DO you feel alone in your healthier eating efforts?
It’s helpful to get those you live with on board.
Dr Zoe Williams helps a reader whose father sweats excessively
It’s best to do this slowly, stopping buying one junk food item per grocery shop, and swapping one ingredient for another week by week.
There’s no need to tell the family that “we’re all going to eat less junk” – there’s a chance you’ll get resistance.
Avoid food rules as well, especially telling kids what foods are “good” or “bad”.
Focus on the positives of eating nourishing foods, rather than being negative, while gradually making crisps and sweets rare treats rather than daily staples.
Provide more healthy options – fill the fruit bowl, replace movie-night crisps with popcorn, ice cream with yoghurt and frozen berries, chocolate with frozen grapes.
Over time, the family will get used to the changes, and feeling the benefits will prevent them from complaining.
The NHS Better Health Healthier Families web page has lots of free information.
Here’s a selection of what readers asked this week . . .
Q: I READ your article about phimosis which I have suffered from for nearly a year.
I’m 86 and having treatment for prostate cancer, which at the moment is in remission.
At my age, should I have the phimosis seen to? It’s not causing me any problems.
A: PHIMOSIS is the medical name for a condition where the foreskin tightens, meaning it cannot retract.
It affects around one per cent of men so is not very common.
It does pose an increased risk of developing penile cancer if left, so it is worth speaking to your GP about it and seeing what they advise.
It’s thought it increases the risk because those with phimosis find it more difficult to clean the penis thoroughly.
Poor hygiene anywhere, especially the genitals, can lead to inflammation which can contribute to causing cancer.
It’s worth stressing that penile cancer is rare. In most cases, it is related to HPV, a group of viruses that are contracted through skin-to-skin contact.
Most people will have HPV at some point and it will not cause harm. The body tends to clear it within a couple of years.
But in some cases, it can lead to problems such as cancer. HPV is less likely to be an issue if people are not sexually active.
Fortunately, there are surgical and non-surgical treatments available for phimosis.
Antibiotics can help if there is an infection that’s causing the tightness, and steroid creams can soften the foreskin, which can help too.
AlamyA reader writes in about her father’s excessive sweating which is becoming unbearable for him[/caption]
Q: MY dad’s excessive sweating is very concerning. Whether he is working, walking or resting in his chair, his shirt is dripping wet – you could wring it out.
He is 74 and has suffered from type 2 diabetes for the past 30 years. He’s insulin-dependent and was recently diagnosed with emphysema.
His doctor has said his sweating is due to diabetes, so is this a degenerative part of the condition?
He never suffered these kinds of symptoms in the past.
It is becoming uncomfortable and unbearable for him, and as his only daughter, it is upsetting to see him this way.
A: IT sounds like your poor dad is having a really hard time of it so he’s fortunate to have a daughter who cares as you do.
Thirty years is a long time to have type 2 diabetes and over time it can result in nerve damage. For some people the nerves that manage how much we sweat stay permanently switched “on”.
Some things can be done though. It’s worth thinking about the fabrics your dad is wearing, because polyester and nylon are synthetic and can contribute to sweating.
Materials such as linen and cotton are natural and more breathable. One question I have for you is about how well your dad’s blood-glucose levels are managed.
Research shows that sweating caused by diabetes-related nerve damage can be improved by maintaining normal blood-glucose levels.
In your dad’s case, this could mean addressing some lifestyle factors, such as what he typically eats.
GettyAnother reader writes in about her recurring migraines[/caption]
Q: I AM a woman of 75 and have suffered migraines all through my adult life.
I used to have one or two a year, but I’ve now had nine severe migraines in the past two months.
They have followed the familiar pattern of an aura, then partial loss of vision, followed by severe head pain behind my eyes, which lasts 48 hours.
My GP is sympathetic and referred me to the transient ischemic attack (TIA) clinic. But the clinic has refused an appointment, saying my symptoms are clearly “just migraine”.
It prescribed 10mg amitriptyline nightly but this has had no effect.
A: IT is quite common for migraines to become milder or less frequent as we go beyond our fifties, so I’m sorry that you have experienced this.
It’s the job of neurology experts to analyse TIA clinic referrals and differentiate between possible symptoms of TIA (mini-stroke), which must be diagnosed and treated quickly, and other conditions such as migraines, which while disabling and worrying, do not necessitate the same level of urgency.
I understand why your GP referred you, because certain symptoms of migraine and TIA can overlap.
We are always very cautious if these symptoms are either new or appear out of the blue in people over 50.
Your GP may want to refer you to a headache clinic or neurology out- patient clinic instead, where the referral should be accepted, but the wait times can be quite long.
In the meantime, make sure you’ve had a blood test to check the erythrocyte sedimentation rate which measures inflammation and can help rule out temporal arteritis – a potentially sight-threatening condition which causes headaches and tends to mostly affect people over the age of 50.
If amitriptyline is not effective for you at 10mg your GP can increase the dose – or several alternative medicines can help to reduce the number and severity of migraine attacks.
Your GP can discuss these further with you.
If your symptoms are getting worse, changing, or concerning you, then always update your GP with what is new so they can reassess and consider if any further referrals or immediate tests are required.
Tip of the week
IF you’re struggling to make sure you drink enough water every day, there are a few ways you can increase your intake.
Have a big glass first thing when you wake up – put a glass by your toothbrush to remember – and have another big glass before meals.
Carrying a bottle with you will help but if you struggle to drink it, having water with meals and upon waking will contribute greatly to your overall intake.