138 The Australian Women’s Weekly|MAY 2019
PROFESSORPHELPS: PHOTOGRAPHY BY YIANNI ASPRADAKIS.GETTY IMAGES.Medical Q&A
If youhavea question
forProfessorKerryn
Phelps,writeto:
AskTheDoctor,
GPOBox4178,Sydney,
NSW 2001 oremail
openline@bauer-media.
com.au.Letterscannot
beansweredpersonally.
SeetheContentspage
in thisissueforthe
locationofBauerMedia
Limited’s Privacy Notice.Q
I havea fewfamily
memberswithhigh
cholesterolandI’ve
heardthata vegan
dietcanreducecholesterolso
wellthatmedicationmaynot
beneeded.Is thistrue,and
wouldyousuggesttryingit?
M.B.,NSW.
Elevatedcholesterolis one
riskfactorforcardiovascular
disease.Researchhasshown
thatyoucancertainlyloweryour
cholesterollevelwitha veganor
plant-baseddiet.Youneedto
becarefultoavoidnutritional
deficiencies,especiallyiron,zinc,
magnesium,proteinandvitamin
B12, withcarefulmealplanning
orsupplementation.Q
Mygastroenterologist
toldmethatI should
continuetakinga
fibresupplement
withlaxativetomanagemy
“slowtransit”indefinitely.
Arelaxativesreallysafefor
long-termuse?J.N.,NSW.
Slowtransitconstipationcan
beveryuncomfortableand
difficulttotreat.A fibre
supplementandlaxatives
providesomeshort-term
relief, butlong-termdietary
changes(wholegrains,leafy
andrawvegetablesandfresh
fruits)canmakea bigdifference
andmayminimisetheneed
forlong-termlaxatives.
Psylliumhuskis a naturalfibre
supplement. A comprehensive
stoolanalysismayshowa
dysbiosis,whichmayberelieved
by specific probiotics.Theinfluenza
virusmutatesitself
everyyear.The
fluvaccineis annually
re-engineeredin an
attempttoprovide
protectionforthe
expectedepidemic.
Themorepeoplein
thecommunitywho
arevaccinated,the
lessriskthereis of
vulnerablepeople
beinginfected
andsuffering
complications.Q
Myteenage
daughterseems
tohaverosacea.
Herskinis still
soyounganddelicate,
I don’twanttoputheron
strongacneskincare.What
shouldI try?S.Z.,Qld.
Rosaceais morecommon
in peopleover40,soit is
mostlikelyyourdaughter
hasacneratherthan
rosacea.HerGPora
dermatologistcanconfirm
that.Treatmentdepends
onitsseverity,andranges
from topical to oral forms.Q
I readthat
obesitysurgery
is ontherise
in teenagers
andmygrandsonis really
strugglingwithhisweight.
Is it a goodidea?M.H,SA.
Atleastonein fourschool-
agedchildrenin Australiaare
overweightor obese.Surgery
forchildrenis a lastresort,
whenallotherconservative
measureshavefailed. These
includeincreasingphysical
activity,limitingscreentime
andcontrollingfoodintake.
See his GP and a dietician.Ask the
doctor
HAVEa
QUESTION?with PROFESSOR KERRYN PHELPSDIDYOU
KNOW?Q
I sawin thenewsthatyou
spotteda seriousinfection
ona reporterduringan
interview.Apparentlyshe
hadcontractedit duringa manicure.
HowcanI besureI don’tgeta similar
infectionata nailsalon?A.O.,Tas.
Checkthehygieneprotocolsin thesalon:
doesthetechnicianweargloves?Arethe
instrumentssterilisedin anautoclave
(a smallbenchtopmachineusingsteam)?
Avoidcuticlepushingandclipping.Emery
boardsarereused,sotakeyourown
withyou.If yourskinis nickedorgrazed,
quicklyapplyanantibacterialointment
anda cleandressing.Seeyourdoctor
if skin becomes inflamed or infected.