Prevention of Lifestyle Diseases

‘DIET’ a very famous & interesting word that can be read, heard and seen everywhere. Some people complain about it and some people are obsessed with it. But have u ever wondered what exactly is it?

So what is diet exactly? Diet is the good quality of food consumed in the perfect quantity to keep oneself fit. You can also call it a balanced diet or a healthy diet….

A healthy diet is one that helps maintain or improve health. It is important for lowering many chronic health risks, such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and cancer.  A healthy diet involves consuming appropriate amounts of all essential nutrients and an adequate amount of water. Nutrients can be obtained from many different foods, so there are numerous diets that may be considered healthy. A healthy diet needs to have a balance of macronutrients (fats, proteins, and carbohydrates), calories to support energy needs, and micronutrients to meet the needs for human nutrition without inducing toxicity or excessive weight gain from consuming excessive amounts.

The more you go into the depth of each nutrient, the more interesting the word DIET gets. Every specific complication has its diet. Diet involves body chemistry, metabolism and physiology. It involves the persons likes and dislikes, it involves how immune the person is, it involves how tolerant and strong you are.

Our ever increasing population is the culprit that is leading to stress eventually causing health complications. So what do we exactly mean by lifestyle diseases? Lifestyle diseases are those conditions usually attributed to dramatic shifts in the way humans live their lives, often due to advancements in a society or its scientific progress. These include cancer, piles, constipation, diabetes, heart disease, liver disease, obesity, asthama, osteoporosis etc.

A high fibre diet is necessary for people suffering from piles & constipation. They include eating green leafy vegetables, fruits, plenty of water & eating small frequent meals.

• Breakfast  is  the  most  important  meal of the day. The prime time for having breakfast should be before 9 am.
• Fasting and feasting should be avoided as it increases acidity and has proven to increase weight. Thus no man is wise on an empty stomach.
• The juice of two oranges taken in the morning on an empty stomach for eight to ten days daily relieves constipation. Do not add salt or ice in the juice. Do not take anything one to two hours after its intake.
• Have small and frequent meals instead of having too much at a time. Follow a 6 meal pattern.
• Have 3-4 litres of water minimum throughout the day. Water is necessary for proper bowel movements and prevents dehydration.

• Minimum 30 grams of fibre is required to relieve you of constipation,
• Increase the quantity of raw food in the diet - green vegetables, salad, and fresh fruits. This should be rich in  fruits like apple, figs, guava, grapes, lemon, dates, orange; grains maximum in fibre like barley, oatmeal, maize, wheat flour, jowar, bajra.
• Chew the food nicely so that it gets mixed with the saliva properly. This makes digestion and processing of food easier in the intestine.
• Fruits should be taken in between the meals. Minimum intake of 2 raw fruits necessary in the day.
• Fast food taken in a fast manner leads to overloading of work (secretion of juices and breakdown of food) on the intestines, causing several stomach ailments. The daily routine should be planned in a way so as to leave sufficient time for peaceful meals.
• People with sedentary occupations particularly suffer from constipation. Walking four to five kilometres daily is necessary, especially after dinner, since it helps proper digestion of food.
• Sleeplessness is another cause of constipation as it disturbs the regularity of meal digestion. A restless body is unable to work properly during digestion.
• Cabbage juice half cup taken twice daily cures constipation due to its fibre content. Cooking destroys some active ingredients responsible for curing stomach ailments, so fresh juice is advised.
• Dip 10-12 dry grapes without seeds (large raisin) in milk and boil the milk. Now chew the grapes and drink the milk. This is more beneficial when taken at night
• Dinner should be before 9 pm so as to give time for digestion.
• Mango is a natural reliever of constipation. Drinking milk over mango forms a lining in the mucous membrane of the intestine and stomach and clears the stomach.
• Exercise is a must for all sedentary people having constipation. The more the mobility to the body, better are your bowel movements and digestion