October 20, 2024 • 24 mins
Unlock the secrets to managing PCOS and hormonal imbalances with our special guest, Rohini, as she shares her expertise on the transformative power of diet and lifestyle changes. Promise yourself a healthier future by learning how mindful eating and reducing sugar, oil, and salt intake can lay the foundation for effective PCOS management. Rohini takes us through her insightful book, co-authored with her mother, highlighting an eight-step plan and a 21-day guide designed to empower individuals with practical strategies. Discover the crucial role of stress management, sleep, movement, and nurturing relationships, all while gaining tools for emotional resilience through activities like yoga and meditation.
Beyond PCOS, our conversation branches into valuable nutrition tips for overall wellness, with a keen focus on plant-based diets and essential nutrients. Learn how to maximize your iron absorption with strategic pairings of vitamin C-rich foods, and why it's best to avoid tea and coffee during these meals. Explore the importance of fortified plant milk, natural calcium sources, and the often overlooked minerals like selenium and zinc. Rohini also guides us through practical meal suggestions that are both nutritious and delightful, with inspirations to diversify your palate with affordable plant-based dishes. Whether you're dealing with hormonal issues or simply aiming to enhance your nutritional habits, this episode is packed with actionable insights and inspiration to help you maintain a balanced diet and a positive relationship with food.
NOTE: Content repurposed from full recording published in Season 2 of this show.
Refer for details including recipe link on show notes.
DISCLAIMER: This episode is for informational purposes only. Please consult your physician for individual medical needs.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Vai Kumar (00:00):
And overcoming teenage issues like acne, pcos
your niche area with a diet andlifestyle approach.
Rohini, what would you say toanyone you know like having to
reduce their sugar, oil and saltintake to, matter of fact,
address any hormone relatedcondition?
Rohini Bajekal (00:19):
Yeah.
So I would definitely suggestyou know, focusing on, rather
than what you're taking out,what you're bringing in, because
we know that women with pcoshave higher risks of disordered
eating.
So it's especially important tojust be mindful of that.
But things that you can doinclude things like, um,
including more herbs and spices,lemon and lime vinegars rather
(00:41):
than lots of salt and oil andsugar, and with sugar, it's a
case of really looking at wholefood sources.
Can you use mashed banana ordates in your baking and things
instead, or can you go for freshfruit that satisfies your sweet
tooth.
Cinnamon can really help withsugar cravings and I love having
sweeter teas like licorice tea.
(01:02):
That can really help withcurving sugar cravings.
But I don't completely.
You know I never saysomething's completely off
limits.
If there's a delicious vegandonut and I really want to have
it, I will enjoy every bitewithout guilt or shame.
But it's just being mindful.
Generally, I really love my ownfood, so I make some amazing
desserts and I found reallygreat ways of even making and
(01:24):
desserts like gargica halvausing almond flour and not using
and using raisins and datesrather than using lots of added
sugar.
So it really you can explore avariety of dishes um on this
lifestyle, but definitelylifestyle is the first line of
treatment and, regardless ofeverything else that you hear
out there, even if you needmedications, which is so
(01:46):
important to take evidence basedadvice and take medications if
you need them Remember that forPCOS, lifestyle is the first
line of management.
So don't neglect all of theseaspects your stress management,
your sleep, your movement,avoiding too much alcohol,
obviously, avoiding, avoidingsmoking, making sure you've got
good relationships, a goodsupport system and you're
(02:08):
investing in your relationshipswith your friends and your
family and, most importantly, ofcourse, filling your plate with
lots of wonderful whole plantfoods very well said, and your
eight-step plan to live pcosfree.
Vai Kumar (02:21):
I think whatever we have talked about applies to one
cooking easy, eating healthyand living a great lifestyle in
terms of you know all thelifestyle pillars that you have
already addressed as well, soit's not just for PCOS or any
other hormone based condition,it's for you know the whole
spectrum out there.
But specifically focusing onyour beautiful book with your
(02:44):
mom, the Eight Step Plan to LivePCOS Free and, yes, not doing
like a yo-yo dieting, but eatingmeaningful.
