With summer on its way now is the time to start looking at your eating habits and seeing what you can do to be a happier, healthier you.
Tired and bingeing Questions One: I am trying to lose weight. I don’t eat a lot of red meat, I don’t eat fish or eggs. I’m always tired and no matter how much sleep I get I still seem to be tired - I work from 7am-1pm five days a week and I am usually in bed by 10 every night. I have been told I could be anaemic. What could I get or eat that could help with my iron and energy levels??
Question Two: I think I eat a pretty balanced diet with a lot of veges and grains. The problem is that everyday around 2pm I get huge cravings for lollies or chocolate and it has started taking a large chunk of my weekly income. I have tried a variety of things to curb this such as eating fruit instead but it never seems to help. Do you have any ideas?
In both of these cases more protein and iron is required in the first half of the day. Breakfast is essential and needs to be a large helping of protein on toast (this is NOT peanut butter, avocado, banana, marmite, vegemite, or jam). Have a couple of slices of wholegrain toast with eggs, or bacon, or pate, or cottage cheese, or ham, or tofu luncheon or beans. Top this with tomatoes, avocado, or beansprouts as these will help to improve the iron absorption. Breakfast must be eaten by 9am at the latest. At lunch have a large helping of brown rice (must be brown, not white) with a good helping of one of the following proteins: meat, chicken, eggs, fish, ricotta cheese, tofu, beans, or lentils, and top with a good helping of vegetables or salad. Cook enough brown rice to last you two or three days. Lunch must be eaten by 2pm at the latest.
By strictly sticking to this regime, you will both notice a big change in your energy levels, an improvement in your iron levels, and a marked reduction in afternoon bingeing.
Spirulina junkie I've read heaps about spirulina and am currently drinking spirulina smoothies like crazy, but I read somewhere, it's not advisable to drink them if you have hyperthyroidism. Recently my blood tests for this came back normal, am I ok to continue my new found addiction?
Spirulina is a fresh water algae, so contains very little or no iodine. Carry on with your healthy addiction. Someone who doesn’t know the product very well has put it on the “not to use’’ list by mistake.
Blood type diet I'm now five days into a blood type diet (I'm O+) and have eliminated dairy, wheat and potatoes from my diet according to the plan. I'm exercising around three times a week doing vibra-train and trying to keep my fluids up. I'm also taking glutamine (1000mg) and kelp (1000mg) a day to try to give my body an extra oomph in weight loss. I understand it can take time, but I'm not sure I'm seeing results. My diet consists of a lot of tuna and salads, egg for brekkie, green tea and I've been really good at sticking to it. Have you got any ideas on how I can help myself to get trimmer?
The egg, tuna, and salad are excellent but the rest of this diet sounds very unbalanced unfortunately. You may have lowered not only your intake of dairy, wheat, and potatoes, but also your nutrient levels, which in turn may be lowering your metabolic rate and causing a ‘plateau’ in your weight. Add some brown rice, or corn or rice wafers (such as Healtheries Natural Rice Wafers) to your meals to put some carbohydrate in. Keep the green tea levels down to one or two a day, as these will deplete your iron and calcium levels, and also unbalance your blood sugar levels. Have water or other herbal and fruit teas instead. Use low fat soy milk or soy yoghurt as a snack or drink to make sure your calcium levels are maintained.
Exercise will need to be increased to half an hour per day minimum, hopefully an hour per day. Don’t get on the scales as these will only register the weight gain of your muscles which weigh heavier than your fat. The best guide is your clothing, when this gets looser you will know you are on the right track.
Bored snacking I tend to eat when I'm bored. I almost always eat my lunch and when I get home I have two biscuits for afternoon tea, usually with a glass of juice or milk (half trim). After about an hour however I find that I need to eat something again, which usually ends up being chips or salami. I am not hungry, but just seem to need to eat. What are some quick and healthy snack foods that I can eat? Is there anyway that I can stop these annoying cravings?
Firstly check your breakfast. If this is balanced, it will go a long way to helping keep your blood sugar levels stable. Ditch the crunchy cereal and toast and marmite, and go for muesli or porridge, or eggs and tomato on toast. Before morning tea comes (about 10am or earlier) have either a large glass of spirulina (Healtheries Spirulina powder 1 teaspoon) with apple or pineapple juice, or a large glass of Aussie Bodies Perfect Protein powder with low fat soy or cows milk. Do the same again at about 2 or 3 o’clock in the afternoon. These drinks help to keep blood sugar levels stable and prevent cravings occurring at snack time.
Glad to hear you eat your lunch; make sure it includes a good helping of protein (eggs, chicken, cottage cheese, lean meat, and tinned fish) along with wholegrain bread and salad. Avoid tea, coffee, cola, and milo. These drinks unsettle the blood sugar levels and cause cravings.
