Q: 1. What are the disadvantages of eating bananas? 2. What are the dangers of excess eating after going to the gym or sleeping? 3. How can one take care of his health while on night shift job? 4. How can frequent stomach upsets and loose motions be avoided?

A:1. There is no disadvantage in eating bananas. 2. Make your post workout meal moderate and avoid sleeping after you hit the gym. Though you may initially feel sleepy take a shower and you will feel energised within the hour. 3. Eat a big meal at the start of your work schedule, and a moderate meal around midnight. Before going to bed in the morning, you can eat a regular breakfast meal in a small quantity. Never eat a large meal before going to bed. For example, cereals with milk and fruits or two chapattis with dal and vegetables should do. Alternately, you can also eat a light sandwich, to avoid adding on calories, which don’t get burnt while sleeping. Your best bet is to choose foods that contain complex carbohydrates combined with some protein and moderate amounts of mono-saturated fatty acids like rice and dal, salads with olive oil dressing, flax-seed powder (jawas) chutney or sprinkled over dishes, food cooked in olive or soya oil and low-fat curds. You should be liberal with veggies and fruits, at the same time cutting back on greasy food, sweets, soft drinks and caffeine. Too much caffeine causes irritability, anxiety and blood pressure. It also interferes with iron and calcium absorption, which is harmful for women. Two cups of tea or coffee are ideal. Eat small, nutritional snacks throughout the shift. Snacks are a very important part of helping you stay energised throughout the night. Apart from nutrition, manage your stress level, get some exercise before you go to work and avoid smoking and alcohol. Get a good night’s (or morning’s as the case may be!) sleep before you get to work on your next shift. 4. Ripe bananas are helpful to combat diarrhoea and dysentery, heal intestinal lesions, etc.