– The humble spice, jeera (cumin seeds) hydrates, has detox benefits, reduces body heat, cures itchiness and works wonders for those troubled with acne and pimples.

Soak one tsp of jeera overnight along with a tsp of mishri (rock sugar). In the morning first thing, strain the mixture and drink the water. Alternatively, you can put jeera powder to your buttermilk or curd.

– Lemongrass is a great herb for the summers. It treats indigestion, keeps you hydrated, improves gut function and cools the body. You can make lemongrass tea by seeping the grass in water. Also, you can use lemongrass by soaking a mesh bag with a handful of leaves in your bathing water.

– Avoid having alcohol. Alcohol is dehydrating in nature and can add up to the dehydration the heat brings along. If you must, then ensure you drink plenty of water along with your drinks. One glass of water for every glass of drink is a good way to start.

– Avoid refrigerated water as it hampers digestion. Ayurveda also has always advised against the consumption of chilled water. Instead, drink ‘matka (earthen pot)’ water. It is naturally cool and has the unique property to reduce the temperature of water in accordance with the climate

– Avoid processed foods like chips, cookies & packaged sugary drinks and beverages. They are actually dehydrating and can reduce the amount of fluid that your body actually retains. Instead, have fluids like coconut water, homemade sherbets, buttermilk, curd etc.

Unsure about the right diet for you? Are you torn between what you’d love to eat and what you hear is unhealthy for you? Sign up for a one-on-one nutrition & diet consultation with leading Mumbai dietitian Munmun Ganeriwal

The packaged food with all its health claims, the marketing, celebrities endorsing and its quirky characters that appeal to the kids, only makes for a good business model for the companies as it helps them maximize their sales but it’s not good for human health.

The local food movement on the other hand, needs to gain greater momentum. Eating locally grown food is the need of the hour and for good reasons-

1. Good health and nutrition– Local foods are foods that are grown around the place you eat. Since the food does not travel as far, they have fewer food miles. Lesser the distance traveled, more the nutrients retained. Fewer food miles essentially mean that it arrives fresh on your plate and is full of nutrients, taste and flavour. When you eat food that is local, you also ensure that you are eating seasonal. Additionally, compared to large factory farms, small farms are most likely to be less aggressive in the use of chemicals, pesticides etc. in their produce.

2. Environmental sustainability– With fewer food miles, local foods save on greenhouse gas emissions and contributes to improve our carbon footprint. Since eating local food eliminates the need to recruit fuel dominant transportations, it can serve to be one of the most effective measures to reduce global warming.

3. Ecological diversity– Protecting our large food diversity and preserving the agricultural gene pool is essential if we want to address issues of global food security and zero hunger. Local crops are climate smart as they adapt to marginal soil and climate conditions and can reduce our dependency on only major crops for food.

4. Local economy– While buying an industrialized and processed food pack off the shelf of a multi department store, you are only funding the big CEO of a giant food company. Instead eating local helps you support the cause of small farmers and indigenous tribes and allows active participation in building local economy.

As the song from the Island Food Community of Pohnpei goes, let’s sing in chorus- “Let’s go local, let’s stay local.”

Reference-

1. Sustainable development goals

Unsure about the right diet for you? Are you torn between what you’d love to eat and what you hear is unhealthy for you? Sign up for a one-on-one nutrition & diet consultation with leading Mumbai dietitian Munmun Ganeriwal

Travelling can cause weight gain just as any other unplanned event in our life can, for eg, a family wedding or as simple as a late night movie for which you did not plan ahead. Failing to plan is planning to fail after all. Hence, travelling or any other real life situations that we often go through do not lead to weight gain but our approach towards it does. We need to plan for our food, exercise etc. before hand just as we plan other things in our itinerary. If that is done, travelling will only be a happy experience without the stress of gaining any weight.

