Feel like you could be in better health? Our expert nutritionist solves your problems.

Back on the wagon
Over a year ago I stopped going to the gym and started eating loads of junk food including takeaways, potato chips, chocolate biscuits and fizzy drinks. I gained 17 kilos in that time period and decided to do something about it. I have just signed up to the gym and plan on going six days a week. I was wandering now that I'm back at the gym if you could recommend a healthy diet for breakfast, lunch and dinner that won't leave me feeling hungry later.

Before you do anything else it is important for you to find out why you stopped going to the gym and started to eat lots of junk food, otherwise you will get into the same scenario again. Poor self esteem can cause junk food eating and loss of touch with your body’s ‘fill level’. Everyone has an inner critic that for a time will drive them to the gym every day and make them eat whatever the dietitian tells them to, but after awhile if the regime is too hard, then your inner child (everyone has an inner child who loves junk food) rebels against the prison it is in and sends you out to eat more than you need of the wrong foods.

By letting yourself have time off from the gym – once or twice a week, and also allowing a junk food meal or two for a couple of days a week, you will prevent a long term diet / binge pattern from causing major problems to your metabolism. Protein foods for breakfast, lunch and dinner are important – these include yoghurt, low fat cheese, eggs, meat, fish and chicken. Throw in some wholegrain rolled oats, brown rice, or wholegrain bread, along with a couple of servings of fruit or vegetables at each meal and you are on the way to a healthy lifestyle not a weight loss diet. A healthy balanced lifestyle means you are not putting yourself into a strict unrelenting regime which is easily broken sometime down the track.

Helping the hernia
Last year I was diagnosed with having a hernia in my stomach (sliding hiatus hernia). Recently I have had a lot of pain and nausea in my stomach. I have been to a specialist for this and have been prescribed Losec for it. Could you please tell me some natural ways to help my stomach as well as any nutritional ideas to help ease the symptoms?

I thoroughly recommend Slippery Elm capsules or powder, available from health food shops which will soothe and balance your digestive system. You may need to take it three times a day initially but it will prevent you from having to take medication for the rest of your life. You will also need to avoid tea, coffee, cola, milo, alcohol, cigarettes, and high salt and sugar foods. All these factors will create inflammation and aggravate the problem. Use herbal and fruit teas such as Healtheries chamomile, peppermint, or ginger teas
regularly as these help to reduce indigestion and digestive pain.

Initially until the problem has eased, I recommend you have all your meals and drinks warm or cooked where possible. eg porridge for breakfast, and rice/ noodles/ pasta plus protein and vegetables for lunch and dinner. Warm cooked foods and drinks go a long way to soothing an unhappy digestive system. You may benefit from getting a referral from your doctor to visit a dietitian.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome
I've been told I have IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and the symptoms match what I’m experiencing. I get constipation, with bloating, cramping and gas. I've been told what to avoid and to eat more fibre but not specific things. I’m not sure what I should eat. I'd like some simple ideas for meal ideas that will help with my IBS.

I recommend you get a referral from your doctor to see a dietician who will be able to give you much more advice in a one-on-one session than I can give you here. This will really make a difference to this problem. Breakfast is always a good start for this type of IBS. Make a porridge containing wholegrain rolled oats mixed with Healtheries Ground Linseed (1 dessertspoon), along with some almonds, sunflower seeds and prunes or figs. Cook all of this together and add tinned fruit (in juice not syrup) and acidophilus yoghurt. This breakfast can really help to get your bowels moving and reduce the associated symptoms.

Other meals should contain wholegrain bread, brown rice, or wholemeal pasta, along with protein, and at least two to three servings of salad or vegetables. Fruit can be added where you can. This regime can really assist this type of IBS.

Sitting still
Please help me, I recently started working full time as a receptionist and since I started I have been putting on a lot of weight. I work from 8am - 5pm and have hardly anytime for exercise anymore, my eating patterns have increased as well. I seem to crave food all the time. How can keep the weight off with such an inactive job?

The change from school or part time work to full time work can be a real stress for the body initially. You will have to look at the new routine put in place some healthy patterns before you have a real problem with your weight and health. For exercise you will need to look at walking part of the way to work and or home again by parking your car further away, or getting off your bus or train earlier. Alternatively take a comfortable pair of trainers to work and set off every lunchtime for a 15 to 30 minute brisk walk. Take advantage of the weekends and plan to do more exercise on these two days – walking, gym, swimming, cycling, etc.

You’re craving more food because you are using up more calories and nutrients with your work. Watch out for classic bad office habits – increasing your coffee and tea intake – these will upset your blood sugar levels and cause craving – aim to have only one cup per day. No coke, fizzy drinks, snack box raids, takeaway meals, ‘shouts’ etc.

