This page contains answers to many frequently asked questions. If you have a query please feel free to contact us, as the answer to your question is sure to help others too.
46 frequently asked questions found
My 4yr old boy refuses to try new foods. I worry that he isn’t eating all the nutrients that he needs to grow with. What can I do?
Keep a diary for a week and you will soon see where he is getting his kilojoules from. Try mixing new foods in with those that are already familiar. For instance, if he will eat a cheese toasted sandwich try adding crushed pineapple to it. If he eats mashed potato try adding parsley or cheese or carrot to this. If he will eat ice cream try buying frozen yoghurt instead. If he won’t eat vegetables cooked try them raw in a salad, as coleslaw or as part of a small homemade burger. Try brown toast before brown bread. Work out which class of foods (i.e. food group) that he won’t eat. Is it meat- dairy- bread and cereals-fruit and vegetables? Also look at some of his snacks. If he will eat chips but not potato it may be time to run out of chips. If you keep a food record you will have more to talk over with us or your local dietitian.
My 10mth old daughter seems to gag on lumpy foods and I’m afraid she may never stop eating purees. What can I do?
Children need to chew in order to develop strong teeth, gums and jaw. Introduce lumpy food around 9mths of age. Start with stewed apple as when cooked this can be taken from a puree/sauce consistency through to mashed and sliced/translucent stage.
When at the final sliced / translucent stage place a piece of this apple about the size of a pea onto a spoon with some of the apple juice. It may pass in and out of your baby’s mouth back onto the spoon a couple of times (rather like posting a letter) before they finally swallow. After that it becomes a lot easier. Moving from the puree to the mashed stage is easy using vegetables such as potato, carrot, parsnip and spinach. Adding gravy to solid foods can also help. To introduce cooked meat flake it and stir into mashed potato. By 12 months most children can hold onto a small sausage or crust and feed themselves.
Why is it that after a very good meal at night I’m still hungry and picking after tea? What can be done?
This is quite a common concern. When people are rushing around all day their mind is focused on their work and so they take less time over their meals and often don’t recognize that they are hungry until they get home. Try having a berry or banana milkshake (using calcium enriched low fat milk, vanilla fruit and some sweetener) before dinner.
Make sure that your evening meal contains plenty of vegetables, pasta, rice or potato and a small piece of lean meat. An hour or two after dinner plan to have a supper such as a piece of fruit or thin toast with a milk drink before bedtime. You will not only sleep well but be less tempted to pick at high fat snacks throughout the night.
I’m convinced that skipping meals and eating late at night is why I am overweight. But I get so busy at work that it is 3pm before I even notice lunch has gone by. What can I do?
These are certainly common reasons for weight gain. Begin with a substantial breakfast of cereal, fruit and yoghurt. Add toast if you are unable to have something to eat mid morning.
Try to take a packed lunch that includes some protein rich food e.g. a roll filled with tuna, cheese or egg and salad and some fruit. You may need to set your watch or computer to 12.30 or 1pm to remind you to grab that bite to eat. Be sure to take some fruit for afternoon tea and if possible have a milk drink as well. Keep a drink bottle handy and remember to refill this throughout the day. If you take the trouble to eat well throughout the day then you will accomplish your tasks in half the time, more accurately and with time and energy spare to fit in a good walk or gym session on the way home.
Is it true that it is harder for overweight people to lose weight as they gets older?
Generally yes. This is because as organs such as the liver, gall bladder and pancreas age they tend to secrete less pancreatic enzymes, bile acids and salts than they did when they were younger. Therefore dietary sugar and fat are digested less efficiently by these secretions leading to weight gain. As people age they may exercise less and drink less water. If these factors are associated with lifestyles that encourage more travel, social eating and drinking away from home (where there is less control over meal preparation) then the likelihood of weight gain (particularly around the abdomen) increases.
What is a dietitian?
A registered professional, trained in the science of nutrition and diet therapy, qualified to work in areas that require nutritional assessment and counselling. A dietitian may work in a variety of settings ranging from clinical, community nutrition and sports or medical representatives to the food industry, research and education. Effective nutritional management strategies, based upon current scientific evidence, are used to help individuals or groups to improve their health through nutrition.