The Willard Studio will host the first Weston A. Price Foundation city-wide chapter meeting June 27 to help residents find a balance between convenience and health.
The first city-wide chapter meeting of the Weston A. Price Foundation will meet at the Willard Studio in Ooltewah June 27. From left are nutritionist Jamie McDermott, yoga and Pilates instructor Lisa Willard and WAPF chapter leader Denise Burns."I wanted to put all the pieces together with yoga, a massage therapist and registered dietitian. The Weston A. Price Foundation fit along with it," said Lisa Willard, owner of Willard Studio, which offers Pilates and yoga on Ooltewah-Georgetown Road. "It would make me happy if this building was always full."
The first chapter meeting is open to anyone and will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. The new WAPF chapter will meet quarterly. During the first gathering, there will be a selection of foods prepared according to the "Nourishing Traditions" cookbook from Weston A. Price Foundation. Jamie McDermott, the registered dietitian at Willard Studio, will also speak about good and bad fats during the event.
"I try to teach people very simple ways to bring whole and natural foods into their lives," McDermott said.
Ringgold resident and chapter leader Denise Burns will introduce participants to the WAPF. Burns said she likes the initiative because it focuses on creating a healthy and nutritious lifestyle using simple guidelines. The foundation's goal is to bring nutrient-dense foods into American kitchens. The individual chapters are charged with connecting members with local farms, stores and other resources for goods and ingredients to make their meals healthier.
"The WAPF recipes utilize simple, organic, unprocessed and grass-fed ingredients," Burns said.
The WAPF was formed based on research by Weston A. Price, a dentist from Ohio who studied native people from countries around the world in the 1930s. Price discovered secluded natives who had not been exposed to modern convenience foods had straight teeth, versus some of the dental problems he was seeing in modern society. His studies influenced a new model for a healthy diet that became the emphasis of the Weston A. Price Foundation when it formed in 1999.