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NUTRITION FUNDAMENTALS
“Understanding the right foods
to feed and nourish your child is
key to creating optimal health
outcomes. The foods that best
achieve the correct nutrient
intake are whole-foods”
Sadly, real nutrition is not something we learn about in school. We often rely on television and
other media as well medical professionals to inform us about what is good for us but unfortunately
the information we receive from these sources is from organisations that have their own agenda
or are misinformed themselves. I believe we need to wake up to the influence of the media and
begin to educate ourselves and listen to our own internal beliefs and knowing when it comes to
what is right and healthy for ourselves and our children.
Nutrition is the key to good health. We have the ultimate choice and power to create our own
health outcomes and we can easily achieve this through education. This education interestingly
has always been known and practiced up until very recently in our history. It was the kind of
information that was passed from one generation to the next and was based on real, whole food.
Who ever heard of their grandma needing to go to a nutrition and cooking class?
Good nutrition is based on whole-foods. This means foods that require little or no processing in
order to be consumed. I like to think of whole-foods as being as close to their original form as
possible, just as nature intended. As a general rule, packaged foods are not whole foods. What is
important to consider is the level of exposure to chemicals and processing elements such as high
heat and additives or preservatives, very undesirable practices.
Wholefoods are foods that are rich in nutrients, these foods are called nutrient dense because
all they really contain are nutrients that the body can use. Processed and refined foods on the
other hand contain no or very little nutrition, just a lot of stuff that serves no purpose in the
body but can in fact disrupt homeostasis (balance) and impact immune function. For this reason I
call processed, refined and most packaged food as “non-food”.
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Our bodies are unique and amazing. The body will do everything it can, often in the face of
adversity to maintain homeostasis. By adversity I mean having to deal with unrecognisable
substances such as additives and preservatives, and the onslaught of chemicals and toxins from
non-food. Our bodies simply do not recognise these ingredients and they will, over time, impact
how we function. (Surely this is just common sense?) This is even more true for our children. For
a start their bodies are smaller and the introduction of these substances is nothing short of toxic.
Let’s not wait until a health issue arises to make changes!
Understanding the fundamentals of nutrition is crucial to creating great health and not as
complicated as you might think. Science has complicated nutrition by labelling our needs based on
macronutrients such as protein, fats and carbohydrates which are terms that I believe have
contributed to the divide experienced between ourselves and that which we require for
nourishment and sustenance, real food. Mother nature in its infinite wisdom has packaged the
nutrition our bodies need in the perfect ratio and balance of nutrients in wholefoods. The
healthiest groups of people in the world have thrived without the knowledge of the amount of
calories they should consume in a day and from which macro-nutrient group. They just knew that
certain foods were on the menu that day in that season and the staples were always represented
such as fats and preserved foods. They lived and were guided by their environment and respected
the world from which their food came.
We were born with an innate connection to the earth and all foods that come from it and we need
to restore that connection to fully appreciate the importance of food, nutrition and health on all
levels. To try to live separately from nature is simply an absurd concept and central to the level
of discord we are facing today.
Provided we are consuming the right balance of whole-foods in season and in balance and our
underlying gut health is good then our bodies will sort out the details and give us clues as to the
foods needed to maintain or restore health. Because we have lost this understanding and guidance
as to the foods we should be eating we must educate ourselves. The ground breaking work of Dr
Weston A Price has revealed the principles of nutrition that underpin the healthiest groups of
