knowledgeable answers please!

[naflharrison]

im working night duty at the moment which is from 10pm to 8am, i dont eat alot on my days of and get a good 7 hrs kip on my nights off, when im working i dont eat junk all night but eat fruit, wholemeal toast and low fat yogurts as i dont want to add even more calories to my daily intake given that im consuming food over a 24hr period! what i want to know is that if say i get up tomorrow at 8am and do my usual day of looking after kids and housework then go to work at 10pm work all night and them stay awake all day sunday when i get home, i know its not healthy to not sleep after such a long period but sometimes impossible if hubby is working but would my metabolism change or speed up i.e burn more calories to help keep my body going for that length of time or would my body store fat to keep me going? trying to loose weight but end up feeling bloated with being up all night but have been really hungry all day today and just want to eat! have had 2hrs sleep since i got up at 8am thursday and am heading to bed shortly but again i feel so hungry! i know its not healthy to not sleep after a night shift but i can handle it so far and only do it when really neccessary! sorry this question is long and gobbledi gook but head is like a bag of spanners at the mo with being tired so if you can make head nor tail of it ide appreciate some help with this!

[Ethel]

The sensible answer is to abandon all thoughts of 'three square meals a day' while you are working shifts.

Have several smaller 'meals' that are healthy and nutritious throughout the day, with one 'proper' meal that is smaller than you would normally have.

So, you could start your day with a medium bowl of cereal, and a couple of hours later, a slice of toast or a banana.

Then half of what you would normally have as a sandwich three hours of so after that. Your proper meal later on, and if you would normally have a pudding, have it two or three hours later.

This sort of eating pattern should stop you feeling hungry so you don't eat rubbish and give you the energy your body needs to keep going, without overloading your already stressed digestive system.

Of course, the pattern I've laid out would not suit every day, but gives on idea of how you could think about your meals.

By the way, when you are on shifts, a bowl of cereal, preferably with warm milk, is ideal at your bedtime, whatever time of day that is.

[Rosetta]

Try low GI foods on a regular basis, ie wholegrain cerials like oatmeal, wholemeal bread or pasta, bananas, fruit etc. It helps regulate your blood sugar levels so there is not the extreme highs and lows.