Brilliant Ideas

#27: The Baby Biome First Foods Plan Course That’s Helping Parents Reverse Allergies with Kate Pope

• Alyssa Bellisario • Season 1 • Episode 27

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Kate Pope is revolutionizing how parents think about introducing solid foods to their babies. As founder of Regenerative Cooking School and a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, she's created the Baby Biome First Foods Plan—a program that's helped thousands of families naturally reverse symptoms like eczema, allergies, and digestive issues through strategic food introduction.

What makes Kate's approach so powerful? While most experts focus merely on what foods to introduce and when, Kate dives deeper into how food choices impact gut health, which serves as the foundation for immune function, brain development, and overall wellness. Her course teaches parents how to start solids "the gut health way," countering mainstream advice that often leads to the very symptoms parents are trying to avoid.

The results speak for themselves. Kate's streamlined, affordable course tripled her business income almost immediately after launching, highlighting just how desperately parents need this information. She addresses everything from common concerns to specialized conditions like FPIES (a severe allergic reaction that severely limits what babies can eat). By explaining the "why" behind allergies and digestive issues—connecting them directly to gut health and microbiome development—she empowers parents with knowledge that can change their child's health trajectory for life.

Kate shares fascinating insights throughout our conversation, including why she recommends starting with meat-based foods rather than fibrous vegetables, why she advises against all processed baby foods (even organic options), and how she helps parents reimagine celebrations without sugar-laden treats. Her passionate belief that early food choices shape lifelong health is backed by both ancestral wisdom and emerging science about the microbiome's profound impact on everything from immune function to mental health.

Ready to transform how you think about your baby's nutrition? Follow Kate on Instagram @WildNutritionist or visit her website to learn how proper food introduction can set your child up for lifelong health.

Baby Biome First Foods

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Kate:

nobody skips starting solids, like everybody has to start, and so it just makes sense that, like it fits a niche where moms are ready to, they're ready to help their babies heal, and they're also at a time where they're ready to invest in their baby's life.

Alyssa:

Welcome to Brilliant Ideas, the podcast that takes you behind the scenes of some of the most inspiring digital products created by solopreneurs just like you. I'm your host, alyssa, a digital product strategist who helps subject matter experts grow their business with online courses, memberships, coaching programs and eBooks. If you're a solopreneur with dreams of packaging your expertise into a profitable digital product, then this is the podcast for you. Expect honest conversations of how they started, the obstacles they overcame, lessons learned the hard way and who face the same fears, doubts and challenges you're experiencing, from unexpected surprises to breakthrough moments and everything in between. Tune in, get inspired and let's spark your next big, brilliant idea. Hey everyone, welcome back to Brilliant Ideas. If you're new here, I'm Alyssa, and on this podcast, you're getting simple, actionable ideas and strategies to help you grow your business with digital products.

Alyssa:

Today's guest is Kate Pope, the founder of Regenerative Cooking School and Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, where she educates families and communities on the importance of local food systems and cooking meals at home for physical, mental and emotional health. On today's episode, we're diving into her story and successful program, the Baby Biome First Foods Plan. If you're curious about how to build a program that makes a real impact, today's episode is a must listen. Let's dive in. Welcome to the show, kate. Thanks so much for being here. Thank you for having me. It's great to have you here and, from what I've gathered from reading your story, you've helped families embrace this idea of starting solids the gut health way, and so you've taught thousands of moms how to use food as medicine to reverse symptoms like eczema, allergies and digestive issues for their babies. So I want to walk backwards a little bit and I want you to tell me what inspired you to develop the Baby Biome First Foods plan and what market gaps did you find in order to fulfill this need that you needed to create this self-paced course?

Kate:

Thank you for asking that's a great question.

Kate:

So I first created a bigger course when I first had my baby, augie, when he was nine months old.

Kate:

I created a course that was like for mothers and babies and it was about healing together and I loved that course and I just was like basically surveying my Instagram and because I was actually going on maternity leave for another baby and I was categorizing all the posts that I had made and like, by and far, I was talking about starting solids way more than anything else and I was so passionate about this.

