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June 13, 2019 BLOG

Healthy GF Vegan Breakfast Ideas

Since I know eat gluten-free (for Annabelle’s food allergies) and also vegan and soy-free I am getting more creative in the kitchen to make some yummy healthy breakfasts so I thought I would share with you 10 breakfast ideas that are gluten-free and vegan!

My top 10 healthy GF vegan breakfast ideas:

Chia puddings with coconut milk and berries
Homemade buckwheat bread and smashed avocado or peanut butter /almond butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
GF Bread and cooked mushrooms and spinach for a cooked breakfast.
GF granola with nuts, seeds, coconut and dried fruits and a dollop of coconut yogurt. yummy!
Black bean tacos for a fancy weekend brunch at home.
Buckwheat porridge using raw buckwheat groats soaked and cooked in nut milk.
Quinoa porridge made with quinoa flakes and added stewed apples and cinnamon.
Smoothies : cacao and hemp seeds; banana, tahini and cinnamon; berries & almond butter- these are some of my favourite combo.
Buckwheat pancakes with warm blueberries and maple syrup. Hello sunday morning!
Coconut yogurt bowls for quick and easy weekday breakfasts with berries, sliced up bananas, linseed, hemp seeds, pepitas and nuts of choice.

I hope this little lists helps you! You can find more meal inspo on my Instagram or contact me if you have any questions.

March 19, 2019 BLOG

10 Healthy Weight Loss Tips that Actually Work

As a nutritionist, I know one of the main motivation for people to go see a nutritionist is to lose weight or get healthy. Now I do not believe in fad diets or following the keto diet for weight loss (more on that in another blogpost) but here are my quick 10 healthy weight loss tips that actually work. They have worked for me after my pregnancies and some of my friends/clients and I hope they can help you too!

Find a few healthy recipes that you absolutely LOVE.

In order to make a healthy diet a life-long habit you need to find recipes you enjoy making and eating! I recommend you find a few favourite simple and healthy meals for breakfast, lunches and dinner that can become your new “go-to”s each week.

Some of our family favourites are vegan lentil dhal curry served with cauliflower rice or brown rice, vegan kale pesto pasta, a roasted vegetable couscous or quinoa salad, blueberry porridge, smoothies, avocado and hemp seeds on sourdough and plant-based zucchini, eggplant and lentil lasagne with a cashew cheese sauce.

Eat Plant-Based

Even if you don’t go fully vegan (although I do recommend it for your health, environment and the animals), eating plant-based a few times a week or a few meals a day can really improve your health and help you lose some extra weight. I lost about 6kg when going vegan after having my twins and it has helped me get back to my pre-pregnancy weight both pregnancies. Eating plant-based means eating a large amount of vegetables, fruits and wholegrains as well as legumes. I do not mean eating vegan cheese/bread/chips and vegan ice-creams (although they all have a place in a healthy diet as a treat!).

It is high in fibre so fills you up with high nutrient and low calorie dense foods (the fibre fills you up not the protein…) It is also proven that eating a diverse plant-based diet is the key for a healthy gut microbiome. Not only eating plant-based is good for your health and tummy but it is also good for your wallet- eating more rice, legumes and vegetables is much cheaper than meat!

Make your own Healthy Treats

If you follow me on Instagram or here on my blog you will know I love baking and making healthy raw treats! I am a firm believer in having small portions of my own homemade vegan low sugar treats a couple of times a week to satisfy my sweet tooth. Trying to go cold turkey and completely off treats is not really a sustainable healthy weight loss habit. I much prefer teaching my clients to swap unhealthy sugary treats for good quality dark chocolate or making their own baked goods. I have 1-2 squares of dark chocolate most days after dinner!

Making your own healthy treats also means you can control how much oil, sugar goes into it and use healthier flour alternatives such as buckwheat or wholemeal flour and avoid processed ingredient, fillers, additives and preservatives.