Coeliac disease I'm 14 and last year I was diagnosed with having coeliac disease. Do you have any ideas for breakfast that are gluten-free? Healtheries Simple breakfast cereals are all gluten free – Muesli (Apricot & Coconut or Tropical), or Hot Cereal (Apricot & Raisin). Alternatively eggs and tomatoes, tinned fish and beansprouts, or cottage cheese and avocado on gluten free toast made with Healtheries Simple Bread Mix. If you go to www.healtheries.co.nz and click on the Foods tab and go to Simple – that will give you the entire range, there are also gluten free recipes available.
Vegetarian blues I am a vegetarian and I live at a boarding hostel in Nelson. The hostel won't listen to me about getting rid of the fatty pastry deep-fried foods to replace them with actual good nutritional food for the vegetarians there, this is really annoying but I have no idea what to do. Would you have any suggestions of something I can get them to make for vegetarians? I have a liver problem and am also almost overweight, which worries me because of the lack of good healthy food.
I suggest you give the Boarding Hostel managers and caterers a copy of the Ministry of Health booklet - Eating For Healthy Vegetarians, available by phoning them and giving them the MOH code: HE1519, or go to www.cph.co.nz/files/NUT0028.pdf and download the booklet. Also refer them to www.vegsoc.org/caterers/index.html which is the British Vegetarian Society pages for catering to vegetarians, it’s full of good ideas and recipes. To help your liver problem you may want to try Healtheries Liver Aid which contains the herb Milk Thistle, this seems to be helpful for sluggish livers. Healtheries Lecithin Capsules are also recommended too, these seem to help with fat digestion and metabolism in the liver. If you go to www.healtheries.co.nz, it will give you more information on these supplements.
Just can’t stomach food I constantly feel ill after meals. Every time I eat anything I feel like I want to be sick. I have to eat a lot of antacids to help. I really want to stop this. I have had to cut a lot of things out of my diet such as dairy and anything oily. I was wondering if this is typical of an allergy and if I should go get a test, or if it is something else.
Don’t waste any more time worrying about this and go straight to your doctor and have some blood tests and a scan of your abdomen also.
The last 5kgs I am looking to lose that annoying last 5kgs that won't seem to budge! I am 165cm tall and my weight varies from 70-73kgs (my goal weight is 63-65). Last time I visited my doctor he said I had a BMI of 25 which was ok. However, I seem to be carrying all of my excess weight around my mid-section and I am very keen to tone my tummy down for summer. I play netball or touch three times a week and have started walking 45 minuntes in the mornings Mon-Fri. What exercises would you suggest to tone the mid section? Also I find I get tired very easily, especially during the day as I am sitting for 80% of it at a computer. What foods do you suggest to keep energy levels constant? If you are on any kind of medication (including asthma inhalers, oral contraceptives etc.) then get your medication reviewed as it may be causing your problem.
If you aren’t on any medication then the next thing to check is your intake of tea, coffee, cola, and milo. Keep well away from all of these as they can upset your blood sugar levels and make you tired. Try Healtheries Liquorice Tea instead or take Healtheries Spirulina Tablets to boost your energy levels.
Next item to check is your breakfast and lunch. If these first two meals aren’t balanced and healthy then your energy levels in the afternoon will be very low, your metabolic rate will then decline and you will find it very difficult to lose that weight. Make sure you are having a big bowl of muesli (Healtheries Bircher Muesli) with fruit and low fat yoghurt for breakfast, and a large wholemeal sandwich with protein and salad every lunchtime. Finally, go to the Fitness Programme part of the nzgirl website and click on Summer Shape Up. The curl ups and oblique curls are the exercises for you.
Post work slump I have recently started working full time and can’t find the energy to do anything else after a day’s work! I work in a cafe and sometimes miss lunch when it is very busy, therefore I’m not eating till around 3.30. I was wondering if you could tell me some great energy foods that I could include in my meal, especially breakfast to keep me going! I’m a Type 1 Diabetic so nothing with too much sugar please!
You don’t say what time you start work, but it is absolutely essential that you have a large meal before you start work e.g. Muesli or porridge with fruit and yoghurt, or eggs / bacon and tomato on wholegrain toast. Then before the rush hour take a break – even if it is between 10 or 11am and eat another meal then, even if you aren’t hungry – a large salad with lots of protein or wholemeal salad and protein sandwich. Asking your body to work hard on no food is going to really wear you down and run your health down sooner or later. Even though you may eat later in the afternoon, it is too late.
I suggest you have a Spirulina Smoothie made with a teaspoon of Healtheries Spirulina Powder combined with tomato or carrot juice with your breakfast and lunch. Spirulina helps to balance the blood sugar levels and can help to keep your energy levels up. You may want to discuss this problem with a dietitian who specialises in diabetes.