IN-FLIGHT MEALS

During a flight journey because of reduced air pressure, our bodily function slows down and digestion gets sluggish. Keeping this in mind, one should follow these few points as mentioned below-

1. Do not leave home empty stomach. Have your meal just before you leave from home.

2. Carry some portable snacks like nuts/ dry fruits/ fresh fruit that can help you through the long check-ins and also upon arrival

3. For short duration flights, the in-flight meals can be brought from home (roti roll, sandwich, poha). For longer flights, you can choose to have one homemade meal (brought from home) and one in-flight meal. For the in-flight meal, choose hot meals (like rice & beans) instead of packed juices, muffins, cakes etc.

HYDRATION

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that
mild dehydration can cause metabolism to slow down by as much as 3 percent, causing weight gain. Hence, its important to stay well hydrated during travels as water also helps in digestion and flushing out of toxins from the body.

EXERCISES TO DO

I always recommend people to do Surya Namaskars while they are travelling as it helps to work out the entire body, without the need of any special equipment. Also, since it gets done within a short span of time (10-15 minutes) and can be done in the hotel room itself, it makes for a great choice for people looking out to fit in some exercise while they are traveling.

TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND WHILE ORDERING FOOD ON A JOURNEY

1. Always do a bit of research about good eating places before leaving for your holiday. Apps like zomato and trip advisor can help you to narrow down few options before you actually reach your destination.

2. Look out for places that serve fresh, local food.

3. Always order 2 items max for a main meal, for eg- warm salad and pizza if you are traveling in Europe OR Rice & curry for a holiday anywhere in Asia

4. Order dessert as a separate meal and avoid having it post a big meal

5. Instead of looking out for calories, look out for freshness in the meal- how fresh are the ingredients, how freshly is it prepared/ cooked etc. Needless to say, avoid pre-packaged sandwiches etc. that are prepared long time back and kept on the shelves

DRINKING DURING HOLIDAYS

– Stay hydrated and take it slow

To pace yourself, have no more than one standard drink per hour, with water as “drink spacers” between your alcoholic drinks.

Note that for every person, no matter his size, it takes about 1 hour for the liver to completely digest one standard drink. Sipping on your drink slow and staying well hydrated, keeps the liver from being overloaded; it enables a person to maintain a safe blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and achieve the social relaxation effect that most people desire.

Unsure about the right diet for you? Are you torn between what you’d love to eat and what you hear is unhealthy for you? Sign up for a one-on-one nutrition & diet consultation with leading Mumbai dietitian Munmun Ganeriwal

RELATED ARTICLES

Home is where the detox is

Diwali survival guide: Here’s how to party hard and not gain weight

Five Super Foods to Eat During Exams

7 Diet Tips for a Fantabulous New Year’s Eve

Vishuddha is the chakra located at your throat and neck, and incorporates your thyroid gland. It is one of the seven chakras in your bodies, which are believed to be vital energy centres. The Vishuddha chakra is supposed to be about choice, willpower and the right to speak and be heard.

Since it’s between the head and the heart it works to maintain integrity between what you think and what you feel. When you find it difficult to communicate or express your thoughts and feelings, when you do not believe you have the right to make choices for yourself that empower you or when you feel suppressed by swallowed emotions and feelings, is when the throat chakra is affected that often manifests as thyroid problems in the body.

It is no wonder then that women are five to eight times more likely than men to have thyroid problems (as per American Thyroid Association, ATA). Of course, there are also huge hormonal events only specific to women like pregnancy and menopause, which exposes more women than men to it but for most of the time, women all over the world fail to listen to their inner voice, much less express it. Self-empowerment is the main lesson of this chakra symbol.

Now, self-empowerment comes from within. For first, it comes from taking ownership of the problem instead of blaming the ever-nurturing thyroid gland for weight gain, hair loss, forgetfulness, irritability etc. and second, from making efforts to deal with the hormonal imbalance by improvising your lifestyle before resorting to taking external thyroid hormones in the form of pills/ medicines.