So what do you have to say tothat?
And I know you have beautifullyoutlined a 21-day meal and
lifestyle plan there, includingwhat one can drink.
(03:04):
It's not just what can one eatfor breakfast, lunch or dinner,
but it also includes what onecan make as a meaningful drink
as well.
So why don't you talk about allof that?
Rohini Bajekal (03:16):
Oh, thank you, yes.
So with regards to the book, mymother wants to write a general
women's health book and shewants to cover every women's
health condition and I said, mom, you're only going to be able
to write two pages on everysingle topic.
Why not write the book on PCOS?
And you know they always.
There's a saying you alwayswrite the book you wish you had,
(03:37):
and this is a book I wish I had10 years ago, and it's relevant
for anyone living with hormonalissues, so anyone who's
struggling with weight gain,maybe in perimenopause and
menopause or anything, becauseabout 70-80% of the advice in it
is applicable to all people,all genders, all ages.
It's really about reducing yourrisk of the most common chronic
(03:58):
lifestyle diseases and we knowthat women with PCOS are at
higher risk of things like type2 diabetes Over half of all
women with PCOS will developtype 2 diabetes by the time
they're 40.
And higher risk of things likepregnancy-related diabetes,
cardiovascular disease, wombcancer.
So it's a pretty difficultcondition.
So, remember, one in ten havepcos.
(04:19):
In some studies, some southasian studies, they've shown
that women in india have as muchas one in four women have pcos
and it's the most commonhormonal condition to affect
women and some of the commonsymptoms are things like acne,
excess hair growth, irregularperiods, excess weight gain,
insulin resistance and diabetes,and obviously it's the leading
(04:39):
cause of infertility as well.
You know the book.
We include a lot of science.
It's got over 500 recipes butwe 500 references.
It's got about 30 of my ownrecipes actually.
But we try to make it asaccessible as possible by
breaking it into chapters andusing examples of real life
patients or using composite casestudies to bring them to life
(05:00):
so you can really imagine allthe different people that can
have PCOS and how it can present.
But the reason we did you knowplan and we devoted part four to
nutrition is because it reallyis the cornerstone in PCOS and
sometimes people with PCOS arejust told by their doctor go
away and come back when you wantto have a baby and you're not
given the tools to empoweryourself and actually manage
(05:22):
your condition.
And that's often because of avariety of reasons.
It can be the doctor just nothaving enough time to work with
you.
Sometimes it's actually a lackof knowledge of how to apply
these lifestyle and exercisechanges.
Just telling someone to loseweight is not the most
empowering message, because it'svery difficult without knowing
you know what to actually eat,how to move, all of these things
(05:43):
.
So we try not to make itprescriptive and say to people
just do what you can.
If you can do just 10 minutes,that's better than zero minutes,
you know.
Just building it up gradually,being more mindful of these
things and, obviously, dealingwith the emotional stress of
living with conditions.
So we include activities,whether it's skipping, walking
in nature, colouring in yoga,meditation, breath work.
(06:06):
All of this plays a huge rolein managing your condition, and
we created the plan to make itmore easy for people to follow
and also just to give peoplethat hope that you can overcome
this.
Do not let your PCOS define you,and I certainly didn't.
I totally embrace the fact thatI have PCOS.
I don't believe that you cancompletely cure the condition
(06:29):
and reverse it, but you cancertainly see remission and you
can manage your symptoms, andthat's what living PCOS free
means.
And so, yeah, the book came outfor sale in the UK in April and
in the US in June, and it'savailable worldwide on things
like the Book Depository.
But if you enjoyed it, thendefinitely leave us a review,
because it shows the book topeople with PCOS who are on
(06:52):
Amazon and other places and itcan really help.
But's why we wrote it is becauseI don't.
I think I benefited so muchfrom having my mother.
My mother helped me so muchwith.
