Under the microscope
Loose Women TV presenter Andrea McLean, 49, answers our health quiz
CAN YOU RUN UP THE STAIRS? IF IT’S two floors in my house, yes. I always take the stairs at work and on the Tube, and walk when I can. I go to the gym three times a week, where I do weights and boxing. I’m training for the Vitality 10k run on Monday, too. GET YOUR FIVE-A-DAY? IT AVERAGES out over the week. I’m lactose-intolerant and also avoid histamine, which is in green apples and other sugary fruit — if I ingest too much, my skin and gut become ultrasensitive and my anxiety shoots up. EVER DIETED? I DID a gut cleanse at the start of the year and cut out all grains and yeasts (anything that ferments) to reset my system. Otherwise, I’ve never needed to, as I eat so carefully. I’m just over 9st (I’m 5ft 7in) and happy with that. ANY VICES? DAIRY-FREE Cornetto, a glass of wine or an espresso martini. ANY FAMILY AILMENTS? ARTHRITIS runs in both sides of the family, and my hands have started to hurt, so I’m keeping tabs on that. My parents are in their early 70s and still very active. WORST ILLNESS? I HAD endometriosis [where womblike tissue forms elsewhere in the body] and cysts on my ovaries, so, in 2016, I had a hysterectomy and my ovaries removed. During the operation, they detected vasculitis [inflammation of the blood vessels], which can stop blood flow to your organs and be fatal, so they removed the offending tissue. I have an irregular heartbeat, but don’t take medication for it, and a twisted, enlarged kidney with varicose veins wrapped around it — I’m told I can have surgery if it causes problems. POP ANY PILLS? AFTER my surgery, I started using an HRT patch. I use a hormone cream, Sandrena, at night, and magnesium, to help me sleep better, plus other vitamins. I take about 18 tablets a day. HAD ANYTHING REMOVED? JUST my womb and ovaries. I also had caesareans with my children, Finlay, 17, and Amy, 12, followed by five major abdominal operations after a hernia — my stomach muscles got so stretched during pregnancy that they didn’t join up again afterwards. TRIED ALTERNATIVE REMEDIES? I TRIED reiki [‘energy healing’] on a yoga retreat a decade ago and heard the air crack when the practitioner put her hands on me. I spent the next 12 hours sobbing like the world was ending and feeling like I had flu. Then it felt like a huge weight had lifted. EVER BEEN DEPRESSED? I HAD postnatal depression for two years after Amy. Antidepressants helped. After my hysterectomy, my anxiety skyrocketed, but medication and being busy at work helped. WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT? THE menopause. One of the awful side-effects is insomnia. Sometimes, it feels like I don’t sleep a wink. LIKE TO LIVE FOR EVER? NO, I think we all work better to a deadline.
The Vitality London 10,000 is on May 27 — vitalitylondon10000.co.uk Interview by NICK McGRATH