Kate:

Naturally, and I part of the reason why I was talking about it was because I felt like there was a real gap in the knowledge for moms in terms of how to start solids that really supported baby's gut. And when we support the gut, we're also supporting the brain and immune system and everybody wants a healthy brain, a healthy immune system for their babies. And so after creating Mama Baby Biome, I was like I really think I need a first foods course because Mama Baby Biome, we have a lot more topics that we cover and in first foods, it can just be about solid food introduction. So I decided to make this course, I made it and launched it four months before my second baby was born, and it tripled my income in my business wow, that's amazing and so what were some of the reactions you got from it?

Kate:

People. I mean, we were so surprised because we put it on sale the first night and we launched it and we, I think we made like over a hundred sales in the first like day of it. Like people were just so ready for this course and that was a sign for me that it was the right course at the right price point. And you know, mom Movie Vine was a higher price point and I really wanted to make something that was more accessible for a lot of moms and I think it's just like very targeted, you know, because nobody, nobody skips starting solids, like everybody has to start.

Kate:

And so it just makes sense that like it fits a niche where moms are ready to um, they're ready to help their babies heal, and they're also at a time where they're ready to invest in their baby's life, you know, because it's so tender and they just really want to do what's best. And so I'm offering this education at a really affordable price which can give really life-changing results. I mean, if your baby has food allergies, if you had to eliminate a ton of stuff while breastfeeding, if your baby's covered in eczema, and I'm offering a solution that's worked for a lot of moms, it's really, it's a really good offer and they take it because they want to. They want to have their baby themselves.

Alyssa:

Yeah, that's really interesting.

Alyssa:

I mean, I know when I first started solids with my daughter, like I was terrified because I didn't know where to start, and it was overwhelming, like when you go to Google, like there's like a ton of information, contradicting information, conflicting information, and so you're left feeling really confused.

Alyssa:

And you know, thankfully my daughter didn't have like allergies. But I've been reading online of things of people who have like their't have like allergies. But I've been reading online of things of people who have, like their babies have severe allergies and they're very limited in terms of what can what they can eat, and it's like what do you make? And then it has to be separate from what you eat and so, um, so can you tell us a little bit about, like what's inside of the course, and do you find that it is like, for example, if some moms come to you and they say, well, I have this unique challenge at home and they're trying to say you know what can I? Is this specific allergy covered in your course? I'm sure that you get a ton of questions from parents that are dealing with all sorts of challenges. So how do you manage to address such a wide range of issues while still making it feel like it's tailored just for them.

Kate:

Yeah, that's a really great question and it's a hard challenge. But the main idea that I try to help parents understand is where the allergy comes from, because I think that when parents know how the immune system and the gut digestion interact, they can better grasp how they're going to heal it. So I'm basically reverse engineering their problem by explaining why their problem got there in the first place. So all allergies are related to the state of our gut health and the state of our microbiome, and so everyone in the course whether you come to the course with an allergy or you just want to set your baby up for the best life possible you're working on that strong foundation. We essentially eliminate the allergenic food and then rebuild the gut lining, rebuild support digestion in the immune system. We bring the inflammation way down and then we small, we really reintroduce the food in a very small amount.

Alyssa:

Okay, oh, I get that Okay. And do you find that? Do parents come to you with a lot of questions and do you have like a one-to-one that's separate from my self-paced course, or do you direct everyone there first and then you kind of decide, if they need more help, that they would reach out to you directly.

Kate:

Exactly so. The course is like the foundational information. So if you're working one-on-one with someone, it's really great if they come to the one-on-one session kind of having the basics covered, and so that's what the course would provide, and for most people, this is going to be what's going to get them through starting solids, reversing allergens, helping with constipation. And then there's some people who just want, like that, more tailored support. They have a more, maybe a more unique situation or they just really want someone to talk to. And I provide one-to-one sessions with a team that I work with who are experts in baby nutrition and helping babies heal.

Alyssa:

Okay, that, yeah, that makes sense. And so when you are covering all these different topics like I'm sure there's different, like a wide range of topics in your course Do you have a process of kind of what to of what you figure out, like what do you figure out what they're asking for? So do you like can you share kind of how you gather that feedback from what the parents are asking you or what they're telling you in conversations, maybe in your one-to-one or just in general? And then how do you decide, like, what topics to include in your course versus what you talk about on social media, and like how does it all come together in that course?

