Quirky Cooking Chats
What happens when a well known healthy food writer hits a brick wall with her children’s health? She goes back to square one and begins the long journey of gut healing, both for her children and herself. Join Jo Whitton of Quirky Cooking as she shares her families’ journey to good health. Cook with Jo in her kitchen; absorb her knowledge of food as medicine to develop a healthy mindset towards nourishing your family with real food; and learn how Jo balances the food prep and cooking for her family with running her own business and raising four kids. Listen in as Jo chats with friends and guests about everything from culinary medicine and nutrition to family food stories, healthy homes, regenerative farming, reducing stress, balancing work-family-life, saving time and money while eating well, and much more! You will find links to recipes and information discussed in the show notes of each Quirky Cooking Chats episode, along with a link to the Quirky Cooking YouTube Channel where you can watch each episode and cook along with Jo. This podcast began as A Quirky Journey" in 2014, as Jo recorded her son’s story of recovery from severe OCD and anxiety. Together with her co-hosts and friends, Jo has shared inspirational stories and interviewed many nutrition and health experts over the years, helping listeners to find ways to improve their health and wellbeing for the better. 2020 has been a year of changes, and as Jo nestled in to her home during lockdown she found that her listeners wanted help with practical, everyday cooking for maintaining good health in a doable way - not just the science and nutrition information. So A Quirky Journey has become Quirky Cooking Chats, where you can listen (and watch) as Jo cooks in her kitchen, and chats about ’real life’ nutrition and healthy living with her friends and guests. Listen in, ask questions, and be inspired to make simple changes that will maximise your health and wellbeing, without the stress and overwhelm!
Episodes
Friday Aug 12, 2016
AQJ 56: Preparing for the Birth of a Healthy Baby – Mary Kelly
Friday Aug 12, 2016
Friday Aug 12, 2016
This is a beautiful, encouraging and informative podcast that will be a big help to women who are looking for ways to optimise their own health, and the health of their baby – whether baby is just a distant hope not yet realised, or already part of the family. Mary talks to us about her own experiences with her babies, both before she embarked on the healing journey of GAPS, and after, and what differences she’s seen. She shares the ups and downs, the mistakes and the successes, and most importantly she shares a message of hope for all who have been through the traumas of having children with severe allergies and illnesses, and are frightened to have another baby in case it happens again. She’s here to say you CAN optimise a better outcome, and although none of us can control every variable as parents (and we have to learn to let go of that compulsion), there are things you can do to stack the deck in your baby’s favour.
If you’re thinking this podcast will only make you feel like a bad mother who did everything wrong, and it’s too late to change things for your baby – think again!! Mary is very adamant that wherever you are, in whatever stage of pre-conception, pregnancy, baby days, or even toddlers years, there are things you can do to help your little ones to be healthy and well, and to recover your own health also.
Mary struggled with major post-natal and peri-natal depression with her first two pregnancies, her son had multiple allergies (some of which were life-threatening), her daughter had ADHD, and they all struggled with parasites. After working through the GAPS protocol, the changes in her family’s health were so amazing she couldn’t keep it to herself, and began a blog and coaching business called Good Mood Food, to help others on their healing journey. She now has a beautiful, healthy third child, and is helping other mums to work towards healing themselves so that their children will benefit also.
Listen to Mary’s previous podcasts on A Quirky Journey, here:
Anaphylactic Allergies, FPIES, Post Natal Depression, Parasites, and Hope for Healing!
Dealing with Parasites
Healing from Anxiety and Depression
If you need some help with cooking for good gut health, or if you are wanting to begin the GAPS protocol, check out Jo’s Quirky Cooking for Gut Health Program – you will find it takes away the overwhelm and stress to have the program to show you the way.
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Friday Jul 15, 2016
AQJ 55: Staying Healthy – Dr Igor Tabrizian
Friday Jul 15, 2016
Friday Jul 15, 2016
Dr Igor Tabrizian has helped many families to reclaim their health, through his nutritional approach to medicine. In this episode we discuss his new book called, ‘Staying Healthy’ – a beautiful, easy to understand and very practical book designed to start you on your journey to good health.
Dr Igor also discusses ways that people on special diets like vegetarian, low salicylate, and low FODMAPS, can be sure to get the vitamins and minerals they need from their food. He talks about his recovery from chronic fatigue, and how learning to listen to our innate cravings for good food can help us to heal.
‘Staying Healthy’ will be available from Thermomix in Australia very soon. You can find many others of Dr Igor’s books on Amazon, and learn more about his work on his website, http://www.nutritionreviewservice.com.au.
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Friday Jul 01, 2016
AQJ 54: Mid Year Wrap Up
Friday Jul 01, 2016
Friday Jul 01, 2016
This week Jo and Fouad are in Sydney, working on their new cookbook – cooking, photoshooting, meeting with designers, and working on putting together the best wholefoods cookbook ever! Listen in as they share their ideas, introduce the cookbook team, and talk about what is coming up and how you can get involved. Also, don’t miss the news about their upcoming cooking workshops and dinners, the Quirky Cooking for Gut Health program, and what’s on the agenda for the next podcast!
