Nutritionist Vicki Martin helps out an nzgirl with hay fever problems, and another who drinks too much water...

Need to lose weight
I've been going on a diet lately, which has seen me eating 6 small meals throughout the day, drinking plenty of water, doing lots of exercise, and laying off the junk food. I’ve lost 3.5kg in less than 2 weeks! I've been keeping this up, but recently I've gained 2kgs back! I'm scared I’m doing something wrong, and I'm going to gain more weight. What am I doing wrong? Also, I’m 160cm and 53kg, can you please advice me on a good exercise and eating plan so I can lose around 5-7kgs in seven weeks?

The 2kg you have gained is most probably muscle which you have rightly earned due to all the exercise and good eating habits. Weighing yourself on the scales will no longer gauge your progress. Use a tape measure around your waist once a week on the same day at the same time as your new way of checking on things. Are your small meals balanced? Make sure you are getting a good helping of protein at three of these meals per day. Low protein levels will reduce your nutrient levels and metabolic rate and cause weight gain. Otherwise you are doing well as you are.

If you want to lose 5 to 7kg in seven weeks, be prepared to have all this weight go back on again with an extra 2 to 3kg added at the end, because human bodies are not designed to lose weight this fast. This kind of diet lowers your metabolic rate and causes tiredness and weight gain very soon after. The best way to lose weight and keep it off is to aim for 1 to 2kg per month. This way your metabolic rate stays high and you won’t put this weight on again.

This stinks!
I eat quite well, exercise and drink heaps of water but embarrassingly whenever I go to the toilet my poos smell really bad. What am I missing and what can I do to regain control over this?

You may not be missing something, it may be something that you are having too much of; coffee, tea, cola or milo? Find out what your favourite food or drink is and stop consuming it for a couple of weeks. Unfortunately some foods and drinks cause the proliferation of certain types of bacteria which cause bad smells. There will be something that you are consuming a lot of which is giving these bugs something to party on.

Once you have located the offending food and stopped it, then try a course of Healtheries Aloe Vera Juice for a cleansing program. This will help to get your gut bacteria back into healthy balance. Remember to always have wholegrain bread, brown rice, wholemeal pasta – as white versions of these cause the wrong types of bacteria to proliferate. Acidophilus yoghurt can also help to put the good bugs back into your digestive system.

Hay fever problems
I have an ongoing problem with hay fever that started a couple of years ago. I have tried most of the available antihistamines but they seem to have little effect. It doesn't seem to be seasonal, so I have put a lot of effort into reducing dust mite habitats in my flat but this still hasn't had much of an effect. Can mild food allergies aggravate hay fever? I also have an ongoing battle with acne and I have the classic chronic dark circles under my eyes. I would like to try cutting certain food groups from my diet to see if this improves my overall health. What are the most likely culprits that I should try first? Also, any recommendations as to supplements that might be useful would be great.

The most likely culprits which aggravate acne and
hayfever in my experience are tea, coffee, cola, milo, chocolate, milk and cheese. Try life without these for a good six weeks and see how you feel. This can often make a difference. Substitute acidophilus yoghurt, cottage cheese, and soymilk. Herbal and fruit teas, especially echinacea tea (Healtheries Echinacea and Vitamin C Tea), are good drink substitutes.  The supplements I recommend for hayfever are Healtheries Odourless Garlic, Vitamin C, and Horseradish, and for acne and dark circles under the eyes take Healtheries Zinc Plus and Healtheries B Complex Supreme.

Water overload
I’ve heard recently that drinking too much water is bad for you. I drink a lot of water and would probably get through at least six 750ml bottles in a day – is this doing my body any harm?

If you are doing a lot of exercise or have a physical job, then you may need this much water. But otherwise, yes you can have too much water, but it depends on how you feel. If you are always thirsty and really need it all then there is no problem, however if you feel you are swimming in the stuff and are in the toilet all the time weeing it out, then I would definitely cut it down. Frequent urination, especially at night, may be a signal that you are giving your kidneys too much work to do.

Another thing to consider is your body temperature. If you frequently feel cold and drink lots of cold water, then try having it warm or hot and reducing the quantity, this should make you feel a lot better and stop you stressing your kidneys out too much.

