The renowned Naturopath shares some of his favourite health tips with Healthy Way in this new feature.

Your top tips for being healthy?
Many people nowadays understand what is meant by ‘a healthier way of living’ – eating a healthier, more natural diet, stopping smoking and drinking, exercising more, getting more sleep, reducing stress levels and being aware of environmental influences.

It is vitally important, due to an increase in environmental pollution, that our diets are as natural as possible to provide our bodies with much needed vitamins to help increase our immune defences. Whenever possible we should buy products of organic cultivation which are virtually free of the dangerous toxins such as nitrates.

Your top tips for being happy?
I firmly believe that the mind is stronger than the body and it is well known that creative visualisation can be invaluable. Happiness can be achieved by visualising that you are the type of happy person you wish to be. A positive mental and emotional attitude can readily help create a manifestation of good health and strength.

Enjoy spending time with friends and family, and spend more time outdoors in the fresh air. Enjoy nature, and as Alfred Vogel used to say, “Look at Nature – everything is in harmony”.

Your favourite remedy?
Without doubt, Echinaforce. There are not enough words to describe this remedy. It and Vogel’s other excellent tinctures are the backbone of my practice.

Your favourite form of exercise?
With my hectic schedule I do not get a lot of time to exercise but when I do, my favourite exercise is gardening.

Nothing gives me more pleasure than spending a few hours digging in the flowerbeds turning over the soil, getting rid of the weeds, and watching my efforts grow and flourish. Nature is a wonderful thing. I am also very fond of cycling and sailing and, if I get the chance, I like curling.

Your favourite healthy food?
Porridge! I love nothing more than a bowl of hot porridge for breakfast. It keeps me going right through to lunchtime. Not only does it taste great but also porridge oats have great nutritional value and health benefits, and can help to reduce cholesterol levels, hypertension, diabetes and obesity.

Do you have a favourite recipe?
I do – and Alfred Vogel gave it to me. Add half a banana, a grated apple, and the juice of an orange to a bowl of muesli and mix it all up together. Next to porridge this is also a very tasty and healthy breakfast and fuels the body with essential nutrients.

Which is your must-have ingredient?
I would have to say Cinnamon powder. I sprinkle this over many foods especially banana, as it helps to bring the sugar content in the banana down. Being a diabetic, cinnamon is great for controlling my blood sugar levels. It is also great for indigestion.

Which bad habit have you successfully given up?
I would love to say that I’d given up chocolate but every now and again I like a little piece. During the war, when I was small, chocolate was very scarce. I remember my mother breaking me a piece from a bar and saying “Now Jan, respect that little bit of chocolate all your life.” I think she left a mental impression on me, as it is still something I cannot avoid. However, I have successfully given up coffee, and try to drink mainly herbal and fruit teas.

Who is your main role model?
It has to be my great friend, the late Alfred Vogel, a marvellous herbalist and nutritionist who had a profound influence on me and my career. I first met him in 1958, just after I graduated in pharmacy, when I sat next to him at a lecture in Amsterdam. I did not know who he was but when he started up a conversation and enthused about his work, I was almost instantaneously converted to his way of thinking.

He told me the most important thing in life is to share one’s knowledge with others and I am pleased to say that his influence continues to be felt today. We worked together for nearly 40 years, and although we often went our separate ways, we regularly met up to discuss health issues. I feel privileged that I was the only pupil to whom he taught everything he knew about health and healthy living.