people he could find that were untouched by modern practices and processing.
Common to all groups researched was a deep connection to the food consumed and all foods
consumed were of wholefood origin. These healthy groups of people derived much of their
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nutrition from traditional fats from animal sources such as dairy and eggs, and if animals were
eaten, they consumed the whole animal including the innards (brains, offal, blood, eyes etc) which
were the most prized parts. Central to all of these groups was the avoidance of any processed
food which meant NO white flour, refined sugar, canned or packaged goods.
So here’s a question for you; Can we be well fed but malnourished?
The frightening answer is yes, we can! The typical diet today is fundamentally devoid of adequate
nutrition and yet is filling little tummies. This is a diet that is largely based on processed foods
from grains and sugar.
The key nutrients that are actually needed for healthy physical and brain development by children
are:
Nutrient
Source
Vitamin A
Cod liver oil, liver, butter, egg yolks from pasture raised chickens
Vitamin D
Cod liver oil, shellfish, lard, butter, egg yolks from pasture raised chickens
Choline
Cod liver oil, egg yolks from pasture raised animals
DHA
Cod liver oil, liver, butter, egg yolks from pasture raised chickens
Zinc
Red meat from pasture raised animals, shellfish
Tryphtophan
Meat of pasture raised animals, especially turkey
Cholesterol
Seafood, dairy foods, eggs and meat from pasture raised animals
Real nutrition comes from consuming whole-foods and when it comes to children the focus needs
to be on saturated fat, cholesterol, protein from animal sources, abundant in season and organic
vegetables with properly prepared grains (ie soaked and fermented) and minimal fruit.
So let’s now look at the groups of foods that are needed in a healthy diet for our kids. These are
the macronutrients; fat, protein and carbohydrates.
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PROTEINS
“Protein; the essential body
builder and blood sugar balancer
for kids. Make sure your child is
getting enough for optimal
performance on all levels”
Proteins are the building blocks for the body and as such are needed to construct cells, muscles,
tendons, ligaments and organs. I like to refer to protein as the “essential body builder for kids”.
They play a role in supporting immune function, creating a feeling of being full and satisfied, as
well as synthesising neurotransmitters (brain messengers) amongst many other functions in the
body. Importantly, proteins help to keep blood sugar levels stable which is so important for
children to be the best they can be throughout the day and support continued physiological
balance.
Proteins can be broken down into their component parts, being amino acids. There are essential
and non-essential amino acids. Essential simply means that they must be derived from the diet as
the body cannot manufacture them. It is not so important to know the individual amino acids as it
is to know about proteins in general and to ensure that your child is receiving an adequate supply.
Certain proteins called complete proteins contain all the amino acids, these come from animal
sources; meat, dairy and eggs, as well as some grains such as quinoa. There are also plant sources
of proteins but these are known as incomplete proteins(quinoa being an exception) as they do not
contain the whole spectrum of amino acids. It is however possible to source all of your protein
requirements from plants as long as these sources are correctly combined. This is because one
group of plants will provide only a certain range of amino acids, while another group will provide
others, and if you put them all together you will find all the amino acids represented. It must be
noted that plant proteins are an inferior source to animal proteins both in content and
bioavailability, which means you have to eat more of them.
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These are the combinations of plant proteins that will give you all of the amino acids required to
make a complete protein, however preparation is key and remember that these are not primary
protein sources (they may contain significant carbohydrates) and as such are inferior choices:
Grains with legumes; eg beans and rice
Nuts and seeds with legumes; eg lentil soup with cashews or almonds mixed through and blended
Grains with nuts/seeds; eg Wholegrain toast with nut butter
The kinds of protein sources that are best for a child include:

Seafood that is wild caught (grilled, baked, poached or pan-fried in coconut oil or butter)

Chicken (with skin is crucial as fat and connective tissue are so critical in supporting proper
development)

Eggs – free range and organic are best

Meat – preferably from pasture raised organic animals, with fat and bone preferably for
maximum nutrition

Dairy products (full fat, organic and raw are best)

Nuts that have been soaked and dehydrated (about 30 grams gives you 6 grams of protein),
these should be more of a condiment because they are rich in omega 6 fatty acids which are
pro-inflammatory

Vegetables (the best are beans, lentils and peas – legumes) that are properly prepared ie
soaking legumes. Vegetable sources of protein are inferior to animal sources in both quantity
and quality.
If you are vegetarian and eat eggs and dairy then adding either of these to any plant based dish
will also give you a complete protein. When it comes to protein, you need to ensure that the whole
range of amino acids are eaten in a 24 hour period. So if you have beans for lunch by themselves
ensure you have a complementary food within 24 hours of that meal to give the body what it needs.
Being vegetarian is a challenging choice as some of the crucial nutrients needed to establish
optimal health can be missed due to their animal origin. This kind of diet takes considerable care
to achieve optimal health long term, this simply cannot be achieved if vegan.
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CARBOHYDRATES
“Whole-foods like fruit,
vegetables and whole-grains well
prepared are the best
carbohydrates to feed your child
for the maximum, energy,
behaviour and health outcomes”
Carbohydrates are sugar containing foods. They can be classified into 2 categories, simple and
complex based on their capacity to be broken down and converted into something usable by the
body, primarily energy. Carbohydrates include vegetables, fruit, grains and legumes. These foods
are converted into vitamins, minerals, enzymes, phytonutrients and sugar, most of which perform
crucial functions in the body.
Carbohydrates are a very misunderstood category of food and are central to the issue of creating
and maintaining health. Foods in this category are dismantled by the body for the elements that
can be used for cleansing and energy. What we see these days is an over consumption of the foods
that convert to significantly more energy (sugar) than the more important components that go
towards supporting the body by way of immune support and cleansing.
The right carbohydrates are those that provide the valuable nutrients including enzymes, vitamins
and minerals and phytonutrients (plant based nutrients) and not an abundance of sugar are
vegetables. The most beneficial of the nutrients includes chlorophyll which is very supportive of
blood and cellular health as well as antioxidants which support cleansing and immune function. The
foods to eat that tick all of these boxes are abundant vegetables and minimal fruit.
The issue with carbohydrates is sugar, which is not only used for immediate energy but is also a
food source for pathogenic bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract and challenging for the gut to
break down if there is an imbalance in gut function, which is much more prevalent than you might
think. Generationally our primary gut health is worsening so where an infant was historically born
with near optimal microbial balance which dictates our health on all levels, it is now the case than
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many are born with sub-optimal balance thanks to compromised health of the parents which left
unaddressed simply perpetuates, and the cycle continues.
This compromised health is a result of the degradation of our diets and toxicity by way of the
food we have eaten since the early 1900’s, worsening over the decades, as well as pharmaceutical
drugs such as antibiotics among other reasons. Our diets have changed so dramatically from what
we have historically eaten, we must recognise this fundamental truth and make a change for the
future of our kids.
Many parents have mistakenly been led to believe that carbohydrates should be the most
important foods to feed our kids but this is only part of the story and the omission of the real
facts has led to the over consumption of sugar laden carbohydrates such as fruit and grain.
Historically grains were soaked/fermented and ground from wholegrains before use and fruit was
only seasonally available based on what had grown in the local area if at all. These days we have
any fruit we could wish for on demand shipped in, trained in, flown in and “camelled” in from all
corners of the globe. We may misconstrue this as progress but is it really? Think food miles and
the pressure on local farmers for a start.
Research has identified sugar consumption as the key area to focus on in understanding the root
cause of nearly all chronic and fatal conditions. Sugar consumption is also implicated in the rise of
geriatric or adult-like diseases we see in kids today that simply never used to happen.
The carbohydrate that can and should be consumed with carefree abandon is vegetables. Fruit
should be kept to a minimum and grains and legumes must be properly prepared to offer any kind
of nutritional value and not over emphasised in your child’s diet. This is the best strategy to limit
sugar intake and the damaging impact that grains and fruit can have as well as train the taste
buds to appreciate savoury as opposed to a preference for sweet.
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FATS
