The foods we make here at the TEACH are designed to support your health. We focus on combining ingredients essential to your gut and hormonal health.

There are some factors which will limit their effect.

Here are the top 3.

1. Not drinking enough water.
2. Snacking.
3. Minimal physical activity.

Factor 1 - Water

Fibre needs to be held in water. It also moves through water. The carbohydrate that stores fibre is activated through holding enough water in the body.

Your brain and physical well being both thrive on carbohydrates. For thinking and physical activity, carbohydrates need to be stored in 3 parts water. For every 1 part carbohydrate the body eats, you need to drink 3 times that in water. Through this ratio your brain and physical health will always be able to assimilate the energy they require to work at their optimum. 

1 teff scone = 3 glasses of water

Drinking enough water can be hard. Spiking your water with herbs, fruits and spices may make it easier. It’s important to start your day with water before eating from our range. Tea and coffee can be drunk with anything from our range but again, it’s important to drink water before and after.

Factor 2 - Snacking

A healthy colon needs to be free of food for 5 hours. Our colons love to be clean. Snacking between meals denies them that luxury. Allowing the colon to self-regulate and clean itself is particularly important for those with digestive problems. A dirty colon can do no good for the body. As much as you possibly can, eat bigger meals so as to avoid snacking. Consuming things like nuts and olives immediately before you eat a meal is ok - they form part of the same meal. If you currently depend on snacking to keep you full throughout the day, try just one day a week where you don’t. Incremental steps are the safest way to build a naturally better ecosystem in you.

Factor 3 - Movement

Fibre needs help moving. Walking is the easiest way to assist fibre through your body. Our bodies were designed for lifting and movement. Daily movement plays an essential role in your bowel’s ability to move.

What is one positive change you can make for your well-being outside of eating our foods?

Soak all the foods in your diet that need soaking.

What foods need to soak before they are cooked?

Wholegrains, seeds, nuts, legumes, lentils, rice etc..

Example 1 : 

On Thursday you want to have wild rice with your supper.

On Wednesday you need to put the rice in a pot of water to soak it for up to 24 hours before cooking. You can cook the rice in the water it’s been soaking in. The same method applies to quinoa, amaranth, kamut, lentils, beans, peas, barley, wheat, any carbohydrate food with a hard outside, big or small.

Example 2 : 

On Monday you want porridge for breakfast.

On Sunday you need to put your porridge mix into a pot of milk. It can be left on the hob, at room temperature overnight. If you’d rather keep it in the fridge that’s fine too.

Monday morning it will take less time to cook due to its overnight soak. 

If you suffer with IBS constipation a 100% oat based porridge will exacerbate your symptoms. For you, it is best to do a blend of teff with oats and ideally add a couple tablespoons of milled flaxseed to the mix too.

How to eat our products? 

It’s difficult to achieve adequate daily nourishment without eating 3 meals a day. Through our range we are able to help you with breakfast and lunch and possibly dinner if you are purchasing our pasta or injera batter. If you are using us in just one of your meals per day, just be sure to build meals with enough diversity, fibre, fat and protein to ensure your gut health and hormonal health have the ability to thrive every day.

Foods prepared under slower food processes will taste different and will change with the seasons. As temperatures rise and fall throughout the year so too will the flavour created from the beneficial bacteria, yeast and enzymes that keep them lively and nourishing. Accepting that live food will be different every time is an important mindset shift in garnering better health. 

If you are feeling overwhelmed, please know that we are here to help you through that feeling. Karen does super effective consultation work and sometimes a 15 minute consultation is all you need to rectify anxieties you may have.

We encourage incremental changes that feel safe and possible. Working on just 1 factor at a time, from the above 3 is a great first step to take alongside the incredible step you’ve taken in valuing your health.

We strive to help your body build resilience. Some customers report finding the taste disagreeable at the beginning only to find that weeks later it’s all their bodies crave!

Our bodies are smart at telling us what we need more of when we start listening to them.