Snack on fruit or veggies

When hungry try grabbing a piece of fruit first before reaching for other snacks. Fruits are so good for us and I am tired of everyone fearing them and the fear of sugar in fruit! I recommend having at least 2-3 pieces of fruit a day for getting a variety of nutrients, vitamins and fibre. Snacking on veggies is also great but truth be told everyone prefers snacking on fruits and that’s okay! Just fill up on veggies at lunch and dinner. Having more fruit really is my number one health tip! So many people avoid them completely and it is sad. Nature’s intended for us to eat them that’s why they are so delicious! And no study ever found eating fruit to be the cause of obesity or diseases! Eating 2-3 pieces of fruit a day is a very healthy habit to keep for life and to share with children. Swapping unhealthy snacks or fatty snacks such as too many nuts, chips or processed treats for fruit is a great way to achieve your goal of weight loss.

Reduce Fats

This might be a little bit (or a lot) against the latest trend of increasing fats in our diets. People used to eat a lot of fat from animal fat, fried foods and baked foods and with the healthy movement and paleo/ keto diet people have now replaced bad fats such as margarine with healthy fats but these are still fats. Eating 50% of your calorie from fats is not healthy and will not help you lose fat. The good fats are good in the diet but in small quantities only.

And do not worry about not absorbing fat-soluble vitamins in your diet – there is a little fat in every food- no need to soak your salads in olive oil, eat coconut oil by the spoon and eat lots of nuts and avocados. Processed fats are of course very unhealthy and you should limit those for weight loss.

The advice of snacking on nuts is actually I believe not helpful when people are wanting to lose weight. Fat pack a lot more calories per gram than carbs and protein. A quick comparison 1 tbsp of coconut or olive oil has 120 calories compared with 14 calories for 1 tbsp of brown rice and only 7 almonds contain already more than 50 calories. Having a few handful of nuts could lead you to consuming over 400 calories in a few minutes. I do not recommend buying the LOW FAT dairy products as they are full of added sugar but simply eating plant-based low fat foods without adding too much fat in the form of dressings, cooking oils and too many nuts.

Stop fearing carbs

As I mentioned above, I believe in a plant-based diet lower in fat to achieve good health and long-term weight loss. A recent study performed in 16-week randomized clinical trial found that the increase of carbohydrates and overall fibre intake as part of a low-fat plant-based diet was beneficial for weight loss, body composition and insulin resistance. (source: study)Eating plant-based, whole foods carbohydrates are much lower in calories and provide very important nutrients and vitamins that your body, liver and brain need. Glucose is the key for maintaining your body alive as opposed to fats. You should eat a large amount of vegetables, moderate amount of fruit and lots of healthy wholegrains such as brown rice, quinoa, oats and other wholegrains.

Fill up at breakfast

Starting the day with a healthy breakfast is important to set up yourself for a good day full of energy. I do not believe in Intermittent fasting as we all already do it overnight from dinner to breakfast. And for some people, not having breakfast leads them to over eating for the rest of the day as they think they deserve to indulge since they skipped breakfast.

My recommended healthy breakfasts are: porridge, overnight oats, chia puddings, smoothies, wholemeal bread and avocado/ nut butters.

Reduce drinking

Are you drinking 1-3 flat white coffees a day? 1-2 wines a night? Coffees and alcohol can hide a lot of calories and amount to a third of your calorie needs per day. Reducing your takeaway coffees and alcohol can help you lose some weight as well as feel healthier. Replace them with lots of water for a healthier you!

Ditch the all or nothing philosophy

Life and food are meant to be enjoyed. I do believe in relaxing healthy eating habits on special occasions, holidays and birthdays! But the rest of the time if you have an indulgent breakfast, a slice of cake with a friend or too many chips when going out it does not mean you have ruined it all and need to pig out for the rest of the day/weekend/week or even month!

Exercise

This quite common sense but exercising combined with a healthy diet is the key for long-term weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. Find something you like doing, with your loved ones or children on the weekend and do it! Exercise is so good for anxiety and mental health too!

Please consult with a nutritionist, doctor if you need further advice or before starting any drastic lifestyle and diet changes. I am available for worldwide nutrition consultation should you seek further professional advice.

