Top nutritionist Ruth cooks up a storm at healthy eating workshop in Mountmellick 

NUTRITIONIST Ruth Kavanagh of health education and functional fitness organisation EduFIT recently delivered a free winter wellness workshop in Mountmellick Library. The session, sponsored by Laois Libraries, was based on healthy eating to maintain and boost the immune system over the winter months.

Ruth began by demonstrating how to make a simple-but-nutritious carrot and red lentil soup by chopping washed carrots with the skin on, bringing them on to boil and adding lentils along with various spices.

While the soup was cooking and the wonderful aroma filled the air, the nutritionist began making peanut butter and chocolate chip balls, which included dates and a variety of seeds as healthy snacks to have with a tea or coffee.

During the workshop, Ruth said that 70% of the immune system is housed in the gut and that there’s no specific food or diet to boost the immune system; however, there are lots of healthy foods that we can eat to support it.

Ruth spoke in easy-to-understand terms about good bugs and bad bugs in the gut and what kind of foods that each likes. She said that fibre is great for the good bugs.

Probiotics and prebiotics for gut health, along with the importance of vitamin D, was also explained.

Ruth said: “The good bugs love fibre and you would often hear people say to eat the rainbow regarding the different colours of fruits and vegetables. Vitamin D is important for bone, muscle and immunity. Vitamin D is contained in oily fish and egg yolks, but the amount is very little compared to what we need, so the government advises a vitamin D supplement.

“Omega 3 for immune health and brain health is also important, and this can be obtained through oily fish, walnuts, chia seeds and black seeds, which are a great source. Just six walnuts a day will provide you with all the Omega 3 that you need.

“A healthy, balanced meal is important and it doesn’t have to be complicated. Ideally your plate should be comprised of half vegetables or fruits, a quarter carbohydrates like potatoes, rice or pasta, and the other quarter should be proteins such as fish, meat or dairy products."

Ruth then spoke about the importance of hydration for concentration, performance, circulation and because it prevents urinary tract infections.

She said: “A clear-to-yellow urine colour indicates that we are hydrated. Darker colours reveal how dehydrated the person is. To increase hydration, have a glass of fluid at each meal, carry a bottle of water throughout the day, and because it is winter, it can be hard to keep drinking water, especially if it is cold, so things like soups, tea or coffee will provide hydration, but a change to decaf tea and coffee can lead to a better quality of sleep.” To keep up with the healthy programmes and healthy recipes, check out www.edufit.ie and sign up to the free monthly newsletter, or email info@edufit.ie for more information.