The three main strategies for a healthy lifestyle that will support your thyroid gland (whether you have hypo or hyper thyroidism) and help you reach your optimum body weight (body composition) are-

1.NUTRITION – Nourish, nurture and support your thyroid gland with ‘real’ food and nutrients so that it can function efficiently. Real food is the food that is grown in a soil near you, not wrapped in fancy packaging and flown from a far away land. Processed, industrialized food is rich in sodium, salts and preservatives which creates havoc to the fine, delicate balance of sodium and potassium in your body cells. Hence, that packet of ‘high fibre’ biscuits, ‘multi-grain’ chips, ‘diet’ bhel, ‘anaaj wala’ breakfast cereal etc. that you open in the hope of losing weight, only puts additional stress to the already ‘overworking’ thyroid gland. That you feel only bloated and puffy (instead of feeling lighter) after consuming them only adds to the big, bad story of packaged, processed foods.

What to eat? Instead of hopping onto the latest diet trend wagon of either “low fat” or “low carb” or “high protein” diet, nourish your thyroid with wholesome food. One that is inclusive of all: fibre-rich carbs, indispensable amino acids (protein), essential fats along with vital vitamins and minerals.

The whole grains (jowar/ bajra/ nachni/ wheat/rice) that you eat in the form of rotis, bhaat, thepla, bhakri are not just fibre and carbs, it is also rich in iodine. Adequate iodine is essential for the synthesis of thyroid hormones, almost like basic building blocks. So the moment you give up on rice and roti to lose weight, your thyroid struggles all the more to function for you.

More and more research has found that deficiency of Vit D is significantly associated with thyroid gland malfunction. Now Vit D is a fat-soluble vitamin. So in order to make up for the low Vit D levels, to support your thyroid and to lose weight, you really cannot afford to be fussy about essential fats like ghee, coconut, white butter, filtered oils etc. Your ‘low fat’ ice-cream; ‘skimmed’, ‘double toned’ milk well, will actually do just the opposite for you!

Since iodine combines with tyrosine (protein) in the body to make thyroid hormones, adequate protein in the diet is important and is crucial to optimise metabolism of the body. Make friends with milk, curd, cheese, nuts, eggs, meat, fish, dal, legumes but remember eating them with your whole grains and essential fats. Wholesomeness is when you eat in combination v/s isolation. So say ‘NO’ to dinner of only ‘grilled fish’ and give a big high five to rice and fish curry. Hope you are getting the story!

2. EXERCISE – Thyroid hormones play an important role in bone mineral homeostasis and bone density. Both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism are associated with reduced BMD (bone mineral density) leading to increased fracture risk, osteoporosis and joint pain.

Consistent strength training will help increase BMD & strengthen your musculoskeletal system. Non-weight bearing cardio exercises (like swimming, cycling) will help burn fat without overstressing your joints. The practise of yoga & asana helps in opening and balancing the vishuddha chakra.

Hence, it is ideal to take a broad base approach in exercises too and do a combination of strength, cardio and yoga (on separate days)

3. SLEEP- Hypothyroidism is most often associated with fatigue, also called ‘adrenal fatigue’. And things that trigger ‘adrenal fatigue’ are stress and poor sleep. Deep, restorative sleep is hence crucial and one should be working towards getting enough sleep during the night and a 20 minutes “catnap” post lunch.

So eat, move, sleep and most important, speak and express yourself- assertively and fearlessly. Let your thyroid blossom and feel beautiful!

Read related articles on nutrition

How to Control High Blood Pressure & Stay Healthy?

Cholesterol and Indian diet: Time to stop worrying

PCOD Problem: Lifestyle transformation for women with PCOD

Diabetes control: Eat, Move, Sleep!

Confused by the misinformation about potential health problems with traditional Indian foods? Get in touch with award-winning Mumbai dietitian and nutritionist, Munmun Ganeriwal, a strong advocate of the holistic, wellness benefits of fresh, local, and traditional Indian foods.

It’s the month of January which means its that time of the year when we are either making resolutions or trying to maintain them. At the end of each year, we make different kinds of resolutions and you will agree that a chunk of these resolutions is about losing weight. And most of us will also agree that by end of January, or early February our resolutions begin to fail. Statistics also show that 95 percent of people who do manage to lose weight regain it –at times more than what they had lost, —just within a few months. So why is it that 95 percent of people fail diets.

