People visit health nutritionist Nathalie Sansonetti when their lives have been made hell by food intolerances.

“Gut health will determine your immunity,” she says. “If your digestive system doesn’t work, your whole immunity goes out of the window.”

The Corsican-born health food specialist runs New Leaf Nutrition in Hove. She has had people visit her practice who have starved themselves because they don’t know what to eat.

“I see people who literally have to go back and forth to the toilet every 30 minutes. They can’t live their lives. It is hell.”

In these extreme cases, where a trip to the doctor has proved fruitless and there is no acute problem, Sansonetti says people go to extremes. The other end of the spectrum is that people “stuff themselves with food to block themselves up”.

Her solution has been to come up with a series of cookery classes that teach people with digestive problems how to prepare dishes which might help to soothe their issues. “We realised when we were talking to people one-to-one in consultations that a lot of people don’t know which recipes are best for their problems.

“That is why we decided to make classes offering ideas for specific problems.”

The classes take place in a school, which seems fitting. “We’re going to give the participants a workbook at the end with a five-day meal plan with lots of recipes.”

For the class tomorrow, with places still available, Sansonetti will guide attendees through cookery sessions for healthy sushi and gluten/dairy/sugar-free blueberry muffins. Expect demos for roasted pepper and paprika houmous and an energy and digestion-boosting smoothie.

A range of recipes to take away, designed by the nutritionist, will include her salmon and brown rice hotpot, baked fish with carrot and leek puree, cock-a-leekie soup, gluten-free chickpea crackers, banana bread and kale chips.

Unsurprisingly, she has to field questions from curious participants at the end. “We’ll be giving them lots of information on how to ease digestion and answering questions they might have – and they usually have lots!”

With digestion and health being so connected, questions invariably lead to other health issues. People want to know how to lose weight or increase energy levels without turning to fad diets or short-term solutions. In part, Sansonetti blames big business for the current health crisis. She also hates the word diet.

“There is a reason why the diet industry makes billions. They know you lose weight but you eventually put it back on, plus more.

“The problem is we see a lot of people in our practice who come back after having tried everything and say, ‘I am now desperate.’ It messes up not just your physical health but also your mental health. A lot of people who come are depressed because they have not found the right balance.”

Part of the problem is overeating.

“On the food plan I give them, they end up eating more than they ever did. It’s about eating little and often, but every single mouthful counts and should be packed full of nutrients.

“Also there is the whole thing of eating slowly. It takes ten to 15 minutes for your stomach to register it is full so if it takes three minutes to finish, you are not going to feel full. “My advice is eat slowly, make every mouthful count, make sure there are loads of nutrients in each meal so it keeps your blood sugar steady.”

Upcoming classes include Cooking For A Beach Body, Cooking To Boost Your Immune System, Cooking For Picnics And Festivals, and Healthy Packed Lunches. The classes run on a monthly basis throughout the year.