Kate:

Totally, so I get a ton of DMs and I basically make my courses based off of my DM questions and really I've shaped my practice around that Because, like I said, when I made that bigger course Mama Baby Biome I was mostly making it off of my own experience of having a cesarean and getting sent home from the hospital with laxatives and really no advice on how to rebuild my body and I knew it was going to affect my son's gut health with the antibiotics, and so I was just like this is crazy, like there's other moms having this experience that don't have the knowledge and the specialized information that I have about eating, healing and the microbiome. So I need to make this course. And then, when it came to the starting solids topic and just generally starting to speak about these ideas on my Instagram, people started sharing their experiences with me and they would tell me stories of things that I could have never even imagined or thought of, because, like they're having their experience at the doctor's office or something you know, an experience that I didn't have. And so then I was able to like collect these stories and kind of understand the overall voice of the mother. These, you know, the modern mother, the millennial mother who is struggling with these set of symptoms and wants to do what's best but doesn't have the tools. And so then I start to organize the tools and I put all those tools in my courses and on my Instagram. I talk, I also get those tools. It's just not organized because, you know, the Instagram is like this little story and this little story, this piece of information and this piece of information which gathers more people into my audience. But if they want to take the deep, organized dive to really set up the healing for themselves, they need to join my courses Now.

Kate:

Then I have like specialized situations like someone like F pies, which is a really extreme allergic reaction to a lot of different types of foods. They're very limited foods. It's a very scary situation for mothers. A lot of different types of foods, they're very limited foods. It's a very scary situation for mothers, and I feel that I teach a solution to this in my course and in this line of work, and so I will then do a bonus module or a bonus lesson or a free masterclass on this topic specifically so that those moms can know hey, this is for you, you really need to know about it, and other moms who also are experiencing this, have been able to find some resolve and resolution, and I want you to have that too. So I do really feel like it's for a general audience and it's for, like, very specific cases that are hard to figure out and fall through the cracks and that kind of thing.

Alyssa:

Okay, so that's interesting. So then you would. So, based on feedback from what you hear from moms, if there is something that is in demand, like the F pies, like something that is you that they would want you to cover, you can just update the course with, like a bonus module. That makes sense.

Kate:

Exactly. And then I can just market it, saying like, hey, I have all this foundational content is for you and I have a specialized module which is going to frame it for you so that you can apply it.

Alyssa:

Okay, and then there I'm sure there's some moms, because I know, like when I was you, and say things like well, there are apps out there that you know, you can download or that you can buy, that will show you what what to eat or what to serve your just you know, having your foundational course, would you say that you specialize in like the allergies, versus just general knowledge that they can find on Google?

Kate:

Yeah, so everything that I teach in my course is kind of counter to, like all the mainstream advice about starting solids.

Kate:

So I'm teaching specialized information and my kind of like catchphrase about it is the gut health way. So I'm going to teach mothers how to build their baby's foundation, starting with their gut health and using very specific foods and a very specific timeline to heal their symptoms. I mean, the majority of people that I'm working with are coming to me with some symptoms or they've tried baby led, weaning large chunks of food, fed a lot of fruits and grains, and they've seen their baby's symptoms come up Like they didn't have any symptoms before starting solids and suddenly they start introducing fruits and grains and the baby has an eczema rash or the baby's developed allergies or the constant runny nose or the mucus in the stools, right. So that's another scenario where I'm able to say, okay, this is why that happened and here's how you correct it. So, yeah, I would say that I have like a specialized method and a subset of knowledge that is actually ancestral cultural knowledge that we've lost in how our food has really changed over the past 75 years.

Alyssa:

That's right, the apps or just the general information online. They don't go into the details of allergies and the symptoms and the tools to overcome those things. It's just straight, like the food how do you prepare it, and that's it which you go into such much more detail, which is great. And so now thinking bigger. So just like big picture here, visionary type, where do you see the Baby Biome First Foods plan headed? So what would you say your vision is for evolving the program to keep up with the pace of what families really need for their babies?

