Q: Every time my period is due I start to vomit and get severe abdominal pains. What can you suggest?

– Janet, Leeds

A: The medical term for painful periods is dysmenorrhoea and the pain can start up to 24 hours before the period actually begins. This can also be accompanied with vomiting like you experience or extreme tiredness, headaches, sweating and diarrhoea.

It is thought that the pain is caused by an imbalance in the production of substances called prostaglandins (anti-inflammatory drugs used for treating painful periods work by decreasing prostaglandins). For three menstrual cycles try eliminating or reducing all wheat, red meat and dairy products and increase your intake of oily fish, nuts and seeds as this will help to re-balance prostaglandin production.

I would also suggest that you take an Omega 3 fish oil supplement which acts as an anti-inflammatory. If you need more help then see my book The Nutritional Health Handbook for Women or go to www.MarilynGlenville.com

Q: What size portions do my children need?

A: You don’t want to provide children with too little to meet their needs for growth. On the other hand, servings that are too large tend to overwhelm children, and they may have trouble eating all of them. Serving small portions to young children is often the best way for them to learn to eat only until satisfied, instead of overeating.

Start kids off with less and encourage them to ask for more if they’re still hungry. For each year of age, the American Dietetic Association (ADA) recommends one tablespoon of every food offered at a meal. That means three-year-olds would start with three tablespoons of every food offered, and if they eat it all, they can ask for more.

Don’t make the mistake of scolding children for not finishing all you have served. If you view this as a “waste” of food, serve less instead of forcing them to overeat. Respect your children’s ability to tell when they’ve had enough. But don’t hand out snacks an hour after dinner if they are suddenly hungry because they ate too little at the previous meal. Eventually, they will learn to gauge their own appetites and get most of what they need at regular meals.

Q: Is soya useful for women in the menopause?

A: Many women experience very positive results by eating soya. Soya foods contain isoflavones (natural plant oestrogens) that have similar properties to human oestrogen, but are much weaker. Isoflavones can bind to the body’s oestrogen receptors and help offset the drop in oestrogen that occurs at the menopause.

Scientists have shown that isoflavones function similarly to HRT without producing the risks associated with this controversial treatment. Soya foods offer women a more natural way to treat their menopausal symptoms. Research on soya indicates that it can help to relieve hot flushes, night sweats, fatigue, and vaginal dryness. Besides helping regulate oestrogen when it is declining, soya can also help with other conditions such as osteoporosis, heart attack, stroke and breast cancer.

There has been some negative press on soya but this is not the case when the soya is eaten in its traditional form. So choose products such as miso, tofu or organic soya milk.

Avoid gimmicky soya bars and snacks unless they are made from the whole beans and even then make sure the soya is organic otherwise it could be genetically modified.