Course Review
Cellular Health
By Amy Wilson, NTP and Jacey Schram, NTP, RWP
Wild Root Learning
I wish Functional Nutrition by Amy Wilson and Jacey Schram was part of the curriculum in every middle or high school. I imagine how much healthier and happier our youth would then be, increasing their chances of becoming thriving adults who contribute to our society in a positive way. Wilson and Schram, both Nutritional Therapy Practitioners, designed the forty-eight lessons of their in-depth, easy-to-follow textbook and accompanying student workbook to empower students by teaching them how to make healthy nutrition and lifestyle choices.
Describing the aims of the course, created for grades six through twelve, the two authors pledge that it will help students learn how and what to eat (taking their individual needs into account); how to make good/better/best food choices; how to be proactive in taking care of their bodies; and how their bodies function. In addition, they will learn about helpful and harmful ingredients, nutrition labels, stress management and reduction, the importance of rock-solid sleep, the impact of their light environment, the risks versus rewards of movement and the impact of their habits on the environment.
The guide for teachers clearly lays out the steps for how to implement the course over an entire school year (three times a week) or in a more accelerated manner over one semester (five times a week). The authors do a fantastic job of being thorough while also making what middle schoolers might perceive as “boring” actually very interesting. An example is the lesson on blood sugar regulation, which takes students through “a day in the life of a blood sugar roller coaster” and then “a day in the life of balanced blood sugar.” The activities, such as sprouting beans, a cooking fat test, making a working model of the digestive system and a vitamin and mineral “headband game,” are sure to keep students engaged as well as help them truly understand specific topics.
One of my favorite sections was “History Timelines,” with timelines for raw milk, wheat, industrial seed oil, butter, olive oil, ghee, coconut oil, schmaltz, lard, tallow and plastic. Until now, I have never seen a nutrition course for young adults that also includes attention to environmental factors and the important role that sleep, light, stress management, movement and community play in health and vitality.
For those who follow the WAPF dietary principles strictly, the only conflicts they will encounter are the addition of sugar in the “calcium cofactor cupcake comparison” activity and the use of cacao instead of carob in the “homemade chocolate” recipe. However, these are very minor compared to all the gems in the coursework. Otherwise, the content is harmonious with WAPF principles and would be useful for beginners as well as those more familiar with functional nutrition.
As a homeschooling mother of a ten-year old, WAPF chapter leader and holistic nutrition and lifestyle coach, I consider myself somewhat of a tough audience when it comes to nutrition curricula, but I am definitely purchasing this learning bundle to work into our studies next school year! I would also suggest it for many adults I know; I even think it would be fun to complete with a group of friends. I would venture to say that even those who have extensive knowledge of Wise Traditions principles would benefit from the material and activities in the textbook and workbook. I strongly recommend it and hope that we will see many of our educational institutions implement it. The two components of this well-planned course can be purchased as a bundle for $190 or separately ($145 for the textbook and $60 for the workbook) from wildrootlearning.com. I give this course a gigantic thumbs up.
This article appeared in Wise Traditions in Food, Farming and the Healing Arts, the quarterly journal of the Weston A. Price Foundation, Summer 2025
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