Help/Advice? Changed diet, now feeling sick

Hi all,

The is the first time I've posted here so let me know if this is in the wrong section. A brief rundown of my problem: I started changing my diet and going to the gym a month ago. It took me a while to truly get my diet to a reasonably healthy state, but now I feel like I've made some progress (although as you can see from my diet profile I still have a treat every day or two).

I've started to feel quite sick in the morning. In the past week I have been sick twice, and every morning I feel quite sick and have a headache. However, I've found that if I eat my breakfast earlier or if I go and eat my breakfast as soon as I start to feel sick that the feeling of sickness goes away. This makes me think it's possibly something to do with my diet.

I'm really new to this kind of stuff, so I would really appreciate it if any of you could give me some constructive criticism on my diet. My profile is public so you can see what I've been eating. My intake of fresh veg isn't great, but I take this multivitamin to try to help compensate for it: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Centrum-Advance-Tablets-Pack-100/dp/B004YD0V4E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405589103&sr=8-1&keywords=centrum Here are some other pieces of info that might help:

Gender: female
Height: 5/4
Weight: somewhere between 15 -15 1/2 stone (it's been a while since I've checked)
Exercise: gym for 2 hours three times a week, 1 1/2 hours cardio and 30 mins weight training
Supplements taken: Centrum advance (link above), Green tea extract (100 mg a day) http://www.myprotein.com/sports-nutrition/green-tea-extract-powder/10530133.html and Thermopure (one tablet before every gym session): http://www.myprotein.com/sports-nutrition/thermopure/10530152.html

I am 100% going to go to the doctors about this, but I thought I would post here to see if anybody had experienced something similar and to see if anyone could spot something horribly wrong with my diet. There are a few days in my diary where I really F'd up recently (eating meringue is not something I'll do in a hurry again!).

Replies

  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    Some people find that whey protein upsets their stomach but as you're getting headaches it sounds more like you have a bug of some sort.

    If it doesn't clear up by itself in a few days then you may wish to consult your GP to make sure it's nothing more serious.

    Your GP would also want to know if there's any chance that you're pregnant.
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    Hi Karen :)

    Thank you for your advice. I don't think it's the protein as I've been having that for about a month now and I've only started feeling iffy recently, but I will mention that I am taking it when I go to the GP.

    Unless I'm very unlucky there's very little chance I'm pregnant, but I will prepare myself for that question haha. Thank you for your help.
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:

    Hi Netmegoro,

    Thank you for your response. You know you might be right - I often just take my multivitamins as soon as I'm up and awake so perhaps that's the issue. I will make sure to eat them after breakfast now!

    I'm not sure what counts as a lot of caffeinated products. I might have 1-2 cups of coffee a day, and the thermopure I have three days a week contains caffeine too. I suppose that would count as a significant amount?

    Calorie wise I'm not really sure. In a week I tend to burn off about 3 1/2 days worth of food by eating a little under my basic metabolic rate and exercising. So say I burn about 5250 calories in a week and I consume around 10500.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:

    Hi Netmegoro,

    Thank you for your response. You know you might be right - I often just take my multivitamins as soon as I'm up and awake so perhaps that's the issue. I will make sure to eat them after breakfast now!

    I'm not sure what counts as a lot of caffeinated products. I might have 1-2 cups of coffee a day, and the thermopure I have three days a week contains caffeine too. I suppose that would count as a significant amount?

    Calorie wise I'm not really sure. In a week I tend to burn off about 3 1/2 days worth of food by eating a little under my basic metabolic rate and exercising. So say I burn about 5250 calories in a week and I consume around 10500.

    If you are consuming 10500/week and burning 5250/week in exercise, you are netting about 750 calories/day. That's really low. At the very least you should be eating at your BMR. Perhaps try eating BMR plus 1/2 exercise calories. MFP tends to estimate exercise calories on the high side. Your deficit seems way too steep. Headaches and nausea are not uncommon when you cut too much. The fact that you feel better after eating says a lot too. Try upping your calories for several days and see if that helps you feel better (stay of the scale for a few days too, you will retain water when increasing calories, this is just water weight not fat).
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  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:

    Hi Netmegoro,

    Thank you for your response. You know you might be right - I often just take my multivitamins as soon as I'm up and awake so perhaps that's the issue. I will make sure to eat them after breakfast now!

    I'm not sure what counts as a lot of caffeinated products. I might have 1-2 cups of coffee a day, and the thermopure I have three days a week contains caffeine too. I suppose that would count as a significant amount?

    Calorie wise I'm not really sure. In a week I tend to burn off about 3 1/2 days worth of food by eating a little under my basic metabolic rate and exercising. So say I burn about 5250 calories in a week and I consume around 10500.

