cooking and mental health

Your wellbeing matters incredibly, stressful lives, work and exam stress leaves us overwhelmed, Cooking has been scientifically proven to improve mental health and support physical well-being. Cooking is also cognitively beneficial and proven to help us.

Cooking interventions are often used in therapeutic settings. This is because of its cognitive benefits.

Cooking can help with mood, mental health, self confidence and self esteem. Along with these mental benefits, cooking can be seen to help people with eating disorders. Especially in the fields of occupational therapy and rehabilitation, cooking interventions are used as a tool for physical development. Because cooking is a familiar task to many its also seen to improve your functioning practical skills.

In the United Kingdom there are a growing number of therapists who use cooking to help people with anxiety and other mental health problems. From therapeutic hand movements involved in cooking such as whisking to the thought process needed when cooking from scratch are seen to massively boost anyone's mental health.

In January 2023, I noticed this through my own personal struggles, and noticed a significant gap in the market for mental health cookery classes.

So after launching @cookerybyalfie which can be visited on www.cookerybyalfie.co.uk, my first course to be launched to the public was my recovery through cookery class, which could be individual or as part of a group.

My courses feature a catch up, a cooking lesson where students have the chance to talk through what they are feeling while distracting themselves with cooking, they also get a chance to meet new faces online and share experiences.

Cooking is a fantastic coping mechanism and also may provide respite away from a difficult situation. Cookery is an immersive and sensory-rich activity to take one's mind of any difficulties they may face.

Cookery increased goal orientated behaviour. A sense of accomplishment may be achieved after cooking.

Extensive research supports the idea that cooking in general improves mood, alleviates depression, self-esteem, socialization and other mental outcomes.

To sign up to one of my classes visit www.cookerybyalfie.co.uk or call 01664490744.