“The right fats are essential for
the proper growth and
development of children, whereas
the wrong fats can damage your
child’s health”
Fat is a crucial component of a healthy diet. Contrary to popular opinion, fat is not bad for you.
The right fats in the diet are actually essential and promote good health. Fats from quality animal
sources and dairy, olives, avocadoes and coconuts, omega 3 from wild salmon, tuna and sardines as
well as flaxseed, chia and hemp in fact protect the heart, support brain function and joint health,
improve skin condition, as the preferred energy source, the list goes on. Fat is extremely
important for kids to help them grow and develop properly. Without fat, certain nutrients cannot
be easily absorbed and it is needed by every single cell in the body. Quite literally, every cell in
the body has a membrane that is comprised of fats (ideally 50% should be saturated fat) and the
quality of this membrane is directly determined by your diet. Let’s face it, fat also tastes good
and is nutrient dense which leads us to feel satisfied.
It is crucial that we understand which fats are good and which fats need to be avoided. The fats
to avoid at all costs are trans-fats. Trans-fats are found in all fast food and a lot of packaged
foods. They are created through a chemical process that turns a vegetable oil from liquid to solid.
Trans-fats are linked to numerous health problems and have no benefit whatsoever. Trans-fats
are hiding in many foods and can be identified on the label as hydrogenated or partially
hydrogenated ingredients. Margarine and products of the like are a common example of transfats to be avoided.
Saturated fats are extremely beneficial! Saturated fats are essential to your child’s development
and growth. They are needed by every cell in the body, to support immunity and healing, the
absorption of nutrients such as fat soluble vitamins, for the heart, lung and kidneys, to synthesise
hormones, for proper thyroid function, to assimilate calcium for bones, for genetic regulation and
for the signalling system in our body that tells us when we are satisfied. Saturated fat in a non-
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negotiable necessity for our health and its avoidance or removal from the diet is having
catastrophic consequences.
Animal products are an excellent source of saturated fat but as always the source is critical. The
fat that comes from a pasture raised animal versus a grain fed animal contains a vastly different
quality and type of fat. Research now tells us that the pasture raised version has significant
health benefits whilst the grain fed animal causes a raft of different health issues because of
the altered state of the fats, not to mention other additives and hormones, as a result of the way
it has been fed and raised. We are what we eat eats!
The fats that fall into the saturated category that are good include quality animal fats (by that
I mean pasture raised organic animals)such as lard, tallow, poultry fat, eggs, real butter and ghee,
as well as the plant derived coconut oil. Coconut oil provides enormous health benefits, for
example, one of its key components is lauric acid which is also found in mother’s milk and is
extremely supportive of the immune system. Breast milk is widely recognised as the perfect food
and contains a large percentage (greater than 50%) of saturated fat. Doesn’t this very fact itself
tell you that saturated fat from the right source is good for us? Coconut oil is also very heat
stable and is an excellent choice for cooking and can also be used raw for even more health benefit.
I often recommend coconut oil for consumption and use when treating patients to promote a
healthy gut environment.
Good fats also come from mono and some polyunsaturated fats, which are liquid at room
temperature. Monounsaturated fats are plant derived and include olive and nut oils.
Polyunsaturated fats are found primarily in vegetable, nut and seed oils as well as seafoods, with
trace amounts in meats like lamb and beef that are raised appropriately. It is the polyunsaturated
fats that comprise the essential fatty acids that we must source from our diet as our body cannot
make them. The body can make all but 2 of these essential fatty acids, of which there are about
20, and these are linolenic (omega-3) and linoleic (omega-6) acids. A word of caution here,
polyunsaturated fats can be very high in omega-6 fatty acids which are pro-inflammatory and this
is something that can be harmful to the body in excess.
Most of these oils are quite fragile and as such should not be exposed to high temperatures. In
reality, the majority of commercially available oils have been exposed to significant processing,
are highly refined and are thus completely damaged and hazardous to health. Given that fats are
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easily damaged it is extremely important to consider the best possible source you can afford,
preferably unrefined cold pressed and organic.
Fat is one of the most important areas of nutrition to understand because the wrong fats are so
damaging to health. I have included a number of studies in “The Facts About Fats” to help you
understand the benefits of good fats and the detrimental effects of bad fats, as well as the
process of creating an oil so you can see exactly the lengths that are taken to produce a shelf
stable product. To view some research about the beneficial effects of essential fatty acids and
omega-3 on human health visit http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/106/21/2747.full.
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