You know, once I got myofficial diagnosis in the
pandemic, my mum helped me toapply everything I knew, support
me, give me the support ofhaving that gynecology and
lifestyle medicine background,and I wanted to share her
(07:13):
knowledge with everyone else andalso share what I've learned,
because no one should have tostruggle for years not having
answers and for many womenthat's the case the dots never
get joined because it's such acomplex diagnosis.
Vai Kumar (07:27):
Beautiful and just some quick references for people
.
So what about you know, againemphasizing on the sources of
iron and calcium in aplant-based diet?
And if you can give us or walkus through like a quick
three-day meal idea or breakfast, lunch, dinner, I think that'll
be great for even collegestudents or folks that are
(07:50):
hard-pressed for time.
Oh, totally yeah.
Rohini Bajekal (07:53):
Yeah, okay, so great sources of iron.
Great sources of iron includethings like dark leafy greens,
whole grains like quinoa andoats, tofu and tempeh beans of
all kinds, particularly thingslike red kidney beans, and then
blackstrap molasses is a greataddition as well.
(08:13):
Dried fruit, particularlythings like apricots yeah,
lentils are an amazing source ofiron Dried apricots, cashew
nuts.
So, yeah, having a mixture ofwhole plant foods will
definitely help.
And with iron, the key thing isa few things.
You don't want to be drinkinglarge amounts of red wine or tea
or coffee with iron-rich meals,so avoiding your chai with your
(08:35):
chapati is a good rule toremember.
And if you're having um toomuch, uh, if you're.
So if you want to avoid that.
And a good way to enhance ironin meals is to pair it with
vitamin c rich foods, so pairingit with oranges and things like
that.
So, um, a good source ofvitamin c are, for, for example,
red bell peppers.
(08:55):
So combining iron-rich foods,like maybe broccoli and greens
in a stir-fry with red bellpeppers is a great option.
Or putting fresh berries, whichare rich in vitamin C, on your
iron-rich oats.
These are just simple tips thatmake a huge difference.
You want to go for fortifiedplant milk, so soya milk which
is fortified with calcium, orcalcium set tofu.
(09:18):
That's going to give you reallygood amounts of calcium.
And there are also naturallyoccurring sources, so citrus
fruits like oranges, things likedark leafy greens particularly
low oxalate greens, like yourkale is a great source.
Rocket leaves are a good sourceof of calcium.
And you also get calcium fromother legumes and beans white
(09:39):
beans like cannellini beans, andalso grains.
And also nuts and seeds, likealmonds I already mentioned
before.
And and there are some othernutrients to pay attention to,
like selenium, which isimportant for immune functioning
.
That's a great source of brazilnuts, so just having one or two
brazil nuts a day will give youwhat you need.
And then zinc rich foods as well, and iodine as well can be
(10:02):
found in some sea vegetables,but in the uk we don't iodize
our salt.
In the us I know that you do it, and so I take an iodine
supplement as well.
And then, with omega-3s, youwant to be getting in black seed
or chia seeds every day, orwalnuts as well six walnut
halves or a tablespoon of groundblack seed one to two
tablespoons, it depends on yourneeds and things.
(10:24):
And that's really important Ifyou're trying to get pregnant or
you are pregnant orbreastfeeding, you want to
probably take an algae-derivedomega-3 supplement, and that's
something that you know.
The data is still not 100% outon this, but if you can afford
it and you want to take it andit can help with some things
like inflammatory skinconditions, like acne, then it's
(10:45):
worth exploring.
And when it comes to a menu, Ithink my number one breakfast
tip is to have a bowl of oatmeal.
I'm saying oatmeal because Iknow that's what you call it in
the US, but it's so versatile.
Yeah, porridge it's like cheapand plentiful.
You can put some plant milklike soy milk in there, and
berries like blueberries,cinnamon, which again helps with
(11:07):
blood glucose control, and youcan top it with all kinds of
delicious things, whether it'sgoji berries or flax, or chopped
date or banana kiwi so manydifferent options.
So that's my number oneporridge tip, and you can make
it as cheap as you want.
If you're a student, you canjust have regular oats with
banana.