March 7, 2019 BLOG

Sleep X Review and my 6 tips for a Healthy Sleep

Sleep X Mattresses Review and my tips for a good night sleep

I was lucky enough to be gifted to single SLEEP X mattresses a few weeks ago and they have been used by my toddler twins since going in their “big kids” beds. They have loved their new Sleep X single mattresses and beds and have been sleeping great! They are non-allergenic, antibacterial and Australian made. The mattresses arrived in boxes and were so easy and quick to open and ready for use. They also make great trampolines for toddlers!

If you want to order a Sleep X mattress I have a 10% off code for you: HEALTHSLEEPLIVE. #sleepx #sleepxmattress #xandgoodnight

As a mum and nutritionist, I know how important sleep is- for both your physical health and emotional health! Lacking sleep as a new mum is very hard. It is probably the thing I like the least being a mum – having to lose sleep a lot for the first few years. That is why I was very interested in trialling the Sleep X mattresses as I wanted to make sure my twin toddlers will have a good night sleep.

My 6 Tips for a Healthy Sleep for adults and children:

Remove chocolate/ caffeine treats in the afternoon and evenings

Reducing coffee intake and chocolate in the evenings especially just before bed time can make a world of difference if you struggle to fall asleep at night. Chocolate contains cacao which contains caffeine. Some people are very sensitive and you might think you are fine but your evening chocolate habit might be the reason why you cannot fall asleep before midnight! Children are even more sensitive to caffeine so make sure your little one isn’t having too much cacao or chocolate in the afternoons/evenings.

Reduce fatty meals

Eating high fat- heavy meals before bed can lead to the feeling of indigestion and acid reflux and make it hard to fall asleep. Laying on your left side and having a peppermint/digestion tea can help if you have had a heavier meal than usual.

Develop healthy bedtime rituals

Bedtime rituals are so important for babies and children to develop good sleeping habits but are still relevant for adults. Bedtime rituals such as a bath or shower, putting on your favourite pyjamas, moisturiser, a cup of herbal tea and reading a book can help your brain switch from daytime to night-time!

Reduce blue light exposure

I am very guilty of spending my evenings on my phone, computer or watching TV but did you know phones emit an artificial blue light which can disrupt your circadian rhythm that causes the release of melatonin helping you sleep. The artificial blue light makes your brain believe it is daytime thus falling asleep can be more difficult and you won’t sleep as deeply. I now use some blue light glasses in the evenings or turn off my phone 30 minutes before going to bed and instead read a book.

Create a nice environment

Having a comfortable mattress, a dark fresh room, clean crisp linens and a warm doona makes it so much more enjoyable to go to bed. My twins love going to bed in their ‘big kids beds’ and I do too! I also diffuse lavender essential oil in our room for sleeping deeply and we keep the temperature of the bedrooms comfortable.

Eat a healthy diet high in magnesium

Magnesium is a very important mineral for a lot of reasons including for having a good night sleep. You can get your magnesium from green vegetables, avocados, nuts, seeds, whole-grains and fruits such as a banana (which contains 9% of your magnesium RDI).

Sometimes it might be required to add a magnesium supplement in your diet if you are someone who sweats a lot, are very active, stressed or pregnant. Magnesium supplements can come in tablets, powders or topical creams. Make sure to check with your pharmacist for the best dosage and form for you. I personally use a magnesium powder and it made a huge difference during my pregnancy to fight off pregnancy insomnia!

If you have tried a few of these healthy sleep tips and still struggle with insomnia you might want to consult with your doctor and check your thyroid and other hormone levels for example.

The Sleep X mattresses were gifted to me by the company Sleep X but these are my tips and own review.

November 22, 2018 BLOG

Annabelle’s soy allergy

My little girl Annabelle is 10 weeks old and is now diagnosed as having a soy allergy (Non-IGE mediated food allergy).

A bit of science:

Non-ige allergy are different from Ige allergies. They are less severe and reactions are usually more delayed. They usually involve symptoms of the gastrointestinal tract such as vomiting, bloating and diarrhoea. Ige allergies’ symptoms are usually immediate and involve hives, redness of the skin, vomiting and in more severe cases anaphylaxis. To this day there is no blood or skin test to diagnose non-ige allergies them but rather eliminate the food and reintroduce it to check for symptoms reappearing.

