DR. WALLACE: My parents take pride in nutrition and always prepare healthy meals. We eat three well-balanced meals daily, and I am very grateful for the great food we enjoy together. However, my problem is that I'm not allowed to eat any snacks be'TWEEN meals, even when I tell my mom that I'm starving! She tells me that my hunger is only in my mind and eventually I will get over it. It's not like I want to eat junk food. All I'm asking for is an apple or a banana. I don't see why eating a piece of fruit would not be eating healthy if it helps curb my appetite until it's time for our next regular meal. Is my request reasonable, or am I really going to be overeating if I have snacks be'TWEEN meals? Help! — Hungry Hailey, via email
HAILEY: It's important to eat three well-balanced, nutritious meals per day, but it's also desirable to eat well-balanced, low-calorie snacks when one gets occasional hunger pangs. Conventional wisdom among nutritionists recommends keeping snacks down to a range of 100 to 300 total calories maximum, should you feel the desire to eat a snack be'TWEEN meals.
It would be wise to discuss your eating program with your school nurse who might agree with you and help to enlighten mom and dad on the benefits of eating healthy snacks in be'TWEEN regular meals.
QUITTING SMOKING BRINGS GAIN WEIGHT?
DR. WALLACE: I have been smoking a pack of cigarettes daily for over three years. Is it fact or myth that people who smoke gain weight when they stop smoking? I'd like to quit smoking since I know it's not good for me, but I'm also deathly afraid of gaining weight. — Slim Smoker, via email
SLIM SMOKER: Yes, it is true that many people gain weight when they stop smoking. To compensate for the loss of this oral activity, they take up another one: compulsive eating. Nevertheless, health professionals recommend people to whip the smoking habit first, then — after the urge to smoke has completely vanished — begin work on losing any extra poundage that may arise in the wake of the lack of cigarettes.
The average person who quits smoking will experience a 5 to 7 percent weight increase. This is not something to be deathly afraid of. That weight can be sensibly eliminated via regular exercise and healthy eating. At a weight reduction of 1 pound per week, you can be back to your usual weight in four months or less — and smoke-free as well. The further good news is that you will have more stamina for exercise once you stop smoking!
MY PARENTS ARE SNOOPERS
DR. WALLACE: My parents snoop on me when I'm out of the house. How do I know this? I can tell when things have been moved around in my room and when my school papers and notebooks have pages that are open to a different spot than I left them.
I've been reading your column long enough to know that you will agree that parent should not snoop or pry into their teen's personal affairs. Please print my letter, because I want my mother to see her mistake in black-and-white! — Spied Upon, via email
SPIED UPON: Teens absolutely need a degree of privacy, including not having their school notes and notebooks read behind their backs. A parent has no reason to "snoop" unless the teen's behavior is such that parental investigation is necessary for the teen's safety and welfare. Wise parents understand and respect the desire for teens to have and maintain privacy that they have earned. Since you did not mention any behavior on your part that would warrant "parental investigation," I will side with you on this one. However, if there has been past behavior that warrants your parents' actions, then I would side with them. It's as simple as that. Those who want to be trusted do not take actions to bring that trust into question. Thank you for highlighting a very popular, recurring topic that I receive many questions on year after year.
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.
View Comments