It doesn't have to be fancy,but it was going to give you
(11:28):
slow release energy.
And then for lunch I lovethings like baked potatoes with
a salad and homemade hummus.
I make my own hummus.
I use tahini instead of usingloads of oil.
A lot of the shop-bought onesare not as nutritious.
And things like curry.
I love a warming curry.
I try to eat more of my energyintake earlier in the day, so
(11:52):
front-loading your calories, sohaving a bigger lunch and dinner
.
And then the evening meal is abit lighter and smaller, but
again, this varies day to day.
I have a very active life herein London, so I sometimes
socialize.
I go out for dinner with myfriends, so this is remember.
All of this stuff has to fitinto a healthy mindset.
If you don't have a goodrelationship with food, the rest
of this stuff is just not, youknow, not important.
(12:14):
You need to first work on yourrelationship with yourself and
having a good relationship withfood.
If you're fearing food andyou're frightened that's going
to be detrimental to your health.
And for an evening meal, I lovethings like soups.
I love a big salad where I putavocado and cucumber, fennel,
radish, beetroot peppers, rocketor arugula you know all
(12:36):
different things and that'sreally nice.
Sometimes I make homemadeveggie burgers.
I love wraps and I put tempehpieces and sauteed vegetables.
I love stir fries because youcan get a real diversity of
plants and the American GutProject showed we need to try to
get at least 30 differentplants a week.
So I love things like that and Ilove cooking Indian food as
(12:56):
well.
So I love just simple, heartythings like khichdi or chole or
rajma.
I love that kind of thing.
So bean based dishes areamazing.
So really I try and mix it up.
I don't tend to eat the samefood every day, but I do suggest
trying some of these dishesbecause they are so cheap and
plentiful and I share a lot ofrecipes and tips on Instagram at
(13:19):
Rahimi Bajaykul, just my nameon Instagram and my mum is also
at Dr Neethi Bajaykul.
We both love sharing what we'recooking and what we're eating
on there and just inspiringothers, because I think once we
see how much there is to enjoyand explore with plant-based
food, honestly it's there's nogoing back that's just
fascinating I will also mention.
(13:40):
So I do love having things likeum, a warming, warming drink.
So I love having red bush teaor robust tea with a splash of
oat milk or I you know you canhave different things like
coffee, matcha, whatever you'rehaving, and sometimes I'll make
a turmeric and ginger tea andfor sometimes, for dessert, I'll
bake something at home so I'llmake like muffins made out of
(14:02):
mashed bananas and buckwheatflour and walnuts, because I
have a really big sweet tooth.
So I usually do have somethingsweet every day.
It might just be a square ofdark chocolate, but I it makes
my soul happy.
I would feel very sad if Ididn't have anything to enjoy at
the end of the day.
Vai Kumar (14:19):
Well, a well-deserved .
You know small indulgence right, and I guess you have also
emphasized enough on the role ofexercise for better mental
health.
You know, though one may be ina rush, you know getting back in
right.
You know, like every smallmovement counts, right, just
make it five minutes, tenminutes, whatever that is
possible for sure so, whetherit's need-based or whether it's
(14:40):
you know, inspiration, just likefrom this conversation.
I just hope that several morefolks would, you know, just
include it.
You said it very beautifullyyou know, like, think about what
you can include more ratherthan taking out whatever you
know you need to.
I mean.
So I guess that's when you knowit becomes like a preventive
mindset versus, you know, likean opportunity to do more right?
(15:03):
So, just always see thepositive rather than, you know,
focusing on, you know, what youshouldn't do, because I guess
the minute you tell someone, hey, don't do this, I think that
becomes a barrier to whateverprogress they can make right?
So such a fascinatingconversation and thank you so
much for joining us here on theshow and taking time to
(15:24):
highlight how easy livinghealthy can become.
As a lifestyle medicineprofessional and as a
nutritionist, I think you havejust sent the message loud and
clear.
Rohini, thank you so much, andyour Instagram handle at Rohini
Bajekal and your website.
