Farewell do's and don'ts

In this, the last of my columns, I thought it would be opportune to leave you with a few simple pointers that I hope will help you get the best from nutrition.

1. Don’t diet — tempting as it may be, any diet that means a sharp drop in your calorie intake will, of course, result in weight loss. But, and this is the crux, how you eat after the diet is key. When losing weight, eat mindfully afterwards as the metabolism makes it more difficult to lose weight next time. Instead of dieting, learn how to eat so that you nourish yourself without getting into weight problems down the line.

2. Mind who you see – there are any number of alternative therapists out there who will happily “diagnose” you of deficiencies, allergies and the like. They may be very well meaning but if they use a machine to test “cell resistance” (often developed, they say, for Nasa), claim they “can just tell” what’s wrong or use any spurious tests, then tread carefully.

3. Combine the food groups — eat little and often always eating a little protein with complex carbohydrates. If you are unsure about food groups then search out lists online or in a good nutrition book. This way of eating promotes energy and reduces appetite (and cravings) as well as easy weight management.