Nutrition and Dietetics expert, Parvathy Radhakrishnan answers readers’ questions on nutrition. Get your doubts cleared and see them featured on our FAQ page every Wednesday.

This week’s answers:

1. Dear Madam, I am suffuring from constipation & suggest give me good diet.
My weight – 67 kgs Height- 5.2 My age – 38 Years
A high fibre diet including whole grains, fruits and lots of vegetables is needed to correct constipation. Also lack of exercise and not enough intake of water can contribute to constipation. So you need to exercise at least 40 minutes a day and drink 2 glasses of water first thing in the morning and a glass before and after each meal. Avoid oily foods, nuts and high starch foods and sweets.

Send in your questions on nutrition to bawarchieditor@sify.com now! And don’t forget to include `Nutrition FAQ` in the subject line. Please provide complete details of your age, sex, height, weight, location and medication if any, if a diet is required for specific ailments.

Several readers have queried me regarding flaxseeds and its use in our daily meals. So, let me share with my readers the benefits of this seed and how it can be included in our diet.

Flaxseeds have gained popularity as being beneficial in treating a variety of diseases from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder to cancers of breast, prostate and colon, and heart diseases. Although more research is needed to establish conclusive evidence that flaxseeds may be prescribed for the several more illnesses, one thing we can be sure – That is, flaxseeds are the highest plant source with omega 3 fatty acids and they are very high in lignans and mucilages (soluble fibre).

Here is how we can make the best use of flaxseeds.
1. Flaxseeds absorb water 10 to 14 times its weight because of its high fibre content. This behaviour makes it an effective laxative in those who have constipation, gives bulking effect, reduces hunger in those trying to eat less and helps in binding with and removing fats and cholesterol. Take one tablespoon of ground flaxseeds mixed with 5 to 10 ounces of water to curb hunger between meals or as a therapy to reduce cholesterol or blood sugar. The high fibre content also makes flaxseeds a good ingredient in foods that would control blood sugar.

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If your cholesterol levels are high, the first thing you should do is to consult a physician as some diseases raise cholesterol levels in the blood, especially blood LDL (a type of blood lipid which has higher percentage of cholesterol in it) levels. If no such disease is present, diet changes are advised.

Approaches for lowering LDL levels through dietary modification

Include these nutrients in your diet to see positive changes in your cholesterol levels:

1. Increase intake of dietary calcium: Some studies show a fall in LDL cholesterol when calcium intake increases from 400mg/day to 1000mg/day. The calcium binds with the fatty acids in the intestine and is excreted out. Thus, cholesterol is prevented from being absorbed in the blood.

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Nowadays, the lifestyle and the surge in standard of living make travelling an accolade to everyday mundane activities of home and profession. Be it a family tour or a professional one, ‘travelling’ always sounds enthralling. According to the Indian Tour Operators Promotion Council, hundreds of thousands of Indian nationals travel abroad every year to explore foreign lands for varied reasons. Not only outbound travel but domestic tourism is also a flourishing practice in India.

But travelling may not always be welcomed by many people owing to a number of causes, health issues being one of the prime reasons. The current scenario holds a grim picture with many lifestyle-related disorders like obesity, diabetes and heart ailments on the upsurge. The statistical data on prevalence of diabetes illustrates that 40.9 million people suffered from diabetes in the year 2007 and the incidence is projected to increase to 69.9 million by 2025.

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After digestion in small intestine the food (mostly fibre, minerals and water) enters large intestine or colon through ileum. This is pushed through the colon with the help of the colon muscles. The mucosal layer of colon absorbs water and minerals as food is pushed through the colon. This leads to the formation of solid stools by the time it reaches rectum. If the movement of food is slow due to slow contraction of colon muscles, more water is absorbed and the stool becomes hard causing constipation.

Causes of constipation

Suppressing the urge to defecate

Diet low in fibre

Lack of exercise or physical activity

Low intake of liquids

Dehydration

Medication

Changes in daily routine like travel, pregnancy, menstruation, ageing etc

Certain foods

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Nutrition and Dietetics expert, Parvathy Radhakrishnan answers readers’ questions on nutrition. Get your doubts cleared and see them featured on our FAQ page every Wednesday.

This week’s answers:

I am 54 years old and weigh around 51 kgs. My cholesterol level
is 250. I do not have any other problem except thyroid for which i
take tablets every day. Please advise me the diet i should
plan to reduce cholesterol level. I walk around 3 kms every day
after i came to know of my cholesterol level two months back.
Regards Rajalakshmi

I assume you have hypothyroidism. This condition increases cholesterol. You will have to manage it primarily by medication. As far as food is concerned avoid fatty fried foods, animal fats, commercial snacks, restrict eating at restaurants. Also eat more high fibre whole grain foods, vegetables, fruits (instead of sweets/desserts). Continue your walking. Please see this site for more info on cholesterol reduction.

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Many people believe that the crux of a healthy diet is the exclusion of unhealthy foods. However, rather than just focusing on cutting things out, a good diet should also incorporate an increased intake of nutritious, health-boosting foods. Fortunately, there are many foods out there which will improve health and wellbeing as well as protect against future illness. Here are 10 of the best foods for healthy eaters to stock up on.

Nuts

Although nuts are high in calories and so should be eaten in moderation, the calories in nuts come mainly from their high levels of monounsaturated fats, which are extremely good for health. Eating foods rich in these fats can help reduce bad cholesterol and lower your risk of heart disease and stroke. As well as their heart benefits, nuts are also a great source of protein and are packed with fibre, antioxidants, fatty acids and vitamins and minerals. It is worth noting that peanuts are actually legumes and have different nutritional properties from tree nuts, but there are many other good options to pick from including Brazil nuts, cashews, walnuts, pecans and pistachios.

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Weight loss remains a major health issue for many of us despite the onslaught of weight loss tips and medical aids that surround us.

Most of the contemporary solutions border on providing unrealistic weight loss solutions or are too time-consuming. Drastic dieting is never recommended since it can leave you malnourished and damage your body in a nonredeemable manner. In order to lose weight naturally, i.e. without using any magic pill or gymming like a maniac, use the following tips:

Consider whole grains as your friends
Try to eat a larger concentration of foods made from whole grains (rotis, whole wheat breads, cookies and oatmeal) rather than refined or processed foods. Whole grains are more complex for the body to metabolize, taking a longer digestion route. This keeps the body busy for a longer period, ensuring that energy is released throughout the day. This helps to decrease the frequency and intensity of hunger pangs, particularly the sugar cravings.

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Got a health query? Ask our experts

High fibre diets, surprisingly, may not protect gut health, but they do heighten your chances of developing diverticulosis.

The condition is characterised by small bulging pouches forming on the inner lining of large intestine, trapping bits of stool and becoming infected.

Symptoms include abdominal cramping, constipation and diarrhoea, linked with of difficulty in passing stools. More serious complications include collection of pus in the pelvis, colon obstruction and rectal bleeding.

Dietary fibre can keep diseases at bay

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A diet rich in slowly digested carbohydrates, such as whole grains, legumes and other high-fiber foods, significantly reduces markers of inflammation associated with chronic disease among overweight and obese adults, say researchers.

Such a `low-glycemic-load` diet, which does not cause blood-glucose levels to spike, also increases a hormone that helps regulate the metabolism of fat and sugar.

A new study by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, which involved 80 healthy Seattle-area men and women – half of normal weight and half overweight or obese – found that among overweight and obese study participants, a low-glycemic-load diet reduced a biomarker of inflammation called C-reactive protein by about 22 percent.

Understanding the glycemic index

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