Our Pantry Coordinator, Jane, writes about a recent community workshop on nutrition
We constantly hear or read about what foods are good or bad for us in the media. The messages can be very confusing and difficult for people to unpick and understand what to choose or buy for themselves and their family.
At Epsom Pantry one of the community activities we’ve run for our members is a workshop on nutrition by Sandrine, a qualified nutritional therapist from Savoirefayre_nutrition who is offering her time to us on a voluntary basis.
Earlier in the year Sandrine ran an ‘eating to boost immunity’ workshop. This time we were looking at digestive health.
A lovely group of six members attended most with digestive issues of one kind or another.
After asking the group about their different experiences Sandrine explained that although digestive health is a complex area, there are things we can all do to improve our gut health. Sandrine talked about the difference between Probiotics and Prebiotics. Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that contribute to gut health and Prebiotics are food for these bacteria. The group tasted a probiotic (kefir) with various results. Some members were pleasantly surprised, some were very reluctant and some did not like it! One member noted ‘that is much better than I expected so I will try that again’
As well as taking a range of pro and prebiotics Sandrine explained the important things to consider
What are my triggers? Try to work out what these are and then avoid them
Go slow – eat mindfully and take time to chew food thoroughly
Keep hydrated – drink plenty of water or herbal teas
After much discussion the group thanked Sandrine for all her help and hope she will be able to do more! All members at the workshop said they would be putting some of these practices into action. One member said ‘The workshop was marvellous. I am going to aim to eat mindfully and slow down my eating’
Another member said ‘that was so interesting, particularly the part about recognising triggers’ The whole group felt it was very supportive and cannot wait for the next one!
