How Much Is Too Much ?

I want to share with you, a recent experience of one of my students. She is a vibrant young girl who has just stepped into the field of Consulting , and is very responsible and eager to help each and every of her client to the best of her abilities.

On one of the usual evenings a worried girl entered her cabin........She had come in for a weight-loss consultation and on noting the primary details, was found to be 80kg for a height of 5feet 3inches........... being overweight was the biggest of worries and counseling her to inculcate good eating habits was going to be not only a tough job but a slow process too.........
The girl came from a lower socio-economic strata of the society and finding healthy options for such clients is really tough keeping in mind that there are very limited alternatives available.



On taking her personal, medical and family history, my young friend found nothing that was too off track , which could have resulted in this weight gain at this young an age.
Later, on questioning the girl about her lifestyle, all the picture became as clear as a crystal.

This girl had a family of 5 people and for their otherwise very simple lifestyle were using a WHOPPING 15 lts of oil each month. On digging deep, this heavy use of oil was one thing that was making their simple food so tasty............. or that is exactly what they felt.

I have extended all my best wishes to my young dietitian friend, as her job now is to educate the lady of this house first and the resultant effects on the family will surely follow.

After listening to this incident, I felt the most sincere urge to write on this issue because I think it will be most important for all of us to stop....... and have a look at our oil consumption as well.

There is a very simple calculation about how much is enough and I have seen in my practise that a large number of people don't know about it.

Every, otherwise normal, individual requires about 3-4 tsp of oil every day. This allowance can be used to make the tempering ( tadka), or added to cereal flour or in can be used in any other convenient way.
So, calculations for a family of 4 people for a month will require:

4 x4tsp of oil each day = 4 x 20 ml of oil each day = 80 ml per day
For one month, 80ml x 30 days = 2400 ml = 2.4 lt

• A family of 5 should use around 3 lt of oil per month.
• A family of 6................................. 3.6 lt ------"------
• A family of 8................................. 4.8 lt ------"------
• A family of 10............................... 6 lt --------"------
  
  

I think now every one of us can ..........take a deep breath.......... and apply this simple formula to individual family needs and cross check if you are on the right track !!!!!!

Hoping the result of these calculations are right for each of your families...........
Happy Eating, Healthy Eating !!!!!!!

Can, “An Apple A Day” bring the Doctor Nearer???

I love going to the market............. It kind of de-stresses and relaxes me. When I now pass the vegetable and fruit markets, I am amazed at the new varieties of fruits and vegetables that are available on the stalls. I don't remember having seen some, or having seen so many different varieties of some of them, at all when I was small.

One such fruit happens to be an APPLE. You can find sooooooo many varieties of apples now-a-days in the market. Till some years back, Apples were seasonal fruits and were readily available only in a specific season........Not now, they are available almost round the year.
They also come in such pleasing, mouth watering colors and such appealing luster and shine that you cannot resist buying them.

An old rhyme says:
“To eat an apple going to bed.....Will make the doctor beg his bread. “
A more popular one goes:
“ An Apple a Day keeps the doctor away”.

I am an ardent follower of these 2 sayings and make sure that my family eats enough apples to keep the doctor away. Being a dietitian gives me an additional advantage in understanding why these rhymes could have been true.

Apples are absolutely excellent in their nutritive value and so, very appropriately called ”king” of fruits in The Western world. Apples are rich in Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Vitamin C and B1, Beta carotene and Iron. It is rich in Pectin ( fiber) and contains malic acid too. Each of the above nutrients are valuable contributors to making apples very very healthy.

Apples are Detoxifying, Astringent and Tonic to the body. They relieve constipation, reactivate the digestive bacteria, increase disease fighting capacity and appetite. They reduce the total cholesterol and are useful to people with heart disease.
Apples have diuretic (promotes urine formation) effect so are beneficial to people with high blood pressure. They also stabilize the blood sugar levels owing to their fiber content and make a good food option to the diabetics.

Even though an apple is really a wholesome, protective fruit, there is still something that is bothering me. And I need to share this with you.