Going vegan I have been a vegetarian for three years with no troubles as I eat well. I have recently decided to go vegan (gradually) and wondered if you have any tips, so I can still get all the things I need.
In deciding to become vegan you will really have to be on the ball with your food every day, because it is very easy to become nutritionally deficient with this type of diet. The main nutrients which will quietly decline and leave you with permanent damage if you are not careful are Iron, Calcium, and Vitamin B12. Low iron levels affect mental status and cause depression and low energy levels. Low calcium levels over time lead into painful osteoporosis. Low vitamin B12 levels lead into permanent nervous system damage which causes difficulty walking and mental decline.
You will need to become very friendly with soy products – yoghurt, tofu, tempeh, soy cheese, soybeans, soymilk, etc. Soy is the only vegetable that has reasonable supplies of iron and calcium. You will need to consume soy in some form every day. Make sure all your bread, rice, noodles, pasta, flour, etc is wholemeal or brown. White refined foods lack the B vitamins that you will need as you won’t be getting it from meats or dairy.
Also check out my article on nzgirl website – How to be a Vegetarian – and read the bit about combining foods to create a complete protein. Finally, to be on the safe side arrange to have yearly checks on iron and vitamin B12 status, and get a heel bone density check (your local pharmacy will know about this) every year also.
Always hungry I’m 50kg and 160cm. I’m always hungry. I have the appetite of an average rugby guy or two guys. I eat when I’m bored, cold, hot and even sleepy. I don’t eat much chocolate, I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables however I’m forever tired and feeling drained. Is it abnormal for me to eat this much? What is causing me to be tired all the time? Is there any plan for me to follow?
If you aren’t on any type of medication which may be causing your tiredness, then I suggest you check your protein status. Protein foods include eggs, chicken, cheese, yoghurt, meat, and fish. Try having a large serving of one of these at every meal of the day (not just dinner). Also avoid tea, coffee, cola, and milo – these drinks deplete nutrients because of their caffeine content. Healtheries B Complex Supreme tablets may also help with this tiredness. Finally, do consider going to the doctor and getting a blood test for iron levels.
Morning runs I usually run for about an hour in the afternoons, but would like to start running in the mornings before school instead. Could you suggest a quick breakfast I can eat when I wake up - before I exercise, and how long should I wait after eating to do the exercise? You may want to try a whey protein smoothie first before you run, and then have a bowl of muesli afterwards. Generally good sports nutrition advises that you need something nutritious before exercising that isn’t going to cause discomfort, but then you will need carbohydrate straight after exercise to replenish your stores. Try Aussie Bodies Perfect Protein powder mixed with Apple Juice before your run, and then when you return, have a bowl of Healtheries Bircher Muesli with fruit and yoghurt.
It would be best to soak this in hot water while you are out for your run and then it will be easy to digest and quick and easy to eat before you head out to school. If you think your digestive system can handle it you may try this before you run also.
Vicki Martin RD, ND. Nutritionist, Naturopath
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your eating habits and seeing what you can do to be a happier, healthier you.
The egg, tuna, and salad are excellent but the rest of this diet sounds very unbalanced unfortunately. You may have lowered not only your intake of dairy, wheat, and potatoes, but also your nutrient levels, which in turn may be lowering your metabolic rate and causing a ‘plateau’ in your weight. Add some brown rice, or corn or rice wafers (such as Healtheries Natural Rice Wafers) to your meals to put some carbohydrate in. Keep the green tea levels down to one or two a day, as these will deplete your iron and calcium levels, and also unbalance your blood sugar levels. Have water or other herbal and fruit teas instead. Use low fat soy milk or soy yoghurt as a snack or drink to make sure your 
Firstly check your breakfast. If this is balanced, it will go a long way to helping keep your blood sugar levels stable. Ditch the crunchy cereal and toast and marmite, and go for muesli or porridge, or eggs and tomato on toast. Before morning tea comes (about 10am or earlier) have either a large glass of spirulina (Healtheries Spirulina powder 1 teaspoon) with apple or pineapple juice, or a large glass of Aussie Bodies Perfect Protein powder with low fat soy or cows milk. Do the same again at about 2 or 3 o’clock in the afternoon. These drinks help to keep blood sugar levels stable and prevent cravings occurring at snack time.
In deciding to become vegan you will really have to be on the ball with your food every day, because it is very easy to become nutritionally deficient with this type of diet. The main nutrients which will quietly decline and leave you with permanent damage if you are not careful are Iron, Calcium, and Vitamin B12. Low iron levels affect mental status and cause depression and low energy levels. Low calcium levels over time lead into painful osteoporosis. Low vitamin B12 levels lead into permanent nervous system damage which causes difficulty walking and mental decline.
