Welcome to these special snack sized episodes of the D Tour, designed to help you make the most from being outdoors.

From trail flapjacks to a proper cup of tea, food meant comfort, connection, and care on Harriet’s journey.

She’s joined by Sue Hinds, who discusses food as a form of dignity in dementia care; Adam Purnell, who shares the sensory magic of cooking over a fire; and Kate Taylor, who offers practical tips for brain-friendly nutrition. 

Gordon Malcolm from Dementia Adventure concludes with thoughtful advice on making picnics feel familiar, joyful, and unhurried.

Right At Home

Hello and welcome to the D Tour Snack Sized Podcast brought to you with love and support from our brilliant friends at Right At Home.

Along the way I met some incredible people and had the chance to share stories, swap experiences and learn more about how being outdoors can really lift your spirits, especially if you're living with dementia or supporting someone who is.

I'm also a singer and songwriter, so you might hear a few musical threads running through these episodes too.

These little episodes are a way to pass that all on. Think of them as a flask of tea and a piece of cake on a picnic blanket, short, sweet and full of the good stuff.

Whether you're planning your own big green picnic or just looking for simple ways to connect with nature and to each other, I hope this gives you a few ideas and sparks some lovely moments.

Our sponsor, Right At Home, is committed to helping people live independently and happily in their own homes and communities, making them the ideal partner for this celebration of nature, community and connection. So grab a cuppa, settle in and let's discover together how small moments outdoors can make a big difference.

One of the things that surprised me most on this journey was just how important food became. It wasn't just fuel, it was comfort, joy and quite often community.

Whether it was a flapjack bought from a boy selling homemade treats on a footpath or a full slap up breakfast in a noisy cafe, food anchored my days and lifted my spirits.

This episode is all about the sensory joy of food and drink and how meals shared, even the simplest ones, can uplift us.

Whether it's the warmth of a mug in your hands or the crunch of something delicious, eating outside has a way of waking us up to life.

We'll hear from some wise and wonderful guests and later Gordon will offer some gorgeous, grounded tips for a picnic full of presence and pleasure.

Let's begin with Sue Hinds, a speech and language therapist and dementia specialist. She works closely with families and carers, and in this clip she shares a powerful truth about food and dignity.

How the simple act of eating together can become an expression of love and belonging.

So lots of care homes will mould the food.

So even though it's pureed, a carrot looks like a carrot, a spoonful of peas looks like a spoonful of peas, but it's just been sort of moulded in that way Sorry, I'm trying to get through the gate.

We're just going through. We're just going through a kissing gate. [Kissing sounds]

Right, we're through now.

And, you know, it's important that it still looks like it should look. And it's important it looks like it should look for two reasons.

One, for the recognition for the person who is having to eat it. So it looks like it's supposed to look like and it will taste the way it's supposed to taste.

But also for the carer, like yourself, Harriet, who would be sitting with your mum and the worst thing would be as if you were flinching at the food because it looked terrible.

Yes.

So you're absolutely able to give a really positive environment for eating that food if it's looking good to you as well.

And you can recognize things to have those conversations with her. You know, we do focus a little bit on the motor weakness of a swallow. Definitely, we do have to do that.

But we also need to bear in mind the cortex of the brain is all connected up so that swallowing is connected to what you're talking about. It is connected to what you're seeing, it is connected to what you're hearing or tasting. So. And it is connected to your history, I suppose.

We know.

I mean, if you were present, if you and I were presented with a plate of food that was either very unfamiliar or smelt horrible or didn't look nice, you would kind of think, not sure I really want to eat that. So I think we can understand the importance of what you've been talking about. The presentation, the aromas, the fact that we can recognise it.

And it's really. It's common sense, isn't it? You wouldn't invite a friend round to a meal and feed them something that was horrible or that you wouldn't eat yourself.

So why would you do that with someone with dementia? You wouldn't, because it's part of your connection. It's part of saying you count, I care for you.

That really stayed with me.

I remember sitting with my mum, watching her light up at the mention of roast potatoes. It wasn't just food, it was memory, comfort, identity.

We heard from Adam Purnell, also known as Shropshire Lad, along the trail.

He's passionate about cooking with fire and reclaiming the joy in outdoor eating. Here he talks about how cooking becomes a sensory experience, especially when it's done in the open air.