Background:

When Annabelle was 2.5 weeks old she started getting terrible skin, lots of big angry pimples which then developed into a rash with lots of tiny pimples on her neck, chest, eye lids, ears. I had never seen anything like it on babies (the twins never got baby acne).

As a worried mum I spent the night feeds googling and reading online (as you do!) about baby acne. I waited to see if it would go away. At 4 weeks it wasn’t really going away but some days were so much better than others. I felt it was linked to my diet and my instinct told me it was more than baby acne so after chatting with a friend whose baby has multiple food allergies, I took soy out of my diet as I was having a lot of soy daily. (mostly tofu for protein and soy milk in my coffee) Her type of allergy means she reacts to the soy I eat in my diet through breastfeeding. She also reacted to the soy in my iron supplement just this week even though I have been very careful with what I eat and the packaging didn’t include soy until I checked online.

When I was having soy she would have terrible reflux and would vomit quite a bit after every feed. After eliminating soy and reintroducing it I found that her main symptoms are:

Reflux (sour/smelly vomits, cottage cheese like)
Rash/pimples on cheeks, ears and neck
Lots of Mucus in her poos
Sounding like she had a cold.
Not sleeping good
Needing to be kept upright
Stiff body and neck

The hardest thing now for me as a soy-free vegan is making sure I am eating enough protein and calcium as soy milk and tofu was a daily/weekly source of these nutrients for me.

This is why it is important when you think your baby has a food intolerance to go see a doctor and a dietician/nutritionist to make sure both you and bub are eating a healthy diet. Lucky for me I have been able to draw on my nutrition knowledge to ensure I get enough protein and calcium everyday. Also Annabelle is still gaining lots of weight and our breastfeeding journey is going great (without the soy)!

I am now swapping soy milk in my coffee for almond milk and increasing legumes such as chickpeas, lentils in my lunches and dinners, I also add tbsp of hemp seeds and including hemp based natural protein powders in my morning smoothie and afternoon snack if I can. I easily reach my protein requirements if I am mindful and include these. As well as wholegrains and peanut butter!

I also had to cut off most breads and dark chocolates from my diet as they contain soy flour or soy lecithin as emulsifier. Most quality sourdoughs are fine though. We will test soon if she can handle some soy flour/ soy oil in my diet through bread.

What do I eat now?

Porridge made with coconut/hemp or nut milk
Smoothies with nut milk (fortified with calcium) with hemp protein powder and other superfoods
Chickpeas, lentils and hemp seeds for protein in salads and curries.
Salads with brown rice, beans and nuts.
Avocados
Quinoa
Pastas with lentils, veggies, cashew cheese
Rice crackers with hummus and veggies for snacks
Bliss balls
Dates
All Fruits
All Veggies
Dhals, veggies stews, curries homemade.

What to eat for calcium:

Fortified almond milk – using vegan sources of calcium.
Green veggies such as spinach, kale and brocoli
Tahini, sesame seeds
Some quality vegan protein powders
Dried figs
Almonds
Chia seeds, hemp seeds.

I make sure to eat a lot of these foods as calcium requirements while breastfeeding are at the highest. 1250mg of calcium per day is required to maintain optimal health for mum and baby. I will also include a B12 supplement and a calcium supplement in my days very soon to make sure I have enough.

Do you have a child with food intolerances/ allergies? I hope Annabelle grows out of it when she starts solids!

November 16, 2018 BLOG

Simple Chocolate Cake and behind-the-scenes photoshoot

This past week we had a friend and professional photographer Kirsten Cunningham come and do a photoshoot of us in the kitchen as I wanted some professional shots of us baking and to use for my blog and Instagram page. I couldn’t be happier by how they turned out and the twins had so much fun being photographed. They also enjoyed licking the chocolate and mixing the chocolate cake!

We made a simple vegan chocolate cake and despite being over mixed, me forgetting the sugar and being made while doing a photoshoot it turned out quite good!