The post AQJ 54: Mid Year Wrap Up appeared first on The Wellness Couch.
Friday Jun 17, 2016
AQJ 53: Pyroluria with Jules Galloway ND
Friday Jun 17, 2016
Friday Jun 17, 2016
What is Pyroluria? with Jules Galloway ND
A couple of months ago, Jo and her kids were tested for Pyroluria (Pyrolles Disorder), and found their levels were quite high. Pyroluria (pyrrole disorder, kryptopyrrole, kryptopyrroluria, pyrroluria, mauve factor or hemepyrrole) is a common metabolic condition that occurs when pyrrol, a key component of haemoglobin, is overproduced by the liver. It is a contributing factor to anxiety, stress and gut issues.
Jo began asking naturopaths, doctors and friends for their thoughts on Pyroluria, and what can be done to help lower the levels of pyrroles in the bloodstream. In this episode, Jo and Fouad talk to naturopath Jules Galloway about Jules’ experience with Pyroluria, and what she has found helpful.
Jules Galloway is a qualified naturopath, healthy foodie, wellness blogger and podcaster, who specializes in gluten, dairy and cane sugar free living, and runs an online wellness program called Shiny Healthy You – Fatigued to Fabulous in 12 Weeks. Check out Jules’ podcast, Shiny Healthy You, on The Wellness Couch, and visit her website Jules Galloway for lots of fabulous recipes and health tips.
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Friday Jun 03, 2016
AQJ 52 : The Keep in Mind Project, Melissa Stainwald
Friday Jun 03, 2016
Friday Jun 03, 2016
Following on from their last podcast, Jo and Fouad continue the theme of naturally healing from depression. In this episode, they interview Melissa Stainwald, of The Keep in Mind Project, who tells her story of recovery from severe depression and psychosis. As Jo says in the introduction to the interview, Melissa’s story is awful, amazing, wonderful, gut wrenching and inspirational, all at the same time. And most importantly, it gives hope to those who most need it.
The post AQJ 52 : The Keep in Mind Project, Melissa Stainwald appeared first on The Wellness Couch.
Friday May 13, 2016
AQJ 51: Healing the Mind without Medications – Dr Kelly Brogan
Friday May 13, 2016
Friday May 13, 2016
This week Jo chats to a very special guest, Dr Kelly Brogan from New York, who has a masters in neuroscience and is a board certified psychiatrist. Dr Kelly calls herself a ‘holistic psychiatrist’ and is quite unlike any psychiatrist you’ve probably have ever heard of. She doesn’t believe in prescribing anti-depressants, and instead works to get people off medication.
Dr Kelly has recently written a very controversial book called “A Mind of Your Own” where she destroys a few myths about depression, explains how depression and anxiety can be healed naturally, and shares some of big pharma’s biggest secrets when it comes to anti-depressants.
In this episode Dr Kelly talks about why depression is not a disease, why the serotonin theory of depression is wrong, why many psychiatric diagnoses are caused by underlying physical ailments, and what your first steps should be if you suffer from depression.
Dr Kelly Brogan is the keynote speaker at the upcoming MINDD Forum in Sydney, 20-22 May – more info here: http://mindd.org/mif16-speakers/
Dr Kelly Brogan’s website:http://kellybroganmd.com
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Friday May 06, 2016
AQJ 50 : The Mindd Foundation, Leslie Embersits
Friday May 06, 2016
Friday May 06, 2016
This week, Jo and Fouad talk to Leslie Embersits, who is the founding director of the MINDD Foundation. MINDD helps practitioners and patients discover and implement effective treatments for Metabolic, Immunologic, Neurologic, Digestive, and Developmental conditions. Each year in May, the foundation brings amazing speakers to Sydney for the MINDD Forum, so that parents and practitioners can learn more about how they can help children with these conditions.
Did You Know?
Australian children are struggling with epidemics; allergies (1 in 3), asthma (1 in 4), ADHD (1 in 10); Autism (1 in 100). Childhood cancer, diabetes, obesity and depression have each well more than doubled over the past 2 decades.*
Nutritional deficiencies create an imbalance in neurotransmitters which can affect behaviour, concentration, mood, sleep and addictions.
Many individuals with learning and behavioural disorders have auditory, visual or sensory processing issues that do not show up in standard hearing, vision or behavioural tests.
Digestive health can drive allergies, anxiety, ADHD, arthritis, asthma, autism, bedwetting, depression, diabetes, eczema, infections, learning delay, mood and sleep disorders.
“ Many of today’s complex and chronic diseases are multi-system problems that do not have a quick, one stop fix but that can be improved dramatically with an Integrative approach. This is not a replacement or alternative to conventional medicine but a complementary approach that can yield dramatic result when tailored to the particular needs of the individual. The only question we need to ask is “Are we prepared to do what it takes to be well? ”
– Leslie Embersits
Find out more about the MINDD Foundation and Forum in this fascinating interview.
