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• 1. Kerin Dabell asks: I suffer with depression and have trouble sleeping. Any suggestions on how I can change my diet to help?

  If you are suffering from depression then your GP should be able to suggest ways to help you sleep. However a healthy diet can also help equip your body and mind cope with depression. Increasing omega-3 in your diet by eating oily fish and eating fruit and vegetables rich in antioxidants may also help. Try brightly coloured fruit and vegetables as they are known to contain more antioxidants.

  The best evening meals to eat to promote sleep are those that are carbohydrate-rich with a small amount of protein. For example pasta with parmesan or cottage cheese and fish, meat or chicken with vegetables and rice. A light meal will give you a more restful night's sleep as meals which are high in fat require more digestion making it harder to sleep. You should also avoid spicy foods, alcohol and caffeinated drinks.

  If you are looking for a herbal solution, a cup of camomile tea before bed is also thought to help to relax and calm you.

• 2. Gordon Reiss asks: I've started training for the marathon and need to keep up my energy. How should I adapt my diet?

  Congratulations on undertaking something so fantastic! You'll be burning up calories and depleting glycogen (carbohydrate) stores as you train, so the best thing is to focus on getting enough good quality carbs throughout the day such as whole grains, pulses, potatoes, cereals, porridge and so on. You should have a good intake of protein too as it's essential to repair those worn out muscles! Half an hour or so before a run you'll need to fuel up with a light snack, and during longer training sessions and the race itself you'll need to balance your refuelling (carb) and rehydration (water) needs with perhaps a glucose polymer drink or water and handfuls of jelly beans depending on what your digestive system can tolerate. Extreme endurance exercise can weaken your immune system but keeping up your vitamin C intake will help.

• 3. Ian Fletcher asks: I am a diabetic and make sure that I that eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. But, I find that eating fruit makes my blood sugar soar. Is this harmful?

  It's never good for your blood sugar to be higher than healthy for longer than is absolutely necessary and therefore it might be better to always incorporate fruit as part of a meal when its effect on blood sugar is moderated, rather than as a snack in between meals. Also consider which types of fruit you are eating - some have more dramatic effects on blood sugar than others. Berries and apples should be better choices; bananas, grapes and melon not so good. If you eat just two portions of fruit a day with or after meals (avoiding juices), and make the other three of your 5 a day vegetables, you should be okay.

• 4. Elmin asks: I love making waffles but am diabetic and I'm looking for a syrup for that I can have on them. Any suggestions?

  The only syrup I have heard of with a low GI (i.e. releases slowly and therefore does not cause your blood sugar to rise too swiftly) is agave nectar, which is extracted from a Mexican plant and available from some specialist health food suppliers. Alternatively if you are looking for a delicious sweet taste for your waffles, why not sprinkle over some Canderel?

• 5. Angela Brown asks: How much does one Canderel tablet weigh, in grams? Also, what is the percentage of aspartame in one tablet?

  One Canderel tablet weighs 85 mg and contains 8.5 mg aspartame.

• 6. Nannette Obi asks: Is Canderel better for me than sugar?

  Canderel tablets contain zero calories and granules contain only 2 calories per teaspoon and so are better for your waistline than sugar. And because it doesn't raise blood glucose it can be a more suitable choice for diabetics.

• 7. Susan asks: I've started a new healthy eating regime for the New Year and finding it hard to keep away from the cakes and biscuits. How can I make sure I stay on track without feeling deprived?

  It's often better to allow yourself the odd treat and just to factor it into your diet than to try to deny yourself completely. To help cut calories and make your treat less damaging to your waistline, why not try some of the delicious recipes on this site such as Chocolate Cheesecake. It might be easier to portion control and savour something you have made yourself too, where as it's so easy to buy and eat a whole pack of biscuits! Good luck in staying on track and losing those pounds!

• 8. Christine Burn asks: Do you have a recipe for a lemon cheesecake using Canderel instead of sugar that's suitable for a diabetic?

  Yes, you are in luck, we do in fact have a delicious lemon & ginger cheesecake recipe made using Canderel, so it is suitable for diabetics. You can link to it right here. Enjoy!

• 9. Lesley Mckernan asks: In the evening I love to have a biscuit with my coffee. What's the best way for me to get my biscuit fix without the extra calories?

  Nobody says you can't have the odd biscuit or two as part of a healthy diet, and the point here is making them part of your diet rather than an extra that adds up and makes you put on weight. Lower calorie choices include Rich Tea, jaffa cake and amaretti biscuits, but to be honest if it's your little bit of indulgence it's better to have one of something you really fancy rather than two of something you don't really enjoy!

• 10. Tracey Ohren asks: I'm usually a really healthy eater but have just had an operation and have to take things easy for 6 weeks. I'm now bored and eating more. Help!

  If you're immobile it's going to be difficult for you to stay the same weight given you've also got boredom kicking in which is a sure appetite stimulator. So be realistic and accept that you may have a few pounds to lose after you're back on your feet. For now try to minimise the damage by keeping yourself as busy as possible so your mind isn't always turning to food. And to make yourself feel fuller on fewer calories - and less likely to have boredom-related cravings - fill up on plenty of fruits and vegetables, pulses, soups, whole grains and lean protein such as fish and meat. Canderel is perfect for reducing the calorie content of sweet foods, so make the swap from sugar and you can have some indulgences to hand as well.

• 11. Gail asks: I'm diabetic type 2 and am new to using Canderel to sweeten drinks. Now I'd like to start cooking with it so can you suggest some recipes for one and a conversion chart for sugar to Canderel?

  On a volume basis Canderel has the same sweetness as sugar, so for example where you used a cup or a tablespoon of sugar in a recipe you would also use a cup or a tablespoon of Canderel. On a weight basis, you only need to use a tenth of the weight of Canderel - so if a recipe called for 100g sugar for example, you would only need to use 10g Canderel. You'll find plenty of low calorie recipes inside our Canderel Kitchen.

• 12. Amy asks: I'm trying to avoid eating too many unhealthy snacks and I recently read that you should eat lots of small meals a day to stave off cravings. Then a friend of mine told me it's better to have 3 standard meals to feel fuller for longer.

  It's a personal thing, though if you were prone to cravings, the evidence would come down more in favour of eating smaller meals spread through the day, or at least three modest meals with some snacks in between. Of course it is all about calories at the end of the day, and sensible snacking is usually about not letting yourself get too hungry so that you avoid eating everything in sight and completely unsuitable foods that can happen from having let yourself get too hungry. Everyone is different though and you have to work with what helps you! Foods that keep you fuller for longer and won't break the calorie bank include soups, fruit and vegetables, pulses such as baked beans and low fat protein foods such as prawns, marinated chicken bites and skimmed milk.

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