Hands-on approach to health

A consultancy set up by a Cork-based duo advises on healthy eating and complementary therapies by tailoring programmes to individual…

A consultancy set up by a Cork-based duo advises on healthy eating and complementary therapies by tailoring programmes to individual lifestyles, writes Brian O'Connell

Tara Sheahan and Fawn Allen have always been experts at getting family and friends to lay their cupboards bare. For as long as either can remember, both have been advising those closest to them on how to combine healthy eating practices with a range of complementary therapies such as massage and reflexology.

With demand for their services increasing, they recently decided to pool resources and go into business. Advance booking has been brisk and what started as informal advice between friends is quickly growing into a successful enterprise.

The move was prompted by the decision of a doctor, a friend of Sheahan's, to refer a patient to them who was finding it difficult to adhere to an eating plan he had been given by a nutritionist.

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"He worked as a tradesman and had special diet requirements," says Sheahan. "So typically his day would involve going to a cafe at 10 in morning to have the breakfast roll and so on. Needless to say he was finding it hard to eat what he knew he should be eating.

"So basically that's where we came in. We spent time with him in his home, talking about his lifestyle and looking at the type of produce he bought. We then brought him food shopping and showed him some alternatives." Within weeks they observed a change in the client.

"He had been skipping lunch and snacking on chocolates and biscuits in the afternoon. There was no structure to his eating habits and he wasn't sure what to cook. In his cupboards he had some convenience food, a little pasta and some rice," says Sheahan.

"So we came along with some recipe suggestions. We also helped him make up healthy packed lunches he wouldn't be embarrassed eating on the building site. The change in his well-being was amazing and he noticed a huge increase in self-esteem."

Part of their approach, she explains, is to give clients increased options in terms of what they eat.

"The service we provide is a very individual and a very thorough consultation, not just about food but about your total lifestyle."

In an informal capacity, Sheahan has been offering advice to her brother, Ireland rugby international and Munster star Frankie Sheahan, since the start of his playing days.

"My last present to Frankie was a juicer. For years he would come to me and ask what should he be eating. Obviously he would have professional advice with Munster, but he just needed some back-up practical advice.

"So now he eats seeds and nuts every morning with organic fruit and juices. He has a George Foreman grill, and is more and more tuned in to healthy eating practices and how to apply them."

Over time, the pair realised that, with their combined backgrounds in nutrition and complementary medicine, they could offer clients a full range of services.

A typical consultation involves the pair meeting a client in their home. Their first priority is to get to know an individual and their lifestyle, and discuss their needs and desires.

"We try to get a sense of how much someone wants to change, and in what areas. We get a picture of what's going on for them. A lot of people come to us and say, 'I know I should be eating this or that but I haven't the time', so we are about trying to empower people, and we try make a plan around that, by identifying problem areas and putting new strategies in place."

Sheahan's partner, Fawn Allen, is a qualified nutritionist and psychologist, and comes from the Ballymaloe dynasty in east Cork. For her, the aim is to take a practical approach to what many people may know already and to enable people to enjoy their food.

"Our service is about trying to teach people to live with advice they may have already been given," says Allen.

"So in other words we work within the model, and with what people are being advised to eat. Sometimes people can't put into practice what they already know in their head. So they find themselves driving home from a long day's work and instinctively grabbing white bread instead of wholegrain.

"While healthy eating should be about planning, cooking, shopping and an awareness of health, it's also about making food enjoyable and fun."

• Tara Sheahan and Fawn Allen can be contacted at Tarasheahan@gmail.com or fawn@fawnallennutrition.com