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Friday Apr 29, 2016
AQJ 49 : A Quirky Recap with Isaac Whitton
Friday Apr 29, 2016
Friday Apr 29, 2016
On his recent trip to Far North Queensland, Fouad had a chance to hang out with Jo’s family. In this episode, Fouad sits down for a chat with Isaac, Jo’s 14 year old son (who is even MORE quirky than Jo), and discusses how GAPS helped Isaac with his anxiety and what the last year has looked like for this young man on his journey of healing.
The post AQJ 49 : A Quirky Recap with Isaac Whitton appeared first on The Wellness Couch.
Friday Apr 15, 2016
AQJ 48 : A Quirky Catch Up – with Jo and Fouad
Friday Apr 15, 2016
Friday Apr 15, 2016
It’s time for a bit of a catch up!
Fouad has spent the past week with Jo’s family in Far North Queensland, to begin their next project, and to get a bit of an insight into Jo’s crazy life! Join Jo and Fouad for a friendly chat at Jo’s kitchen table, and hear all the latest news…
Find out about:
– Jo’s Quirky Cooking for Gut Health program – what does it include, what does Fouad think of it (a bit of a review), when will it be ready, who will benefit from it?
– Jo and Fouad’s upcoming cookbook of Paleo and Wholefood Recipes – new title, new ideas, new cover – an exciting project for Quirky Cooking!
– The Mindd Forum “Food is Medicine” seminar, which Fouad, Jo, and Jo’s son Isaac (14) will be speaking and cooking at, May 20–22
– Jo’s life in Far North Queensland – a ‘behind the scenes’ glimpse (see lots of photos here)
– Helping each other out with healthy hospital meals: “Quirky Healthy Hampers”
– Fouad’s big news: why he quit his ‘real’ job as a software engineer; the beginning of his new focus on health, cooking, writing and getting closer to nature; and his two big goals for the year!
– How being in nature helps with healing and reducing stress
– Natural spring water and the difference it makes to drink ‘wild’ water whenever possible (ReWild yourself by Daniel Vitalis); plus recommendations for good water filters for the home
– A bit about our supportive Quirky community – the Quirky Cooking Chat Group!
– Recipes we’re working on for the new cookbook, which we can’t wait to share!
If you have any questions about today’s podcast, or have some recipes you’d like to suggest for our book, please feel free to ask in the Chat Group!
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Friday Mar 11, 2016
AQJ47 : The Science Behind Allergies, Dr Igor Tabrizian
Friday Mar 11, 2016
Friday Mar 11, 2016
Last time Dr Tabrizian was on our podcast, he completely stunned us with an episode that was so packed full of information that we just had to have him back. In this return episode, Dr T gets into the science behind allergies, intolerances, and food reactions – root causes, manifestation and treatment. This is another Listen In
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Friday Feb 26, 2016
AQJ 46 : Melissa Furmedge, Recipe Development for Special Diets
Friday Feb 26, 2016
Friday Feb 26, 2016
When Jo’s blog, Quirky Cooking, turned 7 years old at the end of 2015, Jo had a special giveaway to celebrate! The winner would receive a recipe designed just for them, to be shared on the blog. And since everyone has a story, Jo and Fouad decided to also interview the winner on the podcast, to share their story and to talk about the kinds of foods they eat, and discuss together some recipe ideas.
The winner of the giveaway was Melissa Furmedge, and on this episode, Melissa shares with us her family’s story, and what kinds of foods they love. They discuss:
– Struggling with behavioural and health issues in kids
– Having one twin with autism, and one without
– Melt downs, eye contact, and coping with crowds
– The Failsafe Diet, and how it helped
– Being gluten, dairy, corn and soy free
– Reactions to salicylates
– Sugar highs, carb addiction
– Eating to reduce ASD symptoms
– The trepidation parents feel when needing to change kids’ diets
– Their favourite foods, and how to make allergy friendly versions
– And lots more food and recipe talk!
Jo will be sharing the recipe she developed for Melissa on her blog: Crunchy Grain Free Buffalo Wings and a special dessert. So stay tuned!
(As well as links to other low carb/low sugar/gluten/dairy/corn/soy free recipes, and some tips for GF wrap options.)
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Friday Feb 12, 2016
AQJ 45 : Inflammation and Chronic Illness, Igor Tabrizian
Friday Feb 12, 2016
Friday Feb 12, 2016
Jo and Fouad interview Dr Igor Tabrizian, author of the book “Inflammation: The disease we all have”. In this fascinating conversation, Dr Tabrizian discusses a wide array of topics that are central to the chronic illnesses we now face in the modern world. From environmental toxins, diet and lifestyle, to the kind of tests you should be considering if you’re undergoing a journey of health recovery – this episode is densely full of information that many of us will find enlightening in our path to wellness. Dr T’s book can be found in Kindle format here: http://www.amazon.com.au/Inflammation-The-disease-all-have-ebook/dp/B018DMNNWS
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