Latest articles on Nutrition

Following a vegan diet in sport is becoming increasingly popular, partly due to the successes achieved by high profile vegan athletes, such as ultra-runner Scott Jurek, elite marathon runner Fiona Oakes, and triathlete Brendan Brazier. As with many controversies in sports nutrition, when it comes to athletic success on a vegan diet, the answers are not as obvious as you might think. Vegan athletes exclude all foods derived from animals, namely meat, eggs, dairy products, or foods containing...

Optimising your nutrition both before and during pregnancy will not only give your baby the best start in life but research suggests a healthy pregnancy diet also has long lasting effects that go well into childhood. Here are just a few key steps to supporting your reproductive health throughout all stages of pregnancy and beyond. Preconception If you are thinking about trying for a baby, it is vital to maintain good levels of a wide range of nutrients including vitamin D and folate. Vitamin...

Carb-loading is a term you’re likely to have heard before, but what does it mean? Do we really need to jump on the carb-bandwagon in order to excel, or is it just another diet myth? Should you really have an 'all-you-can-eat' pasta dinner the night before the marathon? The science

“Our body stores carbs in the form of glycogen in our muscles and liver. When we workout, our body needs energy. The easiest accessible way for the body to regain this energy is through our glycogen stores -...

IBS can have a significant impact on people's lives. The low FODMAP diet can help, but can you do this alone? The low FODMAP diet is scientifically shown to improve symptoms in over 75% of sufferers. However, it can be tricky to negotiate alone. So the best results are seen when sufferers have expert advice and support from a dietitian who specialises in FODMAPs. A dietitian can help tailor the diet to that of the individual and therefore make it more manageable. IBS: The impact on...

Fad diets or diets that are restrictive or make you feel hungry a lot of the time, are unlikely to be sustainable in the longer-term. However, making small positive changes can make a huge difference over time. The book called ‘The Slight Edge’ by Jeff Olson explains this thinking clearly.  However, as human’s, we are often attracted to a quick fix. When it comes to your diet, making small changes and some better choices each day can make a big difference over the course...

You’re constantly hungry and your moods seem to only come in two types: irritable or angry (or ‘hangry’ as I like to refer to it as). You often wake up feeling groggy, and a little bit ‘hungover’ despite a full nine hours sleep the night before… and all with zero alcohol involved. Sound familiar? Many of the women I meet in my clinic report experiencing similar complaints and although these symptoms can be completely different, there may be one common...

“All disease begins in the gut.” - Hippocrates of Kos (c. 460 – c. 370 BC) knew that gut health was key to your overall health and many diseases and seemingly unconnected symptoms you may have, and this was over two centuries ago. Luckily, we now have the technology and scientific knowledge to address an unhealthy gut microbiome and to implement dietary steps to improve the balance of your microbiome and ultimately your health.  Symptoms and...