So here are more pictures of the twins and I baking in my own kitchen. I hope you enjoy seeing a little behind-the-scenes action and seeing a bit more of the twins and myself. Annabelle also made an appearance!

I have included the recipe for the chocolate cake at the bottom of the post too. Enjoy and hope you have as much fun as us baking it! xxx

Simple Vegan Chocolate cake (Soy-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free)

3 cups of wholewheat flour
1 cup of coconut sugar or 1/2 cup and 1/2 cup of maple syrup
3/4 cup of raw cacao powder
2 tsp of baking powder
2 tbsp of flax meal powder
2 cups of nut milk of your choice
1 cup of melted coconut oil
100gr of dark chocolate melted (I use Lindt 70%)
1 shot of espresso (optional)
pinch of salt
1 tsp of vanilla

Pre-heat your oven at 180 degrees Celsius and line a cake tin with baking paper.
In a bowl mix all the dry ingredients together.
Then add the melted coconut oil, combine, then the melted dark chocolate and combine.
Finish with the nut milk and espresso. Combine together and place the dough in your cake tin.
Cook for 45 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Top with melted chocolate, berries or your favourite icing. I kept mine simple to make it extra simple!

June 27, 2018 BLOG

5 Meal Time Tips for Toddlers

5 ways to make meal time a success with little kids

Are your kids making meal times a nightmare? Are you fighting them to eat their vegetables? Is the whole plate from your toddler going in the bin? Or on the floor? As a twin mum I know how toddlers can be- especially at meal times.

I must say that apart from the odd dinner- our dinners together are pretty enjoyable and the twins have started the habit of telling their dad what we have done during the day. I love hearing what they remember from the day! They are also pretty good eaters so I might be double lucky but I also think following the 5 points below has helped us in creating a nice dinner time. And do they eat their vegetables and finish their plates every night? Nope! But pretty often and I am happy with that.

I have written this blog post to hopefully help a little to turn crazy meal times into happier peaceful family moments.

Eat as a family around the table

When we lived in Perth the twins used to have dinner on their own at 5h30 and be in bed at 7h30 the time their dad and I would sit and have our dinner together. It was good in some ways for some nice adult time but it wasn’t teaching the twins how to eat, communicate and share a meal. They use to throw all their food on the floor and drive me crazy!

Since we moved to Orange and my husband’s work hours have changed (he finishes work around 5h30/ 6h these days instead of 6h30/7h) and the twins being able to wait for a later dinner and bed time, we usually have dinner at 6h30 and they go to bed at 8 o’clock. Sharing dinner as a family has helped the twins to try new and different foods and accept the same dinner as us. It has improved our family connections and communication and it is good to be 2 adults against 2 kids to help with flying forks and pasta when they go about crazy!

Limit snacking

I know this tip worked particularly well for my son James. He likes to eat a lot but only a little at a time and he prefers snacks over meal times. I used to just give in and offer him foods whenever he wanted but when he turned 2 I started giving a proper more filling snack 2-hours before meal times instead of lots of small ones. He gets nice and full from his snack and gets hungry again for dinner!

(Ideas for good tummy-filling snacks are: smoothies (with good fats and protein), PB sandwich, avocado or vegemite sandwich, fruit & nut platter with bliss balls, pop-corn and a fruit.)

Grazing all day is not beneficial for little tummies as they fill up on lots of small snacks and are not hungry anymore for the more nutrition-dense meals.

Lead by example

This is simple. If your child never sees you eat vegetables they are very unlikely to do so themselves. So make sure to always serve yourself a nice serve of vegetables and fruit and don’t be scared to tell them how delicious it is and how much you love them. This is proven to help little children in trying out new foods and vegetables.

Serve vegetables first

If your children are really not good vegetables eaters I would recommend serving them to begin the meal as opposed to serving them as a side. You can serve some “crudites” like raw salads, carrots and hummus or roasted vegetables. (It is also important to vary the ways you cook and serve vegetables and fruits and try different cooking methods and recipes). A hungry child is more likely to eat them and start appreciating them. I know even for myself this works well!

If your child is a little older they could also help you in prepping, cutting and cooking them.

Don’t push and keep serving the difficult foods.