I have mentioned the eye-catching luster and shine of the apples which make them irresistible....... Where do you think it comes from???

It comes from the WAX that has been rubbed into them to make them more attractive.
There are 2 things that I do with apples after I buy them. I make sure I wash them with hot water at least twice (you can actually see the floating wax in hot water). Or else make sure that I peel them completely before eating.

A dietitian will always tell you to eat fruits and vegetables along with their skin whenever possible. Particularly so for apples, as the skin of apples has good amounts of fiber and it contains a lot of Vit. C, almost 5 times more than the flesh. But looking at the content of wax on the surface, you will have to make a choice whether to keep the skin or peel it.

I am sure you will make a good choice for yourselves and the rhyme will continue to be true for generations to come!!!

IT WORKS................... IT REALLY DOES !!!!!

Garlic the natural Antibiotic:

I happened to call one of my close friends just yesterday. She came on the line,
but was barely able to speak. She was suffering from a very bad attack of
sore throat, upper respiratory tract infection and a whole lot of cough.

First thing i asked her, “ Haven't you visited and read my blog?”
She said she was unable to do anything over the last weekend, let alone reading
my blog. So, I told her that she can still help herself by wearing the garlic necklace
right away !!!!
I also told her to use garlic in some other ways that i will now share with you..........

GARLIC is the natures most effective broad spectrum {means it works
against a whole lot of bacteria,viruses,parasites, fungi, yeasts and moulds }
Antibiotic. Not only that, it doesn't have any side effects ( disrupting the digestive
system, Immune system, allergic reactions, blood disorders, nerve damage or
kidney toxicity like other conventional antibiotics.)
It actually, has “ SIDE BENEFITS”.

Only problem with Garlic is that its Antibiotic properties are not heat resistant. So,
when we cook garlic, it loses all these properties.
To use Garlic as an antibiotic, it has to be RAW.

Here are some ways in which you can use it :

Garlic +Honey 1 : Chop or crush 2-3 cloves of garlic. Add a little natural honey to
this. Let this mixture sit for a while. Finger lick this potent,
effective, natural cough reliever several times through out the day.

Garlic +Honey 2 : Chop 3-4 cloves of garlic. Add 1 cup water. Let this mixture
brew. Add 1tsp honey, a pinch of dry ginger powder and little lemon
juice. Drink in one shot.

Garlic +Carrot juice : Chop or crush garlic. Add little water and leave covered for
some time. Add ½ to 1 glass of fresh carrot juice to make an
antibiotic drink.

Garlic Inhaler : We have already spoken about the garlic necklace. This works

like a constant garlic inhaler and is best for sinus infections, colds and
bronchitis as the Sulphur compounds of garlic penetrate into all
areas of the Upper respiratory tract.
It is these sulphur compounds which impart the characteristic smell
to garlic.

Garlic Bread Spread : Crush few cloves of Garlic. Add enough Olive oil. Leave
overnight. Add Salt to taste in the morning. Apply on freshly toasted
bread.

Use in Soups : After cooking soups, turn off the stove. Take one serving of this
soup in a bowl, add enough crushed garlic to this. Eat this after it
brews for a while. Don't reheat this soup.

Going back to my friend, she is feeling better now and did try 2 of the above 5
ways immediately. I was able to speak to her on the phone today ,to my hearts
content.

Cookery Course At NIN, Pune.

Cookery Course At NIN, Pune.

I am very very happy to inform all you readers that my piping hot medicinal masala tea showed its effect on friday and I was not grounded on the weekend with a cold and cough. This helped me to continue with my weekend plans with full energy and enthusiasm.

I happened to be at a very interesting workshop over the weekend. It was organized at the NIN viz.National Institute Naturopathy,Tadiwala Rd. ,Pune.

The workshop was about cooking : the Naturopathy way.

I was very pleased to meet the people there and and was actually amazed by their “Gandhigiri”.It is surprising that there still are real people in this world who are able to follow these principles in their lives with wholehearted devotion and faith.

