Meet the Practitioner! The Foodie Nutritionist - gut health guru

Hi Everyone, I’m Karen, The Foodie Nutritionist 😊

Just thought I’d drop an update about myself - for those of you who are new to The Foodie Nutritionist, and a little refresh for my long term supporters.

Here’s a little bit about me (some of it that you may not know!):

🥦 I am a degree qualified Nutritionist, who completed my education through a nationally accredited natural therapies institution as well as university. My studies included over 350 hours of supervised clinical practice in order for me to use the term ‘clinical nutritionist’

🥦 I am passionate about helping others make positive changes in their diet and lifestyle, that are empowering, manageable and sustainable

🥦 My interest in natural health spans back many years - my Year 10 work experience during high school was with a local naturopath in Hobart, Tasmania. I was enthralled by her apothecary of liquid herbs, and the recommendations of wholefoods and diet to improve health. This planted the seed for my own future studies and career journey…

🥦 I am fascinated with how the body works, and how food can make us feel. I truly believe that there is not one perfect diet, but just YOUR perfect diet. My job is to help you find the eating style that suits YOUR body and YOUR health best

🥦 I have lived and worked overseas in a number of places - in a wellness clinic in Singapore; in a health food store in London; running detox retreats in Thailand; alongside many practitioners in different clinics; and now under my own brand based out of Sydney

🥦 Two of my favourite things are coffee and dark chocolate (the darker the better!), which feature most days in my diet. This is alongside a balanced variety of other foods, and aligns with my food philosophy that food is for enjoyment, we just have to understand how best to eat them and how the choices we make impact our health. As summed up by my food hero, Michael Pollan, “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

🥦 Having two small people in my life has definitely challenged my previous nutrition beliefs! It has helped me to step back and look at the bigger picture, rather than getting bogged down in the details. A weekly overview of nutritional intake with children can be hugely different to what might happen in a day. An ‘off’ day just means making better choices the following day

🥦 Gut health and the microbiome are my main areas of interest. I believe that what we currently understand about our microbiota is just the tip of the iceberg. Realising that our gut microbes have a major impact on our immune system (e.g. allergies), our mood (e.g. depression), our metabolic health (e.g. obesity and diabetes), our hormonal health (e.g. unopposed oestrogen in perimenopause) and our digestive health (e.g. inflammatory bowel diseases) is crucial to understanding better health

🥦 I make an effort to incorporate gut healing foods on a daily basis for my family - whether that might be homemade bone broth, fermented foods such as kefir or sauerkraut, or high prebiotic fibre options like green banana flour pancakes or simple additions such as garlic and onion

🥦 My mission is to help make food fun yet functional; to help you be the best version of yourself!

🥦 If you'd like to start working with me to improve your gut health and feel your very best, check out my booking page here

Food demo in process, by The Foodie Nutritionist