Well, I choose to believe the other way round. Its 95 percent of diets that fail people. The problem is in those diets that we often look out for in search of weight loss. So here are my 4 things that you should NOT do to lose weight-

1. Do not follow diets- The problem with diets is that it asks you to eat only one thing or totally avoid some other thing. Once you get on a diet, you start looking at food in isolation vs eating wholesome. For eg: A Keto diet that asks you to eat protein and fats but no carbs i.e. no roti, thepla, rice, bhakri etc. In the science of biochemistry, it is often repeated that “Fats burn in the flame of carbohydrates” which means that fats are burnt or utilised for energy in the presence of carbohydrates. So for fat loss, carbs are extremely important.

Or then there is “Low fat diet” where you are allowed to eat everything but no oil, no ghee. Food is either steamed or sautéed or boiled. But more and more research today is asking us to eat fat to cut fat in the body. So we need to eat fat as well.

Hence, rather than hopping onto a diet, make a pledge today to follow a wholesome meal pattern that not only allows you to eat carbs, proteins, fats but also takes account of real life situations like festivals, travels, everyday stresses, work commitments and so on. Because only then your diet becomes sustainable and you lose weight so that it does not come back.

2. Do not practise inconsistency- While I talk about consistency and its importance with my clients, I always mention one of the quotes by Bruce Lee – “It is not about practising 10,000 kinds of kicks, but it is about that one kick practiced 10,000 times”

We often run from one diet to the other, one exercise to the other, we read about some new superfood, some new workout and we just jump on it, only till the time we discover something new again. Fitness rather is a compounding effect of eating and exercising right every single day. Its an ongoing process and you need to work on it consistently. So instead of trying to know and implement the latest fitness regime your favourite celebrity is following, spend time to find your true calling and stay consistent with your own routine. The best of superfoods and exercise in the world will give zero results if you stay inconsistent.

3. Do not stand on a weighing scale- Firstly, your body weight is not an indicator of your fitness. You may weigh more according to the standard height-weight chart but still be light on your feet, energetic and disease free. I am sure you know someone in your life who may not look skinny or thin, but is super fit, does his or her daily activities at home and workplace effortlessly, is full of enthusiasm and is cheerful, happy and certainly not living on medicines. On the other hand, you also must have come across one such person who is skinny but just had a heart attack. In short, your metabolic health, is NOT a function of your body weight. Just like school report card only reflects number and not overall learning of a student, a weighing scale also only reflects a number and not the overall wellbeing of a person. So instead of obsessing over a number on the scale, focus on getting stronger, fitter and healthier.

4. Do not overlook the importance of sleep- The modern curse of not getting sleep these days has a lot to do with the gadgets you use. That’s right, the light that the screens of your phones and TV in your bedroom emit delays the release of a hormone that induces sleep called melatonin, and increases alertness. Not getting enough sleep impairs metabolism and disrupts hormone levels so much that a study led by scientists at the University of Chicago termed sleep deprivation as “the royal route to obesity”. So switch off all the gadgets at least an hour before you go to sleep or still better, just keep it out of your bedroom.

Make this 2018 a special year where you not only lose weight but also keep it away forever; where you not just lose weight but also get healthier and fitter in the process. Until next time, eat right, exercise smart, move more and sleep well. Have a good day!

To check out more videos from us, click here

Other related articles-

1. Dear “Weight loss”

2. Top points that make a “weight loss” diet last forever

3. The ‘scientific’ view on ‘Maa ke haath kaa khana’ on Mother’s day

Image Credit – Scroll.in

Mumbai may not be Delhi yet, but the rising smog and air pollution is taking a toll on the health of city folks. Here’s few simple tips you may follow to bolster up your immunity and stay safe and healthy-

FOOD

1. Jaggery and Ghee – One of the richest sources of iron, JAGGERY helps in increasing the haemoglobin of the body. More RBCs (haemoglobin) = increased oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. This in turn, will help in increasing your lung capacity and ability to fight against the harmful effects of air pollution.

