia

The post AQJ 141: Healing with Traditional Foods, with Hilda Gore of WAPF appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Jo has an extra special guest on the show today… Fouad is back! There’s lots of laughs and catching up, and sharing stories and news. We know you’ve missed their crazy banter, so grab a cuppa and enjoy the chat.

Jo and Foo share their experiences of working through recent childhood illnesses and health issues – eczema, chicken pox, colds and flus – and discuss natural ways you can help to boost your family’s immunity this winter. They also discuss the pros and cons of antibiotics and western medicine, the importance of working out the root cause of illnesses and dealing with that, looking into environmental triggers, the benefits of healing diets and herbal remedies, and how they blend natural and western medical practices in their own families.

If you’re interested in learning more about foods, herbs, spices and natural supplements that can powerfully boost your immune system (and your moods!), you’ll love this podcast!

Useful Links:

Healing eczema by improving gut health, podcast with Elyse Comerford

Healing eczema naturally, Emma’s Story (article)

Foods that help with Microbial Health, podcast with Dr Jason Hawrelak

How to make a healing meat stock, and the benefits over bone broth (article by Elyse Comerford)

Kakadu Plum Powder (a powerful, natural vitamin C supplement)

Host Defence (medicinal mushroom powders & tinctures)

The post AQJ 140: Children’s Health, Eczema, Antibiotics, & Boosting Immunity appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Teaching kids to cook with real food is important for their future, and the future of our planet. Our children’s enjoyment of cooking begins with our attitude towards food and cooking, and often is dependant on mum or dad being organised so they have the time and headspace to include the kids in the meal prep.

In this episode, Jo chats with her friend Dani Valent about everything from simplifying your cooking, decluttering your pantry, reducing stress in the kitchen, and using the ingredients you have on hand… to teaching your kids how to cook and eat well, and how to get them started on the path of loving good food! If cooking dinner makes you feel stressed, or you don’t know where to begin with teaching the kids to cook, listen in and get some great ideas to make life easier.

Dani is a mum of three, has over 20 years experience as a food writer, is the author of three amazing Thermomix cookbooks, has run cooking classes all over the world, and loves to share her passion for good food via her classes, cooking videos, website, and cookbooks.

“The way I see it, good food is central to a life well-lived. It’s nourishment and energy. It’s a way to gather – in the field, the market, in the kitchen and at the table. It’s culture, ritual, history and future. It’s art, craft and science. It’s sensual and – believe me – it can get emotional. Let me tell you about the time I wept with joy over some beautiful cheesecake… Of course, it’s also just breakfast, lunch and dinner, simply getting yourself and those around you fed, fuelled and satisfied in a practical no-nonsense way. I get it!… I’m also a mum so I know all about getting food on the table for the family.” – Dani Valent

Listen in as Dani shares some of her best tips for teaching kids to love good food as much as you do, and learn to enjoy spending time together in the kitchen.

[Illustration by Meg Rennie, for the Melbourne Kitchen Project]

Useful Links:

Our “Simple Magnificence” Cooking Class in Brisbane, 15 June – Collaboration with Dani Valent, Jo Whitton and Fleur Sharpe

Dani’s “Restaurant Club” at e’cco, Brisbane, 13 June – Collaboration with chef Phillip Johnson, menu incorporating Australian indigenous ingredients

Read about Dani Valent

Dani’s Thermomix cooking video library

The post AQJ 139: Teaching Kids to Cook, with Dani Valent appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Dr. Natalie Challis is a neuro-psychotherapist who specialises in treating children with anxiety and other health concerns. She says, “What drives me? Mothers. I want to be an advocate for mothers experiencing the same distress and frustration I felt.”

Dr. Nat first became interested in children’s mental health when her son started showing signs of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive behaviours. “He was 4 when his anxiety began. Watching him struggle was the hardest and most distressing thing I’ve ever been through. I remember the utter frustration of trying and failing, time and again, to get him the help he needed. My intuition told me it wasn’t his personality and we were the best parents we knew how to be. Yet these were the reasons offered to me by multitudes of medical professionals. Luckily I listened to my intuition and successfully treated my child.”

Working alongside Dr Nat is Leigh Shinde, a neuro-nutritionist, and together they successfully treat children at their Kids Development Centre, using a wholistic approach around the brain, body and gut. They use cutting edge science with regard to brain and gut inflammation through brain imaging and biochemical testing.

Nat and Leigh are passionate about getting this information out to parents who haven’t been able to get the help they need for their child. They have developed a 9 week online program called “Love Your Anxious Child” for those who can’t get to a clinic for treatment. The program is designed to give parents evidence-based knowledge and actionable steps to support and treat their anxious child. You can find out more about this program here: Love Your Beautiful Brain.

About Dr Natalie Challis and Leigh Shinde:

Leigh is a children’s Neuro-Nutrition Expert. She holds a Bachelor of Science with postgraduates in both Human Nutrition, and Nutritional and Environmental Medicine. As a Neuro-Nutritionist she investigates how food, additives, nutritional deficiencies, gut health and genetics can impact on your child’s neurological and physiological development.

Useful Links:

Learn more about their online program here

The post AQJ 138: Childhood Anxiety & the Inflamed Brain appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Do you have a fussy eater in your home? Need some help?

Beth Bonfiglio of Little Fusspot helps people from all over the world with mealtimes that are less than peaceful. She is known as the ‘supernanny of mealtimes’! Beth brings the core fundamentals of many different professions together to make a one stop shop for all types of fussy eaters, from the extreme to the simply reluctant.

Beth completed her clinical nutrition qualifications in 2012, then began creating 1 on 1 therapy workshops, perfecting her courses, and eliminating advice that is now redundant or counterproductive to raising happy and healthy children. She is always interested in learning new techniques and approaches to tackling fussy eating, and says that her constant research and development means that her methods are always evolving, constantly updated and shared among a supportive community with the same goal of “making every bite count”.

Beth’s main motivation for learning all there is around food aversions and feeding disorders is her own son. He was diagnosed with a severe sensory processing disorder when he was 2 and has always struggled with any foods other than beige and white carbohydrates that come in packaging. She sets small goals each month and uses her own techniques to stretch the range of food he eats. He now happily enjoys colourful salads, sushi (massive accomplishment!), green juices and smoothies!

“I’m passionate about being able to help every child who has aversions to eating. More than anything though, it is the success of every child that makes my job as a feeding therapist such a rewarding one.”

Listen in and learn about:

Useful Links:

Find out more about Beth and “Little Fusspots” here

Find out more about “Primal Alternative” here

Listen to Helen of Primal Alternative talking about finding fulfilment in your work

Our “Simple Magnificence” Thermomix cooking workshop, Brisbane 15 June

Hope for Health “Together” Retreat, 16-28 June

Our interview with Hope for Health

The post AQJ 137: Fussy Eaters & How to Have Peaceful Mealtimes appeared first on The Wellness Couch.