Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Greenfields]

I think its all about balance really.  I used to be vegetarian and have gone through periods of veganism too.  But at present, I eat oily fish twice a week and some meat usually once a week or a couple times over 2 weeks.  However it's always nice to find vegan dishes to cook as a change too.

[Greenfields]

Saw the nutritionist today - a really nice kind lady and very very generous with her time. She also shared her menopause story - which really helped and I think that's one of the reasons why she wanted to help me so much - and I feel blessed that she was so kind.

She has suggested that I try a wheat free diet, increase my vegetable intake, increase my red meat intake (I rarely eat it), make bone broth, eat more foods with tryptophan in them, make my own home made muesli, use full fat milk (to make sure I get all the fat soluble vitamins that get removed in semi-skimmed milk) and take the following supplements: fish oil (for Omega 3's), sublingual B12 spray (I think it was to help my nervous system but can't remember), magnesium supplement (to help keep me calm) and a probiotic to support my bowels (she thinks I may have some candida but also said that strengthening my bowels will support my immune system) - she also very kindly offered to apply her discount to the supplements as she knows I'm living off my savings and trying to conserve money given my situation.  She is going to send me the details and then, if I'm comfortable with it, order the supplements and have them sent to me.

She said my diet was very good but to avoid using margarine type olive spread (use butter instead) and to eat grains like quinoa - she gave me lots of useful suggestions and is sending me all the details as well.

All the things she suggested made sense to me.  My lovely GP has agreed to a full blood test so I'll find out the vitamin levels in my blood and the nutritionist said we can maybe add in something else if needed - like a Vitamin D supplement.

She's also a big fan of getting nutrients through one's food - so the supplements she suggested were for good reasons. 

I will have 2 follow up appointments with her - 1 in a months time probably.  Left feeling very happy and am going to try her suggestions and see how that goes I think.  I'm not sure about the B12 supplement - just reading around on the web and I'm not sure whether to take it or not - but all the other supplements (the fish oil, probiotic and magnesium) make sense and I really liked the fact that she focused on food and what was going into my diet rather than taking lots of supplements and she gave me lots of suggested alternatives to eat.

A lot of what she said chimed with what I knew from studying ayurveda (which is the diet and lifestyle practice allied with yoga) and also with what a friend who is qualified in this area also suggested - how important it is to have healthy saturated fats and how these can support the body.

[Greenfields]

Also meant to mention that she said the multivit I was taking wasn't that great - so I'm not going to continue taking it.  Better to get my minerals and vits through food as much as I can.

[Dancinggirl]

Greenfields - sounds like a good session.  A vegan diet can be too restrictive and it's difficult to ensure you get all the nutrients you need. I was wondering about vitamin B12 for you as you mentioned you didn't have much meat.  I am a life vegetarian but eat dairy and eggs so I know I need to watch my B12 intake as it's easy to become low. B12 is very important so I make a Marmite gravy with my vegetable meals using the vegetable water - absolutely love it.  I look on eggs as a vitamin pill as well  - if you do some research online you'll discover that eggs contain so many wonderful things - a real super food. If I were you I'd definitely use B12 and Vitamin D supplements to increase your energy.
So pleased she said to eat butter not margarine -- I do love butter and one does need some fat or the body won't process certain vitamins properly. Let us know how you get on.  DG x

[Greenfields]

Thanks DG - I'm not actually vegan but I haven't regularly eaten a lot of meat - I eat oily fish and dairy.  And I'm going to eat more meat.
I think the information around fats is really interesting - for a long time people were told to eat low fat foods and margarine instead of full fats and butter.  However, I knew from my own research that the body needs fats in moderation and its much better to eat butter etc.  The nutritionist pointed out that full fat milk has fat soluble vitamins in it - whereas in skimmed milk these are removed.  My friend who is qualified in ayurveda back in Canada also said to me to eat fats and more meat - so that also chimes in with what I heard and what I'd read.

It was also reassuring to know that my diet is good - I wanted that confirmation too.  And she spotted the wheat issue which I hadn't given much though too - I do eat a lot of wheat and while I've no need to follow a gluten free diet for coeliac disease, it is important to have variety in one's diet (I think) and so I am going to vary the grains I eat much more.  In Canada I used to eat a lot of quinoa but got out of the habit when I moved back to the UK - so am going to vary my diet more again.

[GeordieGirl]

I am a life vegetarian but eat dairy and eggs so I know I need to watch my B12 intake as it's easy to become low. B12 is very important so I make a Marmite gravy with my vegetable meals using the vegetable water - absolutely love it.  I look on eggs as a vitamin pill as well  - if you do some research online you'll discover that eggs contain so many wonderful things - a real super food. If I were you I'd definitely use B12 and Vitamin D supplements to increase your energy.

I've recently been in contact with an orthomolecular oncologist who advised supplementation with B12 as I've switched to a predominantly vegetarian diet. I'd never considered it before but wonder how I missed it!  An order has gone into Nature's Best this morning 

GG x