GHEE works as an anti inflammatory agent and will keep you away from allergies (like burning sensation in eyes, dry throat etc.)

HOW TO HAVE– Dip a small piece of jaggery in ghee and have it post meals.

2. Turmeric– Curcumin, the active compound in turmeric, has anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It supports liver detoxification and due to its anti-microbial properties, it’s use is beneficial to fight against harmful bacteria.

HOW TO HAVE– Grandmom recommended and now approved by the
West, sip on the haldi doodh before you go to bed.

 

3. Tulsi– The combo of honey, ginger and tulsi works as a decongestant. The antibiotic, anti-bacterial and detox properties of tulsi also enhances hair health and help soothe your flared up & itchy, irritated skin.

HOW TO HAVE– Make a kadha or herbal decoction from a mix of tulsi, ginger, honey, cardamom and crushed pepper in boiling hot water. Excellent for cough, cold and flu.

– Apply Tulsi paste on skin

– Mix Tulsi powder with coconut oil and apply to scalp

 

4. Amla– One of the richest sources of Vit C, it equips your body to fight infections and improves the body’s immune response. It also helps in digestion by stimulating the secretion of gastric and digestive juices. Healthier gut= Better immunity

HOW TO HAVE– You can make a chutney out of it and have it along with
your meals or have the probiotic-rich Amla murabba as any of your
mid- meals.

5. SAFFRON– The most expensive spice in the world, Kesar is rich in antioxidants like carotenoids, which in turn, helps prevent free radical damage and is beneficial in boosting resistance against infections.

HOW TO HAVE– Take 4-5 strands of kesar and soak it in water overnight or for 2-3 hours. Have it first thing in the morning along with its water in the morning.

 

EXERCISE

1. Surya namaskar (sun salutation) and poses that open the chest, throat, and sinuses help eliminate mucus and remove congestion in the respiratory organs.

2. Few simple poses or asanas that one can practise are the fish (matsyasana), boat (paripurna navasana), bow (dhanurasana), locust (salabhasana), and camel (ustrasana) poses, along with inversions like shoulderstand (sarvangasana) and the headstand (shirshasana).

These simple yoga poses will help get the blood flowing to increase immunity and build your health & vitality.

 

ADDITIONAL POINTERS

1. Steam inhalation with lemon grass– Lemongrass has antibacterial and antifungal properties that help you cope with cough, flu and cold. Loaded with Vitamin C, it also boosts the immune system of the body to fight the infection. For sinusitis, cold, and bronchitis a steam inhalation is very helpful. Boil a handful of lemon grass leaves in water & inhale.

2. Rub ghee inside your nostrils– Just before you step out of the house, apply a thin layer of ghee with your little finger to the insides of your nostrils. This helps get rid of the acute effects of pollution and prevents allergies, rhinitis etc.

Keep yourself happy by keeping yourself healthy. Let well-known Mumbai dietitian and fitness expert Munmun Ganeriwal design a nutrition, exercise and lifestyle transformation program that elevates your overall sense of well-being. Contact us now for an in-depth consultation.

NOTE- I had written this article for Entrepreneur India & it was published on 23rd June 2017. Read on…

According to the ancient Indian philosophy of Yoga, the ‘Annamaya kosha’ (our physical body) and our ‘Mana’ (mind) is a direct reflection of the ‘Anna’ (food) we eat. Fascinating new researchers agree with this ancient philosophy and is now telling us that what we eat, how we eat and at what time, all affect our body and brain, deciding not only how we look but also how well we can take decisions, execute plans, basically our cognitive performance.

Getting their ‘diet’ right hence is crucial for Entrepreneurs to balance the risk/reward, flowchart growth, crack deals, meet deadlines, plan strategies and look presentable all at a time.