I'll be sure to include all ofthat in the show notes and, with
(15:45):
your permission, if I can justput out there on the show notes,
like the three-day meal planthat we talked about from your
21-day stuff, from your book,you know I'll be happy to
include that as well.
Rohini Bajekal (15:57):
Sure, absolutely .
Just what I mentioned is fine.
If you want to include that orput one recipe from the book,
that would be fine.
I don't know if I think I havea link, so I'll send you that
okay, awesome.
Vai Kumar (16:08):
and to listeners, as always, follow me on instagram
at vaipkumar and follow thepodcast, rate the podcast, leave
a review from your podcast appof choice and I'll be sure to
bring yet another interestingguest and talk about yet another
interesting topic on this show.
Until next time, it's me Vaisaying so long.
And overcoming teenage issues like acne, pcos
your niche area with a diet andlifestyle approach.
Rohini, what would you say toanyone you know like having to
reduce their sugar, oil and saltintake to, matter of fact,
address any hormone relatedcondition?
Rohini Bajekal (00:19):
Yeah.
So I would definitely suggestyou know, focusing on, rather
than what you're taking out,what you're bringing in, because
we know that women with pcoshave higher risks of disordered
eating.
So it's especially important tojust be mindful of that.
But things that you can doinclude things like, um,
including more herbs and spices,lemon and lime vinegars rather
(00:41):
than lots of salt and oil andsugar, and with sugar, it's a
case of really looking at wholefood sources.
Can you use mashed banana ordates in your baking and things
instead, or can you go for freshfruit that satisfies your sweet
tooth.
Cinnamon can really help withsugar cravings and I love having
sweeter teas like licorice tea.
(01:02):
That can really help withcurving sugar cravings.
But I don't completely.
You know I never saysomething's completely off
limits.
If there's a delicious vegandonut and I really want to have
it, I will enjoy every bitewithout guilt or shame.
But it's just being mindful.
Generally, I really love my ownfood, so I make some amazing
desserts and I found reallygreat ways of even making and
(01:24):
desserts like gargica halvausing almond flour and not using
and using raisins and datesrather than using lots of added
sugar.
So it really you can explore avariety of dishes um on this
lifestyle, but definitelylifestyle is the first line of
treatment and, regardless ofeverything else that you hear
out there, even if you needmedications, which is so
(01:46):
important to take evidence basedadvice and take medications if
you need them Remember that forPCOS, lifestyle is the first
line of management.
So don't neglect all of theseaspects your stress management,
your sleep, your movement,avoiding too much alcohol,
obviously, avoiding, avoidingsmoking, making sure you've got
good relationships, a goodsupport system and you're
(02:08):
investing in your relationshipswith your friends and your
family and, most importantly, ofcourse, filling your plate with
lots of wonderful whole plantfoods very well said, and your
eight-step plan to live pcosfree.
Vai Kumar (02:21):
I think whatever we have talked about applies to one
cooking easy, eating healthyand living a great lifestyle in
terms of you know all thelifestyle pillars that you have
already addressed as well, soit's not just for PCOS or any
other hormone based condition,it's for you know the whole
spectrum out there.
But specifically focusing onyour beautiful book with your
(02:44):
mom, the Eight Step Plan to LivePCOS Free and, yes, not doing
like a yo-yo dieting, but eatingmeaningful.
So what do you have to say tothat?
And I know you have beautifullyoutlined a 21-day meal and
lifestyle plan there, includingwhat one can drink.
(03:04):
It's not just what can one eatfor breakfast, lunch or dinner,
but it also includes what onecan make as a meaningful drink
as well.
So why don't you talk about allof that?
Rohini Bajekal (03:16):
Oh, thank you, yes.
So with regards to the book, mymother wants to write a general
women's health book and shewants to cover every women's
health condition and I said, mom, you're only going to be able
to write two pages on everysingle topic.
Why not write the book on PCOS?
And you know they always.