I've always been passionate about food in general, and then obviously, being outside, I used to light a lot of fires as a kid, you know, we live in Shropshire, we, I go fishing and we'd always like nick a box of matches and you know, make a little fire while we're fishing or whatever. And you know, occasionally maybe take a pack of sausages and try to cook them on a stick.

So I think it's always been in me to, you know, cook with fire. But yeah, it's been in the last sort of eight years where the hobby has become my. No more my full time job.

There's nothing that you can't do and outside on a fire that you can do in a kitchen.

But there's so much that you can't do in a kitchen that you can do with a fire because it brings theatre, it brings flavors that you can't represent, you know, you can't replicate from in a kitchen really.

Like the smoke being the main thing really, but also just like something cooked over, over charcoal, which charcoal doesn't produce any smoke really and you don't get smoky flavor, but the flavor is something that's been like caramelized over a fire like that is not the same as anything you can represent in a pan or in an oven.

But you know, you put a lid on a barbecue and all of a sudden you've got an oven so you can still bake a cake, you can still bake bread, you can roast, you can, you know, there's so many different things you can do as long as you got a few bits of kit and a bit of know how there's nothing you can't do really, you know, over the fire. And that's, and the other part of it is your, you know, you're not stuck in a stuffy kitchen.

You, you're outside the social aspect and the, you know, the, the memories as well.

I mean like you think about, you know, you can all but guarantee you can remember things you've had on holiday, for example, to eat in certain places because it's just sort of like there's that whole ambiance if you're in a certain setting and, or you can create a certain setting, you get in people's heads with, with what you're eating or as if you just sort of sat eating a tray of takeaway. It's not going to be the same, you know, as it is if you sat on a beach.

Nutritionist Kate Taylor, also known as the Food Boss, joined us to talk about the connection between food and brain health. What she shared was both empowering and practical. It's not about fads or fancy recipes, but everyday ingredients that can really support well being.

And our brain's actually about 80% water.

So when we're dehydrated or we haven't consumed enough water through drinks or through our food, we will immediately and throughout the day notice a negative effect on our performance and cognition. So we should start kind of looking at our drinks and making sure we're regularly sipping throughout the day. I would say.

When it comes to food consumption, there's a few key things we want to look at. So I would recommend starting with fruits and vegetables.

So as much colour as you can, get as much colour into your diet, whether that's from things like berries, so blueberries, strawberries, they're in season at the moment, so it's actually a really good time to eat them because they're at their best. And when it comes to vegetables, things like carrots are really good, squash, which is a bit more of a winter vegetable, as well as your green leafy vegetables. So things like spinach as well as things like broccoli as well, are really, really good to get into your diet.

The reason we encourage lots of colour within the fruit and veg is for a number of reasons. One of them is to increase fibre consumption, which is really, really good for your gut.

And the research around nutrition tells us at the moment that there's a really strong link between your gut and your brain. So we want to make sure that our gut is really nourished to promote really good kind of brain function.

Thank you Kate. Gordon from Dementia Adventure suggests some tips and guidance for eating outside.

If you're planning a picnic, think about it less as a meal and more as a sensory adventure, a journey exploring the memories associated with our favourite picnic treats, like a warm flask of soup, a colourful fruit salad or just your favourite sandwich.

If it connects to a memory or makes you smile, that's the perfect starting point.

For someone living with dementia, bringing in the familiar can be really important to them. A favourite mug or a spoon, even a tea towel from home. And don't rush it. Let the meal unfold slowly.

Sometimes the sounds of birdsong, appreciating the beauty of the great outdoors, or the smell of a favourite fruit can do more than words ever can.

Listening to Sue, Adam and Kate, what really stays with me is how much food is about care. It doesn't have to be elaborate. It can be a bowl of soup, a flapjack, a flask of tea. But it's in the offering, the attention, the sharing.

So if you're putting together a picnic, big or small, try not to worry about what's missing. Instead, think about what feels right. Something loved, something nostalgic, something shared, that's what turns a meal into a moment.

Thanks for joining me on this snack sized episode of the D Tour. Next time we'll be talking about how movement in nature supports both body and mind.

And if you'd like to hear more from the original D Tour podcast, just head to dtour.uk that's d t o u r dot uk.