Nutrition and healthy eating

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• March 4, 2008 2:15 p.m.

  After 50 years as an omnivore, last year I switched to a pH balanced, plant-based diet in hopes of avoiding knee replacement surgery when all else had failed. Today, I am healthier, slimmer, and better-looking than I was 10 years ago. I would appreciate information on fine-tuning the pH balanced diet--it's hard to even get accurate information on the pH readings of various fruits & vegetables. Also, since I have found that avoiding nightshades really helps wiht the arthritis in my knees, it's hard to come up with interesting meals--any suggestions for recipes? Thanks.

  - Deborah

• February 27, 2008 8:16 p.m.

  are iron supplements effective or is most of the mineral simply eliminated by your body? what foods can naturally help your body absorb iron?

  - michelle

• February 27, 2008 12:43 p.m.

  I got married in october. I'm the main cook, and have been trying to cook well--low-fat, high-fiber, good balance of fruits/veggies. My concern is my husband--although he's lost 10 lbs., he's exhibiting signs of metabolic syndrome. Any advice there?

  - Sigrid

• February 27, 2008 12:35 p.m.

  After two years, the best diagnosis I can get is "IBS". I'm at the chart what you eat stage. The problem is that I just read that it takes 72 hours to get from one end of the digestive tract to another. Is that correct? I thought it was 48. (sometimes it seems like four minutes). I need the correct information in order to know what foods aggravate my condition.

  - Julie Ratt

• February 27, 2008 11:29 a.m.

  canola oil is it good for you

  - ann

• February 27, 2008 9:11 a.m.

  I am on 1500 cc fluid restriction..BP under control W/medication. My question: Is sea salt and Morton's Lite salt permitted in moderate amounts in seasoning?

  - Virginia Scott

• February 27, 2008 6:33 a.m.

  Last year I quit drinking all forms of Soda waters, Diet or Regular. I quit cold turkey after someone told me that they contained 16 teaspoons of sugar in each can of regular Soda's. I have felt better and started to loose weight. To combat the caffeine withdrawal I kept drinking coffee and tea. Then with the vote of confidence of not drinking any sodas I felt I gained enough will power to make small changes to my diet. I have been on a reduced fat diet for 3 months and have lost some more weight. It's hard to explain it but since I quit drinking sodas I don't have any more cravings to eat fast food. The first thing you did was supersize your order and get that LARGE drink. I work shift work so the convenience of getting fast food was way too easy. I'm glad I took the first step to quit one thing in my life that has escalated into me quitting other bad habits. Please try to change one thing and stick with it, this will give you the confidence you need to change another thing tomorrow.

  - Pat L

• February 26, 2008 6:03 p.m.

  I would love to see the issue of emotional eating addressed. I find that when I am stressed, I eat and eat and of course there is nothing healthy that goes into my mouth at that time. Besides exercise (the "standard" recommendation), what else can we do to overcome those especially stressful or difficult times without stuffing our face?

  - Lauri

• February 26, 2008 4:20 p.m.

  Anything that I take that heightens my body, referring to vitamins and some anti-anxiety perscriptions that I've taken like Zoloft and Effexor, all make me WEAK, all my joints hurt especially down in my hips and lower back tail bone area, and i dont know what to make of it? I asked my doctor and he doesnt know! I asked a pharmacist and HE DOESNT KNOW! any thoughts!?

  - Brett

• February 26, 2008 3:22 p.m.

  I really like this new site. I have always been interested in nutrition, but only sporadically, have applied good nutritional habits. About 6 years ago I developed acid reflux to the point I was prescribed medication. When I went off the med. it came back. 2 months ago I had a complete physical and was borderline diabetic. I started eating high fiber foods, lots of fruits and vegetables, and have not even had to take so much as an OTC antacid pill since. Pretty amazing! I hope it also will reduce my cholesterol and hypertension over time.

  - Donna

• February 26, 2008 2:18 p.m.

  I have celiac disease; I was diagnosed several months ago, so I'm still trying to work through deciphering food labels to figure out what I can eat. This is complicated by the fact that I'm a college student, and our cafeteria doesn't exactly provide the most healthy options. What general guidelines can you suggest for planning a balanced diet?

  - NativeRose

• February 26, 2008 12:38 p.m.

  I am interested in much of what you suggested and the following: safe, digestive cleansing; balanced nutrition for the vegetarian; eliminating sugar from diet. Thank you.

  - Elizbeth W

• February 26, 2008 12:27 p.m.

  Will eating too much sugar affect sleep?

  - Barbara

• February 25, 2008 4:01 p.m.

  I've been gluten-free for six years, and recently discovered additional allergies (most likely due to my celiac disease). I now must avoid all dairy products, eggs, soy, and legumes (along with several lesser food allergies). I'm concerned about calcium and other micro-nutrients as I recently broke a hip. I'm 53. Do you have any thoughts on helping women with food allergies and celiac disease find ways to regain bone strength? Calcium supplementation was recently linked to heart disease in women over 55. Vitamin D supplementation often derives its sources from wheat or soybeans. Thank you so much!

  - Karina

• February 24, 2008 8:19 a.m.

  Thank you for the slideshow on the digestive system. As a non medical person, I found it very easy reading. Also want to ask if you grant permission to put a two or three line summary of such articles on a website, with credit and a link back to your page. and finally, also had an 18 month bout with weeping psoriasis, weeping eczyma, which despite the efforts of well know experts in the field, not only did not improve, but got worse. I finally improved, whether by coincidence or because of the change in diet, I don't know.

  - Ruth Graham.

• February 24, 2008 12:34 a.m.

  for at least 15 years I had been dealing with eczyma and extreme acid reflux (daily). About a year ago, I decided to start eating more natural and less processed foods. I started by cutting out ALL foods with High Fructose Corn Syrup. Within a couple weeks I noticed that my acid reflux had disappeared and within about two months my eczyma had gone away too. After a year neither condition has reappeared. I have also lost 20 pounds. Are there any studies that link HFCS to either skin and/or stomach ailments like these.

  - T Smith