Although it seems odd initially, a large breakfast can really help beat cravings and reduce weight. A big bowl of muesli, or wholegrain toast with eggs, or tinned fish can go a long way to giving you heaps of energy. Cornflake type cereals or toast and jam or marmite will last you about 20 minutes and you’ll be feeling hungry again fairly quickly looking for all the wrong foods. On top of this make sure you have plenty of protein for lunch and then you’ll find your weight will improve.

Birth Control
I have decided to go on the injection instead of being on the pill. I have been taking the pill for four years but I heard you gain weight on the injection. Is there special a routine I should go on? I’m a snacker and I do regular exercise but I weigh 59 kgs and I’d like to keep to that weight.

You are quite right, most people gain weight on the Depo Provera injection. You need to think carefully about whether you want to take this course of action as the effects may be long term. You will need to increase your exercise regime to make sure you are doing 30 to 60 minutes per day and avoid all sugary and fatty foods. Increase your fruit and vegetable intake and drink a spirulina drink (Healtheries Spirulina Smoothie) everyday to offset the imbalance to your blood sugar levels that this drug may cause. Also this will help to prevent snacking.

This medication may also reduce your nutrient levels and lower your metabolic rate and energy levels so I advise you to take Healtheries Women’s Multi tablet daily to offset these effects.

Emotional stress
My mum has been receiving treatment this year for breast cancer and it’s been an unbelievably stressful time for me. I now feel really run down and have had 3-4 colds in the last three months. I would normally go to the gym up to 4 or 5 times a week and ride my bike for exercise yet just feel like I have no oomph to do any exercise this year, even though mentally I want to. I eat healthily, plenty of fresh fruit, veges, eat meat every night and don’t eat a lot of junk food but still seem run down. Is there anything you can suggest that will help me get back to my healthy self?

Looking after someone with cancer is exceptionally draining both emotionally and physically. This will impact on your nutrient levels. Make sure you are getting a good helping of protein at breakfast and lunch also – yoghurt, eggs, cheese, chicken, or tinned fish. I also suggest regular supplements for awhile of Healtheries Spirulina Tablets - three with breakfast and one tablet of Healtheries Super Multi daily. These will help to boost your energy levels, replenish your low nutrient levels, and get you back to your healthy self.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
I was wondering if there is a relationship between weight and PCOS. My weight is 75kg, I'm approx.160cm tall and I'm 18-years-old. I used to be thin and healthy but during these past few years I've been gaining quite a lot of weight and causing my skin to stretch (now I have these red horrible stretch marks all over my thighs, upper arms and stomach). I've tried dieting before but it didn't work. A few weeks ago my GP told me that I have PCOS. What can I do to lose weight and to maintain healthy weight and also how can I reduce the stretch marks?

There is definitely a relationship between weight and PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). Weight like this may sometimes accumulate due to the Oral Contraceptive, but studies indicate that a balanced blood sugar level can go a long way to reducing the symptoms and outcomes of PCOS. Dieting will only make this problem worse, what is needed instead is a balanced healthy eating plan so you are not starving and upsetting your blood sugar levels. Regular daily exercise will also help to keep your blood sugar levels stable. I recommend you get a referral to a dietitian from your GP to help you balance your eating patterns and monitor your weight.

Stretch marks can benefit from the application of vitamin E oil or vitamin A ointment. Internally I recommend vitamin C (Healtheries Ester C 500mg twice daily), and also Healtheries Aloe Vera Juice which contains high levels of salicylates. Both the vitamin C and the salicylates help the body to produce more collagen – the tissue that makes our skin plump, non wrinkly and firm.

Bloating issues
I am a 27-year-old vegetarian female and think I eat mostly very well. I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables as well as tofu, legumes and some dairy etc. Embarrassingly I have been having problems recently with my digestion, as in I do not go to the loo (other than pee) for up to three or four days at a time! I still get hungry and don't get sore in my stomach, I just feel fat and round but can still eat at meal times! I've been to my doctor about it and he prescribed a soft laxative powder but I want to find the root of the problem. Do you have any suggestions?

Are you having enough grains? Fruits and vegetables have a different type of fibre to wholegrain breads, cereals, and grains. If the grain levels are low then constipation can result. Continue with your present eating pattern but add the following; start the day with a wholegrain rolled oat muesli, have wholegrain bread for lunch and make sure you have either brown rice or wholemeal pasta with your dinner.

Another possibility is that your protein levels may be too low. Make sure you have dairy, soy, eggs, or cheeses at each meal of the day. Alternatively you can have a combination of legumes and brown rice or wholemeal pasta. Finally avoid tea, coffee, cola, and milo as these drinks can sometimes cause this problem.

Differences between rices
I have a question about brown rice versus basmati rice. I know brown rice is wholegrain but is it such a problem to instead eat the long grain basmati rice?

Brown rice provides high levels of fibre, B vitamins, zinc, and other essential nutrients that white rice whether basmati or not just cannot supply. However, you will be pleased to know that you can get brown basmati rice, it’s a bit more expensive but worth trying.

Vicki Martin ND. Nutritionist, Naturopath


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