Kate:

Honestly, I feel like I'm just trying to reach more numbers, because I think that I have hit a really sweet spot in terms of results that people get from the course, in terms of the price point that it's offered, in terms of the like ripple effect that it can have for the entire family.

Kate:

Um, I would love to see 10,000 moms go through the program. Um, I, like I said, I make updates to it as much as I feel is needed. I'm not I never hold myself back from altering or changing the course based on um client feedback. And, yeah, I'm just like super excited because this is changing the way that babies start their life of eating and it actually can shape their path for the rest of their life. It sounds a little dramatic, but it's really true, because the microbiome decides how well our immune system works, it decides how our body can eliminate toxins, it helps us to digest food, it creates all of our cravings, and so this is actually a prevention path as well. It's preventing picky eating, it's preventing chronic immune system issues, it's preventing these rising chronic diseases in our children, like diabetes, and so for me, it's all about just getting the message out there and helping more parents reclaim food as something that maintains and improves our health.

Alyssa:

I agree, I think it's so important. I mean, I was, I made sure that you know we did the whole vegetables first and before the fruit, but I don't know if that's, even, if that is even a thing, you debunk that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, do you want me to touch on that a little bit? Yeah, if you want.

Kate:

Yeah, for sure you know you mentioned the allergen thing and like there's a big talk about like introducing common allergens before one years old and that's like supposed to. That's like the main argument we have for preventing allergies in our children, and I have a different approach. Like I'm all about maintaining the gut health and building the immune system before introducing any food that would be inflammatory to the body, and I'm also really taking into consideration what type of food we're wanting to introduce. So, for example, egg is a very different food nutritionally than bread, and bread is considered a common allergen and they're suggesting introduce it before one years old. But in my perspective, we don't need to introduce bread before one year old.

Kate:

If the baby's gut is healthy and the immune system is healthy, you can have wheat at three years old and not have an allergic reaction to it or develop celiacs, anything like that, because your gut's healthy.

Kate:

That's why allergens won't exist, you know, and and something like an egg is very nutritionally dense, very important, and I would want that to be included in my baby's diet from, you know, six months old for the rest of their life, and so that is one that I would incorporate very slowly, starting methodically with just the yolk and building up to two to three egg yolks a day, and that's not what you're hearing in the mainstream about allergen advice. Now, when it comes to the veggies, veggies are fine but they're fibrous and the fiber is actually more difficult for humans to break down. So we start with meat-based foods and then we slowly add in vegetables local and seasonal and we puree them and as your baby matures, you know, you can give them pieces, larger pieces, to gnaw on, to suck onto too, to explore. All that's fine, but we really want to make sure that the gut is filled and sealed, the microbiome is healthy, before we start introducing tons of vegetables and fermented vegetables.

Alyssa:

That's really where the magic happens um, okay, that that's interesting and then okay, so what do you now? I just like, what's your your take on processed foods like on in the baby aisle? What's your take on processed foods like in the baby aisle? What's your take on that? Nutritionally, something to avoid or to be careful of? What brands Do you have that in your course where you list any of those brands and you know which ones are safe versus which ones you should be cautious of?

Kate:

Yeah, this is probably going to blow your mind, but I don't recommend any of those foods. Yeah, so I recommend cooking all of your baby's food yourself and I teach you how to do that in a really easy way. Like it takes a little bit of time, but they eat so little at the beginning that you can just make it all at one time and freeze it and then thaw it out into portions or put it into little bags if they have to. You know are on the go, but I recommend making all of your baby food yourself, never buying your baby's food, especially in plastic, and I don't recommend giving your baby any industrial food until much later. Like our toddler eats a little bit of seaweed snacks, sometimes a little bit of, you know, grass-fed and finished beef sticks with no sugar. We eat pork rinds, but generally, like we keep it all food made at home.

Alyssa:

No, that's great, Like not those like puffs that you see. I mean I have to say those puffs that are in the baby are like no calories. There's nothing in them, it's just air.

Kate:

Yeah, in the baby are like no calories. There's nothing in them, it's just air. Yeah Well, it's worse than just air because it's like a gateway. So that's like a. It's usually made from rice or cassava, a root vegetable, even like the nicer, higher quality organic brands we're just giving our kids, we're starting snack culture with them. We're giving them like a basically a baby potato chip.