    If you are consuming 10500/week and burning 5250/week in exercise, you are netting about 750 calories/day. That's really low. At the very least you should be eating at your BMR. Perhaps try eating BMR plus 1/2 exercise calories. MFP tends to estimate exercise calories on the high side. Your deficit seems way too steep. Headaches and nausea are not uncommon when you cut too much. The fact that you feel better after eating says a lot too. Try upping your calories for several days and see if that helps you feel better (stay of the scale for a few days too, you will retain water when increasing calories, this is just water weight not fat).

    Hi, thanks a lot for the advice, really appreciate it :) I'll eat more the next few days and see if I feel better.
  • LunaStar2008
    LunaStar2008 Posts: 155 Member
    I didn't read all the posted threats, but what you are stating sounds like you could be pregnant. This is exactly the way I felt in early pregnancy (even before it was testable). You may want to rule that out....:wink:
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
    I don't think I've ever seen a diary so devoid of Vegetables. A multivitamin does not replace what fresh food will give you.

    I do think though a visit to the doctor could be in order also as above rule that out ^^^^^
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    I don't think I've ever seen a diary so devoid of Vegetables. A multivitamin does not replace what fresh food will give you.

    I do think though a visit to the doctor could be in order also as above rule that out ^^^^^

    Could you explain to me the difference between having multivitamins and veg?
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    I didn't read all the posted threats, but what you are stating sounds like you could be pregnant. This is exactly the way I felt in early pregnancy (even before it was testable). You may want to rule that out....:wink:

    How would being pregnant explain feeling better after eating and then not feeling sick for the rest of the day? Wouldn't that point to it being more of a dietary issue?
  • LunaStar2008
    LunaStar2008 Posts: 155 Member
    Feeling sick in the morning has to do that your pregnancy hormon levels are higher in the morning (even some women experience "morning sickness" all day). That's why you should test in the morning with your first urine. The same reason are the headaches, they stem from your rapid changes in hormon levels in early pregnancy. It avoids another cycle (ovulation) and sustain the beginning pregnancy. An increase in urination is another sign as some others.

    Regarding your question about mulitvitamin vs real vegetables; keep in mind everything in pill form is artificial. The "real thing" is easier absorbed by your digestive track and utilized. Just keep in mind that some vitamins are oil soluteable and others are water soluteable, meaning they are only absorbed in conjunction with it. Example; if you eat carrots you need a fat or oil with it since the vitamins in it are oil solutable (carotin/betacarotin).
    Also, you can eat more vegetables from the volume without busting your calorie intake. They are high in fiber and water, but less dense in calories. So you feel full and satisfied without blowing your calorie intake out of the ball park.....:laugh:
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    What do you mean by feeling "sick?" I get shaky, nauseated and headachey when my blood sugar drops too low. If you're eating a low calorie target, especially if you stop eating early in the evening, it could be that.

    A whole fruit or vegetable is much more than the sum of its vitamins. A vitamin C tablet, for example, doesn't replace eating an orange.
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    Feeling sick in the morning has to do that your pregnancy hormon levels are higher in the morning (even some women experience "morning sickness" all day). That's why you should test in the morning with your first urine. The same reason are the headaches, they stem from your rapid changes in hormon levels in early pregnancy. It avoids another cycle (ovulation) and sustain the beginning pregnancy. An increase in urination is another sign as some others.

    Regarding your question about mulitvitamin vs real vegetables; keep in mind everything in pill form is artificial. The "real thing" is easier absorbed by your digestive track and utilized. Just keep in mind that some vitamins are oil soluteable and others are water soluteable, meaning they are only absorbed in conjunction with it. Example; if you eat carrots you need a fat or oil with it since the vitamins in it are oil solutable (carotin/betacarotin).
    Also, you can eat more vegetables from the volume without busting your calorie intake. They are high in fiber and water, but less dense in calories. So you feel full and satisfied without blowing your calorie intake out of the ball park.....:laugh:

    Ah right I see, thank you for explanation and advice :D I doubt I am pregnant, I will be one unlucky person if I am. It's not even been a month since my last period, so it's a bit too early to be considering that I think.

    I'll get more veg in my diet than. I have spinach, peas and green peas in the feezer so I'll just put them on the side of my plate whenever I eat.
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
    It could be the caffeine in the green tea tablets that are making you get headaches. Why do you take these? You do realize they will not help you lose weight, right?
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    What do you mean by feeling "sick?" I get shaky, nauseated and headachey when my blood sugar drops too low. If you're eating a low calorie target, especially if you stop eating early in the evening, it could be that.