There's a saying you alwayswrite the book you wish you had,
(03:37):
and this is a book I wish I had10 years ago, and it's relevant
for anyone living with hormonalissues, so anyone who's
struggling with weight gain,maybe in perimenopause and
menopause or anything, becauseabout 70-80% of the advice in it
is applicable to all people,all genders, all ages.
It's really about reducing yourrisk of the most common chronic
(03:58):
lifestyle diseases and we knowthat women with PCOS are at
higher risk of things like type2 diabetes Over half of all
women with PCOS will developtype 2 diabetes by the time
they're 40.
And higher risk of things likepregnancy-related diabetes,
cardiovascular disease, wombcancer.
So it's a pretty difficultcondition.
So, remember, one in ten havepcos.
(04:19):
In some studies, some southasian studies, they've shown
that women in india have as muchas one in four women have pcos
and it's the most commonhormonal condition to affect
women and some of the commonsymptoms are things like acne,
excess hair growth, irregularperiods, excess weight gain,
insulin resistance and diabetes,and obviously it's the leading
(04:39):
cause of infertility as well.
You know the book.
We include a lot of science.
It's got over 500 recipes butwe 500 references.
It's got about 30 of my ownrecipes actually.
But we try to make it asaccessible as possible by
breaking it into chapters andusing examples of real life
patients or using composite casestudies to bring them to life
(05:00):
so you can really imagine allthe different people that can
have PCOS and how it can present.
But the reason we did you knowplan and we devoted part four to
nutrition is because it reallyis the cornerstone in PCOS and
sometimes people with PCOS arejust told by their doctor go
away and come back when you wantto have a baby and you're not
given the tools to empoweryourself and actually manage
(05:22):
your condition.
And that's often because of avariety of reasons.
It can be the doctor just nothaving enough time to work with
you.
Sometimes it's actually a lackof knowledge of how to apply
these lifestyle and exercisechanges.
Just telling someone to loseweight is not the most
empowering message, because it'svery difficult without knowing
you know what to actually eat,how to move, all of these things
(05:43):
.
So we try not to make itprescriptive and say to people
just do what you can.
If you can do just 10 minutes,that's better than zero minutes,
you know.
Just building it up gradually,being more mindful of these
things and, obviously, dealingwith the emotional stress of
living with conditions.
So we include activities,whether it's skipping, walking
in nature, colouring in yoga,meditation, breath work.
(06:06):
All of this plays a huge rolein managing your condition, and
we created the plan to make itmore easy for people to follow
and also just to give peoplethat hope that you can overcome
this.
Do not let your PCOS define you,and I certainly didn't.
I totally embrace the fact thatI have PCOS.
I don't believe that you cancompletely cure the condition
(06:29):
and reverse it, but you cancertainly see remission and you
can manage your symptoms, andthat's what living PCOS free
means.
And so, yeah, the book came outfor sale in the UK in April and
in the US in June, and it'savailable worldwide on things
like the Book Depository.
But if you enjoyed it, thendefinitely leave us a review,
because it shows the book topeople with PCOS who are on
(06:52):
Amazon and other places and itcan really help.
But's why we wrote it is becauseI don't.
I think I benefited so muchfrom having my mother.
My mother helped me so muchwith.
You know, once I got myofficial diagnosis in the
pandemic, my mum helped me toapply everything I knew, support
me, give me the support ofhaving that gynecology and
lifestyle medicine background,and I wanted to share her
(07:13):
knowledge with everyone else andalso share what I've learned,
because no one should have tostruggle for years not having
answers and for many womenthat's the case the dots never
get joined because it's such acomplex diagnosis.
Vai Kumar (07:27):
Beautiful and just some quick references for people
.
So what about you know, againemphasizing on the sources of
iron and calcium in aplant-based diet?
And if you can give us or walkus through like a quick
three-day meal idea or breakfast, lunch, dinner, I think that'll
be great for even collegestudents or folks that are
(07:50):
hard-pressed for time.
Oh, totally yeah.
Rohini Bajekal (07:53):
Yeah, okay, so great sources of iron.