Cheese lover
I am trying to lose weight for summer and I have been to the gym regularly and have been eating well. However I have one thing I can’t drop and that is cheese. Are there any good alternatives out there and is low fat cheese actually any better for you?

Having a block of low fat cheese in your fridge doesn’t stop you from eating more of it, and so you lose all the benefits of having low fat cheese! It is good that you see weight problems down the track from consuming too much cheese, which is basically a large lump of saturated animal fat with some salt and a little bacterial culture thrown in for flavour. Sorry if that puts you off it, but you can start to get over your cheese habit if you think of it that way. Long term high levels of saturated fat will affect your artery and heart function and cause high levels of cholesterol.

In replacement you will need to think of other high protein foods that will do a similar job but with less fat – i.e. foods which will give you a good level of low fat protein and also calcium. The other cheeses which are better for health are cottage, ricotta, and quark (or quarg). Ricotta makes a good cheese for pasta dishes. These three cheeses are fermented cheeses which are lower in fat, and have a reasonable calcium content. Alternatively acidophilus or probiotic yoghurt will also give you a good protein and calcium content. Tinned tuna, salmon or sardines are recommended by the Heart Foundation and are high in calcium and protein; also when you do your shopping make sure you get a supply of lean meat such as shaved ham, beef, or pork. Good old fashioned boiled eggs can be a satisfying sandwich filler too.

Weight loss
I want to lose weight desperately; I’m not overweight but very uncomfortable with the way I look. The only thing I can do is go on a 500 calorie a day diet. Will this work? I’m so self conscious.

A 500 calorie a day diet will really set you up to be overweight. All a low calorie diet like this does is lower your nutrient intake, cause your metabolic rate to go down, cause a lot of tiredness, poor health, low immunity, and depression, and then cause food cravings, so please do abandon this course of action. If you are self conscious it is because you have a problem with your self confidence, not your weight or your body. It is time for you to see a counsellor as soon as you can, who can assist you to sort out these really bad feelings and help you to find some joy in life. Get a referral from your doctor straight away.

Body balance
I am 16-years-old and am recovering from anorexia. I have gained over 10kg and now weigh 56kg and I am 174 cm tall. This is a problem because all the weight I have gained has gone to my trunk, especially around my stomach area, while my arms and legs have remained really skinny and I now look very out of proportion. I try to eat a diet mainly consisting of lean protein, fruits, vegetables, whole-grains and healthy fats and I normally exercise between 30 - 90 minutes a day. Do you know what I could do to balance out my body a bit more?

Well done, you have got everything going for you. Do continue your healthy program.

Weight lifting and cycling are the best exercises for toning and building up puny arms and legs. Get a program from a gym and get going.

You will lose the tummy fat and everything will sort itself out with these types of exercise.

Appetite lost
I was recently sick and ever since getting better, I have not got back into eating well. I have gone off food all together. While I was sick I was living off toast and eggs and I lost a lot of weight due to that. I am an athlete and compete most weekends and train daily, but just can not get back into eating. Everything I try eating makes me feel unwell so have stuck with toast and eggs still. Any suggestions?

It is time to go to the doctor and get some blood tests straight away. Ask for a full blood count and iron, ferritin (storage iron), and vitamin B12 levels to be checked. I would suggest you get some iron supplements (Healtheries Iron and Vitamin C) and Vitamin B12 injections. These can really help to pick you up after illness, which is vital in your case since you have such a busy training schedule. Without these you may get yourself into a real health pickle and find your immune system may no longer work as well as it could, and your energy levels will drop considerably.

As far as the food is concerned, believe it or not but eggs and toast may be preventing your digestive system from moving on to better things. I would suggest for a maximum of two days only – preferably a weekend when you are not working (and you must not train for these two days!), to have a diet of only cooked or tinned fruit, cooked vegetables, brown rice, and lots of miso soup (available at health food shops). Miso can really help to balance out the digestive system. By having two days of no protein and easy to digest cooked foods, you will give your digestive system a rest, and then will probably find your appetite will quickly recover. Finally, get Healtheries Super Multi Vitamin and Mineral tablets. These are high in B vitamins which really help to stimulate the appetite.

Vicki Martin ND. Nutritionist, Naturopath

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