Hi, I’m Elly Ling, and I’m a Registered Nutritional Therapist.

I’ve teamed up with Weight Loss HQ by Treated to bring you all the info you need to help you get the most out of your weight loss treatment.

In this video I’ll be talking about vitamins and minerals, and how optimising both can make your weight loss journey smoother.

Let’s start with vitamin B.

There are lots of different types, ranging from vitamin B1 to vitamin B12, all varying in slightly different ways – but in general these help your body process carbs, proteins and fats in food.

If you’re not getting enough of one or more types of B vitamin, then losing weight can be more difficult, because you might feel like you need to eat more to get the energy you need. So make sure to include good sources of vitamin B in your diet. Eggs, milk and lean meat are good options, as are lentils, beans and wholegrains.

A little side note about vitamin B12 is that you can only get this ‘organically’ from animal sources, so if you’re cutting out meat and dairy, make sure to include a good amount of B12 fortified foods in your diet like fortified plant yoghurts, nutritional yeast or plant milk (it’s added to most soya, almond and oat milks). If you are vegan though, I’d encourage you to take a B12 supplement.

Vitamin D and calcium. Vitamin D and calcium go hand in hand because calcium helps you to maintain strong bones, and vitamin D helps your body process calcium. So sometimes you’ll find them together in supplements.

But how does this relate to weight loss? Well, there is some evidence that people trying to lose weight who took a vitamin D and calcium supplement were able to lose more visceral fat. Some researchers have also found that overweight and obese people tend to have lower levels of vitamin D, which may mean that the two could be linked. We get vitamin D through sunlight, but in winter months, there’s not enough of that in the UK to keep our levels optimal.

And because it’s not easy to get all the vitamin D you need through food – it’s recommended to take a vitamin D supplement during the winter months (although taking one year-round probably won’t hurt either).

Magnesium plays several important roles in the body. It helps with energy production, blood pressure and blood sugar levels, and keeping bones strong. But it also helps with digestion, and can relieve stomach cramps and constipation – two side effects people can get while using weight loss treatment. So it’s good to make sure you’re getting enough magnesium while you’re losing weight. You’ll generally find it most in dark leafy greens, nuts, seeds and legumes (like lentils and beans), but you can get it as a supplement as well.

Iron is important because it carts oxygen around your body, including to your muscles. And your muscles are what make you able to burn fat when you’re exercising.

If you aren’t getting enough iron, you might feel weak and lethargic, and less able to do physical activity – which is an important part of your routine if you’re trying to lose weight. Shellfish and red meat are rich sources of iron. You can also get it from plant foods like spinach, nuts and legumes, but your body won’t absorb iron from these sources quite as well. A good trick if you’re veggie or vegan is to eat vitamin C-rich foods (like oranges or tomatoes) together with plant foods containing iron to help with absorption.

As ever, taking a supplement works too. In fact all of the vitamins and minerals I’ve mentioned here can usually be found in combined multivitamins.

Before taking supplements, do consult your doctor first especially if you’re taking any medication, and look for practitioner grade brands to ensure safety and purity.

Ginger.

Okay so this is more of an honorary mention because ginger is not a vitamin or mineral, but I think it deserves a place here because we’re talking about diet and supplements, and ginger can be really helpful if you’re using weight loss treatment and feel nauseous.

It does this by neutralising nausea-inducing acids in the stomach. The good thing about ginger is that it’s readily available and super cheap to buy raw – you can put some into your curry or stir-fry during cooking, or if you find it easier, take a ginger supplement.

One piece of advice though, is try not to overdo it. Having more than 6 grams per day of ginger has been associated with some side effects like diarrhoea and heartburn.