Great sources of iron includethings like dark leafy greens,
whole grains like quinoa andoats, tofu and tempeh beans of
all kinds, particularly thingslike red kidney beans, and then
blackstrap molasses is a greataddition as well.
(08:13):
Dried fruit, particularlythings like apricots yeah,
lentils are an amazing source ofiron Dried apricots, cashew
nuts.
So, yeah, having a mixture ofwhole plant foods will
definitely help.
And with iron, the key thing isa few things.
You don't want to be drinkinglarge amounts of red wine or tea
or coffee with iron-rich meals,so avoiding your chai with your
(08:35):
chapati is a good rule toremember.
And if you're having um toomuch, uh, if you're.
So if you want to avoid that.
And a good way to enhance ironin meals is to pair it with
vitamin c rich foods, so pairingit with oranges and things like
that.
So, um, a good source ofvitamin c are, for, for example,
red bell peppers.
(08:55):
So combining iron-rich foods,like maybe broccoli and greens
in a stir-fry with red bellpeppers is a great option.
Or putting fresh berries, whichare rich in vitamin C, on your
iron-rich oats.
These are just simple tips thatmake a huge difference.
You want to go for fortifiedplant milk, so soya milk which
is fortified with calcium, orcalcium set tofu.
(09:18):
That's going to give you reallygood amounts of calcium.
And there are also naturallyoccurring sources, so citrus
fruits like oranges, things likedark leafy greens particularly
low oxalate greens, like yourkale is a great source.
Rocket leaves are a good sourceof of calcium.
And you also get calcium fromother legumes and beans white
(09:39):
beans like cannellini beans, andalso grains.
And also nuts and seeds, likealmonds I already mentioned
before.
And and there are some othernutrients to pay attention to,
like selenium, which isimportant for immune functioning
.
That's a great source of brazilnuts, so just having one or two
brazil nuts a day will give youwhat you need.
And then zinc rich foods as well, and iodine as well can be
(10:02):
found in some sea vegetables,but in the uk we don't iodize
our salt.
In the us I know that you do it, and so I take an iodine
supplement as well.
And then, with omega-3s, youwant to be getting in black seed
or chia seeds every day, orwalnuts as well six walnut
halves or a tablespoon of groundblack seed one to two
tablespoons, it depends on yourneeds and things.
(10:24):
And that's really important Ifyou're trying to get pregnant or
you are pregnant orbreastfeeding, you want to
probably take an algae-derivedomega-3 supplement, and that's
something that you know.
The data is still not 100% outon this, but if you can afford
it and you want to take it andit can help with some things
like inflammatory skinconditions, like acne, then it's
(10:45):
worth exploring.
And when it comes to a menu, Ithink my number one breakfast
tip is to have a bowl of oatmeal.
I'm saying oatmeal because Iknow that's what you call it in
the US, but it's so versatile.
Yeah, porridge it's like cheapand plentiful.
You can put some plant milklike soy milk in there, and
berries like blueberries,cinnamon, which again helps with
(11:07):
blood glucose control, and youcan top it with all kinds of
delicious things, whether it'sgoji berries or flax, or chopped
date or banana kiwi so manydifferent options.
So that's my number oneporridge tip, and you can make
it as cheap as you want.
If you're a student, you canjust have regular oats with
banana.
It doesn't have to be fancy,but it was going to give you
(11:28):
slow release energy.
And then for lunch I lovethings like baked potatoes with
a salad and homemade hummus.
I make my own hummus.
I use tahini instead of usingloads of oil.
A lot of the shop-bought onesare not as nutritious.
And things like curry.
I love a warming curry.
I try to eat more of my energyintake earlier in the day, so
(11:52):
front-loading your calories, sohaving a bigger lunch and dinner
.
And then the evening meal is abit lighter and smaller, but
again, this varies day to day.
I have a very active life herein London, so I sometimes
socialize.
I go out for dinner with myfriends, so this is remember.
All of this stuff has to fitinto a healthy mindset.
If you don't have a goodrelationship with food, the rest
of this stuff is just not, youknow, not important.
