Jessica Bayes | Nourished Tribe

Meet the lovely Jessica Bayes, a fellow nutritionist who has gone on to pursue a career in research. Among her busy studies and researching for her PHD, Jess sees clients and is all about educating them about the importance of good food and a healthy lifestyle.

Jess and I caught up to talk all about her career and experiences going down the research pathway for an episode of Nutrition Grad Guide, which you can learn more about here. But in this Nourished Tribe feature, I want to bring you more of an insight into her health practices and advice to others who want to live a nourished life.

Over to you Jess…

Tell us a bit about yourself:

I originally trained as a beauty and massage therapist before finding my way to nutrition. This gave me some great people skills and is a wonderful way to connect with others and make them feel great. After a few work related injuries, I enrolled to do a bachelor of Nutritional Medicine and absolutely LOVED it. After graduating, I stayed on to do an additional honours year which really sparked my love for research. I am currently in the second year of my PhD at the Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, Faculty of Health, University of Technology Sydney. My research interests include dietary interventions for mental health. This is also an area I focus on in my Nutrition Consulting business located in East Melbourne. I am currently running a really exciting project as part of my PhD – a randomised control trial looking at the effect of a Mediterranean diet in young men with depression. 

Finish this sentence: ’Everyone that knows me knows that…’

I love plants! I only have a small balcony at the moment but every square inch is covered in plant pots. I’ve got lavender, rosemary, mint, succulents, ferns, you name it! Half of my clothes even have leaf prints and my favourite ear rings are gold Monstera leaves. I’m definitely a crazy plant lady!

What does living a nourished life mean to you?

Nourishing your body with good food but also nourishing your mind and spirit. I think this aspect is often over looked. I’m constantly learning new things, reading non-fiction books, listening to ted-talks and podcasts to nourish my mind. To nourish my spirit, well, as mentioned above – plants! But I also love playing music, drawing and being outside in nature.

What sparked your passion for health & wellness?

Healthy eating and nutrition have been a passion of mine and an important part of my life for as long as I can remember. Leading a healthy lifestyle is one of the greatest forms of self-respect and helps you to feel your absolute best. Wanting to help others has also been a major motivator for me, so being able to combine my passion and desire to serve others is great.

Describe your food philosophy:

Easy, Affordable and Tasty (EAT!)

Tell us about what a typical day on your plate looks like:

It changes a lot, depending on the weather and what I’ve got on that day. But yesterday I started the day with a soy latte, wholemeal toast with hummus and spicy sauerkraut. For lunch I had a large bowl of cannellini bean harissa stew and for dinner a sesame/ginger tofu and broccoli stir fry. I tend to drink a lot of black earl grey tea throughout the day and often snack on bananas or cherry tomatoes.

One bit of health advice you wish everyone would follow:

Listen to your body, you don’t need to follow a new health fad just because it worked for someone else, do what works for you.

What is one health, wellness or personal development book that you think everyone should read?

Ohhh that’s hard, there are so many! My health/research interests are diet and mental health so I’d have to say:
1)     Brain Changer by Felice Jacka
2)     The Inflamed Mind by Edward Bullmore
3)     The mind-gut connection by Emeran Mayer

But to nourish my soul, I re-read Harry Potter every winter!

Last but not least, where can people find you?

My Nutrition consulting business website is www.jessicabayesnutriton.com and Facebook is Jessica Bayes Nutrition. But if you are looking to follow my PhD research you can find me on Research Gate or LinkedIn (Just search for Jessica Bayes) Or on social media platforms. Twitter: @JessicaBayes4 or Instagram: @jessica.the.researcher

You can learn more about Jess and her career journey to date, over on the Nutrition Grad Guide podcast. Find out more here, or listen via apple podcasts or spotify.