“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing” So says Walt Disney and so I shall straight away list out a 5-points ‘Eat Right Action Plan’–

1. Wake up to ‘real’ food –

“A good beginning makes a good ending”, says an Italian proverb. Starting off your day right is crucial for entrepreneurs as it will keep you high on energy and light on your feet all day. Most of us love to have our cup of tea/ coffee the first thing in the morning, almost like an everyday romance: fingers hugging the hot cup of fresh brew close to the lips, taking in each sip with all the aroma and warmth it offers. But sorry to burst your bubble, tea/ coffee is not the best drink as you wake up.

Tea/ coffee, of any variety it may be, has caffeine in it. Studies suggest that caffeine triggers release of cortisol (also called ‘stress’ hormone). A big bump in cortisol puts your body in a ‘stress’ mode and slows down metabolism, breaks down muscle, hampers fat burning, increases blood pressure etc. This ‘stress rush’ is part of the reason why we feel ‘awake’ or ‘alert’ after our morning cuppa.

While we sleep, all our body processes slow down. As we wake up, the body systems also need time to wake up and start functioning in its full capacity. In such situation, it is better to eat ‘real’ food that is easy on it v/s something that will further load or stress it out.

Action Plan (1) – Start your day with a fruit/ dry fruits/ handful of nuts or hot homemade breakfast within half an hour of waking up. Post this meal, you can enjoy your morning cup of tea/ coffee.

2. Planning meals ahead–

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail” said Benjamin Franklin. Everyone in business knows that planning helps prevent crisis so that you spend less time firefighting and stay ahead of the game.

Similarly, if you do not want to be caught up in food crisis/ accidents (like gorging on a pastry at 6pm when you had just decided to eat healthier in the morning), you need to be planning ahead for your meals.

Eating small, frequent meals every 2-3 hours gives a slow, sustained release of blood sugar which in turn keeps your mind alert and body energetic through the day without feeling the need for stimulants like tea/ coffee/ cigarettes.

Action Plan (2) – Plan for your lunch and evening snack (between 4-6pm) in advance. For mid meals, nuts, dry fruits, chana, fruits, yoghurt, cheese slice, coconut water, nimbu sherbets are great options.

3. Local food, global spirit –

Indian entrepreneurs, today are going global like never before. For an undying global spirit, what we must stay true to is eating local.

Eating local and seasonal foods is good for your health, supports the local economy and benefits the environment at large. Whereas eating foods from far off places, industrialized and packaged, adds inches to your waist line, hampers work productivity and will negatively affect your bottom line.

Action Plan (3) – Replace the cookies/ biscuits in meetings with peanuts/ cashews, aerated drinks/ colas with buttermilk/local sherbets, cakes/ pastries with chikki/ laddoo/ dates etc.

4. Add ghee to your meals –

Ever wondered what the traditional business communities (Marwaris/ Gujaratis/ Parsis/ Sindhis) of India eat in common? It’s the GHEE. Ghee being rich in omega 3 boosts brain power and improves memory and cognitive function. Its unique SCFA accelerates fat burning giving you a younger body and sharper mind.

Action Plan (4) – Make sure you have at least 1 tsp of ghee or white butter each with breakfast/ lunch/ dinner.

5. Keep a 2 hours gap between dinner & bedtime –

Eating a wholesome dinner that is not close to bedtime will allow enough time for digestion to occur, induce sound sleep and reduce the chance of waking up tired, bloated or acidic the next morning. In short, you would be all set to take the busy day head on!

Action Plan (5) – Choose between dinner options like curd rice, rice & dal/ sambhar, khichdi, appam & stew etc and have it 2-3 hours before you go to bed.

The founder of modern management, Peter Drucker, says- “Entrepreneurship is neither a science nor an art. It is a practice.” So much like ‘Eating Right’, a practise that only leads to good health and happiness!

IMAGE CREDIT – Entrepreneur India/ Shutterstock.com

Watch Ravdeep Singh from Ludhiana talk about his weight loss journey to 15kgs lighter and tonnes more happier and fitter!