(12:14):
You need to first work on yourrelationship with yourself and
having a good relationship withfood.
If you're fearing food andyou're frightened that's going
to be detrimental to your health.
And for an evening meal, I lovethings like soups.
I love a big salad where I putavocado and cucumber, fennel,
radish, beetroot peppers, rocketor arugula you know all
(12:36):
different things and that'sreally nice.
Sometimes I make homemadeveggie burgers.
I love wraps and I put tempehpieces and sauteed vegetables.
I love stir fries because youcan get a real diversity of
plants and the American GutProject showed we need to try to
get at least 30 differentplants a week.
So I love things like that and Ilove cooking Indian food as
(12:56):
well.
So I love just simple, heartythings like khichdi or chole or
rajma.
I love that kind of thing.
So bean based dishes areamazing.
So really I try and mix it up.
I don't tend to eat the samefood every day, but I do suggest
trying some of these dishesbecause they are so cheap and
plentiful and I share a lot ofrecipes and tips on Instagram at
(13:19):
Rahimi Bajaykul, just my nameon Instagram and my mum is also
at Dr Neethi Bajaykul.
We both love sharing what we'recooking and what we're eating
on there and just inspiringothers, because I think once we
see how much there is to enjoyand explore with plant-based
food, honestly it's there's nogoing back that's just
fascinating I will also mention.
(13:40):
So I do love having things likeum, a warming, warming drink.
So I love having red bush teaor robust tea with a splash of
oat milk or I you know you canhave different things like
coffee, matcha, whatever you'rehaving, and sometimes I'll make
a turmeric and ginger tea andfor sometimes, for dessert, I'll
bake something at home so I'llmake like muffins made out of
(14:02):
mashed bananas and buckwheatflour and walnuts, because I
have a really big sweet tooth.
So I usually do have somethingsweet every day.
It might just be a square ofdark chocolate, but I it makes
my soul happy.
I would feel very sad if Ididn't have anything to enjoy at
the end of the day.
Vai Kumar (14:19):
Well, a well-deserved .
You know small indulgence right, and I guess you have also
emphasized enough on the role ofexercise for better mental
health.
You know, though one may be ina rush, you know getting back in
right.
You know, like every smallmovement counts, right, just
make it five minutes, tenminutes, whatever that is
possible for sure so, whetherit's need-based or whether it's
(14:40):
you know, inspiration, just likefrom this conversation.
I just hope that several morefolks would, you know, just
include it.
You said it very beautifullyyou know, like, think about what
you can include more ratherthan taking out whatever you
know you need to.
I mean.
So I guess that's when you knowit becomes like a preventive
mindset versus, you know, likean opportunity to do more right?
(15:03):
So, just always see thepositive rather than, you know,
focusing on, you know, what youshouldn't do, because I guess
the minute you tell someone, hey, don't do this, I think that
becomes a barrier to whateverprogress they can make right?
So such a fascinatingconversation and thank you so
much for joining us here on theshow and taking time to
(15:24):
highlight how easy livinghealthy can become.
As a lifestyle medicineprofessional and as a
nutritionist, I think you havejust sent the message loud and
clear.
Rohini, thank you so much, andyour Instagram handle at Rohini
Bajekal and your website.
I'll be sure to include all ofthat in the show notes and, with
(15:45):
your permission, if I can justput out there on the show notes,
like the three-day meal planthat we talked about from your
21-day stuff, from your book,you know I'll be happy to
include that as well.
Rohini Bajekal (15:57):
Sure, absolutely .
Just what I mentioned is fine.
If you want to include that orput one recipe from the book,
that would be fine.
I don't know if I think I havea link, so I'll send you that
okay, awesome.
Vai Kumar (16:08):
and to listeners, as always, follow me on instagram
at vaipkumar and follow thepodcast, rate the podcast, leave
a review from your podcast appof choice and I'll be sure to
bring yet another interestingguest and talk about yet another
interesting topic on this show.
Until next time, it's me Vaisaying so long.
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