Eloise loves cauliflower and broccoli. But only on certain days! It drives me crazy but some days she can eat a whole broccoli and others she will pick it out and says she doesn’t like it. Because I never know what day it is going to be I keep serving it but I don’t force her to eat. I never ask them to finish their plates –only taste and eat until full. I remember long horrible meals as a child being forced to finish my plate. It is not the recommended method anymore to force children in finishing their plates or tasting foods. These days it is recommended to for the parent to decide when food is offered and what type of food is offered and the child can decide if they are going to eat and how much they are going to eat.

Bribing and getting angry won’t lead to your child getting over their fear of vegetables. Positive reinforcement along with leading by example and lots of availability of consuming vegetables are the best ways to create healthy and happy relationships with food and vegetables in children.

Children are usually scared of new foods and may need to see a food 10 times or more before they decide to try it. I always serve the vegetables (and other foods) we are having on their plates even if I know it will might not be touched. After repeat exposure, seeing you eat it and positive verbal reinforcement to try or taste the food they are more likely to try it. It might take a while but you will get there!

I also found cute new plates, cutlery, asking them to plate up along with being more relaxed with the mess they make good ways to create happier meal times for everyone.

June 2, 2018 BLOG

Nutrition tips for a healthy vegan pregnancy

Nutrition tips for a healthy vegan pregnancy.

Are you vegan? Pregnant? Wondering if a vegan pregnancy can be healthy and possible? This blogpost is for you!

Pregnancy is a great time to provide your body and baby with highly nutritious foods and eating a healthy plant-based diet is a great way to do that. In many cases plant-based vegans eat a healthier diet than meat-eaters; often much healthier during pregnancy.

This is the statement from the Australian Dietary Guidelines: “Appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthy and nutritionally adequate. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the lifecycle.”

Some of the benefits reported in scientific studies (1,2,3) of following a plant-based diet during pregnancy include:

Lower risk of preeclampsia;
Lower incidence of constipation;
Lower risk of developing gestational diabetes;
Lower risk of obesity and gestational weight gain;
Lower incidence of calf cramps;
Improved fetal growth;
Lower exposures to toxins such as nitrates (in cured meats), mercury (in fish), antibiotics and added hormones (in eggs, dairy, meat);

But a vegan pregnancy is only healthy if the mum eats a wide variety of nutritious foods (same as an omnivorous pregnancy). Eating chips all day every day is never going to bring all the nutrition your baby needs. So as for any pregnancy I recommend limiting intake of processed and unhealthy “junk” vegan foods.

As a nutritionist and pregnant vegan mama I recommend following the below 10 points for a successful healthy vegan pregnancy:

Eat the rainbow: Eat a wide range of vegetables, fruits, wholegrains, nuts and seeds to get all the nutrients your body and baby needs. Think citrus fruits, berries, green leafy vegetables, avocados, flax seeds, hemp seeds!
Supplement: All women are recommended to take a prenatal supplement during pregnancy (and 3 months prior) to ensure an adequate intake of folate. I recommend taking a good vegan plant-based prenatal that will also provide you with adequate levels of iron, iodine, zinc and Vit B12 for a healthy vegan pregnancy.
Iron: Iron supplementation is often required in pregnancy and I recommend taking a supplement (or prenatal supplement) as well as eat iron-rich foods combined with Vit-C-rich foods. Leafy greens, dried apricots, pumpkin seeds, legumes and black strap molasses are good vegan sources.
Protein: Meeting your protein requirements is often the main worry of pregnant mums- especially on a vegan diet. The good news is that is quite easy to meet the recommended daily intake of 60 g/day (1.00 g/kg). Beans are a great source of protein: 1 cup of soybeans has 29 grams of protein; 1 cup of lentils has 18 grams of protein; 1 cup of pinto beans has 15 grams of protein; and 1 cup of firm tofu has 20 grams of protein. Adding smoothies with clean vegan protein powders, snacking on peanut butter and nuts and seeds are also great ways to meet your daily requirements.
Omega-3s: Essential fatty acids are important for baby brain’s and nervous system development. Good plant-based sources are algae, hemp and flaxseed oils, walnuts and leafy green vegetables. You can also supplement with an algae-based DHA supplement.
Vegan probiotics: I recommend eating probiotics rich fermented foods such as sauerkraut and kim chi and kombucha to help maintain a healthy gut flora and immune response. As well prebiotic-rich foods such as raw garlic, raw or cooked onions, under-ripe bananas (prebiotics are a special form of dietary fiber that acts as a fuel for the good bacteria in your gut).
Calcium and Vit D: Calcium and vitamin D are necessary for the development of the bones and teeth of the foetus and therefore it is important to make sure your diet provides you with a sufficient intake of calcium rich foods. These include figs, raw apricots, broccoli, collard greens, spinach, almonds and tofu. Fortified-soy milk is my go-to calcium source to make sure I top up my diet. For the vitamin D I try to go in the sun when I can but supplementing might be necessary if you live in a cloudy, cold part of the world.
Healthy Snacks: Eating vegan and especially plant-based is not as high in calories as a traditional diet so you need to make sure to follow your hunger and eat when you are hungry. For me it meant including smart nutritious and healthy snacks morning and afternoons. Check out below my top 3- favourite pregnancy snacks!
Iodine: Iodine is very important for the brain development of the foetus, and a lack of iodine can lead to cretinism and thyroid issues. The use of iodized salt is highly recommended for pregnant vegans.
Watch out your sweets: Eating vegan doesn’t mean you won’t develop gestational diabetes or gain too much weight during your pregnancy. (Although it is proven that a plant-based diet reduces risk for gestational diabetes due to the high fibre content of the diet). Try limiting your sweets, chocolate and baked goods. (I do a lot of baking on my Instagram but I usually only have one slice per day or make 1 cake per week + I make them with very little sweetener and use healthy nutritious ingredients.)

My top 3 Healthy Pregnancy Snacks:

Hemp blueberry Smoothie made with:
- ½ cup of frozen Blueberries
- 1 tbsp of hemp protein powder
- 1 tbsp of tahini
- ½ tsp of cinnamon
- 1 cup of nut milk of your choice
- ½ cup of baby spinach
Protein Chocolate Coconut yogurt ( ½ cup of coconut yogurt, 1 tbsp of chocolate plant-based protein powder, ½ tsp of stevia, extra cacao optional).
Fruit and peanut butter with cinnamon.

I hope you like this article and it might help some of you. Also would you be interested in a 28-day nutritious vegan pregnancy meal plan??Let me know

May 3, 2018 BLOG

Halfway Vegan Pregnancy Update

Halfway pregnancy update!

I can’t believe we are already a little more than halfway there! I am currently almost 22 weeks pregnant.

This pregnancy is flying by. I feel a little bad because being the third baby I am not relaxing and connecting as much with the baby as I did with my twins during the pregnancy.

He or she is kicking lots and I can feel it a lot now which is a great reminder to the little miracle I am carrying in my belly. I absolutely love the feeling of baby kicks, it is one of my favourite thing about being a woman and being able to be pregnant!

We had our anatomy scan and baby is measuring on track (2 days ahead) and is very healthy. Such a relief after our last pregnancy with IUGR (slow growth) for James. We are not finding the gender until the birth. I think I saw a willy but I could be wrong as they moved very quickly down that area. I was a bit silly trying to see haha

I am relieved baby is healthy and it is good to know that eating vegan is not stopping his or her growth at all!

I have been eating vegan this pregnancy and feeling great. I have been feeling good and have no nausea and good energy apart from bouts of very low blood pressure leaving me feeling flat. I almost fainted in woolworths one day but drinking tons of water seems to help.

I had a fasting blood sugar test as well as the HbA1c test, an iron test and TSH this week. Everything came back good apart from my iron. I have low iron and I will be focusing on increasing my iron food sources in the next few weeks and will post about it on my blog soon. (I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes with my twins- but I had 2 babies, was trying to fatten up my skinny boy and was pretty much on couch rest! so this pregnancy is very different for me. ) I really am loving this pregnancy stage this time around, carrying a small but cute bump, not being uncomfortable or worried and having energy to run after my twins.

