An Auchtermuchty woman has launched a new course, SMILES, helping those with health conditions fall in love with cooking and inspire Fifers to get creative in the kitchen.
Polly Murray launched SMILES to help people in the local community improve their health.
The project is funded by the Fife Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund, administered by Fife Voluntary Action with funding from the Scottish Government.
‘Just good home cooking’
Polly, 57, explains: “During the first lockdown, Auchermuchty rallied round. I have a home economics degree and I’ve always been really keen on cooking and the nutritional aspect of food.
“So, I set up a kitchen at the local community centre where we made hot meals. Three days a week we were sending out two-course meals for vulnerable people who were shielding in the community.
“It was fantastic, I loved it. My husband Callum helped me in the kitchen peeling potatoes and making custard.
“We had a team of drivers who went around town dropping off the meals which were good, real food. No packets, it was just good home cooking.”
Making healthy eating easy
Throughout the pandemic, Polly estimates the effort delivered around 2,500 meals to shielders and other vulnerable people across the local area.
Her experience giving back to the community during lockdown sparked the inspiration for a longer-term solution to help those who have struggled with food before, during and after the pandemic.
The mum-of-two continues: “For four Saturday mornings now, I’ve been at the community centre in the kitchen cooking low-carb dishes.
“People can come in for a cup of tea, and piece of low-carb cake and a chat. If they want to, they can register for the eight-week SMILES programme.
“Once the course is complete, we’ll have a WhatsApp support group, because it’s very much about ongoing support.”
‘There’s no fad dieting’
The SMILES project is a free eight-week program, which includes talks and discussions, a weekly cooking demo by Polly and food tastings.
SMILES is an acronym, highlighting the main focuses of the course. It stands for:
M – microbiome
I – insulin resistance
L – low-carb lifestyle
E – exercise
S – sleep
It is intended to help people who have struggled to lose weight previously, due to fad diets – as well as those who wish to improve their knowledge on healthy eating.
Polly says: “My aim is to help people in Fife who are struggling with health issues to improve those conditions through diet and lifestyle changes.
“It is intended to be long-term and it has to be sustainable. There’s no fad dieting.
“What we were eating 100 years ago was probably more healthy than what we’re eating today in the way of processed food and added sugar.
“It’s all about getting in the kitchen, learning some cooking skills and eating the way our grandparents ate.”
The last of Polly’s drop-in sessions before the SMILES course officially launches will be 10.30am on February 12 at the Autchermuchty Community Centre. You can contact Polly at polly@smiles.scot
- Do you have a health story you’d like to share with us? Get in contact at healthandwellbeing@thecourier.co.uk
