My girlfriend is always tired?

Hey guys, my girlfriend for the last 3 weeks has been insanely tired, she says that there isn't a moment where she feels awake and she's getting worried as she hasn't felt like herself for awhile. She's vegetarian, and since she's been back from her holidays she's stopped eating quorn, to just once a week, where she used to have it 4/5 times. She eats enough, 3 meals big portions and supper and snacks, but her diet is very limited, meaning she eats a lot of the same stuff but not enough of other things like iron and protein. I think this may be linked with her tiredness, however she now can't walk for long distances without feeling a bit light-headed and dizzy, she was ill with a cold a few weeks ago but she still hasn't fully recovered which is again strange as she usually has about a week of illness. I'm worried cause we're only 17 and its not normal for s teen to be this tired, she's going to the docs on tuesday but does anyone have an idea of what might be going on?

We bought some multivitamin tablets which contain 100% iron and protein this week, does anyone know if these are useful and actually work, if they are how long do they take to have an effect.

Finally If it is to do with iron or protein deficiency, which iron-rich foods should she include in her diet?

Thanks.My girlfriend is always tired?
if she is vegetarian and not vegan then eggs are high in protein, for iron, dark green leafy veg are high in it, eg cabbage, brocolli etc. Is there any chance she could be pregnant?My girlfriend is always tired?
I'm not an expert on being a vegetarian; but my impression is that most of them are healthier than the rest of us. So I have to wonder if your girlfriend has learned enough about it to be eating correctly. It is not as simple as cutting things out of your diet. You need to know how to balance you diet while excluding the things you don't want to consume.



My advice is to see the doctor just to be sure it isn't something else. It will ease your minds. Be aware, though, that most doctors don't really know much about these kinds of things. They don't study nutrition in very much detail.



Then I would see a nutritionist or at the very least do some serious research into how to meet your nutritional needs while following a vegetarian lifestyle.



Vitamins couldn't hurt.
it could well be and she really need to get a full blood count done, all she need to do is see her GP , i have posted you a link that gives you a list of iron rich foods. good luck.



http://www.vegsoc.org/info/iron.html
Use the iron tablets, they do work. Also, you can by different tablets like that to boost energy levels.



You could get a tonic, like 'Seven Seas'. You usually have to take it three times a day after meals. It makes you feel less tired, so should be great for your girlfriend. You can usually by a tonic from 'Sainsbury's' or 'Tesco's'.



As for the Quorn, I think she should try to eat more as this may be the problem. But, I would go and see your GP...it could be something else.



Hope that helps :)
Sounds like iron deficiency which is very common in young women and in vegetarians. She might do well to go to her doctor and go on iron supplements just for a while until she can get her iron levels up. This is definitely much harder for a vegetarian. Lentils tend to contain large amounts of iron, but it's definitely harder to get her required iron from a meatless diet



Try this site

http://www.vegsoc.org/info/iron.html
dont prescribe for yourself. eat a wide variety of foods including meat, veg and fruit. when she has been to the docs she may have a better understanding you need variety to get all the trace elements, carbohydrates and protienes to allow your body to do it's work properly and dont forget to drink enough water each day, at least 1Ltre
It could be any number of things, but you should get the doctor to take a blood panel, and also test her thyroid. The blood panel consists of WBC, RBC, and Hemoglobin.
she needs to get out more
it sounds like its mostly her dietary habits which is causing her these problems which is leading to deficiencies of certain essential vitamins. Suggest she takes supplements to start and try to expand her pallet! Plenty of vegetables, fruits and most importantly water. But being a vegetarian will limit her foods however that means she must make up the lack of protein and iron, this is probably why she's feeling so weak. Beans, veggies such as broccoli, asparagus, and cabbage are best for iron, and tofu is great
Last week i had a cold, and i stopped eating because i was to ill, so i did not have any quorn food, when that had almost completely gone i was going all dizzy and horrible so i stayed of school for a week.



My doctor gave me some drops to put into my drink in the mornings, and it really helps, i am still slightly tired but not as much as i was. I just need to start eating some more quorn and i should be fine.



In order to get more protein get her to eat peanut butter, it is great for protein.



I hope she gets better. x
Tiredness and dizziness would indicate insufficient oxygen getting to the right places and could be due to a low haemoglobin level which could be due to insufficient iron in the diet. However, iron on its own may not be enough. She may be short on Vitamin B12 and folic acid.



Good sources of iron include liver, beef, wholemeal bread, cereals, eggs and dried fruit.



Good sources of folic acid include beans, oatmeal, mushrooms, broccoli, asparagus, beef and liver.



Good sources of Vitamin B12 are fish, liver, beef, pork, eggs, milk, and cheese.



If it is just iron deficiency anaemia, ';iron tablets will rapidly reverse anaemia, so long as any underlying cause of blood loss has been treated';.



The doctors should be able to give a definitive answer from blood tests.



It could also be something like a severe infection, such as glandular fever - are her glands swollen ?





What are the symptoms of glandular fever?

================================



Before the disease breaks out, one to two weeks may pass with symptoms that are similar to those of flu.



A sore throat with swollen tonsils that are heavily covered by a white coating.



Fever.



Severe fatigue.



Muscle pains.



Headache.



Tendency to sweat.



Stomach pains and there may be signs of an enlargement of the spleen.



Swollen and sore lymph nodes in the throat, armpits and the groin.



The liver may become enlarged and yellow jaundice may develop.



There may be a rash.
i'm a pollotarian, which is almost the sam thing as a vegetarian except i eat chicken. i'm always tired too. my friend had the same problem and her doctor told her she just needed to eat lots of food with iron and take iron pills, it helped her.
i've gt a question for you how many hours of sleep does she get???? being a veggy grl she doesn't get alot of what she needs so she needs more rest it doesn't really mean this is the main prob cause it most definately ISN';T just curious