If you were at Fare Healthy wellbeing festival earlier this month and caught Laura Bond‘s talk, you’ll have to agree with us – it was nothing short of inspiring! As a journalist, author and a holistic health coach who specialises in helping clients beat stress, reduce their toxic load and prepare their bodies for babies, Laura shared some of her own nutrition and wellbeing tips with festival-goers. She also talked about her book Mum’s Not Having Chemo – a Content-favourite which looks at alternative and holistic treatments to conventional chemotherapy.
Since we were keen to pass on her wellbeing knowledge to our fellow eat clean foodies, we caught up with Laura to find out more about her day-to-day eating ethos and wellbeing tips and hear more about her book, as part of #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth.
- What led you to writing your book?
When Mum was diagnosed with ovarian and uterine cancer in 2011 – people were shocked by her decision to say no to chemotherapy. So part of the reason I started to write the book, Mum’s Not Having Chemo was to show that there were other options out there – from high dose vitamin C injections to energy medicine. I came across fascinating research, for instance a study from Japan showing those with uterine cancer lived fifteen times longer if they had intravenous vitamin C (Drs Murata and Morishige 1982, Saga University). My goal was to provide people with the most cutting edge options, so they could make a decision based on information rather than fear. In Mum’s Not Having Chemo I also reveal how you can avoid losing your hair, when you’re having chemotherapy. Most people who pick up the book are undergoing conventional therapies.
- What are the top 5 foods you always include in your diet for ultimate health and immunity?
- Mushrooms
- Turmeric
- Broccoli sprouts
- Fermented foods – like sauerkraut.
Whether you are talking about ageing, exhaustion, Alzheimer’s, anxiety or cancer – so many of these things boil down to the same issues. We need to protect ourselves from the onslaught of modern toxins and radiation, upgrade our immune systems, increase the amount of enzymes in our body and restore our gut and balance our emotions – all the above foods do that. Number five would be wild fish – it’s the ultimate brain food and so vital for foetal development. I help clients choose seafood that’s high in omega 3 and low in mercury (as well as targeted supplements for vegans) and there’s plenty of recipes on my website, like turmeric spiced wild hake.
- What is your eating ethos?
I believe the energetics of food – whether it’s wild and organic, or made by a machine – shapes the way we think and feel. So I try to eat nourishing, organic foods free from pesticides and hormones – grass fed beef, wild and sustainable fish, raw nuts and seeds, and organic fruits and vegetables. As women, I think we need different foods at different times of the month, and at different stages of our lives.
- What is your favourite everyday breakfast?
At the moment it’s porridge! Sprouted Oats from Rude Health with homemade almond milk. Topped with cacao nibs for an extra hit of fibre and magnesium plus blueberries and maple syrup for antioxidants and flavour. Sprouted oats contain more mood-boosting B6 than regular oats. Plus, higher blood levels of B6 could also reduce your cancer risk by as much as 49 percent according to several studies including one from Harvard and another from The National Cancer Institute[1].
- What is your favourite indulgence?
I love unwinding with a Booja Booja chocolate and chai tea. By Friday night I’m ready for a bottle of beer – like Celia Organic, which is gluten-free. I’ve been living in the UK for ten years, but there’s still an Australian inside of me!
- What is the number one supplement you’d never go without?
Eco-Detox. I’ve been searching for this supplement for years. It contains BOTH methyl folate and methyl B12 – the importance of which I illustrate in this article. Most multi-Bs are made with cyanocobalamin and folic acid, which is giving your body a raw deal.
- What is your favourite healthy dinner spot?
My favourite London haunt is Daylesford Organic in Notting Hill. Fresh organic juices, delicious and seasonal salads plus grass fed burgers for a Sunday indulgence. But my favourite restaurant in the UK would have to be The Cottage in the Wood in the Lake District. They serve sumptuous wild food, overlooking Whinlatter Forest. They also cater for gluten and dairy free and are passionate about animal welfare.
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REFERENCES
[1] Results from one study published in the June 16, 2010 Journal of the American Medical Association compared 899 lung cancer patients with a group of 1,770 healthy participants. The researchers found that people with the highest vitamin B6 levels had a 56 percent reduction in lung cancer risk, compared to those with the lowest levels!
A group of researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health noted a similar association when examining the vitamin B6 levels of breast cancer patients. There’s more. Another study, published in the March 5, 2003 Journal of the National Cancer Institute, reported that higher blood plasma levels of folate and B6 appeared to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.
