How my journey began

I have experienced first hand just how much impact our lifestyle has on our health. After years and years of bouts of tonsillitis, I grew up believing it was my weak area and continued to take the antibiotics, not really thinking about the effect they were having or what was actually causing the infection in the first place.

Then about six years ago, I found myself suffering major fatigue, head to toe hives, aches in my joints and inflammation across my whole body (especially my face!) - I put it down to being a working mum with two small boys. I read an article on inflammation and every word resonated with me, it described exactly how I was feeling, so I immediately ordered the book the extract came from. Before I had even finished it, I had booked an appointment to see a nutritionist who put me on a two-week cleanse, and by day 10, I literally felt like a different person!

After a few months of trial and error, I discovered I am incredibly intolerant to dairy and eggs. Something I had always suspected but as a vegetarian, I was terrified at the prospect of losing them from my meals. I now know that works best for me, is a home-cooked, plant-based diet and some form of high energy exercise everyday. At this point, I also need to add that significantly reducing my sugar intake also made a huge difference!

Benefits of plant-based

Since going fully plant-based, I haven’t had a single bout of tonsillitis or any medication. The benefits I have experienced are many, too many to list, but here’s a few; better sleep, clearer skin, the ability to breathe deeper than ever before, improved mood, better concentration and more confidence. I know that the changes I have made improve my health now and will benefit me in the future.

Focus on gaining rather than losing

So that’s where my plant-based journey began. A journey that wasn’t always moving in a straight line, but was always centred around eating food that made me feel great. A total revelation from focusing on food that I thought would make me slimmer! Rather than focusing on what I was taking out, I focused on what I was adding in - foods that would heal rather than harm me. My energy, skin, focus and happiness all sky rocketed as a result of cooking from scratch, making real food with fresh, minimally processed ingredients.

Good for us, good for the planet

I became plant-based for my health but during my studies in plant-based nutrition, I discovered the immense benefits to the planet too. What I have learnt has challenged much of what I have been taught about food and nutrition as a child and young adult. Never before have we had so much information on the impact of our food choices on our health and that of the planet but it can also feel overwhelming, and at times contradictory. I believe we’ve been marketed to for so long that we’ve lost our intuition, and in going back to basics, we rediscover that what’s good for us is also good for the planet.