NUTRITIOUS FOOD STARTS AT HOME



www.theminicookingclub.org.uk

Tuesday 25 March 2014

Dragon Café Southwark re-opens for 2014!


The latest creative endeavour by Mental Fight Club, the Dragon Café, has been warmly welcomed back this year with new funding from the Maudsley Charity.

Every Monday in Borough, Southwark, the crypt in St Giles the Martyr Church becomes a hive of activity – thanks to an innovative and inspiring programme of events that explore issues relating to mental health, recovery and well-being. It’s very exciting to see this creative hub back and as busy as ever, offering artistic and physical activities for all to drop in and experience for free.

Sometimes discussing our mental health can seem like a daunting task. We may feel disconnected from our peers or embarrassed to admit that we’re feeling overwhelmed. That’s why it’s so important that spaces such as the Dragon Café exist, in order to offer an impartial and comprehensive range of discussions and activities dedicated to promoting good mental well-being.

The Café gives people the chance to work through recovery while trying new experiences to see what works for them as an individual, but also invites a social atmosphere where the assumed or real stigma that often surrounds mental health is pushed aside by frank and open conversation.

Suffering in silence should never be an option: the Dragon Café embraces originality and inclusion.  Fixtures include art workshops, book swaps and, this month, a class in mindfulness training!

Mindfulness can provide assistance with feelings of anxiety or stress by teaching us to ground ourselves in the moment.

Physical activities include massage, dancing, Tai Chi and, from April, boxing classes. Massage in particular can help to re-establish the connection between mind and body.

There is even a selection of yummy vegetarian food on offer, from moussaka to soup – all at affordable prices!

You can check out the Café’s weekly programme of events here. In the meantime, here are our top three tips to promote good mental health and wellbeing:

1.    Talk to someone – whether it is a friend, family member or mental health professional, remember there is always someone there for you, and you are not on your own.

2.    Eat well – eating healthy and nutritious food is proven to have positive effects on our mental health. Engaging with our food and cooking at home is a task that enables us to focus, while cooking with others can be a social and enjoyable experience!

3.    Be active – this doesn’t necessarily mean physical exercise. Creative outlets like the ones provided by the Dragon Café can provide a new way to engage with your mental health and take control.

Congratulations to the Dragon Café on their re-opening! Find out more about the Dragon Café.

By Emma Jones

Monday 10 March 2014

Nutrition and Mental Health



Food plays a very important role in our day-to-day living. Food gives us energy and helps us maintain various essential physiological processes. Basically, it keeps us alive! 

However, when we talk about food giving us this range of benefits, we are talking about healthy food. By healthy food, we mean nutritious food that has been prepared at home and with carefully-selected nutritious produce. 

Eating healthy home cooked meals helps us maintain our bodies in good health. However, nutrition is not only related to the role it has to play with our physical health – it is also an essential component of maintaining our mental health.

Much of nutrition research surrounding mental health has been mainly been focused around exploring the role of individual nutritional components such as Vitamin B12 and Omega 3 Fatty acids in order to manage illness. Within this research, there have been positive results correlating good nutrition and the prevention of mental health illness (Compass Group, 2014). But what role does nutrition have on people already living with mental health concerns?

Firstly, eating a nutritious meal is not only about focusing on the food it itself. Yes, we should be thinking about eating a varied diet that includes eating our five-a-day, cutting our levels of saturated fat and consuming less salt.

But we should also be thinking about how important it is to share meals with people we care about and also about sharing meals with people we have just met. Preparing and eating food is also a social affair that has an immense impact on our social lives and our mental health.

There is just something about food that creates an amazing catalyst for us to create new relationships and nurture existing ones. However, for people living with mental health issues, doing this might be more of a challenge due to social, economic and environmental factors. But, it does not mean we must not do anything about it!

The Mini Cooking Club has been working with adults with mental health concerns for 3 years. We run 6-week courses where people can learn how to prepare healthy balanced meals, how to cook on a budget and general nutritional information.

We run our sessions at the Coplestone centre, which is a safe and conducive learning environment for people to meet new friends and be social. If you would like to volunteer with us in this project or would like to join a session have a look at our website: www.theminicooking.org.uk.

If you would like to know more about what healthy swaps you can make The Mental Health Foundation has some great resources. 


                                     By Jancy Hensen