New diet

I used to read these amazing stories of women who suffer from chronic fatigue and lethargy, some to the extent of lying in bed all day long, drained of energy. After seeking all kinds of treatments and consultations, they finally realise it had everything to do with the food they ate. After making some changes to their diet, they could lead a normal life again.

I used to think that these stories were quite unbelievable. Maybe there's some truth but the truth must have been stretched and embellished to make the magazines fly off the shelves.

When I started nodding off at my workdesk in the morning even after 8 hours of sleep and plenty of exercise, I started getting worried. The results of my health checkup was normal. I even started to blame the water fountain in the background. The sound of water falling must be lulling me to sleep in the office.

At one stage, I spent my mornings simply struggling to stay awake. My eyelids would droop involuntarily and I couldn't get any work done. I would be drowsy like I was on drugs. By 10am, I was reaching for my second cuppa. I was desperate! Funny thing is, come afternoon, I would be energetic again. It was really puzzling.

Then I remembered the stories and decided to find out more about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. It's one of the most baffling human ailments known to man. Many people suffer from food intolerances without knowing it.

I've never had much problems with food from young except chocolate which gives me ulcers. But in the recent years, I began to develop sensitivity to milk and dairy products which make my tummy uncomfortable and bloated all day.

I began to examine my breakfast. I had been getting lazy and usually ate a piece of sponge cake or sweet bread with my coffee in the morning. These are all refined, processed carbohydrates with a high glycemic index. That could be it. Well, it could also be gluten or yeast I'm allergic to.

I didn't want to take any chances with processed food, so I began a new breakfast diet of steamed sweet potatoes the next morning. I could see the instant change in me. I did not feel sleepy at all that morning, and the next morning. When I switched to farmer's loaf filled with whole grains, walnuts and sunflower seed (yeast and gluten too), my energy level didn't dip.

It's the 10th day of my new diet. It's 10am. I ate some steamed sweet potatoes this morning. The water fountain is still droning in the background but I'm not feeling drowsy at all. This is really working! Quite unbelievable but definitely true.