Will dieting make my gallstones even worse?

I AM 66 and overweight so I want to lose 2st. But I have gallstones. I’ve read that eating too little can make them worse. Shall I avoid a fasting diet?

FOR those with gallstones – hard deposits that form in the gallbladder – any restrictive diet can be risky.

Both fasting and dramatic weight loss can lead to the development of more gallstones, making the problem worse. But, frustratingly, gallstones are associated with being overweight, so many sufferers may already be in the process of attempting to lose a few pounds.

Gallstones, more common in women over 40, are usually made up of excess cholesterol. They are associated with type 2 diabetes and hormonereplacement therapy.

Roughly eight in ten people don’t know they have them.

With regards to weight loss, the general advice is to keep it to under about

3lb a week.

Avoid very dramatic weight-loss regimes such as bariatric surgery or very low-calorie diets that involve meal replacements.

Fasting diets work by creating a calorie shortfall because you eat less.

Despite the hype around it, fasting is simply a tool that helps dieters to eat less and therefore lose calories.

There is no reason to believe it is superior to other diets or more likely to be successful.

There’s no magic – people find they work simply because they suit their lifestyle.

Experts suggest a low-fat diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables but low in refined carbohydrates (such as white pasta) will help with gallstones.

Data shows this type of diet can stop symptoms in a third of sufferers who experience problems. It will, of course, also result in weight loss.

Combining this with a daily walk of 30 minutes would probably be the most successful way for you to lose weight, without worsening the problem. AT THE age of 78, my eye colour is changing. Over the past three years the hazel colour has turned yellow. The black outline in the middle is turning blue. Is there something wrong?

THE coloured part of our eye, the iris, does change as we age.

For most people, this is perfectly normal. Commonly, something called an arcus can appear, which makes it look as if the colour has changed.

An arcus looks like a grey or white ring around the coloured part of the eye, making the iris appear paler. It’s a very typical sign of ageing and affects more than half of us by the age of 60. At 80, everyone has it. It’s usually not a sign of any problem, but for some it can develop due to high cholesterol.

The colour change of the arcus is caused by fat deposition in the cornea – the transparent shield that covers the eye. In this case, the arcus is far more prominent. The problem can occur in younger people, and those with genetic cholesterol issues such as familial hypercholesterolaemia.

It is worth asking your GP or optician for an eye examination as, while rare, changes to the iris colour may be a result of inflammatory conditions or rare pigment disorders.

A thorough eye-health examination will rule this out.

Certain drugs can also cause colour changes within the eye, for instance a steroid treatment for glaucoma called latanoprost. In this case the iris usually darkens. If you have any changes to your vision, prolonged redness or pain in the eyes, an urgent appointment with an ophthalmologist – eye doctor – would be sensible.