Q: At 4 pm every afternoon my energy levels slump and I find myself reaching for chocolate. How can I stop this bad habit?

A: It seems to me that you have not been eating anything between lunch and 4 pm so your energy slump is most likely linked to a dip in blood sugar – the body’s main fuel- which causes you to become hungry.

To keep your blood sugar level stable make sure you lunch on slow releasing carbohydrates (brown rice, oatcakes and whole meal bread) and proteins (avocado, eggs, hummus, oily fish, lentils) that release energy steadily into the blood stream. I also suggest that you eat three meals a day and two snacks in between those meals to keep your blood sugar levels steady; pre-empt the energy crash by having a slow energy releasing snack (nuts, seeds, some fruit, including berries, cherries, grapefruit, pear and melon) just before 4 pm.

If you still crave sugar, a team at the US Department of Agriculture have recently found that introducing cinnamon into the diet can help – half a teaspoon a day can reduce blood sugar levels by up to 20 per cent and keep them steady through the day. Sprinkle cinnamon on porridge, a smoothie or in a hot drink.

Q: Recently, I’ve heard that eating whole eggs is healthier than eating egg whites or fat-free substitutes. I’ve also heard that eggs can help you lose weight but, traditional wisdom seems to suggest that eggs are bad, so I’m confused. Can you explain?

A: Eggs are one of nature’s near-perfect foods. They contain an easily digestible form of protein, plus loads of other valuable compounds and nutrients that can even help you lose weight. With rare exceptions, such as an allergy, there isn’t any reason to avoid them, despite what you may have heard. The reasons traditional medical experts have recommended avoiding eggs in the past is because of its reputation as a high cholesterol food.

Cholesterol is crucial for every cell in the body, and around 80 percent of cholesterol in the body is produced by the body itself in the liver, regardless of how much of it you eat or don’t eat. Most of your body’s cholesterol is found within the cells, where it has all kinds of positive effects. Only about 7 percent of the body’s store of cholesterol is in the blood, and even then it doesn’t do any real damage until it oxidises and begins to stick to our arterial walls.

Nature, in her infinite wisdom, also created the egg complete with its own built-in antioxidant. It’s called lecithin, and it helps prevent egg cholesterol from becoming a problem. Interestingly, lecithin is found in the yolk, which many people mistakenly discard because it contains cholesterol.

As for weight loss, you are right, recent research has shown that eggs can be an excellent food for weight loss because they make us feel fuller for longer than other foods. Researchers from Louisiana State University in the U.S. looked at the eating habits of a group of overweight women. The women, who were following a low-fat diet, were asked to eat either two eggs a day for breakfast, or have a bagel. These two meals contained the same number of calories and yet the weight loss effect was very different. After eight weeks, the women who had eaten eggs for breakfast instead of bagels had lost the most weight and also felt as if they had more energy.

Eggs are a first class protein and it is the protein effect which can help us to feel fuller longer. According to the World Health Organisation most people can have up to ten eggs a week and buy organic where possible.

Q: What is hemp oil? I keep hearing about it. Is it healthier than olive oil?

A: Say the word hemp and most of us think of the illegal drug. The hemp plant cannabis sativa is a member of the Cannabaceae family to which marijuana also belongs.

However, all hemp used in the production of hemp oil has had the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) ingredient with hallucinogenic properties removed.

Hemp oil is rich in omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids which our bodies don’t produce naturally but which are crucial for healthy circulation, cell growth and the immune system.

A good balance of these omegas has been linked to helping maintain a healthy heart and brain – especially in unborn babies – and relieving conditions such as PMS, eczema, psoriasis, even improving children’s behaviour and concentration. Hemp oil can be used in cakes and biscuits as well as in dressings (mix equal measures of olive oil and hemp oil to enjoy the benefits of both) or drizzled over vegetables.

There’s no need to replace olive oil with hemp – olive oil also has health boosting benefits of its own – just start including it in your diet.