It is said that the qualities and attitude of a Leader often percolate to the bottom most member of the Hierarchy. I was able to witness absolute Simplicity and Humbleness in each member of the staff in NIN. The reason for which obviously is self explanatory. It is being lead by Dr. Babu Joseph and he has set an example by showing the way to all his people. During the course of the workshop, he was enthusiastically contributing in every manner to the workshop. But the “cherry on the cake” { cake is not a permissible food according to Naturopathy }was when he himself prepared a delicious“Payasam” for all of us with his own hands and fed us

with a typical Indian warm hospitality too.

My basic intention of being there was to understand what Naturopathy has to say about Diet .
To my surprise,the only rule they follow is to have everything which is natural, naturally available
to mankind.They do not take the pharmacological aspect into consideration at all.
So, food they serve is pure Vegetarian food: cereals,pulses, fruits and vegetables, all cooked in zero oil. The resultant food is delightful,tasty and absolutely detoxifying.
But they use huge amounts of coconut as it fits the principle of being natural food.

NIN also serves these detox diets at a very affordable rate in their canteen. They also have

a lot of other body treatments including mud therapy, massages,oil baths, yoga classes, individual consultations etc.....

All in all,I guess, a visit to NIN pune is worth it............It can be for a massage or just a healthy meal at their campus. They can surely help you de-stress and relax !!!

CHAI GARAM...........

Take one: Friday 19th September, around 3pm.

Pune city is getting drenched in the rain. This does not have any effect
on the traffic,though. People are trying to reach their desired destinations
inspite of the rain. On one such two wheeler, i travel with one of my friends
and the only priority is to reach home in time.
As an “End Result” i reach home, BUT fully drenched and soaking in the rain!!!

Take two: Friday 19th September, one hr later.

I now sit in front of my PC, nice and dry and cozy , wearing warm clothes and
sipping my fuming hot cup of afternoon tea. Seems normal to every household
Right?............ NO............. I am sipping on a special cup of tea, which has a
special ingredient added to it.
This special ingredient is the CHAI MASALA which one of my friends has made
for me and i have specially added it to my cup of tea today because it has some
medicinal properties !!!!!
This tea masala has an equal proportion of dry Ginger,Cloves, Cinnamon,Black pepper corns
and Cardamom. Each of these ingredients has properties which will give me a cover from the
after effects that i may land up in, because of getting wet in the rains. Lets see how...............

Dry Ginger: Has potential to work against Influenza Virus. It has natural antihistamines to fight
any inflammations. Fights sinusitis, colds, asthma and reduces swellings and
congestion in the nose and throat.

Cloves: Can be used very effectively to alleviate cough, cold and congestion.
It has mucolytic properties and fights sore throats.

Cinnamon: Useful in relieving pain, cough and cold. Also relieves bad breath.

Black Pepper: It has Antioxidant and antibacterial properties. Alleviates Cough.
Relieves bronchospasms and mobilizes the blocked Phlegm.

Cardamom:It is useful in coughs, is a mouth freshner &opens breath.
Particularly, In combination with dry ginger, it can ward off blocked Phlegm
and relieves congestion.

I am sure this hot tea is going to save me from having a bout of cold and cough.

Lets hope for the best !!!

Garlic the “Wonder Herb”

Thanks for the comments which have started to trickle in slowly.......

And I am quite aware of the fact that we cannot possibly talk everything about Garlic just in one
post. So...... we will take it easy and one use at a time.

Garlic has kept on fascinating and helping the mankind for a long long time and the history of its use as food and medicine can be traced back to Ancient Sumeria ( 3000 B.C.).
Garlic has been universally used in all forms of traditional medicine: Chinese, Ayurvedic, Unani, Naturopathy, European Herbalism and Contemporary Folk Medicine.

Scientific evidence now confirms traditional use, and accepts Garlic has extraordinary medicinal
powers. Like i have mentioned earlier, GARLIC is really the king of Food Medicine and it is truly a “Wonder Herb”.