    A whole fruit or vegetable is much more than the sum of its vitamins. A vitamin C tablet, for example, doesn't replace eating an orange.

    By feeling sick I mean I feel nauseous, and in the past week I have actually been sick twice. However this has always been on an empty stomach and only once in the morning. After I have eaten I feel fine, so perhaps it is something to do with blood sugar. In addition to feeling sick I also feel quite headachey, tired/faint.
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    There's a decent amount of evidence showing green tea extract can help with weight loss, but outside of that it's also very good for you in general. However I don't think it's the extract that's causing the nausea as it started before I started using it. Thank you for your suggestion.
  • Icoza87
    Icoza87 Posts: 111 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:
    This.
    I feel very similar to how you describe when I take a multi-vitamin on an empty stomach and don't eat soon enough afterward. I would take your vit after breakfast and see if that helps.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    I'm betting it's a combination of the vitamins on an empty stomach causing the nausea and low blood sugar causing the headaches. I always get nauseous (often to the point of actually vomiting) on multivitamins if I don't eat a good meal before taking them. For that reason, and because I have some digestive issues, I switched to gummy vitamins about a year ago. They don't make me sick and I don't have to worry about whether or not they are actually getting absorbed by my body.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    What do you mean by feeling "sick?" I get shaky, nauseated and headachey when my blood sugar drops too low. If you're eating a low calorie target, especially if you stop eating early in the evening, it could be that.

    A whole fruit or vegetable is much more than the sum of its vitamins. A vitamin C tablet, for example, doesn't replace eating an orange.

    By feeling sick I mean I feel nauseous, and in the past week I have actually been sick twice. However this has always been on an empty stomach and only once in the morning. After I have eaten I feel fine, so perhaps it is something to do with blood sugar. In addition to feeling sick I also feel quite headachey, tired/faint.
    Obviously, there are a lot of other things it could be, but you're describing how I feel when my blood sugar drops, especially since you say it only happens on an empty stomach. Could you try eating something small right after you wake up (maybe 100 calories, but choose something with some carbs like a couple of crackers or a few berries) and see if that helps?
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    What do you mean by feeling "sick?" I get shaky, nauseated and headachey when my blood sugar drops too low. If you're eating a low calorie target, especially if you stop eating early in the evening, it could be that.

    A whole fruit or vegetable is much more than the sum of its vitamins. A vitamin C tablet, for example, doesn't replace eating an orange.

    By feeling sick I mean I feel nauseous, and in the past week I have actually been sick twice. However this has always been on an empty stomach and only once in the morning. After I have eaten I feel fine, so perhaps it is something to do with blood sugar. In addition to feeling sick I also feel quite headachey, tired/faint.
    Obviously, there are a lot of other things it could be, but you're describing how I feel when my blood sugar drops, especially since you say it only happens on an empty stomach. Could you try eating something small right after you wake up (maybe 100 calories, but choose something with some carbs like a couple of crackers or a few berries) and see if that helps?

    Yes I can definitely do that :) I usually have two weetabix with semiskimmed milk and a bit of honey for breakfast, I will just eat earlier and take the multivitamins a bit after that. Thanks a lot for your advice.
  • LunaStar2008
    LunaStar2008 Posts: 155 Member
    By feeling sick I mean I feel nauseous, and in the past week I have actually been sick twice. However this has always been on an empty stomach and only once in the morning. After I have eaten I feel fine, so perhaps it is something to do with blood sugar. In addition to feeling sick I also feel quite headachey, tired/faint.
    [/quote]

    Sounds like early pregnancy. I already had these symptoms 5-10 after ovulation, even my next period was still 8-10 days away. I had the "full blown" morning sickness later in the 2.-3. month (8-14 weeks). Just little queasiness in the morning and as soon I ate something it disappeared.

    As others said, it could also your "lopsided" diet or supplements you are taking. If you drink coffee and weight loss supplements with caffeine it can cause headaches as well.

    Well, I hope it works out for you.
  • There's a decent amount of evidence showing green tea extract can help with weight loss, but outside of that it's also very good for you in general. However I don't think it's the extract that's causing the nausea as it started before I started using it. Thank you for your suggestion.

    I was going to mention the green tea extract too.

    If I take it on an empty stomach it makes me nauseous. If I take it with food I am usually fine.

    Maybe stop taking the supplements for a few days and see if that makes a difference?
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    There's a decent amount of evidence showing green tea extract can help with weight loss, but outside of that it's also very good for you in general. However I don't think it's the extract that's causing the nausea as it started before I started using it. Thank you for your suggestion.

    I was going to mention the green tea extract too.

    If I take it on an empty stomach it makes me nauseous. If I take it with food I am usually fine.

