GET FIT STAY FIT

(Continued from last week)

Now here is the topic of food. It is a very sensitive one since many of us live to eat and do not eat to live! But we may remember this rhyme:

“One whose choice of food is wrong, Digs one's own grave with one's tongue.”

Nutritionists say. “You are what you eat”. It is proved by the fact that even people having more access to food and health care suffer no less from complicated diseases. It means the quality of food generally consumed is not okay. Firstly because the uses of fertiliser and pesticide have spoiled the original organic purity of food. Then there are various types of processed, adulterated, sweetened, coloured, fatty and chemically preserved food which can never be as nutritious as pure and fresh food. Also refrigerating for a long time is harmful. In fact we need pure blood for healthy cells and it comes from pure and fresh food only.
 Fibre is a very important form of carbohydrate. It was called 'roughage” in the past and in this age of white flour, white sugar and polished rice it is found mostly in fruits and vegetables. It keeps the digestive tract clean and thus reduces the risk of heart disease and colon cancer. Actually processing removes fibre from food. Take for example the white flour which is a common ingredient of all confectionery items. It is made by separating fibre from whole wheat flour. Thus it becomes a dead food. Same is true for the white sugar and to some extent the polished rice which is much worse than brown rice. Sugar increases the density of blood, a condition that causes many dangerous diseases including decay of bones. So it is wise to avoid all food containing white flour and sugar. The use of oil, salt and spices should also be kept at a minimum.

A well-balanced diet should contain 40 percent starch, 15 percent protein and 45 percent fruits and vegetables. Each type of food needs a different digestive enzyme. So it is better not to eat fruits with starch i.e. rice, bread and potato, etc. Maintain a gap of at least half an hour, eating animal protein like fish, meat and egg with starch is also not advisable, though non-vegetarians almost always prefer the tasty combination of these two types of food. Vegetable goes well with both starch and protein. Eat half a kilogram of vegetables a day. Seven types of vegetables and fruits are recommended. Start your breakfast with green papaya and a fruit to keep your liver healthy. Sprouted wheat, chick-pea, moog/mung (a kind of pulse phaseolus mungo) and beans are good items for breakfast. So are oats and bread made of whole wheat flour. Leafy vegetables, beans and cauliflower are not good for dinner as they produce gas in the stomach at night.
 All lentils are good sources of protein. Chick-pea lentil and sprout are good for diabetes and meet any protein deficiency. Boiled soybean also is good for diabetes and protects man's prostate gland and woman's uterus. It goes without saying that fish, fowl and egg-white are good sources of protein. Though red meat (beef, mutton, etc) has a lot of protein, too, yet it contains harmful fats that cause many major diseases.
 Drink 3-4 big glasses of preferably lukewarm water first thing in the morning, before even brushing the teeth. It clears bowels and cures acidity and other ailments related to digestion. Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day, but not during or immediately after a meal. Gaps of an hour before and two hours after a meal are very beneficial. Women should not drink anything standing; it is bad for the uterus. Light tea without milk and sugar is a healthy  beverage. So is green coconut water, but not on an empty stomach and not more than half a litre a day. During hot summer days drink lemon water with a very small amount of honey or brown sugar or molasses, but keep a distance from all types of bottled or canned soft drinks and sweetened juices. Especially women and children are more vulnerable to their harmful effect. The advertisements of these products done by profit seeking traders and glamourous models are quite deceptive. In fact these tasty and sugary drinks are causes of many dangerous diseases. Add to these the newly arrived fast food which creates the base for a fast death.
The quantity of food and time for meals are also important. Never overeat. It is best not to fill the stomach. Eat meals at the same time everyday. Dinner should be over by 8 pm, because digestion starts diminishing from 4 pm.
Below is a small list of preventive food and drinks:
* Oats is good for diabetes, reduces cholesterol and keeps the skin and colon healthy.
* Wheat germ prevents cancer.
* Nuts, sesame and flaxseeds are good for both heart and brain.
* Juices of all leafy vegetables like cabbage, lettuce, spinach and coriander, etc. which do not taste bad if eaten raw are beneficial even for cancer patients. Bring out the juice by adding water to the smashed leaves, blending them in a blender and then straining. Mix a teaspoonful of ginger powder and a tablespoonful of honey (not for a diabetic patient) with a glass of this green juice.
* Juices of vegetables like green papaya, carrot and bottle-gourd are good for liver and nerves.
* Mint is good for heart, lungs and stomach.
* Ginger improves digestion, cures headache and is good for gout.
* Raw turmeric cleanses blood.
* Black cumin has been regarded as a cure-all from ancient time.
* Garlic is rightly considered as a panacea. It lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, aids in digestion and is useful for many diseases including cancer. Drinking boiled garlic water cures common cough and cold quickly.
* Unsweetened yoghurt is great for the total digestive system.
* Spirulina, a wonderful blue-green microalga, is good for cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, skin disease and many other ailments.
Finally a word of caution: If you feel bad after having any food or drink, stop taking it any more.
* Many diseases start from an unclean mouth as from dirty utensils. So brushing teeth after every meal, especially before going to sleep at night, is a must.
* Sleep on a semi-hard bed. Do not forget to spend some time in Shabasan and brush aside all your worries before putting your head on the pillow.

The writer is Organiser, HEAL. HEAL stand for Healthy,
Energetic, Active Life.