Talking about running… I have not been running properly for many weeks but I take fast/ inclined walks on the treadmill a few times a week. I also do resistance training type of workout for 10-20 minutes most days. I try to be good and stay active but I really listen to my body. I want to stay active and healthy to improve my chances of a VBAC.

My diet has been quite healthy – I do crave the odd chocolate and ice-cream but mostly lots of yummy vegan plant-based food like you can see on my feed. I must say I have been getting hungrier in past 2 weeks and have been wanting a lot more fats like avocado or peanut butter and protein like beans and tofu.

A day in my plate currently is a bit like this:

2 pieces of wholemeal toast with 1 small avocado + hemp seeds + lemon juice
apple + peanut butter + cinnamon or a banana
salad with beans, hemp oil and fresh veggies
piece of chocolate or baked good I have made for a sweet.
Hummus/ cucumber for afternoon snack or fruit and pb toast or hemp-based smoothies for extra protein (I will do a blog post on protein snacks/ recipes)
Veggie curry, dhal, pasta or big veggie salads for dinner.

I don’t measure my protein, calcium intake I just try to eat more foods I know are rick in plant-based protein and calcium. However I use the app Cronometer once in a while to check that I am eating a balanced vegan diet and reaching most of my nutrient level requirements for a few days in a row.

I will write a blog post on nutrition in pregnancy and vegan pregnancy tips if interested. Let me know on Instagram if you have any questions xx

October 22, 2017 BLOG

Healthy Snacks for Toddlers

My top 10 Toddler Snacks

As a nutrition student and mum I try to feed my twins healthy wholesome food that is mostly homemade. But I know sometimes life gets a bit too busy and kids go from not being hungry to being starving to death in about 1 second without any warning! My little boy James is always hungry so I carry in my bag a million snacks. I try to change them up often so they get a variety of foods and nutrients and keep it interesting for them.

Fruit – obviously fruits are a God’ send when it comes to practical snacks that kids love. Bananas even come in their own wrappers haha the twins usually either have banana, strawberries, blueberries or apples. I limit their fruit intake to 2 servings a day so they don’t just fill up on fruit! They also like cut up watermelon, melon, mandarines, raspberries and pineapple.
Nuts (Careful as nuts can be chocking hazards). My twins don’t have nut allergies so we eat roasted cashews (unsalted and with no added oil), walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and almonds.
Pop corn – the natural kind not the buttery salted kind! Pop corn can be a chocking hazard too so be careful.
Bliss Balls- the twins love their bliss balls. I make them full of nuts, seeds, oats, a few dates or goji berries and chia seeds, cacao … I have a few recipes in my Healthy Little Tummies Recipe ebook including a low sugar and a nut-free recipe!
Dried fruits – In moderation sultanas and other dried fruits like dried figs and dried apricots are a great portable snack. I try to be mindful of the portion size when giving them dried fruits as they can pack up a lot of sugar. I usually limit it to 10 sultanas or 2 dried figs or 2 dried apricots each and something else with it.
Legumes – Chickpeas or edamame beans. This might be a very weird snack but my kiddies love chickpeas and enjoy snacking on them straight from a can! Saves me when I don’t have anything else! Plus packs a lot of plant-based protein and fiber. They also enjoy them roasted.
Crackers – I give them puffed rice cakes or brown rice crackers with no nasties. They like them and it makes them happy and it makes my life as a mum a lot easier! I try to limit them to every few days as I feel like they would just eat crackers all day everyday!
Baked goods – Since I do so much healthy baking they have healthy vegan muffins or cookies here and there. I have some healthy recipes in my ebook too.
PB Sandwich – for a more filling snack they have a cut-up peanut butter sandwich. (Not the crust though! Haha
Hummus and veggie sticks – We often share a savoury platter for our afternoon snack when we are home with hummus or beetroot hummus, veggies sticks and socca crackers (recipe in my kids ebook). I prefer doing this snack at home as they get messy dipping in the hummus!

I hope you enjoyed this blogpost. Feel free to let me know on Instagram @healthyfrenchwife xx