    Maybe stop taking the supplements for a few days and see if that makes a difference?

    I will do :) Thank you
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    OP, how did it go this morning?
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    OP, how did it go this morning?

    Hello :) Thank you for coming back and asking.

    Yesterday morning I felt a little bit sick - not to the point where I thought I would be sick, just a bit queezy. As soon as I ate I was fine, and I had my multivitamin after dinner. I was fine for the rest of the day bar a small headache (not sure if the headache is related to be honest, I've not been having great sleep lately so that could be it).

    I think the feeling sick might have been due to sleeping funny and waking up with achey shoulders/neck. My neck is quite sensitive so it could be that. I also didn't take my green tea powder. I didn't eat much more than normal on Thursday either so that mat be why I still fell a bit sick.

    This morning I feel much better :) I still have a wee bit of a headache but again I didn't sleep very well, only had 6-7 hours. So far I've been awake for about 40 minutes and I don't feel sick at all (I usually feel it as soon as I sit down). The changes I made yesterday were 1. I ate before having my multivitamin 2. I didn't take the green tea powder. 3. I had much less caffeine and 4. I ate a decent amount more than normal.

    So it could be any of those things, but I think it's probably a mix of not eating enough and taking the multi vit. on an empty stomach. I'll continue to eat more the next few days and eat before the multivitamin. Then I'll re-introduce the green tea powder to see if I start to feel sick again. If I don't then I'll assume it's because I wasn't eating enough or having food with the multi vit.
  • LSJepson
    LSJepson Posts: 15 Member
    I didn't really look at your diary, but one thing that I am wondering is if you are taking that multivitamin on an empty stomach. They can cause some abdominal distress. Plus certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K) are fat soluble and need a bit of dietary fat so that your body can absorb them. Just my initial thoughts.

    As for the headache. Are you eating back at least some of your exercise calories? It is important if you are working out that you fuel that exercise with enough nutrition. Do you drink lots of caffeinated products? I drink a lot of tea, and I occasionally wake up with a headache which goes away with my first cup. If I don't get that morning cup, I'm pretty tough to be around.

    Hope this helps :flowerforyou:

    Hi Netmegoro,

    Thank you for your response. You know you might be right - I often just take my multivitamins as soon as I'm up and awake so perhaps that's the issue. I will make sure to eat them after breakfast now!

    I'm not sure what counts as a lot of caffeinated products. I might have 1-2 cups of coffee a day, and the thermopure I have three days a week contains caffeine too. I suppose that would count as a significant amount?

    Calorie wise I'm not really sure. In a week I tend to burn off about 3 1/2 days worth of food by eating a little under my basic metabolic rate and exercising. So say I burn about 5250 calories in a week and I consume around 10500.

    If you are consuming 10500/week and burning 5250/week in exercise, you are netting about 750 calories/day. That's really low. At the very least you should be eating at your BMR. Perhaps try eating BMR plus 1/2 exercise calories. MFP tends to estimate exercise calories on the high side. Your deficit seems way too steep. Headaches and nausea are not uncommon when you cut too much. The fact that you feel better after eating says a lot too. Try upping your calories for several days and see if that helps you feel better (stay of the scale for a few days too, you will retain water when increasing calories, this is just water weight not fat).

    Hi again :)

    I ate more food yesterday (actually I ate TOO MUCH food yesterday, a friend had a take-away night) and I took my multivitamins after dinner yesterday. I've been up for an hour and a half now, I have only had a cup of tea and I don't feel sick :D I also took the green tea extract out of my diet. I will add that back in a few days if I still feel fine. Thanks a lot for your advice. I will find a way to up my calorie intake without going overboard with sugar, fat etc. :)
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    I am really happy to read this update. Thank-you for taking the time to come back and provide it. I am glad you were willing to make some of the changes to see what would work. Feeling nauseated is among my least favorite things. I hope you find success in feeling better in the next few days, and that you are able to keep moving forward with your goals. Thanks again for the update. :heart:

    ETA: Your Thursday looks good, and Friday was a bit high, but in all honesty I have those days once in a while too (okay, more often than I should). Truthfully, you need to find the balance that works for you. Nicely done!
  • Its the green tea extract . I get the same major headaches when I take green tea pills. I suggest you toss them n drink green tea. its worked for me n I dont deal with massive explosive headaches.
  • dakotababy
    dakotababy Posts: 2,407 Member
    I am going to go a head and guess it is likely the multiviatmin or supplement. I know when I used to take a zinc supplement...I would get hardcore sick to the point of almost throwing up. It was not fun.

    Typically, it was because I was taking supplements on an empty stomach - ALWAYS eat those suckers with food, or its going to come right back up again.