Constipation and illness and smelly breath!

[Skinny girl]

I was not fully well before I started a VLCD 2 weeks ago with what I now think is a chest infection, I will got to the dr on Monday to confirm this but it is really lingering on, also all my lymph nodes we swollen in my head and neck on one side last week and now I have a cold. I feel so rundown and under the weather. My chest is very congested so might well need antibiotics I guess. Is it just taking longer for me to recover because I am on a VLCD do you think?

Also I have been so constipated, I finally had a bowel movement 12 days into the diet which was an awful experience and I cannot let it get like that again. I have started taking a fibre supplement today to mix into my shakes and some laxatives to get things shifting, is there anything else I can be doing, I already drink a ton of water.

Also am so conscious of my smelly breath my children are commenting on it and my tongue seems to be encrusted in yellow - yuck. What can I do about this?

Thank you in advance.

 

[weasey]

I was not fully well before I started a VLCD 2 weeks ago with what I now think is a chest infection, I will got to the dr on Monday to confirm this but it is really lingering on, also all my lymph nodes we swollen in my head and neck on one side last week and now I have a cold. I feel so rundown and under the weather. My chest is very congested so might well need antibiotics I guess. Is it just taking longer for me to recover because I am on a VLCD do you think?

Also I have been so constipated, I finally had a bowel movement 12 days into the diet which was an awful experience and I cannot let it get like that again. I have started taking a fibre supplement today to mix into my shakes and some laxatives to get things shifting, is there anything else I can be doing, I already drink a ton of water.

Also am so conscious of my smelly breath my children are commenting on it and my tongue seems to be encrusted in yellow - yuck. What can I do about this?

Thank you in advance.

If you need to go on antibiotics then you may need to eat food for a while. If you are on a VLCD which allows some food (such as SnS or LL lite) then you may be ok - otherwise you might need to come off whilst you take the tablets.

Constipation is common with VLCDs. There are a few approaches. You could take fibre. I didn't find that the fibre powder helped my but psyllium husks really did. Alternatively you could add wheat bran to your packs. Adding fibre should help stop you from becoming constipated but if you're already there then taking laxitives or using a glycerine suppository (which sounds awful but really helps if it's bad) should clear things. I wouldn't like to rely on these all the time though so adding fibre would be my advice.

The breath is due to ketones being released. You say you're drinking lots already but I found that if I drank enough they would be excreted through my urine rather than my breath. You can get breath sorays (sugar free) and some VLCDs allow sugar free chewing gum too.

 

[iwillbethinagain]

Yeah, take the laxatives to get rid of what is already stuck there (sorry), then take preventative action for the future. I haven't added the fibre, but I don't suffer too badly with constipation. I find I have a bowel movement every 3/4 days but you also have to remember that you are taking less in (in quantity as well as calories) so not as much is going to come out! If you need to take a laxtive regularly, try using a more natural one, such as senna.

As for the illness, you need to ensure you are having a balanced diet. As most VLCD are nutritionally balanced that shouldn't be an issue, but having to 'find' energy instead of it being readily there in food might be putting that extra bit of pressure on your body- maybe add in a nutritional protein rich meal until you are better? Losin weigh isn't worth risking your health for!

 

[iwillbethinagain]

Oh, and I invested in a tongue scraper- I had horrid yellowey gunge on my tongue. Yuk. And I go through several packs of gum a week!

 

[Skinny girl]

Thank you for your really helpful replies. I am taking senokot and the fibre to sprinkle into my shakes so hopefully that will get me moving more regularly. Will also increase my water intake to see if that helps with the breath.