DR. WALLACE: I like to eat at various hours of the day. My older sister who is in college tells me that I should not eat food after 9 p.m. and that I should practice "intermittent fasting" by skipping breakfast and then eating a huge lunch.

I'm a junior in high school and I don't like the sound of all of that. My sister is the same weight now that she always was in high school years ago, so I don't really see much of a difference with her.

I do like a piece of fruit at night before I go to bed, and my favorite is a nice ripe banana with a small glass of cranberry juice. My sister was home over this past weekend and when she saw me get this at 10 p.m., she started scolding me. Is she right? — Her Younger Sister, via email

HER YOUNGER SISTER: I don't feel she's right. Yes, "intermittent fasting" has been around for years as a philosophy for healthy eating, but the studies that have been done on this topic have shown mixed results.

I believe the key is to eat moderate amounts of healthy food every four hours or so, no matter the time of day. It's more important in my book what you eat, not when you eat it!

I DON'T FEEL SAFE AT HOME

DR. WALLACE: My mom got divorced from my father over four years ago now. I'm a 16-year-old girl, and I'm not happy at all with my mother's social life these days.

At first when she got divorced, my mom stayed home a lot. She did things with me; we spent time together and she would even help me with my homework. Gradually she started to go out on dates with men, which is to be expected.

But she never seemed to have a steady boyfriend and I've noticed in the last year in particular the quality of the guys she brings around our house seems to be declining. One guy in particular would literally stare at me the entire time he would see me in the house. It got so bad that I would hide in my room whenever he was in our house.

I'm also unhappy to report that her current boyfriend made a pass at me the other day and he had a lot of alcohol on his breath. He literally tried to pull me close to him to kiss me, but I managed to duck my head under his arm. I spun away and yelled at him as I went out into the backyard.

I told my mother about this later and she told me that he had been drinking and it was all a mistake. She said he's kind of shy unless he's drinking, and he simply wanted to say hello to me. But I know better; he was trying to go way further than a simple hello.

My father lives too far away for me to see about living with him and he's been out of touch with me except for my birthday and the holidays, so I basically only hear from him twice a year. But his parents, my grandparents, live only a few miles away from my mom's house. Do you think it would be out of line for me to go visit my grandparents and ask them if I could live with them for a while? I'm three months away from turning 17 and I'd like to get through high school without being hit on by my mom's deadbeat loser guys. — I Want Out of Here, via email

I WANT OUT OF HERE: I agree with you that your situation is not good and that you should not be subjected to the advances and stares of strange men in your own home. If your own mother won't protect you, then you absolutely have every right to seek a safer and more secure place to live.

Therefore, I do suggest that you go and speak with your grandparents at your earliest opportunity. But instead of you immediately overtly asking them if you can live with them, instead start your conversation by telling them that you have a problem and you need their advice.

Once they agree to hear about your situation, tell them what is going on. Try to stay calm, cool and collected as you explain things. Be honest about your mother but don't go out of your way to disparage her in front of her former in-laws. Instead, tell them that you are no longer comfortable living in her home and that even though she will always be your mother, you are concerned for your own safety and wish to live in a more secure environment. Ask for their guidance about how you can best accomplish this and then wait for their answer.

They might indeed offer to take you into their home for the remainder of this school year and next, or they may have some other interesting and suitable ideas or solutions that you could consider. Having your grandparents on your side and allowing them to understand what is happening will give you two excellent allies to help you find a safe and secure solution to your current situation.

Thank you for writing your letter; you've taken a key first step to protecting your personal safety, which every teenager should do.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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