Kate:

Why would we want to put them on that pipeline? It doesn't make sense from a blood sugar standpoint. It doesn't make sense from a nutrient dense standpoint. They're supposed to be teethers, right, like? My mom sent me a package of like organic baby rice teethers and she was like I don't know if you'll use them, but they are organic. And I was like, yeah, mom, we're not using that, we're not using anything in a package, because my son doesn't need that. I don't want to give him that carb. Those grains are not properly prepared. They will go undigested in his digestive system and become the perfect food for pathogenic microbes, and feeding those bad gut bugs is how we get things like allergies, that's how we get eczema, that's how we get all this messed up poop. So we don't want any of that.

Alyssa:

Yep, I agree with that. Every know, every time my daughter touches like chocolate cake and I'm just like no, because the digestion afterwards is like awful. And I was like no, no, we like you know, for birthday it's like I'll have, I'll give her a few bites, but then I regret it later.

Kate:

Yeah, that's a really interesting dilemma and I actually get a ton of DM questions about what to do at birthday parties. I cover that in my picky eating course because that's, like you know, a little bit of an older age group, and I also get a ton of questions about what to do for the first birthday and I always recommend making a liver pate. And the moms in my courses are so creative. They make these like beautiful beef cakes with bone marrow icing and they serve big steaks for their child's first birthday and they put a candle in it and they celebrate because it's not about the sugar. We need to really separate the sweet and the celebration from each other, because it's about living life with vitality and those foods are not what makes us happy. Those foods give us a temporary dopamine hit, but the joy and the long lasting life comes from your health, your vitality and your connection with your children.

Alyssa:

You know, it's so true. I've seen, you know, I've seen the differences Like once she got introduced to a little bit more sugar, like the, the mood changes, the. You know the behavior it was and so I knew I had to like, nope, cut it off.

Kate:

it was done so I'm so glad you were able to recognize that and hold that boundary because it's so helpful for her too. Actually, people think you know, like there's a temporary tantrum or whatever it's like, you can get through the tantrum. You don't want anxiety, depressed teenager or autoimmune condition like or trouble with puberty. You don't want any of that like deal with the tantrum as a three-year-old or four-year-old.

Alyssa:

Yeah, and you know, I, I have a friend of mine who had his, her son, and did not introduce like processed crap or anything, and as an adult he doesn't go towards those foods. And I was like, looking at her, I was like that is genius, you know, because then you're setting them on the right path and so, um, that's, that's exactly what you're trying to do here.

Kate:

Yep, and that's exactly what you learned in the first foods plan. That is how I teach people to just transition from formula or breast milk to solid foods the gut health way.

Alyssa:

That's great, and so I so at the. So, as we're coming to the end of the show, where can my listeners connect?

Kate:

with you. Yeah, the best place to find me is on Instagram. I am the most active there and I have the longest history of videos there. So that's at Wild Nutritionist. But you can also find me on TikTok and YouTube and Facebook.

Alyssa:

Awesome, okay, and you can find the links to the Baby Biome First Foods Plan course in the show notes of this episode, as well as her three cookbooks, and make sure to follow her on Instagram and visit her website too. All the links that you'll ever need to connect with Kate will be in the show notes, so make sure to check that out. So I want to thank you for tuning in today and thank you, kate, for being a guest today. I loved it. Thank you so much.

Alyssa:

If you're looking for resources on how to grow your digital product business, head over to AlyssaBelsariocom, and I hope you found this episode as helpful as I did. I've learned a lot myself, and we'll implement a little bit of your advice because you know Implement a little bit of your advice because you know, of course, the priority is the health of our kids. So you know this is going to be really helpful for all of my listeners today. So I will catch you next time on another brilliant idea, and thank you so much for coming. Thank you, thanks for tuning into this episode of Brilliant Ideas. If you love the show, be sure to leave a review and follow me on Instagram for even more insider tips and inspiration, ready to bring your next big, brilliant idea to life? Visit AlyssaVelsercom for resources, guidance and everything you need to start creating something amazing.