Check out the video to know the top points that make a “weight loss” diet last forever –

1. Should allow you to eat according to your region, religion and liking. Food is very personal.
Food is more than its calories

2. Should make you feel happy, energetic and fit. NOT dull, tired, fatigued and depressed

3. Your diet should blend with your lifestyle. NOT you trying to create a new lifestyle that
would ‘fit in’ with the diet plan

4. Should be as simple as divinity itself. NOT complicated that you cannot sustain it forever

Trying to lose weight without going on an extreme diet? Let dietitian & nutritionist Munmun Ganeriwal who specialises in Indian food help you with a holistic weight loss program. Contact us now to know more or set up a consultation!

The journey of ghee in India has very much been similar to that of yoga. From being thousand years old wisdom that originated in our land, to getting dismissed and disregarded by ‘modern day’ gurus and scientists only to be picked up by the West and reintroduced to us by a different name, both are India’s greatest export to the world.

Ghee or ‘clarified butter’ (as they call it in the West) has always been considered as the promotive of health, memory, intelligence, fertility, of vital essence and nourishment in Ayurveda. Food cooked in desi/ asli ghee used to be a status of prosperity and good health. Until, sometime in 1970s, nutritionists, doctors and pharma companies joined hands to poop that party. A low fat diet was pushed by U.S. Dietary Guidelines in 1977. “Saturated fat is bad for our heart, increases cholesterol and causes heart attacks”, they said. Back at home, we too listened to it and dropped our ghee. Ghee thus made an exit from our foods, our plates and our kitchens.

THE RE-EMERGENCE OF GHEE AS A SUPERFOOD

Now fast forward to today and here’s a new thought – what if research issued 40 years ago was not based on solid evidence? What if we were wrong about ghee?

In the latest review of studies that investigated the link between dietary fat and heart health, researchers say the guidelines in the 1970s got it all wrong. In fact, recommendations to reduce the amount of fat we eat every day should never have been made. In April 2015, USDA reviewed its guidelines and removed the dietary cholesterol upper limit declaring that fat/ cholesterol from food had little to do with the cholesterol circulating in the body. American supermarkets started stocking ‘Indian ghee’ and promoted it as ‘liquid gold’. In Nov 2015, Ghee made it to the list of “The 50 new healthiest foods of all time” by TIME magazine.

So amongst food companies, government policies and scientific bodies, a 5,000-year-old wisdom got erased to be reintroduced as the ‘new’ health food. But the question is –Will ladoos, halwas, parathas smothered with ghee regain its lost glory? Will we be able to overcome a fear that has lived with us for 40 years?

READ ALSO-

BENEFITS OF BUTTER– A day spent BETTER with BUTTER

The traditional bhog/ naivedyam offered to Gods not only during Holi but on all special occasions : Puran poli and why you must eat it –

1. Weight loss – With a high Nutrient to calorie ratio, it increases satiety. Being full of good fat and with optimum fibre content and low GI, it accelerates fat burning

2. Diabetic – The maida poli when stuffed with pulses-jaggery mixture and eaten with generous amounts of ghee becomes low on glycaemic index and helps to stabilize blood sugar and insulin levels

3. Cancer – Rich in phyto chemicals and antioxidants, pulses (chana dal/ arhar dal) contain anti cancer properties

4. Builds immunity- Ghee, hailed as the new “Superfood” has anti bacterial anti viral properties and increases your immunity against allergies and infections (much needed after long hours of colour -playing session J)

5. Blood pressure – The potassium and magnesium in jaggery regulates the blood pressure and the acid-base balance in the blood and tissues

6. Aids digestion – Ghee is a rich source of butyric acid, which helps maintain the integrity of intestinal wall

7. Osteoporosis – The calcium found in pulses contributes to promoting bone health and reducing the risk of osteoporotic fractures

8. PCOD – The many essential minerals found in jaggery makes it the traditional therapy for reducing PMS, cravings, cramps and mood swings

9. Thyroid – Ghee is crucial for assimilation of fat-soluble Vit D, the vitamin that helps support your thyroid gland

10. Anaemia – Because of the high iron content found in jaggery and pulses, it is good for preventing iron deficiency anaemia

Have a delicious and colourful Holi!