Enumerating a few uses of GARLIC :

• Natural Antibiotic
• Antimicrobial
• Anti carcinogenic
• Cholesterol lowering agent
• Anticoagulant
• Immune Boosting
• Anti asthmatic
• Anti spasmodic
• Blood Detoxifying
• Diaphoretic
• Diuretic
• Expectorant and Decongestant
• Anti flatulence
• Anti helminthic
• Aphrodisiac.............................
  

Phew............... I am sure i must have left out a few of the uses already!!!
Anyway, i hope to further elaborate on each of the use one by one.
But I am sure you will wait for my next post...............
Bye and happy reading!!!!

A string of antibiotic pearls.........

Hello to all !!!
In my earlier post I mentioned about the traditional knowledge and wisdom about the food remedies being passed on from one generation to another.

Now that we start the journey into the medicinal properties of food, I have to respect the “King” of all food medicine before i even take a glance at the others.
You might have guessed it right!

IT CANNOT BE ANYTHING OTHER THAN GARLIC .

I can still remember myself when i was small and used to have a runny nose due to some weather
change and would be down with some respiratory infection, I used to wear a wonderful little necklace around my neck to ward off the infection.

Now you can ask me what kind of superstition was this?

You will be surprised to know that i would be wearing several cloves of garlic ( peeled and beaded) on a piece of string, around my neck!!!!
Oh what an awfully smelly necklace that was :( But believe me, it always did its job well and helped me recover from the infection faster and without any antibiotic prescription from the family physician.

Now that the world has recognized the properties of Garlic, we all know that Allacin is the chemical
compound which offered the awful smell to my childhood string of pearls and it is this exact
chemical which fought against the infection too :)

PS: It is very safe to use a similar string of garlic pearls for your kids too.I have tried it on my little ones and it stills shows the same beneficial effects.

Food as Medicine

Food is one thing I cannot get out of my mind at all. It has always been as central an issue to my life as it is to most of you. Not only do I thrive on food, like all the living beings, but my profession does not allow me to look elsewhere either :)

Being an Indian, food even plays a bigger role in my life, as traditionally, we Indians regard food to be a central part of our culture. The way in which we prepare and cook our food is very very unique and I must say it is one of the interesting feathers in the "Cap of World Cuisine".

We have known about the medicinal properties of a variety of spices and condiments and herbs that we have been using very successfully and regularly in our kitchens for ages. There can be a lot of times when we can just turn to our kitchens to fix-up simple home remedies that can relieve us of common ailments.

I can remember many occasions in my childhood when my grandmother used to come up with simple but very effective home remedies for problems like colds and cough and colic and indigestion and diarrhoea and acidity............ The list is long, but i have seen these home remedies do wonders.

The best part is that these time-tested home remedies have been passed on from one generation to another.

Another very important part of our Culture is "Ayurveda", one of the most ancient systems of Medicine in India and it also considers DIET to be an important part of the treatment. Sometimes, a dietary prescription in itself is a complete treatment.

Indian Culture has appreciated and acknowledged the importance and use of food as nourishment as well as like medicines.I bow down to the wisdom of our ancient medicos who have provided us with the wonderful treasure of home remedies.

This is just an humble exploration into the world of "using Food as Medicine"

First step towards understanding food.........

Food is the source of energy, provides nourishment to the body and is thus the driving force behind all body processes. Diet has always been the basis and the basic requirement to lead a healthy life. We all know that having the right kind of food will bring us health and and indulgence can lead to many disease conditions. We, the dietitians, are trained to use food for their nutritive as well as their therapeutic value. We can design diets to suit individual needs and medical conditions and can help our clients to better suite themselves to the medical problems they are facing or fighting.

I have always believed that "food" has a lot more to offer than just the nutritive value.......
The curative and preventive properties of foods always amaze me and and i am sure food cannot be "summed up" on just the calories it can provide.

I want to share about how simple day-to day foods can be used very effectively to combat simple health issues that we face everyday.......... explore and learn more on their preventive and curative attributes.......... try and see if we find any missing links on the way to complete the "Health-puzzle".......... and try to find solutions by making a few modifications in our food to make it most fulfilling for our new lifestyles.